Lies & Damned Lies

Thanks to Gene

Conservative Christian, Right-wing Republican by Todd Snider Is Funny, I Don't Care Who You Are

Thanks to Jennifer

Thoughts On Earth Day From Reverend Sandi

"Everything in nature has a trademark, God's trademark: the stripes on a shell and the stripes on a zebra; the grain of the wood and the veins of the dry leaf; the markings on the dragonfly's wings and the pattern of stars on a photographic plate; the panther's coat and the epidernal cells of the lily petal; the structure of atoms and galaxies. All bear God's fingerprints." Ernesto Cardenal's Abide in Love

Particularly today, honor Earth by paying attention.

More On Happiness & Relationships. Would You Arrange A Marriage For Your Daughter With This Lad?

"If you want to know whether your marriage will survive, look at your spouse's yearbook photos. Psychologists have found that how much people smile in old photographs can predict their later success in marriage.

In one test, the researchers looked at people's college yearbook photos, and rated their smile intensity from 1 to 10. None of the people who fell within the top 10 percent of smile strength had divorced, while within the bottom 10 percent of smilers, almost one in four had had a marriage that ended, the researchers say. (Scoring was based on the stretch in two muscles: one that pulls up on the mouth, and one that creates wrinkles around the eyes.)

In a second trial, the research team asked people over age 65 to provide photos from their childhood (the average age in the pictures was 10 years old). The researchers scored each person's smile, and found that only 11 percent of the biggest smilers had been divorced, while 31 percent of the frowners had experienced a broken marriage.

Overall, the results indicate that people who frown in photos are five times more likely to get a divorce than people who smile.. . . " Smiles Predict Marriage Success

Only Two Types of Fighters -The Quick & The Dead. Better to Just Let Go.

When relationships have run their course, it's better to just part, without fighting & blaming. This leaves both parties whole and alive. This doesn't mean that you can't be pissed & ask Art to call him or her a bitch or a bastard. Still, just let um go & realize they're doing the best they can too. This is often more easily said than done and still painful but worth it.

Tree by Martin

I figured a tree would be appropriate on Good Friday, since that was the day Our Lord was nailed to one. This particular tree is a portrait of Cousin Jim. Martin did it after Jim came in one day about forty years ago screaming "The trees have inspired me." He had been depressed and upon seeing an oak just standing there taking what it needed from the sky and the soil and not fretting, had a satori experience. Martin started calling Jim "Tree," and everyone else followed suit for the rest of the year, and some to this day. Martin & Jim are older, but pretty much the same in a lot of ways.

James T's Over the Edge.

This is already one of my favorites, and I just found it.

Happy Easter, But Read This Book Lest You Expose Our Children To The Devil.

Summary: Are Your Children Playing With Lucifer's Testicles? is a Bible based book for Christian parents who by lack of faith can't afford to send their children to a decent Christian school. Their precious youngsters are infected by the secular filth and lies being taught by unsaved teachers in America's public school system. The book teaches parents how to easily explain to their children that Easter (as it is celebrated by the Unsaved) has absolutely nothing to do with Jesus Christ but is actually a holiday celebrating lewd and sexually explicit pagan rituals of fertility. "It's not that difficult to understand," says Author/Creation Scientist, Dr. Daniel Cameroon. "In the old days, deluded pagans would gather round and hump like bunnies on Easter Sunday because they thought it would make their tomatoes grow faster." Dr. Cameroon explains that it doesn't matter what god or idol the Pagans were humping under on Easter Sunday, because any god other than "Jesus" is "Satan." Dr. Cameroon dedicates four chapters in the book to Easter Eggs. "Easter Eggs are one of the wiliest tools of the Devil," he says. "Pagan kids didn't have anything to do on Easter Sunday because their mommies and daddies were stuck in a false temple all day, naked and writhing around with their neighbors in Satanic orgies of the flesh. You see, parents had to come up with a way to occupy their children while they were away from home, praying and fornicating under the altar of Satan. And since they didn't have babysitters back then, they gave their kids eggs to play with and sometimes paint," he says. "But the reason they chose eggs had nothing to do with any sort of fertility or fertilizers (as some misguided Christian historians would have you believe). Nope, it was because of Lucifer's testicles! Glory to God! And I won't say a word more about it! I don't want to ruin the book for you!" Are Your Children Playing With Lucifer's Testicles? (The Truth About Easter Eggs) is a wonderfully informative and well-researched Christian book which consolidates a 2-month Adult Remedial Sunday School series into two-hundred exciting and easy to read pages along with memorable illustrations. Are Your Children Playing With Lucifer's Testicles? or "PWLT" as the book is now referred to in the Southern Baptist Sunday School Teachers catalogue takes the reader on an unforgettable journey that traces the pagan (Satanic) origins of secular (Satanic) Easter, with a specific focus on the origin of "Easter Eggs."
Click here to order from landover-baptizon.com

Speaking of Making Happy

Thanks to Carol

Ten Tips for Being Happier.

2. Do let the sun go down on anger.

I had always scrupulously aired every irritation as soon as possible, to make sure I vented all bad feelings before bedtime. Studies show, however, that the notion of anger catharsis is poppycock. Expressing anger related to minor, fleeting annoyances just amplifies bad feelings, while not expressing anger often allows it to dissipate.

3. Fake it till you feel it.
Feelings follow actions. If I’m feeling low, I deliberately act cheery, and I find myself actually feeling happier. If I’m feeling angry at someone, I do something thoughtful for her and my feelings toward her soften. This strategy is uncannily effective.

4. Realize that anything worth doing is worth doing badly.
Challenge and novelty are key elements of happiness. The brain is stimulated by surprise, and successfully dealing with an unexpected situation gives a powerful sense of satisfaction. People who do new things — learn a game, travel to unfamiliar places — are happier than people who stick to familiar activities that they already do well. I often remind myself to “Enjoy the fun of failure” and tackle some daunting goal. The Happiness Project Tips: Ten tips for being happier.

Thanks to Anon 3:20's comment on Spanking away depression

Capitalism with a conscience

Virg: I was pleased when the phrase, "Capitalism with a conscience" was used at the recent G-20 summit (I think by Sarkozy). It is past time for this country to adopt that mindset. The competitive, exploitative nature of pure capitalism does not have a place in a country (or world) that claims to have a moral basis. Certainly personal economic incentive needs to be preserved; without it technical progress would be limited, we all know that. However, it needs to serve a "higher purpose" (as I think our President said). My hope is that the above statement heralds a new, humanitarian, post-capitalism age. In unfettered capitalism, someone loses, someone is on the bottom, someone is exploited (witness the robber barons of the past decade). The art is in the application of the fetters, but we're certainly up to the task, aren't we?

Obama Doesn't Fondle Queen-Bush Says He'll Never Be A Bonesman-Merkel Relieved