No one finds life worth living. One must make it worth living.

 No one finds life worth living. One must make it worth living.

Nothing worthwhile comes easily

Nothing worthwhile comes easily.

Half effort does not produce half results,

in fact it produces no results.

Work, continuous work and hard work are

the only ways to accomplish results that last.

I survived because the fire inside me burned brighter than the fire around me.

I survived because the fire inside me burned brighter than the fire around me.

If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or objects.

If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or objects.

Sheaffer Snorkel fountain pen

Sheaffer Snorkel fountain pen
 

Sheaffer Snorkel fountain pen in Dove grey colored with X5 14k Gold with silver clad nib.

Sheaffer Snorkel Masterpiece Gold fountain pen

Sheaffer Snorkel Masterpiece Gold fountain pen

Sheaffer Snorkel Masterpiece Gold fountain pen

Work brings profit; talk brings poverty

Work brings profit; talk brings poverty

I am learning how to walk away from situations or People who threaten my peace of mind, Self-respect or Self-worth.

I am learning how to walk away from situations or People who threaten my peace of mind, Self-respect or Self-worth.

How you make others feel about themselves, says a lot about you.

Details of pen

Craters of Moon

Craters of the moon

Picture of the same moon

The top picture is taken through a telescope, hence you can see the craters of the moon.

The bottom picture of the moon is taken with a DSLR camera, but you cannot see the craters.

Richard Mille watch

https://instagram.com/p/6-UBRpj1v1/

No one is busy in this world, it is all about priorities.

No one is busy in this world, it is all about priorities.

Golden dome in Kremlin Moscow

Kremlin under cloudy sky

Astronomical clock in old town Prague

Astronomical clock in old town Prague

On Sunday my coffee is recreational, as opposed to weekdays when it is medicinal.

On Sunday my coffee is recreational, as opposed to weekdays when it is medicinal.

Healthy Smoothie Recipes: 4 Smoothies That Shed Pounds Fast!

Healthy Smoothie Recipes: 4 Smoothies That Shed Pounds Fast!: 4 Smoothies That Shed Pounds Fast! Shed pounds fast. Smoothies are a healthy weight loss option. All The Recipes  You N...

Faith is passed on by contact, from one person to another, just as one candle is lighted from another.



Faith is passed on by contact,

 

 

Faith is passed on by contact, from one person to another, just as one candle is lighted from another.

 Pope Francis

New chip on credit card

Credit card with the chip

The new chip card is called EMV, which actually stands for Europay, MasterCard and Visa.
One of the very important byproducts of that is that the chip itself is an encrypted chip that’s very secure, the chip contains all of the information from the card--it keeps the current balance and all of the parameter settings and details about the consumer.
The magstripe that’s on the back of most of our plastics, the chip offers an additional layer of security in addition to the normal security that comes with a payment card. The difference is, when you use a magstripe card, you just swipe it down and it authorizes. With the chip card, you actually insert the card into the machine, it clamps down on the chip and reads the chip, and then it does the authorization.

This chip prevents the type of fraud called counterfeit fraud.
That’s where I get your number, manufacture a fake card, and when I come into the store, I’ve got a card with my name on it that matches my ID but really it’s swiping your information. It looks like I’m me but I’m actually counterfeiting myself as you.
The chip eliminates that because even if I steal all of your information, I cannot create a chip.
There’s a lot of technology behind that, but really what it does is allows for an encrypted image of the consumer to be protected against counterfeiting.
So in short on a stolen card, the name and other information on the magnetic strip would be different from the information on the chip, so this way the fraud can be prevented.

Love to pray

Mother Teresa on Prayer

 

Love  to  pray, gradually increase the number of times you pray during

the day. It is a matter of practice, as you spend more time praying,

you will pray better.

Prayer  enlarges  the  heart  until  it's  capable  of  containing God's  gift of  himself . Ask  and  seek  and  your  heart  will  grow  big  enough  to receive  Him  and  keep  Him  as  your  own.  Once  we  have  met  the  living  God , and  we  have  been  attracted  by  His  goodness, we find  ourselves  increasingly  drawn  into  prayer.

What  before  was  a  simple  duty, now  becomes  a  delight.

Mother Teresa was convinced that prayer was something simple, easily accessible, life giving and that prayer transformed us in a way, as no amount of effort at self improvement ever could.

 

Mother Teresa would spend time simply being present with the poor

Mother  Teresa's  own  desire to  live with  the  poor, led her  to  dwell  in  their  midst  to 

share  their  poverty . 

Beyond  whatever  material  assistance she  gave  to  the  poor , she  made  it  a  point 

to , first  of  all , sit with  them, listen to  them  and  comfort  them.

She  would  spend  time  simply being  present  with  the  poor, face to  face  and  heart  to  heart with those  who  had  no  one -  knowing that  no  amount  of  blankets  or  bricks  could  warm the  human heart, nor any government  program  could give  the  gift of  belonging

Hold your wife's hand in the mall, because if you let go,

Hold your wife's hand in the mall, because if you let go, then she will do shopping.

Benefits of holding hands:
1) Looks romantic.
2) Sends a signal to other men, that she is with someone.
3) Economic benefit, she shops less.

Patricia lake, Banff, Canada

Patricia lake, Banff, Canada

Mother Teresa to her donors who give generous checks to her:

Mother Teresa to her donors who give generous checks to her

Mother Teresa to her donors who give generous checks to her:

"I hope that your contribution is not from your surplus but it is the fruit of a sacrifice made for the love of God. 

M. Teresa pen

God loves a cheerful giver

Each one must do as he has made up his mind, not reluctantly or under pressure, for God loves a cheerful giver. He gives most who gives with joy. If in your work you have difficulties accept them with joy, with a big smile.

The best way to show gratitude to God and people is to accept everything with Joy.

Mother Teresa

Pope Francis delivering a message at the Vatican

In  the  poor  and  outcast  we  see  Christ's face ; by  loving  and  helping  the  poor , we  love  and  serve  Christ .  Our  efforts  are  also  directed  towards ending  violations  of human  dignity, discrimination  and  abuse  in  the  world , for  these  are  so  often  the  cause  of  destitution . 

When  power , luxury  and  money  become  idols, they  take  priority  over  the  need  for  a  fair  distribution  of  wealth .  Our  consciences  thus  need to  be  converted  to  justice ,  equality ,  simplicity  and  sharing .  

 



Pope Francis's message at the Vatican
 

 

The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind.

 

The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind.
But the goodness of a person spreads in all direction.
Mother Teresa

IPhone Short cut

IPhone Short cut
The  hidden  Web  address  suffix  keys 
On  the  iPhone , if  you  want  to  type  a Web  address  or  email  address,  instead  of  typing  the  entire . Com  or . Org, you  can  try  this  short  cut  :
If you hold  down  your  finger on  the  period  key (.), you  will  get  a  pop  up  menu  for  common  endings  of  Web  addresses  e:g .com , . gov, .edu.

Mother Teresa on Family members:

Mother Teresa on Family members:
Peace and war start within our own house. Let us start by loving our own family members. Familiarity breeds contempt and so sometimes it is hard for us to even smile at one other. It is easy to love those who live far away, but it is not always easy to love those who live right next to us. But Mother Teresa says we must love our family members.

For example:
It is easier to offer food to feed the hunger of a homeless person on the street, but it is difficult to comfort the loneliness of aging parents living with us, who do not feel loved.

"If our poor die of hunger, it is not because God does not care for them. Rather, it is because we are not generous enough."

Mother Teresa said "If our poor die of hunger, it is not because God does not care for them. Rather, it is because we are not generous enough."

Imagine this situation:
After dinner, we may have excess food and we may throw it in the garbage because:
1) We do not know that there may be a hungry person in our neighborhood.
2) We do not know or we may have forgotten that there is a person that we know who is lonely (lives alone, or family is out of town) and that lonely person can consume some excess food.
3) In fact we may be busy looking forward to our favorite TV show whereby the  thought of giving away the excess food does not cross our mind. 

Mother Teresa on Compassion

Mother Teresa on Compassion
Have a deep compassion for people.
To be able to have a heart full of compassion, we need to pray.
Especially be kind and loving to the poor. We think we do so much for the poor, but it is they who make us rich. We are in debt to them.

Imagine a situation:
We help a poor person with a small amount of money or small quantity of food, the small portion maybe insignificant for us, but for the poor person, that much less money or food he has to arrange, whereby he may bless us in his heart, which makes us rich.

Sunflower

Coffee on the wall

Coffee on wall :---

I sat with my friend in a well-known coffee shop in a neighboring town of Venice (Italy), the city of lights and water.

As we enjoyed our coffee, a man entered and sat at an empty table beside us.

He called the waiter and placed his order saying,

‘Two cups of coffee, one of them there on the wall.’

We heard this order with rather interest and observed that he was served with one cup of coffee but he paid for two.

As soon as he left, the waiter pasted a piece of paper on the wall saying
‘A Cup of Coffee’.

While we were still there, two other men entered and ordered three cups of coffee, two on the table and one on the wall.

They had the two cups of coffee but paid for three and left.

This time also, the waiter did the same;

he pasted a piece of paper on the wall saying, ‘A Cup of Coffee’.

It was something unique and perplexing for us.

We finished our coffee, paid the bill and left.

After a few days, we had a chance to go to this coffee shop again.

While we were enjoying our coffee, a man poorly dressed entered.

As he seated himself, he looked at the wall and said, 'One cup of coffee from the wall'.

The waiter served coffee to this man with the customary respect and dignity.

The man had his coffee and left without paying.

We were amazed to watch all this, as the waiter took off a piece of paper from the wall and threw it in the dust bin.

Now it was no surprise for us – the matter was very clear.

The great respect for the needy shown by the inhabitants of this town made our eyes well up in tears.

Ponder upon the need of what this man wanted...

He enters the coffee shop without having to lower his self-esteem…

he has no need to ask for a free cup of coffee…

without asking or knowing about the one who is giving this cup of coffee to him.

He only looked at the wall, placed an order for himself, enjoyed his coffee and left.

... probably the most beautiful wall you may ever see anywhere....!!!

Mother Teresa on Sin and Forgiveness:

Mother Teresa on Sin and Forgiveness:
When we realize that we are all sinners needing forgiveness, It will be easy for us to forgive others.
We have to be forgiven in order to forgive.
Unless we understand this, it will be very hard for us to say the words "We forgive you" to anyone who comes our way

The more you care about the powerless, the more power you have.

Mother Teresa principle:
The more you care about the powerless, the more power you have. The more you serve people with no influence, the more influence God gives you. The more you humble yourself, the more you are honored by others.

This is how I have understood this principle:
We sympathize with powerless people but when it is in our own family, our own career or our own reputation is at stake, then we do not take the risk and we normally support the people with power.

Often the odds are against the powerless people, they are likely to lose. Even if they are right and in our hearts we support them, but supporting the powerless is to risk failure, disapproval, end of a career, end of promotion etc. So we love the powerless, but we tend to follow the powerful people, we do what is respectable.

However, not every powerless person is right and not every powerless person's issues are important. But some are. From time to time we will discover a powerless person who needs the kind of help we can give, because of our position and our belief we should help that powerless person.
Later on when we look back at our life, we may conclude that fighting for a few powerless people was one of the most meaningful things we ever did.

Chicago Miracle mile

Miracle mile in Chicago

Night skyline on Michigan ave in Chicago

Pebble beach, CAlifornia

Manhattan beach CAlifornia

Manhattan beach CA

Ragged point at big sur California

Ragged point at big sur California

Tennis courts at Hearst castle, California

Tennis courts at Hearst castle, California

How to keep bananas fresh longer

Wrap banana crowns in plastic wrap or scotch tape to keep them fresh for a longer time.

Your bananas will stay ripe for about 3 extra days just by wrapping the top.

Your body can stand almost anything, its your mind that needs to be convinced.

Your body can stand almost anything, its your mind that needs to be convinced.

Tips on attending Graduation

Graduation ceremony online:Most of the colleges show the graduation ceremony online, find out the link and give it to friends and relatives who would be interested in watching.

Screen shot of the Graduate
 As a parent of the graduate, even if you are attending the graduation ceremony in person, simultaneously, do watch it online on your mobile device because when the graduate is awarded the  degree, the videographer takes a lovely picture of the graduate, which is visible on your mobile device. At that time take a screen shot on your mobile device. This would be a good memory.

Empire  state  building  saluting  Columbia  University  graduates 

 Carry a Charging bank
Watching live telecast of the graduation ceremony can drain the battery of your mobile device, so carry a fully charged Portable power bank and if required, re-charge your battery, whereby you do not miss the picture of a lifetime.

Columbia Graduates

Columbia Library

Consumer Reports ratings on coffee makers

The most recent edition of Consumer Reports rates a number of popular coffee makers. One of the criteria is the ability of the coffeemaker to brew coffee at 200F.Consumer Reports rated the following coffeemarkers as excellent in brewing coffee at 200F:

• Cusinart Brew Central
• Michael Graves 40304
• Oster Counterforms 4281
• Zojirushi Fresh Brew
• Krups Coffee Machine
• Kitchen Aid Pro Line KPCM050MNP
• Mr. Coffee JWX27
• Hamilton Beach Day or Go 45237

Cartier Pasha Platinum Rollerball pen

Don't worry about hard times, because some of the most beautiful things we have in life came from changes or mistakes.

Don't worry about hard times, because some of the most beautiful things we have in life came from changes or mistakes.

The worst feeling is feeling unwanted by the person you want the most.

The worst feeling is feeling unwanted by the person you wantthe most.

The worst feeling is

feeling unwanted by the

person you want the most

Ignore History, 'BC' stands for Before Coffee

Ignore History, 'BC' stands for Before Coffee

Different types of Orchid flowers

 

Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France

Inside the Notre dame Cathedral

Show respect even to people who do not deserve it

Show respect even to people who do not deserve it;

 

Not as a reflection of their character,

 

But as a reflection of yours

Gold plated Dunes Ballpoint pen

Gold plated Dunes Ballpoint pen

 Gold plated Dunes Ballpoint pen The Gold plated dunes pen is the finest ever developed. Made of 999 sterling silver, the clip is made of 925 Silver. It has shiny flat cap which can be engraved. This twist action ballpoint pen is 5.25 inches long and takes Cross type refills. The Width of the pen=10mm

 

shiny flat cap which can be engraved