Just for Fun

For this election, there will be many voters who don't vote properly. Reading up, hearing/seeing debates, focusing on the issues that the candidates present are important steps in learning how to vote properly.

This site below however, should not be the basis on what you vote with, but it's something interesting and maybe fun if you like this sort of thing:

http://www.speakout.com/VoteMatch/senate2006.asp?quiz=2008

there is a small quiz you can take, that questions your stances on some of the key issues today, has information about them and has information about the candidates,etc.

Please don't use this as your only reason for voting who you vote for. Like many things, do it responsibly or don't do it at all. Look at all your options before picking. Keep an open mind and don't just look at democrats vs. republicans. It is not all black and white, their stances are individual and different. We have a democratic republic in this country, and the leader you choose will be influenced by many things. The nation cannot turn on a dime.  

Ben Stein Article

I think that this article really shows us how we interpret "leaders" in this nation today. We worship actresses/actors, socialites, basically the rich and famous...for what? Maybe we should all stop buying junk gossip magazines, stop buying into the fads that the celebutantes and overtly wealthy keep sucking us into. Maybe we should be putting other types of heroes or leaders on the covers of magazines, like the ones Ben Stein talks about. I think its time we stop paying attention to the people who don't know the meaning of being a good role model, or knowing what it is to sacrifice. The world is full of great people, great leaders who should be receiving our recognition, not our neglect.

Ben Stein's Last Column...


For many years Ben Stein has written a biweekly column called 'Monday Night At Morton's.' (Morton's is a famous chain of Steakhouses known to be frequented by movie stars and famous people from around the globe.) Now, Ben is terminating the column to move on to other things in his life. Reading his final column is worth a few minutes of your time.

Ben Stein's Last Column...
============================================
How Can Someone Who Lives in Insane Luxury Be a Star in Today's World?

As I begin to write this, I 'slug' it, as we writers say, which means I put a heading on top of the document to identify it. This heading is 'eonlineFIN AL,' and it gives me a shiver to write it. I have been doing this column for so long that I cannot even recall when I started. I loved writing this column so much for so long I came to believe it would never end..

It worked well for a long time, but gradually, my changing as a person and the world's change have overtaken it. On a small scale, Morton's, while better than ever, no longer attracts as many stars as it used to. It still brings in the rich people in droves and definitely some stars. I saw Samuel L. Jackson there a few days ago, and we had a nice visit, and right before that, I saw and had a splendid talk with Warren Beatty in an elevator, in which we agreed that Splendor in the Grass was a super movie. But Morton's is not the star galaxy it once was, though it probably will be again.

Beyond that, a bigger change has happened. I no longer think Hollywood stars are terribly important. They are uniformly pleasant, friendly people, and they treat me better than I deserve to be treated. But a man or woman who makes a huge wage for memorizing lines and reciting them in front of a camera is no longer my idea of a shining star we should all look up to.

How can a man or woman who makes an eight-figure wage and lives in insane luxury really be a star in today's world, if by a 'star' we mean someone bright and powerful and attractive as a role model? Real stars are not riding around in the backs of limousines or in Porsches or getting trained in yoga or Pilates and eating only raw fruit while they have Vietnamese girls do their nails.

They can be interesting, nice people, but they are not heroes to me any longer. A real star is the soldier of the 4th Infantry Division who poked his head into a hole on a farm near Tikrit , Iraq. He could have been met by a bomb or a hail of AK-47 bullets. Instead, he faced an abject Saddam Hussein and the gratitude of all of the decent people of the world.

A real star is the U.S. soldier who was sent to disarm a bomb next to a road north of Baghdad. He approached it, and the bomb went off and killed him.

A real star, the kind who haunts my memory night and day, is the U.S. soldier in Baghdad who saw a little girl playing with a piece of unexploded ordnance on a street near where he was guarding a station. He pushed her aside and threw himself on it just as it exploded. He left a family desolate in California and a little girl alive in Baghdad .

The stars who deserve media attention are not the ones who have lavish weddings on TV but the ones who patrol the streets of Mosul even after two of their buddies were murdered and their bodies battered and stripped for the sin of trying to protect Iraqis from terrorists.

We put couples with incomes of $100 million a year on the covers of our magazines. The noncoms and officers who barely scrape by on military pay but stand on guard in Afghanistan and Iraq and on ships and in submarines and near the Arctic Circle are anonymous as they live and die.

I am no longer comfortable being a part of the system that has such poor values, and I do not want to perpetuate those values by pretending that who is eating at Morton's is a big subject.

There are plenty of other stars in the American firmament...the policemen and women who go off on patrol in South Central and have no idea if they will return alive; the orderlies and paramedics who bring in people who have been in terrible accidents and prepare them for surgery; the teachers and nurses who throw their whole spirits into caring for autistic children; the kind men and women who work in hospices and in cancer wards.

Think of each and every fireman who was running up the stairs at the World Trade Center as the towers began to collapse. Now you have my idea of a real hero.

I came to realize that life lived to help others is the only one that matters. This is my highest and best use as a human. I can put it another way. Years ago, I realized I could never be as great an actor as Olivier or as good a comic as Steve Martin...or Martin Mull or Fred Willard--or as good an economist as Samuelson or Friedman or as good a writer as Fitzgerald. Or even remotely close to any of them.

But I could be a devoted father to my son, husband to my wife and, above all, a good son to the parents who had done so much for me. This came to be my main task in life. I did it moderately well with my son, pretty well with my wife and well indeed with my parents (with my sister's help). I cared for and paid attention to them in their declining years. I stayed with my father as he got sick, went into extremis and then into a coma and then entered immortality with my sister and me reading him the Psalms.

This was the only point at which my life touched the lives of the soldiers in Iraq or the firefighters in New York . I came to realize that life lived to help others is the only one that matters and that it is my duty, in return for the lavish life God has devolved upon me, to help others He has placed in my path. This is my highest and best use as a human.


Faith is not believing that God can. It is knowing that God will.
By Ben Stein



We truly take a lot for granted.
Forget the Hollywood 'stars' and the sports 'heroes'...

My living obituary for Casey Hentrup

I had the chance to meet Miss Casey Hentrup for our Living Obit assignment, she was super fun to talk to and I found out a lot of valuable information about her. I'm glad to know that there are more people in class than a bunch of jokers and people who don't take the class half as serious as they should. Casey is a great girl and would make a great leader one day.

A giving spirit, faithful daughter and travel junkie, Casey Hentrup is a bubbly and friendly soul. Her passions lie in the giving of herself to aid those in need, particularly in New Orleans, Louisiana through the Katrina Relief Project. The ability to give her time and labor to those in suffering help her to be a better person. Casey not only volunteers on large scale operations, but those of a more intimate, close community scale. Membership with the Boiler Volunteer Network in the Lafayette/West Lafayette home front helps her to fulfill her need to better herself through community service. As well as feeling her social responsibility to mankind, she as the oldest child in her family, feels strong ties and responsibility toward her parents. Casey is grateful to her parents' paying for her college degree, always wanting to give back to them in any way she can. Not only loving to her fellow man, Casey adores animals, particularly her three cats at home with her parents. Her ultimate goal is to manage her own firm in financial planning after working in a corporate setting and receiving a law degree. Along with all of her amazing ambitions, Casey loves to travel, has been to Mexico and Europe and cannot wait to travel abroad again. Her next big travel goal will be to attend an internship in Australia. For now, as a newbie to the 21 and older crowd, her short term ambitions will be to get the most from her Purdue experience and enjoy the collegiate scene of bar-hopping and late nights of long lasting memories.

Netscape Article

This is a great example of a leader, dedication and compassion for society and his community are great tools for great leaders. 

AND I LOVE sausage egg and cheese mcmuffins!!!!

Egg McMuffin Inventor Dies at 89
By DENISE PETSKI, AP
Posted: 2008-03-26 22:48:02
Filed Under: Business News
LOS ANGELES (March 26) - Herb Peterson, who invented the ubiquitous Egg McMuffin as a way to introduce breakfast to McDonald's restaurants, has died, a Southern California McDonald's official said Wednesday. He was 89.

Peterson died peacefully Tuesday at his Santa Barbara home, said Monte Fraker, vice president of operations for McDonald's restaurants in that city.

He began his career with McDonald's Corp. as vice president of the company's advertising firm, D'Arcy Advertising, in Chicago. He wrote McDonald's first national advertising slogan, "Where Quality Starts Fresh Every Day."

Peterson eventually became a franchisee and was currently co-owner and operator of six McDonald's restaurants in Santa Barbara and Goleta, Fraker said.

Peterson came up with idea for the signature McDonald's breakfast item in 1972. He "was very partial to eggs Benedict," Fraker said, and worked on creating something similar.

The egg sandwich consisted of an egg that had been formed in a Teflon circle with the yolk broken, topped with a slice of cheese and grilled Canadian bacon. It was served open-faced on a toasted and buttered English muffin.

The Egg McMuffin made its debut at a restaurant in Santa Barbara that Peterson co-owned with his son, David Peterson.

Fraker said that, although semiretired, Peterson still visited all six of his stores in the Santa Barbara area until last year when his health began to deteriorate.

"He would talk to the customers, visit with the employees. He loved McDonald's," Fraker said.

Fraker, who said he worked with Peterson for 30 years, said "he was amazing as far as giving back to the community."

"He embraced the community and the community embraced him," Fraker said. "We loved the man."

Peterson is survived by his wife, son and three daughters.

A public memorial service will be held April 23 at All Saints by the Sea church in Montecito.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
2008-03-26 21:49:42

Crucial Three Days

It is two days before the fashion show, and I still can't wait for it to be over and done with. My leadership abilities have been tested thoroughly this semester and year. Our teams have all worked so hard for this fashion show, and we are very proud of what we've done. 

I have learned so far that delegation is a huge part of leadership, especially when you are a control freak.

Micromanaging is NOT the key to good leadership.

and most importantly - work with people you can depend on, trust, teach to lead.

this is a chain mail message I was sent by my boss

There's some mighty fine advice in these
words, even if you're not superstitious. This Lotus Touts has been sent
to you for good luck from the Anthony Robbins organization It has been
sent around the world ten times so far.

Do not keep this message.

The Lotus Touts must leave your hands in
6 MINUTES. Otherwise you will get a very unpleasant surprise. This is
true, even if you are not superstitious, agnostic, or otherwise faith
impaired.

ONE. Give people more than they expect
and do it cheerfully.

TWO. Marry a man/woman you love to talk
to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important
as any other.

THREE. Don't believe all you hear, spend
all you have or sleep all you want.

FOUR. When you say, 'I love you,' mean
it.

FIVE. When you say, 'I'm sorry,' look
the person in the eye.

SIX. Be engaged at least six months
before you get married.

SEVEN. Believe in love at first sight.

EIGHT. Never laugh at anyone's dreams.
People who don't have dreams don't have much.

NINE. Love deeply and passionately. You
might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely.

TEN.. In disagreements, fight fairly. No
name calling.

ELEVEN. Don't judge people by their
relatives.

TWELVE. Talk slowly but think quickly.

THIRTEEN! . When someone asks you a
question you don't want to answer, smile and ask, 'Why do you want to
know?'

FOURTEEN. Remember that great love and
great achievements involve great risk.

FIFTEEN. Say 'bless you' when you hear
someone sneeze.

SIXTEEN. When you lose, don't lose the
lesson.

SEVENTEEN. Remember the three R's:
Respect for self; Respect for others; and Responsibility for all your
ac tions.

EIGHTEEN. Don't let a little dispute
injure a great friendship.

NINETEEN. When you realize you've made a
mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

TWENTY. Smile when picking up the phone.
The caller will hear it in your voice.

TWENTY- ONE. Spend some time alone.

Now, here's the FUN part!
Send this to at least 5 people and your
life will improve. 1-4 people: Your life will improve slightly.
5-9 people: Your life will improve to
your liking.
9-14 people: You will have at least 5
surprises in the next 3 weeks

15 and above: Your life will improve
drastically and everything you ever dreamed of will begin to take shape.


A true friend is someone who reaches for
your hand and touches your heart.Do not keep this message.

Seminar

The Kirk Weisler seminar was more valuable than I had initially expected, but I really didn't expect anything in the beginning. I've seen various speakers and they are all great. There's nothing really different about each one, but they are all similar in the sense that they speak with conviction, have a sense of humor, and are amazing orators. 

I really admire people who can speak in front of a large audience, especially made up of people not in their age bracket. It's hard to communicate to different generations, in the way they need to communicate. 

The best thing that I got from the seminar is probably the book list that he gave us. I get really excited when people tell me about books they love to read, because even though I may not have the "time" to read, I do love it. 

I took lots of notes during his seminar, and most of them were key phrases and concepts he used about leadership. His advice to also write pretty much everything down, and always carry something to write with and write on is something I respect very much. I keep a moleskine notepad with me at almost ALL times, for just those kinds of occasions and a rare epiphany I might come across. I helps me with my creativity, and for organizing my life.

Kirk was an amazing source of inspiration and exemplary leadership. The only thing i didn't connect as well to him was on his talks about merging into corporate America with the ideals and concepts he was relaying to us. My goal is to not join corporate America, but to stay small, with independent ideals and focus on the "small business" side of things. To focus on personal identity, intimate connections with people, and a close community.

Overall, he was very good and made the 5 hours seem less long. But it was still 5 hours, and still felt long.