X'mas Carol

Just released….. You'd better watch out You'd better not cry You'd better keep cash I'm telling you why: Recession is coming to town. It's hitting you once, It's hitting you twice It doesn't care if you've been careful and wise Recession is coming to town It's worthless if you've got shares It's worthless if you've got bonds It's safe when you've got cash in hand So keep cash for goodness sake, HEY You'd better watch out You'd better not cry You'd better keep cash I'm telling you why: Recession is coming to town! Finance products are confusing Finance products are so vague The banks make you bear the cost of risk So keep out for goodness sake, OH You'd better watch out You'd better not cry You'd better keep cash I'm telling you why: Recession is coming to town

5 Lessons

1 - First Important Lesson - Cleaning Lady. During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious studentand had breezed through the questions until I readthe last one:'What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?'Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman several times. She was tall,dark-haired and in her 50s, but how would I know her name?I handed in my paper, leaving the last questionblank. Just before class ended, one student asked ifthe last question would count toward our quiz grade.'Absolutely,' said the professor. 'In your careers,you will meet many people All are significant. Theydeserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say 'hello.'I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned hername was Dorothy. 2. - Second Important Lesson - Pickup in the RainOne night, at 11:30 p.m., an elderly African-Americanwoman was standing on the side of an Alabama highwaytrying to endure a lashing rainstorm. Her car hadbroken down and she desperately needed a rideSoaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her, generallyunheard of in those conflict-filled 60s.. The mantook her to safety, helped her get assistance andput her into a taxicab.She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address and thanked him. Seven days went by and aknock came on the man's door. To his surprise, agiant console color TV was delivered to his home. Aspecial note was attached..It read:'Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain drenched not only myclothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along.Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before he passed away... Godbless you for helping me and unselfishly servingothers.'Sincerely, Mrs. Nat King Cole. 3 - Third Important Lesson - Always remember those who serve. In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less,a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him.'How much is an ice cream sundae?' he asked.'Fifty cents,' replied the waitress.The little boy pulled is hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it.'Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?' he inquired.By now more people were waiting for a table and thewaitress was growing impatient.'Thirty-five cents,' she brusquely replied. The little boy again counted his coins.'I'll have the plain ice cream,' he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill onthe table and walked away. The boy finished the icecream, paid the cashier and left. When the waitresscame back, she began to cry as she wiped down the table. There, placed neatly beside the empty dish,were two nickels and five pennies.. You see, he couldn't have the sundae, because he hadto have enough left to leave her a tip. ? ? 4 - Fourth Important Lesson. - The obstacle in Our Path. In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on aroadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see ifanyone would remove the huge rock. Some of theking's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came byand simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed theKing for not keeping the roads clear, but none didanything about getting the stone out of the way.Then a peasant came along carrying a load ofvegetables. Upon approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move thestone to the s ide of the road. After much pushingand straining, he finally succeeded. After thepeasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticeda purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a notefrom the King indicating that the gold was for theperson who removed the boulder from the roadway. Thepeasant learned what many of us never understand!Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition. 5 - Fifth Important Lesson - Giving When it Counts... Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at ahospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare & serious disease. Her onlychance of recovery appeared to be a bloodtransfusion from her 5-year old brother, who hadmiraculously survived the same disease and haddeveloped the antibodies needed to combat theillness. The doctor explained the situation to herlittle brother, and asked the little boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister.I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and saying, 'Yes I'll do it if it willsave her.' As the transfusion progressed, he lay inbed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did,seeing the color returning to her cheek. Then his face grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the doctor and asked with atrembling voice, 'Will I start to die right away'.Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give hissister all of his blood in order to save her.

Just for fun

3 ladies were on a flight. Suddenly the pilot informed them that there was a technical problem and the plane was going to crash into the sea. A Chinese lady quickly took her cosmetics set out and started to doll herself up. A Malay lady beside her questioned her on her actions. The Chinese lady replied that if she looked beautiful, the guys coming to rescue survivors would usually save the pretty ladies first. On hearing this, the Malay lady started to put on all her jewelleries. An Indian woman sitting beside the Malay lady was curious and questioned her. The Malay lady said that the rescuers would save her because she would easily be identified by the glitter of her jewels. Then the Indian woman started taking her clothes off. Both the Chinese and Malay ladies were shocked and questioned her. The Indian woman then replied that rescue teams do not usually look for survivors. They usually look for the "Black Box" first