Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Cell Phone


1.
Wait –
I don’t recognize that number.

2.
Among five pillows,
the cell phone is
the only thing that
moves.

3.
I lost my memory
which
I carefully placed in my phone.

4.
The cell phone sank
to the bottom of the sea.
For a fleeting moment,
it floated.

5.
How easily I clamped this ball
and chain upon my hip.
I can't decide if I prefer
"hands-free".

6.
Stranger becomes friend.
Finally,
face-to-face.

7.
See the added appendage.
People are driving.
People are confused.
“Resistance is futile.”

8.
Shrill disco ringtones
are a sign
of
low self-esteem.

9.
At the sight of hoards
talking
to themselves,
I looked
to the sky
for a cell phone tower.

10.
Microwave tooth decay
is a silent epidemic.

11.
The new president was advised
to throw away his Blackberry.
The People bought him
an I-phone
and he has never looked back.

12.
The highway is growing.
We are going
toward
alienation.

13.
It was business as usual
as the empire crumbled.
The cell phone kept ringing.


Holly Troy 2009

Sustainable Christmas Gifts

The upsurge in generosity and the feelings of goodwill, demonstrated in traditional Christmas fashion, may lay a devastating burden upon our environment. Christmas packaging alone creates an additional 1 million tons of waste per week between Thanksgiving and New Years. Not to mention the short life-cycle gifts of toys, of which one UK report places at more than 40% tossed in landfills within three months. Americans spent 66 billion dollars on Christmas in 2007, and even with the current economic crisis, Americans will still spend precious resources on gifts.

According to Joel Waldfogel, author of “Scroogenomics: Why You Shouldn’t Buy Presents for the Holidays”, most sentimental gift giving produces inefficient, unsatisfying and declining values. While I won’t discourage the spirit of benevolence, it is certainly time for thoughtful and intentional gift giving of sustainable proportions.

Some gifts that are more economically sustainable, and gentle with our earth, include hand-made, local products and services (including your very own!) These can include everything from unique pieces of art by local artisans to handmade soaps and lotions and can include gifts of time, such as volunteering with a SHARE program, or something requiring a more personal investment, such as attending the dying through hospice care, or working with a Special Olympian.

Far and away, our gifts can be the high value, low impact, and soul-satisfying demonstration of charity we intended toward our fellow man, through thoughtful choices which enrich and sustain life.

Here’s one creative gift to fight pollution and climate change... Posted last year, this little quip provides a gift solution certain to make a difference.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Welcome To The Karma Cafe!

I’ve often thought about opening a cafe where everyone would be treated the way they treat people in their everyday lives. If you are kind and compassionate, the service and food would be fantastic. If you are normally mean and cranky, your experience may not be so great. I’d call it the Karma Cafe (besides, Reciprocation Bar and Grill just doesn’t roll off the tongue as well).

Of course figuring out how to treat everyone at the Karma Cafe would be difficult so we would need to take shortcuts, like asking what industry they work in, etc. The experience would go something like this:

Click here to read the rest.

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Come On Milan: Its Not Like You Were Playing Him!

So now AC Milan wants to sue the US Soccer Federation for Oguchi Onyewu's knee injury picked up in the USA's 2-2 draw with Costa Rica. It now looks like he won't be recovered and match fit for at least six months.

Well gee Milan, since you've barely used him since bringing him to the team, was there some secret plan to start actually letting him play that we didn't know about?

Thursday, October 1, 2009

You Call This News?

Gotta love some of the headlines these days which tell us things we already know:

"Eating Twinkies All Day Makes Kids Fat"

"Texting While Driving Can Increase The Chance of Auto Accidents"

and now this one:

"Political scientists report drop in US world standing"