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You are here: Home / Archives for 2012

Archives for 2012

Thursday Throwback: Take a Chance

January 12, 2012 by Joi Leave a Comment

Walt Disney Quote About Failure

Sometimes I wonder if “common sense” isn’t another way of saying “fear.” And “fear” too often spells failure. – Walt Disney

Take a Chance by Walt Disney

In the lexicon of youth… there is no such word as fail! – Edward Bulwer-Lytton

I wonder how many times these sturdy old words have been used in graduation speeches each year.  Tehy take me back to my own high-school days, when I had my first pair of white flannel trousers and the world ahead held no  heartbreak or fear.

Certainly we have all had this confidence at one time in our lives, though most of us lose it as we grow older.  Perhaps, because of my work, I’ve been lucky enough to retain a shred of this youthful quality.  But sometimes, as I look back on how tough things were, I wonder if I’d go through it again.  I hope I would.

When I was about twenty-one, I went broke for the first time.  I slept on chair cushions in my “studio” in Kansas City and ate cold beans out of a can.  But I took another look at my dream and set out for Hollywood.

Foolish? Not to a youngster.  An older person might have had too much “common sense” to do it.  Sometimes I wonder if “common sense” isn’t another way of saying “fear.” And “fear” too often spells failure.

In the lexicon of youth there is no such word as “fail.”  Remember the story about the boy who wanted to march in the circus parade?  When the show came to town, the bandmaster needed a trombonist, so the boy signed up.  He hadn’t marched a block before the fearful noises from his horn caused two old ladies to faint and a horse to run away.  The bandmaster demanded, “Why didn’t you tell me you couldn’t play the trombone?” And the boy said, “How did I know? I never tried before!”

Many years ago, I might have done just what that boy did.  Now I”m a grandfather and have a good many gray hairs and what a lot of people would call common sense.  But if I’m not longer young in age, I hope I stay young enough in spirit never to fear failure – young enough still to take a chance and march in the parade.  – Walt Disney

Filed Under: Self Confidence, Thursday Throwback Tagged With: inspirational story, quote, taking chances, Walt Disney

Millions Searching: How to Be Happy

January 9, 2012 by Joi 3 Comments

Quote About Happiness
Do you know what over 45,000,000 people search for on GOOGLE monthly? Four words: How to be happy.  45,000,000 people. And that’s just on the main search engine.  As amazing as the number is, something struck me (after I picked my jaw off the ground): This number could potentially be tripled if you take into consideration that happiness seekers might word the phrase differently.  Some may search for ways to be happy or how to be happier.  Others may take a different approach and look for ways to snap out of a bad mood or how to overcome the blues.

Even more people aren’t even online TO search out Google’s assistance.

As part of my web publishing business, I spend at least one day each month researching what people are researching.  It feels as though I’m looking over the shoulders of scads of people as they sit down at their computer and search for answers, solutions, tips, and…. ultimately, happiness.  In addition to contact forms, e-mail, and comments, this gives me a better idea of what people are actually looking for and what they’re actually interested in reading about.

Good stuff for a writer to know, right?

Given its importance, I’m infusing a lot more articles about happiness into Self Help Daily.  I’ve created a whole new blog category called How to Be Happy.  A goal is to have over 100 articles, posts, inspirational stories, and happiness quotes under this category within a  year.

Why are so many people searching for the secret to happiness?

I can sum up the answer to that question with four phrases:

[tabbed tabs=”Life’s Tough | The Economy | Baby Boomers | Google “] [tab] Sickness, death, empty nests, loneliness, and financial problems are cruel facts of life and each are more than capable of robbing even the happiest person of a little sunshine. [/tab] [tab] Just about all of us are having to pinch pennies, sometimes so hard that our fingertips turn copper. Many are having to adjust their lifestyles and, sadly, many are losing their jobs, homes, and other things they’ve worked for. [/tab] [tab] Baby Boomers, and the generation we’ve created, are problem solvers extraordinaire!  That’s why so many mind-boggling inventions are taking place and why so many diseases are on the run. We see a problem and instantly KNOW there’s a solution to it.  When you want an answer, it’s just a matter of knowing the question to ask. [/tab] [tab] Google has made it easier than anyone to ask that question and get that answer! [/tab] [/tabbed]

Starting with number 4 (because I’m in a backwards mood today), Google – and the internet, in general – has made it so blissfully easy to find what we need, when we need it.  The information is amazing when you think about it! If we have something on our mind, BAM, we’re just a couple of clicks from advice, tips, suggestions, and much needed inspiration and motivation. So, Baby Boomers and their children head right for the most popular website destination of them all: Google! The trusty little box awaits their deepest concerns and in mere seconds, there are lists of answers waiting for them.

The economy, is blamed for just about every ill in the world right now.  The problem is, people have had a deep-down yearning for happiness long before the recent economic roller coaster. It’s an inborn desire. We all want to be happy – happy feels good.   Before I come across as the PR agent for the economy, let me admit that it adds to people’s list of woes.  We aren’t able to buy anything and everything we want (again, at the risk of sounding like a PR department, I”m not sure I’ve ever been able to do that). Tragically, many people ARE struggling. I read about people losing their jobs as well as their homes. It’s heartbreaking and it’s also easy to see why a lot of families are having trouble staying together.

I guess it’s tough to stay together when you’re struggling just to keep it together.

Life’s tough.  Amen and amen. How often do things happen to us and one of the first things we think of is, “I thought this only happened to other people.”  When I got a call that my sister-in-law had been killed in an accident, it was as though life froze for a minute as my brain tried to process it. Is this really happening? This is like something you read about in the newspaper. When the story in the newspaper (there was one, of course) hits close to home, it’s almost surreal.  This woman had fought cancer and survived and she loses her life in an accident?

Loved ones die, they get sick, they do things we wish they wouldn’t and sometimes it seems they’ve completely lost their minds.  We often have to watch as bills pile up as money refuses to keep up (talk about an epic fail in supply and demand).  Many people had to watch, with tear-filled eyes, as people they loved headed off to fight in a war they never wanted to fight in the first place.  Throw in perennial hot topics such as loneliness, coping with an empty nest, self image problems, rocky relationships, and struggles with bad habits and addictions and is it any wonder 45,000,000 people are searching for answers?

As I said earlier,  my goal is to add many, many articles, posts, inspirational stories, resources, book reviews, and happiness quotes under the new How to Be Happy category right away.

As one egg said to the other, I’d better get cracking. Sorry, I hadn’t met my corny joke quotient for the week. I have now. Thank you for your cooperation.

Also See: If You Want to Be Happy, Forget Growing UP and Grow YOUNGER!

See the too-cool-for-school tabbed box in the middle of the post above? That would be me playing with an AWESOME new plugin we bought, Shortcode Kid. I’m completely in love with this mind-boggling plugin. So many possibilities! If you have a WordPress blog, click through to check it out for yourself.

Filed Under: How to Be Happy, Self Help Daily Tagged With: happiness, how to be happy, inspiration

Cooking Healthy on a Budget?

January 5, 2012 by Joi 3 Comments


I recently read, then wrote a review for, a great book called Make the Bread, Buy the Butter: What You Should and Shouldn’t Cook from Scratch — Over 120 Recipes for the Best Homemade Foods . Click the link for my review of this fun and informative book – the post includes a recipe from the book for Homemade Baked Beans!  OR, click the book and read more on Amazon.

Book Description

When Jennifer Reese lost her job, she was overcome by an impulse common among the recently unemployed: to economize by doing for herself what she had previously paid for. She had never before considered making her own peanut butter and pita bread, let alone curing her own prosciutto or raising turkeys. And though it sounded logical that “doing it yourself” would cost less, she had her doubts. So Reese began a series of kitchen-related experiments, taking into account the competing demands of everyday contemporary American family life as she answers some timely questions: When is homemade better? Cheaper? Are backyard eggs a more ethical choice than store-bought? Will grinding and stuffing your own sausage ruin your week? Is it possible to make an edible maraschino cherry? Some of Reese’s discoveries will surprise you: Although you should make your hot dog buns, guacamole, and yogurt, you should probably buy your hamburger buns, potato chips, and rice pudding. Tired? Buy your mayonnaise. Inspired? Make it.With its fresh voice and delightful humor, Make the Bread, Buy the Butter gives 120 recipes with eminently practical yet deliciously fun “Make or buy” recommendations. Reese is relentlessly entertaining as she relates her food and animal husbandry adventures, which amuse and perplex as well as nourish and sustain her family. Her tales include living with a backyard full of cheerful chickens, muttering ducks, and adorable baby goats; countertops laden with lacto-fermenting pickles; and closets full of mellowing cheeses. Here’s the full picture of what is involved in a truly homemade life—with the good news that you shouldn’t try to make everything yourself—and how to get the most out of your time in the kitchen.

Filed Under: Books I Love, General, Problem Solving Tagged With: books, cooking on a budget

MUST Do’s for Protecting Your Eyes

January 5, 2012 by Joi 2 Comments

Wear sunglasses (fashionably, like my daughter Stephany!) to protect your eyes – even in the winter.

It’s not even 10:00 am yet and my eyes have already given me a full day’s worth of enjoyment. I’ve seen my daughter Brittany, my husband, our cats, coffee, a piece of Dove Chocolate candy, blue jays, woodpeckers, more coffee, sparrows, cardinals, e-mail messages, tweets, more coffee…   Stop for a second and think about all of the beautiful things your eyes have seen – just in the past 12 hours even!  It may sound like the front of a Hallmark card, but our eyes really are our windows to the world.

The problem is, as we age, these windows can potentially become impaired.  Fortunately, there are plenty of things we can do to keep that from happening – allowing us the beautiful, unobstructed view we have today for years and years and years to come.

Below are tips for eye health, including foods that are excellent for your eyes.  Shouldn’t we be as mindful of our eyes as we are our waists and minds? Absolutely!

  1. See an eye doctor regularly. If you haven’t been in awhile, make an appointment today. It doesn’t matter if you think you can see perfectly well or not. A professional can spot potential problems LONG before we know they’re there.  Many eye problems (that could potentially cloud our windows to the world) can be fixed, but they have to be detected first. If you haven’t been in the past year, GO! Then, be certain to keep future appointments. Of all the doctors in the world, optometrists are the least painful. They don’t even make you step on a scale. Love them for that.
  2. If you have  corrective lenses, wear them religiously. When you squint or have to struggle to “make something out,” you’re straining your eyes.
  3. If you work at a computer, like me, be sure to take frequent breaks.  Experts suggest taking at least a ten minute break every two hours.
  4. Don’t smoke. Smoking increases the risk of cataracts and glaucoma.
  5. If you have high blood pressure, get it under control and keep it under control.  Having high blood pressure seems to increase your risk of glaucoma.
  6. Keep your diabetes under control. Diabetics are at risk for eye problems if their disease isn’t monitored. Be strict with your diet and exercise routines.
  7. Get some form of exercise or activity each day. It’s as good for your eyes as the rest of you.
  8. Frequently eat foods with eye-protecting nutrients and vitamins (see the list below).
  9. Get at least 5 hours of sleep each night to allow your eyes to rejuvenate and recharge.
  10. Wear sunglasses outside and protective eye wear when working with chemicals – or even when doing yard work.

Foods and Drinks that Help Protect Your Eyes

  • Carrots, of course! The beta-carotene found in carrots is wonderful for protecting your eyes from a host of problems.
  • As great as carrots are for your eyes, research shows that there is a food that’s EVEN better for protecting our vision: Spinach. The protective benefits come from lutein found in spinach.
  • Drink LOTS of water.
  • Corn, spinach, and other leafy green vegetables help maintain your sight and even improve the health of your eyes.
  • Vitamin C helps protect against cataracts.  Foods and drinks rich in Vitamin C include citrus fruits, oranges, juices, tomatoes, and bell peppers.
  • Flavonoids also protect our eyes. Eat lots of these foods: Onions, oats, broccoli, tomatoes, apples, cranberries, strawberries, tea, cranberry juice, tomato juice, and grape juice.
  • Omega 3’s (which seem to be great for everything, actually!) are wonderful for your eyes. Eat lots of salmon and tuna and/or take supplements.
  • Aim for 3 servings of fruit daily.

Whenever I do research for a particular disease or situation, I’m always amazed at how many foods, drinks, and activities overlap.  We’d be wise to simply EAT WHAT WE KNOW WE SHOULD EAT, DRINK MORE WATER THAN WE’RE DRINKING, MOVE MORE, GET PLENTY OF REST, and USE COMMON SENSE WHEN IT COMES TO SAFETY.   I’m in. You?

Filed Under: Health Tagged With: eye health, healthy food, protect your eyes

Quote for When You’re Feeling Down

January 4, 2012 by Joi 1 Comment

Flowers on Kentucky Dam Village Golf Course

Anger, tears, and sadness are only for those who have given up. – Katie Gill

The last time I was feeling, as my mom used to say, down in the dumps, I threw myself across my bed and started reading through one of my quote collections. I have millions of trusty quotes pretty much within reach at all times. Notebooks, computer, ipod, books, memory…

One of the first quotes I came to was the one above.  It was an immediate, and most welcome, kick in the backside.

I honestly cannot even remember what led me to drape across my bed that day (couldn’t have been too bad) but I do remember how I felt after reading the quote.  The old fighting spirit kicked in and the same body that flung itself down sprang back up again, ready for action.  It was just the motivation and inspiration I needed at that time.  In fact, I’ve saved it on my memory’s hard drive for the next time I need a little jolt.

One of the things I pride myself on the most is the fact that I am not a quitter.  I’ve been blessed with a life that has, quite often actually, felt closer to a roller coaster than a Merry-go-round.  If anyone questions my choice of the word blessed, I’d simply ask them which ride they’d rather ride at the state fair!  Life’s ups, downs, and unexpected dives are the places we learn to fight.  These are the times we learn if we are quitters or if the very word quit repulses us.

I’m horrified by the concept of “giving up,” so this quote holds a lot of magic for me – that and a swift little kick.

Are you feeling a little down in the dumps or disappointed about something? If so, read the words again and see if they have the same effect on your backside. Anger, tears, and sadness are only for those who have given up.

Filed Under: Daily Quote, Positive Thought Tagged With: Daily Quote, quote about giving up, quotes

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