July 17, 2024

---

BG’s Positively Speaking

The Times They Are-A-Changin’

The title of this weeks message is also the title of a timeless protest song, written by Bob Dylan, at a time when folk music and the civil rights movement were closely linked. It was the title track of his 1964 album. It was intended to create awareness of the changes taking place at the time and the futility of resisting them. However, the song could easily fit into any period of time, because change is constant and irreversible. Like the sands of the dessert, the sands of life are forever re-shaping themselves.

When you change; and you will, for sure, eventually change. Not only will you change, but everything around you will have changed. Your resistance will have been for nothing. The only thing you succeeded at was in delaying the inevitable.

Resisting change, means that you are saying no to making the updates that will improve your situation in life. When you finally reach the point of no resistance, you are so far behind that you have to play catch-up, loosing even more time. Each day that you resist makes it more difficult to catch up.

When you come face-to-face with life’s changes don’t ignore them. Take their challenge and start making them part of your life. Some things will be more difficult to adapt to, but you don’t have to change all at once, just in small increments.

There’s a question that is often posed when facing a large challenge: “How Do You Eat An Elephant?” Answer: One bite at a time!  We would do well to heed Dylan’s words, “The line it is drawn / The curse it is cast / The slow one now / Will later be fast” underscoring the shifting tides of society.

Remember: Change Is Inevitable!

---

The World’s Quietest Room, A Scary Place

 

A chamber inside Microsoft’s Audio Lab holds the Guinness record for the world’s quietest room. It’s a strange place that reportedly causes people to start hallucinating.

With the crazy pace of life these days, we all need some peace and quiet, but it seems absolute quiet is absolutely terrifying. Luckily, it’s something you don’t have to experience, unless you want to challenge yourself because the only place you can experience total silence is in an anechoic chamber. There are only a few of them in the world and the quietest of them all is inside the Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Virginia. Rated at -20.35 dBA, this room stops all outside noise, making any sound produced inside sound downright eerie.

---

---

Dolphin Smarts

Dolphins are so intelligent, within a few weeks of captivity, they can train a man to stand on the edge of their pool and throw to them fish three times a day.

---

Editors Quote Book

“The return we reap from generous actions is not always evident”.

—Francesco Guicciardini

---

My Mind Is Gone

“Oh God,” sighed Bob one morning, “I’m convinced my mind is almost completely gone!”
His wife looked at him from accross the breakkfast table and commented, “I’m not surprised: You’ve been giving me a piece of it every day for twenty years!”

---

Trivia Quiz

(Click Question For Answer)

 

---

Your Horoscope

For Amusement Only

ARIES (March 21- April 19): In your quest to set the world on fire, you could get your fingers burnt. Keep the flames under control.

TAURUS (April 20- May 20): Enjoy a night out with friends. Letting loose and having a good laugh will do wonders for your morale.

GEMINI (May 21- June 20): A clash of personalities should have been foreseen. Now, you need to be more tolerant of the peculiarities of others.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Look beyond your own feelings. Instead, focus on the problems  of those closest to you. They need your help.

LEO (July 23- August 22): Spending more time with family will offer unexpected rewards. Listen to them, you will be pleased with what learn.

VIRGO (August 23- September 22): Your ideas are being recognized. You find yourself being sought after and your advice requested.

LIBRA (September 23- October 22): A romantic interest fizzles out. Don’t worry, there is someone else waiting in the wings. Be patient.

SCORPIO (October 23- November 21): Yearning for perfection is not working for you. For best results, focus on being the best you, you can be.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22- December 21): Your view of major events in your life will be from the sidelines. Your turn in the limelight is coming.

CAPRICORN (December 22- January 19): Plan a gathering with friends. Prepare to welcome someone who is looking forward to seeing you again.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): No rest for the weary, or so it seems. There isn’t enough time. Tough it out, it gets better.

PISCES (February 19- March 20): It’s a good time to tackle some of those small chores. Set some time aside to pamper yourself.

---

---

Telling It Like It Is!

A little girl said, “Grandpa, can I sit on your lap? “Why sure you can,” her grandfather replied.

Sitting on her grandfather’s lap, she said, “Grandpa, can you make a sound like a frog?”

“A sound like a frog? Well, sure Grandpa can make a sound like a frog.” The girl said, “Grandpa, will you please, please make a sound like a frog?” Perplexed, her grandfather said, “Sweetheart, why do you want me to make a sound like a frog?” And the little girl said, “Because Grandma said that when you croak, we’re going to Florida!”

---

---

Betcha’ Didn’t Know

In April 1928, 50 years after it was started, the Oxford English Dictionary was finally published. It consisted of 400,000 words and phrases in 10 volumes. The latest complete edition covers more than 600,00 words over 22,000 pages, includes 33,000 Shakespeare quotations, and is bound in 20 volumes. All of which, is available in an electronic edition of 540 megabytes. It is also available on a single CD or a single USB memory stick… or online, Or – as proof of progress, you can download it on your Kindle in less than a minute.

---

The Final Word

Two husbands, Bill and Doug, were discussing their married lives. Although happily married, they admitted that there were arguments, sometimes. Then Bill said, “I’ve made one great discovery. I now know how to always have the last word.” “Wow!” said Doug, “How do you manage that?”  “It’s easy,” replied Bill. “My last words are always ‘Yes, Dear.'”

---

Nun Of Your Business

While shopping in a food store, two nuns happened to pass by the beer, wine, and liquor section. One asked the other if she would like a beer. The second nun answered that, indeed, it would be very nice to have one, but that she would feel uncomfortable purchasing it. The first nun replied that she would handle it without a problem. She picked up a six-pack and took it to the cashier. The cashier was surprised, so the nun said, “This is for washing our hair. ”Without blinking an eye, the cashier reached under the counter and put a package of pretzel sticks in the bag with the beer. “The curlers are on me.”

---

The Last Word

You will never be hurt by the words you do not speak.

---