The voice in her head...

As she went through the motions of the day, she wondered if everyone had an inner voice constantly prodding them—sometimes gingerly, sometimes with an ardent sense of urgency. A voice declaring there is more to life—far greater things to experience and achieve. If other people could hear the voice, did they believe in its message the way she did? As if it were a handwritten note from God...

Instructions for Life from the Dali Lama...

1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
2. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
3. Follow the three R’s:
Respect for self
Respect for others and
Responsibility for all your actions.
4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
6. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
7. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
8. Spend some time alone every day.
9. Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.
12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.
14. Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
15. Be gentle with the earth.
16. Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.
17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
19. Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.

He was pro-ketchup... OR Why imbeciles should not be allowed to vote.

"I'm voting for Obama. He looks very presidential. Doesn't he just look presidential?" She stared at him across the dinner table, puzzled. "What? I never said I was consistent," he said. She rolled her eyes and sighed heavily at her husband's latest proclamation. This newfound Democratic vote was coming from a man who took the term "pro-choice" as a punch in the gut, saying, "They were pro-choice before pro-choosing to be pro-sex. Now it isn't a choice. It's donesky." Looking back at his track record of consistency, he had missed many homecooked meals over the years, food cold on the plate upon his arrival. He had forgotten the dry cleaning countless times— colorful shirts on wire hangers, sheets of plastic in rows behind locked doors. And, despite his conservative nature, he voted for Kerry in 2004 because of his marriage to Teresa Heinz Kerry. His reasoning was simply, "Kerry's wife is a ketchup heir. Honey, she's the veritable 'Queen of Ketchup'. I love ketchup. Who wouldn't want her as our First Lady?!" This was what he actually said. She remembered quite vividly— the sheer exasperation. "I just wish you'd try...just try to be a little more consistent," she pleaded. He looked at her and said, "Well, one thing is certain. I am at least consistent in my inconsistencies." Seconds of silence passed. "That you are," she said. "I guess it keeps me on my toes."