Viral Emails

READ TO THE BOTTOM FOR QUOTE OF THE MONTH BY JAY LENO. IF YOU DON’T READ ANYTHING ELSE– VERY WELL STATED.

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED the 1930’s, 40’s, 50’s, 60’s and 70’s!!

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn’t get tested for diabetes.

Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking.

As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts or air bags.

Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank Kool-aid made with sugar, but we weren’t overweight because, WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on.

No one was able to reach us all day. And we were OK.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo’s, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD’s, no surround-sound or CD’s, no cell phones, no personal computer! s, no Internet or chat rooms…….

WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not poke out very many eyes.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend’s house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn’t had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!

These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever!

The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!

If YOU are one of them CONGRATULATIONS!

You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated so much of our lives for our own good .

While you are at it, forward it to your kids so they will know how brave (and lucky) their parents were.

Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn’t it?!

The quote of the month is by Jay Leno:

‘With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?’

For those that prefer to think that God is not watching over us… go ahead and delete this.

For the rest of us… pass this ON.

Someday when my children are old enough to
understand the logic that motivates a parent,
I will tell them, as my Mean Mom told me:
I loved you enough to ask where you were going,
with whom, and what time you would be home.

I loved you enough to be silent and let you
discover that your new best friend was a creep.

I loved you enough to stand over you for
two hours while you cleaned your room,
a job that should have taken 15 minutes.

I loved you enough to let you see anger,
disappointment, and tears in my eyes. Children
must learn that their parents aren’t perfect..

I loved you enough to let you assume the
responsibility for your actions even when the
penalties were so harsh they almost broke my heart.

But most of all, I loved you enough to say
NO when I knew you would hate me for it.

Those were the most difficult battles of all.
I’m glad I won them, because in the end you won, too.
And someday when your children are old enough to
understand the logic that motivates parents, you will tell them.

Was your Mom mean?

I know mine was.
We had the meanest mother in the whole world!
While other kids ate candy for breakfast,
we had to have cereal, eggs, and toast.

When others had a Pepsi and a Twinkie for lunch,
we had to eat sandwiches.

And you can guess our mother fixed us a dinner that was
different from what other kids had, too.

Mother insisted on knowing where we were at all times.
You’d think we were convicts in a prison.

She had to know who our friends were
and what we were doing with them.
She insisted that if we said we
would be gone for an hour, we would be gone for an hour or less.

We were ashamed to admit it,
but she had the nerve to break
the Child Labor Laws by making us work.

We had to wash the dishes, make the beds,
learn to cook, vacuum the floor, do laundry,
empty the trash and all sorts of cruel jobs.
I think she would lie awake at night
thinking of more things for us to do.

She always insisted on us telling the truth,
the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
By the time we were teenagers,
she could read our minds
and had eyes in the back of her head.
Then, life was really tough!

Mother wouldn’t let our friends just honk
the horn when they drove up
They had to come up to the door
so she could meet them.

While everyone else could date
when they were 12 or 13,
we had to wait until we were 16.

Because of our mother we missed out
on lots of things other kids experienced.

None of us have ever
been caught shoplifting, vandalizing other’s
property or ever arrested for any crime.
It was all her fault.

Now that we have left home, we are all educated, honest adults.
We are doing our best to be mean parents just like Mom was.

I think that is what’s wrong with the world today.
It just doesn’t have enough mean moms!

PASS THIS ON TO ALL THE MEAN MOTHERS YOU KNOW.
(And Their Kids)

One week ago I saw Amy, an old girlfriend, at the store. Twenty some years ago I fixed her up with my best friend, Crazy Harry. They were married and had two great kids. Harry was the best man at my wedding. I have known him since I was 13 and until I was married we spent a lot of time together.

Harry and I are very different, but we were the best of friends. We had similar interests and were both driven. (Both of us were workaholics, however.) My wife has never cared for Harry and has over time created a
situation that Harry and I have not seen each other for about the last 5 or 6 years even though we only live 5 miles apart. That is very sad and not something I am proud of.

While talking with Amy I asked her how Harry was doing. Her face went gray and I knew something was wrong. She said that Harry died two years ago from pancreatic cancer. Needless to say I had no idea and felt like a complete idiot. She was very strong and I fought hard to keep back my tears. I was devastated! She was not sure where I was and didn’t know how to get hold of me. She said that the last year of Harry’s life was one of the best they had spent together as a family. Harry could not work so he slept 18 to 20 hours
a day. When he was awake he was 100% there, spending quality time with his family. In that last year Amy said he actually got to know his kids for the first time.

Needless to say I learned a lot that day. Here are some of my thoughts that hit me that hopefully you may apply to your lives:

* Life is too short. Live it to the fullest each day. Don’t worry about the petty stuff (and most of the things we worry about are petty).

* Value what you have. Harry and Amy were a great couple with two great kids. He spent most of his time accumulating wealth, getting ahead and less time on the things that are most important. family and friends.

* Don’t ever give up your friends. You may not ever see them again.

* You can not spend too much time with your kids.

* A spouse who is a sole mate and friend can be the most important decision of your life. Choose the right one! Value and respect that person with all of your heart.

* Take care of your health. You never know when your body will tell you it has had enough.

* Time is our most valuable asset. How we spend it is up to us. It is more valuable than all of the money in the world. We can not control time; it is the one thing that everyone has the same of. It is how we spend time that makes all the difference in your life.

* We called him “Crazy Harry” because he always wanted to try new things, have fun and “Just do it”. Other than not spending as much time as he may have wanted with his family and friends, Harry led a very full life. He touched a lot of people and everyone was drawn to him. We all need to be a little crazy and just do things. Don’t put yourself in the position to say “I wish I would have done things differently.” Decide what you want to do and do it!

* If you don’t have a plan it doesn’t matter how you get there! Sit down and figure out what is important and decide what you need to do to get there. Every time I have taken time to have a goal, plan how to get there, I have accomplished things that would surprise many people.

* Live by the Golden Rule.

* Live in the moment. What is important is what you are doing now. The past is gone and the future is not here yet.

* Have fun.