Friday, 1 March 2013

Month-of-March's Dr Seuss

http://www.freecodesource.com/picture/i43/e377/CWPinky/Seuss.jpg

Dr Seuss, also known as Theodor Seuss Geisel (pron.: /ˈɡaɪzəl/; March 2, 1904 – September 24, 1991), is one of my favorite picture book author/illustrator. If you'd like to read an online encyclopedia entry about him, click: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr_seuss.

The first time I heard about him was from a childhood book whose title I still remember as "There's a Wocket in my Pocket". I had no idea what a "wocket" was until somebody told me it is just a made up word to rhyme with "pocket".

I recall that I asked what kind of doctor is Dr Seuss. Someone told me that is just his pretend name. I guess I understood that than anyone telling me that is his pseudonym or nom de plume.

My Mom bought us his other books. My favorite among the bunch was "Mr Brown Can Say Moo! Can You?" I love it that Dr Seuss can put sounds into words with a fantastic entertaining rhyme scheme.

When I read stories to children, my favorite Dr Seuss tale to read aloud is "Green Eggs and Ham". We all enjoyed the pages where Sam I Am does everything he can to convince the other guy to eat some green eggs and ham. The suspense was killing us when he had a bite in slow motion.

The last book of Dr Seuss, "Oh, the Places You'll Go!", was a beautiful way for Mr Geisel to express his last colorful piece. It was like a diploma that marked the completion of the fun and lessons he taught us. He offers amazing advice to all the graduates ranging from Pre-schools to Universities and beyond. Thanks to this book, I will always remember that Life is a Great Balancing Act.

An interesting trivia I was informed was, "Seuss" really rhymes with "voice". Most of us thought that it rhymes with "goose". I guess Dr Seuss is just as memorable as Mother Goose.

Thank you for the life and works you shared with us, Mr Geisel. You are one of the few writers that write words beyond the limits of an unabridged english dictionary. I appreciate your example as the one who thinks beyond the box.

:-( -> :-| -> :-)

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"Let us rise up and be thankful; for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so let us all be thankful."

--Buddha

Friday, 8 February 2013

Valentine's Day Trivia

Image courtesy of digitalart at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

facts-about-valentines-day.html to read more.

ST. VALENTINE

There is no one accepted explanation for the connection between St. Valentine and love. Etymologists report that the letters “v” and “g” were once interchangeable in common speech. The Norman word galantin, meaning a “lover of women,” was at one time both written and pronounced valanta or valentin, from which “Valentine” could have been derived.

Throughout history, there have been approximately eight St. Valentines. Three of them had special feast days in their honor. The two St. Valentines who most likely inspired Valentine's Day are Valentine of Terni and Valentine of Rome, though some scholars speculate they are actually one person.

Saint Valentine is the patron saint of lovers and engaged couples. He is also the patron saint of epilepsy (which he is said to have suffered), plague, greetings, travelers, young people, and bee keepers.

VALENTINE'S DAY

Valentine’s Day was first introduced to Japan in 1936 and has become widely popular. However, because of a translation error made by a chocolate company, only women buy Valentine chocolates for their spouses, boyfriends, or friends. In fact, it is the only day of the year many single women will reveal their crush on a man by giving him chocolate. The men don’t return the favor until White Day, a type of “answer day” to Valentine’s Day, which is on March 14.

Valentine’s Day is a $14.7 billion industry in the U.S.

During the ancient Roman festival Lupercalia (an ancient precursor to Valentine’s Day), two boys would run through crowds of people swinging strings made from goatskins. If the strings touched a girl, it was divined that she would have healthy children when she grew up. The goatskins were called februa, which means to make clean and from which “February” derives.

Pope Gelasius established Valentine’s Day in A.D. 500 in an attempt to appropriate the ancient pagan Roman fertility festival, Lupercalia, into Christianity.

Valentine’s Day may have been named after Valentine of Terni, a priest who married Roman soldiers against orders from Claudius II. He was arrested and killed on February 14 in the year 269. It is said that an almond tree near his grave burst with pink flowers and all the birds chose mates, hence the term “love birds.”

On Valentine’s Day 2010, 39,897 people in Mexico City broke the record for the world’s largest group kiss.

Valentine’s Day may have been named after the priest Valentine of Rome, who refused to follow Claudius II’s ban on Christianity. While he was imprisoned, children would pass him notes through the jail window. Before he was killed on February 14, he wrote one last note to the jailer’s daughter with whom he had fallen in love and signed it “From Your Valentine.”

On Valentine’s Day, James Cook was kill by natives in Hawaii (1779), Oregon and Arizona were admitted to the Union (1859 and 1912, respectively), James Polk became the first president photographed while in office (1848), UPS (United Parcel Service) was formed (1919), the League of Women Voters was established (1920), Aretha Franklin recorded “Respect” (1967), Richard Nixon installed a secret taping system in the White House (1971), the U.S. performed a nuclear test at the Nevada Test Site (1976), and Voyager I took a picture of the entire solar system (1990).

According to Welsh tradition, a child born on Valentine’s Day would have many lovers. A calf born on Valentine’s Day, however, would be of no use for breeding purposes. If hens were to hatch eggs on Valentine’s Day, they would all turn out rotten.

Shakespeare mentions Valentine’s Day in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and in Hamlet.

Madame Royale, daughter of Henry the IV of France, loved Valentine’s Day so much that she named her palace “The Valentine.”

In 1653, English puritanical leader Oliver Cromwell became Lord Protector of the Realm and, subsequently banned St. Valentine’s Day customs. Valentine’s Day wasn’t observed again until Stuart King Charles II was restored to the English throne in 1660.

In 2005, a U.S. man was charged with using an Internet chat room to organize a mass suicide on Valentine’s Day.

FEBRUARY 14

The popular medieval folk belief that birds choose their mates on February 14 made doves a favorite symbol for Valentine cards. The dove was sacred to Venus and other love deities and was known for choosing a lifelong mate.

Groundhog Day was originally observed on February 14.

There is a town in Texas called Valentine, but for not for a romantic reason. The first train to arrive there happened to do so on February 14.

The first recorded association of Valentine’s Day with romantic love occurs in Chaucer’s “Parlement of Foules.” Chaucer writes (in modern translation): “For this was on Saint Valentine’s day/When every bird comes there to choose his mate.” However, Chaucer may have been referring to Valentine of Genoa, whose saint’s day was May 2, a more likely time for birds to be mating than February 14.

VALENTINE TOKENS

Valentine candy “conversation hearts” have a shelf life of five years.

Nearly 10 new candy “conversation heart” sayings are introduced each year. Recent additions have included “Yeah Right,” “Puppy Love,” and “Call Home.”

Americans spend around $277 million on Valentine cards every year, second only to Christmas. On Valentine’s Day, nearly 189 million stems of roses are sold in the U.S.

Approximately one billion Valentine cards are sent each year around the world. An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent during the Christmas holidays.

The symbol of the ribbon, which often adorns modern-day Valentines, is rooted in the Middle Ages. When knights competed in tournaments, their sweethearts often gave them ribbons for good luck.

Some of the oldest handmade Valentines are rebuses, which is Latin for “things” or “that which is indicated by things.” A rebus is a kind of puzzle or riddle, and the pictures indicate the meaning of the card. For example, a picture of a bee and a picture of a gold mine would indicate the sentiment “Be mine.”

The most popular flower on Valentine’s Day is a single red rose surrounded with baby’s breath. The red rose was the flower of Venus, the Roman goddess of love. Teachers receive the most Valentine’s cards, followed by children, mothers, and wives. Children between the ages of 6-10 exchange more than 650 million Valentine cards a year.

Small pieces of mirror were sometimes used on the more expensive and elaborate Valentine cards produced during the golden ages of Valentines (1830s-1850s). “Mirror” comes from the same Latin verb as “admire”: mirari, “to wonder.”

Richard Cadbury produced the first box of chocolates for Valentine’s Day in the late 1800s.

Lace is often used on Valentine decorations. The word “lace” comes from the Latin laques, meaning “to snare or net,” as in to catch a person’s heart.

A kiss on Valentine’s Day is considered to bring good luck all year.

On Valentine’s Day, many people buy flowers. Different colored roses have different meanings. Red means love, yellow means friendship, and pink means friendship or sweetheart. Red carnations mean admiration, white carnations mean pure love, red chrysanthemums mean love, forget-me-nots mean true love, primrose means young love, and larkspur means an open heart.

The first recorded Valentine was sent February 1415 by the English duke of Orleans. He sent of love letter to his wife from his jail cell in the Tower of London after the Battle of Agincourt. It is currently on display in the British Museum.

Both garters and gloves are traditionally popular Valentine tokens. The word “garter” comes from the Old French word garet, meaning “bend in the knee.” And “glove” is derived from the Old English word glof, meaning “palm of the hand.”

Commercially, Valentine cards didn’t appear in England until almost the 1800s, though handmade cards had been popular for some time.

In 2010, 25% of adults bought flowers or plants as a Valentine’s gift. Of these, 60% were men and 40% were women. Men mainly bought flowers for romantic reasons, while women bought flowers for their mothers and friends as well as their sweethearts.

The first American Valentine was produced in 1834 by New York engraver Robert Elton.

The first European post boxes appeared in Paris in the late eighteenth century, which revolutionized the way Valentine cards were produced and delivered.

A True Love Knot, or Endless Knot of Love, was a very popular Valentine in England and the U.S. in the seventeenth century. As their name implies, these Valentines were drawn as a knot and could be read from any line and still make sense.

Esther Howland (1828-1904) was the first person to create Valentines to sell in the United States. She first patented a lacy Valentine in 1844—and by 1860, her factory was selling thousands of Valentines, earning over $100,000.

"Valentine Writers” were booklets written in 1823 by Peter Quizumall to help those who couldn’t think up Valentine verses on their own.

VALENTINE TRADITIONS

Red hearts are a ubiquitous Valentine symbol. Red is traditionally associated with the color of blood. At one time, people thought that the heart, which pumps blood, was the part of the body that felt love. In fact, when the Egyptians mummified their dead for burial, they removed every organ but the heart because they believed the heart was the only part of the body necessary for the trip through eternity.

The saying “wearing your heart on your sleeve” is from the Middle Ages. Boys at this time would draw names of girls to see who would be their “Valentine” and then wear the name pinned on their sleeve for a week.

During the 1700s in England, a girl would pin four bay leaves to her pillow and eat a hard-boiled egg, including the shell, on the eve of St. Valentine’s Day. Supposedly, if she dreamed of a boy that night, she would soon marry him. Girls would also write boys’ names on small pieces of paper, cover them with clay, and drop them into the water. When the clay broke, the papers floated to the top. The first name the girls could read would predict whom they would marry.

Traditionally, young girls in the U.S. and the U.K. believed they could tell what type of man they would marry depending on the type of bird they saw first on Valentine’s Day. If they saw a blackbird, they would marry a clergyman, a robin redbreast indicated a sailor, and a goldfinch indicated a rich man. A sparrow meant they would marry a farmer, a blue bird indicated a happy man, and a crossbill meant an argumentative man. If they saw a dove, they would marry a good man, but seeing a woodpecker meant they would not marry at all.

Each year 300,000 letters go through Loveland, Colorado, to get a special heart stamp cancellation for Valentine’s Day.

In Germany, girls would plant onions in a pot on Valentine’s Day, and next to the onions, they placed the name of a boy. They believed they would marry the boy whose name was nearest the first onion to grow.

A common symbol of Valentine’s Day is Cupid (“desire”), the Roman god of love. The son of Venus and Mars, he was originally depicted as a young man who would sharpen his arrows on a grindstone whetted with blood from an infant, though now he is commonly presented as a pudgy baby. This transformation occurred during the Victorian era when business owners wanted to promote Valentine’s Day as more suitable for women and children.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY, EVERYBODY!

:-( -> :-| -> :-)

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Wednesday, 2 January 2013

Goodbye, Tremendous Year 2012... Greetings Unbelievably-good Year 2013!

http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=3981

My wish for your Unbelievably-good 2013 is... may you have more opportunities to a happier life through the choices you make.

Even if 2013 ends, I'd be glad to extend the warranty upon your request. :-)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

:-( -> :-| -> :-)

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Tuesday, 4 December 2012

A FREE EBOOK... a Christmas gift of inspiration :-)

Click HERE to download a free eBook. Woo-hoo!

Look what readers are saying:

"Amazing read!!!! You did an excellent job, Dominique Liongson! Congratulations!!!"

--Jackie A.

"A very beautiful ebook by Dominique Liongson -you must check this one out for simplicity as well as for the beautiful thought process the writer has....Kudos to Dominique"

--Anjali R.

"I just wanna say that I loved your ebook very much. It shares a great concept that I really liked... But I thank you for sharing with me the Sky Letter. I hope with your permission that I can forward it to a few friends and some relatives. I'm sure that they will love it too!"

--Radz K.

A word from our author:

Be part of a growing following of Neek the Meek's message to the World she used to live in. She may have passed away but she made that decision to write to all of you and send it down to earth through "air-mail" :-) It was a message that fell from the sky and finds its way to your hearts and minds.

With childlike and intellectual appeal, she addressed the following matters: 1) What to do with adversaries, 2) what to do with facing conflicts, and 3) what to do if you live for the future while waiting to die in the present.

Read on and share the inspiration on step at a time.

As the creator of this eBook, this is my gift to you for Christmas. This Christmas and New Year, I wish you more opportunities to share your enlightenment and inspiration to all. The power to make that happen is in your hands!

:-( -> :-| -> :-)

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"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you."

--A.A. Milne

Winnie the Pooh

Tuesday, 4 September 2012

Month-of-September's Christopher Reeve

My September-born favorite is Christopher Reeve (September 25, 1952 – October 10, 2004). You can read the basics about him in: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_reeve

He was best known as the Superman actor and one of life's big real-life hero even if he became paralyzed from an accident. I hope you enjoy the video I posted in this blog. No matter what physical difficulties he had, he can still have fun with Ernie and Rubber Duckie. Superman actors have come and gone. Among all the Superman actors I have seen, Christopher Reeve is my undisputed favorite. Whether he glides in the air in the movies or lives paralyzed from the neck down in real life, he is still Super to me. I admire the Superman role he portrayed. He understands that it isn't in the super powers that makes the character a Superman. It is the character's wisdom --that he has when he decides when to use his powers-- which makes him a true Superman. He has quoted many interesting lines while he lived. I found some from imdb.com.

There is more to read at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001659/bio But, I listed what I love what he said about Superman:

"What makes Superman a hero is not that he has power, but that he has the wisdom and the maturity to use the power wisely. From an acting point of view, that's how I approached the part."

"I have seen first-hand how Superman actually transforms people's lives. I have seen children dying of brain tumors who wanted as their last request to be able to talk to me, and have gone to their graves with a peace brought on by knowing that their belief in this kind of character is intact. I have seen that Superman really matters. They're connecting with something very basic: the ability to overcome obstacles, the ability to persevere, the ability to understand difficulty and to turn your back on it."

"[Jerry Siegel] and [Joe Shuster] created a piece of American mythology. It was my privilege to be the onscreen custodian of the character in the '70s and '80s. There will be many interpretations of Superman, but the original character created by two teenagers in the '30s will last forever."

[pn Superman's enduring popularity] "He's a friend. Everybody needs a friend. That's why he's still here."

And other stuff I love best, too:

"Either you decide to stay in the shallow end of the pool or you go out in the ocean."

[talking about Robin Williams' visiting him in the hospital shortly after the accident] "There was this guy wearing a blue scrub hat and a yellow gown and with a Russian accent, being some insane Russian doctor . . . I laughed for the first time, and I knew that life was going to be okay."

"Your body is not who you are. The mind and spirit transcend the body."

[on his post-accident role in Rear Window (1998) (TV)] "I was worried that only acting with my voice and my face, I might not be able to communicate effectively enough to tell the story. But I was surprised to find that if I really concentrated and just let the thoughts happen, that they would read on my face."

"The key to success is letting the relationships in your life grow to the highest levels they possibly can . . . not putting yourself first in life and remembering that the more you give away, the more you have."

"So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable."

"I often refer to Abraham Lincoln, who said, 'When I do good I feel good. When I do bad I feel bad. And that is my religion.' I think we all have a little voice inside us that will guide us. It may be God, I don't know. But I think that if we shut out all the noise and clutter from our lives and listen to that voice, it will tell us the right thing to do."

"A hero is someone who in spite of weakness, doubt or not always knowing the answers goes ahead and overcomes anyway."

"I refuse to allow a disability to determine how I live my life. I don't mean to be reckless, but setting a goal that seems a bit daunting actually is very helpful toward recovery."

"What you probably don't know is that I left New York last September and I just arrived here this morning. And I'm glad I did because I wouldn't have missed this kind of welcome for the world. Thank you." [After he received a standing ovation when he appeared at The 68th Annual Academy Awards (1996) to present a film reel on how Hollywood has tackled social issues]

Thank you for being you, Mr. Reeve. I am grateful to be aware of a real Superman that transcends both Hollywood glamour and other exaggerated expectations of being a hero.

:-( -> :-| -> :-)

DL ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you."

--A.A. Milne

Winnie the Pooh

Wednesday, 1 August 2012

Month-of-August's Enid Blyton

Enid Blyton (illustrated by Dominique Liongson)

Enid Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was a successful British children's author who wrote hundreds of books. Her books ranges from short tales to longer mystery series.

The first time I noticed Enid Blyton was as a story book I received on one Christmas Day. It was a random compilation of short tales titled "The Little Brown Bear and Other Stories." It was a book I was very fond of that I read it over and over again. I was amused with her tale about the rude boy who was punished, and the penalty was to hold his tongue. (Yup, it was either he holds it with his fingers or else there is a special slipper waiting for him.)

I became a big fan of her tales about the fairy folk and talking animals. When I discovered that the library had a smorgasbord of Enid Blyton compilations of short tales, I borrowed stack-fuls to take home. Even if the other tales were about themes that can happen in real life, I feel so eager to finish each story from start to finish. Amazingly, I wasn't bored nor disappointed with reading them. Even if the tales are shorter than grown-up short stories, they start and end sensibly and entertainingly.

She also had books for bigger kids, but among her big kid's books it was the "The Naughtiest Girl in School" that caught my eye. I love it when the nasty characters bloom to be the best they can be.

If you wish to read a brief biography of Enid Blyton, you may find her in your encyclopedia listed under B for Blyton. Or you may click on this Wikipedia link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enid_Blyton

I found some striking quotes Enid Blyton from online. If you wish to read more, simply click this link: http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=2897

On grown-ups - "It wasn't a bit of good fighting grown-ups. They could do exactly as they liked". (Julian in Five On a Treasure Island)

On only children - "They're alway a bit odd, you know, unless they're mighty careful" (Julian in Five On a Treasure Island)

When things go wrong - "The best way to treat obstacles is to use them as stepping-stones. Laugh at them, tread on them, and let them lead you to something better." (Jimmy's mother in Mr. Galliano's Circus.)

On faces - "I think people make their own faces, as they grow." (Joan Townsend in The Naughtiest Girl Again.)

On being a judge of character - "The point is not that I don't recognise bad people when I see them - I grant you that I may quite well be taken in by them - the point is that I know a good person when I see one." (Snubby in The Rubadub Mystery.)

On acquiring useful skills - "I'm good at exploring roofs. You never know when that kind of thing comes in useful." (Snubby in The Rubadub Mystery.)

On being honest with yourself: "You are honest enough by nature to be able to see and judge your own self clearly - and that is a great thing. Never lose that honesty, Bobby - always be honest with yourself, know your own motives for what they are, good or bad, make your own decisions firmly and justly - and you will be a fine, strong character, of some real use in this muddled world of ours!" (Miss Theobald in Summer Term at St. Clare's.)

On making mistakes - "Leaving a gate open is a very small thing, but unfortunately small things have a way of leading to bigger things. An open gate - wandering cattle or horses - maybe damage by them to be paid for - loss of hours of their labour - loss of our time looking for them. It all means a pretty big bill when you add it up. But we all make mistakes, Mark - and providing we learn our lessons and don't make the same mistakes twice, we shan't do so badly. Don't worry too much about it." (Father to his children's friend Mark in More Adventures on Willow Farm).

On changing one's mind - "I wonder where you got that idea from? I mean, the idea that it's feeble to change your mind once it's made up. That's a wrong idea, you know...Make up your mind about things, by all means - but if something happens to show that you are wrong, then it is feeble not to change your mind, Elizabeth. Only the strongest people have the pluck to change their minds, and say so, if they see they have been wrong in their ideas." (William in The Naughtiest Girl in the School.)

On essential laws for society - "Heaps of people have never seen the sun rise. Hardly any of the girls at my school have. They've missed something! I think there ought to be a law that says everyone must watch a sunrise, and everyone must see a bluebell wood, and a buttercup field, and..." (Jill in The Adventurous Four Again!)

First Term at Malory Towers Miss Potts advises Darrell: "You will be a finer character if you go along on your own, than if you copy other people. You see, what you do, you do whole-heartedly - so if you play the fool, naturally other things will suffer".
Miss Potts comments: "... when you choose something worth while like doctoring - or teaching - or writing or painting, it is best to be whole-hearted about it. It doesn't so much matter for a second-rate or third-rate person. But if you happen to have the makings of a first-rate person and you mean to choose a first-rate job when you grow up, then you must learn to be whole-hearted when you are young".

Thank you for your gift of writing stories, Ms. Enid Blyton. Your positive light inspires us readers to look forward to happy endings from most conflicts. I wish to remind you that your death is an ending of an old adventure, but a beginning of a new one.

:-( -> :-| -> :-)
DL
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"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you."

--A.A. Milne
Winnie the Pooh

Sunday, 1 July 2012

Month-of-July's Art Linkletter

Art Linkletter (Arthur Gordon "Art" Linkletter) was known as the man who interviews children from the TV show "House Party." I blog about him since he is my favorite celebrity born on July (born on July 17, 1912 – died on May 26, 2010).

If you wish to read a full article about him, you may find him in your encyclopedia by searching "Linkletter, Art" or simply click to this Wikipedia link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Linkletter.

On the beginning of this blog entry, I attached a video of a clip from "House Party" filmed on 1959. It was released again on the late 1990's by Bill Cosby. I hope you enjoy watching this as much as I have. Did these children follow a script, or did they answer spontaneously? Watch the video, and find out.

I first saw his entertaining interviews with children (filmed somewhere between 1945-1969) when Bill Cosby hosted "Kids Say the Darndest Things" in the late 1990's. Sometimes I wonder if the children had a fixed script, or if they had spontaneous answers. The children may come in different colors, shapes, and sizes. But, what they all have in common is they have the darndest things to say.

One of my favorite dialogues was when Mr. Linkletter asked a little boy what was Adam's punishment from eating the forbidden fruit (from Genesis in the Old Testament Bible). The boy said, "God told him to sit down and write the Bible." The next question was what's Eve's punishment. The boy said, "She became a housewife." If thoughts are like dots you can connect with a pen, I wonder where he got his dots. :-)

Mr. Linkletter has quotable quotes that are just as charming. I found them from http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/a/art_linkletter.html.

"I like what I'm doing. Today at 88, I wouldn't think of quitting because I can't think of anything else I would rather do. And now with my lectures on all the charitable things that I do, just as you do, I think that what I'm doing matters."

"I've learned it's always better to have a small percentage of a big success, than a hundred percent of nothing."

"In the Top 40, half the songs are secret messages to the teen world to drop out, turn on, and groove with the chemicals and light shows at discotheques."

"My philosophy is to do the best you can for somebody. Help. It's not just what do you for yourself. It's how you treat people decently. The golden rule. There isn't big anything better than the golden rule. It's in every major religion in one language or another."

"The depths of the Depression. You didn't ask what the job was, what the pay was, you didn't ask about stock options, or - you said yes."

"Things turn out best for the people who make the best out of the way things turn out."

"A finished product is one that has already seen its better days."

Thank you for letting the little lights of the bright children shine with joy and humor, Mr. Art Linkletter. Now I know why Jesus of Nazareth (from the New Testament Bible) didn't want His apostles to forbid the children to come to Him.

:-( -> :-| -> :-)
DL

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"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you."

--A.A. Milne
Winnie the Pooh