American philosopher and writer Elbert Hubbard once said:
“Be pleasant until ten o
Category: Here & There
Nine Requisites for Contented Living
“Nine requisites for contented living:
Health enough to make work a pleasure.
Wealth enough to support your needs.
Strength to battle with difficulties and overcome them.
Grace enough to confess your sins and forsake them.
Patience enough to toil until some good is accomplished.
Charity enough to see some good in your neighbor.
Love enough to move you to be useful and helpful to others.
Faith enough to make real the things of God.
Hope enough to remove all anxious fears concerning the future.”
McDonald’s Australia & Halal Food
McDonald’s Australia reaches out to Muslim fast-food lovers…
McDonald’s Australia has introduced halal products at two Melbourne restaurants, Brunswick East and St Albans, significantly boosting sales.
However some non-Muslim customers are furious they were not told their hamburger meat was slaughtered and blessed in accordance with Islamic rules laid down in the Koran.
[…]
Coburg resident Miriam McLennan was stunned to discover the hamburger she bought from the Brunswick East store was blessed.
“Just as a Muslim would not want to eat anything that isn’t halal . . . I should have my rights to eat normal, ordinary food that hasn’t been blessed,” she said.
[Source: Herald Sun]
First of all, I think this is great news. Being a fast food fan myself, when traveling abroad, I often find myself wishing there were a restaurant or two of my favorite chains that served halal food. So I definitely hope more and more chains consider opening up halal restaurants.
Secondly, regarding the reaction by some of the non-Muslim customers, I think that it might be because of a misunderstanding of the concept of halal food and the way the animals producing halal meat are killed.
In the Koran, here’s what we find:
“Forbidden to you are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah. that which hath been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall, or by being gored to death; that which hath been eaten by a wild animal; unless ye are able to slaughter it; that which is sacrificed on stone;…”
Us & Life…
“The trouble with so many of us is that we underestimate the power of simplicity. We have a tendency it seems to over complicate our lives and forget what’s important and what’s not. We tend to mistake movement for achievement. We tend to focus on activities instead of results. And as the pace of life continues to race along in the outside world, we forget that we have the power to control our lives regardless of what’s going on outside.”
7 Pains You Should Never Ignore
Just came across this article titled “7 Pains You Should Never Ignore” and thought I’d share it. Apparently if there are any 7 pains that you should never ignore, it’s these.
Here’s the list of pains and the possible conditions associated to them:
1. Sudden Groin Pain: Testicular torsion
2. Severe Back Pain: Aneurysm
3. Persistent Foot or Shin Pain: Stress fracture
4. Sharp Pain in the Abdomen: Appendicitis, pancreatitis, or an inflamed gallbladder (Cholecystitis)
5. Transient Chest Pain: Indigestion or heart attack
6. Leg Pain with Swelling: Deep-vein thrombosis
7. Painful Urination: Bladder cancer
Of course most of the conditions listed ase are worst case scenarios, but still it shows how we should never take things lightly and brush off certain pains as nothing.
For more details, check the full article: “7 Pains You Should Never Ignore“.
New Seven Wonders of the World
The New7Wonders Foundation, a Swiss-based foundation created in 2001 by Swiss adventurer Bernard Weber, launched a campaign to revise the list of the world’s seven wonders.
The 21 finalists for the New Seven Wonders of the World, listed alphabetically, are:
1. Acropolis of Athens, Athens, Greece
2. Alhambra, Granada, Spain
3. Angkor Wat, Angkor, Cambodia
4. Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico
5. Christ the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
6. Colosseum, Rome, Italy
7. Easter Island statues, Chile
8. Eiffel Tower, Paris, France
9. Great Wall, China
10. Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey
11. Kyomizu Temple, Kyoto, Japan
12. Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow, Russia
13. Machu Picchu, Peru
14. Neuschwanstein Castle, Fussen, Germany
15. Petra, Jordan
16. Pyramids of Giza, Egypt
17. Statue of Liberty, New York, United States
18. Stonehenge, Amesbury, United Kingdom
19. Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia
20. Taj Mahal, Agra, India
21. Timbuktu, Mali
People can vote online or by phone to choose among this list.
The final list of the new seven wonders is planned to be announced on July 7, 2007, in Lisbon taking advantage of the alignment of the date (07.07.07).
Personally, I don’t know why we have to be limited to seven?
I think all of them deserve to hold the title of “One of the wonders of the world”.
[Site: New Seven Wonders of the World]
How Readable Is Your Blog?
I came across an interesting readibility test on Roba’s blog yesterday that helps you determine how readable your content is.
So, I checked for my blog and here are the results:
Gunning Fog Index: 9.75
Flesch Reading Ease: 64.33
Flesch-Kincaid Grade: 6.79
So my Gunning-Fog Index of 9.75 puts me with the most popular novels when it comes to readability; The Flesch Reading Ease of 64.33 puts me within the recommended fork for writers; And the Flesch-Kincaid Grade of 6.79 means that a person with a minimum 6.79 years of schooling can easily read my blog.
So, I guess I write a lot better than I thought I did. Maybe I should start seriously working on a book.
You too can take the readability test for your blog or website here.
Top 10 Lies Told To Naive Freelancers
If you plan to do freelance work as an artist, writer, graphics designer, developer or whatever other thing you’re into, here’s a list of the top 10 lies you’ll be told by your clients and that could end up ruining it for you.
1. “Do this one cheap (or free) and we’ll make it up on the next one.”
2. “We never pay a cent until we see the final product.”
3. “Do this for us and you’ll get great exposure! The jobs will just pour in!”
4. On looking at sketches or concepts: “Well, we aren’t sure if we want to use you yet, but leave your material here so I can talk to my partner/investor/wife/clergy.”
5. “Well, the job isn’t CANCELLED, just delayed. Keep the account open and we’ll continue in a month or two.”
6. “Contract? We don’t need no stinking contact! Aren’t we friends?”
7. “Send me a bill after the work goes to press.”
8. “The last guy did it for XXX dollars.”
9. “Our budget is XXX dollars, firm.”
10. “We are having financial problems. Give us the work, we’ll make some money and we’ll pay you. Simple.”
Read the full entry “Top 10 Lies told to Naive Artists and Designers” on “Painter Creativity” for explained details and counter arguments for every single point.
[Via: Performancing]
Forbes Arabia Top 40 Arab Brands
Forbes has released a list of the Top 40 Arab brands. The list includes several successful brands that have emerged from the Middle East and are making their presence felt globally.
The list goes as follows:
1. Al Jazeera (Qatar)
2. Emirates Group (UAE)
3. Al-Marai (Saudi Arabia)
4. Al Arabiya (Saudi Arabia)
5. Afia (Saudi Arabia)
6. Americana (Kuwait)
7. Burj Al Arab (UAE)
8. Fine (Jordan)
9. Jarir Bookstore (Saudi Arabia)
10. Emaar (UAE)
Human Species May Split In Two
Reality could imitate fiction…
Humanity may split into two sub-species in 100,000 years’ time as predicted by HG Wells, an expert has said.
Evolutionary theorist Oliver Curry of the London School of Economics expects a genetic upper class and a dim-witted underclass to emerge.
The human race would peak in the year 3000, he said – before a decline due to dependence on technology.
People would become choosier about their sexual partners, causing humanity to divide into sub-species, he added.
The descendants of the genetic upper class would be tall, slim, healthy, attractive, intelligent, and creative and a far cry from the “underclass” humans who would have evolved into dim-witted, ugly, squat goblin-like creatures.
[Source: BBC News]