On this day in History

On this day October 23, the following happened:

(Remember Each day is unique)

42 BC Roman Republican civil wars: Second Battle of Philippi - Brutus's army is decisively defeated by Mark Antony and Octavian. Brutus commits suicide.

1864 - During the U.S. Civil War, Union forces led by Gen. Samuel R. Curtis defeated the Confederate forces in Missouri that were under Gen. Stirling Price.

1910 - Blanche S. Scott became the first woman to make a public solo airplane flight in the United States. 

1915 - The first U.S. championship horseshoe tourney was held in Kellerton, IA. 

1915 - Approximately 25,000 women demanded the right to vote with a march in New York City, NY. 

1929 - In the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged starting the stock-market crash that began the Great Depression. 

1930 - J.K. Scott won the first miniature golf tournament. The event was held in Chattanooga, TN. 

1942 - During World War II, the British began a major offensive against Axis forces at El Alamein, Egypt. 

1944 - During World War II, the Battle of Leyte Gulf began. 

1946 - The United Nations General Assembly convened in New York for the first time. 

1956 - Hungarian citizens began an uprising against Soviet occupation. On November 4, 1956 Soviet forces enter Hungary and eventually suppress the uprising. 

1956 - NBC broadcasted the first videotape recording. The tape of Jonathan Winters was seen coast to coast in the U.S. 

1958 - Russian poet and novelist Boris Pasternak was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature. He was forced to refuse the honor due to negative Soviet reaction. Pasternak won the award for writing "Dr. Zhivago". 

1962 - During the Cuban Missile Crisis, the U.S. naval "quarantine" of Cuba was approved by the Council of the Organization of American States (OAS). 

1962 - The U.S. Navy reconnaissance squadron VFP-62 began overflights of Cuba under the code name "Blue Moon." 

1962 - Steveland Morris Judkins, later known as Little Stevie Wonder, at the age of 12 recorded his first single. The song was "Thank you for Loving Me All the Way." 

1971 - The U.N. General Assembly voted to expel Taiwan and seat Communist China. 

1972 - The musical "Pippin" premiered at the Imperial Theater on Broadway. 

1973 - U.S. President Richard M. Nixon agreed to turn over the subpoenaed tapes concerning the Watergate affair. 

1977 Paleontologist Elso Barghoorn announces that 34-billion-year-old one-celled fossils, the earliest life forms, had been discovered

1978 - Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious attempted to commit suicide while awaiting trial for killing his girlfriend Nancy Spungen. 

1978 - CBS Records raised the price of vinyl records by one dollar to $8.98. 

1978 - China and Japan formally ended four decades of hostility when they exchanged treaty ratifications. 

1980 - The resignation of Soviet Premier Alexei N. Kosygin was announced. 

1984 - "NBC Nightly News" aired footage of the severe drought in Ethiopia. 

1985 - U.S. President Reagan arrived in New York to address the U.N. General Assembly. 

1989 - Hungary became an independent republic, after 33 years of Soviet rule. 

1992 - Japanese Emperor Akihito became the first Japanese emperor to stand on Chinese soil. 

1993 - Joe Carter (Toronto Blue Jays) became only the second player to end the World Series with a homerun. 

1995 - In Houston, TX, a jury convicted Yolanda Saldivar of the murder of Selena. 

1995 - Tone-Loc was ordered to take an anger management class after fighting with a pizza delivery person. 

1997 - The musical "Triumph of Love" opened at the Royale Theatre. 

1998 - Eddie Nichols (Royal Crown Revue) was arrested in Toledo, OH, for allegedly hitting a sheriff in a diner. Nichols was charged with a felony and held without bail over the weekend. 

1995 - Russian President Boris Yeltsin and U.S. President Bill Clinton agree to a joint peacekeeping effort in the war-torn Bosnia. 

1998 - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Chairman Yasser Arafat reach a breakthrough in a land-for-peace West Bank accord. 

1998 - Japan nationalized its first bank since World War II. 

2000 - Universal Studios Consumer Products Group (USCPG) and Amblin Entertainment announced an unprecedented and exclusive three-year worldwide merchandising program with Toys "R" Us, Inc. The deal was for the rights to exclusive "E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial" merchandise starting in fall 2001. The film was scheduled for re-release in the spring of 2002. 

2001 The Provisional Irish Republican Army of Northern Ireland commences disarmament after peace talks.

2001 Apple releases the iPod.

2001 - NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft began orbiting Mars. In 2010, it became the longest-operating spacecraft ever sent to Mars. 1941 - "Clarinet a la King" was recorded by Benny Goodman and his orchestra. 

2005 - In Chicago, IL, Lou Rawls gave his last performance when he performed the national anthem of the United States to start Game Two of the 2005 World Series. 

Three quotes to inspire

Three quotes to inspire:

"When the doors of perception are cleansed, things will appear as they are.  Infinite."  William Blake   

"An instant of life taken by itself as it is deeply probed becomes a doorway to infinity. The minutiae of life will appear even more clearly to be the guides to eternity."   -  Russian novelist Andrey Bely

"It may look like a wreck, but go at it as though it were an opportunity, a challenge. If you bring love to that moment -- not discouragement -- you will find the strength is there. Any disaster that you can survive is an improvement in your character, your stature, and your life. What a privilege! This is when the spontaneity of your own nature will have a chance to flow.

Then, when looking back at your life, you will see that the moments which seemed to be great failures followed by wreckage were the incidents that shaped the life you have now. You'll see that this is really true. Nothing can happen to you that is not positive. Even though it looks and feels at the moment like a negative crisis, it is not. The crisis throws you back, and when you are required to exhibit strength, it comes."- Joseph Campbell

A bit of humor about nutrition and health

For those of you who watch what you eat, here's the final word on nutrition and health.

It's a relief to know the truth after all those conflicting nutritional studies.

1. The Japanese eat very little fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
2. The Mexicans eat a lot of fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
3. The Chinese drink very little red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
4. The Italians drink a lot of red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
5. The Germans drink a lot of beer and eat lots of sausages and fats and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

CONCLUSION:

Eat and drink what you like.


Speaking English is apparently what kills you

Realistic Thinking

Many of  us  who are out of balance may be anxious, and while anxiety is normal, sometimes it can get of hand. So to counter anxiety, one technique is to use Realistic Thinking.

Realistic thinking means looking at all aspects of a situation (the positive, the negative, and the neutral) before making conclusions. In other words, realistic thinking means looking at yourself, others, and the world in a balanced and fair way.

Step 1: Pay attention to your self-talk Thoughts are the things that we say to ourselves without speaking out loud (self-talk). We can have many thoughts every hour of the day. We all have our own way of thinking about things, and how we think has a big effect on how we feel.

Step 2: Identify thoughts that lead to feelings of anxiety It can take some time and practice to identify the specific thoughts that make you anxious, so here are some helpful tips: Pay attention to your shifts in anxiety, no matter how small. 
When you notice yourself getting more anxious, that is the time to ask yourself: 

• What am I thinking right now?
• What is making me feel anxious?
• What am I worried will happen?
• What bad thing do I expect to happen?

Some examples of “anxious” thoughts:

• What if I can’t do it?
• I’m going to die of a heart attack!
• People are going to laugh at me if I mess up during the presentation.
• I’m going to go crazy if I can’t stop feeling so anxious.
• Things are not going to work out.
• I’m an idiot.
• What if something bad happens to my child?” 

Step 3: Challenge your “anxious” thinking Thinking about something does not mean that the thought is true or that it will happen. 

For example, thinking that a dog will bite you does not mean that it will. Often, our thoughts are just guesses and not actual facts. Therefore, it is helpful to challenge your anxious thoughts, because they can make you feel like something bad will definitely happen, even when it is highly unlikely.

Sometimes, our anxiety is the result of falling into thinking traps. Thinking traps are unfair or overly negative ways of seeing things. Use the Thinking Traps Form provided by Anxiety BC  to help you identify the traps into which you might have fallen.

Try coming up with statements that remind you how you can cope with a situation. For example, “If I get anxious, I will try some calm breathing”, “I just need to do my best”, “People cannot tell when I am feeling anxious”, “This has happened before and I know how to handle it”, or “My anxiety won’t last forever”. 

Positive self-statements. Regularly practise being “kind” to yourself (say positive things about yourself), rather than being overly self-critical. For example, instead of saying, “I will fail”, say something like, “I can do it”. Or, “I am not weak for having anxiety. Everyone experiences anxiety”, “I’m not a loser if someone doesn’t like me. No one is liked by everyone!”, or “I’m strong for challenging myself to face the things that scare me”.

Alternative balanced statements based on challenging negative thoughts. Once you’ve looked at the evidence or recognized that you’ve fallen into a thinking trap, come up with a more balanced thought