Finding Happiness at Work

Finding happiness at work is one of the most common human pursuit.  Whether work is seen as a means of living or a venue to use our skills and talents.  Doing things the same kind of work day in and day out for years requires love for work to sustain or else work becomes a drag.  Which could lead to work stress and burnout.  With happiness at work, one can have sustained energy and motivation.

Identifying your passion.  Doing what you love to do while earning is a key in finding happiness at work.  If your motivation is your passion, money becomes secondary only. If one works only for money, there will be no true happiness.  There is no contentment when it comes to money, but rather there should be a sense of fulfillment.

When you know the work that makes you happy, you will be able to put all your love, energy, and creativity into it.  Not all the time there is money at work, there will be ups and downs but your passion will keep you going.
Compete with yourself and perform hundred percent.    Every work has its own challenge and accepting these challenges will make your work more meaningful.  After proving that you will be able to perform the work well there is a sense of fulfillment and greater meaning of it.

Focus, Focus, and Focus.  Distractions can be many but with a focused mind leads to a job well done.  Do not measure your abilities against others and do not underestimate your capacities.

Speech Articulation: Tongue Twisters (Series 3)

If you wish to improve your diction, in addition to taking instruction, it is imperative you practice every minute possible.  It is the quickest way in which incorrect habits are broken.

The cook put the cook-book in the cookery, then forgetting the cook-book was in a nook, the cook looked and looked but couldn’t find her cook-book.

Terry, the Tinker, and a tense teen-ager took a ten-penny nail to the top of a tall toppling tower. Tiny told Ted to take Terry’s tools to the tank of his toe.  And after he tapped on the tank with the  tap tip-toe  toward terry and to tell him to turn toward the tense teen-ager and to topple over the ten-penny nail.

Sister Susie sewed a soldier’s shoulder seam on a Singer sewing machine.  Sister Susie stitched a soldier’s shirt on a sewing machine.

Silly Sally still sells silver shells.

A shy little she said, “Shoo!”

To a fly and a flea in a flue.

If a woodchuch could chuck wood,

How much wood would a woodchuck could chuck wood?

He would chuck, he would, as much as he could,

If a woodchuck could chuck wood.

Speech Articulation: Tongue Twisters (Series 2)

 The admirable angular admiral was angry at the adjuration of the active attentive adjutant.  The attentive active adjutant analyzed an anecdote that antagonized the angular admirable admiral.

A noisy noise annoys an oyster.

Sister Susie’s sewing shirts for soldiers.

If one doctor doctors another, does the doctor who doctors the doctor doctor the doctor the way the doctor he is doctoring doctors?  Or does he doctor the doctor the way the doctor who doctors doctors?

While trying to whistle, Christopher Twistle twisted his tongue.

Six silly sisters sell silk to six sickly seniors.

A lively young fisher named Fischer Fished for a fish from the edge of a fissure.  A fish with a grin pulled the fisherman in! Now they are hunting the fissure for Fischer.

Buzz buzz buzz

Buzzes the bumble bees

Buzz buzz buzz

Beneath the beechwood trees.

The berry brambles beneath the beechwoods bring the buzzing bumble bees back from the bright blooming blossoms.

Bill Bord had a board and a billboard.  Both the board and the billboard bored Bill Bord.  So Bill Bord sold the billboard to pay his board bill and now neither the board nor the billboard will bore Bill Bord.

Don’t drop the dripping dripper

That dripping dipping dipper

That drips drops down the dreary dairy drain.

Speech Articulation: Tongue Twisters (Series 1)

Tongue Twisters are passed into generations for many years.  Among its benefits are to help in speech articulation, may cure hiccups, and other speech problems.  This has been also used by Dentists for patients testing to fit the dentures, by broadcasting students, and trainors who usually talks to people.

Here are some other tongue twisters you can practice aside from the famous "Peter Piper pick a ....".  Have fun with these tongue twisters!

Oily the Ox was one of the oldest oxen in the Oxford.  Obstinate Omar owned Oily the Ox.  Obstinate Omar wanted to obtain an onyx for Olive.  Otis and Owen bought Olly the Ox.  Obviously obstinate Omar sold Olly the Ox in order to obtain the Onyx for Olive.  Otis and Owen objected that it occurred to obstinate Omar to omit the observation that Olly the Ox was one of the oldest oxen in Oxford.

Little London lamp lighters lighting London’s little lamps.

Lilly and Lila lived along a lonely lane.  Lila and Lily liked lilacs and lilies.  Lila liked lovely lilies and Lily liked lovely lilacs.  Lily and Liva lavished the lovely lilacs and lovely lilies on the likeable ladies living along the lamentably lonely lane.

So with thirty thousand thumbs they thumped on thirty thousand drums.

Whether the weather be fine or Whether the weather be not,

Whether the weather be cold or

Whether the weather be hot, we’ll

Weather the weather whatever the weather

Whether we like it or not.

There was a young lady named Sue

Who wanted to catch the 2: 02

Said the trainman, “Don’t hurry

Or flurry or worry;

It’s a minute or two to 2:02.

Keeping Young Children Entertained on a Flight

Contributing Author:  Anastasia Meredith Oh

Some Easy ways for parents to keep their young children occupied whilst on a flight, with in-flight or without.

Although adults may be able to sleep through a flight many children will find it hard, and if there is no in-flight entertainment then young children may become distressed and take to mischief making. With this article I hope to give you some great ideas that my parents used with me when I was younger.

Colouring in books can be great, if you buy a cheep book and a packet of pencils or wax crayons. If you don’t want to buy a whole book you can go onlineand download some templates and you can choose them with your children and see which ones they want. These pictures can be put into a folder which will be easily fitted into a bag to take on the plane as hand luggage. If you get a complicated template it may take up to 30 mins for your child to finish the colouring, or if it’s simple it may take much less, so make sure you have quite a few of these handy so that they are occupied for quite a while.

Another, much more expensive, option is to take a portable DVD player and a range of DVDs. Many DVDs can be bought from around £3($5.5) if you go to Tesco. Show your children a range of DVDs such as ‘The Tweenies’ or ‘The Story Makers’. Other options other that Tv series include fun movies including ‘Stuart Little’, ‘Night at the Museum’ or ‘The Little Vampire’. All of which are great movies which the kids will love. The DVD player can be bought for probably around £50($90) or less if you get it second hand or off ebay or another site that shows you the best prices.


MP3 Players these days can be bought from around £10 or $ 17 and these can be loaded with great music which young children may enjoy, this can be popular music or classical music, even going all the way back to Elvis or music from the late Michael Jackson. Allow the children to pick what songs go on, and use itunes or another program to download your CDs and singles onto the Mp3 player.

Travel board games can be great fun, and especially on a plane, travel chess or checkers can keep a child busy for an hour if it is a good game, and monopoly can have a whole family busy for an hour too. These games can be bought at games stores and other stores such as WH Smith and Daniels. The games can normally be bought for around £5 or $7.

I hope this helped you and good luck with the kids and the journey.

Musical Instruments: Clarinet, Horn, Piccolo, Celesta

Clarinet

Clarinet
Introduced in 1700, great composers such as Handel and Vivaldi used the Clarinet extensively.  Later, another famous composer Mozart used Clarinet music on his compositions.  The modern Clarinet appeared between 1800 and 1850, it has become an important instrument for all music, classical to jazz genres.

Horn
Horn is from wind family first derived from natural animal horns.   One of the most difficult and valuable member of the Orchestra is the French Horn, with a slender tube wound in coils around itself.  Handel's compositions in 17th century also used this instrument and Beethoven especially fond of Horn for his compositions.

Piccolo
Piccolo is a small flute with extremely high range used in orchestras and military bands.  It is being used as early as 18th century when it replaced the flageolet instrument, also called flauto piccolo.

Celesta
Celesta is an orchestral percussion instrument patented by a Parisian, Auguste Mustel, in 1886.  This instrument tones which resembles a small piano  are produced when hammers operated from the keyboard strike steel plates suspended over wooden resonance boxes.  Tchaikovsky work “The Nutcracker” was noted with the use of Celesta.

Musical Instruments: Carillon, Sleigh Bells, Chimes, Oboe, Trumpet

Aside from the contemporary instruments such as piano, guitar, and drums.  Here are some other musical instruments that are interesting to know.

Carillon
Carillons are set of bells cast and tuned to extreme accuracy and purity.  Their sizes varies from ten pounds to tens of thousands of pounds.  The word carillon was originally relates to France  four stationary clock bells and later referred to any group of fixed bells.  Two largest Carillon built with 72 bells were in the Riverside Church in New York and for Rockefeller Chapel at the University of Chicago.

Sleigh Bells
This instrument is often used for Christmas carols frequently used to create the atmosphere of winter scenes in a holiday music.  The familiar jingle sound is produced by loose metal pellets in small round metal balls attached to a leather strap.

 Chimes
Chimes instrument is one of the important sources of music in the middle ages used as substitute for huge Carillons.  They are used in musical performances particularly in churches.  Up to this day, Chimes is still being used in different performances.

Oboe
Oboe or Hautbois a treble member of the woodwind family.   It has a conical bore and double reed mouthpiece.   A popular instrument  in Europe even on early years, its thin quality of tone makes it popular for over the years. 

Trumpet
A brass-wind instrument with a cup-shaped mouthpiece and its own characteristics tone.  There had been three types of Trumpet:  The natural trumpet, the slide and double side Trumpets, and the valve trumpet which has become the popular one among the three.

Musical Instruments: Mandolin, Banjo, Violin, Cello, Koto and Shakuhachi

Cello

Mandolin

Mandolin is part of the lute family with exceptional long history.  The two principal types were the Neapolitan and the Milanese.  This instrument is 2’ long, their Strings were twanged by a pick.  The famous composer Mozart used the Neapolitan Mandolin to accompany the famous serenade in “Don Giovanni”.

Banjo

This American instrument Banjo has 4 to 9 tuned metal strings, a long neck and a unique soundboard consisting of a parchment covered by a drum.  Strings are plucked or strummed in very fast succession for sustaining effect. 

Violin

Among the string instruments, violin is also one of the most played and  popular. The violin family also includes the Viola, Violoncello (Cello) and the Double Bass.

Cello 
Cello is a bass musical instrument of the violin family with four strings.  The size is 27.5 inches  long  has  deeper ribs and a shorter neck than the violin.  Among the composers who used Cello on their works are Joseph Haydn, Mozart, J.S. Bach, Beethoven's five sonatas for cello and piano, Claude Debussy and among others.

Koto and Shakuhachi

Two traditional Japanese instruments with hundred years of history.  The Koto has a long box, larger at one end then the other, played with both hands like a Harp.  The Shakuchachi came from Chinese tradition.  Japanese composers often used  these instruments in western style compositions and been introduced to the solos, duos, and ensembles performances.

Movie World Premiere in London: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

The much awaited part 2 ending of Harry Potter will just begun as it premiers in London, England where the british famous author J.K.Rowling hails.

The Red Carpet world premiere of the eight Harry Potter movie is expected to be filled with celebrities including its all star cast  Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, Emma Watson as Hermione Granger and Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley.  Other cast includes Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith, Robbie Coltrane and Alan Rickman.  Fans lined up at Trafalgar Square cannot wait to see the event as they bid goodbye to Harry Potter. 

 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

07 July 2011, 4:00pm

Trafalgar Square, London

Official World Release 15 July 2011

Watch Livestreaming YouTube/HarryPotter Channel

Movie trailer from WarnerBrosPictures YouTube Channel

Become a fan on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/harrypottermovie

Talk about HarryPotter on Twitter: #HotterPotterLive

Harry Potter Movie Series

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011)

Securing your Home While Travelling

It is not enough that we protect ourselves while travelling, securing our home will be the next important thing to prepare before departure.  If you are traveling with the family and nobody will be left home, securing your home is essential to keep it from burglary.  Here are the things that we can do before travel date:

• Leave a copy of your itinerary, contact, and accommodation details during the duration of  your travel.  Endorse it to the closest person next to your family so that for any emergency, you can easily be reached.
• Before leaving, check the locks of your doors and windows if they are in good condition.  Replace any that is not properly working.
• Buy a good alarm system for your home.  Alarm system can warn the neighborhood for any untoward incidents from your home.  Ask an expert to install necessary alarm system for your home and car.
• Inform any paper or any other subscription you may have.
• Make sure that you have enough outside lightings so as not to appear your home is empty.  Attach a timer to a few lights in different parts of  your home.
• While on vacation, try to get in touch back home to check it.