Excelsior

The shades of night were falling fast,
As through an Alpine village passed
A youth, who bore, 'mid snow and ice,
A banner with the strange device,
Excelsior!

His brow was sad; his eye beneath,
Flashed like a falchion from its sheath,
And like a silver clarion rung
The accents of that unknown tongue,
Excelsior!

In happy homes he saw the light
Of household fires gleam warm and bright;
Above, the spectral glaciers shone,
And from his lips escaped a groan,
Excelsior!

"Try not the Pass!" the old man said:
"Dark lowers the tempest overhead,
The roaring torrent is deep and wide!
And loud that clarion voice replied,
Excelsior!

"Oh stay," the maiden said, "and rest
Thy weary head upon this breast!"
A tear stood in his bright blue eye,
But still he answered, with a sigh,
Excelsior!

"Beware the pine-tree's withered branch!
Beware the awful avalanche!"
This was the peasant's last Good-night,
A voice replied, far up the height,
Excelsior!

At break of day, as heavenward
The pious monks of Saint Bernard
Uttered the oft-repeated prayer,
A voice cried through the startled air,
Excelsior!

A traveller, by the faithful hound,
Half-buried in the snow was found,
Still grasping in his hand of ice
That banner with the strange device,
Excelsior!

There in the twilight cold and gray,
Lifeless, but beautiful, he lay,
And from the sky, serene and far,
A voice fell, like a falling star,
Excelsior!

Leather Shoes

An Army Ranger was on vacation in Louisiana & wanted a pair of genuine alligator shoes. However, the local vendors were asking very high prices. So the Army Ranger decided to go into the swamps & get his own alligator & then have the shoes made at a more reasonable price. When he mentioned this to one of the shopkeepers, he was told that he might run into a couple of Marines who had decided to do the same thing.

So the Ranger headed into the bayou & a few hours later he saw the two Marines. They were standing waist deep in the water. The Ranger then saw a huge gator swimming rapidly underwater towards one of the Marines.

Just as the gator was about to attack, the Marine grabbed its neck with both hands & strangled it to death with very little effort. Then both Marines dragged it on shore & flipped it on its back. Laying nearby were several more of the creatures.

The Ranger then heard one of the Marines shout, "Damn, this one doesn't have any shoes either!"

A Car is a car is a car ...

But this baby is more than a car... this is my car! What alluring & arresting lines she has. Come Monday, she will make her pledge of performance & companionship to me. She may not look like a supercar, but with high level of road holding & handling, couple with safety & luxury of a coupe, it would be a shame to leave this baby in the showroom.
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A 4-speed automatic transmission core, this 2.0-liter DOHC 16V engine cranks out 142 bhp & can bring her driver from 0 - 100 km/h in just under 11 seconds! Still, she offers the optimum balance of performance & economy. Oh...did I forget to mention that it has a moon-roof on top?
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Damage done: Not going to tell (grin)
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Colour: Stone Black
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Enough said. Afterall, a car is a car is a car... but this is different!
This is a coupe.
This is a Tuscani.
This is ..... my car!

Money is Not the Measure

"If money is your hope for independence you will never have it. The only real security that a man will have in this world is a reserve of knowledge, experience, & ability."
- Henry Ford

Many people make the same mistake of aiming at money, making money itself a goal or desire. This is an undesirable vision & grave mistake as money is worth nothing more than the value it is given. To associate money with security is about as wise as having discussions with your money, eating your money or even burning it to stay warm. We must never forget that money is simply a measure of worth, not the worth itself.

In order to experience true wealth & abundance, we must set our sights above monetary value to those things in our world that we truly desire. We do nothing but cheapen our dreams by pricing them, no matter the value.
- John Kanary