People who can appreciate what they have now, and are self-motivated to achieve even more in the unknown future, are fortunate. And then there is the realization that life is about solving problems, and there will always be problems. So, do not hope for Utopia. Hope to solve your problems and appreciate all that you have. Today, spend a few moments imagining what it would be like if you had no family, no friends, no possessions, no education, no money at all. Then imagine yourself obtaining what you presently have, one item at a time! After that exercise, are you happy with what you have now? Perhaps you are not.

But let me ask you this: what is it that makes people strive for progression, forward movement, and never be totally happy in one stable state? Sometimes, I find myself falling into this category, and I wonder, if this is good or bad. Is this trait somewhat instinctive?

As a last resort he went to a Rabbi and poured out his story of tears and woe. When he had finished, the Rabbi said, “Here’s what I want you to do: Put a beach chair and your Bible in your car and drive down to the beach in Ft. Lauderdale. Take the beach chair and the Bible to the water’s edge, sit down in the beach chair, and put the Bible in your lap. Open the Bible; the wind will riffle the pages, but finally the open Bible will come to rest on a page. Look down at the page and read the first thing you see. That will be your answer, that will tell you what to do.”

A year later the businessman went back to the Rabbi and brought his wife and children with him. The man was in a new custom tailored suit, his wife in a mink coat, the children shining. The businessman pulled an envelope stuffed with money out of his pocket, gave it to the Rabbi as a donation in thanks for his advice.

The Rabbi recognized the benefactor, and was curious. “You did as I suggested?” he asked. “Absolutely,” replied the businessman. “You went to the beach?” “Absolutely.” “You sat in a beach chair with the Bible in your lap?” “Absolutely.” “You let the pages riffle until they stopped?” “Absolutely.” “And what were the first words you saw?” “Chapter 11″

It’s not always the ‘restaurant food’ that causes stomach distress. Sometimes, “what you don’t know WILL hurt you”!

Women carry handbags everywhere and set it down anywhere. “I drive a school bus, so my handbag has been on the floor of the bus a lot,” says one woman. “On the floor of my car, and in toilets.” “I put my handbag in grocery shopping carts and on the floor of the toilet,” says another woman.

Most women told us they didn’t stop to think about what was on the bottom of their handbag. Most said when they arrive home they usually set their handbags on top of kitchen tables and counters where food is prepared.

Microbiologist Amy Karen of Nelson Labs says nearly all of the handbags tested were not only high in bacteria, but also high in harmful kinds of bacteria. Pseudomonas can cause eye infections, staphylococcus aurous can cause serious skin infections, and salmonella and e-colic found on the handbags could make people very sick.

In one sampling, four of five handbags tested positive for salmonella, and that’s not the worst of it. “There is fecal contamination on the handbags” says Amy. Leather or vinyl handbags tended to be cleaner than cloth handbags, and lifestyle seemed to play a role. People with kids tended to have dirtier handbags than those without,

So the moral of this story is that your handbag won’t kill you, but it does have the potential to make you very sick if you keep it on places where you eat.