CHRISTMASTIME CHEER

photo by Tagosaku

Late on their payments and generally in debt, an elderly couple in Illinois had their car repossessed.  But parked around the corner with the car, repo man Jim Ford called the bank and paid them up to current.  The gesture made him think of his own grandparents.  Ultimately donations paid off the car in full.  "We raised most of it in the first eight hours," said Ford.   Just a good ol'fashioned feel good story.  Thank you, Illinois.       story           

Principle in the type:  "Doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure."    Hymn

PRETTY HAPPY

photo by Nick Sieger

Ladies.  It's what's inside that matters?  Where does one find happiness?  What's the secret to not obsessing with beauty?  Boy those are tough ones.  Queen B explores:



                                      

Principle in the type:  ". . . contribution of women is often underappreciated.  I wish to express gratitude for the influence of good women, identify some of the philosophies and trends that threaten women’s strength and standing, and voice a plea to women to cultivate the . . .  power within them."    D. Todd Christofferson

                                                                                                     Happy Weekend, Ya'll!

ANGELS AMONG US

photo by Marc Cooper

Is Los Angeles 234 years old or not?   That has become the quibble historians find themselves in.  And not all historians agree on its said original name either; El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles (which means, for you gringos like me, 'the Town of Our Lady the Queen of the Angels').   No matter.  Angels at any year are a good thing.    story

Principle in the type:  "Each of us has more opportunities to do good and to be good than we ever use."     Spencer W. Kimball           

 

THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES

photo by Louise Palanker

It seemed like really, everybody who knew Garry Marshall liked him, as so many nice things have been said.   The writer, director, producer who had a hand in a zillion TV and movie hits - including "Happy Days," "The Odd Couple," "Pretty Woman," and "The Princess Diaries," passed this month at the age of 81.   "Garry once said:   ‘I try to find scripts of stories that kinda celebrate the human condition… let’s talk about the tough world out there and the human spirit overcoming adversity.' "      news

Principle in the type:  "As long as there is one upright man, as long as there is one compassionate woman, the contagion may spread and the scene is not desolate.  Hope is the one thing left to us in a bad time."     E.B. White     

DETAILS, DETAILS...

photo by Eduardo Sciammarella

Sooo, where is NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory really located?  Pasadena, you say?  La Cañada, you think?  Well, "technically, La Cañada won JPL from Pasadena in 1976 when it incorporated as a city, but Pasadena has succeeded in annexing the campus in the court of public opinion."   (Think The Big Bang Theory, and The Martian, as two recent JPL 'Pasadena' groupies.)   True the mailing address shows Pasadena, but physically it is in La Cañada.   At least both cities know a good thing when they see it!   story           

Principle in the type:  "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works . . . "    Bible  

GET THE LED OUT

photo by Satry Bacchus

The face off in court between Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" and American band Spirit's "Taurus" (which you can listen to here), continues.  Did the Zepp rip the rift?  Nah, says music expert Lawrence Ferrara.  That same chord progression "musical element was used 300 years ago, as well as in many pop songs since then."    Some melodies make for a Good foundation, obvi. 

Principle in the type:  " . . . with all his or her power, nourish that which is good.    L. Tom Perry

HERO'ISH

photo by Urbanworld Film Festival

Actor Jamie Foxx saved a man from a fiery car crash, when near his Los Angeles home "a 32-year-old man . . . hit a ditch" causing his truck "to roll many times over and burst into flames."  Two witnesses of the crash, including Foxx - rushed to pull the man "to safety."    Foxx later told reporters, "I'm not a hero ... but had to do something."  story        But can we count pulling people from burning cars, at least as a good deed?

Principle in the type:  "But I believe in my capacity and in your capacity to do good, to make some contribution to the society of which we are a part, [and] to grow and develop. … I believe in the principle that I can make a difference in this world, be it ever so small.”                       Gordon B. Hinckley

WALK TALL

photo by Daniel Oines

Walter "Chick" McGill has come a long way.  Across the nation, that is.  He is a 69 year old, newly converted pastor, who heard the call three years ago to ". . . do the right thing."  That's what society has to get back, "being good to each other," he believes.  McGill's form of preaching this message was to walk across the nation, and he is almost there -- reaching the pier in Santa Monica, California any day.  Say what you will about his way of proclamation, but 'being good to each other,' sounds pretty nice about now.   news link

Principle in the type: "There is no end to the good we can do, to the influence we can have with others. Let us not dwell on the critical or the negative."  Gordon B. Hinckley

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HAPPY EARTH DAY! (YESTERDAY)

photo by Laura Pope

Hope all your celebrating was wonderful?!  Or, maybe all you did to commemorate was festively not look directly into the sun, and pickup your doggy's lawn 'deposit' during your neighborhood walk.  That's fine!  "For us everyday is Earth Day," said Chad Nelson, CEO of the Surfrider Foundation (news link).   In that way, I am totally on the same page.  As individuals it is best we truly appreciate what we have here, and treat it respectively!

Principle in the type:  ". . . Men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will . . . "         Scripture