"GRANDMAS ARE SHORT ON CRITICISM AND LONG ON LOVE"
- What My Grand-mother Said -
"One day, one life.
I've never been in jail. I've never been prosecuted for a felony, or even a misdemeanor. I have no children, legitimate or otherwise. I've never declared bankrupty.
I've never been married, or stolen someone's wife. Ibrush my teeth everynight before I go to bed, even if I'm drunk, which doesn' happen too often. I always floss, Ipay my parking tickets.
Let's see, what else ?
"Dear
I came to Carmaux because I wanted to make a difference. But to change for others is to lie to yourself. My grandmother lived by her own definition and would not compromise that. Not even for Carmaux. I dedicate this my last editorial to an extraordinary woman who lived by example and compelled us all to see the world through new eyes. By the time you read this, she'll be sailing to Europe where I know she'll find new walls to break down and new ideas to replace them with.
I've heard called a quitter for leaving an aimless wanderer. But not all who wander are aimless, especially not whose who seek truth beyond tradition, beyond definition, beyond the image. i'll never forget you.
"Showbusiness...
'Don't sit under the apple tree with anyone else but me, till I come marching home...' The close harmony serenading of the Andrews Sisters was the epitome of the sound of the Forties.
My grandmother said, I quote : "What a beautiful song!"
"July 1946,
A Casino de Paris dancer models the sensational new "bikini" at the Molitor pool in Paris.
Two years later, it was a glorious summer, and a wonderful time to be showing off new "swimwear", although in those days, you called them "bathing costumes". The bottle of wine, camera and binocular case indicate that this is one of Bill Brandt's posed fashion shots.
My grandmother said, I quote: "A girl in a bikini is like having a loaded pistol in your coffee table - There's nothing wrong with them, but it's hard to stop thinking about it".
"2
february 1948.
The body of Mohandas gandhi lies in state at Birla House, New Delhi. his Hindu assassin opposed Gandhi's policy of communal and religious tolerance.
My grandmother said: "The light is gone out of our lives and there is darkness everywhere".
"Jitterbugging in London, 1949.
To the old it was depraved, to the young it was joyous.
My grandmother said: "The only difference between the Jitterbugging in London and the Jitterbugging in Paris would appear to be the footwear."
"6 august 1945,
A mushroom-shaped cloud marks the destruction of Hiroshima, and the first wartime use of an atomic bomb.
My grandmother said that some children who survived the atom bomb attack on Hiroshima wearing masks to combat the odour of death hanging over the flattered city."
"End of the story.
Good news travels fast. Jubilant US servicemen prepare to celebrate in New-York, 30 April 1945. The end of the war in Europe was only a week away.
My grandmother said: "Champagne!"
"It's all over!
Troops and civilians crowd together in Picadilly to celebrate the end of the war in Japan, 15 August 1945. There were some who felt relief rather than elation. And for many the end had come too late.
My grandmother said: "For the majority, whether combatants or civilians, the end of the fighting brought a great surge of joy and hope."
"Hudson River.
Marlene Dietrich’s million dollar legs are seen hevering over the water on her return to the United States on the Queen Elizabeth after entertaining the troops in Europe.
Dietrich was born in Berlin, but left for Hollywwod in 1930. Hitler ordered her back to Germany, but she refused, she said "No, thank you."
My grand-mother said that she became an Allied idol during the war.
FAMOUS "FAILURES"
Albert Einstein, considered the greatest genius of the twentieth century, was four years old before he could
speak.
Beethoven's music teacher once said of him, 'As a composer, he is hopeless.'
F.W. Woolworth, one of the founders of the modern department store, got a job in a dry goods store when he was 21, but his employer would not allow him to wait on customers
because he 'didn't have enough sense to close a sale'.
J.K Rowling. The first Harry Potter book was turned down by eight agents, and when she finally got a deal, she was warned by the publisher, 'You'll never make any money out of
childre's books, Jo.'
Thomas Edison was told by his teacher that he was too stupid to learn anything and encouraged to to think of a career where he might succeed by virtue of his pleasant
personality.
Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because he 'lacked imagination and had no good ideas'.
Winston Churchill had to repeat a year of school after he failed the test that would have allowed him to move up a year.
!
AMERICAN BEAUTY
Considerer the observation by Lester Burnham, played by Kevin spacey: 'Both my wife and daughter think I'm this gigantic loser, and they are right. I have lost something.
I'm not exactly sure what it is, but I know I didn't always feel this sedated. But you know what? It's never too late to get it back.'
!
FAIL, FAIL AGAIN
At first, you rarely succeed. Hence you need to... fail, fail again.
Consider my mantra:
No failures... no successes
No fast failures... no fast successes
No big failures... no big successes
No big, fast failures... no big, fast successes
'',,
THE LOYAL "WE"
Here's another "trick"!
Always us the word "we", in talking with customers, say, "We will take this approach..."
!
Thomas Edison, once said:'Genius is one per cent inspiration, and 99 per cent perspiration.' How often do you
sweat?
When the author J.K Rowling was asked how she had managed to write the first Harry Potter book as a cash-strapped simgle parent, she said quite seriously that she
didn't do any housework for four years. There's a woman who knowa her priorities!
Colin Farell. He'd point to a day back in 1993 when he failed an audition in Dublin for the boy band, Boyzone. Manager louis Walsh told him he simply couldn't sing. With
hindsight, what a blessing that failure turned out to be! After it, Colin decided to concentrate on acting, headed off to Hollywood where his first role was in Joel Schumacher's
Tigerland, launching an incredible career that currently pays him $7 m per movie, probably more by the time you're reading this. Boyzone as we know, is no more.
As the best-selling self-help author Wayne Dyer says, 'You are what you think about all day long.' If you were busy thinking
'I'am stupid' then that's how you will have seen yiourself. You were like a heat-seeking missile, looking for what you had been programmed to look for.
Sir John Harvey-Jones: 'To create success, everyone' noses must be pointing in the same direction.'
Winston Churchill defined a succesfull person as 'somebody who goes from one failure to another without any loss of
enthusiasm.' Ensure that's you!
!
Use a mantra: I can do it, I will find a way, I'm good enough to do
this, will all put a string in your step. These are your holy words, with the power to sharpen your focus and create your results. Soon enough they'll kick and start working for
you.
'I wouldn't say I'm the best manager in the business, but I'm certainly in the top one.' Brian Clough
"Look. If you had one shot. One opportunity. To seize everything you ever wanted. In one moment. Would you capture it ? Or just let it slip... ? Yo!" Eminem, Lose
yourself.
"Life is a blast, but it don't last, so live it long and live it fast." David "The Devilfish" Uliott