Ants Problem : Ants hate cucumbers. Keep the skin of cucumbers near the place or ant hole.

To get pure and clean ice : Boil water first before freezing.

To make the mirror shine : Clean with spirit

To remove chewing gum from clothes : Keep the cloth in the freezer for an hour.

To whiten white clothes : Soak white clothes in hot water with a slice of lemon for 10 minutes

To give a shine to hair : Add one teaspoon of vinegar to hair, then wash hair.

To get maximum juice out of lemons : Soak lemons in hot water for one hour, and then juice them.

To avoid smell of cabbage while cooking : Keep a piece of bread on the cabbage in the vessel while cooking.

To rid the smell of fish from your hands : Wash your hands with a little apple vinegar.

To avoid tears while cutting onions : Chew gum.

To boil potatoes quickly : Skin one potato from one side only before boiling.

To boil eggs quickly : Add salt to the water and boil.

To remove ink from clothes : Put toothpaste on the ink spots generously and let it dry completely, then wash.

To skin sweet potatoes quickly : Soak in cold water immediately after boiling.

To get rid of mice or rats : sprinkle black pepper in places where you find mice or rats. They will run away.

How to create your own self confidence and happiness.

Tip 1: What you focus on makes a difference. What are you focusing on?

Tip 2: Your attitude towards your life and everything around you makes the difference between contentment and dissatisfaction. Is your attitude negative or positive?

Tip 3: Developing gratitude for what you do have instead of focusing on what you don’t have, is a source of great happiness. List 10 things to be thankful for.

Tip 4. Kindness can lead to confidence. When you are kind to someone you can feel good. When you feel good your confidence increases. Who will you be kind to today?

Tip 5. Look at the problems others have. If you feel miserable or are thinking badly of yourself, ask yourself, “Would you rather be living in Iraq or where you are?” Always keep your own problems in perspective for greater happiness.

Tip 6. Say thank you. Thank the people around you for the kind things they do for you. It doesn’t have to be a big thing, they may just have made you a cup of tea or called you. Give thanks. Write down ten things you can thank people for today.

Tip 7. Generosity without expecting anything in return can lead to confidence. When you are generous to someone you can feel good. When you feel good your confidence increases. Who will you be generous to today?
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Happy New Year 2010
H– Hours of happy times with friends and family
A–Abundant time for relaxation
P–Plenty of Peace, Prosperity and Success
P–Plenty of love when you need it the most
Y–Youthful excitement at life’s simple pleasures

N–Nights of restful slumber (you know – Don’t worry be happy)
E–Everything you need
W-Wishing you love and light

Y–Years and years of good health
E–Enjoyment and mirth
A–Angels to watch over you
R–Remembrances of happy years!

May every day of the new year glows with good cheer & happiness for you & your family,

Happy New Year

1. When you help others you help yourself automatically.

2. Your smile brings happiness to the world around you.

3. People are not perfect and that is perfect.

4. Your heart always sees the truth. Trust it.

5. You can do anything you want. What are your wants?

6. You are living to make this world better. Make the best of yourself.

7. Life is anything without happiness. Do what makes you happy.

8. You will never be completely happy without making others happy.

9. Your fears are illusory. Face your illusions.

10. Gratitude is important. Be thankful for the every moment of your life.

That is just the beginning – add your rules to this list. Let’s make it together!

It is precisely that quality time that we long to have returned to us these days but unfortunately, I don’t see that ever happening.

When I say quality time, then it surely is that time that we spent during our childhood years. Living in nostalgia is quite pleasant at times. These were the years in which we did not have much access or knowledge about cellular phones, internet availability, PC’s, PDA’s, etc. etc. or any of these high-tech gadgets of today that we simply cannot breathe without; or so it seems.

These items have been made into our necessities. Items that make us feel lost if we are without them. However, we do not feel lost if we are without Islamic guidance and knowledge that holds more precedence at any given time, doesn’t it?

I remember growing up with my siblings and feeling life’s simplest pleasures. The littlest things in life brought so much joy and happiness to our hearts. As opposed to today, while such gadgets exist amongst us in society, we are still stressed out and full of tensions and probabley now more than ever. Sometimes I wonder how much sense that actually makes. Wasn’t technology supposed to make our lives a lot more easier and stress-free? Rather it has been all the more successful in making us much lazier and lethargic. It has not only been successful in doing that, but it has also taken away so much of our precious time spent with our loved ones. Whether it be our parents, siblings, spouses or children, we are just not around them as much to spend that valuable time as much as we would like to be. But obviously who is to blame for that now?

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Many people consider that an addiction must be physiological, but it has become very common these days to see the term used for anything which becomes obsessive. Thus one can become addicted to pornography, gaming, and all manner of unrelated (and definitely not physiological) things. This list looks at ten of the most common addictions of modern man.

10. Laziness
“It’s true hard work never killed anybody, but I figure, why take the chance?” – Ronald Reagan

Everybody loves an easy life, but some will go further out of their way to get it. We’ve all come across lazy so-and-so’s, skivers, lay-abouts and the odd couch potato, but did you know that the desire for the sedate lifestyle can become habit forming and even addictive? Dedicated skivers will sometimes spend a lot of energy plotting and slinking out of work – sometimes using loopholes in working practices as well as a number of tried and tested excuses. Anything which involves effort is often repulsive to these people; who will always find ways not to bother; and can lead to them deliberately turning down opportunities for the sake of the quiet and the mundane.

9. Sitting down
“There must be more to life than sitting wondering if there is more to life” – Unknown

Not so long ago, the majority of jobs required standing on ones feet all day long. Today, many more require being seated – and many of us sit all day long; from sitting in bed, sitting at the table to eat, sitting in the car traveling to work, sitting at a desk at work, sitting back in the car to return home, and then sitting on the sofa before bed – it’s a easy habit to get into. Thisaddiction however can be very subtle, and can be a surprise to those under it’s influence. If you are sitting while reading this, consider how often you seek a seat. Do you stand at the bar or sit? When visiting friends, do you instantly target the sofa? While on holiday, do you explore your location or sit in the sun?. Do you prefer outdoor games or video games? Extreme lengths of time spent sitting can also lead to the lazinessaddiction featured at #10 as it can be much harder to get up and be motivated for work once you’ve comfortably sat down.

8. Getting one’s own way
“It’s MY way or the highway!” – Bill Parcells, Dallas Cowboys

There are some people who really ‘get off’ on having their own way. Bosses, domineering partners, testy toddlers, tantruming kids, teens, mothers, teachers, the police – you name it. There can a certain esteem boost to getting ones own way, or having the power to do so at will, and some folks take this and turn it into anaddiction . For example, certain bosses I’ve worked ‘under’ are happiest when things are going completely nuts – so they get to dictate and direct, or order people about. Sometimes, a system of management will keep on adding and subjecting rules and regulations to their workforce long after the system runs at it’s smoothest; turning a helpful set of guidelines into unworkable red-tape regimes. Many political systems also demand ‘their way’, and place strict safeguards around to ensure their will is done. However, as Friedrich Nietzsche once said “You have your way. I have my way. As for the right way, the correct way, and the only way, it does not exist.”

7. Trivia
“Summoned, one shuffles guiltily into the department of trivia.” – John Sutherland

Most of us love to learn and understand things, but how often do we absorb tiny little bits of inconsequential trivia? More often than you may think! Tv advertisements and billboards coax us with facts and figures, magazines deliver tantalizing tit-bits of scandal and gossip, and the internet fills our minds with thousands of facts – some of which are completely wrong. How many of us read the daily newspapers today only for it to become ‘yesterdays news’ tomorrow. The world is full of trivia. A trivia addict is often someone who’s main pleasure in life is to memorize random facts and spout them off to onlookers in an attempt to make themselves look good, and who often dreams of winning the pub quiz or a game show for a huge cash prize. Trivia buffs often wallow in small-talk, gossip, and rumor and sometimes aggrandize subjects the rest of us care little about – such as Latin names for plants, points scored in sports games from 30 years ago, or slight model variations or revisions of vehicles or technology.

6. Amusement/Escapism
“Technology. the knack of so arranging the world that we don’t have to experience it.” – Max Frisch

Another often overlooked addition is the habit of constantly occupying the mind with things designed for occupying the mind. Traditionally, alcohol has always been used as the main form of escapism – along with music, games, drugs and procreation. Today we have so many more, and modern technology and media make sure we are only a click away from expunging everyday tedium. It is not uncommon for an addict to switch on a TV or a computer, a Hi-Fi or a video games machine as soon as they enter a room, and will often leave those machines idling in the background as ‘comfort noise’, or just in case they may be of use later. A TV can work very much like a drug, and many drug users claim they use drugs for the escapism rather than any other effect. If theaddiction is left unchecked, victims can spend more time removed from our world than actually participating within it.

5. Idolization
“Let every man be respected as an individual and no man idolized.” – Albert Einstein

Sometimes known as a ‘crush’ a fan of a particular subject, person or group can sometimes become so engrossed in the ‘aura’ surrounding that thing that they become fanatical to the point of idolization. Pop groups and movie stars are usually the favorite, and fanatics can often collect any material relating to their idol they can lay their hands on. Movies such as Star Wars, Star Trek, the Lord of the Rings and the Rocky Horror Picture Show have all seen their fans become addicted to them; often watching and re-watching their favorites hundreds of times over. Idolization addiction can be related to one thing or person, or many things and people. An idolizer of the Punk era may be just as addicted to Punk as a lifetime fan of Harrison Ford is to their hero. It can be as simple as rearranging ones social life around a favorite TV show – which to the addict becomes ‘unmissable’ – or buying a specific magazine for a weekly/monthly fix.

4. Sex
“The trouble is not that players have sex the night before a game. It’s that they stay out all night looking for it.” – Casey Stengel

The need for sex in ones life is more prominent in some than in others. To some, the sex drive is relatively subconscious, and the media repeatedly nudges this from afar with advertisements and products designed to stimulate. To others, sex is a compulsion to the point where their own self-esteem hangs upon it. Sexualaddiction is not as uncommon as you might think. Addicts usually spend most of their social lives eyeing up potential partners in order to have sex; they are often cocky, brash, and think nothing of ‘making out’ with potential candidates wherever they go. They often treat their partners chauvinistically (i.e. without loyalty, consideration or respect), and think nothing of the ‘one night stand’. To these people, the idea of ‘getting a life’ is to get a sex life; and often their idea of a good night out basically involves manipulating their way back to the bedroom. Some teens develop a more benign form of sexaddiction; sometimes called ’sex adulation’; but usually grow out of it by their early to mid 20’s.

3. Cool

“The world belongs to the enthusiast who keeps cool.” – William McFee

Cool is everywhere, and can mean anything from ‘being in with the
in crowd’ to being completely unique in ones self. Similarly, anything can be used to promote ‘cool’ and to receive that ego kick and a boost to the self-esteem by recognizing it. Thoseaddicted to ‘cool’ buy the right toothpaste, wear the right cloths, have the right hairstyle, buy the right car, the right fashion accessories, and the right furniture. A serious addict will seek out ‘cool’ jobs (such as a theme park attendant, a volunteer, or a web site designer), a ‘cool’ place to live – and a ‘cool’ building to live within (such as a studio or flat), even going so far as to choose a deliberately ‘cool’ holiday destination (e.g. Amsterdam, Venice, or the Grand Canyon). The danger is that because ‘cool’ as so easily available, it’s easy to becomeaddicted to buying increasingly more things; perhaps in the hope of maintaining some kind of social status. Cool addicts are sometimes quite shallow people, sometimes with a strong need for social acceptance.

2. Technology
“Technology makes it possible for people to gain control over everything, except over technology” – John Tudor

Over the last 100 years, technology has diversified and spread into almost every home in the world. There are gadgets and gizmos for everything; including the things we never thought we needed – such as automatic egg poachers, USB fridges, and devices that help you breath the air in a toilet u-bend in case of a fire. Technology is also very cheap today compared to only a few years ago, and now a ‘miracle device’ such as a pocket calculator is almost a disposable object. There are geeks out there, but there are also technology addicts – who’s addiction is so mainstream it becomes almost unnoticeable. A technology addict will ensure that the latest and most cutting edge devices frequent the home. They will almost certainly have a BIG TV, will opt to change their mobile phone many times a year, and will almost certainly have the latest gadgets such as Sat-Nav, Blu-Ray, Hi-Def (and many other hyphenated devices). Sometimes, tiny little objects can give these people away; such as a chrome plated credit card sized micro beard trimmer, or any number of similarly obscure online auction friendly items.

1. Being Right
“Deep down, beneath all our insecurities, beneath all our hopes for and beliefs in equality, each of us believes we’re better than anyone else.” – Audrey Beth Stein

Being right comes in at number one basically because it is one of the oldest and least diagnosed addictions here, as well as it being very common. First of all, most people who are addicted to being right never get as far as realizing it or having it pointed out. They get to this stage often through a superiority complex re-enforced by getting their own way in discussions – to the point of intimidating others and reproaching their views, while standing rigidly by their own. The payoff in all this is that the person may feel self justified, socially upstanding or just plain smug. ‘Being right’ addicts sometimes give away their intentions and secret vested interest in manipulation by using the word ‘No’ to mean ‘You’re wrong’; at which point the person will offer their own view as the ‘correct’ one. If you fail to comply, and choose to question the ‘being right’ addict, things can often turn very nasty; and it is sometimes wiser to change the subject rather than try to deflect their dogma with open logic.

Bonus
The Internet
“In the absence of clearly-defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily trivia until ultimately we become enslaved by it.” – Robert A. Heinlein

The Internet – what a wonderful source for us all – and you probably don’t need anyone to tell you that it’s quite addictive. The internet sums up all the addictions above in that it: takes the viewer to a wonderful escapist world where they get their own way by perusing endless trivia, gossip about their idols, search for online sex and cool technology, and they can ‘be right’ in endless anonymous chat rooms and blogs while they sit in their chair and laze the day away. Yes, it’s a wonderful way to exacerbate ones deepest addictions like no other product in the world. We love it.

It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, girls, career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams. There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him.

Over the phone, his mother told him, “Mr. Belser died last night.
The funeral is Wednesday..”

Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.

“Jack, did you hear me?”

“Oh sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It’s been so long since I thought of him. I’m sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago,” Jack said.

“Well, he didn’t forget you. Every time I saw him he’d ask how you were doing. He’d reminisce about the many days you spent over ‘his side of the fence’ as he put it,” Mom told him.

“I loved that old house he lived in,” Jack said.

“You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man’s influence in your life,” she said.

“He’s the one who taught me carpentry,” he said. “I wouldn’t be in this business if it weren’t for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important… Mom, I’ll be there for the funeral,” Jack said.

As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser’s funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.

The night before he had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time.

Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossing over into another dimension, a leap through space and time.

The house was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture, every piece of furniture… Jack stopped suddenly.

“What’s wrong, Jack?” his Mom asked.
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The Winner is always part of the answer;
The Loser is always part of the problem.

The Winner always has a program;
The Loser always has an excuse.

The Winner says, “Let me do it for you”;
The Loser says, “That is not my job.”

The Winner sees an answer for every problem;
The Loser sees a problem for every answer.

The Winner says, “It may be difficult but it is possible”;
The Loser says, “It may be possible but it is too difficult.”

When a Winner makes a mistake, he says, “I was wrong”;
When a Loser makes a mistake, he says, “It wasn’t my fault.”

A Winner makes commitments;
A Loser makes promises.
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Are you controlling them or vice-versa?
We humans spend much of our time trying to control every aspect of our lives.
Unfortunately, too often we try and control things that are simply beyond our control.
The list of what we can control is quite short, but once you know these 10 things you will be able to take control of your own life.

1. What you do: Your actions are yours alone.
You choose to make them or not make them and you are responsible for the effects of those actions.

2. What you say: Likewise, the words you speak (or write) are also consciously chosen.
Like actions, they have an impact on your life and the lives of those you contact.

3. What you think:
Yes, there are some subconscious thoughts that you can’t control.
But the things that you really think about, your beliefs, your ideals, etc. are concepts you have chosen to accept and believe in.

4. Your work:
Many people like to overlook this one, it being much easier to say, “Oh, I’m! trapped in my job because I don’t have a degree, experience, etc.”
That’s simple a way of denying one’s responsibility in having chosen the job in the first place.
It’s your job and you chose it.
If you stay (or go), that’s a choice as well.

5. The people you associate with:
There’s a famous T-shirt that states: “It’s hard to soar like an eagle when you’re surrounded by turkeys.”
Colloquial is very often correct!
Your friends can either lift you up or bring you down.
You make the decision which type of friends you wish to have.
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Often, moms do virtually all of the giving and very little, if any, of the taking from their families. They may not say it, but most of them want to be appreciated in small ways. You don’t have to buy them a car or a house (you could do that too), but it’s the small things that count with mom.

Here are some ideas of how you can let mom know that all of her giving has and continues to be appreciated.

1. Give mom a vacation
Don’t think Hawaii . Think of a day away from the kitchen. Or the home. Give her a vacation from the home where for her, most of the seemingly endless housework is done daily. Or, if she doesn’t want that, start doing your share around the house. Maybe you could start giving her one day of the week off, when she does no cooking or household chores. Remember, fathers and husbands work hard at the office, but they get a two-day weekend in most cases. Moms usually don’t even get a full day off. And if they are also working outside, it’s like two full time jobs.

2. Let’s hear her life story: a mom’s circle
She may have read you bedtime stories when you were small, but now it’s time for her to tell you a different story-about herself. Make a mom’s circle at home in which you ask her to tell her life story. Mom’s circle may actually turn into a project: one family member could write this up into a report, another could make a story book out of it and a third could video/audio record it. A mom’s circle may become an ongoing family tradition.

3. Try beating mom’s cooking
While most moms ask their kids what they want to eat, turn the tables around and do the same for her. Is there special food your mom likes? Buy or prepare that food for her (if you are not the best of cooks, maybe it’s safer to just buy it).

4. Is your mom in a nursing home
If your mom is in a nursing home, why not plan to bring her home for a weekend visit to stay with you. Even better, why not make this a weekly, or twice a month set up, so you can spend more time with her and she can be around those who really love her more often? Of course the ultimate gift will be if you can liberate her from that nursing home so she can stay in her room in your own home.

5. Arrange a mammogram for her
Every three minutes, a woman in America is diagnosed with breast cancer. That woman could be your mom.

A woman’s chances of developing breast cancer increases with age. The National Cancer Institute recommends women age 40 and over be screened with mammography every one to two years. It also advises that women at higher risk of breast cancer get medical advice before they are 40 about when to begin screening and about the frequency of their screening. Do this for your mom, so you can see her spend the rest of her life in good health, Insha Allah (if God wills).
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