These are quotes which stood out to me, possibly for use in a sermon someday. Their presence here does not mean I agree with them, it merely shows that I might want to reference them later. The default view is five random selections. Use the tag list on the right to view all quotes relevant to that theme.
"It is a rare mind indeed that can render the hitherto
nonexistent blindingly obvious. The cry "I could have
thought of that" is a very popular and misleading one,
for the fact is that they didn't, and a very significant
and revealing fact it is too."
Luke: Parable of the Shrewd Manager
Glin, one of the division managers for Sluggo Cola was called into the
office of the CEO one day. Goe sat in his chair behind his desk and looked
at his employee.
"Glin. I have been examining your records and think you have some
explaining to do."
"But sir, sales are up by 25% over the last quarter!"
"So are expenses. And the expenses have been rising for the last six
quarters. And some of you're numbers just don't add up." Goe squinted his
beady eyes at Glin. He sneered, "I can only conclude that you have been,
shall we say, 'skimming off the top.' I want you out of here by Monday."
A dejected Glin slunk back to his office. What could he do? All he had
worked for was gone. Sure, he had a little saved away, but what he had been
skimming wouldn't last forever. High level jobs like his didn't come along
every day, and he was to proud to go back to low level anything. After all,
there is no honor in poverty (RoA 106). And then a light bulb came on over
his head. He sat behind his desk and punched some numbers on his computer.
The screen buzzed to life and the wizened form of Gimes, CEO of Ankh-Morpork
Catering Co., Inc. appeared. "Can I help you, Glin?"
"No. But I can help you. I've been examing your records and I think we can
renegotiate your debt. You owe us 800 bars of gold pressed latinum. How
about we call it 400 bars?"
"Sounds too good to be true. What's the catch?"
"No catch."
"I'll sign." And the link closed.
Glin smiled, showing all his crooked teeth. He punched up another number
and was soon talking to the Smalk, CEO of Chik-Burgers!(R). "Let's cut the
small talk, Smalk. You owe my company 1000 bars/gpl. What would you think
about making it 800 bars?"
Smalk nodded, thumbed the necessary documents and closed the connection.
Glin spent the rest of the afternoon making calls.
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A few weeks later, Glin decided it was time to talk to his new "friends."
He called several of the debtors whom he had renegotiated things with. They
all bemoaned his loss of work and were quite sorry for him. In the interest
of good relations, several made monetary gifts from their accounts, and
Gimes even offered him a nice job. "Aren't you lucky that your company
offered to renegotiate our debt just before you lost your job?"
Glin nodded, but he was thinking about the 44th Rule of Acquisition- "Never
confuse wisdom with luck."
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It didn't take long for Goe to hear about Glin's good fortune. A casual
glance at the account's receivable showed what he had done. "That
scoundrel! He was skimming off of me, and then he cheated me even more. He
learned well. I hope Gimes knows to watch his back. Glin certainly knows
how to think for the future."
A baseball bat, a tennis raquet, and a golf club. They all have something in common--each of these has a sweet spot. Tonight, I'm trying to help you find the sweet spot.
World-acclaimed illusionist Roy Horn went to work on Friday evening, October 3, 2003, amid a celebrative atmosphere. For one thing it was his 59th birthday, and more than a thousand friends had thrown him a party hours before. For another, an audience of fifteen hundred people waited excitedly inside the Mirage Hotel for a show Horn and his fellow illusionist were about to put on. Since the late sixties Siegfried Fischbach and Roy Horn's high energy performances with wild animals had earned them such an international reputation they were known simply by their first names—Siegfried and Roy.
About halfway into the performance, Horn appeared in the spotlight with a six-year-old white male tiger. It was a routine he had done hundreds of times. But for some unexplained reason, Horn slipped on stage. His loss of footing startled the 600 pound animal, who proceeded to lunge at Horn. In self-defense, the illusionist attempted to beat the animal off with his hand-held microphone. The audience gasped as the tiger grabbed Horn by the neck, and dragged him offstage like a limp rag doll. At that point, stage-crew members used fire extinguishers to distract the animal and free Roy. He was rushed to a local hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery to save his life.
In thousands of performances over 35 years, Horn had successfully evaded the dangers of his trade. But in an unexpected loss of balance, a career (and nearly a life) was lost. A few nights after the tragic accident, Larry King interviewed Horn's partner. As Siegfried Fischbach attempted to explain what went wrong, two little words stood out as the primary cause. "Roy slipped."
The apostle Paul warns those of us who think we can't be taken down by the "tigers" in our lives, "If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall."
Nothing exists except atoms and empty space; everything else is opinion.