A two-year-old Israeli boy, who was waiting for two days to be reunited with his parents on his birthday, will never see them again. Why? Because his parents were killed by terrorists in Nariman House, a Jewish center, south of Mumbai. The two year old narrowly escaped as his quick thinking nanny took him out the back door as the terrorists stormed in through the front do or.

There is no rational explanation to killing any innocent human being. So please don't misunderstand me and think that I don't care about the 200 others who died in India. But the 2 year old's picture crying at his parents' funeral really hit me hard.

I have a 2 year old daughter you see, and I immediately replaced Moshe Tzvi with her and I imagined how hard life would be growing up all alone. Not to mention that you will always remember and honor your parents who died on your birthday. My wife and I talked about this over and over again. "Why didn't the terrorists release his parents or at least his mother? They must have known that they had a 2 year old boy waiting for them outside." I know that people around the world make counter arguments. They say "Yes, it is too bad for the little boy. But what about the hundreds of thousands of people American campaign killed in Iraq? What about all of the US supported dictators around the world who killed thousands of their own people? What about the Palestinian children who died over the years? Do you feel bad for them too?" My answer is yes and two wrongs don't make a right. If you knew that what US or any other government was doing wrong, why would you repeat the same mistakes? If you match cruelty with cruelty then you are no better than the person(s) you are fighting against. I know this is too much to expect from a terrorist, but hopefully we can expect a higher standard from all governments around the world. So far Indian people and the government are stepping up to the plate with the restraint they have shown.

Peace.

Murat Aksu

Why do I always get this wrong every year? I guess our garbage company doesn't pick up on Thanksgiving day and the day after and during the weekend. Does this mean they only pick it up once during the Thanksgiving week? Shouldn't the pick up calendar be printed on the garbage bin? This would prevent people like me from jumping the gun. My dilemma now is "Do I bring the garbage back in and drag all of the recycling into my garage? Or can I get away with leaving it out there for 4 days until Monday morning?" Help!

Regardless of their nationality, I always feel very bad for young soldiers serving in the military. In some countries they are part of a volunteer army like the US, in others their service is mandatory, set by their constitution (Israel, Turkey).

Irrespective of how and why young people join the army, they have very little say in where they will be send to fight wars. They do what they are told and serve their commanders, countries and their governments.

I recently heard someone make a comment on the radio. I think the person said something like "I will keep the soldiers in my thoughts and prayers for they are protecting the freedoms that I enjoy here." In my opinion the last time our freedoms were protected was during World War II.

Top 10 things you need to do and know when you are single in the suburbs

1. BE POSITIVE : Nobody wants to hear about your dreadful ex of bitter custody battle.
2. BREAK AWAY FROM THE NORM : Dine outside your zip code so you don’t spend the evening greeting friends.
3. EASY DOES IT: No need to plan your happy future together after one good date.
4. BE YOURSELF... DON’T SELL YOURSELF: Nobody wants to be blindsided.
5. IT’S NOT OK TO LOOK! : Online that is… resist the urge to shop online for your dates...finding that Larry, Darryl and Darryl have not yet WINKED back at you will only make you feel worthless.
6. PLAY GOLF : Hawking at the local bar is typical, breaking bad on Big Bertha will turn some heads...you go girl!
7. AVOID JERRY SPRINGER :  No matter how cute your neighbors’ husband is and how bad their marriage may be...
8. START A NEIGH BORHOOD WATCH PROGRAM: You’re looking and if your neighbors spot him, they should feel free to bring Mr. Right directly to your door.
9. JOIN A GYM: Tried and true advice, after all, there are men there.
10. GET A LIFE BEFORE YOU GET A DATE : If all you do is carpool, clean and take care of kids, and work… find a hobby.  Don’t look to another person for your excitement or purpose.

Today was a beautiful day in the Northern Virginia area. Low humudity, temperature in the mid 70s with a slight breeze. My family and I went to DC and attended the Turkish American Festival. Great food, good music and a very large turnout. On the way back to Northern Virginia, we took few detours to drive around DC. We passed by a small museum that had a giant statue of Abraham Lincoln visible from the street. My seven year old son said "Why did they call him "Honest Abe?" I said "I guess because he always told the truth."

My husband reacted "Why can't we get politicians who are honest like Abraham Lincoln anymore?" I thought about Mahatma Ghandi's "Seven Blunders of the World" that I recently read in a website.

I saw that Hulya published a very funny blog about fathers competing in a “Survivor” series as pretend mothers. The blog perfectly depicted the life of a modern mom in our times. So I wondered what life was like for modern moms in the 1940s and 1950s. I came across this information from Housekeeping Monthly dated 13 May, 1955. The woman described in the article sounds like super mom meets Doris Day. Just as an FYI, I did not underline some of the bullet points.

Our former cover mom and my friend Tracey Parent sent this very funny email to me. I just have to share it with all of you. It perfectly describes the life of a modern mom.

Six married men will be dropped on an island with one car and 3 kids each, for six weeks.

Each kid will play one sport and either take music or dance classes.

There is no fast food.

Each man must take care of his 3 kids; keep his assigned house clean, correct all homework, and complete science projects, cook, do laundry, and pay a list of 'pretend' bills with not enough money.

In addition, each man will have to budget in money for groceries each week.

Each man must remember the birthdays of all their friends and relatives, and send cards out on time--no emailing.

Each man must also take each child to a doctor's appointment, a dentist appointment and a haircut appointment

“There is nothing nobler or more admirable than when two people who see eye to eye keep house as man and wife, confounding their enemies and delighting their friends” wrote Homer. Do we see eye to eye as men and women? Well.....

 

USA Today reported that Pew Research Center looked into the decision making habits of American couples on the topics of choosing shared weekend activities, buying things for the home, deciding what to watch on TV and managing household finances? Who do you think makes the decisions at home?

Tell us which ticket is better looking. Compare the pictures and tell us what you think.

Technology Source: http://www.morphthing.com

It seems as if everywhere you turn, there is a site for you to buy something on. Whether it be Amazon, Best Buy or Babies R Us, there is a site for everything.

With these household names, you should feel comforted in knowing that you can trust that what they are advertising is what you will get if you make a purchase from them. But what about all those "other" sites that have good deals that seem too good to be true? This is where the risk comes in. Have no fear, there are social shopping sites out there that help reduce that risk by allowing you to see what your friends are recommending, from vendors to products. Who better to trust than you friends, right? Some of those sites include Pronto.com, Kaboodle.com and even Bizrate.com.

That is all fine and good if you are in the market for something new, but what if you are looking for something gently used or better yet, you need to sell something gently used? You can, of course, go to eBay or Craigslist to either buy or sell, but do you know who that other person on the other end really is? With Craigslist, it is a complete shot in the dark. You may be interested in buying a stroller and the person selling it wants to meet you in the Burger King parking lot at 9 on a Friday and insists on cash. Kinda creepy and kinda scary if you ask me. You do not know that person from Adam, and who is to say that they even have a stroller for sale. With Criagslist, you do not know what you are going to get.