The Miracle Blood

I was stumbling again, when I came across this really interesting story about a 74 year old man who has saved an estimated 2.2 million babies. James Harrison has a special antibody in the plasma of his blood that cures babies that are dying from Rhesus disease. This antibody was found during a routine blood donation and since that discovery, Harrison’s blood has been given to hundreds of thousands of women. He has made a habit of donating blood every couple of weeks ever since he was only eighteen.

Harrison had a major surgery when he was only fourteen years old that required a large amount of donated blood. Since that experience, he decided to be a lifetime blood donor and has a whopping total of 984 donations and counting.

Saving someone’s life can be as easy as sitting in a chair and getting poked in the arm. There is nothing complicated about giving blood. It is necessary to save lives and it is very easy to do. Who knows, they might find some special cell in your blood that could be responsible for saving the lives of hundreds or thousands of people. Take the time out of your busy week and donate blood and save somebody’s life.

The World’s Game: South Africa 2010

“It’s not about politics, or religion, or the economy. It’s not about borders, history, trade, oil, water, gas, mineral rights, human rights, or animal rights. It’s not about global warming, global pandemics, globalization, GDP, NATO, or Kyoto. It’s not about elections, sanctions, proliferations, he said, she said, my land, your land, no man’s land. It’s not about the stock market, black market, orange alerts, green homes, hope, change, fear, or loathing, It’s not about communism, socialism, or capitalism, war or peace, love or hate. This is about the one month, every four years, when we all agree on one thing… Thirty-two nations, one world watching.”

The 2010 FIFA World Cup is being held in South Africa this summer with 32 participating teams from 32 countries. This is the biggest stage to play the world’s game. Every nation is beaming with pride, thinking that this is our turn, our time to show the world what we can do. This tournament is one of the most widely watched events in sporting history and it brings a great deal of national pride. Watching countries compete against each other for the title of World Cup Champions makes this one of the most interesting and compelling sporting events in the world. Nations set aside disputes and the world comes together to support the sport and all of the competitors.

The World Cup is proof that there can be healthy relationships between nations. All of the nations have a common love for the game of soccer and this unites the world for a period of time. This is the most popular sport in the world, the World’s Game, and it has the power to create champions while bringing the world together by a common love.

Textbooks: College's Biggest Rip-Off

Chances are you have seen the outrageous cost of going to college. And the basic price of tuition is not the only thing that causes us to cringe when handing over a check. Textbooks have become increasingly and ridiculously high. The average amount of money that each student will spend on textbooks each year is around $900. I’m no expert, but that seems a like a bit too much. Surely there is some way to lower the cost of printing and distributing these books so that it is not such a financial hassle to buy these supplies.

The worst part about the price of textbooks is the fact that the books themselves hardly ever get used! Be honest, how many times do the textbooks a student buys ever get used, or even opened? Some of the books I bought this year were opened once, maybe twice. Most students just turn to what they know and love, the Internet. Instead of searching through pages and pages of books, students can just get on the Internet and find what they are looking for in a matter of seconds. So what is the point in buying these expensive books if nobody uses them?

Next year, when it comes time to buy books and supplies again, the best idea would be to wait for a couple of weeks before buying books. Gauge whether or not the textbook will be required or useful. If it won’t be helpful, then don’t waste your money. Another helpful option is to borrow a friend’s book or share one and each pay for half of the book. These are just a few ideas of how to save some cash and not waste any money.

The Best Way to Spend Your Money

Again, I was stumbling around the Internet when I stumbled upon this website that made me think a bit. It was a list of little quotes to live by and inspirational phrases. Most were pretty cliché, but I found one that I felt should be further discussed. It read:

“If you have to choose between buying something or spending the money on a memorable experience, go with the experience. The things you own can’t make you as happy as the things you do.”

I stopped and re-read this again and I decided that I would have to agree with this completely. I would much rather spend a huge amount of money on a trip with good company rather than buy a new car. Cars, boats, houses, and TVs are nice and I would love to have all of them, but laying down some cash on a great experience is more satisfying than a 60 inch plasma could ever be.

Some of the best times in my life are when I was on vacation away from home doing something I don’t get to do every day. If at all possible, having your friends there with you to enjoy the great time together makes a huge difference. The stories and memories of a great experience will last longer and be more valuable than any new car or house. So the next time you find yourself with a couple hundred bucks burning a hole in your pocket, be sure to spend it on something worthwhile.

Just something to think about…