Monthly Archives: February 2011

Cell phone danger

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Qin Tang

My 12 and 11 year old kids have asked me at least a couple of times for a cell phone, my response was simply “No. You don’t need it.” In my mind, they are too young to have cell phones. Yes, some of their … Continue reading →

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Social networking tools – a blessing in times of need

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Qin Tang

Social networking sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn are wonderful and powerful tools for keeping people connected in their personal and professional lives. But I didn’t realize that social networking tools can be such a blessing in times of need until recently. When my … Continue reading →

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Are you an Innie or an Outie?

Posted on February 26, 2011 by Qin Tang

Are you an Innie or an Outie, Introvert or Extrovert? Introversion or extroversion is a type of temperament, a central dimension of human personality. It is innate and not something you can change. Martin Olsen Laney in her book “The Introvert Advantage” … Continue reading →

Posted in Book, Personal development | 5 Comments

Good customer services

Posted on February 25, 2011 by Qin Tang

I have done a few posts about not so pleasant shopping experiences with overcharging. I don’t want to leave the impression that it’s all bad customer services out there. No. Actually I think most stores have great customer services. They go above … Continue reading →

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Ways to protect yourself as a consumer

Posted on February 25, 2011 by Qin Tang

A reader left a comment to my post Overcharged at the grocery store and shared some of her bad experiences and frustrations as a consumer with being charged incorrectly, with automatic charge on credit cards, with rebates, coupons, etc. I have … Continue reading →

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Staying connected through Facebook

Posted on February 23, 2011 by Qin Tang

Lucia, her sister and me in an undated photo over 30 years ago   Now Lucia is a mother of two teenage boys ————————————————- My cousin Lucia lives in Budapest, Hungary. I haven’t seen her for about 30 years. We grew up … Continue reading →

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Quick to listen, slow to speak

Posted on February 22, 2011 by Qin Tang

Quite contrary to what the Bible teaches: quick to listen, slow to speak, I often find myself in the opposite position. I am slow to listen, quick to speak, especially in dealing with my own family members. I want to be the … Continue reading →

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ABC’s of Christianity

Posted on February 21, 2011 by Qin Tang

Pastor Al Gossan from Lighthouse Christian Fellowship Church in Holland, Michigan, whom I met two days ago at Spirit of Life Bible Church in Woodbury, created this wonderful ABC’s of Christianity bookmark and other materials that are available for free download on this website. Check … Continue reading →

Posted in Spirituality | 2 Comments

Finding the good in the bad weather

Posted on February 20, 2011 by Qin Tang

We are in the middle of another snowstorm in Minnesota. Snow started falling quickly this Sunday morning and will end Monday afternoon. Much of the metro area could see between 12 and 15 inches of snow on the ground by … Continue reading →

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Divine appointment

Posted on February 19, 2011 by Qin Tang

I experienced a divine appointment today. I don’t know what to call it otherwise. This is probably the first time in my life that I felt that way. I went to my church – Spirit of Life Bible Church – to … Continue reading →

Posted in Spirituality | 2 Comments

A portrait of love

Posted on February 18, 2011 by Qin Tang

This is a continuation of yesterday’s post about Dr. David Jeremiah‘s book The Signs of Life. I would like to share a portrait of love, as described by Dr. David Jeremiah in the book. Words of love – Words can build up … Continue reading →

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Earthly currency vs. heavenly currency

Posted on February 17, 2011 by Qin Tang

I love listening to KTIS AM 900 Faith Radio. I listen to the station every day wherever I am and whenever I can – in the car or by the desk. One of my favorite programs is Turning Point by Dr. David Jeremiah, … Continue reading →

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Suzanne’s Online PJ Party

Posted on February 16, 2011 by Qin Tang

If you have any interesting pajama stories to share or are interested in reading others’ PJ stories, you might want to check out Suzanne’s Online PJ Party. I receive a daily email from Suzanne’s Book Club that contains a  5-minute excerpt from a … Continue reading →

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Books – buy vs. borrow

Posted on February 15, 2011 by Qin Tang

The idea for this post came from yesterday when I wrote about Borders’ bankruptcy and the reasons why I don’t buy books but borrow books for my own reading. I know there are plenty of people who love buying their … Continue reading →

Posted in Book | 6 Comments

Sad news for book lovers

Posted on February 14, 2011 by Qin Tang

Today is Valentine’s Day. For everyone who loves books, or to be exact, loves book stores, there is a piece of sad news in the media today. Borders, the third largest bookstore chain in the US, is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The rising popularity of e-books … Continue reading →

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Poems by Mother Teresa

Posted on February 13, 2011 by Qin Tang

Today I read a couple of poems written by Mother Teresa, 1997 Nobel Peace Prize Recipient. Mother Teresa is such an inspiring person, so are her poems. Life Life is an opportunity, benefit from it. Life is beauty, admire it. Life is bliss, … Continue reading →

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Generational characteristics

Posted on February 12, 2011 by Qin Tang

In the last few weeks I have been reading “The M-Factor: How the Millennial Generation Is Rocking the Workplace” by Lynne Lancaster and David Stillman. The following are some notes from my reading about the generational characteristics. Traditionalists (born before 1945) Major … Continue reading →

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The Less You Need/Want, the More You Have

Posted on February 11, 2011 by Qin Tang

Here are a few quotes from the post The Less You Need, the More You Have on the scarcity mentality and the abundance mentality that I really like. After reading this, I have to say, I have a really abundant … Continue reading →

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Nine Lessons in Wealth-Building from The Millionaire Next Door

Posted on February 11, 2011 by Qin Tang

Years ago I read the book  The Millionaire Next Door: Surprising Secrets of America’s Wealthy (1996) by marketing professors William Danko and Thomas Stanley. It was during a time period when I read all interesting books I could find in the library on … Continue reading →

Posted in Book, Finance, Living | 3 Comments

Overcharged at the grocery store

Posted on February 11, 2011 by Qin Tang

Something happened to me today at the Cub Foods that is a good illustration of what I talked about in my previous post It pays to check your bills. On my way home I went to the Cub Foods at Sun Ray … Continue reading →

Posted in Finance | 5 Comments

Kindness returned thousandfold

Posted on February 9, 2011 by Qin Tang

During one of my recent phone calls to my parents in China to ask about their Chinese New Year happenings, my mother mentioned that she visited a middle school teacher of hers. My mother is 77 years old. Her teacher is already in her 90s. How many people … Continue reading →

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Guest post

Posted on February 9, 2011 by Qin Tang

My post on print book vs. e-book is the guest post #24 on Will Manley’s popular blog Will Unwound for librarians. Librarians are very engaging readers. They always have a lot to say in their comments.  I got invited to write an article on this … Continue reading →

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Family Fitness Fest

Posted on February 7, 2011 by Qin Tang

The first-ever South Washington County Family Fitness Fest took place at East Ridge High School this evening at 6:30-8:30 pm. I wanted to go when I first heard about it in an email I received from school and had it marked … Continue reading →

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Websites worth bookmarking

Posted on February 6, 2011 by Qin Tang

In this post I want to share a few websites I bookmarked lately and visited today. I plan to add more from my list of favorites on my computer. BibleGateway.com is a searchable online Bible in over 100 versions and 35 … Continue reading →

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Dumbing us down – John Taylor Gatto on public education

Posted on February 6, 2011 by Qin Tang

Friday evening I went to a presentation by John Taylor Gatto at Macalester College. Gatto’s presentation, sponsored by the Institute of Theological & Interdisciplinary Studies, was thought provoking. So are his books. John Taylor Gatto was named New York City Teacher of … Continue reading →

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Efe Agbamu – Minnesota’s Secondary Principal of the Year

Posted on February 3, 2011 by Qin Tang

Efe Agbamu, principal of Park High School in Cottage Grove, resident of Oakdale and a fellow church member of Spirit of Life Bible Church in Woodbury, has been awarded the 2011 “Minnesota’s Secondary Principal of the Year,”  an honor given by the Minnesota … Continue reading →

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The Year of the Rabbit

Posted on February 2, 2011 by Qin Tang

Happy Chinese New Year to all who celebrate this special festival! 2011 is the Year of the Rabbit. In China, today is the first day of the Chinese New Year in the lunar calendar, but here in the U.S., today is still … Continue reading →

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Fasting experiment

Posted on February 1, 2011 by Qin Tang

I wrote about my day of fasting yesterday. Today Celes Chua had an interesting article on the same topic on her Personal Excellence Blog. She is doing “A 3-Day fasting experiment” (Feb. 7-10, 2011) Here is Celes’ article. Please visit her forum if you want to … Continue reading →

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A day of fasting

Posted on February 1, 2011 by Qin Tang

Today (Monday, 1/31/11) I joined other members at Spirit of Life Bible Church in Woodbury in a day of prayer and fasting, to pray for our Pastor Frank’s healing and recovery. He was recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. My 24 hour fasting started last night … Continue reading →

Posted in Health & Wellness, Spirituality | 1 Comment