January, 2003 Issue 3-1

A New Year’s resolution to consider. How about promising to perform a random act of kindness each day?

VERY SPECIAL THOUGHTS ABOUT THE NEW YEAR, JUST FOR YOU!

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When gifted kids get bored, it can be difficult. Here are things to look out for:

• there is lower commitment to tasks that are judged as irrelevant
• intellectual growth may seem to be greater than the growth of judgment
• power struggles may erupt with authority figures
• student gets involved in many activities but there seems to be no consistency or direction to them
• student may become disruptive in class or at home
• increased desire to talk rather than write or study
• challenges and questions rules set up at home or school
• school work may be lost or misplaced more frequently
• attention may wander and daydreaming becomes noticeable
• homework may not be done regularly or just forgotten
• student may appear to be more careless in work at home or school
• begins projects but doesn’t complete them or submit them on time
• increased sensitivity to criticism
• problem behaviors may appear
• level of performance on tests and exams may become inconsistent
• more disorganized and lackadaisical at home and/or school
• shallowness in work and effort becomes evident

• course(s) may have to become more customized to meet student need

• negotiate the amount of course work that is required to be done/not done to achieve a certain grade level. This frees up time for the student to do other things that may be of more interest in class or at home.
• if it is in an area of student expertise, a course may be compacted. Tests/exams may be written earlier. Another course may begin when the first is completed.
• personalized special projects or studies related to class topics.
• student works toward the following year’s credit in a course.
• More independent study time during which related work may be done for teachers, staff, administration, etc.
• consider co-op course(s) that bring out the student’s talents and skills in real-life workplaces.
• register the student in a higher grade.
• provide a mentor during/after school in the student’s area of expertise.
• provide leadership training and encourage student to start a club or a cause.
• find a topic or area in which the student may develop a passion. Explore until one is found and then assist in its study.
• Provide opportunities to visit experts, contact specialists, view real-life situations.

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Many Ontario high school students in their final year are in for a surprise. Guess what, if you don’t have your 40 hours of volunteering recorded in your school record, you will not graduate!
Students get very busy and this is the kind of thing that can be easily put far down the list of priorities. Charities and volunteer agencies are expecting a giant workforce of ready volunteers looking for positions in the next six months. Don’t be surprised if they fill their positions early.
Because this is a growing concern, a number of options are presented:

• if just starting in high school, set a goal of at least 10 hours of volunteering each year.
• get the student council or school guidance department to organize volunteer fairs in the school.
• check to see what is and is not accepted as volunteering and then possibly create your own position. Remember it must be documented and signed by an adult.
• *** NOTE: go to the DiscoverTeenergy.com homepage. In "DT Feature Topics" look for "Volunteering". You will find names and contact information of many agencies. This will save you much time looking.

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Cedarena- looks like skating season is upon us. Try and go there. It is quite the place.

Deep River Science Academy –anyone interested in this science & tech summer course might want to have a look.

Encounters With Canada- 1 week courses are available. Interest is growing. Cost is about $400 after a bursary. They have some very interesting courses.

Festival of New Choreography – at York University, Toronto, Canada. Contact them now for tickets. It is usually held in March.

Summer Learning Programs – there are a number that are now advertising for students to study in various parts of the world for credit courses.

Check out: Georgia Hardy Tours –"Cours d"ete a Nice", Istituto Espanol, Oxbridge Academic Programs, Oxford U. Summer Enrichment Programs, and others.

Queen’s University Mini-Enrichment Program – Apply in January. Discuss it with your parents and get yourself ready. Cost is approx. $450 for one week in early May. Kingston is a great place. You will enjoy the campus.

Shad Valley Leadership Training Course – excellent group/team training over July at various university campuses across Canada. There is a championship held in the fall with all the best projects on exhibit. Great experience.

Toronto Festival of Storytelling – for the collector of folk tales and lovers of storytelling.

Summer Camp Fair – If you ever considered getting a job at a summer camp, this fair will have many camps represented and you can easily scout around for a job.

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Kaley Kennedy, Gr. 10, LAT Gifted Program, Toronto, ON is applying to the Shad Valley Leaderhip Training course which runs in the summer.

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Jan 7 – Orthodox Christmas

Jan 11 – Sir John A. MacDonald’s birthday (first Canadian Prime Minister - 1867)

Jan 18 – Full Moon tonight

Jan 25 – Robbie Burns Day (Scotland)

This is also Alzheimer’s Awareness Month/March of Dimes Month

If you like Toronto museums, you can get 50% off regular admissions this year. The 2003 Toronto Museum Passport costs $25/adults, $20/seniors & students, $15/children. It gets you into the Royal Ontario Museum, Fort York, Spadina House, Gardner Museum of Ceramic Art, Colborne Lodge, Mackenzie House, Montgomery’s Inn, Gibson House, Todmorden Mills and Scarborough Historical Museum.

Passports are valid until Jan 4, 2004. For details and purchase, go to any participating museum. (note: find out how many visits are allowed to each)

Consider giving the pass as a birthday present, etc.!

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(thanks for this special report by Melissa Occhicone, Gr. 9, LAT Gifted Program, Toronto, ON)

QLead was a three-day leadership, excellence, and development conference that I attended on November 15^-17, 2002, at Queens University in Kingston Ontario. I had a very enjoyable experience from which I learned a lot.
The conference was planned by Queen's Commerce students who had us hopping and busy the whole time, and who made the conference go off without a hitch! On Friday, all the delegates dressed up in formal business wear to attend the opening ceremony.
We were very fortunate to hear Ryan Hrelijac, the keynote speaker, who is the founder of Ryan's Well Foundation. Ryan truly was an inspiration to us all, as a leader and as a person. When he was six years old, Ryan dreamed of clean water for everyone in the world and through hard work and dedication has helped raise over $600,000 for wells and water development globally. Even though he is only 12 years old, he helped us believe that we can do anything we want to do. For the rest of the evening we were involved in leadership games that helped us all get to know each other.
Bright and early the next morning, after our wake up call, the organizers had us depart for Goodes Hall at 7:30 am. After tours of the campus, we were again honoured to hear another keynote speaker, Marc Busch. Marc Busch is an associate professor at Queen's School of Business and a Queen's National Scholar. His presentation was on the World Trade Organization and was also very interesting. He was able to relate well to us in his interactive presentation.
After our keynote speaker, we headed off to our Team-building activities and then had an afternoon of workshops from which we were able to select topics according to our interests.
Once the workshops were complete, we headed back to the hotel where we changed for the evening’s semi-formal. We had a great dinner and danced the night away.
The next morning, after packing, we headed back to Goodes Hall where we heard another interesting Keynote speaker. John Bradley is the Vice President of Marketing at Cadbury Trebor Allen Inc. His presentation was truly enjoyable. He spoke about his job, marketing, the business world and his climb to the top of the business world. After the keynote speaker, we had our closing ceremonies.
We were all truly sad to go. I met the nicest people, had a great time, and learned a great deal. QLead was an amazing experience that I would recommend to all.

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(By AP news service)

KILL DEVIL HILLS, N.C. -- Ninety-nine years to the day (ed. – Dec. 17, 1903) after humans first took to the sky in a powered, heavier-than-air craft, modern airplanes and parachutists crisscrossed the air yesterday in celebration of that giant step by brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright.
The descendants of six of the eight witnesses to that first flight placed a half-dozen wreaths at the foot of a 1928 monument in the Wright Brothers National Memorial marking the spot where the Wright Flyer took off. An audience of about 2,000 people watched as 99 aircraft flew over the Outer Banks in the same weather conditions that drew the Wright brothers to the North Carolina coast -- strong, sustained wind and a clear sky. After a solo parachutist spiraled to earth trailing red smoke, members of the U.S. army's Golden Knights parachute team glided to earth about 15 metres from the granite marker where the first flight ended. At the same time, a $1-million visitors' centre was dedicated at Dayton, Ohio, overlooking the field where the brothers developed and tested their early aircraft before bringing them to Kill Devil Hills. The Huffman Prairie Flying Field at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is part of the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park.
The Wright brothers first came from Dayton to the Outer Banks in the fall of 1900 to attempt powered, manned flights. They succeeded Dec. 17, 1903, when Orville piloted the Wright Flyer for 36 metres along the dunes of what was then part of Kitty Hawk. It was the first of four short flights that day. The longest was 260 metres.
Over the coming year, displays and events are planned around North Carolina and at the Wright Brothers National Memorial. The largest single event is the 11-day Festival of Flight in Fayetteville, N.C., near Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base, which can better accommodate the crowds and the parade of aircraft that have followed the Wright Flyers.

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(by O.S.)

Everybody has to get up in front of a group of people at some time or other. Here are some simple ideas that will make you look and sound like a professional. The following are suggestions for good speaking skills:
Voice - use a variety of volume and pitch to emphasize and give interest to the words.
Pace - speak slowly so that words are understood, but not so slowly that the sense of the sentences is lost. Avoid long pauses between ideas.
Body Language - have a good straight posture, a smile or interested look on the face, and avoid distracting gestures, like scratching or touching your face or hair. Stay open with your arms and legs. Look at the camera or at the listener rather than away.
Clear sentences – use short, simple sentences that are easy to follow.
Other helpful hints –

1. Don’t open your mouth until you are ready to speak and close it when you are finished. You will never say "um" or "ah" again!
2. Move your lips, teeth and tongue a little more than usual to ensure words are clearly pronounced. Put the endings on words.
3. Speaking to the people at the back of the room will make sure you are loud enough.
4. Pretend that you are talking to one person at a time in the audience. Try to speak to each individually. This will personalize your speech and draw people in to what you are saying.

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(from a homily by Catholic Bishop D’Angelis, Toronto, ON)

1. Be active in life, not just a talker about what should be done or might be done. Paying lip service does not mean things get done.
2. Control consumerism and materialism in your life. There are far more important things to do.
3. Have the strength to go against common trends in society. Dare to stand up for the truly meaningful things in life.
4. Be a shining star. A star gives off light that leads people in the darkness.
5. Bring people back to God. Only about 35% of Catholics go to church. Let God and Jesus into your own life.
6. Go the extra mile to be an example of peace and joyfulness.
7. Learn about the gifts that come to you if you have a good spirit and live right.
8. Keep your religious values strong. The world constantly tries to dilute them.

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Park Dietz is an expert on the small, precise movements of people who implode. He reads the police reports, forensic reports, visits crime scenes, interviews witnesses and accumulates evidence as to what caused somebody to crack and what their personality was enduring.

Besides working on court cases, he operates what is called the "Threat Assessment Group" which is a company that goes into companies and looks for potential workplace violence. He tries to find people who are under stress because of day-to-day bullying, intimidation, harassment, verbal abuse and/or persistent pursuit of unwanted relationships. These cost companies in many ways: absenteeism, poor performance, poor morale, litigation. Left unchecked, such behaviour can sometimes lead to tragic results and conclusions. People implode and do sometimes unimaginably violent acts. He and his company assess people for potential problems and try to correct them before something happens.

Almost every computer has lost information or documents stored on hard drives or media. It can be very expensive for businesses and individuals that may accidentally wipe out priceless information. A data recovery technician may be able to help.
A typical workday involves discussing with customers exactly what the problem is, evaluating the possibilities of recovery and getting cost approval from the customer.
Recovery may be from hard drives, tapes, or damaged disks. A development team may do a lot of problem solving first and then a keen mind and sharp eye are necessary to locate and notice details that might aid in recovering information. A logical outlook is very important and being a problem-solver is even more important.
A recovery technician will have to attend seminars, training courses and any other meeting to keep up with the latest technology. There are no schools that teach data recovery - yet.
Data recovery will become a growing field of interest because of the ever- increasing volumes of data being stored, increasing internet downloading capabilities, and more sophisticated computer equipment.

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(by Beth Roszko in Showers of Mana magazine)

Here are the steps:

-make revisions and straighten out your affairs if at all possible

-if you are taking what doesn’t belong to you, stop doing it and return what you can

-make restitution

-if people you have hurt are no longer available, at least visualize yourself as mentally apologizing to them

-go out of your way to do beneficial things for other people

-be extra polite (even in traffic)

-help your neighbour to solve a problem

-smile at people, and do other kind things

Mankind becomes that which he/she thinks. Every word, thought and action leads us to our ultimate destination. All things are connected, and the light of that truth lives within us to show us the directions in which we can go. We do have the freedom of choice of directions. Do you choose anger and hate or do you choose love and understanding?

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Future Goals in Medical Science
(based on an article by J. Alex Tarquinio, Readers Digest)

Want some great ideas for science fair projects? Here are some ideas that scientists in medicine have actually been working on and will likely be available to the world within the next 15 years:

- pigs cloned to produce transplant organs

• computer chips in the brain to conquer paralysis
• sperm of endangered species will be injected to grow in mice as "bio-incubators"
• artificial human blood made from animal protein
• anti-cavity mouth wash will leave you cavity free for life
• vaccine to block addictive chemicals and help people stop smoking
• implanted pump and sensor will be an artificial pancreas that monitors blood glucose
• cervical cancer vaccine that wipes out the virus believed to cause the disease
• lab-grown nerve cells injected into the brain will reverse damage of strokes
• living dental implants made from stem cells will mean no more dentures
• healing biological gel will replace bandages
• tiny computer chip eye implant will help nearly blind people make out images
• running wires from the brain to specific centres to restore movement to paralyzed arms or legs

Francis Fukuyama, author of Our Posthuman Future has concerns: "If we modify people to the point that this essence begins to change, that raises questions as to what kind of rights they have and whether their rights are equal to that of a normal human being."

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(from an article by Torstar News Services)

A recent study, by Queen’s University, shows that children who take arts courses score higher on math tests. Learning through the arts can increase math by 11 percentile points. Arts programs have no negative effects on math or language scores. Programs that involve art, music, dance, any artistic expression are important. Children who read for pleasure and play sports also perform better academically.
The study showed that Gr. 6 girls in arts programs were happier to go to school. About 90% of parents reported that arts motivate their children.

(note: It has been known for some time that the study of music enhances math abilities. General arts and culture courses affect the creative parts of the brain. It is important to have a well-balanced and well-rounded curriculum in schools. When choosing courses, aim for a variety of maths, sciences, languages, arts, culture. Check your school to see how well-rounded it is.)

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1. Be a FUNdamentalist. Make sure the fun always comes before the mental. Realize that life is a situation comedy that will never be cancelled, a laugh track has been provided, and the reason we are put in the material world is to get more material. Have a good laughsitive twice a day, and that will insure regularhilarity.
2. Remember that each of us has been given a special gift just for entering the world -- so you are already a winner!
3. The most powerfill tool on the planet today is tell-a-vision. That is where I tell a vision to you, and you tell a vision to me. That way, if we don’t like the programming we are getting, we can change the channel.
4. Life is like photography. You use the negative to develop. And no matter what adversity you face, be reassured: Of course, God loves you -- he’s just not ready to make a commitment.
5. If we want world peace, we must let go of our attachments and truly live like nomads. That’s where I no mad at you, you no mad at me. That way, there will surely be nomadness on the planet. And peace begins with each of us. A little peace here, a little peace there, and pretty soon all the peaces will fit together to make one big peace everywhere.
6. I know great earth changes have been predicted for the future, so if you’re looking to avoid earthquakes, my advice is simple. When you find a fault, don’t dwell on it.
7. There is no need to change the world. All we have to do is toilet train the world, and we’ll never have to change it again.
8. If you’re looking to find the key to the Universe, I have some bad news and some good news. The bad news is, there is no key to the Universe. The good news is, it has been left unlocked.
9. It is true. As we go through life thinking heavy thoughts, thought particles tend to get caught between the ears, causing a condition called truth decay. So be sure and use mental floss twice a day.
10. Finally, everything I have told you is channeled. That way, if you don’t like it, it’s not my fault. And remember enlightenment is not a bureaucracy. So you don’t have to go through channels.

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(ideas from a book "Analyze Yourself" by Karyn Gordon)

To learn how to live life "right" takes a lifetime. Self-esteem is sort of the final reward – or punishment - that comes about over that time from all the interactions with self and others. The impact each has affects self-esteem.

1. We always choose what we believe about ourselves. We can choose to be blind to our true selves, put ourselves down, focus on strengths or weaknesses.
2. It has nothing to do with how we look or how much we own. It is always an internal thing.
3. Body language gives it away.

Good self-esteem: being able to look people in the eye, standing straight, talking confidently, using facial expressions, arms and hands open, standing fairly close to people and aiming your body at them.
Low self-esteem: nervous or no eye contact, head tipped down, quiet voice, limited facial expressions, arms crossed or close to body, hands closed, slouching or standing away from people, aiming away from people when talking.

4. Behaviour can give away the level of self-esteem.

Low self-esteem: having lots of different limited relationships, happiness is dependent on other people, doing only the same thing as others, feeling incomplete without someone else.
Good self-esteem: content to be alone sometimes, feeling of being a whole person, have personal as well as shared interests, have a nice group of friends and family for support, willing to get involved with life.

5. Attitudes you and your friends and family hold affect self-esteem. Attitudes affect communication, goal setting, self-destructive behaviour, depression, suicide, anger and body image. Be positive. It isn’t all that important in the long run.
6. There are five steps suggested that may help you feel better about yourself. Have passionate goals, seek and speak truth, seek out strengths in yourself and others, assess external influences that affect your attitude, and stop blaming others and start accepting ownership of the way you live your life.

No matter how anybody treats you or makes you feel, you can control your emotions and your behaviours. Ultimately, you have a healthy self-esteem if you feel equal to others, know your strengths and have positive body language and attitudes.

1. I will always say what I mean, not what women think I mean.
2. I will no longer insist that meals must be eaten with hands and a napkin.
3. I will not ask to open jars unless I am certain I can.
4. I will remember that Adidas are not the only shoes that are considered proper attire.
5. I will not say, "Who left the toilet seat down!" in an all girls apartment.
6. I will try to order desert before my date offers to pay for dinner.
7. I will make sure that a woman has seen the movie before discussing the ending.
8. I will not say, "What do you mean we?" when told of an upcoming group activity.
9. When describing dates, I will limit my sports metaphors.
10. I will not say that a woman and I are "just friends" which suggests she is not good enough to be a number one.
11. I will not ask a female date to go window-shopping and then take her to Home Depot to pick up a pane of glass.
12. I will share the TV remote but not during any kind of sport or playoffs.
13. I won’t gloat when I get a restaurant seat that faces the sports event on TV.
14. I will no longer insist on frequent flyer miles for all the guilt trips I have been taken on by women.

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(by Karla Taylor in Readers Digest)

1. Taking tough courses.
2. Getting great grades.
3. The Essay. Showcase your skills, goals and personality but beware of sounding too grown-up. A dynamic essay but C’s in English are suspicious.
4. Passionate involvement in a few activities. Better to be a dedicated captain of one team than a casual member of every club.
5. Formal Entrance/Test scores. Strong scores do not mean automatic acceptance but low scores can keep you out.
6. Qualities that contribute to a diverse student body. How will you improve the campus to which you are applying?
7. Character recommendations. Glowing words from teachers of your toughest subjects do impress.
8. Commitment. Visit your first choice campus, meet the profs and admissions team and promise you will attend if accepted – and mean it.
9. Community service. Shows commitment and also personal obligation.
10. Supplemental recommendations. Insights from a coach, volunteer supervisor, gifted program facilitator help admissions people get to know the real you.

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The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke.

Magic Tree House #27: Thanksgiving on Thursday by Mary Pope Osborne.

Triss: A Tale of Redwall by Brian Jacques.

Halloween by Jerry Seinfeld.

Why? The Best Ever Question and Answer Book About Nature, Science and the World Around You by Catherine Ripley.

I’m Gonna Like Me: Letting Off a Little Self-Esteem by Jamie Lee Curtis.

The Hockey Sweater by Roch Carrier.

Pure Dead Magic by Debbie Gliori.

James Bond: The Legacy by John Cork & Bruce Scivally. (a large coffee table book with more than 500 illustrations and photos)

Nothing Is Impossible: Reflections on a New Life by Christopher Reeve. (his outspokenness for disability causes and his attempts to regain movement despite the seeming permanency of his condition)

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-salad in a bag is the fastest growing food purchase in Canadian grocery stores.

-Noel Regney just died early in December at age 80. He composed the Xmas song: Do You Hear What I Hear? in 1962. It has been recorded in more than 120 versions.

-humans share about 99% of their genes with MICE! All but 300 of 30,000 genes!

-a tiger fetches about $5000-$30,000 on the exotic animals market.

-Germany has the highest-paid labour force in the world.

-a man in Edmonton was forced by a court to sell his house after accepting an offer (and then trying to take it back) from a CFL football fanatic who had bought the house to be close to the stadium of his beloved football team, the Edmonton Eskimos. (some Edmonton football enthusiasts paint their houses green and gold – the colours of the team)

-above-the-urinal TV screens offering advertising are finding their way into hotels and bars. There is a captive audience and men receive the ads about 3.7 times a night.

-Be proud! Canadians invented hockey, baseball, lacrosse, Tim Horton Donuts, Superman, ski-doos, jet-skis, velcro, zippers, insulin, penicillin, zambonis, the telephone and short wave radios.

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"Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got a hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations." - George Bernard Shaw

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"Big discoveries are protected by public incredulity."

"The future is not what it used to be."

"All advertising advertises advertising."

"Advertising is a vast, military operation openly and brashly intended to conquer the human spirit. The advertiser is a manipulator, yes. He plays around with human beings as if they were his pigment. He smears us."

"The medium is the message, the user is the content." - all by Marshall McLuhan

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That which you think of, but thereafter never speak of, creates at one level. That which you think of and speak of creates at another level. That which you think, speak and do becomes made manifest in your reality.

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"Oh, it is excellent to have a giant’s strength, but it is tyrannous to use it like a giant." –William Shakespeare.

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Really Punny Jokes

A bicycle can’t stand on its own because it’s two-tired.

Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

For a while, she had a boyfriend with a wooden leg, but then she broke it off.

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Seen on a baby’s T-shirt: "Party…my crib…2 am."

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The other day I went into a casino and saw a sign that read: "If you have a gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLE. So I called them and said, "I have an Ace and a six in Blackjack. The dealer has a seven. What do I do?"

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Here are some conversations, which had actually happened between computer help-desk people and their customers:

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Customer: "I have Microsoft Exploder."

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Customer: "How do I print my voicemail?"

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Customer: "I don't need any of that SQL stuff-I Just want a database!"

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Tech Support: "What does the screen say now?"
Customer: "It says, 'Hit ENTER when ready'."
Tech Support: "Well?"
Customer: "How do I know when it's ready?"

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Customer: "I have a long distance modem."

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Customer: "I don't have a space bar."

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Customer: "You've got to fix my computer. I urgently need to print a document, but the computer won't boot properly."
Tech Support: "What does it say?"
Customer: "Something about an error and non-system disk."
Tech Support: "Look at your machine. Is there a floppy inside?"
Customer: "No, but there's a sticker saying there's an Intel inside."

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Tech Support: "Just call us back if there's a problem. We're open 24 hours."
Customer: "Is that Eastern time?"

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Tech Support: "Ok, now click your left mouse button."
Customer: (silence) "But I only have one mouse."

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Customer: "Excuse me can I use this disk? It has a hole in it."

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Tech Support: "Do you have 3 1/2 inch diskettes?"
Customer: "No, I only have 3 of them."

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Tech Support: "I need you to right-click on the Open Desktop."
Customer: "Ok."
Tech Support: "Did you get a pop-up menu?"
Customer: "No."
Tech Support: "Ok. Right click again. Do you see a pop- up menu?"
Customer: "No."
Tech Support: "Ok, sir. Can you tell me what you have done up until this point?"
Customer: "Sure, you told me to write 'click' and I wrote 'click'."

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Customer: "Now what do I do?"
Tech Support: "What is the prompt on the screen?"
Customer: "It's asking for 'Enter Your Last Name.'"
Tech Support: "Ok, so type in your last name."
Customer: "How do you spell that?"

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Customer: "I received the software update you sent, but I am still getting the same error message."
Tech Support: "Did you install the update?"
Customer: "No. Oh, am I supposed to install it to get it to work?"

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Customer: "I'm having trouble installing Microsoft Word."
Tech Support: "Tell me what you've done."
Customer: "I typed 'A:SETUP'."
Tech Support: "Ma'am, remove the disk and tell me what it says."
Customer: "It says '[PC manufacturer] Restore and Recovery disk'."
Tech Support: "Insert the MS Word set-up disk."
Customer: "What?"
Tech Support: "Did you buy MS word?"
Customer: "No ..."

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Customer: "Do I need a computer to use your software?"
Tech Support: ?@#$?

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Tech Support: "Ok, in the bottom left hand side of the screen, can you see the 'OK' button displayed?"
Customer: "Wow. How can you see my screen from there?"

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Tech Support: "What type of computer do you have?"
Customer: "A white one."

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Customer: "I'm going to be using Windows NT. Should I get the Server or Workstation version?"
Tech Support: "Well, are you using it as a workstation or as a server?"
Customer: "A server. So, which one do I get?"
Tech Support: "The server version perhaps?"
Customer: "Which one is that?"
Tech Support: "Windows NT Server."
Customer: "Ok, thanks."

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Tech Support: "Type 'A:' at the prompt."
Customer: "How do you spell that?"

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Customer: "I can't log in to my account."
Tech Support: "Ok, let's look at your configuration."
Customer: "Ok...but I know that my User ID is case sensitive."
Tech Support: "Yes it is. Ok, what does it say in the 'User ID' field?"
Customer: "Like I said, 'Case Sensitive'."

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Tech Support: "What's on your screen right now?"
Customer: "A stuffed animal that my boyfriend got me at the grocery store."

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Tech Support: "What operating system are you running?"
Customer: "Pentium."

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