Knowledge is Power

What does it mean to “Give to Get?” It is a philosophy and way of life that centers around selfless actions on behalf of others. The benefits are not known, yet returned to the giver. The first step in giving to get is the hardest because you have no idea what you are going to get. Is it worth it? What if I don’t get what I want? What if I don’t get anything at all?

There is no balance of trade with giving to get. There is no arbiter of “value” who ensures that what was gotten measures up to what was given. No one is “due” to get because they have given. It just happens and it happens in ways that the giver could not have expected. But, many people never start for fear of the unknown or because their personal philosophy has become simply about struggling to hold onto what they have.

The point is to give without knowing what, if anything, you will get in return. Humans are wired to give. We are wired to help one another. Unfortunately through life we begin to place a value on what we give and if disappointed with the return, we feel we’ve been cheated, that we have been foolish. And we stop giving.

“Giving to Get” is a simple concept, but sometimes because of its simplicity, it is misunderstood. Giving to Get is not about “giving” with the expectation of a specific return, or any return at all, for that matter. If the expectation of return does not match the giver’s perceived generosity, there is disappointment.

Donating one million dollars to a university to have one’s name placed on a building, is an act of generosity (and should be applauded and recognized), but it is not “Giving to Get.” It is simply a business deal. Handing five dollars to a homeless man while traveling in a town far from home is “Giving to Get.” Giving without an expectation of return or without any outside pressure or recognition (other than a thank you) is the basis of giving to get.

“Giving to Get” is also not about money. In the vast majority of cases, “Giving to Get” is not even related to money. Money can be a substitute for effort. For some, money is just an efficient means to make a difference. But for others it is about something far more valuable than money. It is about a transaction in humanity.

We each have a bank account that is never ending. That bank account is filled with kind words, smiles, pats on the back and other forms of encouragement. Our bank accounts can never be exhausted, but we should try. Rather than giving money one can give time, interest, encouragement, applause, a handshake, a hug, praise or deserved thanks. You can also offer an open door, space under an umbrella or a helping hand. You don’t need money to “Give to Get.” You give because it increases your connection with humanity. You Give to Get because you’re human.

What do you get? Well, it is a little like Forrest Gump’s mother said “Life’s a box of chocolates, Forrest. You never know what you’re gonna get.”

Here are two stories about Giving to Get. One is mine; the other is the experience of a close friend.

One fall afternoon I was driving home with two tickets to that evening’s local, sold out college football game. It was the last game of the season. As passed by an orphanage, I decided out of nowhere that I was going to give the tickets away. It was about ninety minutes to kickoff, but I thought, “what the heck,” maybe they can use them. I pulled into the driveway and walked to the door. A kind elderly lady opened the door and I informed her that I had two tickets for that night’s game if they could use them. She turned and shouted “Johnnie.” A bright faces boy of about 12 or 13 came running to the entryway. The woman said, “Johnnie, this man has two tickets to the game tonight. I guess you get to go after all.” Johnnie suddenly started dancing around and shouting. He was out of his mind with joy. The woman turned to me and said “we can only take the kids if we have tickets for an adult on staff to sit with them. All of the boys here have gotten to go to a football game this season; all except for Johnnie. Now he’ll get to go. You made it just in time.”

Seeing the excitement on that boy’s face and knowing that he wasn’t going to be the only child who didn’t get to attend a football game that year was all I needed to get. If somewhere along the way, I got something more, well, that was just a bonus.

Sandy was driving to work one day and decided that she was going to take all the money in her purse and give it to a complete stranger, to someone who could use the money. When she arrived at work she pulled her wallet out of her purse and counted. She had $118. Well, she thought, someone is going to get $118 and I hope it can help them in some way. An hour later she received a call from the human resources department. Sandy had been laid off due to the downturn in the economy. She struggled with the emotional strain and shock of being suddenly unemployed and reconsidered her idea to give the money away. She could use it for her family and probably would need the extra money as she started her job search. Then she thought, “No, I decided to give it away. It is not mine anymore, I made the decision.”

On her way home she saw an elderly man by the roadside. He looked as though he lived on the streets and was in need of food, clothing and anything else that a stranger wanted to give him. Sandy pulled her car alongside the man and rolled down her window. She reached across and handed the man an envelope with the $118 inside. The man had no idea what was in the envelope, but he said “God bless you.” Sandy smiled and drove off. She was still burdened with the sudden job loss, but giving the money to the man somehow made her feel alive and connected to the world.

When she got home she pulled the mail out of her mailbox. Inside was an envelope from her mortgage company. Oh great, she thought. She took the mail inside and opened the envelope. The mortgage company had overcharged her for escrow on her property taxes and they were refunding the overage. Inside there was a check for $118.

Now, had she chosen not to give the money to the stranger, she would have had an extra $118, so some might argue that giving the money away was wrong. Sandy knows better.

(Originally published at GoArticles and reprinted with permission from the author, Steve O’Brien).

Steve O’Brien is a lawyer and fiction writer. Elijah’s Coin is a story of redemption and transformation. A young man suffers a tragic loss and begins spiraling out of control. Through an encounter with a mysterious night watchman, he begins a journey of renewal and self-discovery. Visit Elijah’s Coin.

An old piano, one neglected for many years is at the heart of this new novel by Patrick Davis. What possible story could involve an old piano?

Well let me turn that question around, in fact I will answer the question with another question, I am sure that you either own something old, or know someone that does, would it not be wonderful to know the story behind it? Who owned it before, why did they have it? Was it a gift? Was it important to someone at some point. I still own a wonderful antique stationary steam engine, a child’s toy, built in the early years of the 20th century, it is still in the original wooden packing crate, and some of the original cans of grease and other items are in the crate. I was given it in the early 1960’s, and every time I think about it, I wonder what its story is. What history it has behind it? It was clearly an expensive item, but who played with it?

Silent Note opens with Maria Weisman, an antiques dealer who discovers an old but rather battered upright piano, the local library has decided to auction it off. The happiness of having the winning bid is quickly foreshadowed by the discovery that she has terminal leukemia. The antique shop closes and a few possessions, including the piano take up residence in the family garage. It is a year later when now motherless 5 year old daughter Melissa expresses an interest in learning to play an instrument. Widower John Weisman suggests several instruments and Melissa chooses the piano.

After several months of lessons Melissa wants a keyboard at home to practice on, Johns inclination is to buy her a new piano, but Melissa insists she would like to play mommy’s. Using the tireless logic of a five year old, she reasons that ‘Mommy loved that piano, so I will love that piano.’

Upon wrestling the weathered piano into the house they discover a key that does not play correctly and a Piano Tuner’s services are requested. The problem is revealed to be a small ornate wooden box that is obstructing the string.

It is the contents of the box that capture John’s interest, a yellowed photograph of a young couple, a stack of correspondence between a gifted young piano player, Elsa Thompson, and a young Engineering student, Grant Ford, and a fountain pen that likely was used to write the young ladies letters. The letters cover a two year period, 1915 though 1917, and chronicle a chance friendship that grows into a romantic relationship. The letters are tantalizing, a glimpse into the past, to an era that was very different to today. The letters do not tell the whole story, they are merely a tantalizing tease. What happened next? What became of the young lovers?

I would share more about the plot, but like the letters, I am also a tease!

Patrick Davis has taken a very interesting approach to the make up of this book. It really consists of three very distinct sections. Part One is used to set the scene. Part Two takes us through the correspondence as viewed through the young lovers eyes, and Patrick has done a very fine job of recreating the tone and language of the day. Finally Part Three is John’s quest to find the elusive history behind both the young couple in the photograph, and the piano.

I am sure that some would slap the ‘Chick Lit’ label on The Silent Note, I do not think that is a fair description, while the story line clearly has a romantic element, there is also a lot more to this book. I started this review talking about my model Steam Engine, and I will end on the same note. Have you never wondered about the history behind some artifact that you either own, or a friend, or family member does?

I enjoyed The Silent Note, it is well thought out, and has a most unexpected ending. It has also been exceedingly well researched from a historical perspective, and extremely well edited, which from a reviewers perspective is a rarity with POD (Print On Demand) imprints. Kudos to all involved.

You can get your copy from Amazon, and you might also want to check out the companion web site.

(Originally published at Blogger News Network and reprinted with permission from the author, Simon Barrett).

Simon Barrett is the senior editor for Blogger News Net and maintains a personal blog at Simon B. Now semi retired in the depths of Mississippi he has plenty of time to read books by up and coming authors.

People use a subnet mask to identify what specific part of an Internet Protocol address is allotted for the host as well as the particular area reserved for the network. Also referred to as the netmask, this information is vital, as it is necessary to measure easily the specific parts for the host and the network. Generally, this information is very important because it is used to indicate whether different IP addresses belong to the same subnet. Learning all these things are really important as they can spell the successful flow or even the failure of a system to work smoothly and properly.

All in all, there are 32 bits constituting subnet masks, which are clearly represented by a block of zeroes and a block of ones. In this sequence, the zeroes are basically used to identify the part of the host. Meanwhile, the subnet mask of the so-called classful networks is set at 255.255.255.0, 225.225.0.0, or 255.0.0.0. Furthermore, the Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) notation is primarily a shorter form of what is used to express these subnet masks. This particular notation basically indicates the number of the network, as well as the netmask’s binary notation separated in between by a slash. An example of this CIDR notation would be 192.0.2.96/24.

How to Use a Subnet Mask to Determine the Portions of the Host and the Network in a Specific IP Address

With the use of a subnet mask, people can easily identify the specific network address for a particular IP address. The first thing they need to do is transpose the octal addresses into a binary form. After doing so, they must perform a simple bitwise AND action. For instance, the octal address for the IP address 156.154.81.56 is transposed as 10011100.10011010.01010001.00111000, while the subnet mask 255.255.255.240 can be converted into its binary form 11111111.11111111.11111111.11110000. After performing a bitwise AND action on these data, the exact result will be 10011100.10011010.01010001.00110000.

The Importance of Subnet Masks to Internet Protocol Networks

When managing an IP network, subnet masks are of great importance because they serve as a reliable means of communication. The defined subnet mask and the targeted IP address are used by network devices to identify whether the host is using a remote network or a local subnet. Usually, a network device sends an Address Resolution Protocol request when using a local subnet. The purpose of this operation is basically to recover the questioned system’s MAC address in order to relay communications to the Data Link Layer of the OSI Model.

Meanwhile, a different action usually happens when a remote network is used. In this case, packets are then routed by network devices toward the gateway in the routing table, which is an e-document storing the routes to the computer network’s different nodes. If there is no entry in the routing table that specifically matches network, a default route is necessary to send the packets. When there is no identifiable default route, the packets cannot go anywhere and are simply dropped in the process.

Peter Garant is a computer network and Internet security expert and has written several articles on subnets such as Understanding the Subnet Mask and Subnet: What You Need to Know.