Showing posts with label happiness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label happiness. Show all posts

Blurry Season

This time of year is normally filled with Christmas carols, white snow and massive amounts of anything edible. Snowman are out and in full swing making many winter wonderland appearances while Christmas presents are being bought and ripped open at a rapid pace. Smiles, alcohol and a good amount of laughs are passed around like a peace pipe on an Indian reservation. Overall it’s a good time to be around friends and family and catch up on some of the happenings of the past year, regardless of how far you have to travel to see some of them.


Christmas time or even winter time is a good time for the winter advocate or the closet skier to get out and enjoy. Hopefully you live in the northern hemisphere and get to enjoy the winter sensations but even if you don’t you can still feel that “Christmas feeling” in the air.

I just wanted to make a quick note and I hope everyone got to feel that special feeling and got to see everyone they wanted to see during their few mandatory days off this winter.
*raises glass quickly*

Cheers to Christmas time… can’t wait for your drinking buddy “New Years Eve” to come along next. Shit, what to drink? Guess I have to go shopping again, but this time to the liquor store, haha…

Ciao-

Posted in: , , , , , , , , on Monday, December 28, 2009 at at 9:11 AM 2 comments  

Live your life

Written above are 3 simple words that are actually quite easy to say, but rather hard to follow. Many people talk about trying to do fun things and go cool places, but I feel like very few of us succeed in doing so. Many of us repeatedly step up to the plate and all we hear is the ball fly by us while the umpire screams, “you’re out!!”

Why do so many of us fail to hit the ball or even swing the bat. I guess half the battle is getting in the batters box, but the other have is finishing what you started to do. Good intentions don’t get you anywhere in life. You need to finish what you started, you need to do what you said you were going to do and live your life the bet way possible.


What do I even mean by living your life? Well, to put it simple, “enjoy your life”, but those words don’t add much clarity as people will settle with what they have and tell you time and again they are enjoying their lives. But who are they kidding? Are they really? I guess it’s not your nor mine place to say yes or no, but it is quite easy to read between the lines and see who is getting in the batters box and swinging and who is still riding pine.

You need to be able to wake up every morning and be excited about your life, your accomplishments and what lies ahead of you in your path. You owe it to yourself to have the best life possible. So why not have it?

You would truly be surprised how fun your life can be if you just let it be fun. IF you smile a bit more everyday and do a few more fun things here and there. Get out and go for a walk in the park, see your favorite movie, drink your favorite wine (and maybe have too much), laugh hard and loud without caring when and where you are and most importantly live your life.

Too often we see mid-life crises, or people that have breakdowns. We push ourselves too far to the edge and finally we do fall over. I don’t think we need to slow down, but I do think we should smell the fuckin damn roses once in awhile. I mean why not? Plan for doing something fun. Now this doesn’t mean plan a specific time for fun, but rather have fun in doing more things. Expect everything to go well, more often than not, how you think about a particular task, errand, person, whatever…, will make it that much more enjoyable in the end…

Try this, trust me…

Bamer-

Posted in: , , , , , , , , , , on Friday, November 27, 2009 at at 10:37 AM 2 comments  

Why not be gay?

Ok, ok, the title isn't the best, but at least it got you to read this far.. haha, sucker.

No but to be serious for half a second, have you ever thought about being gay? Has this thought ever trickled into your mind or have you ever had a tiny urge to try? Watch, talk about it, whatever?

Before you start getting all these weird ideas in your head about why I could be possibly talking about this, let me explain a few things. First and foremost just think about any gay friends that you have or possibly have known through out your life or maybe ones that are still currently in it. Do bad thoughts come to mind or are you giggling because you are remembering how cool and laid back your buddy is.

Chances are you are smiling because probably a pretty high percentage of the ones you know are super cool and fun-loving, easy to get along with dudes. (I will talk from the gay standpoint and not the lesbian one, because I know more gay guys) These guys tend to be the ones that simply genuinely nice. They are normally gentlemen are always making you smile or laugh.

I got to hand it to them, first of all it's not that easy to come out of the closet in today's society where it's not particularly easy to do so. Not everyone is a gay lover and there are still quite a few gay-haters (making up words now) that are out there. I tip my hat to them, because not only do they have to come to grips with something that is not socially excepted, at least not right away and then on top of it they don't have as many potentional suitors to chose from. But even after all the adversity they tend to be cool dudes.

As was recently explained to me, "Gay guys have the best of both worlds, they are caring like a women but yet chilled out like a guy..." And after hearing this I couldn't help but not my head in total agreeance. I mean being gay is a pretty good mix of the desired traits from either sex. Cleaner, more dependable than most straight males, whether that is with actually cleaning or personal hygene, I believe in my experience it holds true. And yet they still have that respect and caring that normal so desire from women. Not a bad combo.

This blog isn't really about my lust to start batting for the other team but rather a simple observation about the switch-hitters of the world. Kudo's to them for going against the grain of society and being happy. I mean I don't have statistics in front of me, but I would be willing to guess that gay couples having lower divorce rates then heterosexual couples.That in itself says something.

Alright, enough of the random gay rant, but I just wanted to give a shout out to the "switch-hitters" of the world, keep on rockin it.

Next batter please...

Bamer~

Posted in: , , , , , , , , on Thursday, November 19, 2009 at at 4:09 PM 4 comments  

Awesome List Part 1



  1. Finding $20 under your seat when you finally decide it's time to clean your car, awesome!

  2. Girlfriend comes over when your out doing something and she cleans your room and then decides the dishes need to be cleaned too, awesome!

  3. Mom sends a care package filled with candy and cash when you're at school, awesome!

  4. You just beat Call of Duty 4 on PS3, awesome!

  5. Girlfriend calls to tell you she loves you after she was surprised to see the flowers you sent her, regardless that you didn't actually send them and there was a mix-up, awesome!

  6. Gas drops 25 cents in one day, awesome!
  7. Sale on your favorite chocolate at the store, awesome!

  8. Girlfriend finds a sale on new lingerie, wears them later that night and shows you, awesome!

  9. Road head, awesome!

  10. You are a girl and your tire blows out on your car in the middle of nowhere, but just as you think 'fuck' and get out of your car a hot guy stops by to change it for you and offers to take you to dinner later, awesome!

That's my first list of awesome things. I will continue this and hopefully you have some awesome things that you could add to the list? Let me know if you liked the first list or if it at least made you giggle?

Have an awesome day!

Posted in: , , , , , , , , on Thursday, September 24, 2009 at at 10:22 AM 8 comments  

Jealousy, it's here to stay...

The feeling of jealousy, where does it come from? Why does it creep into our thoughts and sneak up on us when we least expect it? It's like a lingering bad guy that just waits and waits and waits, hoping for the right moment to show itself comes along. It's the bad guy that you love to hate, the one that is truly 'unwelcome'.


We all have this feeling programmed into our brains and hardwired into our systems better than a mother board into it's computer. We actually can't really get rid of it, only suppress it. However there are some of us who express feeling no jealousy at all, but these are the lucky few. Jealousy is something that is seen at a very young age in children even. Think of a 2 year old when they realize that they are about to have a baby sister, or when they finally think about having to share their toys, food, or even their own mother with another baby. This is why we need to teach children at such a young age to share toys, their mother, their fathers, etc.

Jealousy is something that is reinforced in society and even sometimes put on a pedestal. We back jealousy by saying to everyone, "Look.. there is a soul mate out there for you and you will find them..." Give me a break, seriously? We set up jealousy on a silver platter, no wonder people get jealous when they think they found Ms. Perfect. I would be protective as well if I thought there was one and ONLY one out there. (By the sarcasm in my voice you can tell I don't believe in this all that much, understatement) In fact I can take this one step further, we even justify jealousy in our society. I read about some old court cases in Texas that involved a man killing his wife for cheating on him and he wasn't found guilty for murder?? How does that work? Obviously things have changed a bit and today he would have been accused of murder, but still, that was only back in the 1970's.

Jealousy is not a rational impulse folks, but it is a human one. It is thought of by some researchers as a primitive feeling, one that helps explain the fight or flight instinct we have programmed in us, which originally came from a time when safety and survival were scarce. But I don't really want to go in that direction concerning jealousy.

I want to talk about jealousy in and of itself and the fact that it has and will always be there. It will wait for a moment to rear it's ugly head and take control of you in the littlest ways by eating at you. Maybe you catch an extra glance or a small hug that lingers a bit too long? Then instantly that thought pops into your head that something could be going on and you start entertaining the idea. Why do you do this though? Before you know it you start getting angry and making small comments and stupid remarks all because of this tiny feeling of jealousy, despite everything pointing the other direction. Yes jealousy can get you all messed up, so the best thing to do is to try and stay rational, to try and not act upon emotion or instantaneously pass judgement. Take a breath, relax, let the jealousy monster pass, because more often than not it's not worth it.

And jealousy isn't something you are going to avoid and it's not about how or when it happens, but it's how you deal with it that does.

Last point, the thing that can combat this feeling is trust. We need trust and have to have it, it helps control the feeling of jealousy...

Trust me...

[end rant]

Ciao~

Posted in: , , , , , , , , , , , on Tuesday, September 22, 2009 at at 3:46 PM 0 comments  

Swiss Lacrosse Part 3

Down.....Set....... *whistle*


The first faceoff was a clean win for us, not a bad way to start. We moved the ball down the field and got everything settled down by working the ball around the outside perimeter. There was a comfortable feeling already taking over, even after the first minute and the guys seemed excited to be playing and even more so to deploy their newly acquired skills that they had learned over the previous 1.5 months.

A few more passes, a pick here and there and the game started to open up for us in the offensive zone. A few guys had some early open looks, but nothing found the back of the net. The confidence at this point was building and you could feel it, I mean even the 30 or so fans that turned up were started to get a bit excited. You could tell that the guys had raised the bar and the expectations of the team were somehow nothing less than a victory for this game against Basel. I don't think the guys wanted to settle for less...

A few more changes of possession happened, our defense stood tall, and then finally after about 9 minutes of play there was a quick play from up top to a down low cutter by the crease and the ball flew past the goalie, top right, for a quick 1-0 score. There was a big celebration on the field as this team wasn't really known for it's scoring capabilities prior to this game. (3 or 4 goals total the entire season up to this point)

Herzogenbuchsee seemed to get a huge lift from that first goal and it never seemed to let up. The next faceoff was a clean win again, in fact I don't think Basel had won a single one the whole day? Today wasn't about Basel, it was about the Iroquois H'buchsee boys showing themselves that they were better than what the 2 previous years had shown, and the score quickly showed it. After one quarter it was 4-0 in favor of the Iroquois. That was equal to their entire years total with all the other games combined.

The next 2 quarters went by extremely fast with only a few penalties from each side creating the stoppages. I just kept telling the guys to keep giving it 110%, don't stop, every ball is ours and we were going to make sure we didn't give them a chance to get back into the game. Perhaps it was a bit much to tell them to keep putting them in the net, but the guys earned the right in my eyes to show what they could do, to show what they had learned.

9-2 after 3 quarters, the guys could feel the upper hand that they had at this point. All they had to do keep up the same intensity and hang on for one more quarter and they would have their first victory of their clubs existence. A pretty good feat for a group of guys that just thought this sport looked cool a couple years earlier and decided one day to buy some sticks...
The last quarter was a good one and hard fought, but it was obvious what the outcome was going to be as Basel slowly got out-hustled to the ground balls and in turn watch their chances to win the game slip away.

*whistle* game over... end score 14-2 in favor of the home team. Happy faces all around, hugs, handshakes and a job well done.

Finally I felt a big relief and deep breath find it's way out of my lungs. The first test was over, but it was just the beginning...
(To be continued)

Posted in: , , , , , , , , , , on Thursday, September 10, 2009 at at 1:06 PM 5 comments  

Swiss Lacrosse Part 2

August 9th, 2009.


My first game with the team since I took over coaching Herzogenbuchsee Lacrosse in Switzerland. It was the first real test my boys were going up against since I had tried to teach them the basics of this sport and the basics of team play and camaraderie. It was the the first test for me as a trainer, the game had a whole bunch of meanings for me. I was filled with a whole bunch of different emotions as we took the field and started to warm up before the game. Technically we had been at the field for 3 hours already setting everything up, but now people were starting to show up and I was starting to feel the butterflies in my stomach and the anticipation growing from within.

Was a cool feeling overall and nothing like what I had previously felt before. I mean I had never been a "full-time coach" before. I had simply been a helper and an assistant, someone who could help teach but more or less be there to support the coaches wishes. So to me this day had a completely different feel, a feeling of a true reflections on what I had taught the boys over the last 1.5 months or so that we had to prepare for this game.

-I hoped everything I taught them sunk in?
-I hope they remembered everything and didn't let their own emotions get the best of them?
-How was this game going to turn out?

Lots of questions were going to be answered by the end of the day, that was for sure. I half wondered if the boys even knew how to win? I mean they had experienced 2 seasons worth of games without a single win. I mean, sure they had scored some goals, but mostly they had been slaughtered by the other teams in the league. Basically if you had a coach and could throw and catch the ball with a little bit of togetherness and understood some plays, then you could beat the Herzogenbuchsee Lacrosse team.

Either way there was nothing more I could do about it now, it was game day, they needed to do it on their own and win for themselves. Just had to apply some of the basics I taught them and they would be alright. Or so I hoped?

Basically the pregame warm up went well and the pre-game prep talk went like this below, however I had to say it in my half-German-half-Swiss slang that I had acquired as there was very few English speakers on the team...

I have a few goals for us guys:
1) Hustle, 110% always
2) Mentality, "Win every ground ball.."
3) Have some fun and play as team, watch each others backs.

And with those three points being said it was already time for the opening faceoffs...

...was I ready?

(To be continued...)

Posted in: , , , , , , , , , on Tuesday, September 8, 2009 at at 2:02 PM 6 comments  

Life and Friends

We meet so many people along this crazy road called, "life." We have huge highs and lows along the way and there is never a shortage of friends that are along for the ride as well. Some only jump on the train for a bit, but some how manage to have an impact on you like no other. While others jump on for the whole trip and these are the ones who are always there for us and love the journey, the beer and the friendship that you provide each other. We need these people, we need them so much it's unreal.. Make sure you appreciate them, and that you are appreciated back, but most of all just enjoy the ride.. because the ride wouldn't be the same without them riding shotgun. And the ride won't last forever, we all get off eventually.


Take pictures, welcome new friends and cherish the old ones, and make new experiences everyday of your life. Don't ever let it get dull and remember that you and your friends can make life as good as you want to, it's entirely up to you...

[turns off reggae music and proceeds to 'puff puff pass'..]

Posted in: , , , , , , on Saturday, July 18, 2009 at at 11:43 AM 5 comments  

Baby love

How is it going?


I hope you are kickin off your week in a good way, and I hope you enjoyed a happy 'Independence Day', if you are an American. :) I didn't hear about too many firecracker accidents.

Anyways, I wanted to write a quick blurb today about babies and this ever growing feeling that people around the age of 22-35 or so have. And I know you know what this feeling is. Let's just call it, 'baby love'.

It's that feeling of wanting a baby. (If you haven't already had a few that is) You get to this age and you start looking at babies and thinking of how cute they are and how bad you want to have one for your own. This feeling is normal and it's instinctual. We are no different than any other animal out there, in the way that we want to reproduce and have some offspring.

But this feeling inside seems to start to hit full stride between this time period. Maybe a bit earlier for some and later for others, but either way it's something we all want to do. Alot of times you hear women talking about their 'internal clocks' and that they are ticking. This is that ticking that they are talking about. And I am hear to tell you that guys have these damn 'clocks' too. In fact I feel like I can't turn it off sometimes, but rather just change the station in my head. I mean I can't tell you how much I have thought about making a 'mini me' from time to time.

I know you can sit there and think, "Well then make one.." But it's not as easy as it sounds. Life puts alot of roadblocks in the way first. Here is a quick list below to show you want I mean.

Roadblocks:
-Finding the right girl/guy (This one is huge)
-Making sure you are ready (physically, financially, etc.)
-Being able to.. (It's not a given that you even can?? wtf??)

These are just a few but as you can see, it's not so easy to just pop a few kids out. More so I mean it's hard to do it the 'normal' way.. (normal being used in the sense of marriage/partnership, career, house, etc, before you finally have a kid) But if you want to bypass this, I am sure you can run to the local 'whore house' and make a whole in the condom?? (Let's hope you didn't actually consider that) I just shuddered...

Anyways, why do we get these 'baby love' feelings? Why do we have such an instinctual urge to reproduce? And is this controllable, because I have some friends who never want to have a baby... How do they control this urge? (Maybe they hate sex?) I dunno, but either way, this 'baby love' feeling can be killer at times.

Did I just write that?? Must be getting older...

Posted in: , , , , , , , , , on Monday, July 6, 2009 at at 3:33 PM 8 comments  

Fake happiness?

I recently had a friend send me a link to a YouTube video that talked about how we should try to be happier. About how this will help everyone, and not only ourselves. Of course we will see the most benefits from being happy, but it also affects everyone around us. Anyways I found quite interesting and I wanted to share my views on 'faking happiness'.


There was a blurb about faking happiness and if we could, and I want to weigh in here and give my opinion on why I think the speaker was right. I think we can fake happiness and not only that, but I think we are really good at it. We actually do it all the time in our everyday lives. We are damn good actors if you think about it. And I have a few examples to prove it.

1) Dad says, "If you are good, we will go and get ice cream later.." Now I know all of us have heard this or something similar at least a few times when we were kids. And, at least in my case, you better believe that no matter if I was sick, tired, mad or whatever I was going to be really good for that next hour so I could get me some a dat chocolate ice cream I was always craving. So this meant that I faked being good or happy.

2) You hate to work with Mr. A-hole at work, but you know you have to and on this particular day you have a meeting with him about some new 'thing' you want to change/improve/etc. Now normally you avoid him or just keep everything extremely brief, but this time because he has the final say on something you want, you fake happy towards him. (Not to mention you were faking happy every time you saw him in the hallway or wherever at work) I know everyone has had a boss before and faked happy to him or her.

3) Your are going to the movies and the person at the counter selling the tickets is really slow. You have been waiting for 15 minutes or so and the movie is going to start in 7 minutes and you don't even have popcorn. Not only does this make you mad and irritated, but you know the reason it's taking so long is because of this one person. But instead of you getting up there and sayin, "what the hell??" You simply roll up there and mumble, "2 tickets to Transformers 2." More or less just thankful to get the tickets as quickly as possible so you can get your butt in the theatre.

So out of those 3 above I am sure most of you reading this have done at least 2 of them. But why do we do it? Why do we fake happy? And if we are so good at it, why do we do it only when we want something? Why not all the time? I mean if the whole world was a bit happier don't you think it would be a lot more fun to live in? I do.

Before I answer those questions, how about I pose another one?

Do you think that if you 'act' or if you 'fake' happy that your actions or behaviors can shape your feelings? To explain further, do you think you can make yourself feel better by just faking your happiness?

Woo-wee, I know I am asking a bunch of questions and laying it on thick, but how about you give me your feedback and tell me what you think? Can we fake happy? Can it affect our real feelings if we do it long enough? And lastly, should we?

I know that sometimes I do. I know that I am a pretty jolly guy most of the time and that I am happier because of my faked happiness at times. (Not saying I am a fake'r or anything, but you get my point. Or at least I am not a fake'r like some women can be in bed... haha... that was just a joke, hope you don't need to fake it)

Anyways, throw me your thoughts.

Ciao~

Posted in: , , , , on Thursday, July 2, 2009 at at 2:15 PM 9 comments  

The Feeling of "New"

Just a short tidbit today, but I wanted to talk about the feeling you get inside when you get, see or touch (for that matter) something new. But to make things simple we will talk about 'new' in the sense of a 'thing' or an object.

It's great, you get excited even before you have this thing in your hands. You can't stop smiling and you get all giddy and happy. Maybe this thing was something that you have waited for, for a long time. Maybe it was something that happened to a be an impulse buy and you are waiting on the shipping guy to stop at your door with the delivery. Either way it's new and you are excited.

This thing can't seemingly be in your hands fast enough and you can barely contain yourself, not to mention you have probably already told all your friends about it. Twice!

But when this thing comes and you can see it for the first time, you are so happy it's almost unbelievable that an object/toy/thing can cause you so much joy. For once you don't care much about being materialistic, because what the hell, you deserve it and you wanted it. And now it's finally here. The waiting is over, the anticipation has finally come to a halt and you are ecstatic.

You get your thing and immediately you deem it the 'coolest thing ever' and you go around and show all your friends. They think it's cool too, but they are more or less just happy that you are so happy. Almost to the point that they giggle and point at you. Whatever.. you don't care, it's yours and you are happy, so that's all that matters. Muwahahaha!

Usually things of this nature don't happen often and fall into the less meaningful more need than a want category. But when these new things come along... it's awesome.

So without talking about it further, here is my 'new' thing. (below) :D <---- they don't make these smiley faces big enough.

Love your 'new things'!




Posted in: , , , , on Friday, June 26, 2009 at at 2:00 PM 159 comments  

Be Different

Raise your hand if you want to be a completely normal person?

I bet no one even thought about taking a finger off of their mouse. This is maybe because you looked at ‘normal’ in a bad way and not a positive way. Or it could have been because we haven’t defined what ‘normal’ is yet.

Let’s create a quick definition to define the word normal. Normal is someone who follows and blends in with the crowd. They never really standout especially if they don’t have to. Their life is good, no financial problems, have a wife, maybe kids, but all-in-all it’s relatively bland. (or ‘safe’, for you normal people out there reading, haha)

Now with that definition in mind we can start to look at why people probably didn’t want to take their hand off of their mouse when asked if they were normal.

Why is that, is it because no one wants to be like someone else? No one wants be thought of as a follower. Especially because a leader receives a lot more praise and recognition. Who knows, could be the reason, but that’s not my point that I want to get at.

What I really want to say is being different is cool, and being unique (IMO) is the best. Don’t go out and try to put on the most crazy shjt ever, out of your closet, but be happy in your own right. Be yourself and no one else. Be different, because god knows we aren’t all the same. And if you want to get technical, we are not even close. I mean, I for example, look nothing like my dad. (But damn, the postman looks like my twin, lol) Nah just playing… sort of.

Anyways, just a random rant to all the people who, either are different and love it, or to the posers who try to be different. Big hint to the latter group, it ain’t gunna work. Us original people will be able to pick you out in a heartbeat, we know the fakes. So take off the 15 color shirt and the messed up jeans with the stolen cap, we know. You do it for the wrong reasons, and that’s to get attention. The real originals just are. We don’t mimic or copy, we just do.

Later-

Posted in: , , , , , on Thursday, June 11, 2009 at at 3:12 PM 7 comments  

Summer Time

I know it's that time of year again where it warms up and you are starting to get your tan on and stay outside for extended periods of time. So I figured I would put together a quick compilation of tell tale signs that summer has truly arrived. Feel free to add to this list.


How to tell if Summer is here:
  1. The local swimming pool is full with old people. You know summer is here when you go to your local outdoor swimming park/pool or whatever and you find an abundance of 70+ year old people out there in their speedos tanning away. When you're 70 you make absolutely sure it's hot outside before going to the pool, I mean you don't want to freeze.

  2. Skirts are out and loving it. Summer is here when you go outside and half the women have skirts or some sort of other "less than pants" attire on. Shorts and skirts start to be seen all over the place, ohh so nice.

  3. Smells of a BBQ are out. You know when you leave work and you drive home and as you pull into your neighborhood you roll the windows down and catch a strong scent of a passing BBQ going on... mm... I almost want to stop by. I mean you know they have beer, right?

  4. Long nights. This time of year the sun seems to never want to go down. You find yourself outside at 9-10pm at night, but yet it still feels like 6. Why go in when you can stay out?

  5. Brighter clothing. Agree with me or not on this one, but I see a noticeable difference in colors in the summer as opposed to the winter. Bright greens, yellows, etc. are seen regularly.

  6. Tops down, music up. I see alot more people with their convertible tops down and alot more kids with their music blaring as loud as the speakers will let them.

Ok now your turn. What makes you think of summer?? Something new that you notice during this time of year?

Posted in: , , , , , , , on Friday, June 5, 2009 at at 11:22 AM 11 comments  

Story Telling

I used to love to listen to stories as a kid, sitting there on the edge of the bed and waiting for dad to come in to tell me a story. It didn't matter if it was about castles and kings, or if it was about his day at work and what he had done. In fact sometimes he came in and read moby dick to me, and even though I couldn't much understand it, I was content.


I start to wonder why I was content and what it was that made me so happy at a young age, even when I didn't understand half of my dad's stories in their entirety. Even now when I think about the tales of moby dick and cap'n Ahab, I get a little smile because they bring me back to when I was a kid again. And this made me start to think about why I liked the stories so much? And that's when it occurred to me that I didn't necessarily like the stories at all, but rather the story teller.

The story teller in this case was my dad, and it didn't really matter what he was sayin' or what part of the story he was talking about, but it was important that he was taking the time out at all to tell me one. And not only that, but he would tell the stories with vivid emotion and noticeably high differences in voice tone. He cared, and he was going to try and make me get 'into' his story, regardless of all the big words in that book which stretched far beyond my years at that time.

This act of telling a story, by my dad, would serve a far better purpose than only to entertain me at a young age before bedtime. I now know that it served a purpose to show me how to story tell and how use your hands, facial expressions and voice to get across your meaning in an extremely interesting way. It showed me that you need to believe in what you are saying, and to believe in yourself to best get your information across to your listener. Even if your listener is a 6 year old boy.

This lesson would be something that I have found is far more valuable now then I ever realized when I was 6 years old. I need to tell multiple stories to multiple people everyday, and because I had a great teacher, I can now myself tell great stories. Being a good story teller can help you in so many ways. Getting your point across has never been easier, and to be honest, telling stories is a lot of fun. I think I actually get more joy out of telling a story than the person listening to me that is laughing away.

You will come across many people in your life and you will find yourself in many situations where you will be listening to stories or telling them. These people will have interesting and unique stories to tell and you will learn and gain a lot from. And in this same time you will have many stories to tell as well and you will want to give your listeners the most information in the best possible way. So why not become a good story teller? Do your audience and friends along the way a favor and practice your story telling. You will be able to have that much more of an effect on your listeners and they will be greatly appreciative as well.

*raises glass of juice*

Here's to the story teller in you...

Posted in: , , , , , , , , , on Friday, May 29, 2009 at at 12:54 PM 9 comments  

Most Contagious

The most contagious thing in the world... do you know what it is? Have you ever given this some thought?

What was the first thing you just thought of? Just now as I asked this question?


If you are like the majority of people, I am sure the first thing you thought of was a cold, flu or something bad. But why is that? Why did the thoughts of something negative pop into your mind first? (I don't really know either..) I mean go type in "most contagious" on Google and you will get a million hits for diseases and colds. It's crazy... So don't feel bad that you thought about it first as well.

I mean this could be because the word 'contagious' means, according to Webster's dictionary, 1: communicable by contact 2: bearing contagion 3: used for contagious diseases 4: exciting similar emotions or conduct in others. By these definitions, nothing positive is even mentioned until #4, the last one. And #1 and #3 are referring to something that you can 'catch', like a disease. So our own dictionaries are telling us it's bad before it's good, technically, right?

But that's not what I want to get at, and either way it doesn't matter, because I am going to tell you what I think is the most 'contagious anything' in the world. And the first thing I thought of when I asked myself this question. (Possibly even a few of you have guessed what I am about to say already?) And that is... ..

...a smile. YEP! That's it. Simple eh?

The most contagious thing in this world is a smile. Just think about it for a second. Think about how many times you smile in a day and then think about how many times you laugh in a day. If you are a happy camper, then you smile quite often. Which is great! And when you smile you pass it along. It hops from one person to another until it's filling the whole room that you're in, just like a "contagious virus", err... umm.. almost. :)
These little smiles are like gifts we give each other. It's like saying, "thank you for being my friend" to everyone that you enjoy, and are happy around. The best part about these gifts though is that they are quick, simple and free. We are always looking for something that can keep up with us and how fast we move, and quick we need it. Well here you go, here is one thing that will be able to hold up to your daily grind... I promise, so go ahead and use it more.

And just to prove to you that it's contagious, I am going to show you a few examples of smiles, and I bet at least one of them will make you smile back at it. ;) (click on the images to make them bigger)

Hope you have a happy Tuesday.



Posted in: , , , , , on Tuesday, May 12, 2009 at at 12:18 PM 8 comments  

People are fascinating

You put on your headphones and you start listening to your favorite music on your I-pod. Your running shoes are on and you are ready to go out to the park and get your 'run on' and get some exercise. I mean why not it's a beautiful day and the sun is shining.


But today is a bit different because the park you are about to run through is probably one of the most well known 'parks' in all of America. Yep you guessed it, "Central Park" in New York City.

This park is beautiful and the overwhelming amount of people there is astonishing. It's clean, green and full of energy. This park isn't really any ordinary park either, you will find a zoo, baseball fields, lakes, metropolitan museum of art and more sidewalk vendors then you possibly need. The people there are from every ethnicity you can think of and each passing face has a story on it just waiting to be told.

A park like this is an oasis in terms of a place where you can find many people enjoying themselves. If they are having a picnic in the park or visiting the lions cage or even just out for a Sunday afternoon walk they are having a good time and general enjoyment is being had. It's a good thing to be apart of.

Not quite sure where I am going with this, or why I decided to write about it, but the feeling of running through a park like that and being able to listen to my favorite music as I get to look around and see all the new faces and different people is a pretty cool experience. You should try and see Central Park sometime in NYC, I recommend it for anyone.

Hopefully you have a park or a place like this where you can just 'get lost' for a few hours once a week.. it's nothing short of refreshing..

Posted in: , , , , , , , on Sunday, April 19, 2009 at at 6:41 PM 6 comments  

Getting knocked down

I am sure you have all heard the song called, “Hard Knock Life” and my favorite version is the one by rapper Jay-Z. He basically spends the whole time talking about how he went from the ‘bottom to the top’. How he went from ‘lukewarm to hot’, and how no one appreciated him until he released his second album.

Jay-Z is a good example of someone who has experienced defeat many times (or that’s what he says in his songs) and kept getting up. You fall down 11 times you get up 12, no matter how many times you lose or get knocked down you need to rise up again. I know sometimes it gets hard and you just don’t have the energy too, but think of how much worse off you will be if you just lay down.. (and die)

Another good song is by Chumbawumba, “Tubthumpin”. (ok well the chorus is preaching the same message) The whole song is basically the chorus as there is virtually no verses. But the chorus says, “I get knocked down but I get up again, no you’re never going to keep me down.” And then just goes ahead and repeats that 20+ times. This song is talking about getting knocked down again and that no matter how many times you, someone else or the world knocks them down, they will always get back up again.

I think people need more of this attitude in them. I think people need to dwell more on the good times, not saying we should forget about all the mistakes and stupid things that we do or happen to us, but more that we need to be persistent. Good things will never happen to us if we decide to quit the race or bail out of the journey early.

You are going to have your good days and bad days, but without the bad days we wouldn’t really realize the good days or they wouldn’t feel that good to us. So on those days when you are feeling down and out, do the following:

-Get up
-Be persistent
-Don’t dwell on any ‘one thing’ for too long
-Learn from where you are at that moment, then forget about it.
-And lastly be Awesome! We all are…

Too many random thoughts for early in the morning. Haha. This is what happens to you in the morning when you hear Jay-Z on your I-Tunes library.

Posted in: , , , , , on Thursday, April 2, 2009 at at 9:52 AM 14 comments  

Confidence part #1

The most attractive trait on a male, picked by women: CONFIDENCE.


Confidence is something that needs to be developed and worked on to achieve, we just don't magically have it over night. It takes a driven personality to consistently push and persevere through all situations. A 'chin up' approach to life. There is a dash of bravery in there and experience only adds to the pie. You need a bit of all to make the recipe for confidence work for you.

You need to make a choice and follow through and succeed and win. You don't go looking to add confidence, instead you live your daily life and follow through and complete your goals and confidence will be a bi-product of your success. Yes I just said you are getting a 2 for 1 deal here.

Confidence is something that gets better with consistently finishing the race, but not ONLY finishing but doing well. I mean why not win the race and see how you feel afterwards. I bet you will feel like superman after he saves the world and gets the girl. (Yes there is always a girl.. haha) You need to prepare for the race though, you can't just show up and expect to do well, you need to practice and train, and be mentally prepared for the bumps along the way. And why do we put ourselves through these races anyways? Because most of us love the challenge and want to succeed, nothing is much sweeter than the taste of victory or feeling of accomplishment.

I mean what did you feel like after you graduated high school or college? Relief? Confident that you finished? Happiness? I mean whatever it is you felt it was certainly a good feeling and one that is addicting and one that you want to visit again soon. And the more you do it and the more you succeed, the more your confidence will soar... believe me... I know this first hand.

You can't let life happen, you have to go out and make it happen. You have to wake up in the morning and say, "today is great and I am glad to be alive"then walk to the bathroom and say, "I can't wait to do X, Y and Z..." and after that make yourself some awesome waffles to get you started on the right track. Be proactive and go out and 'get it'...

This new added confidence you have will only make you that much more awesome. You will be able to get that guy or girl (or at least talk to her finally) and you will be able to start a race without the worry of wondering if you will finish or not. Confidence is a great thing and I guarantee once you have it you will never lose it.

And Yep! That's where I'll stop today... , don't want to give too many of my awesome hints away.. *wink wink* Although it is Friday, which is normally an awesome day, so that's why I feel the need to share more.

Ciao-

Posted in: , , , , , , , on Friday, March 27, 2009 at at 2:54 PM 4 comments  

Compliments

Try this sometime.

I know that compliments are awesome and that they make someone feel better, but there is a bit of a catch to it, and that comes from how you administer one and when.

You need to say one at an unexpected time, because like an attack from an opposing army that is expecting it, it doesn't work so well if at all if it is premeditated. *cue rolling eyes from the recipient* You also need to to be honest about the comment and not over do it. People know when you are pushing it and aren't oblivious to overwhelming compliments. In fact they do the opposite and normally make the person mad. So instead of doing that, be honest like the person below...

(A couple shopping together, you can guess who is who, real story)
person 1: Do you think I should try this dress on?
person 2: Yeah it looks good on the rack...
person 1: (after changing and a bit unsure) What do you think?
person 2: Well it looked good on the rack..
person 1: (no response, just a stare. . .) okay, remind me to never go shopping with you again.

I know this wasn't the response that person 1 was looking for but it's a helluva a lot better then being a liar, plus you don't feel bad afterwards, because it was the truth. Person 1 will understand and thank you for not letting them purchase a green spotted dress with purple colors mixed in.

What I am getting at is simple though. Give compliments when they should be given. You need to recognize people if you're a manager and say "thanks", I mean it's not very hard and it means alot to your co-worker. You create a better work place and they feel appreciated, and you better believe they will remember. Give compliments that are meaningful and show you actually care, people remember these for years on end if they are given with true sincerity and mean alot when you give them to the people who are close to you.

I don't want to get all sappy and crap, because I am not good at it, but you get the point. And that's be awesome and make other people feel awesome with you. That way you can create an awesome clan and rule the world..! (falls off soapbox)

Da_mn I am starting to sound all 'self help-ish', hahaha.. I need to get back to my normal ways, talk to you later...

Posted in: , , , on Monday, March 16, 2009 at at 10:29 AM 0 comments  

Positive vs. Negative

I am going to steal an idea from my buddy over at Awesomeness Inc, while putting my own twist on it of course.. haha. *sticks tongue out*

I got a comment about a post I wrote yesterday and this person managed to pull out a negative point in a post that was strictly supposed to be happy and nothing else? So I started thinking about myself and was wondering, "am I really posting negative things and writing about mind numbing ideas that make people get down?"

I don't think so? I mean tell me if I am wrong, but my main goal is to write awesome things and to give you guys something to munch on for a mid-lunch snack while you are working at the office or babysitting some crazy monkeys? (don't know what it is that you do.. you see I'm guessing)

So it got me thinking further about negative vs. positive. I think you need to have a positive mindset to even see the positive parts in a piece of writing, and if you have negative thoughts already flowing in your head, you will only be able to pick out the negative parts. Sounds simple and logical right?

I mean I try to wake up like my buddy 'A.I.' and I try to say "today is going to be a great day!" everyday I wake up. I mean I think I probably smile in my sleep and that's the way I like it. I like that happiness is contagious and that I can spread it like a disease.. haaha (watch out) You better all catch it too. If one of you walks away with a smile after reading about something good or about a thought you got from here, then I am stoked. (tell me about it, I would love to hear)

But on the other side of it if you are one of those chronic negative people, and I know you all just thought of someone you know that is negative 90+ percent of the time you see them, then I don't have time for you. I can handle a little negativity here and some there, but if you are throwing it in my face every waking minute I see you then I don't have the time for you. I mean if I could help I would, but these people really don't want help, they just want to be miserable to let the whole world know it. (please do the rest of us happy normal people a favor and leave us alone)

Here, I have a 24/7 awesomeness proposal for you. Try it! I want you to try to be happy even when shitty things happen, look at the good side for once. Look at the fact that you should be happy that you even woke up this morning, because you know and I know not everyone woke up from last night. And think about positive thoughts for a day, and this starts from the moment you get up... look in the mirror while brushing your teeth and say "today is a good day" just do it, just try it..

.. be awesome!

Ciao!

Posted in: , , , on Friday, March 13, 2009 at at 9:07 AM 6 comments  

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