I realised I haven't updated this blog in a while, and it's because I had far too much to do. But today I decided to finally update :D
So Easter is approaching fast, and I've heard a lot of people complain about how pricey gifts are this year. Some complaining that 6 Euro is far too much for a "figolla" and some complaining that the Kinder Easter eggs never have cool enough toys inside and are therefore not worth it. This bothers me quite a lot. If something is bothering you this much, why put up with it?
If you think 6 Euro is too much for a "figolla", but the ingredients and make your own. You'll manage to make about 3 for the price of a store bought one. Not to mention that they're great fun to make and often taste better than the ready made ones. People also appreciate them more knowing you spend the time making something for them.
If you think the toys in eggs aren't good enough for kids, well, you're missing the whole point of the egg. The children won't care if the toy is lame if the chocolate is great. So instead on focusing on what toy there is inside, try focusing on what the chocolate will taste like. I remember getting a few eggs as a child where the toy was ok, but the chocolate was horrible. It defeated the point of the egg entirely. Besides there are a lot of great chocolate eggs out there that come with adorable toys and don't compromise the chocolate goodness.
I for one won't be bothering with many of these gifts. I prefer to think my gifts through. Although I do love buying Easter eggs for the people I care about, I'd much rather focus on getting them something they'll remember.
I don't want to spoil the surprise for those who might be getting something from me, so I'll tell you about it after Easter ;)
Those of you who need ideas and want to borrow mine, let me know. I'd be more than happy to help.
Showing posts with label tips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tips. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
The Bright Side of Being Sick
I seem to be a magnet for colds and stomach bugs.So much so, that I've spent at least 5 weeks of 2010 and 2 weeks of 2011 in bed. When this happens, I'm usually very down in the dumps and in so much pain that I wouldn't even be able to laugh. However there are some things to look forward to when you're sick.
Advantage number 1:
This one is only an advantage if you don't live alone. I'm going to assume you all have someone human to talk to in the house. These people tend to be kinder to you when you're sick. Maybe not kind enough to be your personal slaves until you recover, but at least nice enough to offer warm drinks and a pep talk once in a while.
Advantage number 2:
The warm drinks of course! Somehow when you have a sore throat, the regular drinks you usually take for granted taste three times better. Of course you have to be careful, cause some drinks make you feel worse. My favorite throat helper is a heaped tablespoon of honey, half a lemon's squeezed juice, and hot water, mixed together to help stop coughs and sooth sore throats.
Advantage number 3:
Spare time to catch up on work. Being sick might make you lose out on important lectures or work, but it does free up some time for you to finish your business at home. I can't even begin to tell you how many times being sick has saved me from giving in assignments late. Of course it also lets you catch up on some well needed rest (the lack of which probably being the reason you got sick to begin with).
Advantage number 4:
Get well soon gifts always cheer me up. Whether it's a piece of "recovery chocolate" or a hug or even a simple Facebook message telling you to get well soon, the result is always a smile. My favorite gift is when I get visits from concerned friends. Seeing them in person is a hundred times better then a Facebook message, don't you think? If you're not the one who's sick, think of those who might need the "get well soon" gift, I'm sure they'll appreciate it ;)
Advantage number 5:
This one isn't always available to the sick people, however when it is, it's awesome. Earlier I mentioned free time. Well most people catch up on work or sleep during this time. However, if you happen to get sick at just the right moment, you get to use that time to play games, read a book, update your blog or just watch tv. This is the best thing about getting sick in my opinion.
I'm so thankful I happened to get sick after all my assignment deadlines! Angry Birds, here I come!
Advantage number 1:
This one is only an advantage if you don't live alone. I'm going to assume you all have someone human to talk to in the house. These people tend to be kinder to you when you're sick. Maybe not kind enough to be your personal slaves until you recover, but at least nice enough to offer warm drinks and a pep talk once in a while.
Advantage number 2:
The warm drinks of course! Somehow when you have a sore throat, the regular drinks you usually take for granted taste three times better. Of course you have to be careful, cause some drinks make you feel worse. My favorite throat helper is a heaped tablespoon of honey, half a lemon's squeezed juice, and hot water, mixed together to help stop coughs and sooth sore throats.
Advantage number 3:
Spare time to catch up on work. Being sick might make you lose out on important lectures or work, but it does free up some time for you to finish your business at home. I can't even begin to tell you how many times being sick has saved me from giving in assignments late. Of course it also lets you catch up on some well needed rest (the lack of which probably being the reason you got sick to begin with).
Advantage number 4:
Get well soon gifts always cheer me up. Whether it's a piece of "recovery chocolate" or a hug or even a simple Facebook message telling you to get well soon, the result is always a smile. My favorite gift is when I get visits from concerned friends. Seeing them in person is a hundred times better then a Facebook message, don't you think? If you're not the one who's sick, think of those who might need the "get well soon" gift, I'm sure they'll appreciate it ;)
Advantage number 5:
This one isn't always available to the sick people, however when it is, it's awesome. Earlier I mentioned free time. Well most people catch up on work or sleep during this time. However, if you happen to get sick at just the right moment, you get to use that time to play games, read a book, update your blog or just watch tv. This is the best thing about getting sick in my opinion.
I'm so thankful I happened to get sick after all my assignment deadlines! Angry Birds, here I come!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Aftermath
So the Christmas season is officially over. Stores are turning back to what they once were before all the tinsel and glitter decorated all the shelves, street decorations and lights have been taken down, the mind numbing Christmas carols have stopped bombarding our streets, and our replaced gadgets are being thrown into some landfill.
Although the outside has stopped reminding us of the Christmas season, there are still a couple of things that never let us forget. For some it's the few extra kilos they put on during the holidays, and for others it's the wonderful gifts they received.
Not everyone experiences this time of year in a good way. While people might feel better that all the hassle is over, others might feel like the best part of the year is over and it's back to work. But whatever one might feel, there are things well all go through. Here's where I come in :P
I'm posting this to make you all aware of what you might need to do at this point in time.
Evaluate
Some like to send thank you cards to the people who sent them a Christmas gift. If you're one of these people, have you compiled a list of the gifts you've received? It's not nice the get a "Thanks for the Christmas gift" card in summer. Don't let it linger too long. Find the time, write the cards and send them out. If that's too much of a hassle, text, email or send an instant message to those who have access to these things and send card only to those who don't know how to communicate otherwise.
Restore
If you were one of the many people that decorated for the holidays but needed to go back to work immediately after, you might still have everything set up at home. Plan a day when you can pack everything up again. Don't procrastinate and reassure yourself that it's ok to leave everything up for now, because before you know it, you'll find yourself still staring at the decorations come February.
Remove
If you still have all the gift wrapping, extra packaging, manuals, boxes and cards and they're cluttering your room, well... I don't think I have to tell you what you need to do here. If it's made from plastic or paper, don't forget you can recycle it! You can also make some cool up-cycled stuff, specially using Christmas cards. I usually cut out the front of used cards and make them little tags to use with next year's gifts :)
Think
One last thing. This is the hard part. You need to think about all the presents you received. Did you love them so much that you use them all the time? Were they gifts you can't use and you had to leave them lying somewhere in the house? Did you hate them and didn't even bother to find them a place to lie? These things need to be taken into consideration.
If you kept the gifts, and it's important for the people around you to see you use them, then don't leave them somewhere and forget all about them.
If received a courtesy gift that you don't need or won't ever use, stick a post-it note with the name of whoever gave it to you on it and store it somewhere so that you can re-gift it. That note might save you from giving it to the same person you got it from should you decide to give it away in the future.
If you got a gift that replaced an old, broken or overused and useless item, there's no need to hang on to the replaced item. You don't need something that doesn't work. I have made this mistake many times. Camera broke? Well take all the parts that might actually come in handy (like the screws and maybe the LCD display or lens) and discard the rest. Mobile phone was replaced by something better? Sell your old one to someone who might need it. Don't be a pack-rat for the sake of needing something "just in case".
Although the outside has stopped reminding us of the Christmas season, there are still a couple of things that never let us forget. For some it's the few extra kilos they put on during the holidays, and for others it's the wonderful gifts they received.
Not everyone experiences this time of year in a good way. While people might feel better that all the hassle is over, others might feel like the best part of the year is over and it's back to work. But whatever one might feel, there are things well all go through. Here's where I come in :P
I'm posting this to make you all aware of what you might need to do at this point in time.
Evaluate
Some like to send thank you cards to the people who sent them a Christmas gift. If you're one of these people, have you compiled a list of the gifts you've received? It's not nice the get a "Thanks for the Christmas gift" card in summer. Don't let it linger too long. Find the time, write the cards and send them out. If that's too much of a hassle, text, email or send an instant message to those who have access to these things and send card only to those who don't know how to communicate otherwise.
Restore
If you were one of the many people that decorated for the holidays but needed to go back to work immediately after, you might still have everything set up at home. Plan a day when you can pack everything up again. Don't procrastinate and reassure yourself that it's ok to leave everything up for now, because before you know it, you'll find yourself still staring at the decorations come February.
Remove
If you still have all the gift wrapping, extra packaging, manuals, boxes and cards and they're cluttering your room, well... I don't think I have to tell you what you need to do here. If it's made from plastic or paper, don't forget you can recycle it! You can also make some cool up-cycled stuff, specially using Christmas cards. I usually cut out the front of used cards and make them little tags to use with next year's gifts :)
Think
One last thing. This is the hard part. You need to think about all the presents you received. Did you love them so much that you use them all the time? Were they gifts you can't use and you had to leave them lying somewhere in the house? Did you hate them and didn't even bother to find them a place to lie? These things need to be taken into consideration.
If you kept the gifts, and it's important for the people around you to see you use them, then don't leave them somewhere and forget all about them.
If received a courtesy gift that you don't need or won't ever use, stick a post-it note with the name of whoever gave it to you on it and store it somewhere so that you can re-gift it. That note might save you from giving it to the same person you got it from should you decide to give it away in the future.
If you got a gift that replaced an old, broken or overused and useless item, there's no need to hang on to the replaced item. You don't need something that doesn't work. I have made this mistake many times. Camera broke? Well take all the parts that might actually come in handy (like the screws and maybe the LCD display or lens) and discard the rest. Mobile phone was replaced by something better? Sell your old one to someone who might need it. Don't be a pack-rat for the sake of needing something "just in case".
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
How To Start Working Out
Hey everyone :) I've been thinking, and I've finally managed to compile a list of things one can do to help lose the extra kilos put on during the Christmas holidays. I've been trying to diet for quiet a while but nothing seemed to be working. I have to admit though, I have been a little piggy when it came to Christmas pudding and the wonderful cakes everyone was offering me. So I've decided to start working out again. Here is a list of things that I found effective in the past, in hopes that this will help anyone reading to lose the fat they might have gained. I don't guarantee that these exercises will work for everyone, and also, they're not meant to help you lose weight, but to lose fat (There's a difference :P ).
IMPORTANT: Always stretch before doing any exercises to prevent hurting yourself.
TIP 1:
I find that this exercise can help to both lose fat, and also gain some flexibility.
What to do:
Stand in front of a mirror (this will help you to do it right) and open your legs just enough to be in line with your shoulders. Make sure your toes face forward and make sure your spine is straight. Put your arms straight down and put your hands in a fist. Proceed to bend to one side, keeping your back straight at all times until your fist reaches the side of your knee. Slowly come back up and repeat on the other side. Do this around 20 times. Don't do more than that if it's your first time, because you'll regret it when you can't move a day later. You can gradually add the amount when you start doing these regularly. Doing 20 a day before sleep won't take up a lot of time, and these alone will help improve your upper body quite a bit. Don't expect too much by doing just these however. I explained this specific exercise because this is a good way to start working out everyday, even if it takes less than a minute. the practice will help you build stamina for when you're ready to take on more than one exercise.
TIP 2:
I don't only do the exercise explained in tip 1. I also try lunges, squats, 3 minute horse stance, leg lifts and a series of inner and outer thigh exercises. I do everything from the comfort of my own bedroom. Reason? I think a gym will take up more of your money and time, and is sometimes worse for people with a low self esteem. If you can afford the gym, I'm not going to stop you from going. Just know that once you stop regularly attending (and we all know that we have to stop at some point or other in our lives) you will get instantly fat cause of the lack of exercise. Doing exercises at home will help you stick to your regime cause it'll take up less time and money. Also, it is proven that you actually lose more weight at a simple children's playground rather than a gym, so you should take that into consideration :P
TIP 3:
Keep a log of when you started and write down your progress. This will help in the future when you're thinking of giving up. You'll see that your exercise wasn't futile. Having a diet buddy is helpful too, cause it helps you stay competitive and helps you to keep going no matter what. This is also part of the reason I'm blogging this. This way I have a virtual obligation to keep up the exercise and report my progress :)
TIP 4:
A healthy diet also works, but many people fail to stop eating the things they love in favour of healthier foods. I found the best diet is to eat whatever you like but never exceed the daily amount of calories you should intake. If you're overweight, this will make you lose weight. If you're already at the recommended weight, this will not effect you. I also suggest stocking up on fruit for whenever you're hungry for a little snack. Some suggest having one day where you can eat whatever you want so that you have something to look forward to in the week, but with this method you can eat whatever you want and still lose weight. I saw results of this after the first week and it only got better. You have to be very careful about the things you eat however, cause calories build up very easily.
SECRET TIPS:
1. Alternate exercises. I do sets of lunges, squats and a little arm exercises on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
I do the 3 minute horse stance, thigh exercises and the bends mentioned in tip 1 on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
On Sundays I do the leg lifts.
This helps keep things interesting and avoid repetition injury. I also walk as much as I can and avoid taking the bus if I need to go somewhere close.
2. Take something with you when you're out for exercise. Taking your camera, music, pet or even just someone to talk to will help you do the exercise without finding it tedious. My camera is my best friend on these types of occasions but I'd love the company of others too. It makes you feel less like you're the fatty who went out jogging ;)
I hope you find these tips helpful. I'm going to challenge myself to have a decent figure by the time summer rolls in. Is anyone else up for the challenge?
IMPORTANT: Always stretch before doing any exercises to prevent hurting yourself.
TIP 1:
I find that this exercise can help to both lose fat, and also gain some flexibility.
What to do:
Stand in front of a mirror (this will help you to do it right) and open your legs just enough to be in line with your shoulders. Make sure your toes face forward and make sure your spine is straight. Put your arms straight down and put your hands in a fist. Proceed to bend to one side, keeping your back straight at all times until your fist reaches the side of your knee. Slowly come back up and repeat on the other side. Do this around 20 times. Don't do more than that if it's your first time, because you'll regret it when you can't move a day later. You can gradually add the amount when you start doing these regularly. Doing 20 a day before sleep won't take up a lot of time, and these alone will help improve your upper body quite a bit. Don't expect too much by doing just these however. I explained this specific exercise because this is a good way to start working out everyday, even if it takes less than a minute. the practice will help you build stamina for when you're ready to take on more than one exercise.
TIP 2:
I don't only do the exercise explained in tip 1. I also try lunges, squats, 3 minute horse stance, leg lifts and a series of inner and outer thigh exercises. I do everything from the comfort of my own bedroom. Reason? I think a gym will take up more of your money and time, and is sometimes worse for people with a low self esteem. If you can afford the gym, I'm not going to stop you from going. Just know that once you stop regularly attending (and we all know that we have to stop at some point or other in our lives) you will get instantly fat cause of the lack of exercise. Doing exercises at home will help you stick to your regime cause it'll take up less time and money. Also, it is proven that you actually lose more weight at a simple children's playground rather than a gym, so you should take that into consideration :P
TIP 3:
Keep a log of when you started and write down your progress. This will help in the future when you're thinking of giving up. You'll see that your exercise wasn't futile. Having a diet buddy is helpful too, cause it helps you stay competitive and helps you to keep going no matter what. This is also part of the reason I'm blogging this. This way I have a virtual obligation to keep up the exercise and report my progress :)
TIP 4:
A healthy diet also works, but many people fail to stop eating the things they love in favour of healthier foods. I found the best diet is to eat whatever you like but never exceed the daily amount of calories you should intake. If you're overweight, this will make you lose weight. If you're already at the recommended weight, this will not effect you. I also suggest stocking up on fruit for whenever you're hungry for a little snack. Some suggest having one day where you can eat whatever you want so that you have something to look forward to in the week, but with this method you can eat whatever you want and still lose weight. I saw results of this after the first week and it only got better. You have to be very careful about the things you eat however, cause calories build up very easily.
SECRET TIPS:
1. Alternate exercises. I do sets of lunges, squats and a little arm exercises on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
I do the 3 minute horse stance, thigh exercises and the bends mentioned in tip 1 on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
On Sundays I do the leg lifts.
This helps keep things interesting and avoid repetition injury. I also walk as much as I can and avoid taking the bus if I need to go somewhere close.
2. Take something with you when you're out for exercise. Taking your camera, music, pet or even just someone to talk to will help you do the exercise without finding it tedious. My camera is my best friend on these types of occasions but I'd love the company of others too. It makes you feel less like you're the fatty who went out jogging ;)
I hope you find these tips helpful. I'm going to challenge myself to have a decent figure by the time summer rolls in. Is anyone else up for the challenge?
Friday, December 31, 2010
New Years Eve
It's that time of the year again. Raving parties, people covered in alcohol, people passing out in the middle of some random club...
You guess it... New year's eve.
My eve will be a quite one this year, but many of my friends are going to be out drinking.Now I'm not going to go on about how bad it is to drink and drive and all that, cause I'm pretty sure most of you are sick of hearing that (even though there's a vast majority of people who still choose to ignore it).
Instead I'll give you a few alternatives to avoid being in a situation where you think "Shit... I should have listened..."
Tip 1:
If you're the designated driver... you're probably going to regret drinking tonight. Think ahead. Wouldn't it be better to go there by bus and return by taxi? It'll save you the trouble of parking and you can drink without the worry of having to drive home. If you still choose to take your own car, at least have the sense to sleep in the car if you're badly intoxicated. If you need a failsafe, make some elaborate lock around your car's ignition so that you wouldn't be able to start the car if you're drunk. A friend of mine use to add beer can tops to his key-chain so that he would have to hunt for the real key, and if he was too drunk to find the key, he would just sleep in the car, and I think that's a pretty good failsafe.
Tip 2:
If you're going to drink for the sake of getting drunk, take the liberty of saving the phone number for a taxi service (if you add more than just one, it would be useful since taxis are usually booked on new year's eve) and save the number of someone who can bail you out of jail under "emergency contact". Your phone isn't going to complain for adding 2 more numbers. If you think it's too much trouble to look for the number, save it to speed dial (along with the ambulance number if need be).It's a very easy precaution that can help you if you get into shit.
Tip 3:
If you know you're going to need a taxi beforehand, call in advance and book one before they're all taken. They're not going to care if you tell them to come at 3am, it's money for them, but if you don't tell them beforehand, you can be left there for quite a while.
Tip 4:
If your intention is to have fun and not get drunk, that doesn't mean it's alcohol free night. Just try sticking to one type of alcohol, maximum two. Don't mix with different types or you'll end up shit drunk before you realise it. Take the liberty of deciding your favorite before you attend the party. It'll save you the awkward silence of trying to decide later.
Tip 4:
Have a lookout buddy. Pair up with someone who will look out for you if you do get drunk, and vice versa. If the both of you get uncontrollably drunk, this will be a problem, so try and pair up with someone who you can rely on. You don't have to stick together all night, but make sure that you at least have each other's phone number in case something goes wrong.
Tip 5:
Last but not least, make sure someone knows where you are. Whether it's a post-it note on the fridge, a Facebook status or simply telling someone where you're going. If something had to go wrong (and hopefully nothing will!) at least people know where you were supposed to be.
These are just a few tips to help us avoid the annual tragedies that always somehow link to being drunk. Stay safe people!
P.s I took this for granted when writing the tips, but if you're on medication, don't frikken drink AT ALL!
You guess it... New year's eve.
My eve will be a quite one this year, but many of my friends are going to be out drinking.Now I'm not going to go on about how bad it is to drink and drive and all that, cause I'm pretty sure most of you are sick of hearing that (even though there's a vast majority of people who still choose to ignore it).
Instead I'll give you a few alternatives to avoid being in a situation where you think "Shit... I should have listened..."
Tip 1:
If you're the designated driver... you're probably going to regret drinking tonight. Think ahead. Wouldn't it be better to go there by bus and return by taxi? It'll save you the trouble of parking and you can drink without the worry of having to drive home. If you still choose to take your own car, at least have the sense to sleep in the car if you're badly intoxicated. If you need a failsafe, make some elaborate lock around your car's ignition so that you wouldn't be able to start the car if you're drunk. A friend of mine use to add beer can tops to his key-chain so that he would have to hunt for the real key, and if he was too drunk to find the key, he would just sleep in the car, and I think that's a pretty good failsafe.
Tip 2:
If you're going to drink for the sake of getting drunk, take the liberty of saving the phone number for a taxi service (if you add more than just one, it would be useful since taxis are usually booked on new year's eve) and save the number of someone who can bail you out of jail under "emergency contact". Your phone isn't going to complain for adding 2 more numbers. If you think it's too much trouble to look for the number, save it to speed dial (along with the ambulance number if need be).It's a very easy precaution that can help you if you get into shit.
Tip 3:
If you know you're going to need a taxi beforehand, call in advance and book one before they're all taken. They're not going to care if you tell them to come at 3am, it's money for them, but if you don't tell them beforehand, you can be left there for quite a while.
Tip 4:
If your intention is to have fun and not get drunk, that doesn't mean it's alcohol free night. Just try sticking to one type of alcohol, maximum two. Don't mix with different types or you'll end up shit drunk before you realise it. Take the liberty of deciding your favorite before you attend the party. It'll save you the awkward silence of trying to decide later.
Tip 4:
Have a lookout buddy. Pair up with someone who will look out for you if you do get drunk, and vice versa. If the both of you get uncontrollably drunk, this will be a problem, so try and pair up with someone who you can rely on. You don't have to stick together all night, but make sure that you at least have each other's phone number in case something goes wrong.
Tip 5:
Last but not least, make sure someone knows where you are. Whether it's a post-it note on the fridge, a Facebook status or simply telling someone where you're going. If something had to go wrong (and hopefully nothing will!) at least people know where you were supposed to be.
These are just a few tips to help us avoid the annual tragedies that always somehow link to being drunk. Stay safe people!
P.s I took this for granted when writing the tips, but if you're on medication, don't frikken drink AT ALL!
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