tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89719164367418290832024-03-05T16:48:51.843-08:00The world according to CarlAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.comBlogger119125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-79224627423036884512015-12-31T00:06:00.002-08:002015-12-31T00:06:50.261-08:00Look to the future now . . . <div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
Although the final bars of Slade's Christmas tune are barely audible now as they now disappear into the distance, the message it sends is ringing loud and clear: 'Look to the future now, it's only just beguuuuuuuuuuuun'.</div>
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Yes, the Christmas sleigh bells are fading over the horizon, but the clanging chimes of the brand new year are getting ready to bong. But the real question is, are we?</div>
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It's the point in the year where we all make promises to ourselves and call them resolutions. But why do we do it? Are we so unhappy with ourselves that we are desperate to find a brand new us? Or rediscover a long-forgotten us? New Year resolutions has become more of a tradition than a true reflection of what we actually want. </div>
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The trouble is, most of us still don’t really know what we do want in life. I'm 42 years old and still not really sure I'm doing this whole life thing right. A lot of us go steaming into New Years and end up making resolutions about the 'wrong' things, the things that don't really change anything and so make us feel like our lives haven't gone anywhere in the course of another passing year.</div>
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There's nothing wrong in wanting to make positive changes of course, but rather than making them New Year resolutions, why not make them just stuff to try and achieve over the course of the year. Don't give yourself barriers to jump over, just so you can hate yourself if things don't work out.</div>
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My advice? Just try some of these, not as resolutions, but simply as 'reminders' of something to have a go at:</div>
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Do Something Unexpected<br />The catch here is to do something you are proud to tell your children about, (so you can stop that thought right away!). It might just be something as simple as trying that food with the names you can't pronounce. Or just trying to make amends with family or friends that you have had run-ins with. Let's not forget that one of the greatest pleasures in life is doing what people say you can't do!</div>
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Be Human Again<br />It is quite normal these days to spend more time with your gadgets than with people. There are side effects from this but there are also plenty of ways to regain control. This item has to do with reconnecting with your emotions, your humanity. You could even try a total tech de-tox for a week!</div>
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Show Gratitude<br />There is kindness in the world, and it can come from the strangest of places, even though we are told not to expect it. The important thing is that when you are in the presence of an act of kindness, participate, extend it or if you are on the receiving end, appreciate it.</div>
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Forgive<br />Life is too short to hold a grudge. Go into 2016 feeling positive about other people, as well as yourself.</div>
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Find A Reason To Be Happy<br />Because that’s all we ever want really, isn’t it? We want a reason to be happy, yet instead of aiming for that, we choose to ignore it, because our happiness isn't important. We strive to keep everyone else happy and put our needs to the bottom of the pile. Well don't! You deserve a big slice of happy too – We all do!</div>
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So, if you do make a resolution today, make it to avoid the word 'resolution' altogether. Instead, use the word 'reminder' for the coming new year. Don’t fall into that same trap again. Make the coming new year a different one, a happy one, and one you can look back on and smile.</div>
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So rip up that wish list, burn those same old resolutions, and just strive to be the best you, you can be. You might well find that you're a pretty good you just as you are.</div>
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Happy 2016 people, let's make this one count.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-34085075386775203382015-12-13T23:04:00.000-08:002015-12-13T23:04:15.867-08:00Working while it's Christmas Everywhere.<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
Phone still rings<br />Are you listening<br />On the line<br />Clients are grizzling<br />Not a snowflake in sight,<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br />It just don't feel right,<br />Working while it's Christmas everywhere.</span></div>
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Gone away, is our shirk mode,<br />Here to stay, a massive workload<br />So we'll sing this song,<br />As we carry on<br />Working while it's Christmas everywhere.</div>
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There's no time to go and build a snowman<br />And every face you meet just wears a frown<br />You'll ask for a bonus<br />They'll say 'No Man'<br />'Just go and do your job and knuckle down'.</div>
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Later on<br />We'll perspire<br />As we try to not be fired<br />There's things to be made<br />So we can get paid<br />For working while it's Christmas everywhere.</div>
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Phone still rings<br />Are you listening<br />On the line<br />More clients grizzling<br />Still no snowflake in sight,<br />So far Christmas is shite<br />Working while it's Christmas everywhere.</div>
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Gone away, is our shirk mode,<br />Here to stay, a massive workload<br />So we'll sing this song,<br />As we carry on </div>
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Working while it's Christmas everywhere.</div>
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Not long now before its time to go man<br />Just pretend its now so you don't drown<br />Then it's time for fun, maybe a Snowman?<br />When Christmas starts and work has to shut down</div>
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Not long now<br />ain't it thrilling<br />We'll be home, happy and chillin'<br />We'll frolic and play, then we'll all say<br />It's awesome that it's Christmas everywhere.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-43388093281302197172015-11-25T23:17:00.002-08:002015-11-25T23:17:27.567-08:00Idleness is a virtue<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
We're busy doing nothing,<br />Working the whole day through.<br />trying to find lots of things not to do,<br />We're busy going nowhere,<br />Isn't it just a crime?<br />We'd like to be unhappy,<br />But,<br />We never do have the time.</div>
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So the song says, and who are we to argue with those lyrics. Although as it turns out, it makes a very good point!</div>
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Do you ever feel like you're constantly chasing your tail, or that time is running away with you. Which would be lovely if it decided to run away to the Bahamas, but sadly we normally remain under our anticyclonic gloom filled skies. Wouldn't it be nice if we all had a little more time to do the things we want, or more importantly, to do nothing at all.</div>
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"There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want", is a quote is from Calvin and Hobbes creator Bill Watterson. Who was basically reminding us that sometimes it's best to do nothing at all. The trouble is we're all so busy, and when we're not busy, we're filling our time with other things to do that keep us busy. It's like we're addicted to tasks! Then if we don't do them, we end up feeling guilty about not being busy. </div>
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Well I'm here to tell you to stop feeling guilty about it. Enjoy those down times when you're scratching around for something to do. Make the most of any and all moments nothingness. Savour the slothfulness and languish in the languorousness. You deserve some down time – we all do! In fact we actually need it!</div>
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I'm not suggesting that we all just start slacking off and just stay in bed all day, but 'nothing time' is almost as important to your brain's health as sleeping is. Pondering and procrastinating, and embracing all your day dreams all help your brain to function. Scientists and people far brainier than me have proven that mentally switching off actually helps you understand decisions better. You learn things quicker. You even become more creative and our productivity gets better. It improves our heart rate and can actually improve our bodies function of fighting illness. As it turns out, neuroscientists are now saying that always busying ourselves with something actually diminishes the quality of our lives. </div>
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We can't all be inactive all the time sadly, but it certainly should be an item on our 'to-do' list that we seem to be losing touch with. You don’t have to become a monk or go on a retreat where you sit in isolation in a room and meditate for months in order to reap the benefits of doing nothing. You only need to silence your mind, and devote yourself to idleness, for just five to ten minutes a day. Preferably a few times throughout the day. </div>
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Like all things, it's about balance of course, but the next time you're sitting at the bus stop, maybe leave your phone in your pocket. Take a walk without plugging in headphones now and again. Or just lay back on the sofa and procrastinate away to your hearts content. A lot of things in life happen at warp speed these days and if you don't slow down once in a while and stop to look around, you just might miss something wonderful. </div>
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Do look after yourself, and each other.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-8834986883832389022015-11-18T23:01:00.005-08:002015-11-18T23:01:50.380-08:00Hello . . .<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
Not many people know that Adele's number one Hello, was originally inspired by a telephone conversation she had to her home town months before. So below is the original lyrics she penned to her hit before changing them to something more marketable.</div>
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[Good morning! Greggs, Tottenham High Street.<br />How can I help you?...]</div>
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Hello, it's me,<br />Tummys rumbling after all these years now I'd like some meat,<br />To go order, everything<br />They say this time I'm thinner cos I ain't done much eatin'</div>
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Hello, can you hear me?<br />I'm in California dreaming 'bout the pies I used to eat,<br />When I was younger and free<br />I'd forgotten how it felt before when I could see my feet.</div>
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There's such a distance between us<br />About a million miles.</div>
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Hello send another pie,<br />Sausage rolls or curry slice<br />I need food, I'm hungry, for everything that you've done<br />But when I call you never send me iced buns.</div>
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Hello send another pie<br />At least something that has been fried<br />I know you, will tell me, it's bad for my heart<br />But it don't matter, my BMI is way off the chart<br />Send me more.</div>
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Hello, how are you?<br />It's so typical of me to think about my food, I'm sorry<br />I hope you're stocked well<br />Still waiting for something from Tottenham town but nothing yet has happened.</div>
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It's no secret that the local bus<br />has an arse the size of mine</div>
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So hello send another pie<br />Your pasties and your bakes I'll buy<br />I need food I'm hungry for everything that you've done<br />But when I call, you never, send me current buns.</div>
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Hello send another pie<br />A Belgian bun and Christmas slice<br />I won't tell you, I'm sorry, for risking my heart<br />Send me a platter, but don't be downwind when I fart<br />I need more, ooooohh<br />I need more, ooooohh<br />I need more, ooooohh<br />I need more, I need more</div>
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Hello send another pie<br />A baguette filled with chicken thigh<br />I need food, I'm hungry, for everything that you've done<br />But when I call you never send me cream buns.</div>
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Hello send another pie<br />There must something I've not tried?<br />I need food, I'm sorry, do you have treacle tart?<br />Cos it don't matter, my diets gonna have to restart<br />I need more.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-51521695561102534892015-11-15T23:39:00.002-08:002015-11-15T23:39:45.741-08:00Father Ed<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
It's mid-morning on Monday, and a lone figure leans into the wind holding a small suitcase against his chest to protect him from the elements. Wearing a yellow storm proof coat and trousers with matching sowester hat, they try to not trip over stray sheep as they make their way towards the grey, rain-soaked, hurricane battered walls of Craggy Islands Presbytery.</div>
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Inside, Father Dougal McGuire is kneeling the wrong way on a moth-eaten arm chair with his hands resting on its back as he stares, with the kind of open mouthed excitement that is normally only associated with a highly strung labrador, out the grubby front room window.</div>
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“Oh my God, I can see him! He's coming!” Dougal squeaked with unbridled glee as he bounced on his knees on the badly sprung seat. </div>
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“Quick everyone, get ready, he's coming up the path!” He continued in a near squeal, as he leapt from the seat and repeatedly bounced on the spot.</div>
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Mrs Doyle rolled her eyes, tutted and shook her head as she shuffled out of the room and headed towards the kitchen. While on the other side of the small front room, Father Jack Hackett stopped snoring with an abrupt snort from his stained chair, opened one bloodshot, crazed eye and let out a guttural growl, before closing it again and continuing his loud sleep. </div>
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Dougal was still bouncing with his fists clenched and his eyes tightly closed as the doorbell rang and he shot off like an over-enthusiastic toddler towards the front door.</div>
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“Ah hello there Father,” The stranger loudly announced as the door swung inwards and the tempest outside continued to batter his drenched features, “you must be Father McGuire?”</div>
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Dougal said nothing, just continued to stare directly at the sodden Priest with the same open-mouthed glee that had been on his face since he'd awoken that morning in his Iron Man pyjamas.</div>
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“I'm Father Edward McGuinness,” The stranger continued, bellowing above the roar of the untamed wind, and holding out his hand to be shook, “I'm the new Priest in residence here, may I come in at all?”</div>
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Again, Dougal continued to say absolutely nothing for what seemed an ice-age as he studied every inch of Father Edward's face, before he looked down at Father Edwards hand and slapped it with his own.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“What you standing out there for Ted!?” Dougal suddenly blurted, with a look complete confusion, “You'll catch your death out there. Come on inside, and I'll go get the Ker-Plunk from my room.”</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
Father Edward looked concerned, but nevertheless, after removing his bright, rainproof attire and placing his suitcase in the hallway, he followed Dougal into the front room.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“No Father Dougal, I'm Father Edward, Father Edward McGuinness,” he tried to explain, “but you can call me 'Ed' if you like?”</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Where have you been Ted, you've been gone ages!” Dougal said shaking his head, “You had us all worried there for minute.”</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
“No Dougal, I'm Father Edward! Father Ted died some 17 years ago, don't you remember going to his funeral?”</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Oh yeah!” Dougal replied, with a knowing nod, “That was brilliant Ted! How did you manage to do all that?” He then leant in with a conspiratorial whisper and added, “You know I think Mrs Doyle actually believed it, she was crying and everything! But then she is very stupid, not like us ay Ted!”</div>
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Father Edward shook his head, wondering what he had to say, before Dougal piped up once more.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
“Have you died your hair there Ted? I think I preferred it grey meself.”</div>
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<br /></div>
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“No Dougal,” Father Edward said as he tried to slowly explain, “this is my hair. I have brown hair. Father Ted had grey hair, but Father Ted is dead Dougal.”</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Oh right you are then, Ted.” Dougal said tapping the side of his nose and theatrically winking. “I'll tell you one thing though Ted, I'm never playing hide and seek with you again. You just take it way too far!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
It was then Mrs Doyle came shaking through the doorway carrying a fine china, cup of tea on a silver tray. </div>
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“Ah, you must be Mrs Doyle!” Father Edward brightly said as he rushed towards her holding out his hand, “I'm Father Edward, but you can call me Ed if you like.”</div>
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<br /></div>
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Mrs Doyle stood motionless glaring at him, looking him up and down as she screwed up her face.</div>
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“No, I don't think so.” she finally said after shaking her head.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“I'm sorry?” Father Edward said feeling even more confused, then looking down at the tray Mrs Doyle was carrying, added, “Ah, is that cup of tea there for me Mrs Doyle?”</div>
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<br /></div>
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Mrs Doyle looked completely affronted, and turned the tray away from Father Edward.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
“No, it certainly is not!” She said before turning on the spot and shuffling back towards the hallway.</div>
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<br /></div>
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She muttered as she left the room, although her muttering was done at volume that everyone could hear.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
“Coming round here wearing his provocative cardigans, acting like some sex-crazed Casanova, with his 'oh you can call me Ed if you like'! Who does he think he is!? What's wrong with a nice long name like Ted – THE BASTARD!”</div>
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Father Edward stood confused in the front room, as he looked across at Dougal still full of wonder, and noticed Father Jack was stirring. Maybe he needed a rousing speech to get everyone on side. </div>
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“Well, everyone,” he said clapping his hands, “it's a Monday. It's the start of a new week. A new chapter in all of our lives. So let's make it a grand one ay. What do ya say?”</div>
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Father Jack snarled as he open both his eyes, and grabbed the armrests of his chair before bellowing,</div>
<div style="color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-top: 6px;">
“FECK OFF MONDAY.”</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-63308334105359893932015-10-29T00:21:00.006-07:002015-10-29T00:21:49.464-07:00How to happy.<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
Daft punk were staying up all night to get it. Pharrell was it! Bobby McFerrin told us not to worry and to just be it. And the, surprisingly still not late, great Ken Dodd told us, it was the greatest gift that we can possess. But just how easy is it to find our fair share of happiness?</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
It's such a simple little word, but it means SO much to the way we view our lives. We actually measure our well being by how much time we spend just being happy. And it<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">'s not always easy to achieve in the general humdrum of our daily grind. So what is the secret?</span></div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br /></span></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 6px;">
Well the truth is, there isn't one. There's no magic formula we can all do to find our happy because everyone's view of being happy is triggered by different things. To some it's just spending time with loved ones. To others it might mean getting the latest gadget or a must have pair of shoes. Or it might just mean getting the chance to do nothing at all.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
I recently watched 'Hector and his Search for Happiness', a Simon Pegg film based on a book by Francois Lelord. It's about a psychiatrist who goes in search for the meaning of happiness initially so he can help his patients find it it. During the course of the film he jots down little facts taken from the people he meets along his journey, about their views of happiness. Here's just a few of them, mixed in with a few of my own:</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
1. Making comparisons can spoil your happiness.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
2. Happiness often comes when least expected.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
3. Many people only seem to see happiness in their future.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
4. Many people think happiness comes from having more power or more money – they are generally not happy people.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
5. Sometimes happiness is not knowing the whole story.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
6. It’s a mistake to think that happiness is the goal.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
7. Happiness is being with the people you love; unhappiness is being separated from the people you love.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
8. Happiness is doing a job you love with people you love doing it with.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
9. Happiness is having a home and a garden to sit in.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
10. Happiness is feeling useful to others.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
11. Happiness is to be loved for exactly who you are.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
12. Happiness comes when you feel truly alive.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
13. Happiness is knowing how to celebrate properly.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
14. Happiness is caring about the happiness of those you love.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
15. Happiness is not attaching too much importance to what other people think of you.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
16. The sun and the sea make everybody happy.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
17. Women care more than men about making others happy.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
18. Happiness means making sure that those around you are happy.</div>
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19. Happiness is highly contagious.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
20. Happiness is spending more time with happy people.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Have an awesome day people – now go chase your happy!</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-82058373273116944232015-06-30T23:08:00.000-07:002015-06-30T23:09:12.238-07:00Found the Summer[To the tune of The Sound of Silence by Simon & Garfunkle]<br />
<br />
<div align="LEFT" style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Hello
sunshine, my old friend,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">I've
come to walk with you again,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">'Cause
the weather's gonna be baking,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">No
rest at night there's no sleeping,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">And
the umbrella that I keep beside my door</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Is
used no more</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Now
that we've found the Summer.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">On
sun drenched streets I've walked alone</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">I've
burnt my neck just strolling home,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">'Neath
the sunshine like a heated lamp,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Sweaty
bits that leave my clothes all damp</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Then
my eyes are blinded by the flash of the solar light</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">This
don't feel right</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">We've
actually having Summer.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Want
to run naked out the door,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Don't
care what people think no more.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">At
least I won't be over heating,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">The
sun can just go on beating,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Who
needs to book a flight and take to the air</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">The
sunshine's here</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">So
let's all bask in Summer.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Swimming
pools that are outdoors</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Is
not a pipe dream anymore.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Hear
the words that I am singing you.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Take
my hand that I might lead you.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Not
till Thursday will any raindrops fall</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">So
let's have a ball, it's Summer</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">There
are those that bow and pray</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">That
the sunshine's here to stay.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">But
we know our Summers are fleeting</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">There's
storm clouds we'll be greeting.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">And
the weathergirl said, that storms are on the cards,</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">What
a bunch of arse</span></span></div>
<br />
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #262626;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Oh
well, I guess that's Summer.</span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-70915418050925776962015-05-06T23:09:00.003-07:002015-05-06T23:09:48.892-07:00Peter Snow (to the tune of Let it Go)<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, 'lucida grande', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
Peter Snow should light up the telly tonight<br />But alas he's not to be seen<br />Jez Vine was his replacement,<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br />I wanna punch him in the spleen.</span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, 'lucida grande', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px;">
I'd whip him with dowelling, his stupid face so snide<br />Just can't abide him, heaven knows I tried.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
Don't let him in, don't let me see<br />Be the election night you always used to be<br />Conceal, Vine's spiel, don't let them show<br />Well, now you know!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
Peter Snow, Peter Snow<br />Can't hold it back anymore<br />Peter Snow, why'd you go<br />Turned away and slammed the door!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
I don't care<br />What Vine's got to say<br />Let my wrath rage on,<br />The polls never bothered me anyway.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
It's funny how his existence<br />Really seems to get my gall<br />But the fears of who controls us<br />Don't get to me at all!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
It's time to see who will win through<br />Or which two chumps will form a crew<br />Who's right, who's wrong, no clues for me – you see!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
Peter Snow, Peter Snow<br />You're the one we want not Vine<br />Peter Snow, Peter Snow<br />Your Swingometer was fine!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
That's my stand<br />And so I'll say<br />Let's get Snow back on.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
The power parties hold their breath in the countdown<br />Arsehole is spouting his election factuals all around<br />So one thought crystallizes like an icy blast<br />Are you ever coming back,<br />Or is the past just in the past!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
Peter Snow, Peter Snow<br />You were there at the break of dawn<br />Peter Snow, Peter Snow,<br />That perfect world has gone!</div>
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Here I stand,<br />On election day<br />But now Peter's gone,<br />The polls never bothered me anyway.</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-67379054224922610432015-04-29T23:18:00.004-07:002015-04-29T23:18:39.799-07:00Another year better<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, 'lucida grande', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
Well it looks like another B.E.A.Utiful start to another day out there; and what's more, it's Friday Eve already! I know I'm now another year older, (no wiser of course) and I realise time does appear to pass more quickly the older we get, but this week's been redonkulous. </div>
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Mind you, I also think time may seem to pass quicker, because of our attitude towards it. When we're young, we see our lives stretching out in front of us, and we think we have all <span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">the time in the world to experience what it may throw our way. Then as we get older, we become more and more aware of our own mortality, and just how precious life is. </span></div>
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Now that might sound all doom and gloomy, but it's really not! I think it actually means we appreciate our lives a little more, it means we become more aware of what's important. Which also means, we are less likely to accept any crap that life may try to hurl at us that it tries to get to stick. So if anything the older we get, the freer we feel. </div>
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So really the ageing process, is just the process of working out how to best spend our lives, recognising how important it is, and knowing what matters most.</div>
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Do look after yourselves, and each other.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-56924448567693583172015-04-02T03:22:00.003-07:002015-04-02T03:22:46.385-07:00#INCURRED CRIMES<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij14s0a_MeJ5-BBuJZLGcJ2QaUoRFFGNW90sFwidrw_SwQ80Zecftzz6F3Xhkr0uYMfX494dLf_TeGtny_I4IesYtgN34eYniXBUl4CmbQJcCuhIORxtN7jQ6uQpeURBWLZyT-PvfO7Is/s1600/IncurredCrimes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij14s0a_MeJ5-BBuJZLGcJ2QaUoRFFGNW90sFwidrw_SwQ80Zecftzz6F3Xhkr0uYMfX494dLf_TeGtny_I4IesYtgN34eYniXBUl4CmbQJcCuhIORxtN7jQ6uQpeURBWLZyT-PvfO7Is/s1600/IncurredCrimes.jpg" height="358" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Everybody listen up<br />
Everybody listen up<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
<br />
[Verse 1: Robin Thicke]<br />
If you recognise, what I'm trying to sing<br />
If you think you’ve heard, the very same thing<br />
Maybe you’re going deaf,<br />
Maybe you’re going blind,<br />
Maybe you’re out of your mind<br />
[Pharrell:] Everybody listen up<br />
<br />
[Pre-chorus: Robin Thicke]<br />
OK I know it’s close, I tried to duplicate ya<br />
But it’s subliminal, not meant to counterfeit ya<br />
Just let me imitate ya<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
I signed no legal papers<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
Marvin’s the rythm maker<br />
<br />
[Chorus: Robin Thicke]<br />
And that's why I'm gon' take a good tune<br />
You know you know it<br />
I knew you’d like it<br />
I knew you buy it<br />
Cos it’s a good tune<br />
Couldn’t let it get past me<br />
Court heard my lame plea<br />
Then paid the big fee<br />
Now I’ve incurred crimes<br />
I knew you’d want it<br />
I knew you’d like it<br />
I knew you’d buy it<br />
But it’s a good tune<br />
The song just grabbed me<br />
Now I’m Mister Nasty<br />
Go ahead, just sue me<br />
[Pharrell:] Everybody listen up<br />
<br />
[Verse 2: Robin Thicke]<br />
What did I make them schemes for?<br />
They ended in the courtroom<br />
What did I choose this theme for?<br />
Wanted to get rich so hide my face!<br />
Feel so unlucky<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
Want you to hug me<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
Not try to mug me?<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
<br />
[Pre-chorus: Robin Thicke]<br />
OK I know it’s close, I tried to duplicate ya<br />
But it’s subliminal, not meant to counterfeit ya<br />
Just let me imitate ya<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
I signed no legal papers<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
Marvin’s the rythm maker<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
<br />
[Chorus: Robin Thicke]<br />
And that's why I'm gon' take a good tune<br />
I knew you’d want it<br />
I knew you’d like it<br />
I knew you buy it<br />
Cos it’s a good tune<br />
Couldn’t let it get past me<br />
Court heard my lame plea<br />
Then paid the big fee<br />
[Pharrell:] Everybody listen up<br />
Now I’ve incurred crimes<br />
I knew you’d want it<br />
I knew you’d like it<br />
I knew you buy it<br />
But it’s a good tune<br />
The song just grabbed me<br />
Now I’m Mister Nasty<br />
Go ahead, just sue me<br />
<br />
[Verse 3: T.I.]<br />
One thing I shoulda asked of you<br />
You shoulda been the ones that I answered to<br />
Nona, and Marvin, and Frankie too<br />
Yeah, his name’s Thicke, but it’s his nature too<br />
So ya picked us up when ought to do<br />
hit me with something big enough to tear our cheque in two<br />
You won, and we tried to act casual<br />
but really it was almost unbearable<br />
Been dead for years not dare, would I<br />
Pull a fast one and let it pass us by<br />
Nothing like Give it Up, it’s too square for you<br />
We got rude and crass and used naked girls and that<br />
So you’d watch and wait for you to salute<br />
But we didn't trick<br />
Now ya’ll jeerin’ can’t refute this hearin'<br />
We’re all nice guys, but didn't get away with it.<br />
<br />
[Bridge: Robin Thicke]<br />
Checked the vibe,<br />
Went down,<br />
Fess up<br />
Did I wanna get hurt, like it hurt?<br />
But ya didn’t like my work?<br />
<br />
[Pre-chorus: Robin Thicke]<br />
Baby I can’t breathe, from this tune I made ya<br />
I thought it worked for me, now I’m here to tell ya, uh huh<br />
No more pretending<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
Court case you’re winning<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
There’s no more spinning<br />
<br />
[Chorus: Robin Thicke]<br />
I always wanted a good tune<br />
(Pharrell: Everybody listen up)<br />
I knew you’d want it<br />
I knew you’d like it<br />
I knew you buy it<br />
Cos it’s a good tune<br />
Couldn’t let it get past me<br />
Court heard my lame plea<br />
Then paid the big fee<br />
Now I’ve incurred crimes<br />
(Pharrell: Everybody listen up)<br />
I knew you’d want it<br />
I knew you’d like it<br />
I knew you buy it<br />
But it’s a good tune<br />
The song just grabbed me<br />
Now I’m Mister Nasty<br />
Go ahead, just sue me<br />
<br />
[Outro: Pharrell]<br />
Everybody paid up<br />
Everybody paid up<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
Hey, hey, hey<br />
Hey, hey, heyAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-6319461492628930252015-02-12T00:04:00.002-08:002015-02-12T00:04:10.955-08:00Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
As the 1965 hit by The Animals, once said "Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood". I'm sure we all have moments, or indeed massive periods of time when we feel like nobody really understands us, people just don't seem to get how we're feeling! The trouble is, even more of us don't realise how feeling like this can actually lead to a massive bouts of loneliness that doesn’t even go away when you're surrounded by others. Sadly this makes us more determined to hide away from people and creates more of a feeling of not belonging or being liked.</div>
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So why do we feel so misunderstood?</div>
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Maybe you find it hard to trust others, or worry that if you let someone close they will eventually hurt you? It could be you're afraid of intimacy in general. And yes, even if you are the friendly, outgoing, life and soul of the party this could still be a root issue. Many of us social butterflies are intimacy phobic. Never letting people too close to you, then expecting them to understand you doesn’t work. It’s like expecting someone to bake you a cake but not letting them anywhere near an oven. </div>
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Of course it could just be we're afraid of being judged. If you had a horrible teacher, or an overbearing parent when growing up, you might have been made to feel that you weren’t good enough no matter how hard you tried. This can all lead to you being an adult who hides certain things about yourself in order to not be judged. You might just be cherry picking what bits of you reveal to other people for fear of being judged, so you're not showing them a full picture they can understand.</div>
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It might just be that you just don't trust other people. This is a by-product of both a fear of intimacy and a fear of being judged. Although it can also come from a troubled childhood for many emotional reasons. The trouble is most people can see this in people. It's like you wearing a sign saying "I won't let you close, cos I don't trust you", but still we expect them to try.</div>
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Maybe you're hoping that if someone else totally understands you, you will then feel better about yourself? Do you sometimes find you change your personality when you'e around different people so you are more like them? We all do it to a certain extent, that's just human nature; but sometimes it can be really dramatic. Codependency is an addiction for approval and validation from others to the point you can lose sight of who you are. And if we don’t know who we are, it’s hard for anyone else to know and understand.</div>
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It could be that we're just bad at communicating in general. Perhaps you sometimes agree to things that actually you don’t really believe, out an urge to be polite and accepted (again, a codependent habit). This of course can result in people having the entirely wrong idea about who we really are. It's no wonder we feel misunderstood!</div>
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So what do we do about it?</div>
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Fear of intimacy and judgement, lack of trust, and codependency are things that we develop from our childhood. So they're obviously not something we can just snap our fingers and change overnight. Of course you could seek professional help, but you don’t have to totally know yourself before you begin to feel more connected to others.</div>
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Start examining the way that you talk to people. Do you speak really fast? Constantly throw questions at others so they barely have time to even ask you about yourself? Are you agreeing with things you don’t like, and giving the wrong impression? It can even help to record yourself having a conversation and listen to it later.</div>
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If you're starting your sentences with phrases like “I think/feel”, or “You did/said” and “You made me feel”. Using sentences that being with ‘I’ invites other people to communicate with us, but sentences that begin with ‘You’ tend to make the other person feel blamed and back off from connecting. And if you aren’t sure you're being understood – ask!</div>
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Start trying to understand yourself for a change; the more you understand yourself, the more clearly you can present yourself to others, the more they can understand you. Make lists of what you like and what you don’t like. Notice what things actually make you happy during a normal day versus what things you assume should make you happy. </div>
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Get rid of your "victim" mentality! There can be something very addictive about feeling misunderstood. It can become your identity, something that can make you feel special and give you the chance to feel sorry for yourself non stop. In other words, it gives you an excuse to always play the victim.</div>
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What would happen if you decided that actually you are responsible for your own life and could choose to find people who want to understand you? Wouldn’t it be worth trading in the benefits of victimhood (self-pity, others’ attention) for the benefits of being understood?</div>
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At the end of the day, if you aren’t offering others understanding, why would they then offer it to you? Take a good look at your listening skills. Are you taking in what others say without interrupting? Do you accept their opinions, or are you constantly offering them unwanted advice? Do you ask them thoughtful questions about what they said, or just jump in with a story all about you that relates to what they said?</div>
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The truth is that we all are unique, with our own way of seeing the world. It’s simply not possibly for someone to understand you entirely, or for you to understand someone else entirely. The only person who can understand you entirely is you.</div>
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If we want to be understood by others we need to believe that we deserve to be understood. And for that we need a sense of self-esteem. Make a commitment to notice and challenge the inner critic in your head. Start noticing the good things about yourself. And when someone offers you a compliment, don’t brush it off, accept it as fact. Not easy for some of us to do, but well worth a try.</div>
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Do look after yourself, and each other.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-312276319941281912015-01-19T23:44:00.002-08:002015-01-19T23:44:31.004-08:00Lowdown Funk<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
That's it<br />Might seem cold<br />Not being shy for<br />I'm right bold<br />This one's for ya good dude<br />From the hood dude<br />Straight up ya see<br />Lyin', while in<br />your company it's a pity<br />Guy chucks up when your around<br />Gotta run ya don't smell so pretty</div>
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<br /></div>
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Ya got rot (hot damn)<br />Like a stink bomb stuck to an old bin man<br />Ya got rot (hot damn)<br />Like fresh dog crap it's a sin, man<br />Ya got rot (hot damn)<br />You know ya name so make a plan<br />Ya got rot (hot damn)<br />It's bad 'ya smell so funny<br />Break it down</div>
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<br /></div>
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Breath hits ya halitosis (pooo)<br />Breath hits ya halitosis (pooo)<br />Breath hits ya halitosis (pooo)<br />Ya Lowdown Funk won't give it to ya,<br />'Cos Lowdown Funk won't give it to ya,<br />'Cos Lowdown Funk won't give it to ya,<br />Saturday night and we're in a spot<br />Don't come near me, just wash (Come on)</div>
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<br /></div>
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Don't come near me, just wash</div>
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<br /></div>
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Don't come near me, just wash<br />Don't come near me, just wash<br />Don't come near me, just wash<br />Don't come near me, just wash<br />Hey, hey, hey, oh!</div>
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<br /></div>
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Stop<br />Wait a minute<br />Ya stink things up melt a candle with it<br />Take a whiff, just to check<br />Julio! Get that stench!<br />Gotta warn 'em, really should, hey son it's a pity<br />If you show up, we gon' ship out<br />Quicker than the kangaroo Skippy</div>
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<br /></div>
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Ya got rot (hot damn)<br />Like a stink bomb stuck to an old bin man<br />Ya got rot (hot damn)<br />Like fresh dog crap it's a sin, man<br />Ya got rot (hot damn)<br />You know ya name so make a plan<br />Ya got rot (hot damn)<br />It's bad 'ya smell so funny<br />Break it down</div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<br /></div>
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Breath hits ya halitosis (pooo)<br />Breath hits ya halitosis (pooo)<br />Breath hits ya halitosis (pooo)<br />Ya Lowdown Funk won't give it to ya,<br />'Cos Lowdown Funk won't give it to ya,<br />'Cos Lowdown Funk won't give it to ya,<br />Saturday night and we're in a spot<br />Don't come near me, just wash (Come on)</div>
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<br /></div>
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Don't come near me, just wash</div>
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<br /></div>
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Don't come near me, just wash<br />Don't come near me, just wash<br />Don't come near me, just wash<br />Don't come near me, just wash<br />Hey, hey, hey, oh!</div>
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Before we leave<br />Let me tell y'all a lil' something<br />Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks,<br />Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks,<br />I said ya Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks,<br />Lowdown Funk just sucks, Lowdown Funk just sucks</div>
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Take a, chance<br />Get on it<br />If you smelly we'll taunt it<br />If you stinky then own it<br />Don't brag about it, disown me<br />Take a, chance<br />Get on it<br />If you smelly we'll taunt it<br />Well it's Saturday night and we're in a spot<br />Don't come near me, just wash (come on)</div>
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Don't come near me, just wash</div>
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Don't come near me, just wash<br />Don't come near me, just wash<br />Don't come near me, just wash<br />Don't come near me, just wash<br />Hey, hey, hey, oh!</div>
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Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, (say whaa?!)<br />Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks,<br />Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, (say whaa?!)<br />Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks,<br />Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, (say whaa?!)<br />Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks,<br />Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, Lowdown Funk jus' sucks, (say whaa?!)<br />Lowdown Funk jus' sucks<br />Aaaaaaow!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-89518142166022531332015-01-15T00:22:00.002-08:002015-01-15T00:22:18.034-08:00Surviving the Storms<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
I'm sure I'm not the only one who was awoken, and kept awake, last night by the terrible rampaging wind. Thankfully a can of air freshener was close at hand. Only joking of course, I was actually talking about the meteorological kind. All the wheelie bins in the street sounded like they were all making a bid for freedom, not to mention that fact that a few times the loft sounded like it was actually inflating and about to take off. It was certainly a wild and wooly one.</div>
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The thing is, storms do hit us occasionally, and not just literally. Quite often we also suffer from sudden storms of stress that seemingly come out of nowhere and hit us like a bomb. So what can we do to get through these stress storms when they strike?</div>
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First of all, we can start labelling our worrying thoughts as, “not useful”. Worrying never gets us anwhere. In my 41 years of intense worrying, not a single worry has ever improved my life and has often given birth to more worry, more anxiety, more paranoia, and kept me from the more helpful thoughts. </div>
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By labeling a thought “not useful” you put distance between you and the thought that has invaded your brain. The more you label, the greater the distance eventually becomes. Sadly we all know that won't stop us worrying altogether, but it does give us a bit of breathing space.</div>
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You could try thinking from under your left elbow. (Bare with me here!) I don’t know what you'd call this technique but it does help. Just concentrate on the area of skin under your left elbow (or any other innocuous part of your body). Initially your brain will freak out and start yelling “wait a second! Get back up here! I’m worrying about things up here!!”. But if you keep breathing and thinking right underneath your left elbow, it can actually reduce stress, all be it temporarily. Sometimes that is enough to get your brain in gear to be able to deal with whatever it is.</div>
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Another thing you could try is plain old fashioned surrender. Generally speaking life will never throw anything at us that we can’t handle. So just surrender to whatever it is, take a deep breath and crack on. Deep down we know we will be able to handle whatever it is, if we remain calm and don’t succumb to the worry. Life will usually help us out, even if it seems at the time that there’s no way out. Look for the lessons in what you are going through. Surrender to those lessons and to the fact that you will learn much more in this particular class before it’s over.</div>
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Physically you could try tensing up. Just tense every muscle in your body for five seconds. Then relax. You just put your body in fight or flight mode. Then relaxed it. You will feel less stress. Then move on to having a great big stretch. Just hold your hands above your head and stretch as high and wide as possible, even going on the balls of your feet. Then take a deep breath, hold it . . . and exhale. Then lean a bit to the left, lean a bit to the right, and finally lean forward, all the way down, bend your knees, shake your head, take another deep breath, and then slowly come back as you exhale. (Although if you do try this, you might want to be somewhere discreet, if you try it in the middle of the office you might get some funny looks).</div>
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Just breathing is always useful. Inhale for 20 seconds. Hold for 20 seconds. Exhale for 20 seconds. Hold for 20 seconds. Rest a bit. Then repeat. Do that four times. Your body goes into into survival mode when we do this and we can’t stress out when your oxygen is being messed up. It’s another temporary fix but it does work.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-42908585010488904102014-12-31T08:03:00.001-08:002014-12-31T08:03:08.226-08:00The Best Resolutions We Can Make<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
NEW YEAR Approaches, so does that mean you're out to find a brand new you? Or rediscover a long-forgotten you? Making New Year resolutions has become more of a tradition than a true reflection of what we want in life. </div>
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Most of us don’t know what we want in life. I mean I'm 41 and still not really sure I'm doing what I ought to be doing. Admittedly some of us end up making resolutions about the 'wrong' things, the things that don't really change anything and so make us feel like our lives haven't gone anywhere in the course of another passing year.</div>
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There's nothing wrong in wanting to make positive changes of course, but rather than making them New Year resolutions, why not make them just stuff to try and achieve over the course of the year. Don't give yourself barriers to jump over, just so you can resent yourself if things don't work out. Just give yourself the opportunity to to look at things a different way.</div>
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Reevaluate your career. </div>
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Are you really doing what you think you should be doing. Are you halfway up the career ladder and suddenly discovered that you're not sure you want to carry on climbing the ladder you're on?</div>
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Change Something About Your Life<br />Sounds like this is a broad one, right? I’m not referring to your hair, or your job, or your car, or learning to samba. (Although, why not if that floats your boat) I’m talking about stuff that leaves a mark on your life, something you can flaunt for all to see. Just strive to be a bigger better person, so that when you reach December 31st 2015 you can say, I did that, or I’ve been there or … I’ve changed.</div>
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Fight For Something<br />Step out of your comfort zone, and make a stand. It doesn’t have to be something that needs you to take to the streets bare-chested and wave a placard. (Although again, don't let me stop you, should you so wish) This is personal. This is an exercise to liberate yourself. Be brave.</div>
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Muster up the courage to ask for a something, whatever it is and whomever you're asking. Stand up to that person who clearly has a problem with anything that has your name on it. We all have our own battles to fight. Find yours and deal with it.</div>
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Do Something Unexpected<br />The catch here is to do something you are proud to tell your children about, (so you can stop that thought right away!). It might just be something as simple as trying that food with the names you can't pronounce. Or just trying to make amends with family or friends that you have had run-ins with.</div>
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Let's not forget that the greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you can't do!</div>
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Be Human Again<br />It is quite normal these days to spend more time with your gadgets than with people. There are side effects from this but there are also plenty of ways to regain control. This item has to do with reconnecting with your emotions, your humanity. You could try a total tech de-tox for a week!</div>
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Show Gratitude<br />There is kindness in the world, and it can come from the strangest of places, even though we are told not to expect them. The important thing is that when you are in the presence of an act of kindness, participate, extend it or if you are on the receiving end, appreciate it.</div>
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Forgive<br />Life is too short to hold a grudge. </div>
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Find A Reason To Be Happy<br />Because that’s all we ever want, isn’t it? We want a reason to be happy, yet instead of aiming for that, we choose to ignore it, because our happiness isn't important. We strive to keep everyone else happy and put our needs to the bottom of the pile. Well don't! You deserve a big slice of happy too – We all do!</div>
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Resolutions and lists can best serve us, as more of a reminder for the coming new year. As I said earlier, at their worst, they a just another reason to hate yourself at the end of the year. So don’t fall into that same trap again. Make the coming new year a different one, a happy one, and one you can look back on and smile.</div>
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So rip up that wish list, burn those same old resolutions, and just strive to be the best you, you can be. You might well find that you're a pretty good you just as you are.</div>
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Happy 2015 people, let's make this one count.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-57251731252167364362014-12-22T23:48:00.001-08:002014-12-22T23:48:03.289-08:00The Unforgettable Christmas<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
(2) Well here we are at Christmas Eve-Eve, and my last YULETIDY TUESDAY. So as a little gift to you, (No you can't take it back to the shop! RUDE!) I thought I'd give you a little Christmassy related excerpt from The Book. Enjoy!</div>
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Peter Prince had experienced many embarrassing and sometimes life threatening calamities throughout his life. There had been 'The Christmas Party of Shame in 2010', 'The Big Benidorm Blunder of 2006', 'The Millennium Bugger up of 2000' and 'The shopping trolley debacle, in '95. To name only a few. Although the one that really sticks out like a thorn in the brain happened during his last year of Infant School, when Peter had been chosen to play the part of a Christmas Tree. </div>
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It was the turn of Peter's class, 2B, to do the school Nativity. Every year each of the second year classes would take it in turns over a number of days, to perform their version of the Christmas Story. It was done like this so all the children had their turn at being on stage, which meant all the parents got a chance to come and see their child perform. </div>
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Naturally Peter had wanted to be Joseph, all the boys wanted to be Joseph, mostly because Emma Huntley was playing Mary and everyone fancied Emma Huntley. Failing that, the next key role to wish for was one of the three Kings, or even the Inn Keeper at a push. The rest of the boys in his class would then either be given the role of shepherds or the lowest rank of players, the generic stable animal. </div>
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Peter would have even loved to have been one of those given the opportunity, but instead his teacher, Mrs Barton had decided to make Peter play a tree! He was effectively being asked to play a piece of scenery, a role that could of easily been played by a large piece of painted cardboard. Although Mrs Barton, who always seemed to be slightly on edge and about to tip over it, had tried to convince him that the 'Christmas Tree' was a very important role indeed and that he would make a lovely tree.</div>
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Walking slowly home that afternoon, a dejected Peter had told his mum about his disappointing role in the school play. Although his mum, seemed to be of the same opinion about the whole 'tree' role as Mrs Barton. She'd said that she was sure that he would be a brilliant tree, and after all, what would Christmas be like if you didn't have a Christmas Tree!? There would be nothing to put the presents under, there would be nothing to decorate and put lights on, and where were you supposed to put the Christmas star if you had no tree to put it on. </div>
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When they arrived home and taken off their coats, she lent over and gave him a very tight hug and told him, that he would be the best Christmas Tree Acorns Infant School had ever seen. </div>
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A couple of weeks passed, and it was now the weekend before the big day and Peter was feeling a lot better about things. He was actually quite looking forward to his very important role as he sat and watched with interest as his mum lovingly put together his costume. Peter was officially helping her of course (which when you're six means watching your mum do it), before finally lending a hand gluing different coloured glitter to milk bottle tops, so they could be stuck onto it to resemble baubles. </div>
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The main body of the tree was made from two very large sheets of green card which had been bought from 'Doodle Snips' the art shop in town. They were then carefully taped and stapled together, before being folded round into a large cone. Then the top of the cone was scrupulously trimmed off to make a hat, which would later have a big silver-foil star inserted into it's top. </div>
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Two holes were then carefully cut out at the sides for Peter to pop his woolly green jumper clad arms through and the trunk of the tree was made using a single tube of corrugated cardboard, (so it resembled bark) which Peter could just slip over his legs. The final touch to the ensemble would be a string of red tinsel, draped and stapled around the costume. Peter had found the bright red tinsel at the bottom of the Christmas decorations box, which had been brought down from the loft earlier that weekend, so the decorations could finally go up after weeks of pestering. </div>
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Peter swelled with pride as he proudly modelled his nativity costume in front of his parents and the big lounge mirror. He and his mum and dad thought the finished result looked magnificent. “Blimey!” Peter's dad John had said, who was seeing the results for the first time having spent most of the day with a step ladder putting up decorations “You've done a great job there Pat!”</div>
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“I helped too!” protested Peter, who was feeling very pleased with himself “I made all the baubles and I stuck them on all by myself!”</div>
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“And a fine job you did as well lad.” his dad replied, before smiling at Patricia, who also seemed very pleased that all her hard work had been appreciated. The only tiny downside of the fabulous looking costume was that it was very tricky to walk in. Although Peter didn't think that was a big problem, because trees aren't known for walking about much anyway. Even so, he'd still practised for hours taking little shuffling steps round and round the lounge in his outfit, as his parents industriously put up the rest of the Christmas decorations, as they listened to songs from the Christmas LP they had bought from Woolies. Christmas songs which included Peter's favourite, 'Stop the Cavalry' by Jona Lewie, which he would normally march like a small soldier around the room to (although apparently shuffling in a tree costume seemed to work just as well).</div>
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A few days later, the afternoon of The Great Acorns Nativity had arrived and tiny child-sized chairs had been placed in the main hall for all the mums and dads to try and squeeze into. The stage was set, any pre-show nerves had been dealt with, and pretty soon all the unbecoming chairs were filled to overflowing (quite literally in most cases) with the bottoms of pride-ridden parents waiting for their little angels to take to the boards. Eventually the chatter in the hall subsided to an excited hush, the main lights were lowered, and a spotlight appeared centre stage to signify the start of the festive production. </div>
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It was about three quarters of the way through the play and so far everything had gone without a hitch. From behind the curtain at the side of the stage, even Mrs Barton had begun beaming with pride and clapping her hands quietly in front of her face, as one by one each of he children went on, played their parts, or sang their songs and shuffled back off stage again.</div>
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Then, as the Three Kings were finishing their song 'Following the Star', Peter, who had been patiently waiting in the wings in his home made Christmas Tree costume, nervously realised it was nearly time for him to make his entrance and went through what he was supposed to do. As Clare Thomas narrated the next part of the story all he had to do was shuffle across the stage and stand at the side of the Wendy House (that had been repainted and had straw stuck onto its roof to make it look like a stable). Then the three angels, played by Sally, Suzanne and Stephanie Jones or as they were otherwise known 'the triplets', all of whom had matching long blonde hair and pretty dimpled smiles, were to skip around Peter with their silver tinsel-wrapped coat hanger-halos and tin foil-covered cardboard wings, while the whole class joined in with the final rousing song 'Behold the King'. It couldn't be simpler.</div>
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Unfortunately, Peter had needed the loo ever since the triplets had told the nine shepherds about the baby Jesus being born in 'Befflem', back in Act 2. At first he had felt too nervous to go up to the then very stressed out Mrs Barton, who was running about with her arms flailing whilst trying to quietly bark orders to all 32 children at the same time, without reducing them to tears. Besides, at that point Peter was sure he could hold it until the curtain went down on his hopefully memorable performance. Of course little did he know then, just how memorable his particular performance was going to be that afternoon, all be it for all the wrong reasons.</div>
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Clare Thomas had seemed like the natural choice as narrator to Mrs Barton when she had been delegating roles, she was the class 'chatterbox' and was constantly being told to stop talking by Mrs Barton who was a great believer in playing to the children's strengths. However, what Mrs Barton hadn't banked on was the fact that during the performance Clare would want her time in the spotlight to last just that little bit longer, and so once her scripted part was nearly at an end she then began to add lib. </div>
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“And so the fwee kings, gave the baby Jesus his pwesents, gold, fwankincense and myrrh ...” Mrs Barton's smile of pride, froze and her eyes took on a look of mild panic, as Clare carefully closed the giant prop book she was reading from, turned to face the audience and continued. “... Errrm ... then the baby Jesus said, fank you vewy much and it was just what he'd always wanted! Then he told the fwee kings that his mum and dad could have his Fwankinstein and Myrrh, cos he didn't know what they was. But he kept the gold cos he thought it was pwetty and he loved it. And because he hadn't got any pwesents before and because it was Chwistmas, he thought he could use the gold to buy lots of Care Bears and a Cabbage Patch Kid.” </div>
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When the change in script happened, a confused Peter turned to look at Mrs Barton for guidance, unfortunately she was still frozen to the spot staring from the wings with a look ever increasing horror, so without looking down she just shoved Peter towards the stage, loudly whispering through gritted teeth “Go! Get out there Peter! Quick!” So, trying not to look at the audience he started shuffling towards the far side of the stage, nervously aware of the dark hall that was full of parents seated on their tiny chairs watching him. He risked a quick glance as he slowly made his way across the stage and spotted his mum Patrica sat in the front row next to his Auntie Mary (Mary wasn't really Peter's auntie, just his mum's life-long friend and mum of his best friend Matt). </div>
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That's when it happened. </div>
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Timothy Smith, who was one of those unfortunate children who constantly seemed to have a runny nose, and was currently dressed as his stable animal of choice, The Badger. He'd sat on the floor in front of the stable with his legs straight out in front of him, idly daydreaming and searching the contents of his sticky nose for another snack. Unfortunately, Peter was so busy looking out for the proud smiling face of his mum, he didn't notice Timothy's outstretched legs. </div>
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So, because Peter's legs were wrapped together by a corrugated card tree trunk, and because the laws of physics are what they are, Peter tripped headlong, hurtling forwards over the unseen limbs. He lurched forwards, instinctively grabbing the corner of the makeshift stable to keep himself upright, which promptly collapsed onto most of the class. Poor Peter then landed with a thump, flat on his face. With the shock of his fall, mixed with the loud screams of most of his class, who were trying to free themselves from underneath the unstable stable, Peter's full bladder emptied it's entire contents.</div>
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It was one of those instants where time felt as if it was running in slow motion and young Peter hoped that what he was experiencing was just going to turn out to be one of those nightmares that he would wake from at any moment still safely tucked up in bed.</div>
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It wasn't. </div>
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So instead he opted for just laying perfectly still on his front where he had fallen, hoping that nobody would notice his red face quietly sobbing on the dusty stage as he laid on the now warm and sodden cardboard. </div>
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They did. </div>
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It was one of triplets that noticed it first, “Ewwww! Mrs Barton! Peter Prince has wet himself!”</div>
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That initial cry, opened the floodgates (if you'll excuse the pun) to a multitude of “Ewwww”'s mixed with pointing and a cacophony of laughter erupting from his now mostly free classmates. They had all forgotten about finishing the play and where instead intent on making the most of this opportunity to poke fun at their hapless class mate. Only one voice, that of his best friend Matt, had shouted in his defence. “Shut up you lot!” followed by “Leave him alone!” </div>
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Mrs Barton, was now back in full frantic mode and after wrenching the scenery off the children had ran over to the now loudly sobbing Peter to ask if he was okay. “Yes Mrs Barton” sniffed Peter as he fought back another lump of tears caught in his throat. In truth of course, Peter was so far removed from being 'okay' he could almost see it from the other side (In fact, you could probably say he was utterly 'Yako'). </div>
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Still laying face down in his wet tree costume, Peter heard his mum's comforting voice whisper in his ear. “Don't worry sweetheart I'm here,” she said as she stroked his head “let's get you up off the floor shall we?”. She had dashed from her chair as soon as she'd seen him topple and clambered onto the stage as quickly as she could. She tore off the sodden cardboard from Peter's soaked legs and lifted him onto his feet and into her arms. “I know it doesn't seem like it at the moment sweetheart,” she said as she gently kissed Peter on the forehead and brushed his fringe away, “but things will be alright I promise.” She then clutched Peter tightly to her chest as he continued to sob.</div>
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“You alright Pete!?” It was Matt, he'd rushed over to the where Peter was, shoving children out the way as he barged through the crowd. Peter sniffed back his tears and quietly nodded. “Look, don't worry about it Pete, I pee my pants all the time!” Matt loudly boasted, “In fact I wet the bed last Saturday, didn't I mum!?” he continued while looking to his mum who was standing at the front of the stage lending her support.</div>
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“Yes Matthew, you did,” she flatly replied while trying to hide her face with her hand, “but I'm pretty sure not everybody in the world needed to know.” Matt looked around him and shrugged, then put his heavy arm around his friends shoulder.</div>
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Still wearing the top half of his tree costume, which had a large, dark, damp patch around the lower half, Peter was led by his mum, swollen eyed and red faced off the stage, through the double doors at the back of the hall and into the safety of the quiet corridor behind.</div>
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Children are cruel, and sadly have brilliant memories for something as mortifying as this was for Peter. Which meant, for the rest of that school year he was known by many of his so called classmates, as 'Peter Pee Pants'. This wasn't helped by the fact that there was another boy called Peter in his class, Peter Roberts, which meant that when their names were called during morning register, Mrs Barton would use their surname initial as well. So at the start of every day she would call out “Peter P!?”. At which point at least one of the kids would always follow it by loudly whispering “Pants!” much to the hilarity of the rest of the class and the continued embarrassment of poor Peter.</div>
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So what's the moral of this tale of woe you may well ask? Is it that kids can be nasty gits, even at Christmas Time? Or maybe don't drink an entire Snoopy flask of Blackcurrant before taking part in a Nativity? Both worth noting of course, but what it says to me is that no matter how old we are, and no matter what calamity befalls us, thankfully there will always be people around us that will stand up and shout our corner, or just pick us up, give us a hug, and tell us that things are going to be okay whether it's Christmas time or not. So whoever those people are in your life, make sure you tell them how much they mean to you this Christmas.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-55116977509588820422014-12-18T23:35:00.003-08:002014-12-18T23:35:59.123-08:00The Friday Before Christmas<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
Twas the Friday before Christmas, whilst at the work house,<br />All the creatures were busy, with a click of their mouse.<br />Then thoughts of all work were thrown in the air,<br />They were leaving for Christmas, so they didn’t care. </div>
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The children were xboxing whilst sat on their beds,<br />While Call of Duty and Halo was filling their heads,<br />The Mrs was home sorting that last minute thing,<br />While he drove his was home, and attempted to sing. </div>
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When out on the driveway there arose such a clatter,<br />Neighbours sprang from their sofas to see what's the matter.<br />Away to their windows they flew like a flash,<br />Hoping to see the cause of the crash. </div>
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Twas grey and rainy with no hint of snow,<br />The pavements were sparkling, the streetlights aglow,<br />When, what did their wondering eyes should appear,<br />A small Nissan Note, no longer in gear.<br />The massive driver was spread on the floor,<br />He’d tripped on the seatbelt whilst leaving the door, </div>
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Erupting in laughter the neighbours were heard,<br />Whilst he picked himself up and said a rude word.<br />“Now Christmas, The Bublé, Now Dance 93!?,<br />Oh this really is stupid” he said seeing scattered cds, </div>
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They’d all fallen out when he’d took his tumble,<br />So he gathered them up, with a mutter and grumble.<br />And then in a twinkling, he danced down the hall,<br />Prancing and singing “IT’S CHRISTMAS” he called. </div>
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The cats ran for cover with a leap and a bound,<br />As he skipped past the kitchen and into the lounge.<br />Still dressed in his coat and a fleece hat,<br />he strode into the lounge and on the sofa he sat, </div>
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A huge manic smile was spread on his face, </div>
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He looked like looney, a real special case. </div>
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His eyes how they twinkled, he was feeling so merry,<br />his cheeks were like roses and his nose like a cherry, </div>
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His insane looking smile was drawn up like a bow,<br />Then he exclaimied “Oh, I wish it would snow”<br />“I'm having a cider” he yelled and lept up,<br />then dashed to kitchen, to grab a glass for a sup. </div>
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He has a broad face and quite a big belly,<br />That shakes when he laughs, like a bowlful of jelly!<br />He’s chubby and plump, a right jolly old thing,<br />You’d smile if you see him, with the joy that he brings. </div>
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With a sip more of cider and a twist of his head,<br />back to the lounge, from the kitchen he fled.<br />With a sping in his step, his whole family he hugged,<br />Whist trying not to spill, the drink that he chugged. </div>
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He smiled ever so broadly then yelled with all might,<br />“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-87868152355752566222014-12-17T23:50:00.002-08:002014-12-17T23:50:19.059-08:00It can be Christmas Every Day!<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
Tis but one week to go folks! Surely we're all caught up in the whole Christmassy thing by now. It's the time of the year when we're all a little nicer to each other. We smile a little easier. We share a little more and we get a little more generous. For a few weeks in the year we all turn into the people we always hoped we would be.</div>
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It really is a tiny miracle in itself because this all happens just because it's Christmas. So don't waste this mira<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">cle – if you do you're going to regret it. If there's something on your mind, a spark of an idea you had about helping someone out or visiting that awkward relative, do it! If you've been thinking about doing something, but have put it off because it's not convenient or easy, make the effort and just do it! You have to do something! Now more than ever you have the chance to take a chance and get involved.</span></div>
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It doesn't have to be taking a blanket or a sandwich or a bowl of soup to those people that might not be as fortunate as you this time of year – but it could be if that's what's been on your mind. Whatever it is, it could just mean you just give a little of what is often seen as our most precious commodity – our time. It might well be something you wouldn't normally do, something surprising, but something that will put a smile into the heart of the person it's intended for.</div>
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And if you give a little, then this miracle can happen to you! It's not just the poor and hungry, everyone deserves a slice of this thing. And if you do it, and you get that buzz of warmth, you'll like it and you'll get hungry for it and you'll want it to happen again and again. You'll want it every day!</div>
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The song says 'I Wish it could be Christmas Every Day', but I don't think Roy Wood was talking about stuffing ourselves stupid, drinking ourselves under the table and emptying our bank accounts by buying meaningless gifts. I like to think he was talking about that spark of joy that we all get when we do something nice for someone else. </div>
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That Christmas feeling doesn't have to be something we plug ourselves into once a year, it CAN happen every day! You've just got to want that feeling and then go and do something about it.</div>
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Do look after yourselves, and each other.<br />Oh and a VERY merry Christmas to you!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-47865126478847723842014-12-15T23:37:00.003-08:002014-12-15T23:40:00.852-08:00Close Encounters of the Santa KindThe year is 1978, Every Which Way but Loose and Superman were on at the cinema, and it's Christmas Eve. Although this story may seem 'beyond belief', I assure you, it is in fact very true. It's proof (if any were needed) that Christmas magic isn't just for cheesy Christmas24 films but it happens everywhere in real life too (probably even where you live).<br /><br />Sam was just five years old at the time, his dad worked at the local hospital in the A&E department, and was sadly working the night shift that year. This meant he and his mum were alone for the first time in Sam's life on Christmas Eve. It was difficult not having his dad there as usually he'd been able to swap shifts or take time off so they could be together.<br /><br />Sam was asleep in his mum's room, having used the excuse that he was missing dad not being home. Five year-olds will use emotional blackmail as quick as you like if they think they can get away with it. Clearly Sam had. However, events were about to put all thought's of missing dad completely from his mind. Sam woke up with a start after hearing a loud bang. His mum was also sat bolt-upright in bed and looking at the ceiling. They had both heard a very loud something on the roof. Of course, being a young boy at that time, Sam naturally assumed it was Father Christmas and was about to let himself get very excited, but mum wasn't looking excited, in fact she was looking terrified and seemed convinced it may be something far more sinister. <br /><br />She told Sam to stay in bed as she got up and cautiously crept up to the window and peeped through the curtains. Sam was both excited and to be honest a little afraid, but only because his mum seemed so shaken by it. Although Sam thought it could easily be Father Christmas, he also knew that it may be a burglar. His mum stood at the window and just stared, not moving and not saying a word. Sam asked her what was out there, but she completely ignored him and just carried on starring out the window towards the roof. <br /><br />When she eventually came back to the bed she was shaking and had a mesmerized look on her face. Sam wasn't sure whether curiosity had just got the better of him or if he was just feeling brave and protective (he was after all the man of the house that night); either way he leapt out of bed and ran to the window. What Sam saw, all but it briefly, was indeed Father Christmas! There was no mistaking it, there he was in all his glory, there was his sleigh and all the reindeer. He only caught a glimpse, as almost as he got to the window they had flown off his roof and into the sky – it was just like you'd see on a Christmas card or a classic Santa film.<br /><br />Sam felt a wave of excitement wash over him and incredibly special to have witnessed something that most kids would long to see. His mum on the other hand thought she was losing the plot. She'd immediately phoned her mum and told her what they'd seen, but Nanny Doris tried to make light of it, and said she must have just had too much to drink that night. Although she couldn't help feeling a little concerned for her daughter, as Sam's mum sounded really quite shaken by the whole thing. In truth, even Nanny Doris was a little concerned for Sam's mum's sanity.<br /><br />Years passed and Sam and his mum never really talked again about that night or what either of them had seen. Sam was now in his first year of secondary school, (year 7 in new money) and his class were given the task of having to tell a Christmas story. So Sam told the one that I've just shared with you. His friends laughed at him and took the mickey of course, none of them believed his story. Things got even worse, when an upset Sam had shouted at his classmates and told them he was serious. They really didn't know what to think of Sam after that.<br /><br />However, when he was leaving the classroom that day, one child (who Sam didn't recognise) came up to him and said, “You know what, I thought that was a great Christmas story. They say if someone really believes they may, at one time in their life, experience what you did.” That child then patted Sam on the shoulder and left, Sam never saw him again. Who was he? I didn't remember ever seeing him in class, or even around the school before. <br /><br />As it fresh in his mind, when Sam got home that day, he had to ask his mum what it was that she had seen on that Christmas Eve. He wanted to check with her that he wasn't the fool that all his classmates seemed to think he was. As they had never talked about it, Sam didn't really know what she had seen that night. All he could remember was how quiet and shaken up she had been, and how mesmerized she had appeared. Sam wanted to know what she saw, to in fact see if I had imagined the whole thing, as so many kids do.<br /><br />His mum's usual smile, that she greeted him with when he got home from school, faded from her face. She told Sam that it had been a very difficult Christmas Eve that year because dad wasn't around, but at the same time, quite a miraculous one. <div>
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She looked down in embarrassment, then looked up at Sam and said, “Well, I hope you don't think I'm mad, at least no madder than you think I normally am, but I saw Father Christmas and his sleigh and reindeer on our roof and getting ready to taking off. Once you were asleep I even got dressed and got the ladder out the shed to have a look at the roof. The snow-covered roof had animal prints all over it and disturbed snow, where the sleigh had been sitting.” With tears in her eyes she smiled, and asked Sam what he had seen. He told her that he too saw the sleigh and reindeer as it took off into the sky. He had even heard the sleigh bells in the sky that night, and his mum admitted that she had as well. She and Sam shared a truly unforgettable and magical experience that night . . . and if you truly believe you just might too.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-82724365080312287892014-12-11T23:30:00.000-08:002014-12-11T23:30:13.756-08:00Put some Christmas love in your heart<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
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It's nearly Christmas time<br />We should be feelin' fine<br />Put a little love in your heart<br />You see it's nearly here<br />We should be full of cheer<br />So, put a little love in your heart</div>
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And the world will be a better place<br />And the world will be a better place<br />For you and me<br />You just wait and see</div>
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Think of your fellow man<br />Lend him a Christmas hand<br />Put a little love in your heart<br />If you want the world to know<br />We want the joy to flow<br />Put a little love in your heart</div>
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And the world (and the world) will be a better place<br />All the world (all the world) will be a better place<br />For you (for you)<br />And me (and me)<br />You just wait (just wait)<br />And see, wait and see</div>
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Take a good look around<br />Even if ya feeling down<br />And put a little love in your heart<br />So at this Chrimbletide<br />Let Kindness be your guide<br />And put a little love in your heart</div>
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And the world (and the world) will be a better place<br />And the world (and the world) will be a better place<br />For you (for you)<br />And me (and me)<br />You just wait (just wait)<br />And see</div>
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People, now put a little love in your heart<br />Each and every day<br />Put a little love in your heart<br />Could feel like Christmas Day<br />If ya put a little love in your heart<br />It's up to you<br />Put a little love in your heart<br />C'mon and<br />Put a little love in your heart<br />[FADES]<br />Put a little love in your heart</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-62978929811052969012014-12-11T00:10:00.000-08:002014-12-11T00:10:05.133-08:00Lost your Christmas Tingle?<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
PHILOSOPHICAL PHURSDAY: Are your internal fairy lights flickering? Are you finding it tricky tracking down your tinsel-tingle? Is your festiveness feeling a little flat? A lot of people struggle to find that spark of excitement that they see others ramming down their throats. (Sorry about that) But good golly miss Holly it's Christmas time! </div>
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Have you been left 'cold outside' by all the blatant commercialism, and yearn for a simpler time when the reason for the season felt a bit more special? Do you feel like you want to try and recapture some of that magic and wonder that the Christmas spirit brings? Well, fear not, all is not lost. </div>
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You've bought some pressies to why not jump in your car and go and deliver them a bit earlier when it's not so much of a rush to deliver your gifts. Forget all the hustling and bustling and stress of trying to find a parking space you had to get the best deals; exchanging gifts with friends and family is one of the best things to boost your Chrimbo button.</div>
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Close your eyes (after you read this obviously). Now, imagine your best Christmas ever. It might have been when Father Christmas got you that Scalextic or bike as a kid, or maybe that Christmas Eve night when you really thought you heard the bearded big man himself as you tried to sleep. Ask yourself a question why was that special, and what did it feel like?</div>
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If it was simply that sense of wonder and how it felt like everybody was "nicer" somehow. Remember and soak in the memories you had of total belief in magic and in a man who delivers presents everyone all over the world.</div>
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Keep a smile on your face, and walk with your head up. Greet everybody—young and old, even people you might instinctively dislike—with a hearty "Merry Christmas!" Sure, you may not believe it yourself at first, but give it some time and you'll soon receive enough smiles from complete strangers to make even the hardest of hearts melt just a little.</div>
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Plus of course, it doesn't matter if you have a house full of kids, or are on your own. Enjoy the trappings of the season in any way you can.</div>
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<br />So grab yourself your Christmas tree, turn on the Christmas music, and decorate the wotsit out of wherever you are. Once your home smells like Christmas, it's hard not to get a little excited.</div>
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"Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings!" Whether your tastes run towards the traditional Miracle on 34th Street, the classics like A Christmas Carol by Dickens (or a comedic take with Scrooged or ELF), stop-action animations like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer or Nightmare Before Christmas, Christmas telly is filled with nostalgia, humor, morality, and lots of simple fun. (Do try Chritmas24 TV channel)</div>
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Start a new tradition before the big day, so you get the chance to spend some time with friends and family that you don't get the chance to see as often as you would like. Make Christmas the excuse for a good get together and have yourself a belly full of laughs. </div>
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And most important of all: be yourself. No matter what your faith, belief, desires, traditions, or expectations are, Christmas is about celebrating love and kindness and friends and family. So make the days coming up to Christmas as full of as much joy as you can muster and you can't go far wrong. The fountain of Christmas spirit resides in all of us, and it's up to us to let it flow freely.</div>
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Look after yourself, and each other. Oh, and Merry Christmas!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-59992597865915629112014-12-08T23:38:00.003-08:002014-12-08T23:41:08.291-08:00YULETIDY TUESDAY No.2. THE CHRISTMAS COATJake was only 8 when it happened. So he'd raced to the top of his road to his nans house to get some answers. His big sister had just dropped a bombshell: "There is no Father Christmas!" she'd jeered, "Only babies believe in Father Christmas!"<br /><br />Jake's nan wasn't the gushy kind, she never had been, but after telling his mum where he was going, Jake ran straight to her house at the top of their road that day because he knew she would be straight with him. He knew nan always told the truth, and knew that the truth always went down a whole lot easier when swallowed with one of her famous mince pies.<br /><br />Thankfully she was home, and a fresh batch of mince pies had just come out the oven. Between tentative bites and blowing, he told her what his sister had just said.<br /><br />"No Father Christmas!" she snorted. "That's ridiculous! Don't believe a word of it. That silly rumor has been going around for years, and it makes me mad, plain mad. Now, go and put your coat back on, and let's go!"<br /><br />"Go? Where are we going nan?" Jake asked. He hadn't even finished his second mince pie!<br /><br />Where, turned out to be 'Davidsons' a local family run shop. Davidsons had been in the town for as long as anyone could remember and sold a little bit of just about everything you can think of. They walked through its doors, and Jake beamed at all the Christmas decorations that festooned the little shop and the big tree in the window that had a toy train running round it's base. Jake's nan then handed him £15. <br /><br />"Take this money," she said, "and go and buy something for someone who needs it. I'll wait for you in the car." Then she turned round and walked out of the shop.<br /><br />He was only eight years old, and always went shopping with his mum, but he'd never shopped for anything all by himself. Suddenly the shop felt very big and the shelves stacked with all kinds of tempting things almost seemed to loom over him. For a few moments Jake just stood there, confused, clutching the money, wondering what to buy, and who on earth to buy it for. He thought of everybody he knew: his family, his friends, his neighbors, his friends at school, even his teachers.<br /><br />He was just about thought out, when suddenly one thought struck him. Shane Decker. He was the kid at school with the bad breath, funny clothes and messy hair – 'The smelly kid', and he sat right behind Jake in Mrs. Pollock's class. Shane Decker never wore a coat, even when it was freezing. Jake knew that because Shane never went out for break during the winter. His mum always wrote him a note, telling the teacher that he had a cough; but all the kids knew that Shane Decker didn't have a cough, and he didn't have a coat.<br /><br />Jake looked at the money gripped in his hand with growing excitement. He would buy Shane Decker a coat. He settled on a red corduroy one with a furry lining and a hood. It looked really warm, and he knew it would be the coat that he would of chosen for himself. He didn't see a price tag, but £15 ought to buy anything surely! So Jake put the coat and the £15 on the counter and pushed them toward the lady behind it.<br /><br />Mrs Davidson looked at the coat, looked at the money, and then looked at Jake. "Is this a Christmas present for someone?" she asked kindly. <br /><br />"Yes," Jake shyly replied. "It's ... for Shane Decker. He's in my class, and he doesn't have a coat." <br /><br />Mrs Davison smiled at Jake and took the money and put it in the till. Jake didn't get any change, but she put the coat in a bag and wished him a Merry Christmas.<br /><br />That evening, Jake's nan helped him wrap the coat in Christmas paper with ribbons and bows, and beautiful glittery name tag. "Okay Jakey you've got to write 'To Shane, From Father Christmas' on it” His nan told him that Father Christmas always insisted on secrecy when it came to giving presents.<br /><br />As they drove over to Shane Decker's house, his nan explained to Jake that he was now and forever officially one of Father Christmas' helpers. She parked down the road from Shane's house, and she and Jake crept noiselessly and hid behind the bushes by his front path.<br /><br />Suddenly, Jake's nan gave him a nudge. "All right, Father Christmas," she whispered, "get going!"<br /><br />Jake took a deep breath, dashed for the front door, threw the present down on the step, pounded the doorbell twice and flew back to the safety of the bushes and his nan. Together they waited breathlessly in the darkness for the front door to open. Finally it did, and there stood Shane. He looked down, and was shocked to find the beautifully wrapped present sitting on his door step. He looked around, quickly picked up his present, took it inside and closed the door.<br /><br />Forty years haven't dimmed the thrill of those moments Jake spent shivering, beside my nan, in Shane Decker's bushes. That night, Jake realized that those awful rumours about Father Christmas were just what his nan had said they were: Ridiculous!<br /><br />Father Christmas is alive and well ... AND WE WERE ALL ON HIS TEAM!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-86874643246608571902014-12-03T23:56:00.001-08:002014-12-03T23:59:03.933-08:00It's a worry, isn't it!?It's no good trying to deny it, I inherited my mothers worry gene. I've always been more of a worrier than a warrior I'm afraid, from the time I was old enough to realise there where things to worry about, I have spent my time worrying about them. Although, thankfully for everybody else, I do cope with this in the very British way of just keeping all my worries to myself and just quietly wither away inside pretending that everything is marvellous.<br /><br />Worrying though, is just a natural part of the human condition. We all worry about people we care about, or our jobs, or anything that might spoil our lifestyle as we see it. Through the years it has played a vital role in our survival and it can actually help us cope with many day to day challenges. At the same time of course, if the worrying is too intense, too frequent, and too unrelenting, it can definitely cut down on our happiness and enjoyment of life in general.<br /><br />We all experience the worry goblin to some extent though. We all know that nagging feeling that something is wrong and the persistent anxiety that comes with it. But what precisely is worrying and why do we do it? Interestingly, the ancestor of the word 'worry' comes from the Old English word 'wyrgan', which means ‘to strangle.’ In the 16th century 'worry' began to be used to mean to assault verbally,’ and in the 17th century the word took on the meaning ‘to bother, distress, or persecute.’ It was a small step from this meaning to the modern definitions ‘to cause to feel anxious or distressed’ and ‘to feel troubled or uneasy.’”<br /><br /><div>
Worrying is obviously not pleasant, even it is actually an essential, normal, and instinctive emotion that has been hard-wired into humans to help us survive since we rose out of the primordial muck (Ooo I wonder what was in that muck, I hope nothing nibbles my toe. Ahh I think I just ate some!). Generally speaking we worry about things because we see them as a threat to our normal existence and worrying about it causes us to focus on it and protect ourselves from that particular threat.<br /><br />Let’s face it, real and present dangers to our health, well being, and livelihoods do exist and you want to be aware of them and take the necessary steps to protect yourself from them. You want to take reasonable precautions against illness, injury, and accident. So clearly, some form of worrying is good for us. Unfortunately, worrying can all too easily morph from that healthy, practical form of concern and vigilance to a preoccupation with stuff that isn't. <br /><br />These are the worries that can cause you to obsess about so many things that are very unlikely to ever happen, that they interfere with your worrying about the stuff that might. It's these worries that can, return to the original Old English meaning of worry, metaphorically they strangle you. So, basically what I'm saying is, worrying has been making us feel miserable since we began walking upright, even if it has also ensured our survival.<br /><br />Unhealthy worrying (when it goes beyond concern to protect yourself and makes you miserable) is all about negative, obsessive thinking, doubt, physical anxiety, and fear. This type of worry is actually a symptom of other problems and so becomes a problem in itself. It usually comes from the emotional baggage we pick up and hold onto as a child and a deep, often unconscious belief that you won’t be able to protect yourself, stuff like:<br /><br />Insecurity: (“I live in a scary world.”)<br />Perfectionism: (“If I make mistakes, I am a failure.”)<br />Need for control: (“If I lose control, I bad stuff will happen.”)<br />Social comparison (“People don't like me and think I'm an idiot.”)<br />Pessimism (“Bad things are just bound to happen to me.”)<br />Low tolerance for stress (“How can I protect myself if I’m this stressed out!?”)<br /><br />Of course all of this baggage isn’t black-and-white, it's not like you either have them or you don’t; rather, we all carry some of it around with us to different degrees. The question is though, is whether our worrying is healthy or not. The way to tell which worrying you have is to ask yourself the following questions:<br /><br />Do you worry about things that are not immediate threats?<br />Do you spend more time anxious than relaxed?<br />Are you usually unhappy or happy?<br />Do you have difficulty enjoying yourself because you worry so much?<br />Are you unwilling to take reasonable risks?<br />Do your worries interfere with your normal life?<br /><br />If you answered ‘no’ to the above questions, then you’re likely to be a healthy worrier, so keep doing what you’re doing because you know what the real threats are. However, if you responded ‘yes’ to the questions, then you are probably an unhealthy worrier and you’ll want to take some steps to relieve yourself of that unnecessary burden. Sadly, there is no wonder pill that will magically relieve you of your worrying but there are some things you can do to reduce the problem. <br /><br />The best place to start is to address the cause of your worry. If you can figure out what precisely you are worrying about, then you’re in a position to find a solution to it. In the short term, you can also increase your awareness of what the most common sources of worry are for you (e.g. work, family, relationships, or money). If you understand your worries, they can become . . . well, less worrisome. You can actually start looking for way to help ease your worries. <br /><br />Another thing that can cause the volume of your worrying to go up several notches is to worry about worrying. It's true, this is a real thing! You can actually make yourself even more miserable by thinking that you are the only one in the world who worries about the things you worry about. So if you can accept that worrying is just a normal part of life and everyone does it, maybe we can keep the volume of our worrying to a more manageable level.<br /><br />Sometimes of course there is no immediate solution to the worrying and you just can’t get your worrying out of your mind. In this case, the best strategy is to distract yourself the best you can from whatever the worry might be. Whether that is reading a book, watching a movie, or hanging out with friends, if you’re focused on other activities, you’re bound to worry less. Basically if you can do things that oppose the worrying, namely, anything that makes you feel positive, happy, excited, or relaxed, you will counter the negativity and anxiety that accompanies the worrying.<br /><br />A wise man once said “There are only two things in life which we worry about. Things that we can do something about, and things that we can't. And there's no point in worrying about the things we can do something about, because we can do something about them. And there's no point in worrying about the things that we can't, because we can't. (Okay, it wasn't a wise man, it was me. But still). <br /><br />In the long term, you could explore the causes of your deeper worrying. If you can directly “unpack” your baggage you can free yourself from the heart of your worries. Admittedly, this process can be difficult and very time consuming, but the rewards are powerful and will last a lifetime.<br /><br />Or, you could of course just take the sage-like advice of the singer Bobby McFerrin: “Don’t worry. Be happy.”</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-26784274835547240062014-12-02T00:10:00.001-08:002014-12-02T00:10:03.827-08:00Santa's 'The Tuesday'<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
Santa was cross, he'd had a bad day.<br />The elves were on strike for more overtime pay.<br />They'd all been on strike since the end of October,<br />and all turned to drink, not one of them sober.</div>
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And Donner and Dancer and Cupid and Blitzen<br />had gone off in a 'hoof' since early last Whitsun'.<br />His lights wouldn't flash and his bells wouldn't ring,<br />his Jing wouldn't Jang and his Jang wouldn't Jing.</div>
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After asking Mrs. Claus for the weather forecast,<br />he hoped Christmas present would become Christmas past.<br />Global warming had meant there'd be no snow this year,<br />so she'd said with a sigh, "There'll just be 'rain dear!"</div>
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On top of it all, he'd got the presents to sort<br />and political correctness had made the task fraught.<br />No dolls for the girls or guns for the boys,<br />nothing that bangs or pollutes with it's noise.</div>
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No harm to their teeth from a sweet or a lolly.<br />Nothing sexist or racist, like a Barbie or Golly!<br />No books on religion or to do with the body,<br />no 'Famous Five' and nothing on 'Noddy'!</div>
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No caffeine filled drinks to cause tension and stress.<br />No glue and no paint, because of the mess.<br />No jigsaws with pieces that some kid could choke on<br />and nothing too fragile that would only get 'broke-on'.</div>
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No feathers or fur and nothing of leather.<br />Nothing too simple and nothing too clever.<br />Nothing too violent and nothing too scary.<br />Nothing Royalist or 'Gay', not a Queen nor a 'Fairy'!</div>
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Nothing with e-numbers or colourings that might,<br />bring them out in a rash or be hyperactive all night.<br />No balls and no bats which could injure or bruise,<br />and nothing with bits they were certain to lose.</div>
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No marbles or beads that a small child could fit,<br />up its nose, in its ears or unmentionable bits.<br />And trees must be from a sustainable source,<br />and the lights must be energy saving, of course!</div>
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And gone were the days when all they would wish,<br />was an apple, an orange, or a rod made to fish.<br />These days an Xbox, an iPad, or a giant TV,<br />was all that they asked for when they sat on your knee.</div>
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And he was tired and fed up of appearing so jolly,<br />and he knew what he'd like them to do with their holly!<br />He was sick of clambering about on all those roofs,<br />now he wasn't so nimble as he was in his 'yoof'.</div>
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He hated those people who said, "No pets at all,<br />a puppy's for life not for Christmas", they call.<br />Well it's OK for them with their fine protestations,<br />but what can I do with five thousand Dalmations?!!</div>
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Though, in spite of it all, by the end of the night,<br />he'd still manage to give every child something right.<br />Then he could sit by the fire with a big jug of beer,<br />and wish you all, "Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!"</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-45587743932864999842014-11-27T00:33:00.000-08:002014-11-27T00:33:09.037-08:00Slow down and switch off<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
I must apologise for being a little late with my morning musings this morning, time I'm afraid has rather run away with me. Which would be lovely if it had decided to run away somewhere sunny and warm, sadly I remain under the anticyclonic gloom of Burgess Hill. If only we all had a little more time time to do the things we want.</div>
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"There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want." </div>
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That quote is from Calvin and Hobbes creator Bill Watterson who <span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">was basically reminding us that sometimes it's best to do nothing at all. The trouble is we're all busy, and when we're not busy, we're filling our time with other things to do that keep us busy. It's like we're busy addicts, or end up feeling guilty when we find ourselves not being busy. </span></div>
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Well I'm here to tell you to stop feeling guilty about it. Enjoy those down times when you're scratching around for something to do. Make the most of any moments nothingness. Savour the slothfulness and languish in the languorousness. You deserve some down time – we all do!</div>
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I'm not suggesting that we all just start slacking off, but it's 'nothing time' is almost as important to your brain's health as sleeping is. Pondering and procrastinating, and embracing the day dreams all help your brain to function. Scientists and people far brainier than me have proven that mentally switching off actually helps you understand decisions better. You learn things quicker. You even become more creative and our productivity gets better. </div>
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We can't all be inactive all the time sadly, but it's certainly an item on our 'to-do' list that we're losing touch with. Like all things, it's about balance of course, but the next time you're sitting at the bus stop, maybe leave your phone in your pocket. Take a walk without plugging in your headphones now and again. Or just lay back on the sofa and procrastinate away to your hearts content. A lot of things in life happen at warp speed and if you don't slow down once in a while and look around, you just might miss something wonderful. </div>
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Do look after yourself, and each other.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09103670547796925177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8971916436741829083.post-24255924470822588082014-11-20T00:15:00.003-08:002014-11-20T00:15:52.995-08:00Life is hard<div style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
Everybody wants to be a bit Pharrell Williams. We all want some happy in lives. We all want that perfect little life. We want that fantastic job that we always enjoy. We want to be with Mrs. Right or Mr Perfect. If we have kids we want them to be the sort of kids that other people praise because they are such good role models. We want to have the kind of friends that stick by us come rain or shine. We want to be able to have all the material things life has to offer and just have all our problems disappear.</div>
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Everybody wishes for there ideal life. Of course one persons view of a good life may be completely different for somebody else. For one person a good life may just mean having three meals a day and a roof over their head. For another it may be living in a huge mansion and having a few million in the bank. Whatever you definition of it, there is one thing that you probably have in common with everyone else. You want that 'good life' to be stress free. You want a life where you don't have to work too hard to achieve it. </div>
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Unfortunately of course, that's what's probably stopping you from having that great life. The thought of all that hard work, all that strife and planning, overcoming hurdles and having to fight for things is enough to make a lot of people give up before they even start. It can seem like too much for some, and for quite a few it just doesn’t seem to be worth it. It’s like being completely drained of energy before being asked to run a marathon. The fear of just getting to the starting line tires you out so much mentally you just decide not to go for it at all. It’s just too hard!</div>
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But guess what – life IS hard, and there's nothing we can do about it.</div>
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Of course, once we know that life is hard and actually accept it – then life starts to get a little easier. It's impossible to get anything in life without some degree of effort. (Unless you win the Lottery of course, and we all know the odds of that one)</div>
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Life is hard – people aren't always going to be nice or react the way you want them to. Your job will have challenges that you didn't foresee and clients may not be the easiest people to understand. Your kids won’t always be the ideal you want them to be. Your home may not be the ideal place you have in your mind. Your better other won't always be as perfect as you hope they are, and indeed you may not the perfect specimen that you once thought you were either.</div>
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I'm not saying we don’t deserve a break or not justified in hoping that we deserve more than what we've got from life and the world to this point. I mean we've all worked very hard and done all that we could in our lives to try and make them a bit better. But things don’t alway work out as well as we plan or hope. Things are just a bit more rubbish than we hoped they would be.</div>
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That’s quite normal I'm afraid, it's one of the things that being human is all about. To coin a business speak saying, it's all about managing our expectations upstream. Life is hard, so we might as well accept it.</div>
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Once you do, you WILL feel better about your circumstances. You won’t think of your situation as anything but what is normal for all of us. Then it just become a part of life. You will no longer beat yourself up about how bad things are or how you are not doing so well in one area or another. You will realise that you are only a mere mortal like the rest of us! Guess what – you make mistakes just like everybody else. We're not perfect, just like everyone else.</div>
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Accepting that life is hard though doesn't mean that you have to accept every circumstance and just go with the flow though. You see, there is another side to this coin. Yes, one side of the coin is inscribed with “life is hard”, but if you turn that coin over you will find in very small writing it says:<br />“You can make it better”</div>
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Accepting that life is hard comes with accepting that you have the responsibility to make it better. You see, the only person you have any control over in your life is you. You cannot change other people. But no matter what situation is or how bad it may be, you do have a choice. No matter what you think you can or cannot do, you still a choice.</div>
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Now it may not alway be an easy choice, by any means. It may push you way out of your comfort zone. It may even mean that your life may get even harder than it already is for a while. But it is still a choice.</div>
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A lot of times you will actually find that the choices are not as hard as you thought they were. You may just have shut off your mind from seeing those choices and possibilities because you thought you had no choice. Once we become open to the idea that we are responsible for our lives and that we do have choices, we start find that we are no longer stuck just because life is hard.</div>
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Do look after yourselves and each other.</div>
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