How does one go choosing friends?

Over the course of time and after much thought, I have realized that I did not really choose wisely most of my friends and that's why I lost many of them long time ago. If I could bring back the hands of time I would be more picky and maybe choose a friend who shares the similar interests as I have, who is honest to goodness no matter how much truth hurts, and who will be there no matter what for me.

I say the best way to get a friend is just simply to be a friend to others. A lot of people feel the need to be accepted and that is just natural. I don't discriminate when it comes to friendship and always marvel at how easy it is to make friends with both genders, man or woman and in both offline and online mode. I really like meeting new people and like to make friends wherever I go. I just like to treat others in the way that I like to be treated. Sometimes it is hard to make friends if you don't know where to look. But if one is patient enough, you realize that after a while there are those that come to you even when you are not actively looking to make new friendship. I suppose there are two types of friends when one thinks about it. I consider the fact that some people will come to you and befriend you or you just need to put yourself out there for people to see and make yourself available. Good friends are sometimes hard to find but when you find a special person then the friendship could last a life time. There is an unconditional type of feeling when you find the right person to share your time with.

One must realize that people at times come into other peoples life unannounced and leave in the same manner. Between these two points, some peoples relationship click and they become friend and have a blast of a time. Out of these friends, there are a few gems of relationships which like I said above do last whole life time. It is extremely hard to find friends as it is and truly good ones next to impossible. One should hang on to the ones which we have and yet remember to give each friendship the elbow room to grow and flourish. A friendship is like a tree. Water it and add proper nourishment and it will give you life long protection. For a friendship to last, compatibility plays a big role in friendship also.

How do you handle certain situations?

Life is full of trial and turbulance. It is never easy for anyone and every one of us has gone through many crises through out our life. Whether we suceed or fail in a certain situation depends on our perspective and our mental make up. Sometimes we end up succeeding in overcoming our problems and at other times we end up admitting defeat, throw our hands up in the air and saying I give up. It might be because each one of us have been ingrained with a certain types of attitude and mind set when it comes to dealing with certain types of situations. Some tend to give up the moment they see an unmanageable problem looming ahead while others dig in and find an appropriate solution.

I really do believe that almost every person who actually gave up trying to solve difficult situations in life always ended up in failure in life. A person is truly a winner if he or she never gives up in life and chases down each dream he has cherished in order to make it come true one day. Or else he will always have at the back of his mind the thoughts that would not allow him to be at peace with himself and he would be regretting his decision of refusing to get back up, stand tall and face every certain challenge ahead of him in a bold and assertive manner!! People who have the never say die attitude and are able to maintain this attitude in their life usually end up doing better in life than others.


Give it a little thought and tell me: Do you agree that falling down is not defeat and that the person who refuses to get back up and try again, is the one who has actually lost the battle? Have you ever tried doing something in life that you actually ended in giving up and not trying again to change what is not possible? Or have you slogged it out until you got yourself out of the mess?

Michael Jackson - The great entertainer

I won't speak ill of this man even though he was a bit strange odd ball one. He did very strange things in the last 15 to 20 years which kept me wondering "Why?” I must admit a bit hesitantly that I did grow up listening to his music and at one time I liked some of his songs before I moved on from this particular music genre to my current fav one which is now metal. Hopefully, my metal friends won't notice this post and start ribbing me about my choices of music in the past. I guess this is my so called skeleton in the closet. lol. What's yours?

Seriously, looking back he did manage to influence the music industry alot and changed the music industry's perspective of the world. When he started out he was very talented and seemed really dedicated to his field but it seems like he got side tracked at some point in time. One thing which I do remember was that the Thriller was the biggest selling album at that time and was the high point of his musical career and the Black or White album was also worth listening to.

Due to the later actions done by him, I kind of lost the respect I held for him and started wondering what would make a man do these things. Even though he was one of the great entertainers of this era, I think there was too much time and space which was devoted in the media to his death. I sometimes wonder if other big entertainer will be given the same treatment as this one when they finally pass into the other side. He had always been in the limelight for one reason or other ranging from cosmetic ones to the baby dangling from the hotel room railing and the media went crazy when they found out.

On an ending note, I hope wherever he is at this time he is content, happy and his mind has been put to ease from his troubled past. He did manage to entertain us and gave us something worthwhile to listen to on radio or watch on television when we turned these things on. Hopefully people remember that he has family members which are getting over this loss and hopefully people will remember this and respect their privacy when they need it the most.

Reading is my favourite pastime

What I really love doing on my spare time is reading. I like reading just about anything that catches my fancy at the moment. Currently I am hooked on books written by Stephen King. He is an exceptionally good writer, since he has an ability to bring words alive. You tend to get submerged in the story and it seems like you are actually part of the story itself. Once I start reading, it becomes simply difficult to put the books down. Some of the novels which I still like till this day are: Skeleton Crew, Different Seasons, Pet Cemetery, Salem’s Lot, Everything’s Eventual. The Dark Tower series are simply riveting. He has managed to keep the story thread line intact and alive thru so many volumes. It’s simply incredible. Just recently I picked up a novel by him called “Duma Key”. This novel is simply riveting. It’s a must read novel. He started thinking in this direction after his 1999 roadside accident that permanently altered his way of thinking about life. The most disturbing source of fear in his books comes from the gradual fading of health and sanity.
Even after all these years, he can still have the ability to scare the wits out of you. If you haven’t read it yet, I won’t reveal the story line to you. If you have then you’ll probably agree with me.

A few of life’s unsolved mysteries

A few thoughts have been floating around my head for some time. These thoughts really didn't take concrete shape until just recently. It seems like there is an unnatural trend among our society to become stick like skinny in order to become fashionable. It's like I can count your bones buddy. No offense meant but these days skinny people really irritate me! Especially when they say surprising things like...'You know sometimes I forget to eat!' .....Now I've forgotten my address, my mother's maiden name and my keys, but I have never forgotten to eat. You have to be a special kind of stupid to forget to eat!

It looks like every time I step on the scale, the numbers on the machine seem to get larger and larger. It's like hey...I was just 130lbs just a few days ago. It must be because the older you get, the tougher it is to lose weight because by then, your body and your fat are start to become really good friends. Lol. The other point which I just cannot figure out is how a 2-pound box of chocolates can make a person gain 5 lbs.
The other unsolved mystery which I have encountered is: missing clothes. I never really paid much attention to this before, but recently while organizing the drawers I noticed that many of the socks and other items seemed to be missing. When I usually go to the store, I end up buying at least a pair of socks and other basic items and then during the remaining part of the year I am left wondering where did all the socks go or where the other items which I just bought is. For me it extends to clothes also I have no clue where things end up half the time and I am left scratching my head. I really think that the washing machine is eating clothes, socks and underwear... Because no matter how much hunting I do I just can't find everything. I was starting to think that the washing machine monster gets them or is it that in time they turn into wire clothes hangers? The reason I said this was that I noticed that when I go to the cloths locker there is always more wire hangers than the previous visit. These hangers are multiplying like rabbits even though I don’t go to the dry cleaners at all.
So after much searching, I finally gave up, threw my hands up in the air and said “I give up. I can't find them”. Finally, I ask the other family members if they had seen such and such. I am told by one of them to look out our bedroom window. I was really left wondering what they meant. So I went and took a look and there is everything I could not find! Some time back I did laundry and put everything outside on the line to dry instead of using the dryer as it consumes too much electricity and ruins the clothes faster. I hardly ever use the line outside and had forgotten all about it! LOL so if you are missing some clothes take a look out your window. You never know what you'll find. I think the missing clothes mystery is an age old question. I think ever since the washing machines were invented, the people have wondered where their socks and other items have disappeared off to. I have never come across anyone who can answer this question to my complete satisfaction. It truly is a mystery and a funny one at that. People lose so many clothes on a regular basis and it’s really must be aggravating at times. At one time, I was the king of loosing clothes. I don’t know where they’re going is what I usually end up saying. Besides the skinny people, I guess these missing socks are also on the life’s greatest mysteries list I guess. Lol. So, what about you all? What are some of life’s greatest mysteries for you besides "How to set up and use the new version of your favorite site with ease".

Burn that flab away

It seems like I had gained quiet a few unwanted pounds during the course of time. this not only has made me look ungainly but it does not feel good huffing and puffing up and down the stairs when I am forced to use it.

It seems like the weather is turning warmer and warmer with each passing day and with each passing day I thoughts keep turning towards looking good once more again. So, I decided to visit one of the gyms which has opened up in my locality. What also pushed me into this health fitness mode was that quiet a few actors were showing off their six and eight packs and their well toned bodies.

It seems like gyms are opening in every nook and corner of our city. But choosing the right workout place is getting to be a bit of a hassle. So, I went gym hunting and narrowed down my list to just a few. These few from which I will make my final choice from seemed more or less complete than the regular run of the mill variety.

Before I went on my gym hunt, I had a talk with a fitness trainer to inquire about what things I should look for in a proper gym. He told me that one of the main things I should look for is that the fitness center should be divided into different sections. Each section works on a different section and is pretty much unique from the other. The sections which should be present in a complete gym are: Strength section, Cardio, Free weights and Spinning section.

The strength section should have a combo machine which helps to exercise legs, shoulder and chest areas. I wanted proper toned biceps, triceps and give my hamstrings a proper strength workouts. So, a Percher Curl, Prone Leg Curl and Seated Dip are a must for me.

In the Cardio section, I went looking for a treadmill along with the bike combo which I was told is a must. One must devote sometime in this section to burn up those calories and get the heart pumping.

The Free weights section consists of dumbbells, barbells. The Spinning section must have the Swiss Balls. This final part is where the abs comes in where one has to exercise on the Swiss balls, do crunches, leg raises, skipping and stretching.

The final two things which were on my mind as I was finalizing my choice were the price factor and whether they had an in house trainer. The right pricing of the gym package is an important consideration when choosing the gym as well having a trainer helping us out in choosing the right exercises and guiding us novices through the exercises.

I was told that there is no fixed time limit as to when a person will achieve their desired perfect abs, but a consistent and hard work will help you to achieve it within 18 to 24 months. Going to the gym and working out on a regular basis might actually help me to achieve my goal. Plus, there will be many other people like me who are just starting out in the exercise regime and I will not feel like an odd man out.

Conceal those imperfections

Have you ever had one of those days when you look in the mirror and you realize that you look so bad that you are hesitant to face the outside world? The truth is that no one looks their best at every moment in their life. Due to this fact sometimes we lose our self confidence in ourselves and our self esteem gets lowered to such extent that we are simply scared to step outside our homes. These imperfections can be due to a variety of factors like accidents or blemishes since birth, acne, scars, moles, redness, rough spots, and many other sorts of blemishes.

In order to hide these imperfections, one can consider using mens cosmetics item called The Men Pen cosmetic concealer stick. This is a product was developed 4 years ago for men to hide blemishes. It is essentially mens makeup. There are 17 different shades and it is made to help guys improve their confidence and to look better. It especially comes in handy during specific times like prom, meetings, clubbing, social gatherings, etc. Can you risk a big event by going there with a really big zit on your face? It comes in 17 different shades so I am sure you can find the right shade for yourself. This stick has helped thousands of men in over 30 countries enhance their image and improve their self-esteem.

If you are having a bad day and are not looking good or maybe you have some imperfection which you would like to hide then consider using The Men Pen. It is an amazing cosmetic concealer stick which can help you to reclaim that lost self confidence or low esteem. After reading all this, you must be thinking that these items are for women only. Why should men use it? If the male actors, models and businessmen can use in their everyday life then why can’t you? One must remember that everyone is entitled to good looks as it enhances your overall outlook in life.

What do you wear for work?

Since I work from home most of the time, I have the freedom to decide what to wear. What I wear really depends on what is available in my closet when I open it in the morning. When I have to go to the branch office for a meeting, then I wear something proper for it. I don't really have a uniform when I am working out from my home office, so for these kinds of days I just put on any kind of t-shirt, jeans, sweat pants and sneakers or even slippers.

At the corporate office there is a dress code and everyone is required to wear formal attire like dress shirts and pants or skirts. Sometimes I also wear a jacket if it’s cold when running off to the office for some meeting. We can wear all sorts of presentable shoes to match with our outfit, except slippers of course. During our hot, sweaty summer months, it becomes extremely unbearable to work in the formal suit and pants outfit unless the person is constantly sitting inside an air conditioned office. I truly HATE having to dress in formal clothes during this time when I am venturing out on office duties since I feel stiflingly hot and uncomfortable, so I choose the casual mode whenever possible.

When working from home or just bumming around the house, casual clothes are the best option to choose. These clothes are the most comfortable and one does not need to worry about color matching the clothe items. No more trying to hunt down the missing tie, socks nor trying to iron that stubborn wrinkle out of the dress shirt. Not every one has the option to work from home which offers greater flexibility in the dress code than regular office duties. So, what kind of clothes do you normally wear during the day? Do you get to choose your daily wear clothing or do you have to follow a dress code?

How much do you believe in being politically correct?

Back in the good old days when I was growing up, people were more or less free to speak their minds and hardly anyone was offended. With the passage of time, peoples attitude have changed drastically and something called political correctness has gained control of our lives.

These days it's like a minefield to be honest since some people can be so sensitive and I really hate all this politically correctness which is in vogue these days. At the end of the day, if you are not a sexist, prejudiced or racist, in any way then I just do not see why you should not be allowed to say what you want. While I was living in USA, I did experience a few racist remarks towards me and I didn’t get offended by it at that time because it was plain to see that the man who was spewing this garbage was a victim of the illegal Mexican infiltration which really did take away a lot of jobs in his area.

Usually I don’t get all worked up and offended by certain jokes since these are really just jokes and don’t mean any real harm at times. If certain people go out of their way to be malicious about somebody, then that is really unfair and the people at whom these jibes are aimed at are justified in getting offended. But if you are just joking with people about certain things or want to get something off your chest then I just simply do not see why you should not be allowed to do it.

If you to ask me for my honest and unbiased opinion on this subject, I would probably say that all this political correctness has gone simply too far. I am all for proper rules/ regulation and I am 100% against all types of bullying and discrimination but I can't help thinking that it has swung the wrong way and if you happen to say something which might offend anyone, you end up being heavily punished or even worst still sued for a slip of the tongue or just for speaking your mind. If someone is such a little coward and has their feelings hurt over a harmless comment then they should grow a backbone and learn not to be so easily offended.

In the end of the day, one comes to realize that these days the situation is really fluid. When you can freely speak your mind and when you have to hold your tongue really depends on the situation which you are confronted with. If I am amongst friends or people with whom I am comfortable with, I would speak out freely about whatever is on my mind knowing that we all think more or less on the same lines. If there are strangers or people whom I do not know well enough, I refrain from making any comments which might be taken the wrong way. I have learned the hard way that sometimes it is better to err on the safe side.

How old is your oldest friendship?

Time is a strange creature indeed. It flows by and we never realize how much time has flown by till many years have passed away. The mirrors confront us with images of own self but now with a few extra wrinkles and many new strands of grey hair. With the passage of time, many changes happen in the person life.

Many things in my own life have changed. I made many friends and travelled afar and back again. Through this journey in life I guess the only thing that has remained constant for me is the friendship of a few friends for almost 25 years. I have known a few friends from way back from my high school days. Some of the others I picked up along the way. Most of my friendship started due to some common interest and some were strong enough to weather the test of time. We stuck together because we never intruded into each others lives I guess and each one of us gave the other enough freedom and independence to grow within the friendship. It was a good time way back then I guess. We had tons of fun and didn’t have too many responsibilities as compared to now. Time flew by and we all went our ways. Yet, when we finally reconnected after many decades it seemed like hardly any time had passed by.

It feels really great to have a long-lasting friendship like that this which has gone through a few tough times and know that we still keep in regular contact like we did when we first met each other. We had our arguments and bad times and we have always managed to pull through. I guess that's a true friendship. Even though we are not able to keep regular contact with each other due to the great distance and the mind boggling time difference which separates us, we still consider ourselves good friends. I guess each one of you here have gone through something similar at some point in life and some of you must still be friends with buddies with whom this friendship bond goes long back. So, how long is your oldest friendship?

What scared you the most as a kid?

I remember while I was growing up, I was always scared of one thing or another. The first thing I remembered being terrified of was crossing a wooden bridge. I was very sure that there was a monster hidden underneath ready to grab me and start chomping on my leg like you would chomp on a chicken leg. I always used to walk to the side of the bridge and peek underneath to make sure that nothing was hiding underneath before crossing.

As I grew a bit older, the monsters shifted their hiding place from under the bridge to my basement and at times the closet in my room. Sometimes, I swore something was hiding under the bed just waiting till the lights were turned off and then crawl out and I’ll turn into a midnight snack. I used to check and double check under the bed, then the closet before going to sleep. I really dread going down to the basement as I was quiet sure that there was something hiding under the stairs. I was always terrified of the dark when I was a little kid. I always preferred to have a light on and every little noise would scare me.

I guess I watched just too much television and always thought that something was out to get me. It really influenced my mind to such a great extent that I actually believed the scary stuff which was shown on TV. As I grew older, these terrors gradually faded into oblivion as I realized that the movie/book monsters only existed in these mediums and the only true real monsters of this world were the mean, demented humans.

Relationships - How much control do we have?

We all have some sort of relationships with our fellow travelers in life. These people can be one or more of the following: our parents, brother, sister, husband or wife, etc. Some of these relationships are predetermined and we have no control over them while others we can choose. Relationships are so complex and so full of variables that no one is really happy and satisfied.

If someone was to ask me to list out a few of the good and bad points in a relationship, it would be difficult just to state just a few. After a little thought I narrowed them down to the following.

The things which I like in a relationship would be:

• You have someone to love and cherish and you feel the same about them.

• A person is always there supporting you and encouraging you through everything and vice versa.

• You have someone to hold on to, laugh and cry with and share all your dreams together.

• The close friendship in which both of you are comfortable.

• Never being lonely as you have someone to talk to.



The things which I consider as negative points in a relationship are:


• The headache of having to explain myself with every detail every so often.


• Having to clean up after this grown up constantly makes a mess.

• Having occasional arguments about nonsensical items. (Sometimes more than others).

• Not always having some private time you need to yourself just to relax and think.

• The bad habits which your friend/partner just cannot get rid off.

• Sometimes there is not enough trust between the two people and at other times there is a feeling of being trapped in a suffocating relationship.

Everything is bound to occur in a relationship and there is a lesson or message attached to everything and we have to learn that message. Only then I guess we can grow in a relationship and prosper. I guess it is really about what you want in life & relationship. It is also about how to go about things the right way and not getting all worked up about all the small, petty stuff I mention above and things should go smoothly. Every person should give the other some space to grow…some “elbow” room and some private time. How would you go around deciding what you want in life? How much control do you have? What are your likes and dislikes?

Are you a spender or saver?

Money is one thing which is extremely difficult to earn and it is one of the first things to disappear in most situations. It is a bit difficult at times to slot oneself into one particular category, since our tendencies to be either a saver or spender changes every so often over a period of time. Looking at my spending pattern over the last decade or so, I guess I would probably categorize myself as saver rather than a spender since I usually the term spender usually connotes using money to buy things all the time that are not really needed in order to lead a normal life decently.

There were times when I had to spend my hard earned money on a lot of different items during a short time frame. However, this spending activity when it can be classified as an investment either in purchasing/renovating a property or putting money into a business venture does not cancel out the category which I have slotted myself into. These activities I consider an investment where I expect to earn much more than what I have invested in return. Other times, it is for absolutely necessary items like a new fridge (yes it does have a door handle minus dirty smudge marks Danni…lol), an air conditioner (another harsh summer is upon us), a new car – Tata Nano (my old beat up car is just not worth the trouble anymore), few more ceiling fans, etc.

I learned the hard way that having money in times of need and emergency are important because we will never know what will happen next. One should save a certain percentage of your monthly earning and invest it in some safe investment avenue like government bonds, etc so that in case of an emergency I have something to fall back on. Especially in the times of recession it is more important to have decent amount of money stashed away. Not many people will come forward to help you out financially even if they belong in the extended family.

Being a responsible adult, a person should know what to buy and when not to buy. One must learn to purchase only those that are a necessity in life and these habits should be ingrained into the child’s thinking early in life. Never have "live for today, we'll think about tomorrow when tomorrow comes" attitude in life. This will lead to disastrous results. Give it a thought and in the end try to answer the following questions honestly: Will you consider yourself a saver or spender? Which category do you fit in? In which thing do you spend money the most money or where do you manage to save money most?

What’s the first impression you get when you meet total strangers?

It is said that "First Impression is the Last Impression." This may hold true at certain times and at certain situations, but I do not think that it is true at all the time. At times, how total strangers have perceived you may be different from the real you. Often times, how people perceived you is the person that you wanted to be perceived.

At times, initial reactions from others do not usually equate with how they perceive us as a person. It is only when we become more acquainted with them that others will be comfortable letting us know their first impression towards us. Be it the truth or not, often times, you might just want to shrug it off or laugh your heart out to learn that their initial impression on you is far different from your real you. Personally, I get lots of feedback from friends and colleagues telling me that they first thought of me as "Introvert." After they get to know me better, that's the only time that they knew the real me - everything but an introvert! Sometimes people say I should smile more but I tell them…hey that is how I look like. But on the inside I am actually quite happy and really friendly person.

First impression can be really deceiving. I think it might have something to do with our initial reaction when we meet people for the very first time. For example, I am not used to smiling a lot, at least for first time meeting. I am only able to open myself a little more as I become more comfortable talking to people, but not for the first time meeting. Never judge a book by its cover. We simply cannot get an accurate impression just by meeting a person for the first time and that too for a real short time. Always try to be a bit open minded and be ready to change your opinions of a person no matter how charming or not so charming they might have appeared in the first meeting.

How environmentally friendly person are you?

Over a period of time, we have done a great deal of harm to our planet. Forest are being chopped down to make way for commercial complexes and residential colonies. other areas are being dug up for making landfills or some other industrial activity. Have you ever stopped to give a thought to how you can help nature heal itself from all the degradation we have subjected it to? How pro-active are you? Being environmentally conscious is very difficult at times. But every little steps do count. I like to segregate my trash into different types of categories. For example, we segregate the items according to the following categories: paper products, glass, plastic, rubber, and metal. For the bio-degradable items like kitchen rubbish(ie. - vegetable peels, etc) we bury it in our back yard. It turns into excellent fertilizer over a period of time. Plant a tree every year, and use technology which is environmentally friendly like solar energy, or products which are certified to release less harmful gases or consume less electricity.

Join BeeWellMiles and that spring back into your step

Breast cancer is a silent killer and it affects many people across all strata and all societies. Worldwide, breast cancer is the second most common type of cancer after lung cancer and the fifth most common cause of cancer death. Breast cancer is about 100 times as frequent among women as among men, but survival rates are equal in both sexes. Women in the United States have the highest incidence rates of breast cancer in the world.

Some things which have a direct effect on your breast health are the foods you eat, water you drink, air you breathe, genetic makeup and the medicines that you take. The impact of other, indirect factors, such as air quality, amount of exercise, meditation, and spending time with friends, is less well understood.

Anything that increases your chance of developing breast cancer is called a risk factor while anything that reduces your risk of developing breast cancer is called a protective factor. The good news is that if you are aware of the choices you can make, then you can control some risk factors. For example, if you are overweight, you can seek to lose excess pounds, which may reduce your risk of breast cancer. You can also make informed choices about the medicines you take which will reduce the chances of being affected by breast cancer to some extent.

When you finally decide to walk on the path of a healthy lifestyle, BeeWell Miles will give you all the resources you need to make the most of it. You will be able to interact with healthy living experts, log your miles and discover the calories you burn. Calculate your route's mileage and share your favorite walking/running route with others so that they can try out your favourite route and enjoy the sceanry as much as you do. You can even enter your meals to understand their caloric values, then see how your activity and nutrition offset each other. Interact with other guests and share ideas and tips on getting healthy and staying their. Plus, each day you log miles or game codes from pink Bumble Bee cans you could instantly win one of 15,000 prizes!!

So, please do your bit to help raise money for the Breast Cancer Network of Strength utilizing BeeWellMiles and try to enlist as many of your friends to participate so that people can lead a more active and healthy lifestyle. Bumble Bee Foods is doing their part to help others by spreading awareness and helping people by helping them in making better and well informed choices. Plus, they will donate $0.15/mile for every mile logged at BeeWellMiles.com (up to $200,000) from 4/1/09-10/31/09 to help Breast Cancer Network of Strength provide emotional support to those who can't wait for tomorrow's cure. People who are affected need your support in a variety of ways. You might also learn many new things which might help you to change your lifestyle by making wiser more well informed choices.

Why is it so easy to love others and not yourself?

I'm have always been told, "In order to be loved and accepted by others, you must first love and accept yourself." This is easier said than done and I must ask why is it so difficult to just accept and love yourself as you are?

I guess we are just always extremely critical when it comes to judging ourselves. I think it is similar to how a butterfly doesn't see the color of its own wings and beauty when we do and we find it really beautiful and fascinating? That's pretty much the same thing only we have the ability to see in ourselves if we choose to do so. When we are in this negative mode, we tend to mentally discourage ourselves off by putting ourselves down. Then we dwell on how we could have done things better and end up giving ourselves a much harder time than we do other people would have given. While other people tend to get the benefit of the doubt and we often find it easy to make excuses for their behavior, we know that we are responsible for our own behavior and tend to worry needlessly that we might have done things in a different way.

I think it is really important to love and accept yourself. That being said, we live in a world where humility is taught to be a virtue and anyone who raises themselves up is immediately torn down by people who think they are big-headed and annoying. We set up a double standard for people. People who accept themselves as they are and are comfortable with their attitudes will be more energetic, able to accomplish more, be able to handle whatever life throws at me with minimum stress and tension and lead a happier life. If everything seems dark, gray, full of negative thoughts and gloomy thinking, you won't be able to notice the bountiful beauty, positive energy, etc. If you have set yourself to be sad and full of worries then this attitude will drag you down and you will not be able to give optimal performance. An attitude change will go a long way in changing a person’s outlook in life.

Will you place a home delivery order even if it’s raining outside?

I guess this incident happened about six to seven months back yet I still remember it like it was yesterday. We were in the midst of the monsoon season and we were experiencing the usual power cuts. It was pouring cats and dogs outside yet we didn't care. We were really enjoying this sudden downpour on a Sunday afternoon. I was sitting comfortably in the reclining chair beneath my blanket, enjoying the feeling of cool monsoon winds blowing through my hair. It was raining but the extra chill and booming thunder only added to the coziness.

While I was lying there and wondering if I should force myself to get out of the comfy chair to wrap up a few pending bills on this rainy day, my stomach started to growl and howl like a wild cat. I suddenly felt like eating pizza. Let's see... shall I order one from Pizza Hut? Or maybe Domino Pizza? Or maybe on of the local restaurants...? Yet it struck me then that it would be quite wrong of me to satisfy my cravings that way at this time.

You see, it was raining quiet heavily outside and most of the roads must be flooded with knee high water by now. I wanted a pizza and somebody had to deliver it. Over here, all delivery boys for home delivery ride motorcycles with the delivery box strapped on the back seat and there is no delivery van/car system. How safe is it to ride a bike in the rain? How comfortable is it for them to get into their raincoats to brave the inclement weather to send me a piping hot pizza? I was starting to feel guilty just thinking about that and so, I got up and went to the kitchen to see what I can whip up for myself in a jiffy. With no electricity it was difficult to see what I was doing. Then it struck me that at one time I had asked them this question about delivering in bad rainy weather and they had answered in the positive and within 30 minutes or else the pizza is free. So, I booted the guilt out of my mind and ordered an extra large pizza with garlic bread and cheese and a 2 liter bottle of Pepsi. No use feeling guilty about it since they do it all the time.

Even though the delivery boy would have to exercise a bit of caution on the road to the front door of my house in the pouring rain I presume he would have an umbrella and be wearing proper rain clothes. I also presume he would rather do the delivery even in the torrential downpour than not deliver at all, especially the way things are at the moment in our area and jobs few and far between and consequently fewer people ordering any take out items.
So here's the question I like would like to ask you all. Having read my post above, will you order pizza in the rain and put the kid through the trouble or feel a little hesitant and not order?

Kissimmee - A great vacation spot

It is that time of the year again when people simply want to get away from the daily grind and go on a vacation. Life is just too demanding and stressful these days and it seems like everyone just wants to go to a place which is something different than the rest and yet offers the best deal in town. It is difficult to find such places at the last minute when you are frantically searching for that something different spot.

I had been thinking off to someplace different this year and luckily I discovered a great vacation destination at Kissimmee, Florida. It is a fantastic place that is in the middle of everything that is Central Florida and just minutes south of Orlando itself. What I really liked about this place was that puts all different kinds of fun within easy reach of everyone. The exhilaration of a rollercoaster ride and the really beautiful view of a lakefront sunset sit just moments away from one another, offering a clear indication that there's something unique and special about being here. Kissimmee in Central Florida offers some great choices to the visitors, and that alone creates the endless possibilities that make memories.

For a person who has an opportunity to start his/her day that in Kissimmee can become anything you want it to be. It offers so many unlimited possibilities. The part which really attracted me was that the greater Orlando area features a unique combination of authentic small-town charm, theme park thrills, outdoor adventures, challenging golf; tranquil beach landscapes and other vacation ideas are all within reach. I guess when I finally reach there, my itinerary might include visit to a theme park, taking in a dinner show, a quiet romantic dinner for two or maybe watching the fantastic sunset. There are so many mind boggling unlimited choices and I am sure that I won’t get bored.

What really made my day was the news that Kissimmee is giving away three (3) weekend getaways (3 days/2 nights) for two (2); and two (2) weeklong vacations for four (4). Drawings will be held on or around 4/1/09, 5/1/09 and 6/1/09. The best vacations are free! So I am going to enter the sweepstakes and try my luck. Visit their site and give it your best shot and maybe you might win a free holiday. Like everyone says and is true, the best things in life really are free. If you are a nature lover then you might want to check out the wilderness preserves or maybe you are a history buff and love historic downtown areas or little eclectic shops and boutiques. Maybe it’s a picnic at the park when you discover the right spot. Go ahead and have the time of your life.

One of those days

Have you ever had one of those days when nothing seems to work right at all? I guess everyone has them. You know what I am talking about. I have had days when everything just goes wrong no matter what I do. These bad days start of bad and just keep going from bad to worse, like a car going downhill without brakes until you are scared to do anything at all for the rest of the day, and you just want to hide until the day is over. I guess when these days do happen, it is good to take a break, go on a vacation and just unwind. Things usually fall into place automatically and things turn out right. Someone did mention to me something called "Murphy's Law." That is the law that says that, "Anything that can go wrong will go wrong." That law it seems is now a perpetual part of my life now and I just cannot seem to shake it off no matter how hard I try. It kicks in at the most inappropriate moment. It manifests itself to me the first time I misplace something, anything, then everything goes down hill after that in high speed.

For example, yesterday I had to go out to some office for some financial work. Everything started out ok when I left the house. But after a short while, I got a flat tire and I was already running late. Luckily I had a spare tire in the trunk and managed to change the tire quickly. But it seems like my day was getting from bad to worse. No sooner had I gone down the street and crossed an intersection, my car ran out of gas. I was speechless initially since I didn’t know what was happening. After peeking under the hood, it dawned upon me that my car’s tank was completely empty, and not a single gas station around for miles. I tried flagging down cars trying to hitch a ride, but no luck. No luck with taxis either. It seemed like my day was completely ruined. It was almost closing time at all offices and it seemed like I won’t be able to complete my work. But it seems like miracles do happen at times. Just when I had given up all hope, a friend of mine who was passing thru spotted me. I told him that it’s a long story and I’ll explain later. I asked him to please drop me off at the office and miraculously I was able to complete all my work before closing time.
Bad moments do occur, but these are just passing moments. I guess, it is best to take what life dishes out in stride and not be bothered too much about it. I learned not to be bothered about the rough patches that I sometimes run into. They have happened and will happen in the future. One just has to keep on moving forward, look at the bright side of things and not be too much bothered about the past.