Happy New Year!

"Face new challenges, seize new opportunities, test your resources against the unknown and in the process, discover your own unique potential". ~ John Amatt

It's the Chinese New Year today and I thought since I haven't written at all for this year that it's a good time to do so. How are you world? What's happening? I hope the good outweighs the bad. Positive over negative. The wheel of time turns - what goes up must come down so I know that everything has a cycle, an upturn and a downturn. 

If life is good right now then take a moment to appreciate it. If it isn't then wait a moment - good things are coming. I'm being patient - taking the time to appreciate the good things in my life and preparing to receive what may come next. I'll be checking in here from time to time so look out for me!

peace,

Ren

Bewilderment and exhilaration

"Time has been transformed and we have changed; it has advanced and set us in motion; it has unveiled its face, inspiring us with bewilderment and exhilaration." ~Kahlil Gibran 

The photo I've taken for this week's project 52: 

Project 52: 8/52

It's our first lily of the year and it brings with it much joy with just a hint of sorrow. Joy because I love these flowers... the colour of it and how it blooms around this time of year. Sorrow because last year they bloomed in time and in such profusion for my mom's last month with us. This lily reminds me of how much time has passed, of how much changes I've made in my life, of how easy and yet strange it is to move from one phase to another. 

Last week I started teaching public yoga classes in our new studio space. It is exciting and exhilarating and scary and bewildering. It feels like stretching - my body and mind. I'm not yet quite confident with my teaching style... being in front of a group of people looking to me for direction... but, I will get there and in the meantime these experiences help my own practice. Helps me sink deeper and explore more of what I would like my life to be and what I would like to share. 

Yesterday I taught my first private class and it left both my client and I happy. I find it easier to interact and connect with one person than a group. I'm thinking that I need to hold the feelings that come up with private class in memory when I'm teaching public classes. 

On Friday the cute guy and I celebrate the anniversary of our first date. So much has happened since then and I am grateful for who he is and also for who I am when with him. It is very freeing. 

What is time and how do we measure it? Moment to moment, month to month. We move through our lives, changing with each experience, becoming or not becoming as the case may be. I'm in a good space right now. There are moments of uncertainty, as there will be when starting something new, but when I look at the core of it I find that I'm comfortable in my own skin. I am in a good space.

Wishing you find the same.

peace,

Ren

Moment by moment...

I think perhaps this year is truly a lesson in learning to live moment by moment. Appreciate the positives, let go of the negatives, breathe. 

The girl people sent me flowers after that last post. I'm reminded every day that, when there are moments when I'm overwhelmed or tired/sad/angry, there are people who will be there to listen or provide hugs or chocolate or moments for me to grab some rest.

The mother has somewhat stabilized but is definitely on the decline. The human body can only tolerate so much - seventeen years is a long time to be suffering physically. I've been annoyed by family who seem to think we aren't doing enough to keep her with us... I may have offended a few by suggesting that since they aren't experiencing what we do every day then they don't know the whole picture and should refrain from useless 'advice'. Ah well.

I'm learning a lot about myself... what I can and can't do, how much more patience and tolerance I need to learn, how much I already have, how I interact with people. I am more than the sum of my parts. I am bonding with my mom, I'm trying to be more understanding of my dad, I'm grateful for my brother. I am exploring the relationship with the cute guy. 

I feel old and also, at the same time, very young.

Minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day... I'm making it my own.

Happy weekend world...

peace,

Ren

Days like today...

"Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow." ~Anthony J. D'Angelo 

It's days like the one I had today and probably will have tomorrow that remind me what I love about my job. It's the sharing and the ideas and the potential for something to happen. Today I met with persons from Canada, Barbados, Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Kitts & Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, Guyana... and others I may not be remembering. Although my insides cringe at meeting new people and being in new settings it's fun to interact and learn and talk about stuff. Stuff like technical vocational training, labour market information, best practices and models, demand and supply. Years from now will we be able to look back and say we saw this coming, we planned for it and here we are?

Maybe.

Maybe not. It's the 'maybe not' that's part of why I don't like my job... because there is so much possibility and yet there is so much poor management, politics and bureaucracy and ego. 

There is a part of me that wishes that I could rip it all apart and put it back together. Systems and models and ways in which the world could work. Went to the movies yesterday with a new friend to see Chronicle... it's such a guy movie and I thought it ended abruptly yet there were very good plot points... I've been thinking about it. At the end of the trailer for that movie the question is asked: "What are you capable of?" 

Dark side and light side and either way that's a very interesting question. 

When I was maybe 12 or so I remember reading a book (Dream something? something dream? - it sucks that I can't remember the *name* of the book) where everyone in the society were exposed to different skills/tasks till they found their true calling.. that one thing (or more than one thing) that they were meant to do for the society to function at its best. 

I wonder about what it would take to have our present society functioning at its best.

I've got another day of workshops tomorrow... Yay me! :)

night,

Ren

p.s. Happy Leap Day!

Deadlines...

"Deadlines are meant to be broken. And I just keep breaking them." ~Sarah McLachlan 

I'm usually very good with them but... either Carnival messed me up or something did because all writing (personal, work, everything) has screeched to a halt. 

Ergh.

Must get back into the groove. 

peace,

Ren

Sleeping dreams and waking dreams...

"All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream." ~Edgar Allen Poe

The Sun is moving into Pisces this weekend... I know this because - it's that time of year... and also because I got an email saying so. The Pisces Sun is supposed to create opportunities for introspection and renewal. It is a time when we're charged with paying attention to our dreams - whether they come when asleep or awake. 

I generally don't dream... or am not aware of dreams that I have... or don't remember them. I think our soul knows the cycles that it passes through though. Spent much of yesterday and today asleep or half asleep. All the better for dreaming? Maybe. I'm actually aware today that at some point I did dream - there are hazy memories of things misplaced and remembered and expressions and conversations - I'm hoping at some point that coalesces into something meaningful. I've also been slipping into daydreams whilst awake - fantasies of what may be. 

I wonder about dreaming and waking and just who the dreamer is. 

International Soca Monarch competition was held last night - I watched the Groovy Soca Monarch ... couldn't stay up to watch the Power Soca Monarch. I'm not really in agreement with the results but... oh well. 

I talked to my girl ppl.

I made blueberry bread pudding. 

I gave advice... and maybe a bit of comfort.

It's an interesting time period today/yesterday/tomorrow. I feel somewhat as though sometimes I'm moving through molasses and sometimes I'm moving through glass. 

Who knows what tomorrow brings?

peace,

Ren

5 Minutes - stream of consciousness

"It’s exhilarating to be alive in a time of awakening consciousness; it can also be confusing, disorienting, and painful." ~Adrienne Rich

There's a song in my head that I heard on the radio today - every so often (few years or so) I hear it and I love it and I sing along to it and today I thought I'd find it and put it up here but... I'm not finding it. Granted I don't know the name of the song... but I'm not finding it even though I know the lyrics... Google... why aren't you helping me today? It's a song about love and peace and how happy we'd be if we see tomorrow through the eyes of a child... Ah well. 

It's the day after Valentine's Day... girls make much more of a fuss about it than guys do. At least the girls I know in real life and online. I'm not that fussed by it... I guess it would be nice to get a gift/surprise... but it also would be nice to get something on a random day as well... show me love - anyplace, anytime. Am I bummed that I don't have a special someone? Maybe? I'm not sure? Hmm. I am blessed with much love but there are things that one can only really share with a partner and I guess that's what I'm missing. 

My girl ppl want to go to a fete for Carnival... I've been successful in avoiding any and all thus far. Mwahaha ... and also... Ergh. Was told that Machel Monday was 'awesome' and that I should have been there. Crowds aren't my thing... I'd like to go dancing sometime with the girl ppl but a fete? Meh. 

Sometimes I feel much older than I really am. It's an old soul I have is what some would say. I'm not sure what others would say. 

I really would like to find that song. 

night all... peace,

Ren

Death.

"Death is nothing to fear. It is only another dimension." ~Wayne Dyer

I think I've written a lot about death but then it's a part of life so I guess that's to be expected. 

Whitney Houston died this weekend. I'm not as frazzled by this as most of the people I know. I would be more frazzled if it were my parents or my brother or cousins/aunts/uncles/friends - Whitney made great music but I wouldn't say my life is very empty without her in it. 

Came home to the news of three totally unrelated deaths - the death of a neighbour, the uncle of one of my mom's friends  and the best friend of the nephew of another one of my mom's friends. I've always heard that death comes in threes so I guess this is it for a while. 

(I've also been told that one must NEVER point at a cemetery and that if one does one must bite each finger so that spirits would not follow one home... now you know...)

I gave in and bought this book: 

it's the second in the series and is a twist on the Persephone/Hades story... I find it interesting (my mom doesn't - "too much fantasy", she says) - I like how the author weaves the concept of souls moving on or returning to the world. 

Death doesn't bother me... I'm a believer in reincarnation - mostly because it just makes so much more sense to me. I wonder about people that don't believe in it... if they could explain why not I'd listen. Am sure it would be an interesting discussion. 

peace,

Ren

Checking in...

"Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know." ~Pema Chodron

Been absent from the blog for most of this week so thought I'd say hello. Hope you are all having a good week...

I'm tired... my eyes have been protesting my frequent computer use, my throat has been trying to decide if it wants to be sore or not. I did some quarrelling at work - some positive results but we'll see what the ultimate end is.

Taking a day at a time for the while.

Today is my workplace Carnival-event/lime/idk what to call it... I wore party earrings. Yay me :)

Happy weekend all,

peace,

Ren



Holy possible lawsuit Batman?!

"Your sacred space is where you can find yourself again and again". ~Joseph Campbell

I really have an issue with naming stuff... blog posts, photos, imaginary people (Bob, any imaginary person shall always be called Bob). Today's blog post title is inspired both by the content of the post and the fact that my brother posted as his FB status: "Holy allergies Batman!", which made me laugh and also made me sad since there is the possibility that he's going to go off to study in foreign again and I will miss his physical presence. 

Anyway. 

A friend expressed concern about the fact that I blog about my mum and her medical... stuff... Talked a bit about consent and confidentiality and the fact that the whole world can read whatever I write here. Was pointed in the direction of the 'Universal Declaration of Human Rights' and also the 'Patient's Charter of Rights'... both of which are very interesting reads. 

I talked to my mum. She's a reader of the blog and perhaps my number one supporter. She's fine with me writing about her medical business. It's up to me to decide how much I would and would not write. 

I think this is how it should be. I view the blog as a sort of sacred space... where I can express my thoughts/ideas/feelings - it's a sharing and a release. I won't write each and every detail but I will write if I'm thoughtful... or bothered in some way. 

Ah well. One day she says I'll write her biography. Maybe one day I'll write an autobiography. I guess we'll see. In the meantime I'm thankful that my family is one where we can talk easily freely about our health and our feelings and life in general.  

I think it's important to have persons to share with... does not necessarily have to be blood-related - but persons that one can be comfortable with.

Hope you have at least one such person.

peace,

Ren

Snippets of yesterday...

"Now is the time to know that all that you do is sacred." ~Hafiz

Yesterday I:

• Got up at 5 am to make lunch - it's been months since I last did that.
• Got to work on time!
• Was unable to feel my fingers - because it was so cold in our office... *sigh*
• Learnt that there was no Zometa available at the St. James Medical Complex - my mom is supposed to get this monthly - I wish the hospital people had called or something to let her know not to bother to make that drive into town. Appointment is rescheduled to next week... will call first to see if they've got the drug.
• Felt sorry for Drew Carey - was in the lunch room (at lunch time) and The Price is Right was on... I don't think I can ever be a contestant on that game show - I'm way too calm. I would not flirt with Drew Carey... or jump on him... or anything remotely like that... I'm not even sure I'd run down from my seat.
• Was annoyed by management (in this case our department's manager)... woosah.
• Celebrated a coworker's birthday... with cake and icecream... yum!
• Went to the movies with Shoeaholic - they're finally showing Hugo! We were excited all day about going to see it after work... We were the ONLY ones in the movie theatre... then a couple came in and sat behind us... nevermind all the empty seats - they sat directly behind us. The movie was extremely fabulous though... very very good... I strongly recommend viewing.
• Saw new Big Bang Theory episode - I love that show.
• Fell asleep... I started writing this blog post and fell asleep.

Apparently by Thursday I shut down.... am fairly tired today... of work and a bit of life. Staying positive though - there are lots of things to be happy about.

Happy Friday and Happy Weekend all :)

peace,

Ren

Interesting things: a list, a letter and a vid...

"Develop interest in life as you see it; in people, things, literature, music – the world is so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself." ~Henry Miller 

It's already the first of February! Time - there's a topic that needs blogging about. I've been... introspective, moody, thoughtful. In my head for a bit and not particularly willing to open up to the world at this time. This phase will pass as it always does... ups and downs and everything-in-between. Thought I'd share these instead... a list, a letter and a video... they're all very thought-provoking - I guess they fit my mood. 

I've started following Lists of Note and Letters of Note on Twitter... there are so many interesting things that people have written and one of those things is this list: 
"Rescue Etiquette", written by Mark Twain, for the benefit of young gentlemen rescuing people from boarding house fires. It makes me wonder how many people needed rescuing... how many boarding houses had fires... how he came up with the order of importance of persons to be rescued. If I were in a boarding house fire, according to Mark Twain, I'd be 3rd on my brother's list. If I were someone's mother I wouldn't be on their list - mothers aren't listed but mothers-in-law are (though they are way down on the list... even further down the list than furniture)! I feel the need to make my own list of persons that I'd save from a burning building. 


The letter I'd like to share comes from the Letters of Note site and was written by H.L. Mencken in response to Will Durant's question which essentially asked, "what is the meaning of life?". The full text of his response can be found here: "On the Meaning of Life". This is something I ask myself often... what's my purpose? What am I doing? What should I be doing?


*sigh*


The last thing to share tonight is this TEDx video by Shawn Anchor. My brother posted it on my FB wall - it's something I think that everyone should consider. 

What do you think?


peace,
Ren

Lazy Day Sunday...

"Sunday clears away the rust of the whole week."  ~Joseph Addison

I had vague plans for my Sunday... which included going to a Carnival heritage fair being held by Festival & Creative Arts Centre (UWI)... didn't really get around to any of my plans though. 
 

Got up at 4.30 am - went down Mayaro with my family. I think it's a good thing we don't all usually get up at the same time each day - we're pretty grouchy when we get up. Luckily once we were on our way all was well. 

It was gloomily rainy... I lost an earring... took some photos... bonded with the family... thought about life and where I want it to go - what do I want to do? where do I want to be?

No answers yet. 

Got home around midday - spent most of the afternoon drifting in and out of sleep. Some thoughts of maybe I should be cleaning/working/organising-for-the-rest-of-the-week... all thoughts easily ignored... 

Ate cake :) orange-sponge? Yum. 

Currently watching the Oscars pre-show... loving dresses on Scarlett, Mila, Reese... am always awed by all the work that goes into these awards shows. My faves? Inception -  is that up for anything? Black Swan - thought that movie was amazing... Any others? I'm so not a movie-watcher... lol... Currently liking the intro with Anne & James Franco... 

Going to watch now. Maybe. 

Wishing you all a wonderful week - hopefully filled with clarity...

peace,

Ren

I want a new job.

"It was the secrets of heaven and earth that I desired to learn; and whether it was the outward substance of things, or the inner spirit of nature and the mysterious soul of man that occupied me, still my inquiries were directed to the metaphysical, or, in its highest sense, the physical secrets of the world." ~ Mary Shelley

I really do want a new job. I've been saying this for some time (as in since 2009). It's not that I've got a bad job per se... it's just that I'm simply not happy with it... and perhaps now is the time to get serious about moving on. Today is Thursday - every single day since last Thursday I've arrived at work in a fairly pleasant mood and within less than an hour have had that good mood plummet... sink so much so that I'm fairly grouchy and have to constantly remind myself to be nice to people. As Kathy Bremer says in this article: 'When I wake up two days in a row lacking excitement about work, it's time to consider a move'. I've been waking up and seriously contemplating calling in sick every day for this week so far (in fact the only reason I didn't is because I took last Friday off :s)... It's obviously time to move on.

People (family and friends) may wonder why. I'm permanent after all. I get a fairly ok salary & health insurance and the company contributes each month towards my pension fund. I get upkeep allowance for my car (because my position requires going off site to visit other companies). It's not far from home - about 30 minutes away on a good day (15 minutes on a *really* good day a.k.a. a day with no traffic). I can do the work. I sometimes like the work - it's interesting at times. These are all the reasons I've not left yet.

I want to leave though. I read this article recently... trying to figure out if I could make myself happier with the job... but no. I still want to leave (and soon). It's just stressful... The work is frustrating when processes aren't followed. The persons in management positions don't seem to know how to manage. My eyes seem to be failing after so much time spent doing computer work (seriously - today I could not tell a cat from a dog :s). Am generally concerned about my overall health. "Is it all worth it" - is the question that I'm asking myself and more often I'm coming up with no.

So. I want a new job. I just have to figure out what that new job could be. What are my skills? What are my strengths? What do I like doing? Why am I drawing a blank here??? *Sigh* I've done the Myers-Briggs test... and found out that I'm an INFsomething... I say something because at different times I've been INFP and others INFJ... I need a career that is more than a job - I knew this before the test but this confirms it right? I just need to figure out exactly what it is that I want... help?

Yesterday I went to the mall (to pay bills... ergh... went book-browsing - which turned into book-buying - to cheer myself up after) and was accosted by a lady wanting to know if I'd like to know another way of earning income. Hmm. Is it a scam? A sign from the Universe? Apparently they (group of ladies) were taking names for a seminar this weekend on how one can start another revenue stream... Hmm. Today, I opened up my inbox and found an email from Omega - encouraging me to Join their Seasonal Staff... I would absolutely love to do that... except I'd have to pay air fare and etc... hmm.

Perhaps I should make a list of some sort... will go back and read articles and spend time on reflection and the like... My hexagram today (courtesy Tarot.com) is Revolutionary Change - it refers to that time of life when things need stirring up. I feel stirred - just not sure when I'll be settled. 

Help?

ren 

p.s. another quote just because I like this one as well:

"Your work is to discover your work and then, with all your heart, to give yourself to it." ~Buddha

I don't eat preserved mango anymore... (warning - long post ahead)

"Opportunities to find deeper powers within ourselves come when life seems most challenging." ~Joseph Campbell

I ♥ preserved mango... for those of you who don't know what this is, it's mango preserved with spices & sodium benzoate & am not sure what else (I never gave much attention to the packaging)... I haven't had it since early 2009 though. Why? Because it's not healthy for you... it's a long story and really you should do your own research and decide whether or not you want to eat stuff like this but I've stopped. I still love it though... the scent and sight alone triggers instant want. It taunts me from shopping aisles - like yesterday, when I went to the grocery... as soon as I entered, it was there:

K's Red Mango - oh how I crave you. *sigh* ... I've given it up though. I don't believe in partaking of things that are particularly unhealthy for you. It's why I don't understand the major obsession with drinking/smoking/doing drugs that a lot of people my age have - there are already enough diseases and etcetera that can shorten our life span - I don't see why people want to hasten the process... or want to live with health drama in later life that can be caused by unhealthy living. It can be argued that a little bit every so often shouldn't cause a problem - I know myself though... I have the craving for preserved mango... one bite and I'll want it regularly. lol... To each his/her own... every one must know themselves and what they are willing to go through health-wise.

I'm careful, I guess, because of my mom... I've said before that she's a cancer survivor - she was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer in August 1996. Since then she's been through radiation and chemotherapy (numerous times due to the cancer returning). If you haven't lived with someone who has a serious illness then you don't know what it's like - just as, I'm sure, I don't know how it is to survive a serious illness. That's how I consider my mom - a survivor - no matter how many times cancer gets her down she'll always come out on top. What I am then, according to Komen for the Cure, is a cancer co-survivor. I can totally talk about [write about? I can talk about it with people I'm on friendly terms with... it's much easier to write about it to the world at large] what that's like... in fact, here's my list:

What being a Cancer Co-Survivor is all about (by moi - so it's really just my perspective):

• learning at an early age (13 in my case) that healthy people can get seriously ill.
• providing comfort - whether it be ole talk or hugs or staying up late in the night/morning or going out to do normal stuff (like pedicures... lol) or providing salt water to rinse after severe puking (people going through chemo now - be aware - side effects of chemo 10 years ago? So Much Worse).
• discussions on wigs vs headscarves vs fine-being-hairless - my mom's lost her hair a few times due to chemotherapy... I think the first time was traumatic... the other times? I don't know... It's always grown back - and is now baby-soft... think how baby hair feels and that's how her hair feels now.
• realisation of the fact that you can't tell what's going to happen and any moment might be your last.
• learning to do laundry - all members of my family can do their own laundry. When my brother was younger (before secondary school) I did his and I remember doing my dad's at one point. Now - everyone is responsible for their own laundry - I help mom when needed - but generally we do our own laundry - I think that's worked out for the best.
• becoming immune to (or at least tolerant of) the sight/scent of blood, bodily fluids and strange-body-happenings - I'm forever grateful that my mom has never been so badly off that she's had to be hospitalised for lengthy periods - she does however, have to do regular bloodwork, she has had to have her lungs drained and she's also had chemo side-effects that have freaked us out (all her nails fell out once upon a time - thankfully they grew back).
• learning to be appreciative or perhaps trying to remember to be appreciative of the things you have and the things that you can do... this time around my mom's shaky on her legs (actually I remember her being shaky on her legs a time before as well - she was in fact skinnier than I am - which is a big thing when I'm less than 5 feet tall and weigh about a hundred pounds)... so shaky that she's not been driving - I realise now that I'm a driver that that's a big thing - it's a loss of independence and not being able to go where you want to go when you want to go... I want to tell her it'll get better - but we don't really know that do we?
• discussions about life, the meaning of life, death, if there's an after-death, reincarnation, soul-purpose and other topics of that nature.
• trying to manage your emotions (and - if you're like me - the emotions of everyone around you) - I don't like it when there are arguments and general grumpiness in my house (though I do contribute to that as well) - chemo can have effects on one's emotions though... this time around we've noticed that my mom is moody (in a gloomy sorta way) soon after chemo.
• trying (and failing miserably in my case - even though it's been *years*) to keep questions like: 'are you ok?' or 'how are you feeling?' at a minimum...
• learning to live with guilt... which I think may be my issue... the thing is that I live with my parents... which is really not uncommon for a 20something year old Trini person... I do want to travel and such however - in fact I *have* travelled and such and so therefore I already *know* that a part of me is going to feel guilty that I'm not at home in case (in case something happens... the apocalypse? death? dismemberment? zombies? I don't know...).
• being supportive - reminding mom (and myself) that exercise/healthy eating is important... or skiving off exercise/healthy food to do /have something more fun.
• giving love... because ultimately I want my mom around - my life would be less without her in it.

This is probably one of my longer posts - and still it doesn't cover half of what it means to be a co-survivor. If you're in this position or if you're faced with illness or if you're supporting someone that has another illness then you just need to remember - we do what we can... what else can we do?

peace,

Ren

Interesting Read: Full Moon in Leo

A site I've discovered with pretty interesting stuff - in this case, a blog post about the Full Moon in Leo tonight...

A thankful Thursday...

"The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings." ~Eric Hoffer 

I've been very grumpy today... which is not abnormal - while to most people I may seem to be very even-tempered and happy and such, I do consider myself to be... moody. I try not to be on Thursdays though... I have a special fondness for Thursdays as you'd know if you read the 'about me' page. The overall combination of traffic, crazy drivers, workplace drama - people not understanding the processes and family squabbles have however managed to make me very grumpy today. I don't much like it and so in an effort to budge up and get back into a somewhat positive frame of mind I thought I'd do this post... stuff that I'm thankful for today. Without further ado then, I am thankful...:

1. that I have a home and family - they drive me crazy (both individually and combined) but they love me and ultimately want what's best for me and for me to be the best I can be. In times of crisis (real or imagined) I know they'll have my back.
2. that I have my driver's license and a car to drive - I can totally get where I wanna go whenever I want to get there (sorta - it may sometimes take much longer than I anticipate due to crazy drivers and traffic). 
3. that I've got a job - it pays my bills and allows me to go on two week trips to the USA without too much worry about finances. It also allows me to partake of random indulgences like book-shopping, impromptu movie-watching dates and Hagen Dazs/Cold Stone visits.
4. that I get along fairly well with people - I imagine my workplace would be much worse (for both myself and others) if I didn't...
5. for long pants - I like skirts I do... sometimes though one needs long pants - especially when one's leg hair is growing back and it itches so much that you're tempted to scratch off all your skin - if you've never had such experiences then count yourself lucky ... as a side-note I almost did a mini-rant-type-post this morning about hair-removal and hair-growth and why lord, why??! Got distracted by work though...
6. for music - I left work in a bad mood... luckily my car has a radio... and Lou Bega's Mambo No. 5 is such a happy song that it's hard to not sing-along ... and of course singing along cheers people up (or at least cheers me up). Additionally, this particular song has a memory attached that makes me smile - I'll always remember that it came out in 1999 cuz that was the first time I visited New York - we stayed by my aunt and in one particular store on Liberty, while I was at the cashier, this song came on - the girl that was cashing was very into it - singing and moving to the beat - when she saw me grinning she confided that her name was Rita... so, of course, she loved the song. Lol... 
7. for pets - cuz they love you unconditionally. We've got a dog and a cat - such distinct personalities and most entertaining characters.

I'm sure I can think of more if I tried harder... I've got a lot to be thankful for and really must remember this when I'm feeling grumpy. What are you thankful for? Friends, family, acquaintances, circumstances... when we put our minds to it there's a lot to be found and I think it's in remembering and celebrating this that we get joy.

Wishing you much happiness,

Ren

Jeopardy! The IBM Challenge

"Watson is a smarter system - an efficient analytical engine that pulls many sources of data together in real-time, discovers an insight, and deciphers a degree of confidence. Could a business operate like this? How about a city?" ~IBMWatson

My family likes Jeopardy... we watch it together fairly regularly. My family is also somewhat tech-lovers - though my dad more than the rest of us. You can imagine therefore the excitement that was generated by  Jeopardy! The IBM Challenge - the first ever man vs machine Jeopardy competition.

All I can say is ... WOW!!! Can't wait to see tomorrow's show.

If you want to know more about Watson click here.

And because I'm still super-excited about it:

And a link to IBM's YouTube Channel where there are many vids about Watson and how it was developed.

peace,

Ren

An After-Valentine's-Day post...

"Love doesn't make the world go round, love is what makes the ride worthwhile." ~Elizabeth Browning

It's the day after Valentine's day. How was yours? Everything you thought it would be? Everything you wanted to avoid? I think a lot of people tend to focus on valentine's as a romantic occasion - a between-me-and-my-lover type of occasion... and in fact, I have found myself focusing on that aspect (or rather the total lack of that aspect).

When I reflect on it today though I wish that aspect wasn't the only one that is [forced] into our consciousness... I had a good day yesterday... I had ole-talk and laughs with my family, cake [and cheesecake - what? it was *Valentine's Day*] with a girlfriend, and ended it all by going to see Black Swan (a most excellent yet somewhat creepy movie) with a couple of my long-time girl-ppl [and one new one]... I got chocolates from a work-colleague... a rose from my girl-ppl... and makeup from my brother's girlfriend [my brother says I should be offended in a 'what exactly are you trying to hint at by giving me makeup Zar?' type of way - doesn't he realise I'm just happy to get gifts? pfft].

It was overall a really good day and so... that's all I'm saying. I didn't know what to write really about V-day... there is a lot of stuff out there already...  and so here's what I've found:

♥ Two great personal Trini blog posts (one by a girlfriend of mine, one by a blogger I've recently started following):

• Ahhhh Valentines again!
• Too Much Of Anything Is Too Much: Relationships

♥ Tips for making peace with Valentine's Day

♥ The Single Girl's Valentine's Day - Ideas (from Cosmpolitan!)

♥ Dr. Eva Selhub's "The Love Response" page - In 2009, I attended her workshop at Kripalu - it was all about using love to heal yourself and others and is, in my opinion, an interesting concept.

Hope you all had a good day and if you didn't then I hope you have a new view on V-day...

much love to u,

Ren