Thursday, November 23, 2006

You Are A Product of Your Environment! Fact or Myth?

For the longest time, Freud has theorised, and maybe scintifically shown this to be true. And maybe because of self-fulling prophesis, and the lack of self confidence and dunno what other circumstances, people have allowed themselves to fall victim. Note that I mentioned "allowed themselves".

The reason for saying so is this - when we are in those vulnerable situations, the human thing to do is to search for our support system. Different people react many ways. And when these support systems are nowhere to be found, if these have strong internalisations, they'll be ok. Otherwise, they fall into the Freud theory - and blame it on the environment, circumstances etc etc...

If only YOU will look into YOU! You possess the strength and definitely the ability to get through whatever life throws at you. Noone, and I mean NOBODY, I say again, N-O-B-O-D-Y has the right to make YOU feel the way they want. YOU ARE IN CONTROL! You will dictate how YOU want to live your life, and not allow yourself and your life to be dictated by someone else, much less be pushed around.

You have the POWER to say NO to anybody! Nobody has the right to force you to say, or do something that will make you feel down - only you have the KEY to your HEART and your MIND! And these, my dear friend, is what makes your day or breaks it.

The next time someone tries to ruin your beautiful day, resolve to take control! Tell yourself daily, and if it helps, look ino the mirror as you reaffirm - to yourself and to the world - that YOU HAVE TOTAL CONTROL over your own life and NOBODY should be given that privilege. Unless you give it to them, nobody, judt nobody can be allowed to rock your boat. DON"T allow them, don't even give them the time of day if you know they are up to no good!

The environment around you will always be the same, the leaves will bud and flowers will bloom. The seasons will come and go. But as Johhny Wimbrey has shared - only YOU can and will allow yourself to succumb under pressure... but just hold-on there! Hang on in there... or you can go check out Success University where you'll find tonnes of valuable information on personal development.

Go on, go check for yourself and sign up for trial access, you'll get so hooked, you won't wanna leave.

Remember! YOU HAVE TOTAL CONTROL!

Blue skies always

Wednesday, November 08, 2006

Have You Ever Seen A 300+ Year Old ???

I was in the US in Apr - May 06. One of the Sundays, my dear friend Joanne brought me to the National Arboretum in Washington DC. This is sort of like a Singapore botanical garden equivalent. Anyway, we were walking thru the huge expanse and came across this Japanese Pavilion section where they featured bonsai plants.

Walking thru the Bonsai Section was a humbling experience. There were many bonsai on public display and amongst these were several that are many many times older than me! (or you for that matter!) The one that is posing beside me... give a guess how old it is??? Go on...

Give up? You can't tell by just looking at it, but according to the sign, this Japanese White Pine bonsai has been cultivated since 1625!!! See the next picture.

Your math would tell you that this bonsai is now 381 years old!!!
It's so awesome to behold...

The next picture is a closer shot of the trunk...


Well, there is a relationship lesson we can draw from this very respectfully cultivated bonsai. Time is a perfecter of issues. With lots of patience and tender loving care, growth is encouraged... healthy growth! There will be storms, there will be winter cold, there will be the scorching and searing heat beating down on the leaves and the branches. But hey, with all the TLC, the life will continue perpetually!

If you do have opportunity to be in Washington DC, do make a trip to the National Arboretum and check it out for yourself!

Sunday, October 29, 2006

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Beware! Coffee Drinkers Allergic to Caffeine!

Decaf coffee drinkers who are allergic to caffeine! Beware!

Just read from a Reuters report that the decaf coffee which
some outlets sell may not be totally decaffeinated! Don't
believe? Read the aticle here!

Scary isn't it??? Especially if you are addicted to coffee and
at the same time allergic to caffeine... can't imagine what the
outcome will be...

For me, coffee is a must-have-morning-cuppa-routine-else-
engine-can't-start-kinda-guy... but good thing I'm not allergic
so phew!

Hmmm.. so set me thinking - perhaps someone should invent
a handy pocket caffeine-tester so that those of us coffee drinkers
who are allergic to coffee can always do a dip test to confirm our
cuppa is truly caffeine-free! Or is there such a device already??

By the way, do you know how coffee is decaffeinated?
According to what I researched, it is quite a laborious process.
Starts off with soaking the coffee bean in some specially-formulated
solution that is designed to absorb as much of the caffeine from the
bean. The bean is then removed from the solution. The caffeine-
soaked solution is then processed to remove just the caffeine. The
beans are then soaked into the now-caffeine-free solution to re-
absorb all the other "I-dun-know-what-else" stuffs that is left in
the solution. Ta-da, now you have de-caffeinated coffee!!! ;~)

So now you know! Go ahead, go impress someone with this knowledge!!!

Blue skies to you and your loved ones... always!