Month: January 2012

What do 200 calories look like ?

Since tomorrow is a beginning of a new month, a new day, a new start and the most popular resolution is “Losing weight”. I thought the link below can be of help to myself and the rest of the peeps out there. Although my favorite list of foods is on the last half of the page.. wonder how i will give up any of those or even cut down… But there is nothing that is not achievable, just needs the right kind of drive and commitment to accomplish it.. Have a Fab New Feb month!!

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-does-200-calories-look-like.htm

Happy Chinese New Year

I guess I should start thinking about New Year resolutions… maybe something about not procrastinating… Well even if you have not so far – no worries because you can always start your New Years with the Chinese New Year.

Yes, we have entered the year of Dragon, According to the Chinese Calendar – There are 12 animal names; so by this system, every 12 years these year names are repeated.. Those born in dragon years are Innovative, Brave, Passionate, Enterprising, Flexible, Self-assured, Conceited, Tactless, Scrutinizing, Unanticipated and Quick-tempered.

I am sure everyone wished they were born in the year of the Dragon, well I will help you and you can see the following are the years of the Dragon

Fifth in the cycle, Dragon Years follows the Rabbit and recur every twelfth year. It is the sign of Luck and the Chinese name is LONG.

1904 * 1916 * 1928 * 1940 * 1952 * 1964 * 1976 * 1988 * 2000 * 2012

Legend has it that in earliest eras, Buddha asked all the animals to come together to meet him on Chinese New Year. Twelve of them came, and hence Buddha named a year after each one of them.

Dragons are referred to as the divine mythical creature that brings with it ultimate abundance, prosperity and good fortune. Dragons occupy a very important position in Chinese mythology. It clearly shows in their various paintings, art, literature, poetry, architecture, song, and many aspects of the Chinese conscience. The origin of Chinese dragons is unknown, but certainly pre-dates the written history. Its benevolence signifies greatness, goodness and blessings.

I suggest you buy, hang or paint a Dragon for your home this year. It is a symbol of good fortune and sign of intense power.

Unlike the negative energies associated with Western Dragons, most Eastern Dragons are beautiful, friendly, and wise. The Oriental Dragon is regarded as a divine beast – the reverse of the malicious monster that Westerners felt necessary to find and slay. In Eastern philosophy, the Dragon is said to be a deliverer of good fortune and a master of authority. Therefore, those people born in Dragon years are to be honored and respected.

If you are in a relationship – Dragons will give into love, but won¹t give up their independence. Because they have quick, sometimes vengeful tempers, their partners need to be tough-skinned. Dragons enjoy others who are intriguing, and when they find the right partners, they¹ll usually commit to that person for life.

Dragons also seemed more content at outside than at home – so good luck people taming your Dragons!!

Wishing everyone a very Happy Chinese New Year and let the resolutions begin…

 

New Stories for Children

I happened to come across this site http://www.smories.com/ where children read stories for children. I have clicked on a few of them, and i think it is a great tool for our young kids to lie back and listen to the other kids read stories and at the same time they could be a part of this site also. This is a free of cost site and carries a huge collection of stories. The best thing is it can also be accessed on the ipad and iphone which is one of the favourite gadget of kids these days.. Although i would like to add, from the looks of it, this site is catered to age 1-8ish yrs. I think it would be fascinating for the young ones to watch, enjoy and feel encouraged to read out loud too.

So all you mommies out there – U r welcome !! 😉

Warm Thoughts on a Cold Day

Hello People, as you can see I haven’t posted anything for a week now, just been under the weather trying to stay warm and chilling away the time.

Everyone seems to be talking about the climate change and updating they status to “what a beautiful weather it is” and not the kind we experience in this part of the world very often.

So I am ready to start off with my new day with my hot cuppa and I am thankful for this moment, this moment that should not be taken for granted, each day has its good start and bad start, but most of all it’s how you look at it and what you make of it.

The best thing about today is that it not Friday that is gone and it’s not Sunday which we don’t know what it will bring – Its Saturday!! We live for the moment. We cannot run behind what had already happened and we cannot stop from what will eventually happen that lies ahead of us.

So here is the chance, to have warm coffee with old friends or make new friends. Cherish something old from the closet or refresh yourself with something new – go shopping. Decide on something that has been lingering on so far till 21st Jan… Its Saturday – plan a BBQ… snuggle and watch a movie with your kids, bake with your kids, (as for me have to teach my son – not so fun for him…) Live with this attitude and make the most of it with a crisp mind. And if you know someone you is not well, call them and ask them if they need anything or even better surprise them with a take away soup. It all counts at the end of the day and makes it worth it…

“Just one life, soon it will pass, only what’s done today will last”

Battle of Saragarhi

Ever seen the movie 300 where they have 300 Greeks fighting 10,000 Persians, well I was fascinated reading a real life story of the Battle of Saragarhi where in 1897 , 21 men of the 36th Sikh Battalion defended an army post against 10,000 Afghans and died for their duty rather than surrender. Recounting the incident the Parliament of the United Kingdom stated:

“The British, as well as the Indians, are proud of the 36th Sikh Regiments. It is no exaggeration to record that the armies which possess the valiant Sikhs cannot face defeat in war”

Link: Battle of Saragarhi

Why bother smoking?

At times seeing my close friends and generally people at work or at social gatherings smoke, it doesn’t seem all that life threating at that moment. Until recently, a bunch of us were out for dinner and one of my non-smoking friend highlighted the dangers/ threats of smoking and I just had to go back and Google the facts for myself.

I also find it very hard to imagine when I see the 10yr/ 13yr olds on the beaches, streets and even at the stores here in Kuwait, waiting to buy cigarettes and smoking away to glory… Seriously where are they parents – or what school do they go too?

It’s funny when one of my close friend smokes, the first thing she says is “it’s my first one of the day” as a sign to say that “yeah I know it’s bad for me.. But it’s only one.” Although an hour with her, and the ashtray resembles a small city with burned skyscrapers over a layer of ash. I do understand that smoking is a tough habit to break as are most addictions however everyone should understand that smoking is dangerous not only for yourself but also for others around you.

Since at times I do get tired of all this passive smoking, let’s start with some of the reasons why you as a smoker should worry about people around you:

·        The smoke that is exhaled from you contains more than 7000 chemicals, around 70 of these are known to be cancer causing. – Thank you for that!

·        The smoke comes out from the end of the lighted cigarette contains carcinogens that are in higher concentrations and in smaller particles meaning that you are a toxic wasteland that is spewing smoke that is easier for my lungs to absorb. Really? What did I ever do to you?

And if that is not enough to make you quit, let’s start with what additives are in cigarettes – As per Wikipedia, cigarettes are known to contain 599 additives, some of the more interesting ones being:

  • Formaldehyde, which is used by embalmers to preserve dead bodies
  • Toluene, which is commonly used as an ingredient in paint thinner
  • Acetone, an active ingredient in nail polish remover
  • Ammonia, which scientists have discovered lets you absorb more nicotine, keeping you hooked on smoking.

Sounds just yummy – Let’s step out and have one more, shall we?

With all the information out there, don’t you just wish people would read and understand what they are doing to themselves and also to the people around them!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_additives_in_cigarettes