Freedom

is a whole stack of books to read, a mountain of movies, and all the time in the world.... for two weeks ....

Yes people, I've crawled and toiled and screamed and cried but finally I've completed the second last semester of my final year !!!! One more to go, another in UK and I'm out. I'm currently in the middle of Alice Sebold's 'The Almost Moon'. A very very intriguing read. Ooh, and there's lots more where that came from ! Happy happy happy !

The holidays have officially begun.

Oh, and before I forget ..

Today's Smile-Inducer : I got this in an SMS, courtesy of the very flamboyant Jared of The Awesomesauce Times. "Some people are like Slinkies.. They're really good for nothing..but they still make you smile when you push them down a flight of stairs...=p " Something Miss Universe would never dream of saying but it sure made me laugh before I proceeded to meet my fate in the killer paper that marked the end of this interesting albeit a little too happening semester.

Ciao

Ding Dong Bell

Today's Smile-Inducer : Everlasting love. Once again, stuff of fairy tales, but then again I'm a girl. =p Read this from The Daily Mail this morning. *sniff* Fact or fiction, may he rest in peace.

On another note! I'm totally lusting over this clock !!! It's coolness factor is just mind blowing. Doncha think? I so so so so so want. If I'm good this year do you think Santa'll drop one into my Christmas stocking? =p

Pic from www.geeksugar.com

Be Nice, stop selling fish

Humans are a selfish lot, so selfish in fact that it’s disgusting. Yes, I mean you and me. All of us. And if you think this post is a product of crazy hallucinations, then maybe you’re right and you can stop reading here. I know a lot of you would disagree and argue that this is in fact a way of life. The survival of the fittest and all. But have we sat down and thought about it? I mean REALLY think about it?

What do we study so hard for? What do we work so hard for? Why do we want to be better than our neighbours? Spur our children to be bigger, better, greater? It all boils down to three people. Me, myself and I. We want a better future .. for ourselves. We want greater fortunes…for ourselves. We want grander glories and worldwide fame…all in the name of narcissism.

Have we thought how selfish all this is? In the pursuit of self glory and fame, do we ever spare a thought for the people who have no food, no clothes, no families, no roofs over their heads? Children who go to bed with the sound of bombs dropping overhead and who write letters to Santa not asking for shiny new bikes but that their fathers would return home from the war ? Children who are thrown into the harsh, weather beaten road and forced to fight wars that adults wage? Adults who should be caring for them.

There are people who are told they have 2 weeks to live. There are wives being abused, women being deprived of rights that should be theirs. There are children being forced into arranged marriage at ages where they should still be playing with dolls, not REAL babies.The environment is crumbling around us. There’s global warming and animals being driven out of their homes all for human development. And in it all, we ask…but what about ME?

The rich only want to get richer, and the poor want more than anything to get out of the slums and make it big. The thing is there’s SO much we can do in order to change things. You see, the thing is, if everyone started caring for the people beside us, we don’t even need to care about ourselves, because others would care about you. Imagine the whole world just caring about everybody else. But we don’t. Because it’s the road less taken. Because it’s a road that has no attractive end, no lucrative perceived gains. Because it’s the road that has nothing for me, but everything for others.

Butterflies

Photo credits of http://community.livejournal.com/re_cycled/219432.htm

Today's Smile-Inducer : Igudesman and Joo !! Have I blabbed yet about how many smiles these two have painted on many a morose day? They're no competition for legends like The Great Dane, but oh how my heartstrings are tugged by their lighthearted humour. Musical geniuses! *and I'm gonna get to watch them ...live !! wheeeeee

I woke up early in the morning and read this article on The Daily Mail. It constantly bugs me that women go to such crazy heights. What is becoming of the world when we prize things that are superficial and have no great meaning?

Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder...... -Thoreau

The Next Breath

Today's Smile-Inducer : Waking up to another bright sunny day ! Sometimes all it takes is reveling in the fact that you managed to draw the next breath. =)

I found out from The Boy this morning that a church member of his was suddenly admitted into hospital for brain surgery.

It's news like that that jars you back to reality. Life's short. We'll never know which day might be our last on this temporary transition we call home. I guess the moral of the story here would be to live each day to the fullest and stop wasting it on inconsequential worries and fears. Cause who knows what the next second might bring.

So, you all know this is an excuse for me to do this right? *throws textbooks out of the window* =P

On a different note, don't you think the kids in the picture just make you want to laugh along with them? If I could have things my way, I would indulge in a career involving kids. Bratty or not, they're little bobs of sunrays ! Pic from www.newamerica.net

Teardrops and rainbows

Today's Smile-Inducer : Joseph McElderry!!! His rendition of Luther VanDross's Dance With My Father again made me cry. So sweet so sweet ! Go youtube him if you haven't already!

I've been in a contemplative mood lately. I've always wondered what awaits me at the end of the road. Will I be happy with the long twisting road that led me there? Will the end be rewarding? Optimists would nod enthusiastically in the affirmative, but what if after years and years and years of toiling and suffering you realize the end is not what you envisioned it to be afterall? I've managed to maintain my CGPA right up till my final year but all I feel is that I've lost 3 and a half years of life's lessons. I need to go out there, feel the world, make some mistakes, live on the wild side, BE young but I've been too overcome with what the world deems 'achievement'. I'm tired of tear dampened pillows and pent up frustrations, it's time I start living for myself. Rainbows and sunshine will I hunt!

There's a sense of ennui around me now. Maybe it's that time of the month. Or maybe all that exam buzz and high is messing up my psychological make up and its driving me nuts. I need a break. Sandy beaches and rolling waves, when will we meet again?

Do you ever get the feeling that time slips through your fingers and the tighter you grasp it the faster it falls out?

Kids say the sweetest things

Today's Smile-Inducer : Love. Yes yes, it's that much talked about elixir to eternal happiness, miracle drug for every ailness and the essence of all twirly, sparkly things...

I got these in an email. So, take a few minutes off your hectic end of the week schedule and check them out. Highly recommended if you're looking for a dose of toe-curling-warm-sparks-of-cutesies.

"What does love mean?" This is what a group of 4-8 year olds thought.

• When my grandmother had arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore, So my grandfather does it for her, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love - Rebecca, 8
• When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.You just know that your name is safe in their mouth - Billy, 4
• Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other -Karl, 5
• Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French Fries without making them give you any of theirs. - Chrissy, 7
• Love is what makes you smile when you're tired - Terri,4
• Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen. - Bobby,7 (My favourite)
• Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well. - Tommy, 6
• My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.- Claire, 6
• Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day. - Mary Ann,4
• I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her clothes and has to go out and buy new ones. - Lauren,4
• When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you. -Karen,7

And the last one is special. It's from a 4 year boy whose neighbour was an elderly gentleman who had just lost his wife. Upon seeing the old man cry, the little boy went into the elderly gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap and just sat there. When his mother asked what he had said to the neighbour, the little boy said "Nothing, I just helped him cry".

I think innocence brings out that special quality we all tend to lose as we grow older and more jaded. We need to bring out the child in us more and the world would be a better place. Simple solution I know, idealistic but let me be a child today and ask "If all it takes is love in this world, why can't people love more than the image in the mirror and make this a better place?"

Good girls gone bad

Smile inducer : Finding random stuff on the internet.

I stumbled upon this article.Its freaky to a point but a really interesting read. Go read it if you have the time. Here are random parts that I thought were really relevant reflections of society.

The Good Girl walked a treacherous line, balancing mixed messages about how far she should go and how strong she should be: she was to be enthusiastic while being quiet; smart with no opinions on things; intelligent but a follower; popular but quiet. She would be something, but not too much.

The Bad Girl was outspoken (speaks her mind ) and self-possessed (proud), a risk taker (rule breaker) and critical thinker (artistic, rebel, doesn’t care what people think). She was comfortable being in charge (center of attention). But she was nothing if not an outcast, an example to Good Girls of what happened when you strayed from the program.

"Prone to becoming estranged from their inner lives .... [The Good Girls] are so busy living up to others’ expectations that they either don’t develop or eventually relinquish their own goals. They are so focused on achieving external emblems of success that they don’t get the chance to figure out what really excites them and gives them pleasure. They barely know who they are or who they want to become."

Full article here

So .... bad girl good girl. Should girls be bad in order to be good to themselves? What do you think?

Hold me and never let go

Today's Smile Inducer : Finding a foothold in faith. It's a trying time for me right now but I'll be positive. So yeah, challenge me if you will, the sky's the limit today.

I like this. I thought it was inspiring and hope it lifts your spirits as much as it did mine.

Tune your anxious heart to patience,
Walk by faith where sight is dim;
Loving God, be calm and trustful
And leave everything to Him. —Chambers

The finals commence tomorrow ... it's back to the books guys.