Green with envy

Came across this earlier today:

“Don't compare your life with others. You have no idea of the highways they have traveled during their lives.” – Author Unknown

We perpetually assume that the grass is always greener on the other side. But is this usually the case?

The truth may be that this ‘other side’ that you are able to see from the point where you are currently standing may be just a tip of a gargantuan iceberg.

Everybody has their own story and what you see may not necessarily be what you get.

The green-eyed monster,

Sweat like a pig

I hate wiping people’s sweat off the equipment.

It’s disgusting.

To think that I actually brought my towel to the gym to wipe my OWN sweat off my body and the equipment that I'VE used. Now, after wiping someone’s sweat off the bench, I am restricted to wiping only the equipment from that moment onwards.

Which makes me end up looking like a cleaner who works there.

Maybe since I’m at it, I might as well clean the toilet bowls too.

Gross.

Perhaps the person has forgotten to bring his towel from home today and did not intentionally leave his bodily fluids there.

“There is one word which may serve as a rule of practice for all one's life – reciprocity.” – Confucius

To err is human,

When I grow up

Was at the gym last week working on my non-existent abs when I saw one of the instructors teaching a dance-cum-aerobic-cum-dunnowatchamacallit class.

She seemed to be enjoying herself, which makes me wonder… How many of us are actually making a living doing what we love to do?

Don’t get me wrong, I love my job, it’s just that it’s nowhere near where I thought I'll be when I’m all grown up.

You know those essays we wrote in primary school about our ambitions, hopes and dreams? Hell, come to think of it, I can’t even remember what I wanted to be when I grow up. If my memory doesn’t serve me wrong, it should be somewhere along the line of an air stewardess, doctor or psychologist (I watch a lot of TV during those days. Even now).

Most of us have jobs to make ends meet so since we're at it, we might as well learn to enjoy the ride. After all, we spend an average of 50% of our waking hours at work (well, maybe this just applies to me), 5 days a week (6 for me), thus life would be quite miserable if you hate your job.

But if that day comes when you found something you love to do which can actually afford to fill your stomach, put the clothes on your back and a roof on your head, good for you.

As for me, I’m still looking for that dream job, if there ever is one.

“The man who does not work for the love of work but only for money is not likely to make money nor find much fun in life.” – Charles Schwab

Keepin' the faith,

In the moment

The words we say during the spur of the moment, during the heat of the argument, do they still count the next day?

If they don’t mean anything, then why do we say those words in the first place?

Are these words the pent up feelings that have been kept inside all these while, waiting for the right moment to come out in the open?

I guess only the person who has, in fact, said the words will know the answers to the above questions.

Personally, I say the things I said and do the things I do during moments of anger are mostly done out of spite. On occasions, I do regret my actions about 30 seconds later but my ego always holds me back from eating my words.

And to that someone who thought that I have no temper at all, well, as I’ve always told you, you are absolutely wrong.

But I have to admit that it takes a lot to push my button (on a normal day) but somehow or rather this particular person seems to have the knack of doing it. At times I wonder if the problem lies within me or that person or simply just that when two particular person who is so damn f**king stubborn and refuses to back down come together that problem arise.

“Half the world is composed of people who have something to say and can't, and the other half who have nothing to say and keep on saying it.” – Robert Frost

Just as I am,

S.S.D.D.

Same sh*t, different day

I thought I have something to write about today but then there was this niggling doubt at the back of my mind that I have already touched on this topic somewhere, somehow. And true enough, after looking back through my previous entries, there it was, staring right back at me.

You know the feeling whereby you felt as if you have experienced the exact same situation before, with the exact same person at the exact same place and the exact same time? The sense of déjà vu never fails to amaze me.

However, recently, I have serious doubts that my ‘déjà vu’s are merely just, well, a feeling because of late, I felt as if my memory is failing me. The following are stuff that I do at the very least once every day and can repeat itself numerous times throughout the day:

(1) Before stepping out of my front door, I feel this urge to check whether I had actually turned off the iron. 9.5 out of 10 times when I checked, the iron has already been switched off but I still feel the need to re-check it before leaving the apartment.

(2) After getting out of my car and locking the doors, I will counter-check whether they are really locked by pulling one of the door handles. Even after this action, when I am 30 feet away from the car, I still feel the impulse to press the ‘lock/unlock’ button – just to make sure. Sometimes I even go to the extent of walking back to the car.

(3) I have this habit of leaving my mobile phone in the car and oftentimes while I’m driving, I will keep reminding myself not to forget it when I get out of the car. But still, it happens.

I’m quite sure that the world will not come to a screeching halt if I didn’t do any of the above actions one day and yet I feel really restless not doing them.

Good Lord, I think I may have OCD.

And before I bid adieu, a totally irrelevant quote, simply because I find it amusing:

“My wife is a sex object – every time I ask for sex, she objects.” – Les Dawson

Getting my head checked,

A matter of choice

“It isn't what you have in your pocket that makes you thankful, but what you have in your heart.” – Author Unknown

I remembered a long time ago when someone commented that I’m not ambitious enough. He said that if I am always to compare myself with someone mediocre, I would never be able to achieve great success.

Perhaps some people may think that I’m living in denial and that I may not be ruthless enough in this dog-eat-dog world. But I’d like to believe that each and every one of us should be thankful for what we have instead of always reminding ourselves of what we don’t have.

I’m not trying to say that love and only love itself will keep us alive because we need food, clothes and a roof on top of our heads to survive – which means that money is essential but should not be made the ultimate goal in life.

Recently, I kept saying to mom that having more money is always great but you can never carry them to your grave – so once in awhile we just have to keep our priorities in check.

***

I think I’m the type of person who prefers to look at the brighter side of life, no matter what the situation is. Each time I’m faced with difficult circumstances, I will always remind myself of the lowest point in my life and how I’ve survived it – in my heart, I know that since I had managed to get past that, chances are quite high that I’ll be able to sail my ship through the present rough sea conditions.

After all, it’s not terminal cancer I’m facing. And even if it is, miracles sometimes do happen.

If things don’t work out the way that I’ve wanted it to, I would always tell myself that maybe it wasn’t meant to be and that God has other more wonderful plans in store for me.

I’ve neither asked for more wealth nor a higher rung on the career ladder – maybe because deep inside I know that asking God for these kind of stuff without working for it would be like asking to strike the lottery when you haven’t even made the effort to purchase it.

To me, if you’ve worked hard, it doesn’t seem necessary to ask God for such things, those that are actually within your control. If it seems to you that you’ve work your a** off and it doesn’t seem like you are anywhere near the top prize, maybe something is seriously wrong with your superior. Or the problem lies within yourself but it’s just that you, being the human being that you are, are to proud to admit it.

***

The glass of water is there on the table and it’s up to the individual to perceive it as either half full or half empty. Whatever makes you happier because at the end of the day, that’s all that matters.

Unless you enjoy living a life full of misery, always remember that there is and will always be a choice – your choice.

So for this Lunar New Year, I’m praying for good health for my family, the love of my life + his family, my brilliant friends, loved ones and last but definitely not least, myself.

“What if you gave someone a gift, and they neglected to thank you for it – would you be likely to give them another? Life is the same way. In order to attract more of the blessings that life has to offer, you must truly appreciate what you already have.” – Ralph Marston

A grateful soul,

Spooked

Virgo

Saturday, 10 January 2009

Your Week Ahead: Little things can sometimes make a big difference. A small gesture, a passing remark, a finishing touch, a decorative twist. You wouldn't think such trivia would be crucial, but if it happens to resonate with some old memory, it can make all the difference between feeling comfortable or awkward about where you are, and who you are with. This week, many questions arise but no matter how different or disparate these may seem, they all connect to one essential uncertainty. Where do you really belong? You will soon be shown the answer very clearly. Then fear will turn to inspiration.

Week Ahead Part Two: It's funny how some things are absolutely fine until we start to find fault with them. Then suddenly, almost overnight, they're completely unacceptable. Little questions lead to big doubts. Small uncertainties become major misgivings. In moments, years of acceptance can be undermined. No matter how things were in the past, they can't be that way again. In your life lately, an affiliation has been challenged. It's not so much that you have reached a point of personal change, more that somehow, someone has behaved in such a way as to cause you to wonder. Yet, elsewhere in your world, there's a beckoning finger - a warm, real and genuine invitation. Follow that and don't worry.

Excerpt from: http://cainer.com/

Was reading this awhile ago.

This is written for all the Virgoans out there and yet, I felt as if this was meant especially for me. Although I can’t deny that I’ve always loved reading Jonathan Cainer’s forecasts since my uni days – not so much for its accuracy but more for the phrases and the fluidity of words in his writings.

I guess it depends on how each individual interprets it to suit their liking since most of these horoscopes are written in general.

We only believe in things we want to believe, hear things we prefer to hear and see things we wish to see when the truth is actually not what we presume it to be.

The brain is indeed an extremely compelling tool.

Life is about making choices

& living with its consequences,