Dec 14, 2016

For those who hate winter...

It’s official: It’s harder to get over winter than to get over an ex!

However, I have put down a list of things to do during the coming three months of rain and cold (the list is written exclusively for those who do not ski and do not enjoy snow, rain or any activity that revolves around that!)….

1- Spend Quality Time
Indulge in deep talks with friends and family members, visit your aunts and your old school friends, talk for hours over a hot chocolate or while enjoying red wine. Three months of catching-up would be perfect and you will perhaps discover new friends with whom you will share next summer’s joys!

2- Catch-up on some reading
I love reading but I always pick a day at the beach or a sunset drink over my book. Winter time is the only time where I am faithful to my “minimum of 2 books per month” quota!

3- Watch series
I am continuingSuits this month and will finally start The Game of Thrones this winter. Research your interest between the top-hit series and go buy/rent them!

4- Discover winter drinks
Hot chocolate, Starbucks signature seasonal drinks, flavored tea, red wine, hot chocolate with red wine, hot red wine, etc… The “winter drinks” list just keeps getting longer and longer and you only have three months to try all the items out!

5- Go out!
Put the UGGs on if you have to but just go out. It is gloomy outside and staying in won’t make you feel any better.

6- Bake…
Because there is nothing warmer and more fulfilling than the smell of baked bread and cakes!

7- Prepare that summer body
With all the drinking and the baking, you definitely will need some burning! Exercise… it will keep you warm, help you shred the winter calories and will help you get that summer body ready in time!

8- Watch movies, plays, concerts, attend workshops or crafting classes


Dec 8, 2016

Keep your eyes on the road this winter!

I’m fairly good when it comes to driving, and extremely bad at parking (I should definitely work on my parking skills!). but living in a country where no traffic law is truly applicable, I learned to move around without developing major (or minor) driving awareness. And so, thinking I am a fairly good driver, I had my second accident (like real accident) a month ago (my first accident being cause by speed driving when I was 20, over 10 years back!). I went out of the car in complete shock. My car was in no driving condition. I stood there silent. I had put down my phone just 10 seconds before the accident because, like everyone else, I think I can multitask when driving. At least I was not on the phone or chatting so I did not have to deal with all the guilt that would come with it…

That accident made me promise myself never to use my phone when driving. No emergency can make me use it ever again. But it also made me look around and see all the basic mistakes I make and the people around me make… and I think that I really don’t want to lose another acquaintance, friend or family member to a road accident we can all avoid by following simple steps.

1- Use your seat belt – It won’t wrinkle your suit/dress and I promise you’ll still breathe!

2- Don’t drink and drive – this is not discussable!

3- Don’t use your phone and drive – short conversations are okay over Bluetooth or earphones;

4- Pull aside when sleepy – the safest place to pull aside is in front of a bank or pharmacy; there are always security guards there and cameras rolling and you can inform them you are too tired to drive and need a nap before continuing your way;

5- Take a taxi when tired… or call UBER – and yes, Taxis are overpriced in Lebanon but whatever the price is, your life is worth a whole lot more!

6- Children under 12 years should go in the back seat – I don’t care if they scream for motion dizziness or nausea, hand them a plastic bag to throw-up in!

7- Children under 5 years should go in their car seats – I don’t care if they like it or not, scream or cry or hit you! And I definitely don’t care if the car seat is hard to move from a car to another. I am a mother myself and my son was in a car seat all the time until he was 5 years old. And when we used to live abroad, we used to ship it to Beirut with us! Nothing is hard when it comes to child safety please!

8- Children should not learn how to drive in traffic – I really can’t see anyone’s logic behind it… If your child is interested in hitting the roads, maybe you can give him driving and road awareness courses, teach him to read the road signs and road lights, play a game of letting him tell you when to move and when to stop (from the comfort of his back seat) when driving (all alone in the front seat, with your seatbelts on!)….

9- Continuously check your car – wheels, mechanics, everything!

10- Riding bikes are the latest trend and …. who doesn’t love bikes! However, our roads are not safe enough for cars and hence, they are dangerous for bike riders! At least wear your helmet (preferably your full outfit), let your passsenger also wear his, and remember that your 10-year old brother cannot be a passenger on your ride. 

Last but not least: don’t speed! Speeding will ruin your car anyway with all the bad roads we have!

Dec 1, 2016

Let's hug a person infected with HIV today...

Two weeks ago, I had a chat with an acquaintance who was telling me of a “weird” event in Hamra Street. He said he was having coffee and a guy was on the road holding a card saying: “I have HIV. Give me hug”. People were roaming around, some hugging him and some were not. When I asked this same person what he did, he said: I stayed away of course, what if he had HIV?! “shuallah jabirné in3idé”.
(I believe all that was happening was part of a campaign for World’s Aids Day but I would not find anything online. Please share the link if you find anything!)

The person in question was a guy I had met. His answer made me lose all interest in him because it reflects a lack of culture, knowledge and a lot of rudeness. I would hug a person who has HIV. I would hug him, be friends with him, go out, hang out. I would hug a person who has AIDS as well.

Am I not scared for my health? Those who know me enough would know how much I am. For God’s sake…. I run an HIV test every time I visit my dentist (okay I hope my dentist doesn’t read this!). But this does not mean I do not have enough common sense, knowledge, education and above all humanism that pushes me to refuse the stereotyping and the social refusal people suffering with HIV and AIDS face on daily basis.

They CAN work, go out, have friends. And we NEED to know more about them, their case and how to deal with it in 2016.

So let’s have together a recap about the Red Ribbon day!

What is the World’s aids day?
The world’s Aids day is held on December 1st of each year to remember all 35 million + people living with HIV worldwide, raise awareness about the infection and commemorate those who have lost their life in the battle.  Since 1998, people worldwide wear a red ribbon in support on this day whereas many Red Ribbon sales events are held and the money would go directly for the support of the cause or of those infected.

What’s the difference between HIV and Aids?
As defined on healthline.com, “HIV is a virus that may cause an infection, but AIDS is a condition or a syndrome. Being infected with HIV can lead to the development of AIDS, which stands for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. AIDS develops when HIV has caused serious damage to the immune system.”

How is HIV transmitted?
HIV is spread through: Blood transfusion, semen and pre-seminal fluid, rectal fluid, vaginal fluid, breast milk, infected needles/syringes/any other infected object (ask your beautician, dentist or doctor about the safety measurements they use to sterilize everything. It can also be transmitted during pregnancy (the risk is of 30% but can be reduced to 4% with the right medicine) or from inter-contact between wounds and broken skin.
HIV is not transmitted by air, water, mosquitoes or other insects, saliva and tears and sweat (that is not mixed with the blood of an HIV infected person), shaking hands, hugging, sharing toilets, sharing cutlery or dished or drinking glasses or any other social body to body contact (talking face to face, cheeks kissing,etc).

How can you be protected from HIV?
It’s quite easy!!! Be safe in your sexual relations (by using protection) and avoid everything mentioned in the section here-above with persons testes HIV positive!

What are the common myths about HIV?
- Whomever has HIV will die within a year;
- You can tell if someone has HIV by looking to their face;
- Straight people can’t have HIV;
- HIV-positive people can’t have children;
- HIV always leads to Aids;
- If two partners have HIV, there is no need for further protection;

And above all, the biggest misconception is the reason of my post today:

HIV can be spread through casual contact with an HIV infected person.


Stay safe!

Nov 10, 2016

November: With great beard comes great responsibility!

While many men grow their beards and moustaches during November to be trendy, “in”, and join the overall movement, No-Shave November is initially a movement that targets both men and women and invites them to drop all hair removal activities for a full month, to show support for the cancer-ill people who lose their hair during chemo treatment and, in parallel, raise money from abstinence of grooming and donate it to raise awareness and educate about cancer prevention and aid those fighting the disease.



Yes, you read it right (as yucky as it might be), women also are invited to join the no-shave movement during November – and this is one cause I will proudly not take part of, honestly!

So for all of you men out there (women, I will not encourage you to support this case!) here are some easy steps on how no-shave November should be done:

1- Shave clean at the beginning of November (it’s never too late to start now though!)
2- Grow a beard throughout the month (the ladies will dig that beard!)
3- Get a piggy-bank and insert all money you would weekly spend on grooming or shaving in-there
4- On the last few days, shave your beard into a unique moustache (you will look silly!)
5- Donate the piggy-bank gathered amount (and a little more if you wish) to any cancer center you see fit!

Don’t forget to take some pictures and spread the word!

Oct 31, 2016

بات لنا رئيس

Facts:
I don’t talk politics.
I don’t write politics.
I joke about every politician out there.
I annoy everyone who supports any political party in particular.
My own parents do not understand who I support politically.
My own friends do not know who I vote for (or even if I vote or not).

Why?

Not because I am ashamed of my political colors, of course! But because, just like religion, I believe politics is something personal. I listen to all, get affected by none, and at the end of the day support and vote for whomever I see fit!

Exception of the day:
I will talk about Presidency...



Today I vote for Michel Aoun.
I vote for him as a Lebanese President.
Not as a member of a political party. 
Not as a Christian.
Not as a leader of a certain idealistic politically related dream.
I vote for him as my (and our) hope of change in this country; a country I learned to love endlessly without being taught to, a country I believe in and refuse to leave, a country that has been bleeding for years and years now…

Let’s put politics aside….

Today, on October 31st of the year 2016, we have a new President.

We have a President who, for once, was elected internally. You may say he was agreed upon and not elected. And I’ll say it might be true. But at least it was an all-internal decision. That deserves a clap and some points.

Today we have a President who comes from a normal, non-political Lebanese family. His father was a butcher. He worked to reach where he is today. And that of course deserves another clap and some extra points.

Today we have a President who made his dreams as a young man come true; A military man who dreamt, failed, tried and fought until he reached. Aside from politics and debates on how he reached and how he led his political life, I admire this man. I admire his will. I admire that at 81 years he still stood still and made his dream come true. It gives me hope, courage, strength. It makes me believe that dreams DO come true if you fight hard enough for them. And this deserves a clap and some more points and a big bow in respect.

Actually, we have tried every single political family out there for years and years, and no one is satisfied. Because they (the politicians) fail to satisfy us.

So I say let’s give that man a fair chance.

Today, let’s open a new book and start judging. He wanted to be elected President to show us change. Let’s be fair then and watch the change. Let’s cut the insults (not the joke! I’m sure he can take jokes, who can’t?!)

After all, like an old famous saying goes:
عند الإمتحان، يكرّم المرء أو يُهان

Oct 13, 2016

Men might get Breast Cancer too!

October is Breast Cancer awareness month (Did anyone not know this?)

And though I wouldn’t like to turn my blog page into a copy of every article about subjects you can simply google (yes, google is an official verb now) around, I still found it critical and important to highlight the subject in a brief manner for those who do not like to research and read long articles!

- 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with Breast Cancer in their lifetime (if it’s not you, then it will be one of your family members or friends – Sorry!)
- When caught early, Breast Cancer has a survival rate of over 95%! (thus the big “fuss” about #PinkOctober)
- Breast Cancer does not run in the family!
- Exercising and healthy dieting reduce the risk of Breast Cancer (One extra point for exercising!)
- Women can still have children after Breast Cancer treatment.

Last but not least:
- Men can have Breast Cancer too! Though they don’t have breasts, men do have the breast tissue and this is where Breast Cancer grows and develops!

How to get checked?

I couldn’t find a better, more innovative and more supportive video than the one shared earlier this month by Jebran Atallah! I came across it by pure chance and took the approval from Jebran to share it with you all:

Oct 4, 2016

Yes, I am a sapiosexual.




What do you like about me?”, he asked.
Your brains”, I replied.

Yes, I am what modern dictionaries define as a sapiosexual. I find someone else’s mind being their most attractive attribute. 

This mainly applies to my relationships with men in general; I can deal with girlfriends who are not brainy and intellectuals (though I can only count two or three of those in my entourage), but when it comes to men, being a brainy is a total turn on (not that the physical doesn’t matter equally!).

Being blonde (mistashe’ra to be more specific), being always on the run to take care of what I look like (hair, nails, outfit), having my full focus on creating healthier life and eating habits as well as a steady exercising routine, people often mistake me to what society defines as a “blonde girl”. Men, women, family, colleagues, friends and acquaintances tend to think I am silly, shallow and superficial… well until they catch me in the middle of a debate, reading a book or simply interested in thought-provoking and stimulating happenings.

My perfect date? Take me to an Art Gallery or a Museum followed by a dinner and you got half of my attention and all of my interest to think a step further into getting to know you!

When I was younger, my friends were always interested in the hot guy who would go partying all night long. I was an still am interested in the fairly looking guy who knows how to enjoy a party and a chill-out evening every now and then (a boring brainy wouldn’t win with me neither). I always wanted someone like me -not that I am perfect in any way- but I wanted someone who would combine everything: someone who would enjoy fast food, partying till dawn, a day out chilling and doing nothing, a beach day, a silly activity, karting, bungee jumping, silly movies, sitcoms, etc. BUT someone who would also enjoy good food, reading (an actual book – magazines and online articles don’t really count!), hiking and nature discovery, traveling, art galleries, museums, someone I could spend an afternoon at the library with, etc…

I always wanted someone who would be mentally challenging for me. Someone “better” in order to turn me into a better version of myself. Some would say I am far from being a womanizer by admitting this but what can I do? I am only driven by men with brains, men who would challenge me in their conversations, men who would push me to go home and research about a certain subject, men who keep a book next to bed, men who know the proper use of vocabulary and who -above all- know their spelling (their, there and they're are not the same!), men with confidence, men with education (damn it, it’s sexy!)…


Sep 9, 2016

Summer Blues.....

After a long summer break it’s kind of time to come back to blogging.

Hello you all, you’ve been missed!

And while I am extremely happy to go back to writing and pick back my ignored modest skills  that went missing between tanning sessions, weddings and sunset drinks, I must admit I almost got tears in my eyes reading all those “Hello September” posts.  What’s so special about September after all?

While I must admit nature’s colors look oh-so-lovely with the beginning of autumn (well at least on the professional pictures everyone shares on my various timelines), I see nothing similar to that flaming orange and wonderful red in reality. In fact, summer is coming to an end, there is nothing fun in that.  The weather is more unpredictable than a woman on her PMS period! The wind blows every 10 minutes ruining those last tanning days. The water is cold (bye bye swimming!). The nights are breezy  and chill ruining those last rooftop nights and crazy parties. Viruses hit the block. Everyone got allergies, flues and all type of sickness one can imagine. And yet I still see those Hello September posts popping around as if it was the trend of the season… when you got nothing to post online, you post what everyone else is posting right?

Soon it will be winter time again and those long gloomy mornings where I (and many of you) would be dreaming back of the next summer break and counting down the days to it.

Until then, there is one good thing going on, at least for me: dear readers, my summer break is over and I’m back to blogging!

Jul 28, 2016

I don't need a Prince Charming, I need a man...

As I was running through Facebook applications and quizzes, I thought it was amusing to take the “Who is your Disney Prince" test... And this is how I got to know the personality of MY Prince Charming:

“Your Prince knows what he wants and will go to any lengths for those he loves. He is definitely the romantic and will never fail to sweep you off your feet."

So it hit me...

The blurry thoughts disappeared, everything became clearer in my head and there I was: smiling, happy and ready to accomplish "mission impossible" and find that prince!

Oh… how I would like us to meet at a shopping mall where I would be window shopping for jewelry when he will approach me, hold my hand, drag me into the store and choose a fine diamond necklace that he fixes around my neck before asking me to join him for dinner… “But I’m in jeans” would I say… And this is when…

**REALITY SLAP**

CUT CUT CUT

My neighbor, just broke up with her husband of 10 years; she said all the jewelry, the trips, vacations, parties, etc… were amazing but she missed the shoulder she needed when she had a thought to share, a suggestion to make.

My childhood friend, has been engaged for 3 years now and even though she’s about to get married next August, she is very concerned about her husband’s family. “They are extremely nice but his mother asked me in front of his uncle last Sunday if I wear thongs or briefs, and he blushed instead of telling her how inappropriate her question was… What’s next? She’ll ask for my virginity proof and discuss with me sex with her son while sipping morning coffee?”.

And then comes another friend who is dating a much younger guy who cannot afford getting married now; she’s constantly smiling and patiently waits for him to get established.

And another friend who is dating the guy who used to be the ugliest between the guys at our high school, while she was crowned school queen for 3 consecutive years… With an everlasting smile on her face she explains: “The respect he shows me is one in a million, I never thought I would easily find a guy who would look across my physical beauty… right into my soul”.

One of my closest girl friends just informed me she is getting engaged. “I’m scared, he is lovely, charming, I have fun with him, we share so much, he’s honest, he lets me take all the decisions and do whatever I want… (and then it comes, the dreadful word) BUT I don’t know … I feel when we argue, it gets too intense! I’m happy he loves me this much!”
Few days later, we meet again for coffee....
“You know what? It’s not worth it… I’m not spending my life with a guy I cannot talk to… With time I’ll get old, he’ll get old… We’ll be too tired and sick to go out, we won’t be interested in trips no more, we’ll be alone, just the two of us... I need a man to talk to, a man to understand me, my needs... a man that will encourage me not to cry yet will hold me tight if a do; a man that will protect and honor me, not only look at ways to have fun with me and tour the world; I need a man...”

There it was; reality really slapped this time...

I won't be idealistic and say I won't like receiving gifts or going on a world tour;

I won't be stupid and say I would rather live alone with no friends if my husband was next to me;

BUT

I don't need gifts from a "Prince Charming" who cannot look at me in the eyes and say he cares;

I don't need trips from a "Prince Charming" who cannot stand up for me in front of the whole world and defend my pride and dignity;

I don’t need a “Prince Charming” who doesn’t know how to say no without hurting me;

I don’t need a “Prince Charming” who will let me take all the decisions…

I don't need a "Prince Charming" who will sweep me off my feet JUST because he's handsome, rich and caring...

I don't need a "Prince Charming"... I need a man.

(This post was originally published as a Facebook Note on July 28, 2009)

Jun 8, 2016

How to get more Instagram hearts.... (the begginer's way)


Who doesn’t want more followers, likes and comments?

Who doesn’t fall for those cute little red hearts that pop-out every time they post a new picture, quote or video?

But to get those, there are many tricks and tips to follow… read below for some!

-          Like “famous” accounts of interesting people, not just random people who have many likers: this reflects on your “Instagram image” and gives potential followers a push to follow you as you are an interesting person. So focus on people who have your taste in sports, fashion, politics, or others.

-          Like “normal/active” accounts: It is very important to like the accounts of “normal” people. Those are your likers. Keep in mind famous people, big bloggers or people who stock on followers and “buy” followers and likes will not follow you back or like any of your pictures!
Side tip: when you like a new account, like a couple of random pictures (old and new, not all in a row). This will make the owner of the account notice you, notice you went through the whole page not only new pictures, and this will add your chances of getting him to follow you and/or like your pictures!

-          Post pictures regularly and often: create your own pace at the beginning: once a day, once every 2 days, once a week, etc… later when you reach your Instagram goal you can start going by what you want or feel like

-          Use hashtags properly: the proper use of hashtags can make you “collect” followers randomly (place the hashtags in the comment box after you post the picture). Here is a list of hashtags you can use (use the ones that fit each picture you post):
#Monday #Tuesday #Wednesday #Thursday #Friday #Saturday #Sunday #Sundayfunday #funday #friends #family #creatingmemories #weekend #week_end #guy #lebaneseguy #girl #lebanesegirl #selfie #nofilter #beirut #lebanon

-          Make your account interesting and post different things: selfies, group pictures, family pictures, food, activities, etc.  kids pictures usually get the most compassion and likes and you can stock followers. Kids are cute!

-          Follow all your followers and all your friends from Facebook and twitter: your friends on Facebook and twitter are the most likely to follow you back and like your pictures. You will need time to create a “fan base” and get likes from random people

-          Unfollow inactive accounts and non-descent ones: YES! Sometimes you need to unfollow. You’re a guy, you will get most likes from girls. But girls will not follow-you and like your pictures if you only follow models and stars. Liking a picture on Instagram is a give and take. Most people will follow and invest in people who will like their posts back!

-          Do not post ugly and/or average pictures: Use all the filters you want to use, who cares! Instagram is all about using filters and creating perfect effects.

-          Like posts, regularly: once or twice a day go online and like pictures. As many pictures as you can especially those of your active friends. Don’t like ugly pictures, after all you are not desperate for attention. But do like nice pictures. If I see an amazing picture of a friend who never likes my pictures, most of the time I skip it. Many are like that. So like people’s pictures in order to get likes in return.

To your Instagram accounts! 1,2,3 go!

Jun 1, 2016

Let's talk about money...

I do not discuss finances.
Whether when I was a school girl, a university student or a housewife, I never discussed my finances with anyone.
I simply grew-up that way. My father never told me how much he made. None of my friends discussed their salaries and incomes with me, just like I never did with them. Discussing finances became such a taboo subject over the years!

Being the “rebel” that I was, I researched the subject and its psychological analysis and read articles all over the net about how important it is to discuss your finances with your parents, your spouse, your bf, your colleagues and your friends!

When it comes to money, it’s still “too complicated” and people tend to withdraw and close the subject. Apparently, it is harder to talk about money than it is to talk about sex!!! However, here is why it is important to open up to the subject and spill the beans:

1- It helps you manage your outings
No matter how big or small your salary is, how much money you make or how much you want to spend, everyone can afford a time out with friends and family. Talking about money helps you manage who to invite, when and where! You can now go for sushi with a friend who is a big spender and save the coffee breaks and the movie night for that other friend who just bought a new car!

2- It reduces disappointment… somehow
When my friend got a scarf for her birthday from one of her best friends, she was really upset because she had gifted her a watch for her birthday. Little did she know about her best friend’s financial situation and little did she know that this scarf was even more than what her friend could afford at that time! Gifting is relevant not only to your income, but also to your monthly fixed and important payments (such as car, housing, loans, etc…).

3- It helps you appreciate your entourage
Remember that friend you called thrifty for inviting you for a $5 coffee instead of the $12 Frappuccino? That same friend had only $8 in his purse and wanted to pay the bill himself. He offered you coffee and had water to be able to pay the bill himself. Now that you know the income of each, you can start appreciating the little things people offer you instead of judging them for the things they do not offer!

4- It helps you “evaluate” your friends
No one wants a cheap friend around after all… let’s be realistic! But you can’t really decide if X-person or Y-person is thrifty just by looking at what they wear, where they work or how much they make. You need to judge based on the ratio of what they have and how, where and when they spend it. So when your friend who has $12,000 set aside judges a $8 Latté as expensive, this person is cheap! While when your other friend who has $100 to get through 10 more days of the month does the same, this person is just managing his finances.

5- It will help you “evaluate” your own financial status
Are you making enough money? Are you spending it the right way? Why does your friend, who makes as much as you do, own a brand new car while you are suffering with the mechanics of a 20 years old model? Why didn’t your boyfriend take you out to the newest “posh” place in town this month? All those questions and more can be answered once the financial discussion stops being a “taboo” subject… you’ll even discover if you are underpaid or not without twirling on your own office chair wondering if your salary was fair!

May 24, 2016

Men, Women - The ultimate guide to understanding your lady!


Oh yes, you read it right! While many think it is (almost) impossible to understand us women and decode what we (women) say, and while the famous book of understanding women is not out yet, here is a very simple guide to understanding us!

1- No means No. Yes means Yes.
Drop the complication and what you read online. When a woman says No, she means it, there is nothing hidden behind her negative answer. The same applies when she says Yes.

2- “We need to talk” is not scary!
Women like to talk. A LOT! So when your woman tells you she needs to talk, talk to her! It’s not always about arguments and sometimes a two minutes talk will satisfy her for a full day!

3- Do what we ask… and we will not nag.
It is known that women nag, a lot… but most of the times, the nagging can be solved as easy as 1,2,3… For example, refereeing back to number 2, if your woman wants to talk, she will keep “nagging” until you talk or until you fight over her nagging. Spare yourself the nag and the relationship the argument. Talk when she asks you to do so and everything will be done in 2 minutes! Imagine… you just saved yourself from a full day of nagging in just 2 minutes!

4- It doesn’t matter how you feel if you don’t voice it loud enough!
We know you like us. We know you’re happy. We know you enjoy every second around us. We know you would have walked away if all that was not true. But knowing it is not enough, we need to hear it. And as stupid as this might sound to you, just please live with it!

5- Women DO compartmentalize
Unlike you think, if a woman comes home after a long and stressful day at work, she will not have her mood affected (when a woman is angry at home, she’s angry with you. Stop blaming it on outsider reasons / events!). In general, men are the ones who do not compartmentalize and let any argument at work affect their relationships in general, their social events and outings… I’m just saying!

6- Learn the “art” of understanding a woman’s anger…
What you read repeatedly online is so true. Now learn the following and consider it as important as your work guideline:
- When a woman looks sad and says nothing is wrong, please know that something is definitely wrong. Either refer to number 2 above or buy her flowers and chocolate.
- When a woman is sad and tells you not to as why she is sad, do not ignore her. Either refer to number 2 above or buy her flowers and chocolate.
- When a woman tell you she gained weight, pour her a glass of wine!

7- Not everything should make sense to you….
Just memorize the basics: it takes us 10 seconds to like/hate someone, 30 seconds to judge your family, 30 minutes to pick an outfit, 1 hour to pick a nail color and 6 months to change a hair-color/hair-cut. It will never make sense to you. It does not even make sense to us. But that’s just it!

8- Women are always late! (obviously because of number 7)
Stop getting upset with us every time we miss a deadline, a movie opening or make you wait in the car for a date out. Look at it this way: When a woman says she will be ready in 5 minutes, go, have a nap, and set your alarm clock to ring 50 minutes later!

9- Build yourself a circle of female friends
Between your sisters, cousins, female friends and her female friends… you’ll have a whole list of opinion options to “shop” from. Her closest female friends ususally can help best!

Last but not least….
10- As the old saying goes: Women are made to be loved and spoiled, not understood.
So when you don’t know what to do anymore, hug us, kiss us, and everything will be just fine!


Apr 26, 2016

The secret to my "around-the-clock" energy


I’m hyper. Well most of the time. 

 

A couple of years back I went and talked to a doctor about having ADHD (Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder); not that I had any attention deficit but I was hyper to an extent it scared me!

 

A couple of weeks back someone told me I am definitely on something. It was a joke but it made me look back at my life style.

 

I wake up at 5.45 am on daily basis for work and took the habit of waking up at 8 am over the weekends. And I’m rarely home before midnight. My parents are concerned that I don’t rest. The guy I am seeing scolds me every night to get rest and sleep. And I never pull back, never rest and rarely take a break!

 

I always have something to do! Errands to run, shopping to catch-up on, friends to visit, social commitments to attend, exercising classes to join, etc. And when I want to rest, I often do it at a friend’s house, while watching a DVD and talking life out!  Busy lifestyle? Hell yes! I even learned to hold a calendar lately in order to manage my time correctly and have time to do everything I wanted to do!

 

I am even “accused” of never getting tired. Those who work for shorter hours think I am definitely hiding something. So I decided to reflect back on the reason behind my energy and write this post.  Maybe it will put be away from the accusation case and give others some tips to be more energetic:

 

1-      Don’t stress: as hard as this might be the first and uttermost secret for being energetic is living stress free. And trust me, nothing is worth it. Life will go on regardless of sickness, life problems, work issues, heart breaks and even death! (sorry to be so blunt).

 

2-      Meditate… daily (for few minutes): Whether it means you need to pray, read, practice yoga or look in the emptiness without any brain activity, having a meditation break, focusing on your inner peace will bring plenty of energy to your life!


3-      Have your "break" time on a weekly basis: Do it while reading, watching a movie, exercising, sleeping or treating yourself at the Spa; this will help you become more tolerant with people and enjoy life in a better way.


4-      Hold an agenda: getting your world all organized automatically relives stress and helps you enjoy your day more, as busy as it might be! Schedule your appointments and meetings, set your deadlines (and meet them!) and above all, mark your sleeping hours and do not plan anything during that time!


5-      Laugh! Find that one person who can relax you and draw a smile on your face and have a daily conversation with her.


6-      Live healthy: exercise, eat healthy, snack on nuts, have a piece of dark chocolate in the afternoon, don’t skip your caffeine intake (your body needs a dose of those!), and drink a looooot of water!


7-      Listen to music.


8-      Reduce alcohol: Oh yeah! Learn to enjoy life without being kicked out! You’ll enjoy it more and have a full boost the next morning.


9-      Socialize: you can simply never have too many acquaintances! While your circle of friends would always be close and limited, there is nothing wrong in having a gym buddy, a hiking group, a halophilic friend for beach days, a crazy buddy for parties, a brainy for book clubs!


10-  Donate: learn to donate food, clothes, money, time, affection, anything you can! Hug that stranger crying on the coffee table at the mall. Draw a smile and the world will draw a smile back on your face… and the more smiles you get, the more energetic you will be.


11-  Nap: As much as you hated nap times as a child, those 10 minutes breaks can be a blast!

 

12-  Fall in love as often and as much as you can: Engage in a relationship, love your friends, spend time with your family. That positive energy you get from feeling cared for and loved fills your body with energy and boosts your metabolism big time!


13-  Be happy! The happier you are, the more energy you get.

 

And then, once every week or 10 days, disconnect and sleep for a good 10 to 12 hours straight to power up!