Sometimes…

Sometimes it is too easy to focus on all that is annoying and frustrating out there. When you look and all you see is the frustrations in work or school. When you focus on the people who are getting you down. When all you can say are smartass comments about someone’s stupid behavior.

Look around you. What do you see? Everywhere are comments that point out how dumb, stupid and bad someone else is. Everywhere there are programs focusing on people behaving badly. Everywhere someone is saying that someone else did something wrong.

Well… criticism is all well and fine. If it is constructive. Questioning your surroundings and the people around us is something we always should keep in mind. If we do not question, then how can we right something that might be wrong? BUT… when the questioning and criticism just becomes a way to spew out our own shit then what are we accomplishing?

Oh I am no angel and God knows I am guilty of spewing shit with the best of them. Sometimes however I need to pull myself back and remember that if I only look for the bad and spend my time pointing it out then I am also really missing out on all that is good. Funny how we seem to forget to point out things that are good eh?

Sometimes it is easy to forget the good things and the great people in the world. So this time I will remember just those… a few of the good things.

• The years have flown and much has happened but some friendships just grow and will always be fabulous.
• Walking out outside and seeing how beautiful Ireland is (even in the rain, horizontal rain at that).
• Hopping in the car and going to a new place.
• Getting lost and not giving a damn. (Not that I ever get lost or anything… really.. ever… I’ll deny it).
• The woman who let me in when I jumped the queue at the turn-off from the motorway (I was late for work… at least that is my excuse and I’m sticking to it…).
• Seeing the mountains every morning when I drive to work. A sight that always puts a smile on my face.
• Meeting up with old friends and making new friends. Never a thing to take for granted.
• Furry kitteh cuddles (even those headbutts that can cause a concussion… what can I say, he is a big cat).
• Reading Calvin and Hobbes (always makes me laugh).
• Looking at someone and bursting out in laughter at the same time.

I hope the weekend is treating all of you well and that you will have plenty of laughs. This made me smile:

“I once had a rose named after me and I was very flattered. But I was not pleased to read the description in the catalogue: no good in a bed, but fine up against a wall.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

Friday’s tune

As I drive home with the sun shining and the windows down… well, this just has to be played. Happy Friday everyone!

Curveballs

This is turning out to be quite an expensive week so far. First the charges that I made on my VISA card while on my holiday are starting to show up on my statement. How did it add up so fast?

Then we discovered that we need to re-tile the en-suite shower as we have a persistent issue with water damage. This is where i could go off in a rant about incompetent builders that installed it in the first place but I do not have the energy for that right now.

To make things even better my beloved car started to overheat on my way home from work the other day which really causes me problems as without my car it is a nightmare to get to work and I refuse to take public transport for 2 hours when it takes me 30 min to drive. So into the garage she goes. Of course it is not a simple issue… they are still trying to find the cause of the problem… please, please let it not be the head gasket! If it is it will cost me over 600 euro…. (bye-bye Malaga weekend trip with the girls, which already started to look unlikely).

The most important thing that I need to remember here is that I still need to be able to laugh about things. The best comment I got in regards to my car was from one of the girls in work. I pointed out that my car was sick and had a fever… her response was “… just pour a bottle of Butterworth into the tank and wrap up and let it have a good sweat…”

Loved that!

I might be getting very close to be very broke but with a few good laughs it will be grand. Life might through a few curveballs at me but you know what… hahaha!

Highlights of 2010

OK, 2010 is over very soon… it has been an interesting year. I have tried to compile a list of highlights for me this year.

• I realized that I loved my newly bought car and that I had forgotten how much fun it was to driiiive. Yay!

• Learned to snowboard and went on not one but two winter holidays! (Yes my credit card was pretty exhausted by this…).

• Realized that I needed to change jobs. From sales to something different. I worked in a great team with great people but a change was needed. I found something new and so far… so good, even if I am mad busy at times.

• I started blogging! Then went from blogging anonymously to blogging as just… me.

• Continued with Bujinkan Budo Taijitsu and realized more and more that I truly enjoy and love it.

• Spent a good few days at the west coast in Sweden soaking up the rays on the beach with my sister. Sun… bliss!

• Had a blast at my Mum’s 70th birthday party with the whole family gathered.

• Spend some days with my brother and his family and just chilled out.

• Gained confidence in myself and what I can do.

• Had laser eye surgery done – was very scary (as I can be a total scaredy cat) but so worth it! No more glasses or contacts!!

• Spent a brilliant weekend with the girls in Prague. DARK beer anyone?

• Got a new tattoo!

• Came to realize a few new things about myself.

• Made some new friends.

• Had a fun Christmas work party and a mad Christmas party with the club. Oh the laughs!

It has been a year full of new things and new experiences and I wouldn’t have wanted it any different. Thank you all for reading about my ramblings and stumblings through my life this year. Bring on 2011!

Grin factor

Dublin has been quite icy and cold the last few weeks. As most people here are not used to this weather it has meant that traffic has been pretty horrid. Driving has been interesting to say the least… ice-rink conditions mostly as the sand and grit obviously still is on-route from the Gobi dessert or similar. It might get here in May…

All this has mean that I have used my partners car instead of my own. It is heavier than mine and made for this weather (it is a SAAB…Swedish tried and tested). It is also safer to bump into other vehicles with, if that would happen.

It is comfortable, has lots of gadgets and techie buttons, has more horsepower under the hood than my car, it is safe and smooth…. BUT soo bloody boring to drive! Where is the grin factor?? I want to drive with a smile on my face, I want to feel like I am surfing the streets.

My car is not a very powerful car ( a Ford Puma) but it is a fun car. There is enough speed in it to make in enjoyable and it feels good. Whenever I have had a really stressful day at work..all I need to do is get into my car and I immediately relax. Sigh… sod this weather.

Driving has become my guilty pleasure. Yes, I know it isn’t very environmentally friendly. If it wasn’t lashing down with rain here 365 days a year (OK…slight exaggeration) then I would probably go back to riding a motorcycle. Can’t stick to bicycles in this town… unless you have a death wish. But then I just have to upgrade to a nice and even more fuel consumption friendly car…hmmm the Mazda RX-8? <grin>

Beautiful autumn

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When I left my apartment this morning , all the cars were covered in frost. It is now officially autumn. Time to find that ice scraper buried somewhere in the glove compartment in the car. Time to dig out the boots, jumpers and warmer jackets.

It is colourful and beautiful outside. The air was crisp and fresh this morning. The sun is shining outside now and casting a golden light into the windows in the office. I used to dislike autumn saying it is just rainy, windy and miserable but I am enjoying it more and more. Even when it does get rainy and windy I seem to find it cosy instead. Perfect for staying in with a good book or good film.

Do not get me wrong, I am not constantly going around thinking all is great and beautiful… I am just trying to teach myself to notice the nice things around me, so that I do not focus on the less great things I experience. Especially today as I do not feel very great or beautiful at the moment… sitting in the office working late once again, coughing as I cannot seem to shake this cold and feeling very tired.

Well, it is almost time to go home. I will enjoy the drive home, I think. Good thing I brought the sunglasses.

Happy autumn!

A moment in the present

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How many times do you find yourself being in the present? Really just existing in that present moment without remembering the past or thinking about the future? I believe that it is very rare. Most of us are either preoccupied with what has happened or with what will happen. Our lives are busy and many things are going on at the same time causing our chain of thoughts to evolve based on what we have learned in the past and what we want to do in the future. There is always something to do.

Some are more focused on what has happened, how things went the way they did, what caused it and so forth. Others focus primarily on the future, how will I get there, what will I do once I am there and so on. I’d hazard to guess that most of us are somewhat in between. Me… I love both the past, as I am a big fan of history, and the future as I am always impatient to see what will happen.

But too rarely do I find myself in the actual present and it is a shame as I believe there is much to learn in those moments, about ourselves and the world around us. It is also a truly wonderful way to relax and just feel alive. Those odd times when I catch myself in the present moment are great. Today I was driving in my car and singing along loudly to the radio (yes, I was alone) and I had a moment of clarity when I realized that I wasn’t thinking about anything that had happened or what I was going to do when I reached my destination. Instead I was just cherishing that particular moment singing to my heart’s content, feeling the sun through the windshield, the noise from the open window and a having a big smile on my face.

Does that ever happen to you?

A good moment or five

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Sometimes it is easy to forget about all those little but immensely worthwhile moments that I come across on a daily basis. They are not always very obvious if I do not look for them. It is easy to get bogged down with everyday issues and whatnot that happens in our lives.

I could go on about the things that happened to me in work or at home today that I didn’t like or that annoyed or frustrated me  – and believe me I could probably stretch the list a bit, as could most. But… I will not. All that will achieve is making me miserable as I relive all that was wrong in my opinion. It will not solve anything nor will it make tomorrow easier.

What I want to express are the moments that made me smile today. The split seconds that are there to remind me that life is made up of moments and that it is I and I alone that decides which instances to focus on and take with me as memories of the day.

So today I will take with me:

• The embarrassed laugh from early this morning as I realised that I was so deep in my own sleepy world that I actually missed the elevator doors opening and closing again in front of me as I waited for it.
• The taste of the first coffee of the day as I sipped it together with a fresh croissant.
• Having a laugh with my colleagues about something mundane.
• Receiving a compliment for the perfume I am wearing.
• Laughing out load at the antics of the DJ’s on the radio when I was driving home and continuing having a smile on my face listening to good music being played.

I will end today with a smile because I choose to take with me the good moments of the day.

The joy of driving

Here I am, having had a driving license for the last 14 years and only very recently have I discovered that I absolutely love driving in my car. I have had a car before, it was nothing special. Well to be honest, it was a very boring car. It got me from A to B and that is about it. I never did understand the obsession that others (mainly male friends) had with cars and driving. I though it was silly.

Then came the moment when it was time to change my car. Previously my partner and I shared this one car but now he wanted one of his own and I decided that I would like one as well. Possible not the most economical choice in these times but I decided that I wanted to have a car that was just mine. I also knew that I did not want a boring car again. It took some time before I could narrow it down to a few different types. Taking away the ” ooh so nice but ooh so expensive” – ones and the “my grandmother would drive them” – ones and finally take away the typical “girly” – cars… shudder! I knew what I wanted; a car that is fun to drive, looks cool but not over the top and one that I could actually afford (which definitely narrowed it down). In the end I bought a second-hand Ford Puma. It’s not the car of my dreams but it has opened my eyes.

The minute I step into my Puma I feel happy and I relax. I listen to my favorite radio station in the mornings and then to some wicked music during the commute home or whenever I am out driving. I love the fact that the car is responsive and speedy. It is fun to drive and never fails to put a smile on my face. Oh, I know that many will say that the car is nothing special and that there are many other, better cars out there. That may be true but to me, right now, this is the car that has opened my eyes to the joy of driving and that beats a lot. Driving down the road, good tunes blasting from the speakers and (hopefully) the sun is shining – that is life. 🙂

Mmmmm… I think I will be off for a drive now. See you later, if you can catch me. 🙂