2013 and we are still here. Now what?

It’s the second week in January and lo and behold… the world did not end. Quelle surprise.

Instead it is the usual January blues with credit cards bills piling up, bleary eyed office workers turning up to work, off-licenses noticing a down-turn as the “white month” is in full swing and gyms bursting with sweaty new year’s resolutions.

It is a new year. Full with potential if you decide to grab hold and do more than just wish. For some it is a change of life-style, change of focus, change of perspective. For some it is yet another year of half-hearted resolutions given after too many glasses of champagne. Resolutions broken just as quickly as the bubbles dispersed.

I spent the last two weeks thinking about what I want for this year. What I would like this year to mean for me. I guess I got sick of always having more or less the same resolutions that always end up lasting until February (in a good year). Of course the whole “get fitter, work-out more often and regularly” is still very important but that is not a new year’s resolution. It is a life resolution and a very tough nut to crack. So yes, I will once again try.

Apart from that one then? What will be different from before? So I could focus on ensuring I reach my targets in work, lose weight, work-out (see above), eat healthily, try to make a positive difference in the world even if it is just a small one … but those are things I TRY to do all the time (not always successfully).

I think this year I will just go with a general wish of doing what makes me happy and to set goals as I go along. The road to achieving and reaching those goals is what matters.

Thinking about it… I have some amazing people in my life. People who inspire me. People who I care about deeply and unconditionally. People who care about me. With friends and family like that, what else can I wish for apart from spending time with those who matter to me?

The rest will follow naturally really – I will do my utmost to reach my targets in work so that I get the extra cash to see all. The work-out will follow as I need to improve fitness in order to be able to do the things I like with my friends and stay healthy. The weight-loss will slowly follow with the fitness and the healthy food follows the fitness (as I cannot eat crap when I have been working out, it just feels wrong). And if an action from me can put a smile on someone’s face and if an action somehow helps the betterment of this world then I have made a difference. I can wish for nothing more.

So there is my wish for 2013 and beyond. Happy New Year.

Act your age… or?

Age.

The other day the fire alarm went off in work. So down the stairs we went. I sit on the top floor. Taking the elevator back up was pointless, too many people queueing. So up the 6 floors we went once they let us in again. A person next to me was complaining that she was too old for this. I was laughing and saying “Don’t be silly, how old are you anyway?” The answer I got was “34”. I was shocked! This person seriously believed she was “older” and that this was too much. I am 36 and while I am no fan off taking the stairs in work, I also do not think that I am “too old” for it. Just a tad lazy.

This is not the first time that I have heard something like that. I remember a former colleague once going on about “at our age we should not be doing this or that”. She was the same age as me.

Many would argue, maybe correctly so, that society today puts a disproportionate focus on being young (read: 20) and that being young and “beautiful” is all the success you need. I do however also suspect that many use this as an excuse the other way around. “Oh poor me, I am no longer 22 so I cannot do this or that, don’t you understand? At our age (read: 30isch) we have to be careful and keep in mind our bodies cannot take it any more”.

It is a load of bull in my opinion.

Yes, I cannot handle hang-overs as well as I once could. Yes, my back is stiffer now than it was 15 years ago if I just sit around. Yes, I do seem to “heal” a bit slower as well. On the other hand, I am hardly THAT old.

While I sit here on the sofa I do not ache. The minute I stand up I notice that my back is sore, my legs hurt, my neck feels heavy and my throat is scratchy and sore. This is pretty easy to explain. I trained at the club on Thursday and also today. As an added bonus I am getting a cold and therefore have a sore throat.

I also feel great.

I enjoy physical activity better now at 36 than I did 15 years ago. I do not feel that my age is an obstacle any more than I did then.

While age is an inevitable fact and time will take its toll on our bodies, I believe that the biggest danger is our own mental age. Not our physical age. Sometimes the age lurks more in the mind than in the body. How is the old saying  again…. “You are only as old as you feel”… Otherwise we would not have 60-year olds that are perceived as”youthful” or perhaps a 40-something that seems ready for the last rites. Figuratively speaking.

Today I feel like I am 36 years old. I feel great. If this is being old, then it can only get better.

Balm for my soul

Walking for hours (not quite knowing where the path would lead) in fabulous surroundings, taking a few pictures, soaking up the fresh air and the sun… it does not get much better for the soul than that. This weekend gone by was like balm for my soul.

Last week a very good friend and I decided to go away for the weekend. We decided to go to the northwest of Ireland, to an area called County Donegal – specifically to a lovely place called Killybegs.

It was a fantastic weekend. I could most likely write for hours but instead I will share with you some highlights and most importantly some pictures of this beautiful place.

• The best little hotel in town Tara Hotel, highly recommended! Try to get a room with the view of the harbor – so you can see the fishing boats go out at night and come back early morning.
• The seafood chowder… ohh soo good!
• Sheep… lots of sheep…
• Stillness – only disturbed by those cheeky seagulls.
• A perfectly calm sea (just a few ripples caused by a few hungry seals).
• Sea mist that slowly lifted, sunshine and hardly a breeze.
• Absolutely beautiful views.

 

The harbor in Killybegs:

The beauty about being here off-season is that we hardly saw any other walkers/hikers around. Just a few locals and plenty of sheep (one was even leading us for quite some time)

The nearby Slieve League Cliffs are a must visit and absolutely stunning. The sea mist came and went but never fully lifted in the sunshine.

So 407.3 miles by car, several hours by foot and two fantastic days – makes one great weekend. The only bad thing was that it ended too quick. So for the next trip away it will have to be a two nights stay. Can’t wait!

 

 

 

 

Scatterbrain

It feels weird. For the first time in ages my work week has not been full on busy. I have actually had time to feel…

wait for it…

… a bit BORED!

Wow. As in really?

Today I actually caught myself procrastinating – well mainly because I have this one thing I need to get done that is immensely tedious and now that I actually have the time… So before I actually made myself start this tedious task,  I cleaned my desk, organized the drawers, had numerous important “meetings” with colleagues over coffee (hey, social/professional networking IS important you know!) and gone through old behavioral/social/personality tests that I have taken throughout the last 2 years in work ( I just LOVE those!!). I have a thing for those tests.

So yeah, have been a bit of a scatterbrain today. But hey, it is not like I normally have time for it so I actually did cherish it.

Just one day left of the work week and then it is weekend. I am tremendously looking forward to relaxing this weekend. Am going away to the northwest of Ireland with a friend. Looking forward to just being outside in rugged and beautiful scenery. Hoping to be able to take some pictures as well as getting some decent walks in … so please, please dear weather-gods, do not make it rain buckets! I don’t think I have looked forward to a weekend away this much in ages. Yes it will most likely be freezing (it is February after all) but I really do not care.

Am hoping that I will have a few more moment over in the future so that I can post here a bit more often. In the mean time, please feel free to drop into Living 3703 as a new picture is posted there by Christy and myself every day this month!

Merry Christmas!

Image by paparutzi via Flickr

I was just about to sit down on the sofa and put on a Christmas film when I realized that part from this very moment, I really will have no time for blogging at all before Christmas.

The work laptop is shut down for now – ready to get fired up again tomorrow morning at the crack of dawn. I have a million and one things I want sorted before Christmas (and no, not all is work related).

I am looking forward to a relaxing Christmas weekend with friends (and small children, whom I will feed Bailey’s so that they have a nice long snooze… shhhhhh don’t tell their mum… oh and if she “happens” to read this – it was the evil muse who wrote it, not me… never). Then some more work and then a relaxing New Year’s Eve with friends (at this stage I will most likely be comatose and fall asleep before midnight but let’s pretend I am a party animal this day).

Anyhoo, before I loose the thread completely (or my mind, not sure which is most likely) I just wanted to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a fantastic New Years!!! MUAH!!!!

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.”

Taking pictures in the rain

Autumn has most definitely arrived in Dublin. The rain has not stopped since yesterday afternoon and the trees are still showing off their leaves. The world is looking colourful. It is beautiful.

Now those who know me, will know that rain is not one of my favorite things in the world. Normally I spend rainy days under a blanket, planted on my sofa with a good book and cup of tea. However today I decided to go outside and take a few pictures before the next autumn storm will scatter all the leaves and just leave us with bare branches for the next few months.

I readily admit that I do not know a thing about photography. If you start talking to me about ISO, white noise and shutter speed settings you will just receive a blank stare from me (you might get that on other occasions as well but lets not go into that…). Which also means that half the settings on my camera are a mystery to me.

You see, the thing is… I spent an afternoon a while back looking at old pictures. I used to only take pictures of people – different gatherings and parties and so forth (if I remembered to bring the camera in the first place). I still love those pictures because they bring back fun memories. However I realized that I hardly ever take pictures of what is around me. It is easy to take all that for granted.

Another thing I have realized lately is that there is beauty to be found everywhere. If you only open your eyes and look. There is enough ugliness in the world as it is – let us not spend our days trying to find more to add to the pile unnecessarily.

So out I went with my umbrella in one hand and my camera in the other – getting strange looks from people hurrying past me as the rain kept lashing down. I can honestly say, I had a great time.

Now… I think I will find that blanket, grab a book and a cup of tea and relax on my sofa.

 

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

Shot of the day

I was wandering around my apartment today, taking a break from work, when I laid my eyes on this sign which hangs in my hallway. I felt it is my duty to share this message with you so out the camera came.

Have a great Friday all!

Senses and images.

The last two weeks have passed really, really fast and I am once again back in Dublin. I have had a great time in Sweden and could write a long detailed account about all the good times, hysterical laughs, great conversations, lively discussions, divine wines drunk and fabulous food eaten… but… I decided not to. Instead I will focus on what tickled my senses and share a few photos with you.

Because it is easy to just write down a point by point description of what I did but this was a holiday that I tried to experience with all my senses. In a way that really relaxed me and did what it was supposed to do – recharge me. So I will try to do my best to convey this to you. If I fail, well then at least you will know one thing… it still was a fabulous holiday!

Laughs with my brother. The smell of paint in the summer air. The sun warming in my back as I work away. Muscles aching in the evening. Feeling relaxed.

The scent of freshly cut grass. The adrenaline when I nearly keeled over – lawn mover go-kart…

That first taste of a cold beer after a day outside. The divine smell from the BBQ.

The sense of calm in the forest. Seeing the light filtering through the trees. The peace all around.

The amazing scent of fir trees after a warm summer shower.

The sweet taste of wild strawberries.

The belly aching laughs when playing Kinect with my sister and brother. The groans of embarrassed despair when seeing the recordings of said gameplay.. (and forget it, NOT sharing those.. ).

The beauty of all the many small lakes dotted between the trees. Sinking into warm still water as the sun sets. The faint sound of buzzing insects.

The smell of the salty ocean. The laughter from children running into the water. Sand between my toes. The sun warming my tummy. The intoxicating scent of sun-kissed skin. Feeling the world slowly tuning out as my eyes get heavy and I snooze in the sun.

The smooth taste from a 10yr old Tullamore Dew single malt. Feeling thoughtful, happy and content in the evening sun.

Calm sea. Not even a breeze to be felt. Distant cries from seagulls echo across the water.

Walking through Ale forest along the coast. A bird sanctuary can be found in a small swamp. The green colours are amazing. The buzzing and blood sucking mosquitoes are not as amazing. The itching bites are annoying but still… part of summer.

The food… oh the fabulous food. Every bite to be savored. Taste bud heaven.

The stormy spray of sea mist. The wind blowing through my hair. Giggles as we try to get at least one pic we both can live with.

A cold beer in the sun…

Image via Wikipedia

In this particular moment I am sitting on my balcony in my sun-chair with my laptop in my lap (obviously –  as I have yet to invent telepathic blogging…working on it though). I have a cold beer (German pilsner) next to me and let me tell you… it is oh so good! The sun is shining, there is not a cloud in the sky and the temperature is hovering around 25 c in the shade. Can it get any better than this??

It is a bank holiday weekend, meaning that all are off on Monday as well. As we do not get this sort of weather often in Ireland our managers in work decided that we could all leave at 3pm to enjoy the sun and to have a great long weekend. This month will be mad busy in work so they basically told everyone to go home and chill while we can. Yep… it is a pretty decent job that I have, even though it can drive me mad at times.

Tomorrow I will head into the Wicklow Mountains with a friend and go for day of hiking. Ending it with a night in a B&B before heading back to Dublin. The weather forecast looks promising and I am really looking forward to it. Will hopefully remember to take some pictures and maybe put together a post later on – provided I have not gotten lost and am halfway to Galway or something… with my sense of direction anything can happen.

It has been a pretty good week altogether. Busy in work but not mentally… yet. Attended a course yesterday called “Emergenetics”. Not sure if anyone of you ever have heard of it or done it but it was great fun. Basically it is about finding out your preferences and certain behaviours etc. It was pretty awesome. It helps in seeing why some people react the way they do and makes you understand others that you work with easier. I am not going to go through my results here. All I will say is that according to my profile my emergenetics motto is: “Efficiency with feeling”… LOL!!

I will continue to catch some rays now and try to get a somewhat resemblance off a tan. Living in Ireland means that you must take every available opportunity there is to get some sun. I was supposed to clean my apartment but there is no way I am doing that right now. Hope you all have a great weekend wherever you are!