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Winter is slowly getting there where one would expect it to be (for Norway at least): after a false start having the first snow falling only in December instead of October/November (and then disappearing completely before Xmas!!), there was ‘some’ snow early January and a little bit more last weekend.

But, that will all change as the weather forecast predicts a snowy weekend and temperatures going from -2C tomorrow to -20C (!) by the end of this week…bbrrrrrrr!!

A good time to change the blog header graphic from the foggy autumn picture, to these *beautiful* ice crystals…HA, let it freeze, let it freeze, let it freeze!

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You might have seen this Youtube clip before, it has been on the Net for some years (it ended 2nd in the AARP U@50 Challenge on Youtube in 2008).

‘Lost Generation’ is a poem written by Jonathan Reed, just watch it and ask yourself: ‘which generation do you belong in?’

BE inspired!

The full text:

I am part of a lost generation
and I refuse to believe that
I can change the world
I realize this may be a shock but
“Happiness comes from within.”
is a lie, and
“Money will make me happy.”
So in 30 years I will tell my children
they are not the most important thing in my life
My employer will know that
I have my priorities straight because
work
is more important than
family
I tell you this
Once upon a time
Families stayed together
but this will not be true in my era
This is a quick fix society
Experts tell me
30 years from now, I will be celebrating the 10th anniversary of my divorce
I do not concede that
I will live in a country of my own making
In the future
Environmental destruction will be the norm
No longer can it be said that
My peers and I care about this earth
It will be evident that
My generation is apathetic and lethargic
It is foolish to presume that
There is hope.

And all of this will come true unless we choose to reverse it.

Just read this text and then, read it again in reverse.

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Dr. Ana M Guzman: “I decided not to let my past rule my future so I decided to change my present in order to open up my future.”

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Martine has her Birthday today, which for the past four years automatically means that there are TWO Birthdays to celebrate: Happy Birthday to both my sister and my nephew Tygo!!

They celebrated both Birthdays last Sunday and I was glad to be in NL and able to personally give hugs, kisses and presents!

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OK, topic of 2012 is obviously change, a continuing process that never stops and only accelerates…

One does not need to think hard to realize this, here are some eye-opening funny pictures that illustrate it:

(click to enlarge)
 

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It has been an intense weekend in NL, and while it was fantastic to see and hold Misha again, leaving him and Kissy behind does more to me than I expected…there is a part of me still there…

It was VERY nice to feed Misha his first ‘solid’ food, an apple (of course, Apple fan as I am!! ), or at least we *tried* to feed him an apple; he didn’t eat too much of it as the apple was probably a bit too sour judging from his face…oops!

(you don’t notice that on the picture below though, sweet angel that he is!!)

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Welcome back NL!! Duh…it is pretty stormy outside, yet quiet ‘inside’ on this Saturday evening…the realization that life IS and sometimes you need to ‘Just Breathe‘ and continue on the path of Life.

Take a moment to listen to the music and lyrics of this great Song of the Day; Pearl Jam with Just Breathe!

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I am in NL this weekend…GREAT to see Misha!! He is doing good; still the same, yet SO different…the big little wonder grew a lot in just 11 days, he is trying to speak, although all that comes out is babbling (I am sure that is gonna change!) and he still no hair. (and yes, I am sure that is gonna change too …a LOT of changes these days…)

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Neale Donald Walsch: “What you hope, you will eventually believe. What you believe you will eventually know. What you know, you will eventually create. What you create, you will eventually experience. What you experience, you will eventually express. What you express, you will eventually become. This is the formula for all of life.”

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Max Frisch: “Time does not change us. It just unfolds us.”

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After Blue Monday comes…Sunny Tuesday!!

And indeed, the sun shined today and when the sun shines, people tend to laugh more!

Some colleagues at work where having fun with ‘Bubba J‘ (biography) today, ‘he’ is one of the characters played by ventriloquist Jeff Dunham. He is a beer-drinking redneck that is often described as ‘white trash trailer park’.

Bubba Junior has two things he loves: his country, his beer, and NASCAR. When asked what he does all day, his response is “Watching NASCAR and drinkin’ BEER!”, and also; “Do you have a drinking problem” is responded with: “Nah, I have it pretty much figured out!”, or; “What is your favorite beer?”…”An open one!”.

So, BE prepared for some simple straightforward Southern US humor that will definitely make you laugh, thanks to the craftsmanship of Jeff Dunham!

Btw. most will know Jeff as the guy behind Achmed the Dead Terrorist. Check ‘m out as those clips are fantastic too! (and a good follow-up after watching Bubba J)

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Today I saw many messages (Facebook and elsewhere) mentioning ‘Blue Monday’…I wasn’t familiar with this concept, but am now (thx Wikipedia ).

So, Blue Monday is a date declared to be the most depressing day of the year and has its own formula:

W = weather, d=debt, T=time since Christmas, Q=time since failing our new year’s resolutions, M=low motivational levels, N_a=the feeling of a need to take action and ’D’ is not defined.

Hmm, as the weather ‘W’ is pretty ok for the time of year, my dept ‘d’…well, no comment , the time since Xmas ‘T’ is out of my control anyway (and steadily growing by one day everyday!),  I don’t ‘do’ New Years resolutions ’Q', motivation level ‘M’ could be better, but the need to take action ‘N_a‘ is very high, the formula would come close to zero for me!!

Blue Monday originally started as the Monday of the last full week in January, but has now shifted to be the third Monday of January being today.

Thought you might wanted to know a bit more about this ‘Blue Monday’ thingy.

bluemonday.org is a site dedicated to this phenomenon and they suggest to make someone happy on a Monday in January. They’ll be highlighting many of your happy moments on their site, so if you are feeling blue, check it out!

Alternatively, you can wait until for the happiest day of the year. The same person who calculated Blue Monday, also did the ‘math’ for the Happiest Day of the Year which has been close to Midsummer so far.

And obviously, since we are all creators of our own happiness, so forget everything ‘earthy’ that is occupying and bothering you…SMILE…and feel the happiness coming in!! (even if it is ‘just’ for one moment, that moment counts!!)

Njoy!

PS. Please note that some links in this blogpost link to Wikipedia and if you are reading this on January 18 2012, those links will not work; Wikipedia is going black that day to protest against the Stop Online Piracy Act and the PROTECT IP Act.

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Willa Cather: “There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm.”

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I came back from NL with some very interesting books.

My reading list for the coming period:

- Neale Donald Walsch – When Everything Changes, Change Everything

- Paulo Coelho – Aleph

- Steve Jobs – The Biography

- Paulo Coelho – The Alchemist: A Graphic Novel

In total close to 1500 pages (200 in cartoons)…those and the numerous pages of the Book of Life as it unfolds give me enough to read for now!

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It is Friday night and I have a quiet weekend coming up; time to rest, reflect, get stuff done and let things be.

The Song of the Day relates to my mood and is a perfect kick-off for this weekend: Snow Patrol with Chasing Cars…FANTASTIC, enjoy!!

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