driven

I got this on my email. What to do this year. Have a fresh start. Try something different. Worth reading:

Relax, let go, let live
By Ruby de Vera
Philippine Daily Inquirer

1 Let go. Whatever it is you’ve been harboring—hate, disappointment, bitterness—let it go. Life will be a breeze without excess baggage.

2 Don’t think too much. Life is complicated enough for us to be analyzing every little thing. Sometimes we just have to take things at face value.

3 Stale air breeds bacteria. Introduce something new to your life. It doesn’t have to be drastic; just changing your daily routine can inject a fresh breath of air.

4 Get moving. Get off that couch and box the DVD player for a bit. Exercise produces endorphins, and endorphins are behind that happy feeling.

5 Make the first move. The first decade of the new millennium is about to end, so go ahead and ask out your crush. I promise you won’t die.

6 Face your fears—whether it’s eating balut, going on a roller-coaster ride or a clown.

7 Do something unselfish. Support your local church, the Breast Cancer Movement, Greenpeace, PAWS or whatever it is your heart feels closest to.

8 Don’t judge too quickly. First impressions are almost always wrong, anyway.

9 Focus on your priorities. We live in a world of instant gratification and materialism, it’s easy to lose sight of what’s really important. Decide what it is for you, and build the rest around it.

10 Lastly, read more. Why do we think the book is almost always way better than the movie? Because it’s our own interpretation, the way our mind sees the story. Read newspapers, books, nutrition labels, fine prints, etc. Being informed is always a good thing

Step out of the box!

Be a giddy kid again, travel alone and throw theme parties this 2008

Go on more dates

One of the best ways to feel good is to go out on dates more often. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re on the hunt for someone new if you’re single, or that you have to stick like glue to your significant other if you’re attached. Go on dates just for the sake of having fun. Don’t pressure yourself into fast-forwarding a relationship.

Go beyond the usual dinner-and-movie combination and look for new things to do. Hang out at a theme park, take cooking or dancing lessons together, go ice skating or spend a weekend volunteering for a cause.

Dress up more often

Don’t wait for special occasions to wear that dress you bought ages ago at the mall. If you’re holding out for a grand event to look good, keep in mind that it might never come.

Wear dresses for strolling around a park, or surprise your date by wearing a spiffy coat even if you’re just having dinner in a quiet restaurant. Try clothes in every imaginable color—purple, orange, butter yellow, lime green, periwinkle.

Throw theme parties

Growing up and getting older doesn’t mean you have to wear skimpy dresses and stodgy polo shirts to every party you attend. Once in a while, plan a theme party with your friends.

Pretend to be rock stars for a night, hold an under-the-sea soiree, see who still fit in their high school uniforms, or recreate prom night by wearing gowns and suits with your friends.

Indulge your inner child

While a couple of hours at the spa can help you relax, hanging out at the playground with a bunch of good friends is cheaper, sillier and definitely more memorable. See who can swing the highest, can last on the monkey bars for the longest time, or whose weight will be revealed on the see-saw.

Hop on the trampoline, play patintero or dive-bomb into the pool. Once in a while, ditch the gourmet chocolates and have a snow cone or some cotton candy.

Unplug the wires

When people start communicating to you by hand gestures and smoke signals, it’s time to unplug the wires and go for good old-fashioned fun.

Bring out the board games (virtual board games on your Wii console don’t count), tell scary stories with a flashlight pointed at your face, or just lug out a mat and go stargazing with your friends. Try to resist bringing your iPod dock, and just listen to them talk without distraction. Also, remember that you don’t have to blog about everything.

Eat healthier food

No wonder nursing schools keep sprouting up everywhere. Nowadays, everyone seems to be getting sick—whether it’s cancer or cholesterol buildup, people are flocking to the hospital in droves.

On the bright side, more restaurants are starting to offer healthy dishes. Take things a step further by enrolling in a cooking class, so you don’t have to eat out everyday for delicious and healthy meals.

Unearth a talent

There’s no day but today. If you feel that you harbor a talent that’s just waiting for the right moment to manifest itself, then do everything you can to bring out that talent.

Write something and have it published, audition for a play or enroll in a painting class. Find an alter-ego to counter an otherwise dull existence.

Start a blog if you don’t have one yet (and if you do, stop filling it with quiz results and incoherent rants and write something substantial) or just grab the videoke mic more often. Who knows, you just might end up surprising yourself in the year to come.

Learn a new language

Things always get lost in translation—just ask any foreign film aficionado or literature lover. Make an effort to learn a new language. It can be something practical (like Mandarin, if you’re into business and want to capture a portion of the humongous Chinese market) or romantic (like French, which you fell in love with after watching “Amelie”).

Also, keep in mind that when you travel to other places, not everyone speaks English (and very few will appreciate it when you start mouthing English words very slowly, as if it will make things easier to understand). Learning a new language will not only help you communicate with more people, but will help you appreciate your own as well.

Travel to new places by yourself

Make it a point to visit at least one new destination every year: it could be in a different continent, another country or even just a strange province that you’d never heard of before.

While you’re at it, try traveling alone. You’ll be thrown out of your comfort zone and probably be scared out of your wits half the time, but you’ll be forced to fend for yourself and in the process, discover things you never knew about yourself and the world.

Get that shot

While you’re out making the most of your year, don’t forget to take snapshots or take short videos. But at the same time, don’t be too engrossed in documenting your party or trip—remember to enjoy it first!

At the end of the year, compile your photos (not just on Facebook or Multiply) and make a scrapbook or photo album. Insert other mementos that are relevant to the photos, like movie tickets, candy wrappers or doodles on coffee shop napkins.

Or why not create a short film or music video from the photos and clips, and show it to your family and friends at the end of the year in a film showing, complete with popcorn?

Outdoors in 2008

By Irene C. Perez
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Last updated 05:17pm (Mla time) 01/08/2008

MANILA, Philippines - OK, so you have pretty much spent a fraction of last year playing video games or stalking your crush on Friendster, Multiply, Facebook, ad infinitum. Nothing’s exactly wrong with that, but it’s high time you wean yourself off your online life and give your computer a break. Get a high from the outdoors this year and let 2bU! guide you on how to rock 2008.

Travel

Make a list of target destinations, pool your friends and family and decide where and when to go. Take advantage of tour packages and airfare promos. Hit the beach, go camping, bungee-jump! Grab a friend, make a well-mapped out itinerary and backpack in an Asian country. If you have limited time and budget, explore the secrets of the city and explore Metro Manila. There are day tours in areas as accessible as Binondo and Intramuros. Go to the zoo, visit museums, roadtrip. Do yourself a favor and get off that seedy couch.

Pick up a new skill or craft

Try out lomography, learn how to cook or bake, enroll in short IT courses, knit, compile knickknacks into scrapbooks, maintain an aquarium. Honestly, when is the last time you did something really new?

Sport a new look

Guys usually go to the same barber, so chances are they have the same haircut in their grade-school, high-school and college yearbook. You don’t exactly have to sport a mohawk or dreadlocks, just try to be a little experimental. Try mousse, wax, mud, or clay instead of that omnipresent—and oily—hair gel. For girls, pick a new hair color, give oomph to your wardrobe with trendy accessories. Mix and match, don’t be too coordinated while still being comfy.

Be more active

Let the Beijing Olympics fever catch up on you. Try diving, surfing, mixed martial arts, wushu, football or futsal. Some gyms even offer adult ballet classes and striptease for fitness. For those who are too lazy or cash-strapped to enroll in a gym, jog for, say, 20 minutes thrice a week. You can also stock up on exercise videos (they have everything from belly dancing to those involving poodles) and work out at home.

Eat healthy

Cliché, but now that you have that coveted planner, it’s time to ease up on the coffee. Try tea for a new caffeine fix and fresh fruit shakes as energy drinks. The holidays are over so you can now do away with the booze and rich, fat-laden stuff. We’re not being diet Nazis here, the keyword is moderation. You can still have that bar of chocolate or bag of chips for 2008, just not daily.

Watch gigs

Sure, your mp3 player holds a gazillion songs, but nothing beats watching a great live act. Support the local music scene, and maybe meet a cute prospect in the process.

Read

The end of the “Harry Potter” series doesn’t have to signal the end of your reading habit. And we don’t just mean blogs. Fall in love with books. Indulge in the classics, poetry, contemporary fiction, bios, graphic novels. Scour second-hand and thrift bookstores for fab finds.

Be a volunteer

We can’t stress out the importance of helping others more. Even if you’re not a haciendera, even if you can’t donate blood by the liter, even if you yourself are having a bad time in the financial department, you can still help by lending service to those in need. And there are a lot. Find the group that appeals to you most and make sure to show up in outreach activities. Sign up with nongovernment orgs like PAWS, Hands On Manila, RockEd and Greenpeace and make volunteerism a byword.

Stop cramming

When it comes to chores, thesis, assignments, work, party planning, swimsuit shopping, practice the mantra, “The earlier, the better.” Trust us, you can make the most out of 2008 if you do things way before the deadline.

Save up

Set a portion of your allowance or paycheck in a savings account. Fight urges to buy stuff you don’t really need (do you really have to have another pair of shoes?) A good motivation is saving up for that coveted, pricey something—a PSP, kickass digicam, foreign trip. Hopefully by 2009, you have more than enough to reward yourself by buying that “prize” for a job well done!

Lust for life

MANILA , Philippines - The New Year is usually associated with fresh starts in life. Here are ways to become a better you this 2008.

Get organized. From your room to your financial accounts, from your everyday appointments to your dreams and goals, get rid of the mess and instead get everything clear and straight. It’s so much easier to think, move and be productive when your surroundings are clean, complete and in order.

Make space. Too many material things can be bad for the soul. Don’t fill your life with junk. Clear your closet, shelves and containers of extras and donate them instead to those who need the stuff. How can life give you the great things you actually need if it sees that there’s no room in your life for them because of all your overflowing junk?

Be passionate. Fall head over feet with other people: celebrities, strangers, officemates, family, children, animals. Be in awe of places and see as many of them as you can. Obsess over experiencing and trying everything at least twice. Subscribe strongly to beliefs and valiantly fight for them. Lust over life and everything it has to offer.

Be yourself. Know yourself even more this year and stop trying to be someone else. Why be the second best Beyoncé or Regine Velasquez when you can be the best you, right? Acknowledge your imperfections and accept yourself for who you are—pimples, athlete’s foot and all. But know that you can always make yourself better in a lot of aspects. Don’t just think about being better, do it.

Don’t waste time. Sure, smelling the sampaguita from time to time (or whatever flower) is a good suggestion. But with all the great things to accomplish, learn and discover, why would you want to take it slow or be plain lazy?

Be ambitious. Don’t just passively accept what life gives (or doesn’t give) you. Regularly come up with goals, from learning new things to accomplishing dreams. Make 2008 a great year by focusing on one amazing goal and making sure you accomplish it before the year ends.

Leave your comfort zone. Why settle for the safe and boring when you can go for the unknown? Trash shyness, self-doubt and failure phobia. Be pleasantly surprised with the things you can do, people you can meet and growth you can experience by stepping out of your comfort zone.

Prioritize people. Meet as many acquaintances and cultivate as many friendships as you can, but single out the truly special individuals and let them know how significant they are to you by being more vocal and expressive about your feelings. Make them a bigger part of your life and don’t be shy to just break that wall and let them in. On the other hand, recognize negative people surrounding you (backstabbing users, emotional vampires, jealous social climbers, etc.) and get them out of your life.

Love your body. Schedule regular pampering sessions such as full-body massages, invigorating facials and hot oil treatments the whole year. Look your best by choosing one type of sport that will get you addicted to it, to enable you to strengthen your body. Make sure everything you consume is good for your health.

Prepare for the future. Rocking 2008 can be a piece of cake, but while you’re at it, make sure 2009 will be an equally great or even greater year. Start that savings account now and make it grow instead of regularly touching it. Get insurance. Have an executive health checkup so you know the medical conditions that you need to address as early as possible, if there are any. And, at all times, be happy.