ABC - The Blog

So they say Danes are generally quite introverts, but you need to see them during Distortion. It's a 5-day celebration with street parties that start from around 2pm and end with night parties. This is like THE time of the year for them, and they seriously get distorted. Things get crazy, and I mean...craaazy. Constant drinking,  crowd surfing, reckless dancing, weird dress ups, and so much more. Apparently it's also a thing to open a beer can and just throw it high up in the air. You won't look at it or where it falls if you're like a 'baws'.

So the first day, we had just arrived and a group of drunk Danes skål'ed at me (cheered) with a beer, and my response was "I can't skål, I have no beer yet". Within seconds, he takes out a beer glass bottle from his jacket, opens the bottle cap with his teeth and gives me the beer. "Have a nice day" he says. Cool, free beer with some extra saliva. Won't complain.

The second day, after the street parties ended, an unofficial party followed after a guy on a bike, playing club-loud music...from his bike...from his tablet. There must have been over 100 people gathered around the bike and strolling the streets, hands pumping in the air and head bobbing with the rhythm of some of the classic and modern songs.

Meanwhile in Denmark...heh.

Lastly, since I have a pre-historic, vintage mobile, I do not have any photos that I would have liked to take. But there are some here and here, from their official page.

I have been dormant for a long time, and even neglected my own philosophies...shameful. However I am finding myself again and here I will write about a theory that I've had in mind since around 4 years ago, that is nice to know, be aware of and could help with understanding and possibly reacting in certain situations.

What I want to talk about is the difference between happiness and contentedness. Now 'happy' and 'content' are both synonyms according to the dictionary, however I would like to distinguish between the two.

Contentedness can be seen as a standard of living but in regard to the pleasant 'state' of your life. Generally rich people would have a high level of contentedness while poor people find themselves quite the opposite. However, they do say that rich people are (sometimes) not happy despite the money, while poor people can be happier. This is where 'happiness' comes in.

In this context, I like to associate the term happiness closer to excitement, a temporarily good feeling that is greater than your previous feeling. Happiness is a change of contentedness towards the better. Now this gets interesting when we picture these two terms in some charts to visualize the idea.

First, we look at a very content person and a very non-content one. The chart shows the level of contentedness against time, so far so good.

I'd like to share ideas and concepts I learned on how to live the life, by writing a few blogs on them. I can say that these have made a massive change (improvement) to my life, and that's the reason for my willingness to share.

Please be patient to read this. The first blog is about the importance of a To-Do list.

What?
By a To-Do list, I'm referring a list of actions that one has done and other actions that one must still do (also known as 'Things to do before I die'). I cannot emphasize enough the importance of having such a list, and I wish to inspire people about this, although in no way imposing it.

Why?

• Motivation: You want to complete as many items from your list as you can. You know what you want to achieve since they are more tangible now when you see them in a list. You are thus motivated to seek opportunities that you know will get you to complete one or more items from your list.
  
• Willingness: Similar to above but still important to mention seperately. This refers to those times where you are given some opportunity and you are undecided. You fear possible consequences, or afraid of something else. "What should I do?", "What if...". If however you know you will accomplish one item from your list if you take the chance, you will be more willing to go ahead. And you'll be surprised at how many things you'll find yourself saying "Wow, good thing that I decided to go for it".
  
• Accomplishment: Seeing the small and big things that you've already done and others that you're slowly achieving with time gives a really good feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction. You are feeling the productivity in your life.
  
• Confidence: Related to accomplishment, seeing the things you've completed is a good source of self-confidence and self-esteem. Don't compare to other people, just see that you've actually done satisfying things and that you can go on doing more.
• Change: If this actually makes you sad due to having a small list of completed things, it could either be because you're taking smaller things for granted or because you're missing on opportunities. Think about those two. For the latter, sometimes you need to push yourself to do something you consider a little crazy. That gives a good feeling that you can achieve things...because you really can! If the things seem too hard to achieve, put smaller things that you can achieve quicker. Stupid example: "Owning a nice mercedes". You can add "Acquiring the Driving License" and "Owning my first car.".
  

1. You can use a simple paper and pen to write your things to do, or you can use notepad or a spreadsheet on a PC. In a spreadsheet you got better searching and sorting.
2. Start by writing down all the things that you've already accomplished and that gave you even a small feeling of satisfaction. Mark these as done. Examples: Travelling on a plane; Going on your first date; Found your first job.
   
3. Now add your dreams that you wish to achieve in the future. These are usually big dreams. Be creative and know what you really want, but don't overdo it with the impossible. Examples: Owning a particular car; Travelling to a particular continent;
4. Next, and very importantly, add more smaller things that you wish to do or achieve in the nearer future. This is somewhat a little harder than above, because it is in our nature to dream big and take smaller things for granted. However, these small things are necessary for the motivation and self-confidence needed to step closer to our bigger dreams. Examples: Graduating; Get your driving license;
   
5. As time goes by, be sure to keep your list updated by marking things you've done and adding newer things.
   

• It's okay to add items that are inclusive in others. For example, you can have both "Visitting America" and "Visitting all continents". Bonus satisfaction can never harm.
  
• You can add "dynamic" items that change with time, such as "Travelled to # different countries".
• Feel free to add comments near an item you just marked as complete; comments such as date and place of completion, etc...
• Avoid adding things that obstacle or destroy other's freedom (such as, uhm...killing a person? Leave that for a computer game).

• Life achievements: Graduation, first job, first date, marriage, first divorce (just kidding)...
  
• Sports: Archery, abseiling, bicycle trips, darts, hot air balloon, skiing...
• Events: Boat party, foam party, Oktoberfest, Tomatina...
• Travelling: Going abroad, camping & hiking, route 66 on motorbike, visitting a particular or all continents...
• International landmarks: Eiffel tower, Great Wall of China, pyramids in Egypt...
• Crazier things: ...better left unmentioned.
  

[a facebook perspective]

They make students...

• fill in and publish random friend-tagging chain notes on facebook because they're bored or frustrated
  
• vent their anger and frustration in their facebook status
• angrily emphasize themselves staying inside to work rather than going out
• upload random photos claiming it's due to being bored from work
• actually marry their tasks...according to facebook relationship status
• create facebook groups about the frustration of assignments or assignment-related topics
• join above mentioned groups
• join other already-existing facebook groups that reflect the good things about life that the students are currently missing
  
• add facebook applications for countdowns
• ...observe all above mention things and write a blog about it (): )
  

We all are made to think Scan Malta sells PC and other electronic components, but is that true?

Firefox revealed their true enterprise: