Annoyed

I'm very annoyed today. Stupid people are everywhere.

I think that's the biggest problem for evolution to solve. If natural selection were really that good, shouldn't it have eliminated all the stupid people already???

Blah.

The Art of Contentment-- Part II

The building where I work

Maybe it's just the novelty of it all and it will wear off in a few days. Or maybe it's because I have a nice office all to myself, and a coffee-maker at the reach of my hands and a comfy chair with wheels that I can spin around in. (yes, I'm a child).

It may also be because I get to read interesting papers all day, and even edit papers written by old professors (now I'm the one with the red pen! REVENGE!! hehe!).

But I'm actually enjoying myself at work. :)

My office

The view from my window... 

If you look carefully you can see a German flag on the right side of the building... 

The art of contentment...

... being content (for more than 5 seconds) is possibly the hardest thing to achieve.

In a way, it's a very good thing and serves a specific purpose. It pushes us forward and makes us move off our butts and get stuff done.

But on the other hand, it kinda sucks that the moment you achieve what you were trying to do for so long, you enjoy it for the above mentioned 5 seconds, and then move on to something else, never being satisfied with what you have.

Being human sucks sometimes...

Moving again...

Theologische Hochschule Friedensau Alte Schule

So I'm moving again. In a few days I will be arriving at Friedensau University in Germany, where I will be for at least a year, hopefully more.

I was talking to some friends about the fact that here I am, picking up and moving again, leaving behind friends and family again, and having to start all over again, again. "Isn't it tiring?" they asked me. "Yes, in a way. But you get used to it." I answered.

The truth is, I'm not sure you get used to the leaving part... it's always sad to leave your friends behind and not know when you'll see them again. I'm going to miss some of them terribly (and you know who you are...). But at the same time you never get quite used to the leaving part, you get kind of addicted to the arriving part. It's always exciting and fun to see where you're going to live next, and the people you're going to meet, and the things you're going to do and learn...

Today I ran across a quote that kinda sums it up for me:

“So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure.


The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.”

~Chris McCandless*



*If you haven't seen the movie "Into the Wild", watch it!!! Or even better, read the book!!! 

Fears are stupid!!

Last year, almost exactly a year ago, I was blogging about confusing embassy/immigration department information, and what ultimately led me to decide NOT to request the visa to go to Germany. (You can read those blogs here)I've had issues with visas before, and now I dread them. So I decided to not even try, and just go back to Buenos Aires.

Now I finally faced my fears and plunged head first into the paperwork... and it worked! I'm leaving in 36hrs!!! If I hadn't succumbed to my fears a year ago, I would've been in Germany already... but at the same time, all the places I visited and all the things I did in the last year, I wouldn't have done, so it's all good. :)

The point is, Fears are Stupid. And now I'm moving to Germany!! YEY!!!

The simple joys in life...

The terrace of Quimbombó

It's a beautiful, sunny day in Buenos Aires. A little bit chilly, but then again, it's winter.

I like sunny winter days. I love walking around a city I know well, and enjoying the cool air, the warm sunshine, the general good mood of a Sunday afternoon.

To enjoy this even more fully, there's nothing better than to have a delicious lunch of some amazing Indian food, while sitting on a terrace and watching the world go by. Oh, and let's not forget the incredible "Tropic Ginger" drink, which is made up of orange juice, maracuya juice, ginger, and mint leaves. I had never tried it before, but will definitely be making some of that at home! It's yummy!!

You may be thinking that I'm getting paid, or at least getting a discount to write about this place (pictured above), but I'm not. I'm just in a good mood, with the sun, and the great food, and the peaceful atmosphere... so I thought I'd share, in case any of you happens to be in (or coming to) Buenos Aires and needs a good meal and a place to relax. :)

But the actual point of this post (yes, there was one!) was to say that moods are so random, we should learn to manage them better. And the easiest way I've found to manage mine, is to evoke those simple joys, like food, coffee, a good book, ice cream, and pretty much anything that makes you smile. :)

Playing with Fire...

Part I- I should really start planting a whole forest now, to make up for the possibility of my ever having a house with a fireplace. I would live in front of the fire and never ever set foot outside the house, unless it was to get more wood. :s  Yes, I'm a bad person.

Part II- "When you play with fire, you end up burning yourself." --> That's only if you don't know the rules of the game... I love to play with fire. :)

A Dangerous Life

I just started reading a book, and on the first page it says:

"To all those who lead monotonous lives in the hope that they may experience at second hand the delights and dangers of adventure."


I am glad that I can honestly say that book was not dedicated to me. :)

Random things going through my head this moment...

- Learning languages was always easy for me. I just need people to speak to me in that language all the time, for 2 or 3 months. Why is it that nobody around here speaks German? Damn it!

- I always wanted to write a book. I really think I could invent an interesting story to captivate people's attention. My only fear is that the end would suck and people would be disappointed... but maybe I should try. Someday.

- Who the hell invented/created hairless cats? It's an abomination. Poor things. I get that cat hair all over the place is kind of annoying, but caressing their fur is awesome! And hairless cats are u.g.l.y.

- If Brazil doesn't win that game tomorrow, I'm gonna vomit on the tv set and make sure it never works again.

- We're all humans!!! Borders should be dissolved, never to rise again. It would solve all the wars, wouldn't it? (yes, I can dream...)

===> and yes, all those things started going through my head as I was writing them. That's the product of randomly firing neurons. Who can guess what they'll come up with next? I certainly can't.

The grass is always greener...?

or is it?

Why do we always say that the grass is greener on the other side? Why do we always want something different than what we have? Why do we keep wanting more, and more and more, never satisfied?

I think part of it is just human nature. We have to aspire to something. We have to want to get somewhere, otherwise we'd end up depressed and useless, with nothing to do, because we wanted nothing.

That's a good thing, as long as it's within the boundaries of sanity and not "I want the moon, and I just have to have it!!" :) hehe

But maybe, just maybe... sometimes it may very well be that the grass really is greener on the other side.