Pillows and such...

I've been thinking a lot about the whole concept of "home" lately. I've lived in so many places, so many different countries, continents, houses, apartments, and traveled to so many more, that I could honestly not count the amount of beds I've slept on or the number of pillows I've laid my head on at night.

There are people who can't sleep well if they're not in their own bed. That never really happened to me. I'm so used to being homeless, that whenever asked "Where is home?" I usually answer "wherever I lay my head at night..." That's been true for the last 12 years, at least.

It's funny, because when I was a kid, I wanted to live in Brasilia my whole life. I always wanted to travel and see the world, but I had never considered living elsewhere... Brasilia is where I was born, and where I grew up. The weather is wonderful, the scenery is beautiful, there's a lot of natural beauty around and plenty of places to explore outside the city. The city itself is quite small for a capital, and I know it better than the palm of my own hand. I know it so well that you can probably take a random picture of any corner of the city, show it to me, and I can tell you exactly where it is. No joke. For the first half of my life, it was definitely "home".

It lost the title of "home" when I moved away and discovered that there were other places in this world where I felt more at home than there. Places where I "fit" better, although I've started to discover that maybe it's more due to the fact that I'm as adaptable as a chameleon, than to the actual environment around me. But during the last 12 years, I had gone to the other extreme and said that I definitely did NOT want to live there.

However, I don't know if it's because I'm growing old (yes, happens to the best [and the worst] of us), or because I've grown tired of change, or simply because the weather is getting to me and I miss the warmth of the sun on my skin... but lately everytime I think of "home", Brasilia comes to mind. Ironic, isn't it?

Does the prodigal son always come home? Will there be a party if he does?

...Something to think about...

Expectations...

I realized something today... well, no, that's not exactly right. I had thought of this before. "This" being the fact that you can only be disappointed and get annoyed at people when you have expectations from them. Today I experienced it.

I was annoyed at someone because I had expected them to do something, which they did not. Then all of a sudden, it wasn't that I stopped to think about it or anything, it just came to my mind "but why did I expect them to do that anyway? There's no specific need for it, or rule saying they should. So if I don't have a specific reason to expect them to do it, I don't have a valid reason to be annoyed by the fact they didn't do it." That synopsis took only a split second in my brain, and just like that, my annoyance vanished.

I was kind of astonished that all it took was that split-second realization...

Sometimes we can un-complicate our own lives without even trying... just by adjusting our thinking and our attitudes towards something.

It was a good day. :)

p.s.: and I just realized that my last post was titled "annoyed". However, that was a different situation, I was annoyed at stupid people who did things wrong or not at all, when they were paid to do it. It was a work thing, and since I had to fix what they had done wrong, or do what they hadn't done, I was completely right to be annoyed...

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. :)