Kerr's Universe

Something about the hols

Many people often say about how commercialised many of our holidays have become - Valentine day, Mother & Father Day, Christmas etc etc. Many would also say how these days are marketing gimmicks of vendors and retailers. While I do not disagree with these broad statements and indeed, vendors & retailers capitalised greatly on such occasions to make a "killing", I would also like to offer another perspective on the importance of such 'festives'.

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The modern urbanites are often caught in the vicious rat race of this materialistic and realistic world. There ain't many who would voluntarily slow down their pace, simply to "smell the roses", for fear of losing out to the person next to them. Thus, such commercialised occassions have come to become an important necessity.

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The fact that such occassions are heavily capitalised by retailers and the commercial world would meant that it would be greatly publicised and marketed. The result is that people has come to be very well acquainted with that to the extent that its celebration cannot be missed out, else it might mean an unfillal son/daughter or a non-caring boyfriend/girlfriedn etc etc. Of course, you important other half or parents might not say something directly about it, but there's this expectation that one would do something special on this day.

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You might defend ground and say that in the case of a spouse or boyfriend/girlfriend should be understanding of the rigorous requirements, stressful working demands and long working hours that most face these days and thus might not be able to celebrate such occassions and one should not join the bandwagon simply becos other are celebrating. However, I beg to differ. I believe career is just another aspect of life, just like your relationship. Each of them are just as important to the individual self as the totality of all these aspect made up the person. While one is heavily pursuing one aspect of his life, he should not neglect the other areas.

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The positive aspects of such heavily publicised event is that it has the effect of forcing people to slow down their pace, to plan something special for his other half, for people important to them, to relight the flames that have been left smoothering for the rest of the year. While it should have been a daily affair to show care and concern and to make everyday special to those important to you, I guess so doing only on special occasions can be considered the barest of the bare minimum. Thus, this is how I see such "commercialised" occasions.

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Do slow down and smell the roses, my friends, before they are gone...forever.

What tree are you???

A fren of mine just put this inside her blog. Look really interesting. Take a look. Mine's pretty accurate.

YOUR DATE OF BIRTH:

Dec 23 to Jan 01 - Apple Tree

Jan 01 to Jan 11 - Fir Tree

Jan 12 to Jan 24 - Elm Tree

Jan 25 to Feb 03 - Cypress Tree

Feb 04 to Feb 08 - Poplar Tree

Feb 09 to Feb 18 - Cedar Tree

Feb 19 to Feb 28 - Pine Tree

Mar 01 to Mar 10 - Weeping Willow Tree

Mar 11 to Mar 20 - Lime Tree

Mar 21 (only) - Oak Tree

Mar 22 to Mar 31 - Hazelnut Tree

Apr 01 to Apr 10 - Rowan Tree

Apr 11 to Apr 20 - Maple Tree

Apr 21 to Apr 30 - Walnut Tree

May 01 to May 14 - Poplar Tree

May 15 to May 24 - Chestnut Tree

May 25 to Jun 03 - Ash Tree

Jun 04 to Jun 13 - Hornbeam Tree

Jun 14 to Jun 23 - Fig Tree

Jun 24 (only) - Birch Tree

Jun 25 to Jul 04 - Apple Tree

Jul 05 to Jul 14 - Fir Tree

Jul 15 to Jul 25 - Elm Tree

Jul 26 to Aug 04 - Cypress Tree

Aug 05 to Aug 13 - Poplar Tree

Aug 14 to Aug 23 - Cedar Tree

Aug 24 to Sep 02 - Pine Tree

Sep 03 to Sep 12 - Weeping Willow Tree

Sep 13 to Sep 22 - Lime Tree

Sep 23 (only) - Olive Tree

Sep 24 to Oct 03 - Hazelnut Tree

Oct 04 to Oct 13 - Rowan Tree

Oct 14 to Oct 23 - Maple Tree

Oct 24 to Nov 11 - Walnut Tree

Nov 12 to Nov 21 - Chestnut Tree

Nov 22 to Dec 01 - Ash Tree

Dec 02 to Dec 11 - Hornbeam Tree

Dec 12 to Dec 21 - Fig Tree

Dec 22 (only) - Beech Tree

YOUR TREE (in alphabetical order, not in the order given above):

APPLE TREE (Love) -- Quiet and shy at times, lots of charm, appeal, an attraction, pleasant attitude, flirtatious smile, adventurous, sensitive, loyal in love, wants to love and be loved, faithful and tender partner, very generous, many talents, loves children, needs affectionate partner.

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ASH TREE (Ambition) -- Extremely attractive, vivacious, impulsive, demanding, does not care for criticism, ambitious, intelligent, talented, likes to play with fate, can be very egotistic, reliable, restless lover, sometimes money rules over the heart, demands attention, needs love and much emotional support.

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BEECH TREE (Creative) -- Has good taste, concerned about its looks, materialistic, good organization of life and career, economical, good leader, takes no unnecessary risks, reasonable, splendid lifetime companion, keen on keeping fit (diets, sports, etc.).

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BIRCH TREE(Inspiration) -- Vivacious, attractive, elegant, friendly, unpretentious, modest, does not like anything in excess, abhors the vulgar, lloves life in nature and in calm, not very passionate, full of imagination, little ambition, creates a calm and content atmosphere.

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CEDAR TREE (Confidence) -- Of rare strength, knows how to adapt, likes unexpected presents, of good health, not in the least shy, tends to look down on others, self-confident, a great speaker, determined, often impatient, likes to impress others, has many talents, industrious, healthy optimism, waits for the one true love, able to make quick decisions.

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CHESTNUT TREE (Honesty) -- Of unusual stature, impressive, well-developed sense of justice, fun to be around, a planner, born diplomat, can be irritated easily, sensitive of others feelings, hard worker, sometimes acts superior, feels not understood at times, fiercely family oriented, very loyal in love, physically fit.

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Cypress Tree (Faithfulness) -- Strong, muscular, adaptable, takes what life has to give but doesn't necessarily like it, strives to be content, optimistic, wants to be financially dependent, wants love and affection, hates loneliness, passionate lover which cannot be satisfied, faithful, quick-tempered at times, can be unruly and careless, loves to gain knowledge, needs to be needed.

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ELM TREEE (Noble-mindedness) -- Pleasant shape, tasteful clothes, modest demands, tends not to forgive mistakes, cheerful, likes to lead but not to obey, honest and faithful partner, likes making decisions for others, noble-minded, generous, good sense of humor, practical.

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FIG TREE (Sensibility) -- Very strong minded, a bit self-willed, honest, loyal, independent, hates contradiction or arguments, hard worker when wants to be, loves life and friends, enjoys children and animals, few sexual relationships, great sense of humor, has artistic talent and great intelligence.

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FIR TREE (Mysterious) -- Extraordinary taste, handles stress well, loves anything beautiful, stubborn, tends to care for those close to them, hard to trust others, yet a social butterfly, likes idleness and laziness after long demanding hours at work, rather modest, talented, unselfish, many friends, very reliable.

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HAZELNUT TREE (Extraordinary) -- Charming, sense of humor, very demanding but can also be very understanding, knows how to make a lasting impression, active fighter for s ocial causes and politics, popular, quite moody, sexually oriented, honest, a perfectionist, has a precise sense of judgment and expects complete fairness.

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HORNBEAM TREE (Good Taste) -- Of cool beauty, cares for its looks and condition, good taste, is not egoistic, makes life> as comfortable as possible, leads a reasonable and disciplined life, looks for kindness and acknowledgment in an emotional partner, dreams of unusual lovers, is seldom happy with its feelings, mistrusts most people, is never sure of its decisions, very conscientious.

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LIME TREE (Doubt) - Intelligent, hard working, accepts what life dishes out, but not before trying to change bad circumstances into good ones, hates fighting and stress, enjoys getaway vacations, may appear tough, but is actually soft and relenting, always willing to make sacrifices for family and friends, has many talents but not always enough time to use them, can become a complainer, great leadership qualities, is jealous at times but extremely loyal.

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MAPLE TREE (Independence of Mind) -- No ordinary person, full of imagination and originality, shy and reserved, ambitious, proud, self-confident, hungers for new experiences, sometimes nervous, has many complexities, good memory, learns easily, complicated love life, wants to impress.

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OAK TREE (Brave) -- Robust nature, courageous, strong, unrelenting, independent, sensible, does not like change, keeps its feet on the ground, person of action.

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OLIVE TREE (Wisdom) -- Loves sun, warmth and kind feelings, reasonable, balanced, avoids aggression and violence, tolerant, cheerful, calm, well-developed sense of justice, sensitive, empathetic, free of jealousy, loves to read and the company of sophisticated people.

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PINE TREE (Peacemaker) -- Loves agreeable company, craves peace and harmony, loves to help others, active imagination, likes to write poetry, not fashion conscious, great compassion, friendly to all, falls strongly in love but will leave if betrayed or lied to, emotionally soft, low self esteem, needs affection and reassurance.

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POPLAR TREE (Uncertainty) -- Looks very decorative, talented, not very self-confident, extremely courageous if necessary, needs goodwill and pleasant surroundings, very choosy, often lonely, great animosity, great artistic nature, good organizer, tends to lean toward philosophy, reliable in any situation, takes partnership seriously.

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ROWAN TREE (Sensitivity) -- Full of charm, cheerful, gifted without egoism, likes to draw attention, loves life, motion, unrest, and even complications, is both dependent and independent, good taste, artistic, passionate, emotional, good company, does not forgive.

WALNUT TREE (Passion) -- Unrelenting, strange and full of contrasts, often egotistic, aggressive, noble, broad horizon, unexpected reactions, spontaneous, unlimited ambition, no flexibility, difficult and uncommon partner, not always liked but often admired, ingenious strategist, very jealous and passionate, no compromise.

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WEEPING WILLOW (Melancholy) -- Likes to be stress free, loves family life, full of hopes and dreams, attractive, very empathetic, loves anything beautiful, musically inclined, loves to travel to exotic places, restless, capricious, honest, can be influenced but is not easy to live with whenzpressured, sometimes demanding, good intuition, suffers in love until they find that one loyal, steadfast partner; loves to make others laugh.

Torture!

People go to great length to torture their body into shape. Botox, Detox, Ultrasound, strength and weights training etc etc. I'am no difference, i supposed. (erm, no, I don't do botox, if that's what you are thinking)

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After a super strenuous gym session yesterday, my fren and I decided to head for the pool. Well, on normal circumstances, this would have been absolutely fine, since swimming after gym helps relax and loosen some of those stiff and tensed up muscles. The problem was an overcast sky, a growling wind and a persistence drizzle.

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Despite all this, we were rather convinced that we should be really siao on and go to the pool for the finale to the morning "strenuous" workout. The bare body with only the trunks on proved little defence to the unrelenting wind. Taking cover in the pool didn't help either as the water was icy cold. In fact, it was much worse to be in the cold water. This is when my fren came up with the absolutely fabulous idea.

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Your body will burn more fats when its fighting against the cold.

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Armed with this "new knowledge", the 2 guys decided that burning fats was more important than the personal well being of keeping warm and the obvious uncomfortable state that we were being in.

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Well, its true that "hopes" keep you alive. And indeed, i'am happy to have burn much fat at the same time.

Is it worth getting hurt over someone who don't bother about you? Answers?