17May 2016 by CJ

Complain if you must, but it won’t change anything

Life & Living
“What you're supposed to do when you don't like a thing is change it. If you can't change it, change the way you think about it. Don't complain.” – Maya Angelou The definition of complain is to “express dissatisfaction or annoyance about a state of affairs or an event”. In my 41 years here on this planet, I don’t think I’ve yet met a person who didn’t know what it means to “complain” or how to do it. I truly believe it’s human nature to rant and rave about something which displeases us, and admittedly at times it shows how passionate we are towards the inequities of the world. But if all we do is complain, without ever trying to change anything, where’s the benefit to humanity or to ourselves? Eckhart…
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16May 2016 by CJ

Slow down and enjoy the moments of life

Life & Living
Today is May 16th and this is the first post I’ve written since April 27th. It’s not that I haven’t thought about writing something new, or reposting something still relevant – I just haven’t had the motivation or inspiration to do so of late. Whenever I find myself in this position, I’m quick to pass judgement on myself.  Feeling like a failure, I typically head to the computer and force myself to write something, which ultimately turns out to be nothing after an hour of writing and re-writing one paragraph. But this time it was different. This time I found myself saying “it’s okay – you write when you can.” I guess that’s the difference between a hobby and a job – a hobby is always there for you whenever…
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27Apr 2016 by CJ

Reflect – what will you be remembered for?

Life & Living, Love & Relationships
This blog is for all those self-serving individuals of the world, who more than likely will have no idea this blog is all about them. Which is somewhat ironic given the fact that they think EVERYTHING is about them. I’m sure there are already people reading this saying, “he’s talking about people like my…(you fill in the blank)”. And that may be true. But I’m talking about you really…the ones who are so quick to pass judgement on others and rarely, if ever, take a long look in the mirror. This post all started after I came across this truly humbling quote by Dan Pearce in his book Single Dad Laughing. “The next time you want to withhold your help, or your love, or your support for another for whatever…
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19Apr 2016 by CJ

Food is an extension of one’s heart

Love & Relationships, Youth
“If you really want to make a friend, go to someone’s house and eat with him… the people who give you their food give you their heart.” - Cesar Chavez My grandmother loved to cooked. Come to think of it, what she really loved was to feed people. Not unlike other Italian-Americans, she took great pleasure in preparing a feast and then sharing it with someone special. In fact it didn’t matter what time of day it was, if you uttered the words “I’m a little hungry”, she’d be rummaging through the refrigerator or pantry to whip you up something you’d enjoy. I especially appreciated how she always took the time to plan and prepare food items she knew you’d enjoy. Some of my fondest memories of my grandmother were…
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14Apr 2016 by CJ

Disappointments are opportunities in disguise

Life & Living
“It was one of those times you feel a sense of loss, even though you didn't have something in the first place. I guess that's what disappointment is - a sense of loss for something you never had.” - Deb Caletti, The Nature of Jade Optimism and hope sometimes fail us. While the scenarios in our head often seem logical and completely plausible to come to fruition, we frequently forget there are still so many other variables beyond our control – so many factors we just didn’t consider. I currently find myself with such a dilemma. An opportunity I felt confident would lead me down a new path on a new journey, may have been a premature conclusion on my part. Optimism and hope it seems has certainly gotten the better of…
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