St David's Day

It’s the first of March, 

A day celebrated at large

By the Welsh around the globe

With Leeks and Daffodils

On shoulders or sleeves,

They adorn their national dress

On this day of St David’s

All adults and kids

Rejoice, chant and dance alike!

Happy St David’s Day to all!

Here are some interesting facts that I would like to share:

• It is believed that two pilgrimages to the city of St David’s equals one to Rome, and three pilgrimages, to Jerusalem

• Dewi miraculously raised the ground underneath him while preaching at Brevi, in order to be seen and heard by all. On his success, a white dove settled upon his shoulder, and thus, he is usually represented standing on a hill with a dove on his shoulder

• Saint David abstained from drinking and advised others to do the same, but for St David’s day celebrations, a number of Welsh breweries make special St. David’s Day ales

Now That's What Women Want!

For all those men who went down on their knees yesterday, and dreamt of a lovely future together, here's a little heads up on what women really want. We ladies, are satisfied souls and don't ask for more than the BASIC necessities, so you don't really have to worry much; just take a quick peek.

A Decent Looking Husband

A Not-So-Expensive Wedding Ring

A Simple Wedding

A Sweet Honeymoon

A Nice Car (for shopping)

A Small House

A Hardworking Husband

Lovely Children

Some Make-up

A Few Bags

Some Shoes

Some Dresses

A Few Gifts Once In A While

A Small Trip (not more than 4 times a year)

And Finally, Some Basic Securities...

See what I meant? ;) Okay on a serious note, none of this is true... what women truly want is a loving and caring partner who is honest, listens (not just hear) to her, makes her feel special (not always by tangible things) and accepts & respects her family and friends along with her! So the guys can now release the breath they have been holding all along, and go tell their girls how special they are! 

Hope you'll had a lovely Valentine's Day!

A Novel romance this Valentine

Imagine waking up this Valentine’s Day and seeing your boyfriend holding a gift wrapped in gold. Wouldn't you engulf him in a crushing hug even before opening the present? But I don’t think it would be a wise idea this year, especially if you are someone who panics at the sight of anything crawly, with antennae and multiple legs. If you are scrunching your nose already, do not read the rest.

You wouldn’t believe it when I say that one of the gifts this year could be a hand painted chocolate cockroach, and it doesn’t stop there. The Bronx Zoo in New York is offering people to name one of their 58,000 hissing Madagascar Cockroaches after their beloved. While I personally am disgusted at the sight of roaches, I find the idea of a cockroach with my name roaming around the Zoo… umm well, macabre? (Putting it diplomatically) 

 

And now for those, whose partners would be disgusted at the mere mention of roaches, here are a few adorable Valentine’s Day ideas. (While not all, most of them are mine!) 

• Make 365 chits with small personal messages for her to read every night before sleeping, until the next Valentine’s Day

• Make little notes saying nothing except ‘SHMILY’ and keep passing it on to her every now and then. Let her get curious about its meaning and at night, after a romantic dinner, give her a card reading ‘See How Much I Love You’ (SHMILY)!

• If you are fortunate enough to have a private lawn or are near the beach, you can set a dinner table for two with scented candles on a sheet of rose petals and serve her favourite cuisine cooked by you. Some romantic music would obviously add to the ambience

• Make an interesting documentary with cuddly photos and videos, narrating your love story. If possible, write it on a CD along with her favourite movie that you could watch together. The documentary could be played in the middle or after the movie as a surprise

• Organise a Treasure or Scavenger hunt with clues and gifts across the house. The gifts must be something she had always longed for

Do make this Valentine’s Day special for that someone, be it with roaches, romantic ideas or by simply spending quality time together. In the end, it’s the feelings that count!

Hope you'll have a LOVE-ly day of love lovelies! :)

                                            

Year of the Diving Dragon

Water Dragon’s year is here,
And the scuba divers do their thing –
A Dragon Dance under water
As people watch, clap and sing!

The fiery tail lashes around,
As the deadly fangs lunge for prey
It spins and soars and dives back down
And kids cheer “wā sāi!”

Picture: Reuters

When you would begin to think that the celebrations and preparations for the much awaited Dragon Year have risen to a new level, they do it again! With the year of the Water Dragon arriving on the 23rd of January, they couldn’t have come up with a better celebration.

Picture: Reuters

The divers perform a special under-water Dragon dance with a five-meter long dragon at the Shanghai Ocean Aquarium on 19th January, to welcome the Chinese New Year. With all this before the New Year, it makes me wonder what the main 15 days of the festival would have in store for us.

Picture: Reuters

Whatever it may be, it is sure to be grand and majestic like the magical Dragon! Happy New Year to all.

Russian Orthodox Epiphany

The teeth chatter, and bodies shiver; the senses freeze and palms are squeezed as people build up their resolve to plunge into the ice cold waters. If you ask me, I would suggest Gallantry awards for all the brave souls. With the temperature falling below minus 10 degrees, people would usually force their kids to stay indoors; but not on the 19^th of January in Russia where people encourage each other including the little ones, to jump into cross-shaped water holes, rather ice holes. Sounds scary, doesn’t it? 

Picture: Reuters

Called as Epiphany or Orthodox Epiphany, 19^th January is celebrated as the day when Jesus Christ was baptized in the Jordan River. Every year, the priests bless the river, and people plunge into the ice cold waters at midnight to wash away their sins. The water would be truly blessed then, as people actually do manage to come out alive, more so, smiling and content after dipping into the water not once, not twice, but thrice!

But guess what? There are also people who bathe into the freezing waters throughout winter, and rightly earn the name of ‘morzhi’ or walruses. It is said to increase their resistance; and why wouldn’t it? I personally can’t think of anything that could be more challenging to the body. While the mere thought of diving once, sends shivers down my spine, I am appalled at how one can do it often. I bow to thee!

Year of the Dragon is here

The ‘end of the world’ can wait for a year; the Dragon is rising back on the throne! Anyone worried about the Mayan prediction can relax and expect a successful and lucky year. At least that’s what I am told by one of my Chinese friends. According to her, since the Dragon is the most auspicious of the 12 Chinese Zodiacs, and it is said to rule over water, this year of the Water Dragon could be nothing but the best! 

 

After the massive heap of stress in 2011, I am sure we can all do with some ‘fierce’ luck, at least I can. I am guessing that is why people all over the world are extremely excited to welcome the Dragon rule. Preparations began in various countries and places other than China, like Japan, Canada, Vegas, Singapore and Sydney almost a month before the actual arrival of the Chinese New Year on the 23^rd of January.

In China, the New Year begins with its people migrating back to their hometown, weeks prior to the actual celebrations. This year (unsurprisingly) would observe the world’s largest human migration, with around 2 billion passenger trips expected during the festive period. As such, no Chinese New Year is ever complete without the Dragon dancing and prancing across the streets of China, but The Year of the Dragon is undoubtedly extra special!

Ringing the resolutions bell...pretty late though!!

While I know it’s a tad late to talk about New Year resolutions, I couldn’t really hold back the urge. Having read the article about people giving up their resolutions, only nine days into 2012, I had to come here and write. I was aware that most people did not stick to what they resolved, but as early as nine days and as many as 75% of the people surveyed, came as a shocker.

I was wondering whether it had anything to do with the maximum resolutions being related to ‘eating healthier food’ or ‘loosing weight’ this year. Those ones are easier to make than keep; after all who doesn’t love food and rest? I might sound selfish, but it’s a bit beneficial for me if those resolutions aren’t being kept I guess. I can go back to the gym and get to effectively use the equipments again, as all the new resolution makers would be gone!

I personally believe that New Year is not the only time to resolve to do something, one can begin a good deed, anytime, anywhere and simpler the resolutions, easier they are to abide by. Wasn’t that actually the tradition when it was all started by the Romans? Simply to be good! That’s exactly what I resolve to do every year, and I don’t remember punching anyone in the face, ever!

The main reason I wanted to blog, was to prove that I do not belong to the 75% group who set unattainable goals and then give up. Since it was the International Thank You Day a few days ago, I stuck to my resolution of being nice and thanking everyone I know for being a wonderful part of my life. Oh and thank you all for reading this too! Go ahead, and even if its late, thank everyone now to let them know they are special!