Tuesday, 29 October 2013
Week 7 - "Page-a-Minute Memory Book", by Harry Lorayne
Week 7 - "Page-a-Minute Memory Book", by Harry Lorayne - 23.09.2013
A really interesting book with fantastic techniques on how to improve your memory, but as with everything practice makes perfect. A must read for those who would like to use a method of storing information in your mind without having to write everything down in endless to do lists (and then forgetting to look at the lists) or remembering important numbers and people's names ;)
Don't read, though, if not interested in putting in the time to learn and PRACTICE the techniques and/or just not interested in increasing memory skills.
Week 6 – “Wabi Sabi Love”, by Arielle Ford
Week 6 – “Wabi Sabi Love”, by Arielle Ford - 16.09.2013
(I read the Portuguese translation)
“Wabi Sabi Love”, by Arielle Ford is a beautiful book on how to embrace ancient Japanese the philosophy of Wabi-Sabi and incorporate it into one’s relationships. Very insightful and full of valuable advice on interpersonal relatioships as well.
Ideally for couples who already have a good relationship and wish to make it even better. You’ll find exemples of real couples who used Wabi-Sabi to turn their conflicts into connection, and/or into something that would no longer be “The Elephant In The Room”. Regain the joy in your relationship. Wonderfull book.
IMPORTANT NOTE: if in a bad/dangerous relationship, this book is NOT the answer to your problems. Please seek apropriate/professional advice/help.
Arielle Ford – American writer
Wabi-sabi (侘寂?) represents a comprehensive Japanese world view or aesthetic centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of beauty that is “imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete”.[1] It is a concept derived from the Buddhist teaching of the three marks of existence (三法印 sanbōin?), specifically impermanence (無常 mujō?), the other two being suffering (苦 ku?) and emptiness or absence of self-nature (空 kū?).
Characteristics of the wabi-sabi aesthetic include asymmetry, asperity (roughness or irregularity), simplicity, economy, austerity, modesty, intimacy and appreciation of the ingenuous integrity of natural objects and processes.
Week 5 – “Per Sempre”, by Susanna Tamaro
Week 5 – “Per Sempre”, by Susanna Tamaro - 09.09.2013 (I read the Portuguese translated version)
“Per Sempre”, by Susanna Tamaro is a story told by a man who lives alone on a mountain, isolated from all others. He lives anguished by his own conscience and the choices he made through life that led him there.
He is retelling the story from memory. Memories of pain, loss, solitude, denial, corruption of the heart, forgiveness and love. Not my favourite in terms of style but the themes within are allways important to face.
Susanna Tamaro – Italian writer
Labels:
52,
A book a week,
denial,
isolation,
loss,
love,
memory,
mountain,
Per Sempre,
rebirth,
short review,
Susanna Tamaro
Week 4 – Falling Leaves, by Adeline Yen Mah
Week 4 – "Falling Leaves - The True Story of an Unwanted Chinese Daughter", by Adeline Yen Mah - 02.09.2013
Falling Leaves, by Adeline Yen Mah is a heart wrenching story about this lady’s life, and how she was treated by her own family… It is amazing to read about how some people could be so cruel and cold right up to the very last minute and even after that…
I found myself very frustrated at times when Reading about certain decisions the protagonist made throughout her life, and Reading in disbelief. But it was a humbling read notheless. We are always so quick to judge the decisions of others and blindly dogmatic about “how” we would not have done that in that way etc… I was shocked at myself to realize I’m also part of this category as I read through the story, and I strive not to be…*sighs*
The main lesson I took away from it is that one can not presume to “know” what they would in fact do, if received the life and upringing the author received and if faced with these scenarios and experienced them first hand, for if one had, then everything they are now and today would have been shaped in another light and a completely diferent way, so it is impossible to say what we would do or not.
Adeline Yen Mah is a very brave and stong person.
Adeline Yen Mah – Chinese writer
Some Quotes from the Book:
“Please believe that one single positive dream is more important than a thousand negative realities.”
“I read because I have to. It drives everything else from my mind. It lets me escape to find other world.”
“But you can vanquish the demons only when you yourself are convinced of your own worth.”
“Transcend your abuse and transform it into a source of courage, creativity and compassion.”
“Don't trust anyone. Be a cold fish. I hurt no one. And no one can hurt me.”
“You may be right in believing that if you study hard, one day you might become fluent in English. But you will still look Chinese, and when people meet you, they’ll see a Chinese girl no matter how well you speak English. You’ll always be expected to know Chinese, and if you don’t, I’m afraid they will not respect you as much.”
“Never get involved. That's my motto. I hurt no one. And no one can hurt me.”
“Suen Le!" (Let it be)
“At the age of three my grand aunt proclaimed her independence by categorically refusing to have her feet bound, resolutely tearing off the bandages as fast as they were applied.”
“She was bedridden falling a fall which broke her hip. X-rays showed that she had cancer of the colon which had already spreed. To my surprise I found her cheerful and free of pain, perhaps because of the small doses of morphine she was being given. She was surrounded by neighbours and friends who congregated at her bedside day and night. In this cosy, noisy, gregarious world of the "all-chinese" sickbed, so different from the stark, sterile solitude of the American hospital room, her life had assumed the astounding quality of a continuous farewell party.”
“You have your whole life ahead of you. Be smart. Study hard and be independent. I'm afraid the chances of your getting a dowry are slim. You must rely on yourself. No matter what else people may steal from you, they will never be able to take away your knowledge. The world is changing. You must make your own life outside this home.”
“The way I see it, the nineteenth century was a British century. The twenthieth century is an American century. I predict that the twenty-first century will be a Chinese century. The pendulum of history will swing from the ying ashes brought by the Cultural Revolution to the yang pheonix arising from its wreckage.”
“I often think of life as a deposit of time. We are each allocated so many years, just like a fixed sum in a bank. When twenty-four hours have passed I have spent one more day. I read in the People's Daily that the average life expectancy for a Chinese woman is seventy-two. I am already seventy-four years old. I spent all my deposits two years ago and am on bonus time. Every day is already a gift. What is there to complain of?”
“That’s exactly what I’ll do, I thought to myself. After dinner, I’m going to ask Big Brother to teach me how to read this map. With Aunt Baba still in Tianjin, there’s obviously nobody looking out for me. I’ll just have to find my own way.”
Week 3 – “Angels in My Hair”, by Lorna Byrne
Week 3 – “Angels in My Hair”, by Lorna Byrne - 26.08.2013
“Angels in My Hair” is an autobiography book about Lorna Byrne herself in which she shares her story about her special gifts – her ablility to see and communicate with spiritual beings like Angels.
She writes about the harsh judging and critisism she experienced throughout her life, from other people and her family. The story is heartbraking at times and beautiful. Regardless if you believe or not, if you are religeous or not, it is worth a read without a doubt.
Lorna Byrne – Irish writer
Some Quotes from the Book:
“Your guardian angel never, ever stops communicating with you.
I feel that at times they should be frustrated with us but they seem to have endless patience and they never ever give up on us. ”
Week 2 – “The Troubled Man”, by Henning Mankell
Week 2 – “The Troubled Man”, by Henning Mankell - 19.08.2013
“The Troubled Man” is the latest, if not the last, chapter from the Kurt Wallender series.
A highly-decorated Swedish naval officer, Håkan von Enke, disappears during his daily walk. For Kurt Wallander this becomes a very personal case as Von Enke is Linda Wallander’s father-in-law. The clues lead back in time to the Cold War and hired killers from Eastern Europe. Inspector Wallander suspects he has traced a big secret. This could be the worst spy scandal in Swedish history. At the same time, evidence suggests that Wallander is losing his memory. (Wikipedia)
I found this book to be both slow and fast in terms of pace, as in, the story itself took it’s time developing within the story, but I found it amusing that “months” could go by in only a few lines/paraghraphs. I was not familiar with the style of the author, but found the story interesting. Although it is the last book in a series of ten so far, I did not get the feeling that I needed to read the previous ones, so it stands alone well
This book was reffered to me by readers who love the author and this series in particular. I was “warned” about the “dark/heavy” tones in the story, but funny enough I did not get that vibe as such from the book when I read it. I thought the carachter was quirky and perhaps a bit depressing in him self, because he leads a somewhat lonely life, in a wet & cold country but all in all, I found him not void of humour to the outsider eye, if that makes sense. lol
I would definately be interested in reading another book in the series and perhaps a diferent one by the same author.
Henning Mankell – Sweedish writer
Week 1 – “The Taveller”, by John Twelve Hawks
Week 1- “The Traveller”, by John Twelve Hawks - 12.08.2013
It is the first book in John Twelve Hawks’s Trilogy by the name of “Fourth Realm Trilogy”.
The story is set in the modern times, (more in the near future) and depicts the world society as it stands nowadays but under the ever watchfull eyes of a secret organisation who reffer to themselves as “The Bretheren”- aka “The Tabula” as far as their enimies are concerned. This organisation seeks to control the world (behind the scenes) and keep tabs on everyone and everything, through a web of vídeo survailence cameras, sophysticated software programs that record everyone’s moves, manipulating of polititions and other organisations, creathing thus, what they reffer to as a Virtual Panopticon were all the individuals in a society will live in a type of prison, but an invisable one. A prison of fear that will drive people to allways act a certain way because they will believe they are always being watched at all times even if they are not.
There are people though who can brake free from their erthy Shell (body) and travel to other rehlms. They are called Travellers. There are people who have sworn to protect these travellers, named Harlequins. Harlequins train hard throughout their lives for this purpose. They have no attachments to anything, not even their names.
This book is about one Harlequin in particular, called Maya and her quest to find two brothers thought to be Travellers, they are the sons of the last known Taveller Mathew Corrigan.
The book is a page turner and I found mayself continuasly wanting to know what happens next
Can’t wait the read the second book.
John Twelve Hawks – American writer
Monday, 28 October 2013
A Book a Week Challange
“Books to the ceiling, books to the sky,
My piles of books are a mile high.
How I love them!
How I need them!I’ll have a long beard by the time I read them.” -
Arnold Lobel
Last week I made the decision to read one book a week, as I looked over at the growing pile of books on my table and that I have aquired over time, and wanted to read.
I found the following challange on the internet today and have decided to take part in it. Please join too if you are interested
http://www.read52booksin52weeks.com
05.08.2013
My piles of books are a mile high.
How I love them!
How I need them!I’ll have a long beard by the time I read them.” -
Arnold Lobel
Last week I made the decision to read one book a week, as I looked over at the growing pile of books on my table and that I have aquired over time, and wanted to read.
I found the following challange on the internet today and have decided to take part in it. Please join too if you are interested
http://www.read52booksin52weeks.com
05.08.2013
The Blank Heroin Stare
Have you ever looked into the eyes of a Heroin user? If you were in a room full of people, you would probably be able to spot them straight away, even if the person wasn't showing any of the other associated signs of this drug use. There is something about their eyes that is unique and common in ALL Heroin users anywhere in the world.
Almost everyone knows someone or has heard of somebody who’s every waking hour is unwaveringly dedicated to the perpetuating pursuit of the amazing and comforting “rush”.
No body wakes up one day and decides to become an addict. But with all the information available and examples in the street, on TV and many other places, people still want to try it. Why?
Is it to prove a point? Or to find out what all the hype is about? Because if so many are “hooked” on it and won’t stop using, it must feel and be really fantastic, right? However, one of the contradicting things about it, is that, every single person who has been regularly using for a while will all say the same things like “I hate this life”, “I’m tired of this way of living “, “If I could turn back the clock I never would have started”, “It’s ruined my life” but when the cards are laid out on the table, they will still choose Heroin. So why do some people still want to give it a go?
No body wakes up one day and decides to become an addict. But with all the information available and examples in the street, on TV and many other places, people still want to try it. Why?
Is it to prove a point? Or to find out what all the hype is about? Because if so many are “hooked” on it and won’t stop using, it must feel and be really fantastic, right? However, one of the contradicting things about it, is that, every single person who has been regularly using for a while will all say the same things like “I hate this life”, “I’m tired of this way of living “, “If I could turn back the clock I never would have started”, “It’s ruined my life” but when the cards are laid out on the table, they will still choose Heroin. So why do some people still want to give it a go?
Another incredible thing about it, is that the great majority (if not all regular users) don’t seem to know or notice when they actually “turned to the dark side of the force”. On retrospective, they’ll most likely associate this life changing moment to the first time they became “dope sick”. But none of them are able to say when the true “crossing” happened. They can only say when their lives changed from “this is a party”, “I’ve found the thing that I love”, “this makes me feel great”, “Why doesn’t everyone do this” to being a complete slave in the sense that their entire existence starting revolving around obtaining the next fix due to the devastating fear of withdrawal. But Heroin makes that all go away.
It’s probably around this time when jobs are lost, lying starts, families are torn apart, the body stops functioning properly, the daily scenarios start moving to the “dirty back streets” and what’s really ironic about it is that the drug makes you falsely immune to this so you just don’t care and still won’t stop using. It’s an emotional pain killer. It numbs you out. You live in denial.
But still there is somebody that starts down that path and think they are better than that, and that that will never happen to them. They all start with the “weekend warrior attitude” saying things like “oh, I’ll never get addicted” or “It’s only on special occasions or weekends” and other similar comments. Some may even succeed for a while, but then before they even realize it, Heroin rules their lives. Nothing else matters but the warm relaxing pleasure of “H”.
Nobody decides to be a junkie, but with hard drugs like this, there is no recreational side to it. Only 1% of users that quit stay clean. Are all people who start using convinced that they are part of that 1% ??? Another issue is that they don’t realize that even these who are able to stay clean, will battle with this addiction for the rest of their lives, even if they never ever use again.
Addicts will say that the main reasons for using Heroin are escape of emotional pressures, day-to-day living, forgetting childhood misfortunes and abuses, broken family backgrounds, rebellion, etc…
But “Smack” doesn’t single out people in these situations, it also claims victims from very the very opposite ends of society, and they will say they started it for excitement, living outside the rules, to thrill them out of boredom, etc…
But “Smack” doesn’t single out people in these situations, it also claims victims from very the very opposite ends of society, and they will say they started it for excitement, living outside the rules, to thrill them out of boredom, etc…
No matter where they came from, what the reason for starting was, what, where or how their upbringing was, in any case, in the end, all addicts tell nearly the same stories.
Stories about when they first started, snorting or just smoking, how it was great and were able to keep it under control, and injecting was never going to be an option, and that they wouldn’t fall into the “Heroin trap”. Then, all of a sudden, they realize just snorting or smoking isn’t enough anymore and start injecting. Then one day further along the line they started feeling physically ill for no apparent reason and immediately realized it was due to the lack of Heroin. This alarm should be enough to scare them out of using anymore, but no, they are already blinded by the “security” of Heroin and so the endless pursuit begins (if not already for some time, the only difference is now they will probably openly admit it to people in the same situation)
Stories about when they first started, snorting or just smoking, how it was great and were able to keep it under control, and injecting was never going to be an option, and that they wouldn’t fall into the “Heroin trap”. Then, all of a sudden, they realize just snorting or smoking isn’t enough anymore and start injecting. Then one day further along the line they started feeling physically ill for no apparent reason and immediately realized it was due to the lack of Heroin. This alarm should be enough to scare them out of using anymore, but no, they are already blinded by the “security” of Heroin and so the endless pursuit begins (if not already for some time, the only difference is now they will probably openly admit it to people in the same situation)
They explain how after this point their lives fell apart, how they started lying, stealing etc, how they lost all their friends, family and way of life. How social exclusion that had creeped in totally depressed them even further into using. How absolutely crappy they felt about themselves and most importantly how they felt and knew they must stop and finally get out of the cycle, but at the same time felt trapped and didn’t have the desire to take the step to actually help themselves.
How they sank to the very low of low and started prostituting for money to get more dope or dope itself. Risking and experiencing the most unimaginable things like rape, being beaten up, stabbed, living surrounded by infection and disease, how some times they desperately tried to find a vein suitable to inject and had to “muscle it” in tears, creating massive cysts, sometime gangrene and other infections. Not to mention the constant risk of contracting HIV, Hepatitis and other virulent and deadly infections.
Heroin users go about their daily lives with blank stares in their eyes. Their soles, hearts, minds destroyed and absent from their physical bodies. Living in constant desperation, fear and danger, with the immediate goal of obtaining the next hit to make all that go away (for a short while), to be constantly injecting unknown impurities mixed in the Heroin itself (which are one of the main culprits of many ailments associated with this drug use) or face excruciating pain and illness or ultimately, a horrible Death.
Again, no one decides to become an addict, but they did choose to try heroin in the first place, even those who didn’t know what it was the first time it was given to them, they still decided to use it a second time. So,
WHY did they?
and you, do you still want to try it??
13.01.2012
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