“Fall”

A steely autumn morning.
A van splashes a reflecting puddle in the street,
Sending the fallen leaves disheveled and damaged.
A boy stands, waiting, by his broken bicycle.

“A Chinese Painting”

Crows in the rain.
No shelter by the winter trees on great grey sky.
On my window, speckled drops run trails down.
The chill mist breathes of great ancient thinking stone.
The heart of earth darkens.
No leaves to hide thorns.
Sky and earth, a Chinese painting.

“Pushed to the Edge”

Hey young boy, what do you know?
The soul is real, how do you feel?
They got you, but they don’t know you.
You’re scared, you’re not ready.
But they’re pushing you to the edge.
Nothing’s perfect, everything’s perfect.
Your mind will take a step to the side and say:
“Hey, who are you standing there, your back turned to uncaring fools with knives?”
“What are you?”
“I’m your world”.
“But you sound like my thoughts and look like a mirror in a dream” .
“Yeah, your world”.

“Taste”

These are your glasses you wear.
You taste your mouth.
Pressure on the ears makes the song you love.
Your own tingling touch.
Strange thought repeats the words you hear,
Talking to the hidden watching center.
Emotion is the beast between us.

“No More Reaction”

What to do when the Dominoes stop?
No more reaction.
I let go, falling, my breath is the only resistance.
Tears of a judge,
Who knew God wouldn’t care?

“Untitled”

You open the creaking dusty door
A shuffling darkness leads ahead
Down the cobbled path
Looming invisible walls on the side
Push
With their presence.
Black opens up to gray courtyard, rosebush in the center.

Let’s debunk five more diet myths!
Myth No 6: Low-fat foods will help you lose weight.

The truth: Diet foods won’t help you lose pounds. In fact, they may have the opposite results.

The explanation: First of all, “low-fat” means “high-sugar”. The label 0% means that the nutrient has zero fat. But when you buy it, you don’t check the sugar percentage do you? Diet foods usually have more sugar; that’s why they won’t help you lose pounds. Plus, sugar overconsumption may lead to several health problems.
Secondly, low-fat foods can be very tricky. Because they are low in fat, it’s easy to fall into the trap and eat much more than you would if the food had normal fat.
Myth No7: Pasta makes you fat.

The truth: Pasta is in fact a light meal.

Explanation: You can blame pasta for your extra weight only if you combine it with greasy sauce, chopped meat and cheese on a regular basis. Otherwise, it’s a low calorie meal, perfect for summer days.
Myth No8: Fructose has zero calories.

The truth: Fructose has the same calories as sugar.

The explanation: Fructose is mostly recommended for use by diabetics, because it does not raise blood glucose. But its caloric content is just about the same as sugar’s – it is about two times sweeter than sugar, so half the amount would do the job. This might look tempting, but keep in mind that you shouldn’t replace sugar with fructose. Fructose in a small amount may be good for your health but in big amount it could be a problem because your body may not be capable to process it.
Myth No9: There are nutrients, like grapefruit and pineapple, that burn fat.

The truth: Only in your imagination.

The explanation: it’s simple. There are no fruits that burn fat.
Myth No10: You shouldn’t drink juice when you are on a diet.

The truth: Juice won’t make you gain weight.

The explanation: Usually, we tend to overreact when we are on a diet. It’s wrong to replace every liquid with water. You obviously don’t need to suffer every time you decide to lose weight. A glass of fresh juice won’t make you gain weight. Contrarily, it contains lots of vitamins and it is essential for good nutrition.

Find myths No1-No5 in Part1

There are thousands of diet solutions targeting people who want to lose some extra weight quickly – truth is, they seem really promising, but should we believe them all?
Let’s bust some myths and reveal the truth:

Myth No1: You should not combine carbohydrates and proteins in a meal.

The truth: This belief is urban legend.

The explanation: It was very popular during the last decade, but now we know that the digestion of these nutrients takes place in different areas of the alimentary canal, so the absorption is easy. Not only you shouldn’t avoid combining carbohydrates and proteins but you should try to put them together on your plate. They are necessary for nutrition of your body.
Myth No2: There are special diets that will help you lose weight and inches off particular parts of your body.

The truth: There is no such diet.

The explanation: In every person, the fat seems to insist on particular areas; but once you start losing weight, you will lose fat from every part of your body. You will lose all the necessary pounds levelly – only then will you start losing inches from the area you have a bigger “problem” with.
Myth No3: The later you eat, the fatter you will get.

The truth: There is no connection between calories and time.

The explanation: this belief is really strong. On the one hand, you should avoid eating just before you go to sleep in order to improve the quality of your sleep. But eating at 8pm or 9pm has no affect on your silhouette. Every person must ingest the appropriate amount of calories every day. It doesn’t really matter when you will take those calories or how many times you will eat. However, the best you can do for your metabolism is to eat light meals, several times during the day.
Myth No4: The less you eat, the thinner you will be.

The truth: Feeling hungry is NOT good.

The explanation: If you start cutting out calories, the only thing you will achieve is to ruin your diet. If you eat less than you should, you will eventually decrease your metabolism, you will start losing muscle mass and you will start feeling dizzy and hunger-deprived in no time. Soon, you will be disappointed by your diet and after you drop it, you will be hunted by the desire for eating even more than before. In order to avoid these health and psychological problems, you should know how many calories you should consume.
Myth No5: The stomach can shrink.

The truth: This is the excuse for those who have replaced food with liquids. But stomach shrinkage is a total myth.

The explanation: You can’t shrink your stomach by replacing meals with liquids. The stomach is a muscle, and it does not shrink. As every other muscle in your body, it expands when you eat, that’s why your belly seems a bit bigger after a meal. But, as soon as you digest food, it will return to its normal size again. Thin people do not have a smaller stomach. They are just used to eating less.

Read on 5 more myths!

First of all, I have to admit that I am not sure if this is an article about travel in space or travel in time. Yesterday, as I walking in downtown Athens, my eye caught a sign: buy a 10 € movie ticket and watch 3 movies! Although I had been on this street before, I had never noticed that there was a movie. I looked up. It was a summer cinema named Palace.

I took a closer look to the posters of “today’s” movies and I discovered that “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” was about to begin. I really wanted to watch Indiana Jones’ comeback and I hadn’t been in a summer cinema for years, so I went in. Now, I am glad that I was in the right place at the right time.

Cinema Palace was built in 1928 and I must say it was a deluxe despite its years. Right across the entrance it was a couple of signs that looked more like 70’s advertisements: “since 1928, but still so new”. “You have never watched so many good movies in just one summer- Palace, summer 2007-2008”.

I decided to buy the 10 € movie ticket. The old lady that was standing at the box office had the kindest smile I’ve ever seen. She seemed to work at Palace all her life; she was surprisingly happy and proud of her job.

As soon as I stepped my foot on the marble stairs I knew I was entering another world. The time seemed to pass more slowly. Cinema “Palace” is not big. Up to 100 people can enjoy a movie in the open air. At the time I went though, there were no more than 25. However, everything was neat and clean; everything was ready for the next screening. I thought that once, all those chairs were full of anxious viewers. I could almost see some children hanging on the walls, trying to watch the movie for free.

Cinema Palace offers the cheapest scotch in town, but I preferred to order red wine. I also took some of the most famous cinema’s delicacy, pop-corn. The old man who was working at cinema’s buffet was just as kind as the old lady. He also seemed to work there all his life. The mood reminded me of the Italian movie “Nuovo cinema Paradiso”, but I didn’t have time to get nostalgic. The movie had already started.

I don’t know what I loved more: was it the smell of the night flowers, the open air, or the fact that there was an ashtray on every table? I know, smoking is not good for my health – but, after all, I have the right to smoke and drink my wine as I watch Indiana Jones under the stars.

I also have the right to take a breath in the middle of the movie, during the break, just to tell my friends what I think so far about it while I hear to French music of the 50s and I see red, green and yellow lights on the screen. I deeply hate break-less movies and lately I am afraid I’ll go deaf of Dolby surround sound’s decibel level.

In the center of the big city, there is a small paradise where the sounds of the city seem so far and fake. Just across the new-fangled Village Cinemas, just by Starbucks, there is an 80 year old cinema waiting to be discovered, hoping not to be forgotten, and waiting to give real cinema-fun. Do you think I am getting too romantic? Anyway, I have found my own cinema “El Paradiso” and I’ll stick with it.

According to asdfing’s poll, family is the most important part of our lives.

The research took place in March and the posed question was: Which Part of your Life is more important to you? The voters had to choose between “family”, “love”, “friendship”, “job/career” and “not sure”.

36% of you told us that family is more important than love (which got 29% of the votes) and definitely more important than career (7%) and friendship (7%). A remarkable 21% went for “not sure” and, to tell you the truth, I was expecting it. Those questions are like bungee jumping; if you don’t answer them straight away, you may never answer them at all.

Let’s talk about our last choices.

Regarding friendship, Ann Richards said: “I’ve always said that in politics, your enemies can’t hurt you, but your friends will kill you.” Well, but life isn’t politics. 7% is a rather small percentage, don’t you think? Only 7% of us believe that friendship is the most important part of our lives…why are we disappointed by other people? Is trust gone for good? Do we really believe that only few friendships would survive if each one knew what his friend says of him behind his back? Anyway, let me be more romantic on that. I think we shouldn’t consider our friends as possible foes. And let me encourage you to always meet new people. Because, what we seem to forget about friendship can be summed up in the following phrase: “What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies.”

Regarding careers, although many of us claim that our jobs are the center of our lives and although most of us spend at least 8 hours/day at work, we know where to draw the line. Yes, career is important; but it is not the most important thing in the world. I am glad we know that. The small percentage (7%) of people that voted “job/career” as the most important part of their lives confirms it.

Regarding love…love…love…what can I say about love that hasn’t been already said? All those poems, all those songs, all those articles, all those movies about love…I feel like there is no space left for me to speak about love. Just look up the word “love” on the Internet and you will have 2.18 billion results! And yet, love is not that important as family, according to our study. When I first saw the results of our study, I thought to myself; is family more important than love? Is it really? I mean, we talk about broken hearts all day long; we are worried about that new guy we met yesterday but we are already in love; we hear love-confessions on the radio and we read about love-crimes in the newspapers. If love was a refreshment, it will be coca-cola while family is…just water.

In other words, family is just… life. The result of our research started to make sense. I closed my eyes and I tried to think of my life. I was born to a family of four. All the happy moments of my childhood smell like pancakes. I can remember playing with my sister and my cousins until sun down. I can also remember when I wished never to grow up. Now, I think of my parent’s house and my hometown as the perfect place to find peace whenever I need to. I also know that I am still part of this family and I’ll always be, even when I’ll have my own family some day. In the meantime, I believe that there are many types of families. I could say that a family is the place you return every night and the people you say goodnight and good morning to. Nothing else matters. As they say:”I don’t care how poor a man is; if he has family, he is rich.”

About 10 days ago we received a letter from Christina about a problem she is facing. She is in love with her ex who also seems to be interested; however he keeps going out with other girls. But, better read her word and please give her your best advice.

Christina Ludwig wrote:
“Hi my name is Christina and I have a problem. See, I dated this guy named Zach for like four months but we spent like every day together and I ended up falling in love with him. Well, we broke up but are still friends with benefits. I’m still in love with him and I want him back. I have even told him I loved him on many occasions. I think he still has feelings for me but I’m not sure. I can’t stop
thinking bout him. I feel he is the one; but he is always parading different girls in front of me and my jealousy comes out no matter how hard I try to cover it. I don’t want it to ruin any chances of us being together again. So how do I stand out and shine from these other females?? Please help. I love him.

“Let’s watch a movie” is a thought that crosses my mind almost every evening. For a person that has watched hundreds of movies, it’s a bit embarrassing to admit that I hadn’t watched Amélie yet. It’s even more embarrassing to confess that I didn’t even know what Amélie was about. All I had heard about that movie was that it was a good one, not a masterpiece though.

Because of my ignorance, I tried to follow up carefully the first scene and then the second and the third just to get the main idea of the movie. What the hell can the connection be between a butterfly, 2 glasses and Amélie’s birth? It’s like telling you that at the time a driver crossed a red light and a couple kissed under a tree in Austria, I started writing this article in my laptop. Does this movie have to do with random events, luck and destiny? Or was it just a director’s trick to get our attention? Well, anyway, it worked.

The story

Amélie Poulain, an introvert girl that grew up by an anti-social father and a neurotic mother who died during Amélie’s early childhood, lives isolated from other people. She is drowning in her everyday routine while working as a waitress in a small Montmarte café, The Two Windmills, until a fortuitous event changes her life. At that time, she devotes her life to helping other by bringing them happiness; only later, she will know that first of all, she has to help herself. Soon, she will understand that “her bones aren’t made of glass”; and as “she can take life’s knocks”, she will dare to live her life and leave her heart open for love.

Amélie’s character

Brilliant, isolated, fabulous, introvert. Kind and indiscreet. Indeed, Amélie is a strange girl. You can tell by the way she acts and by the way she puts questions to everybody she encounters. She takes revenge and she helps other without it being noticeable. This girl has her own way of thinking. She has this unique way to choose who she’ll like and whom she won’t. She takes joy by looking after others. The strangest things get her attention; things that are invisible by others. She keeps looking for mysteries, and if there aren’t any, she creates one or two. She has the feeling that everybody understands her because “we all think the same way”, but this doesn’t stop her from being aware of her uniqueness.

The best scene of the movie

Surprisingly, my favorite scene was the one where Amélie drops the goldfish in the river while drizzling. This autumnal atmosphere, which symbolizes the end of an era but at the same time the beginning of a bright, new day, made me wanna go out for a walk. Losing a friend it’s always hard, but it’s like a closure; sometimes, it’s nothing more than what it takes to leave a miserable life behind before you turn a new page.

Director’s style

I loved the way Jean-Pierre Jeunet introduced us the characters; simple, fast and effective. I used to think a little dark secret, a childhood experience or a stupid habit that seems too strange to be confessed can reveal one’s true character. Then, you can say that you really know him. In that movie, Laurant and J.P.Jeunet have really nailed it. They describe the character by revealing us what they love and what they hate the most. I bet that somewhere between unusual habits and stupid obsessions, you will find a little bit something of yourself.

What did Amélie make me wonder about…

Amélie is one of those movies that will leave you with a bittersweet taste in your mouth as soon as you watch “Le Fin” and with a million of questions and thoughts about life popping into your head. Here are some of those questions I managed to write down.

Do we really know the people next-door? How are our neighbors and is it possible to misjudge them just by their appearance?

How odd must someone be, in order to be considered as odd? And will one man decide that? After all, shouldn’t we try to get to know people that seem odd?

Was Freud right about childhood experiences that affect our grown-up life? Do our obsessions, our oddities have their roots in our early years?

Does our life consists by fortuitous events, or is it all written in the stars? Is it luck, or is it fate?

Amélie has more thoughts to “share” with us even though it wasn’t her intention. She has much to tell –or show- us about the meaning of revenge, about dreams that never come true and the excuses we make up to fell better while leaving them behind.

Everyone has his own past which can’t be changed. All we can do is to go forward and always have a backup plan.

Albert Einstein once said:

“Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I am not sure about the universe.”

People are strange.

Some people are like a Slinky…they’re really good for nothing. But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.

Is that so?

Of course it is, but the funny part of this sentence is that, the word “stupid” has different meaning to different people.

I might laugh with a “stupid” guy that might seem very intelligent to you… How can this be possible? And after all … is he smart or just an idiot?

In my opinion, there is no “smart” or “stupid” - there are just different abilities and there is a lot of variation in ideas, hobbies and understandings of life. Abilities are what make us consider someone as smart or stupid. For example; let’s say that someone’s ability is being a good video gamer. This guy may be the best video gamer in the world; playing video games may be the center of his life. People who are also playing video games will admire him and they will speak about his unbelievable skill, his perfect control and of course his amazing reflexes. On the other hand, people who are not involved in video games world, wouldn’t look up to him; on the contrary, they will refuse his worth and consider him a complete retard who will never grow up.

So what kind of person is this guy? Is he smart enough or not? What’s more, is his ability as considerable as the ability of speaking 5 languages, playing amazing music or making the most important scientific discovery of the 21st century? All in all, is it right to judge people by their abilities? Or, is it right to judge them at all?

The truth is that we have made up several ways to define someone as smart or stupid. Take IQ tests as an example. Made by humans, IQ tests’ purpose is to measure peoples’ intelligence. Most IQ tests contain questions of language, physics or mathematic content. In fact they measure knowledge and that’s why I think they are a complete hoax. Some other tests measure people’s “ability” to define space.

But, then again, this is an other ability. And I am still wondering: a person with skills and talents an intelligent person?

The answer is; we don’t know.

I think we should not compare abilities with human stupidity or human intelligence. Each person is unique and we have to understand that. Criticism is allowed, it’s in human nature; but please do not criticize anyone in front of other people, because each one has a different point of view… so be careful for your own good.

So next time think twice before you speak about someone, because you never know who you are talking to. - A quote by a very intelligent person; I can’t remember his name right now!

What we know so far about animals: they are trustful companions; they are friends that give us unconditional love; uninhibited creatures that will never let you feel lonely.The news is: according to several studies and researches, pets can also help you deal with health problems, such as insomnia, headaches and stress.
Specifically:
Dogs: they motivate you.

“One reason a dog can be such a comfort when you are feeling blue is that he doesn’t try to find out why”.
The truth is that dog can help you overcome psychological problems and life’s difficulties. Studies stated that among people who live in big cities, dog owners seem to be more satisfied by their lives. Their dogs got them out of every day routine; in fact, a dog can pull you off your couch and he make your day, even the moodiest one.
A dog can motivate his owner to go out for a walk, plus the preparation of its food gives you energy! Dogs are the best choice for lonely people because the feeling of being responsible about someone gives life meaning.

Cats: they diminish your stress.

“Cats are magical…the more you pet them the longer you both live.”
In fact, cats are the perfect ally in dealing with stress. Fondling your cat helps you relax. Cats have also ability to heal. Studies have shown that when patients or wounded own a cat, their wounds are cured faster than usual.

Horses: they contribute to your self-improvement.

They say: “A horse is an angel without wings.”
And they are right. Horses are known for their therapeutic abilities. Therapeutic riding is an activity that addresses to people with physical, mental and neurological problems. However, horses will help anyone that decides to get involved with them to improve their self-discipline, patience, self-control and responsibility.
A horse can help someone with expression and social problems plus it can help people overcome several fears. Finally, riding a horse is not just for pleasure; it is also very good exercise. So, horse riding has all the advantages of other sports, such as keeping you fit or helping with heart and respiratory problems.

Squirrels and small animals are good for children’s health.

Small animals like squirrels can help children with behavior problems. What’s more, owners of those animals are less likely to suffer from allergies.

Parrots improve elderly health

According to a study that took place in a nursing home, old people who were given parrots did better in all their health tests than those that had no pets.

Fishes diminish high blood pressure.

It has been noted that patients managed to diminish their high blood pressure by observing fishes in an aquarium. This kind of observation helped them relax and as a result, their heart palpitations were normal and their blood pressure dropped.

According to Nike’s pan-European marketing campaign, there are several reasons for a woman to start working out. Working out is a way to improve your health and fitness; it is the path to improve your spiritual strength and it is your energy source.

But first of all, I have to admit that I am not one of those people that can not begin their day without running 5 miles. But the results of a research made on behalf of Nike, gave me the motive to start thinking of making exercise part of my every day routine.

These results stated that 83% of women that work out daily said that exercise has helped them in their career and had also positive effects in their studies. 72% of those women claim to feel more attractive and beautiful since they began working out plus 37% said that they now believe more in themselves.

As for sex life, relationships, erotic mood, sexual instinct and sexual activity everything seems to be better according to 25% of everyday athletes.

How do common women involved in sports feel?
Has exercise really helped them?

The percentages of women’s answers to those questions seem really encouraging.

41% said: “I feel I can achieve anything I want”
77% said: “I trust myself”
69% said: “I feel attractive”
62% said: “I have high self-esteem”
59% said: “I feel really comfortable with my body”
65% said: “I know which my goals are”
85% said: “I stand up for myself”
67% said: “I have self-discipline”
13% said: “I never get nervous”
83% said: “I am a positive person”
77% said: “I am successful”
77% said: “I am ambitious”

Can we really achieve all these self-improvement goals just by starting working out?

Well, it is better to find out for yourself! What are you waiting for? Put your trainers on and go to the nearest park. Remember that working out is not an obligation; it is a pleasure. Try to make exercise part of your life in order to change it. Also keep in mind that getting involved in sports could be an awesome opportunity to meet new people and make new friends!