Take Five

tebi duba
tabi daba tibudu da
taba didu da bap
badi dadi fa dap

saba dide
fidla dadu tazibi ba
bada sebi du wap
zubi fedlzi zap

taba tabap
sidabadi
faza diwap....

INSPIRATION

It's what gets us motivated and started. The important thing is to know where to find it. I'll share with you the things that make me want to go wild.

1. good music - and I mean GOOD music. The ambitious kind. Classic and jazz is great, but the best of all is: music from the childhood. Nothing gets you on your two feet better than songs you danced to as a kid. Seriously.
2. coffee... - need I say more? OK.: some chocolate only makes it better!
3. weather - this is a country where good weather is quite rare. I've heard we're the only place in the world that shows air pressure on weather reports. So I say: if you wake up and feel it could be a good day to be active: don't wait for your feet to jump out of bed for you.
4. food - you can either buy it or make your own dish... both can be a good idea. I've been told that a single grape can give you lots of energy. I agree. Fruits and vegetables are my favorite energizers. And if you eat good you feel good. But don't eat too much! Remember that after big meals your blood flows in the brain-stomach direction! You don't want to feel sleepy, now do ya? ;)
5. sports - ...or simple walks even :) go out and, do some exercise and breathe. An hour walk can be a good time to observe the people around you... and come up with a genius plan... hehe...
6. memories - come on, all of us have had unique moments in our lives... would it really hurt to do a "remake"? Sure, the sequels are never as good as the first part... but you can always change some small elements... and you're ready to go! How to manipulate ideas (with an example of the new - not necessarily better - version of 'Charades'):
• change an element (if you use time limits: set a time minimum)
• change the setting/instruments (instead of showing with hands or writing/drawing with pens: use flowers)
• reverse something (only one person is guessing: the rest is showing)
• scramble two elements (first start showing something, then decide what the topic is)
• add an element (if the person guesses before the time minimum - all the rest has to do push-ups)
• omit an element (don't choose who's supposed to guess: someone start doing something and the last person to join in - has to guess what the hell is going on)
  
• ...?...
7. friends and/or family - in short: brainstorming! And - one who might have an idea for fun may find people to join!
8. strangers - who knows!
   
9. love - ....mmmh....

If you have any other ideas.... please share! :)

learn about free hugs...

...it's touching :)

free hug

...speechless...

why we need fun

Well... finally some theory on this blog... uff... so here goes :)

There are a few things to point out here. And lots of this has lots to do with psychology... which shouldn't be too shocking considering I'm a psych student. And for those who don't know: psychology isn't bad. It isn't a work of the devil. It's supposed to help. Just like medicine, arts, banking, journalism... it's all for us, people, to make our lives... better, more interesting, more reflecting, perhaps to help us understand problems that cannot be solved... Whatever gives us strength for action is good. I feel silly to have to explain how psychology is a chance for self-development... and I feel silly to keep excusing myself by using the argument of the reality in my country... But it seems important.

In my life I've been lucky enough to travel some part of the world and meet different cultures, being still a child. I've become open to suggestions, sensitive to other's problems and... learned that a positive attitude is a best solution. IF (and unfortunately, only if), the surrounding also tries to avoid all the negativity in behavior. Again, I go back to the example of my dearest country; usually, when I first come across with anyone here, I am considered to be stupid/girlish/mental/childish/blabla/whatever... simply because I smile.
The two main characters of our political scene are twin brothers, the President and the Prime Minister, who seem to lack of any sense of humor. I fear one day they might want to make joke-telling illegal. Hence smiling is considered as suspicious and as a sign of being up-to-sth-no-good. Which is why I promote the simple, natural activity called "smiling". It has been scientifically (perhaps the word "psychologically" would be better...) proven, that smiling gives better outcomes in social relations. I sometimes wish Poland had some song standards, like "Smile", composed by Charlie Chaplin. The only Polish song I can think of is "Uśmiechnij się"... and the only version I can recall was its parody... which didn't send the right message, if you ask me...

Today, it is a fact that more and more, especially young people are depressed. And suicidal. Today, when the life standard is so much higher, when these are the safest times in the history of the world and when tolerance and individuality is more and more common. The answer is: pressure. We are all expected to be successful, the goal is to be at the top. And in order to be at the top we have to work, work work... Ever watched "The Shining"? Anyone? All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. If you want to keep your mental health, you need to go out there and have fun. Period.

And all this is also based on my a-couple-or-more years of experience. There are ups and downs, we all have them. It's how we get through that matters. You need to look at the bright side and learn from that experience. You can learn what helps you, who you can trust... and who you can play with :) And... you get creative. The sooner you start to search for fun, the easier it is. You also need to believe you deserve to have fun, and frankly, all of us deserve to have fun. The only thing here to be said is about moral boundaries. We all know that these boundaries are fuzzy. I guess what I have to say is: make sure no one gets hurt. Funhaving is supposed to give you energy, be an inspiration... to... umm... :) whatever one might need :)

OK., enough of all the psychology, ethics and so on... But some things need to be thought about.

so sorry... please forgive...

I just realized what is the source of my "unfunness" phase I'm going through. Yes, the answer is very simple: POLITICS!!!

Ever since I began psychology, I suddenly have gotten interested into what is going on in our government. I came to the conclusion, that it's best to know when to flee. Or take action, or whatever. For the past few years, the political scene in Poland has been some kind of a poor-class comedy, cabaret, or... something... Since October 2005, I don't recall it ever being calm, in fact our new government seems to be concentrating only on the past issues and on getting rid of others they believe to be evil. Yes, you got it: not bad, not harmful: evil. E-V-I-L. I believe that sometime about two weeks ago, I seriously started to consider my emigrant future. The thing is: there is a difference between fun and grotesque... and grotesque is where our Polish politics are now at. Scary...

No wonder my inspiration has been lost... No wonder it ran away. Also, I went to my travel agency two days ago, to get an early reservation for a flight to the US by the end of June. Last year I went there in the mid-April and found something cheap. This year, in the mid-February... nada. I was expected to pay big... and fast. Usually, I like to call a search party around town. In this case, it wouldn't even be unrealistically optimistic to suddenly find 1000$... that would be pure insane... and stupid :).

Great... now I can't even run away for vacation... :D

So this was my self-analysis. One more sip of coffee and away we go!

a confession...

You know what can be fun? Blogs. I swear, I had so much fun just by starting this thing and simply writing what I think... hehe :) And then you learn stuff... maybe not necessarily the kind you should be learning (they don't check your HTML on psychology, I assure you...)...

Why have I forgotten about it, I don't know. So, exam session: goodbye! Back to work with funhaving educating. Right...

Before I write about inspirations... I'll need to inspire myself... more after I get my cup of joe ;)

Eureka!

I have just discovered...

... there is a dude who's life career is all about fun... and I think he might be a psychologist, I couldn't find the information though. But he is a member of the Association for Humanistic Psychology.

GOLLY!!!

I think I just found a "hero" :)

Exam session

I'm running out of ideas. How can I have fun when I'm supposed to be learning? I guess, and actually, I have just discovered that surely, unless you are a very small child, you cannot really learn and funhave at the same time. You end up being in a ridiculous mood and worse, with none of that new and complicated knowledge you were supposed to obtain. It's worse than if you spend your day just on being lazy. It's a lose-lose situation, and that, my friends, is what we want to evade.

The only fun part in the whole exams-and-essays-all-two-weeks-long thingy is when you see the effect as a grade that satisfies you, and you simply cross out another item on the "to do" list. And on such dark and gloomy weather days like today, you only wish something would inspire. Maybe I'm in some kind of funhaving-crisis phase... yeah... Even the coffee I order at a my favorite place suddenly doesn't taste right...

... well no wonder! I order "orka" coffee and they give me a "flamingo" chai? With cinnamon? Tea and cinnamon don't mix!!! ...I think...

ALERT, ALERT!!!

I have only two words for you:

Super Bowl

OK, just one more:

Halftime!!!

Be there or be square! It's what'll keep you on track!!!

Smile!!!

Well, it's official: winter in Poland is over!
Goodbye snow. Didn't make it with my snowman plan. Again. Next time, I'll decide to flunk one of my finals, just to make sure I finally play with the snow a little. Goodbye freezing temperatures, I'm not sad you didn't haunt me, yet I hope next winter you will help me wake up in the mornings, when it's dark, just so I will feel cold enough to close the window (and start the day, not snooze it up like this year...). I'm pretty sure all the farmers curse you for being a bad visitor this season. Goodbye ... wait, that's it. All the rest stays: gray skies, slippery ground, dark mornings, heavy pressure, strong and impossible-to-breathe-with wind... oh shoot...

So along comes the time of season when winter's behind us, but it's not yet spring. In Polish this is called przedwiośnie, meaning pre-spring, or before-spring. And where's the best place to start looking for fun? I can't guarantee this will work this year; anyone familiar with United Nation's announcement today? Yeah... there you go... But this worked in previous years, maybe it will be just as good this time.

My favorite first sign of the coming spring is the warm breeze, comparing to the mega-cold winter hair-killer. The energy it brings makes me simply drop the idea of taking a bus and I decide to walk my way through. I think of the flowers that will soon be blooming, and the sole thought of that makes me smile. And that's the starting point of funhaving. If you want to begin in anything, you gotta get into the right mood. The truth is: you can't even begin to have a good time unless you let the "funness" in, and you won't let it in if you can't put that smile on your face. Do that, and the rest will come much easier.

When I think spring, I think of wanting to run, jump all around and sing. Ever tried singing while walking in town? I know very few people who do that, counting me. I used to skip around as well. But now that it got slippery I'm saving that for another time. The thing is: why not just enjoy the day as it is, for no specific reason? Is it that "childish" to simply be happy, smile to others and wish them a nice day? I used to think Poland is the land of grumps. Can you imagine how shocked I was to see people respond to a simple silly small talk? You'd be surprised. And THAT gives you fun, AND make a day seem like it couldn't be better.

Yes, I am serious. These are the basics!