“I’ve never been lonely. I’ve been in a room — I’ve felt suicidal. I’ve been depressed. I’ve felt awful, awful beyond all, but I never felt that one other person could enter that room and cure what was bothering me…or that any number of people could enter that room. In other words, loneliness is something I’ve never been bothered with because I’ve always had this terrible itch for solitude. It’s being at a party, or at a stadium full of people cheering for something, that I might feel loneliness. I’ll quote Ibsen, “The strongest men are the most alone.” I’ve never thought, “Well, some beautiful blonde will come in here and give me a fuck-job, rub my balls, and I’ll feel good.” No, that won’t help. You know the typical crowd, “Wow, it’s Friday night, what are you going to do? Just sit there?” Well, yeah. Because there’s nothing out there. It’s stupidity. Stupid people mingling with stupid people. Let them stupidify themselves. I’ve never been bothered with the need to rush out into the night. I hid in bars, because I didn’t want to hide in factories. That’s all. Sorry for all the millions, but I’ve never been lonely. I like myself. I’m the best form of entertainment I have.

Every Tuesday is Tip Day.
This Tuesday: 10 tips for living a better life, one day at a time — from Pope John XXIII.

I love reading other people’s resolutions and their personal commandments, and I was very interested to read the daily decalogue of Pope John XXIII (a “decalogue” is a set of rules having authoritative weight). Pope John XXIII was pope from 1958-1963 and was known as “The Good Pope.”

One aspect of the list that’s worth noting is the emphasis on taking each day as it comes. This mindset is hugely helpful to me. Instead of allowing myself to become overwhelmed and discouraged by imagining how hard it would be to keep my resolutions for the rest of my life, I just take it day by day

1. Only for today, I will seek to live the livelong day positively without wishing to solve the problems of my life all at once.
2. Only for today, I will take the greatest care of my appearance: I will dress modestly; I will not raise my voice; I will be courteous in my behavior; I will not criticize anyone; I will not claim to improve or to discipline anyone except myself.
3. Only for today, I will be happy in the certainty that I was created to be happy, not only in the other world but also in this one.
4. Only for today, I will adapt to circumstances, without requiring all circumstances to be adapted to my own wishes.
5. Only for today, I will devote 10 minutes of my time to some good reading, remembering that just as food is necessary to the life of the body, so good reading is necessary to the life of the soul.
6. Only for today, I will do one good deed and not tell anyone about it.
7. Only for today, I will do at least one thing I do not like doing; and if my feelings are hurt, I will make sure that no one notices.
8. Only for today, I will make a plan for myself: I may not follow it to the letter, but I will make it. And I will be on guard against two evils: hastiness and indecision.
9. Only for today, I will firmly believe, despite appearances, that the good Providence of God cares for me as no one else who exists in this world.
10. Only for today, I will have no fears. In particular, I will not be afraid to enjoy what is beautiful and to believe in goodness. Indeed, for 12 hours I can certainly do what might cause me consternation were I to believe I had to do it all my life.

I’ve read this several times over the years, and every time I read it, a different line catches my attention. Today I found myself mulling over #2: “I will not claim to improve or to discipline anyone except myself.” That’s a good resolution for a project. It often seems as though I’d be happy if only other people would behave properly! But the truth is, the only person I can really “improve or discipline” is myself.

I fell like i need to write this now. After my last post on the things that make me bitter, i kinda put myself on a downer. I figure if i write something more positive then i shall fell more positive. Besides, being pessimistic naturally goes against my grain.

1. Stepping on crunchy leaves

2. Fake moustaches

3. Buskers

4. Coffee

5. Books

6. Warm weather

7. My last two exes ( i know this one seems strange, but they are both beautiful women and good friends)

8. Bird songs

9. Smiles from strangers

10. Avocados

11. The beach

12. All baby animals

13. Receiving a genuine compliment

14. Cooking for people

15. Discovering awesome new songs

16. 2,9,10,12,16,17,23

17. A firm handshake

18. Christchurch

19. Whangarei

20. Really good pizza

21. Anything vanilla

22. Hot showers

23. The smell of grass

24. High fiving babies

25. The other side of the pillow

26. Perfect silence

27. Clean sheets

28. Snow( to look at, not be in )

29. Sushi

30. Indian food

31. Not wearing shoes

32. Anything that makes me think

33. A red sky in the evening

34. Calm mornings

35. Making someone laugh

36. Playing pool with Reggie

37. Old bookstores

38. Snail mail (writing letters is very under rated)

39. A good back scratch

40. Crumbs in the corner of a chip packet

41. The calm way old friends catch up

42. The sound of rustling leaves

43. The shadows of trees under moon light

44. Rainbows after it rained

45. Reeses peanut butter cups

46. Christmas tree smell

47. Popping bubble wrap

48. Atlas’

49. Tree houses

50. The goonies

51. Kicking stones while I’m walking

52. Throwing stones

53. Zoo’s

54. Family guy. Family dynamics at its best

55. The simple things

56. Camping

57. Onions

58. Rubbing someones newly shaven head

59. When young children let out adult sized burps

60. When chopsticks come apart perfectly

61. When the boss leaves early for the day

62. Hammertime

63. Peeing after holding on

64. Giving up smoking

65. My cat and dogs

66. My Nieces and Nephews making me laugh

67. Belly button lint

68. Cheese

69. Comfortable silence

70. Blaming a fart on the dog

71. Babies fat rolls ( and hand dimples )

72. Show off my knowledge of useless facts

73. Pasta

74. The sun

75. Marmite

76. Applestroop

77. Lemon juice and sugar on pancakes

78. Hitting fruit with a tennis racket (try this!!)

79. Long weekends

80. Using nailguns

81. 80s slang…its like toooo bitching

82. Taking the piss out of aussies

83. The sound of cicadas

84. Mr Whippy

85. Bubble wands

86. Weird people

87. People watching

88. Oranges

89. Randomly being aware you’re happy

90. Being a smart ass

91. A good song coming on the radio

92. Cold showers on hot days

93. Feeling comfortable with someone

94. Bonfires

95. The way sunlight shines through trees

96. Genuinely feeling happy for someone else

97. Big, tight hugs that make you feel wanted and loved

98. Standing on the beach and letting the waves hit your legs

99. My Friends

100. Putting the pieces of your past together and seeing serendipity in it all

This is the first blog I’ve ever written. It took some time to decide what i was going to write about, then i got some help. You see I’ve been hard at work all week, my job can be quite stressful at times, as a result i really do look forward to my days off. This is the first of them. Instead of being able to relax, today I’ve had a bunch of stupid people asking me stupid questions “How can I annoy you the most today on the day that you want to be annoyed the least?”. “How can I make the day that you used to look forward to be the day you dread the most?”. “What cheesy phrase can I spit out from my arsenal of cheesy phrases that will make you groan the most?” I have several other questions that I just can’t wait to hear, but I’m hoping that you are smart enough to figure out the point by now. If not, I have a super deep hole you can jump in that will help you figure it out quite easily. While i’m at my most pessimistic there’s something about today that makes me want to reveal the things that make me bitter So here goes;

1. Llamas. How is it that they are any different than alpacas? And any animal that is famous for spitting is bitter in my book.

2. Railroad signs.

3. Crowds. Cause other people.

4. Clowns.

5. Pictures of sunsets. How do you know they aren’t sunrises?

6. Pillows on couches. When I have to throw 15 off the couch just to sit down, there might be too many.

7. Fingernails. They only protect the upper part of my fingers.

8. Toenails. They don’t protect my toes at all.

9. Cords. In order to have cordless things there always needs to be cords. What?

10. Bowling. Because it is possible for a little kid to beat a grown adult by accident.

11.Scissors. Why can’t I run with them?

12.Junk email. I’m still waiting for my $20 million from that guy in Africa that I sent my bank account number to.

13.Kardashian.
If schadenfreude exists, please allow the KKKKS (Kim,Khloe,Kourtney,Klan, Scott) to get accidental horrifying plastic surgery to their faces.

14.Burnt popcorn.

15.Coconuts and coconut scented lotion used by people next to me.

16.nubs, stubs, or any other name for what’s left of limbs

17.radio commentators who talk over the music

18.becoming dumber by the day because of the crowd of idiots i work with

19. Parents of ugly babies who don’t realize their babies are ugly

20.Combining famous peoples’ names when they’re together (i.e. Brangelina)

21.Kids who don’t feel like they need to learn anything because the world’s getting dumber all the time

22.People Who Complain About Their Weight While Simultaneously Eating Bad Food

23. The noises dogs make while licking themselves

24.People who stare into your car as you drive by

25.Getting an anonymous text message from someone who wants to play the “guess who this is” game.

26.Fast food. People are getting fatter and lazier.

I think that probably about does it. I am hoping for a better day tomorrow. Perhaps i’ll compile a list of the things i actually like!