be good anyway

“If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and true enemies; succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; be honest and frank anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous; be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow; do good anyway..
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God; it was never between you and them anyway.”  

- Kent M. Keith

Thanks Yousuf! Be the better person regardless; it's not your relationship with others but something much more powerful.  

Happy Sunday xx

boys n girls: classic scenario

step 1: boy has his eye on girl.

step 2: girl remains reserved.

step 3: boy manipulates, demands, pushes, flatters, forgets about pride, wants all or nothing because he doesn't need another friend who's a girl in his life.

step 4: girl accepts with hesitation.

step 5: boy and girl enjoy being in a relationship for a week (MAX).

step 6: girl is convinced boy likes her and invests herself.

step 7: boy becomes less interested. (real boy: verbally makes it clear immediately. worthless child: distances himself to let her figure it out).

step 8: girl is confused.

step 9: boy is confused girl isn't interested in being friends.

(somehow Steps 6 - 9 manage to occur simultaneously in a span of a minute).

note: even if girl remains strong and reserved boy isn't happy and peaces out. how is this solved? it isn't. girl needs to learn to get over it until she finds boy who doesn't mess up step 7.

xx penguina

i want

"i'd like some attention now"

beauty tip to the boys & girls

you meet someone, they're not too bad looking, or they're really good looking, either way you're really excited to get to know them, they open their mouths to talk.... and you really wish they didn't.

situation at hand: ugly teeth.

having ugly teeth is like having a permanent chunk of spinach... between your two front teeth. It's just awkward for the person you're talking to.

people really underestimate the power of teeth and the effect they have on our relationships. It's unfortunate to say the least to meet someone who doesn't care or know that they may as well be on mute because of the unavoidable distraction. It makes you question what else' their neglecting...

i'm not saying teeth have to look like a perfect line of white Chiclets, some character is nice, but character doesn't mean yellow-stained, or out of place... just clarifying.

if you've got the means, definitely prioritize your pearly whites, they weren't just made for munching.

xx penguina

cooties!

the awkward years boys had to go through..

oh oh oh oh oh oh

can we just be lazy today?

muslims: enter if you dare!

here at the grocery store you will find that there is a little animal farm action going on as our little porcine friend babe and his cousins get their own "special" section. you will also find a sign pointing out that it is for "non-muslims." i wasn't sure if this was some sort of friendly reminder to the lost muslim, a threat to any daring muslim, or a great way to make non-muslims feel welcome. WHAT IF I felt like perusing the different cuts in there.... i'm not supposed to feel paranoid in a grocery store.

xx penguina

don't worry, be happy

there's always a time of the month when i realize something i need to change about myself. this month it's been about maintaining a steady flow of positive energy. whenever i feel a negative surge go through me i try my hardest to fight it. i make sure to always be grateful no matter what situation i'm in. i might not have everything, but any situation can always be worse.

one of the main changes i've been consciously working on is how i react to anything that frustrates me. when my father sent me an email with the 90/10 Principle by Stephen Covey it really made me more cautious of my reactions. the principle is the idea that "10% of life is made up of what happens to you and 90% of life is decided by how you react." you might find this extreme, but i've found it true in many ways.

according to this principle 10% of what happens is out of our control, be it a red light, a car breaking down, or someone spilling coffee on a brand new shirt of yours. however, we can control how we react in these situations. if we remain calm, the situation can be forgotten without stress, whereas if we react harshly towards others and stress ourselves out, the rest of our day will face a negative domino effect.

following this principle is worth it; there were days my reactions would irritate ME and controlling them has made such a difference. i still have a lot to work on but I've found that being able to just let go and not let something get the best of me has made me much happier.

remember, happiness is a choice; don't wait for something great to happen. find happiness in the smaller things around you and what you already have. when you're having a bad day it's important to keep reminding yourself how lucky you are, even if you don't feel it.

give yourself a task: try to follow this principle by controlling your reactions, and each day think of three things you are grateful for. if something happens or someone says something that upsets you, count to 10 to calm yourself before you react (i still struggle with that one). despite all the pain and frustration we go through, life is beautiful and nothing is worth stressing about.

xx penguina

why the smurfs were communist

- they live in an egalitarian utopia

- each smurf has a particular skill

- no system of monetary exchange

- papa smurf - karl marx

- brainy smurf - leon trotsky

- the food was equally distributed

- no form of barter

- similar clothing except for papa smurf

- no mention of god, similar to communism which leans towards atheism

- gargamel -> capitalism as he wants to turn the smurfs to gold to satisfy his own greed

xx penguina

warm apple crisp mmm.

i’m a real pie lover but have always found most pies too heavy. that's why this crisp i adapted off the William Sonoma site is the perfect alternative. it can be manipulated to any kind of fruit pie but apple is my pick. this easy and relatively quick treat is great alone or with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream melting all over it! not to mention it fills the house with a warm cinnamon goodness that seduces any nose!

ingredients:

music: fly me to the moon - frank sinatra
mood: don't mind peeling, chopping, and getting your hands dirty

for the crisp topping:

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup old-fashioned or quick-cooking rolled oats

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

8 Tbs. unsweetened applesauce

1/2 cup pecans, chopped

for the apple filling:

1/2 cup maple syrup or honey (your choice)

Pinch of salt

1/8 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

6 tart apples such as pippin and granny smith, peeled, halved,

cored and sliced 1/4 inch thick (about 6 cups)

directions:

position a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 350°F. lightly grease a 12-inch oval or 9-by-13-inch rectangular baking dish with a 2-quart capacity.

to make the topping, in a bowl, stir together the flour, oats, brown sugar, salt, applesauce and cinnamon. add the pecans and toss to mix. cover and refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

to make the filling, in a small bowl, stir together the maple syrup, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. place the apple slices in a large bowl, sprinkle with the maple mixture and toss to distribute evenly. spread the apple mixture in the prepared baking dish. sprinkle the topping evenly over the apples.

bake until the topping is crisp and golden brown and the apples are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, about 50 minutes. serve warm. serves 8.

xx penguina