Warming Up Those Winter Blues

Image: http://www.rocknrollbride.com/tag/winter/page/2/

If you live in the Northern Hemisphere - disregard this post. However, if you are one of my fellow Southerners experiencing a blizzard filled tundra of a Winter then please take note!

Winter is not always fun. Dry skin, cracked lips, frost-bitten fingers, weight gain, and a general feeling of blah-ness all contribute to what i refer to as the Winter Blues. Not only that, but it has been scientifically proven that Depression or feelings of sadness are higher in the Winter months. Even I have fallen victim to the sugar-craving pastry-stuffing ball of numbness that is so often seen huddled up on the side walks, bus stops and office places with cheeks flaring red and moods soaring to sub-zero temperatures. Ugh, Winter. But hang in there, Damsels! I have come up with a list of Winter warmers that will help you through this vicarious period of hibernation, chilly back sides and food binging.


1. Max out that heating appliance to tropical climates. A no-brainer, but seriously, there is nothing worse than escaping from the outside Winter chill only to be welcomed by a frosty igloo-like household.

2. Slip into some sweats! Preferably after a long, hot bath. There is nothing better than changing into your most comfiest, warmest tracksuit and 'chilling' on the couch with a heavy blanket and a remote.

3. Hot Chocolate. In front of a fire or heater. Wrap those cold Popsicle fingers around a hot mug of thick hot chocolate and feel your mood soar!

4. Exercise! It never fails to amaze me the amount of people who complain about going to the gym because of it being "too cold" outside. To me the gym is the perfect oasis for blustery blizzard days! Feel your body temperature warm up as your feet pound the treadmill and get a kick of that natural endorphin-induced high you get from working that body! Also great if like me, you have been over-indulging in 'comfort foods'

5. Embrace it! There's no point trying to fight Winter cos it's just gonna come back and kick you in the butt with frost bite. So why not make the best of it? Plan a snow day. Layer up and go for a stroll along the river bank, watching your breath make frosty patterns in the air. Go out to a cozy little cafe for hot chocolates and mocchacino's. Learn to ski or snowboard. Have a bonfire. Go ice-skating. Buy the cutest most colorful beanie you can find to get that noggin of yours warm and toasty. Turn up the music and dance those Winter chills away. Have a long hot shower or bath. Google tropical destinations and imagine sun-bathing in a bikini. Let nature run its course. And before you know it the sun will begin to peek its head, the grass will become greener, and the air sweeter. Ride the storm out and I guarantee those Winter blues will slowly fade away!

A Lesson In Procrastination

I'm back, Damsels!  It has been quite - [sic] a verry long time - since I last posted on here. No, my computer didn't crash again, no I wasn't abducted by a minion of little blue men, and no, I haven't been hit by a bus. Truth of the matter is, I've been lazy. Yep, there I said it. I'll go a bit further - god, forbid - and admit that for the past few weeks I couldn't think of anything worse to do than to blab on about my mediocre experiences of late. Because, truth is things have been a wee on the boring side. I've ran head-first into a huge heavy wall of writers block and decided that instead of going around that wall, I'd just sit there against it and wait for it to magically disappear. Well that was a fail and a half cos turns out it didn't crumble into thin air and day by day my laziness turned into full blown procrastination. I even saw mind-numbing tasks like washing the dishes as more of a glee than writing an article. I know, right!. Ugh! I've embarrassed myself by my complete sloth-like behavior and today was the last straw of it. So, after a couple of minutes of extra procrastinating I forced myself onto my keyboard and here I am. Back in action! So, what have I got to tell you after my couple weeks of blogging non-existence? Not a tremendous amount, unfortunately. My plight for a job has at least picked up a small amount. I've had at least one interview a week (but yet to have transitioned from that part of the process) and Ive decided to go back to uni. Cos try as i might, i cant seem to break my emotional attachment to it - How sad am I? And my man hunt has been equally as boring and non-existent. The only form of male action I've been getting is Tim at Telstra who I've made quite a connection with during my whole 'phone plan kefuffle.' Yet, needless to say Ive only spoken to Tim on the phone and our relationship hasn't grown further than that. So on this note, I am happy to announce that I've finally broken free from the holds of procrastination and will endeavor to deliver some fab kick-arse articles for you in the following days. I promise! 'Til then, here are some articles you can *procrastinate* over!


-How to live a glamorous life on an un-glamorous budget! http://www.charadestyle.com/2012/02/20-ways-to-be-glamorous-on-budget.html

-Beautiful People are few and far between in Britain, according to Beautifulpeople.com. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/sex/6542263/British-people-among-worlds-ugliest-according-to-BeautifulPeople.com.html

-Therapist Mark Tyrrell tells us how to stop worrying about what others think of us in this great article. http://www.uncommonhelp.me/articles/how-to-stop-worrying-what-other-people-think/

-Challenge Accepted! http://livestronglivelean.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/30-DAY-SQUAT-CHALLENGE.pdf

-Why not try one of the best recipes, ever? http://blogs.smh.com.au/entertainment/tabletalk/jilldupleix/2009/03/03/thefiftybestrecipesever.html

-I'm going cray cray over rainbow cakes! http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/rainbow-layer-cake/4969fed8-141e-45f5-9a04-e03addd20fbb

-These chiffon and tulle flowers are so pretty. Why not get crafty and make your own? http://www.lovemaegan.com/2011/05/french-pouf-chiffon-tulle-flower.html

-Winter is the season for layering! Here are some tips to get you looking spiffy even when it's minus 5 outside! http://www.glamour.com/fashion/2013/01/10-winter-layering-fashion-essentials-every-woman-should-own#slide=1

-This article made me feel oodles better about being almost 25 and not having a 'boyfriend' http://seraphicsinglescummings.blogspot.com.au/2010/07/almost-25-with-no-boyfriend.html

 

Weekly-Wrap Up

It's time yet again for the next installment of your Weekly Wrap-Up! This week I've scoured some fab reads for you to enjoy/contemplate/procrastinate over including a look at all the makeup hits and misses from this years prestigious Met Ball Gala as well as some new Internet sensations doing the rounds on YouTube mixed in with a couple of fascinating stories to marvel over. Pop that kettle on Damsel, and enjoy!

- I adore good old-fashioned tea parties. Try out these beautiful flower tea recipes as an accompaniment to your next party! http://teabeyond.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/tea-101-how-to-brew-blooming-tea-flower.html

-Sampling services have become all the rage lately, allowing you to sample products from high-end brands at the low-end of the price tag! http://www.allure.com/beauty-products/2012/beauty-sample-services#intro

-Word of caution! Do not open this page if you are on a diet! http://dzineblog.com/2011/02/36-best-cupcake-designs.html

-A friend of mine performed a tarot card reading for me the other week, and I must say i was impressed. Try it! Even if its just for fun! http://psychicandastrology.psychicguild.com/2011/03/07/tarot/the-art-of-tarot-reading/

-This clever young chap sent a very original cover letter to Wall Street which saw him landing a job the following day. http://au.businessinsider.com/student-sends-great-cover-letter-for-internship-at-bank-and-its-now-going-viral-on-wall-street-2013-1

-It was Punk Pride at this years Met Ball. Here is a selection of some of the fabbo beauty and hair looks from the night! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/07/met-gala-beauty-2013_n_3224175.html which look is your fave?

-Europeans dress better than Americans. Do you agree? http://www.bangsandabun.com/2010/03/europeans-dress-better-than-americans-fact/

-Feeling crafty? These cute egg cozy's are super adorable and will keep your egg nice and 'boiled' during these cooler months! http://crochet.about.com/od/cozies/tp/free-crochet-egg-cozy-patterns.htm

-Wonder what it means when your crush shuffles his feet while hes talking to you? These body language reading tips will help you to decode his 'shifty' behavior! http://www.cosmopolitan.com/sex-love/body-language/#category1-1

-Ever wanted to see what it looks like inside the walls of Buckingham Palace? Thanks to this 360 degree virtual tour, you now can! http://www.royal.gov.uk/virtualtours/BuckinghamPalaceVirtualTour/throne_room.html

-Why nobody likes the "Facebook You" http://www.themastermindproject.com/why-nobody-likes-facebook-you/

-Ever wonder why pirates wore eye patches? http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/04/09/why-did-pirates-wear-eye-patches.html

-It's Mothers Day today, and I came across a gorgeous selection of black and white portraits of models and their mothers. Good looks must definitely run in the genes! http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/02/24/magazine/look-models-mothers.html?_r=0

-If you are anything like me and hate looking at yourself in photos, this post will help shed some light on why some people just aren't, well.. photogenic. http://slowmama.com/randommusings/on-not-being-photogenic-and-friday-links/

Well, look out Sweet Brown! Charles Ramsay, who helped rescue three women in the Cleveland 10-year kidnapping hiatus has become an Internet sensation with the remix of his interview going viral.

 

Spoken Word tells you why you should never let an exam result decide your fate

“People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be.”

― Abraham Lincoln

Get The Rut Out Of There!

We've all found ourselves stuck in a proverbial rut at one point or another. You might be knee-deep in one now. It's a horrible feeling, and what's really frustrating about it is that it usually occurs when everything in your life is going well. It's always when your comfortable with how things are that you find yourself in a groove that you've unknowingly dug yourself. You're no longer excited about anything anymore. You have no energy. Someone seems to have put out the flame of desire that once burnt strongly inside of you. And worst of all you can't really put a finger on what exactly is causing you so much 'blah-ness' towards living. Today i woke up feeling down. Not depressed, but not happy either; somewhere in between. I like to apply the word 'meh' to this kind of weird limbo-state of feeling. I woke up 'meh' today and I didn't know why. Everything is moving along in my life - granted, not as quickly as I'd like but moving nonetheless - my family are all happy and well, my friends are a constant source of support and happiness.. but somehow I just wasn't feeling it. I felt like a drifting cloud. just floating around  in every day life waiting to bump into something interesting. Fixing my hair in the mirror just brought me down even more. I looked like a walking zombie. No pizazz left in my eyes, even my hair failed to cooperate into going up into a 'high' ponytail. Yes, I felt meh. and this meh-ness was choking me like a black cloud.  See, life isn't exciting anymore. I've done all that was to be done. The past four years I had been working towards accomplishing my diploma and now Ive accomplished it. I've applied for countless jobs and have gotten promising feedback from at least a couple with a chance of securing one. Still, it feels as if I'm stuck. Limbo-town is a place I know quite well, and its a place where I'd rather not stay for too long. Thing is its hard to get away from there. You have to rely on the next bus to come and collect you but unfortunately the buses don't run on a set-schedule, they come and go as they please so you're never quite sure when your next bus will come. Limbo-town sucks. And its boring. and the people there smell funny. I need to get out of there, and pronto! There is an express train that comes more frequently, but the catch is in order for you to be able to board you must have found your inner sparkle. And such a thing is very hard to find in Limbo-town. What is inner-sparkle, and what does it look like? Inner sparkle is that firing pizazz of spark deep inside your gut that fires you up and spurs you on when found in said-rut. But you have to summon it up in order for it to work. How? By finding something - a goal, a dream, an inspiration - to fuel its fire. You must ignite your inner sparkle and propel yourself out of this Limbo-Town rut, Damsel!

Don't just sit there! Go out and do something - anything! Whether that be visiting your local florist and buying a colorful bunch of flowers for your room, painting your nails a whacky color, or applying to volunteer at your local food shelter.

Jump-start that inner sparkle by hitting the gym! Exercise helps us to regain control of our lives and keeps our bodies and minds moving.

Remember back to when you were a kid. Remember that "When I grow up i want to be.." routine? Try it now. What do you really want to be and do? A doctor? go online and search for relevant courses in your area, or visit your local university campus, volunteer at your local hospital. Always wanted to write? Get out a notepad and pen and commit to writing something for the next fifteen minutes.

Listen to uplifting, soul-shaking, motivating music! Crank it up and let the beat move through you and awaken that inner-drive to go out and grab life by the horns!

Switch up your routine! Change the alarm tone on your clock to something up-beat and funny, take a bath instead of a shower, travel a different route home, always hit the gym in the evenings? go first thing in the morning. Drive to school or work? walk or ride your bike or catch public transport. Always listen to that pop CD? chuck in some heavy metal or punk.

Meditate! For the next 10 minutes sit or lie down, eyes closed, and focus on your breathing. Picture in your mind all the things which makes you happy and all the things you are grateful for. Then play make-believe! Get that imagination running. Picture yourself in your "happy place" (we all have one!) and I promise that when you sit back up you will feel more energized and motivated!

The Confidence Bootcamp

Image: http://fabulousmag.co.uk/tag/make-over/

Let me tell you one thing about confidence. Growing up, I never had it. I was tall and awkward, painfully shy, and a little bit of a nerd. I got teased a lot. I didn't have many friends because I was too scared to talk to people. I couldn't even look my teachers in the eye at school. I dreaded having to buy something from the school kiosk. I spent every P.E lesson hiding out in the toilets or at the sick-bay. And I can't begin to tell you the amount of times I faked 'being sick' as to get out of situations that would be out of my comfort zone. Then, one day my year 7 principle offered me some words of advice. "Confidence is like exercise. The more you practice at it, the more you train, the more you will get better at it and eventually it will become second nature to you." From that point on, I began treating my loss of self-confidence the way one does to treat puppy fat; I exercised and trained hard until I became strong at it. Think of your brain as a muscle. The more you feed it with positive thoughts and affirmations the more confident you will become. "Confidence is like a muscle," explains Michelle Landy, the author of The Confidence Workout. "We need to use it to keep us strong." And just like you would in preparing for a marathon, you have to begin by starting small and building up.

Every marathon or slug-sesh at the gym is started off with a warm-up first. Warm-ups help us to prepare our minds and equips our body for the work-out ahead. It is during your warm-up where you decide what you want to achieve or get out from your work out. So in the case of warming-up your self-confidence, it is essential you begin by 'stretching' through committing to do small challenges everyday. Be it smiling at every person you walk past on the way to work, or complimenting a stranger on their shoes. Confidence begins as a result of small, manageable actions. "The key to building real confidence is to always keep stretching your comfort zone" explains Jordan Bates, author of website Refine The Mind. By stretching our comfort zones little by little, we are essentially conditioning our bodies to be able to handle bigger challenges or resistances. Start this warm-up today by writing on a list five things that you love about yourself. That may be your ability to use humor in awkward situations, or your mad pottery skills, or your ability to parallel park. Anything that makes you feel good about yourself - hobby or quirk - write it down.
This practice helps us to recognize our positive attributes and the things that makes us feel great. It trains our mind to focus on and look for the good in us therefore limiting self-doubt. Now look through your list. Doesn't that person sound incredibly awesome? Who wouldn't love you!

The next step in our boot camp is the star-jump. Still fairly low-impact yet powerful in getting that inner-power flowing. Write down every person; be it actor/actress/model/politician/scientist/or person in your life such as your best friend, mother, father, etc. who you admire the most. Next write down the top attribute they possess of which you would also like to possess. Is it their ability to keep a conversation flowing? The way they dress? How they are able to command attention and respect from anyone they meet? their awesome organizational skills? The way they don't care of what others think of them? You get the drill. Write it down. Now its time for a bit of meditation. I want you to pull out your metaphorical yoga mat and close your eyes and imagine yourself possessing these same qualities. How would you talk, act, walk if you had this quality? This act of visualization helps us to see the person we want to be and causes our sub-conscious mind to tell you conscious mind to act appropriately. Want to be more approachable to people? Visualize yourself as a happy, smiling, approachable person. Want that CEO position? Visualize yourself sitting at the that desk. Want that dream house? Visualize yourself as already living in it. The mind thinks in pictures. If you feed it negative images you will only attracts negative things. But feed it images of things you want, and it will manifest in your everyday life. What you see is what you'll be. Remember that.

Now the hard-yards. We are gonna amp up this workout by doing some heavy-lifting. You've already listed all your awesome qualities, and you've already imagined yourself as a confident and happy go-getter, but its one thing to sit and imagine then it is to actually go out and practice these skills on the running track of everyday life. I want you to pick one thing from your list that you want to work on. If you've chosen say 'To not care what others think' then I want you to start off by wearing an item of clothing you love, but have always been too afraid to try on because of what others might think of it. That old lady at the office who always gives you the hairy eyeball when you walk past her? I want you to smile and say "how are you today?" or even a simple cheerful "hello!" would suffice. Even just a smile. Start off small, and work up. Challenge yourself every day by doing at least one thing that's out of your normal comfort zone. "They don't have to be big, life-changing events; small things that keep you in touch with the edge of your comfort zone will do." says Landy. The more you train, the stronger your self-confidence will become. And like any work-out, you always feel ten times better after you've done it.









Visit Michelle Landy's blog here http://michellelandy.com/blog/

How Aliens Reminded Me That Life Isn't That Bad After All

                                                    Image: http://blog.nagornymodels.com/lang/en/archives/date/2012/01

Before you say anything, no I wasn't visited and probed by little green men over the weekend. I was in fact inspired the other night after watching a documentary on the possible existence of extraterrestrial life. This show gathered encounters, experiences, and stories from a range of credible intellectuals who all believe that there is life outside of our own planet. Laugh if you will, but I too am one of those believers. I remember watching a documentary in primary school as a little tyke, and as we were all engrossed in the images of stars and spaceships - our knees drawn up to our chests, eyes glued to the screen - I remember the narrator exclaiming that "there is something bigger out there" and that "we are not alone". What i found extremely interesting is that UFO's and ET's are not a recent thing manufactured by vivid and out-there imaginations or loony talk from rednecks in the deep south; the thought that there is life outside our own planet has been around since the 4th century where it was first recorded in Chinese texts that a "moon boat" hovered above the country every 12 years. Even the Ancient Egyptians recorded sightings of UFO's, validated by the etching of a little man in a round spaceship managing a joystick on the wall of a temple along with images of a fleet of flying saucers on an ancient papyrus. But never mind all that, I'm not writing today to talk about conspiracy theories. (no matter how interesting a write-up that would be I don't believe I have the brainpower to churn out something of that scale nor the emotional capability that comes with the onslaught of slack I'd receive in doing so) No, the reason I bring up aliens is because a, that documentary has turned me into a science nut and b, it reminded me that no matter what we are going through in life, there is always something bigger than what we are facing. Just think about it! Better yet, if you are currently seated near a window I want you to peer out for a minute and look up at the sky. How freakin' huge is that thing! and beyond those clouds is something even more expansive! Doesn't that make you feel so small, so insignificant in the wider world of things?? I remember as a child I'd go to bed often in a huff because I'd been dealt a bad hand that day; ie. I may have spilt chocolate milk over my new dress and got the third degree from mum, or the boy I had a crush on at school called me "giraffe" for being so tall. Anyways, my bed was next to a pretty decent sized window. And I'd always look out up into the night sky and watch the stars twinkle. Sometimes I'd be lucky enough to even see a shooting star or a satellite. And as I did this I immediately felt better. Those stars a million miles away always reminded me that things would get better and that no matter what I was dealing with, it will eventually come to pass as quickly as the night turned into day. For just a minute I'd forget about the little trivial things I was getting in a tangle over and realise that in comparison to the sky above me, I was insignificant. So it didn't matter if I stuttered my words during a public talk, or that I got knocked back from a job I really wanted. It may have seemed a big deal to me but in the bigger picture it wasn't that big a deal at all. Even - if you care to bare with me -take this example and imagine how we even came into being in the first place. How did we end up here, how did our planet form, how did the solar system that our planet resides in form, how did the universe form? the planets, the stars? Now that's a big deal! and yet, we seem to take it all for granted. Sure, we'll make a big deal over that so and so who cut us off at the lights this morning, or that person who 'did us wrong' how many years ago, but at the end of the day whats really important? What really matters? That we are alive - we are living - and not only that, but we are so very lucky to experience this world in all its infinite glory. Look up at the sky today Damsels, and thank your lucky stars for it.

If You Don't Know Where You're Going, You'll Probably End Up Somewhere Better

Image: http://www.designmom.com/2012/01/road-rally/  

Road Mapping is an essential component in any journey. In order to get from A to B you need a decent plan highlighting the best routes to take, rest stops or fuel stations along the way, and any places of interest which could be of value to you. I was rummaging around my family garage the other day when I found a crate of books. Amongst them, one cover caught my eye; it was David Campbell's 'If You Don't Know Where You're Going, You'll Probably End Up Somewhere Else'. It is a little primer of a book outlining the importance that goal-planning has in the building of a happy and successful life. Its message is clear and simple; If you haven't got a plan - or a map - of where you are going, then chances are, you won't end up where you want to be. I am a firm believer in goal-setting and planning. I am an OCD planner, I own a journal - no, two journals - and every morning before I begin my day I write a plan on what i want to achieve; Be that writing an article before 7pm, going to the gym, or picking up dog food from the local pet store. Then, I go through each task, meticulously ticking each one off as I complete them. It sounds OTT but it helps me to arrange my thoughts and to make the most of each day, because before you know it, today turns into tomorrow - and tomorrow turns into "Ohh I can just put that off until Friday.." and so on and so on. I was at my dear friend Laura's house the other day, and we were sitting at her kitchen table talking about our lives and stressing about where we'll end up. "I don't know who I am, where I'm going, or what I want to be anymore." said Laura, helplessly tapping away at her laptop attempting to submit an assignment by the deadline of 5 o'clock. It was 4:35. "I don't even know why I chose this degree, I don't even like it!" Laura is a prime example of a last-minute planner. Give her a map and she'd eye it with half-interest and then push it aside saying "I hate maps. They're SO boring". The thing is with maps though is that without them, we'd be lost. It was quite the coincidence then when I picked up an O! Magazine sitting in a haphazard pile of paper atop one of the kitchen seats. One of the feature articles touched on the subject of mapping your life journey. More specifically, what happens when you've mapped your journey and finally venture out only to end up hitting a road bump or accidentally taking a wrong turn or - as this article stated - hit a rumble strip. There are many of time where I have set out on a road trip and been blindsided by a crossroad. i.e., a road would be closed and I'd have to make alternate arrangements, or the fuel stations only petrol pump was out of order, or my tire got a puncture etc. And even though I planned every little detail of my road map before leaving, something can - and usually does - pop up and forces me have to draw up a whole new map. But, the funny thing is in most cases the moments that didn’t work out - where I've incidentally hit a 'rumble strip' - served the most important part of the trip. See, rumble strips serve a purpose; they warn you to slow down, take caution, and get back on track. We can use this analogy of the rumble strip in real life, too. When Laura brought up how, when she first applied for university, she thought her specific course would be enjoyable only to find out now that she actually despises it. This is a form of rumble strip, and its serving her a purpose even if she can't see it through the pile of homework in front of her. It's telling her 'Hey, this isn't the best option for you. But that's ok! Let’s look at your other options!' Same thing applies to every area of your life, be it personal, professional or otherwise. If your current road map has led you to dead-end town then it’s time to stop, put your car in reverse, and try a different road.

Pump the brakes. If you're overcome with feelings of dissatisfaction in your current journey then there’s no point wasting precious fuel by continuing on in the bumper to bumper of a busy congested highway you always seem to take day-in and day-out. Martha Beck in her article 'Off The Beating Path' in the February 2013 issue of O! Magazine suggests that in any circumstance or part of a rumble strip you've found yourself upon, the first thing to do is to stop. Drop all your fears, worries, should-of's, could-of's etc. and focus on the now. Stop, and surrender. This is your first step in remapping your journey.

Do a U-Turn. At first realization that you've reached a point of destination where you otherwise don't want to be, then reverse out of that dead-end street, off the rumble strip, and backtrack. Martha says that in order to do this, we must take note of all the problems we're encountering and list them in order of which one is causing us the most pain or dissatisfaction. In Laura's case, it was her degree. Laura threw her mind in reverse by making an inventory of all the reasons why she didn't like what she was studying and all the reasons why - in her mind - she should keep at it. After analyzing her list we found that the root cause of the problem was not the degree itself, but Laura's inability to manage her time. Aha! Try putting your mind in reverse and list every resistance to whatever you’re facing on one page, and on the opposite page write a list of every feasible way you can overcome this or correct each problem.

Take the next exit. As soon as you have assessed your current life situation and have found that you were on the wrong route, it's time to head in a new direction. Laura saw that her inability to manage her time efficiently was making her dislike what she was studying, and so she forced herself to correct this situation. First, by listing all the possible ways she can better compartmentalize her life. I gave her one of my journals (I always carry a spare in my bag!) and helped her manage her life into bite-sized pieces. After this, Laura was able to see that by stopping and switching paths or perspectives, she was able to move forward on a smooth and even track. Let me give you a personal example; when my relationship with Nutjob broke down, instead of self-sabotaging myself with "why me, what is wrong with me, what did I do" I forced myself to sit down and take note of all the positives of the situation. It was hard at first, I think my first dot-point was tear-stained, however eventually I had FIVE pages worth of all the positives I gained from the situation. By making yourself alter your beliefs and change your negative thoughts into positive ones, you are on the first track towards a different - and more enjoyable - road. You are training your mind into thinking of adversities as possibilities. You are en route to a much happier - and better - destination.

Bon Voyage!