My Own Happiness Project

My Own Happiness Project
because happiness begins inside and flows out...

20100223

chicken and bull war........

Just found these to be funny, something I found while researching for vegetarian diet plan...

20100222

salad for a while.....

Thinking out loud to myself, if I should just do vegetarianism for a while... let's see how long I can last.

Wikipedia/Vegetarianism

Vegetarianism is the practice of following a plant-based diet including fruits, vegetables, cereal grains, nuts, and seeds, with or without dairy products and eggs. A vegetarian does not eat meat, including: red meat, game, poultry, fish, crustacea, shellfish, and products of animal slaughter such as animal-derived gelatin and rennet. There are a number of vegetarian diets. A lacto-vegetarian diet includes dairy products but excludes eggs, an ovo-vegetarian diet includes eggs but not dairy products, and a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet includes both eggs and dairy products. A vegan diet excludes all animal products, including dairy products, eggs, and honey. Vegetarianism may be adopted for ethical, health, environmental, religious, political, cultural, aesthetic, economic, or other reasons.

Semi-vegetarian diets consist largely of vegetarian foods, but may include fish and sometimes poultry, as well as dairy products and eggs. With these diets, the word "meat" is often defined as only mammalian flesh. A pescetarian diet, for example, includes "fish but no meat". The colloquial application of the word "vegetarian" to such diets has led vegetarian groups, such as the Vegetarian Society, to clarify that such fish or poultry-based diets are not vegetarian, due to the fact that fish and birds are animals.

Varieties of vegetarianism
The following diets are subsets of vegetarianism.
  1. Lacto-ovo vegetarianism is a vegetarian diet that permits consumption of animal products such eggs, milk, and honey.
  2. Lacto vegetarianism permits milk but abstains from eggs.
  3. Ovo vegetarianism permits eggs but abstains from milk.
  4. Veganism abstains from all animal flesh and animal products, including milk, honey, and eggs.
  5. Raw veganism is a diet of fresh and uncooked fruit, nuts, seeds, and vegetables.
  6. Fruitarianism is a diet of only fruit, nuts, seeds, and other plant matter that can be gathered without harming the plant.
  7. Su vegetarianism (such as in Buddhism), excludes all animal products as well as vegetables in the allium family (which have the characteristic aroma of onion and garlic): onion, garlic, scallions, leeks, or shallots.
Strict vegetarians also avoid products that may use animal ingredients not included in their labels or which use animal products in their manufacturing e.g. cheeses that use animal rennet (enzymes from animal stomach lining), gelatin (from animal skin, bones, and connective tissue), some sugars that are whitened with bone char (e.g. cane sugar, but not beet sugar) and alcohol clarified with gelatin or crushed shellfish and sturgeon.

Semi-vegetarian diets
Semi-vegetarian diets primarily consist of vegetarian foods, though occasional exceptions are made for some non-vegetarian foods, including fish, poultry and red meat. These diets may be followed by those who choose to reduce the amount of animal flesh consumed as a way of transitioning to a vegetarian diet or for health, environmental, or other reasons. The term "semi-vegetarian" is contested by most vegetarian groups, who believe that vegetarianism must exclude all animal flesh. Many individuals describe themselves as "vegetarian" while practicing a semi-vegetarian diet. Semi-vegetarian diets include:
  1. Flexitarianism: A diet that consists primarily of vegetarian food, but includes occasional exceptions such as red meat.
  2. Pescetarianism: A diet that is mainly vegetarian but also includes fish and sometimes other seafood. I might want to consider this
  3. Pollotarianism: A diet that is mainly vegetarian but also includes poultry. I would really love to consider this, but I think I'd be cheating...
  4. Macrobiotic diet: A diet of mostly whole grains and beans. Not all macrobiotics are vegetarians, as some consume fish.

cny2010 @ weston & menumbok.....

The Unicorn, waiting for its legs.

Kids running in excitement, going everywhere the Unicorn goes.

A predictable stunt, the Unicorns are supposed to go around finishing all the oranges and the beers, later one of it would come up with a lucky number in its drunkedness

This particular Unicorn is a carnivore, preferring young tender human meats, while the other preferred beer and citrus

The lucky numbers, seen from 2 angles... bah, quickly go buy 4D

Henry lights the fire-crackers

King and Queen of Weston, my uncle and aunt

Sunset

YeeSang

Fireworks in Menumbok

Bah tag in Facebook eh...

Celebrating Aunty An's birthday on 2nd day CNY

20100220

5 OK differences..........

I tend to agree with point number 1, 2 and 4......

Dating Tips: 5 Things You Don't Need to Have in Common
By dating editor Melissa Noble for YourTango.com, taken from Yahoo!

Here are personality differences you should try to overlook. C'mon. Be the bigger person.

If you were to take an in-depth look at some of the couples who've successfully weathered every relationship storm, you'd be shocked to learn how little they might (superficially) have in common.

Sure it's cute to spend weeknights quoting "The Simpsons" in unison or have deep literary James Joycean discussions while rooting for the same football team with matching BBQ-tinged fingers. But, honestly, many wonderful relationships are built on differences. It's how we vary the gene pool, after all. In fact, the forces of attraction are so sophisticated that one should always rely on their gut -- not clever packaging -- when deciding who stays and goes.

Below is a list of differences that, unlike basic manners, don't have to be deal-breakers.

#1. Music Tastes
If you're cut from a cloth where self-worth is directly tied to taste in music, then this one may be tough. You may wince when you find that your mate du jour has never heard of Aaron Copland. You may want to run away screaming when they lack much of an opinion about Morrissey (and haven't even heard of The Smiths), but we think this is foolish. Unlike innate kindness or empathy, music knowledge is something that can be taught. And shared. So go and create that mix tape already.

#2. Intellectual Tastes
Let's say you make a visit to bookstore and you're drawn to Nietzsche, but your lover is more of a trashy memoir/easy beach read person. So what? At least you're both, er, reading. OK, OK, we get it. You may see reading material, education level, and profession as a reflection of a person's intelligence -- but this isn't always the case, my friend. What you really need to look for is breadth of knowledge in the chosen area. You might be working on a graduate degree in anthropology from a fancy-pants university, but what do you know about laying bricks? The scene in "My Cousin Vinny" when Marisa Tomei unleashes her almost God-like knowledge of car tires and all but frees her man's clients comes to mind as a perfect example.

#3. Friend Tastes
Yes, birds of a feather flock together and you are who you hang with and blah blah blah. We've heard it. We've heard it all. But just because your boyfriend's college buddies are a poor (very poor) man's parody of "Wedding Crashers" and you don't connect with her BFF's discussions about "The Hills" (but is it real?!) doesn't mean this new flame is a no go. Now if you notice a trend that's a bit more, er, red flag-y -- say multiple friends in jails across the country -- then perhaps it's something to look into. Perhaps.

#4. Spending/Saving Habits
This one's dicey. You should absolutely err on the side of caution when building a future with someone who, say, gambles away their paycheck. But research suggests that savers are attracted to spenders and vice versa. Professors at the Wharton School of Finance and Northwestern University say the spender/saver relationship is just another way in which opposites attract.

#5. Style Tastes
This one's simple: if you don't like what they're working with, make sweet suggestions. No matter where you are, there's a mall somewhere close by, an outfit looking for a new home, and a credit card just aching to be put to use. Sometimes it is that easy.

20100216

random strips from calvin and hobbes.......

On life....
On life and death.....

On life goes on.....

31 lessons in life according to arteo.....

I've compiled 31 best lesson Life has taught me in the past 31 years, and yes, (some) of them are taken from inspirational webpages, but I still find them extremely relevant to my own experience...
Lesson 25: most important things in life aren't things
  1. I’m convinced that growing old beats the alternative -- dying young. Happy 31st Birthday to ME!!
  2. I’ve learned that a cup of designer coffee is worth half a month’s supply of breakfast instant coffee at home.
  3. I’ve learned that a lot of the things in life are held up by the decisions I make.
  4. I’ve learned that even when I have the right to be angry, I still don’t have the right to be cruel.
  5. I’ve learned that heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.
  6. I’ve learned that I can't change the past, but you can ruin the present by worrying about the future.
  7. I’ve learned that I do not stop playing because I’m getting old, but I’ll grow old when I stop playing
  8. I’ve learned that I must not be angry when I cannot make others as I wish them to be, since I cannot make myself as I wish to be.
  9. I’ve learned that I must not correct a mistake with another mistake.
  10. I’ve learned that I shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It could change my life forever.
  11. I’ve learned that if I'm headed in the wrong direction, God still allows U-turns!
  12. I’ve learned that if we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, I'd quickly grab mine back.
  13. I’ve learned that it hurts to love someone and not be loved in return, but more painful it is to love someone and never find the courage to let the person know how I feel.
  14. I’ve learned that it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes I have to learn to forgive myself.
  15. I’ve learned that it’s not where I am in life, it’s who I have by my side that matters
  16. I’ve learned that it's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to me, myself, and no one else.
  17. I’ve learned that just because someone doesn't love me the way I want them to, doesn't mean they don't love me with all they have.
  18. I’ve learned that just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other. And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do.
  19. I’ve learned that life isn't about finding myself, it's about creating myself
  20. I’ve learned that life may simple, it’s just not easy. Same goes for love.
  21. I’ve learned that no matter how good a friend is, they are going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.
  22. I’ve learned that once I feel like going to the gym, I have 15 minutes grace period of actually get myself ready, or else I wouldn’t go at all that day.
  23. I’ve learned that the best way to succeed in life is to act on the advice I give to others.
  24. I’ve learned that the diet that starts tomorrow is a myth.
  25. I’ve learned that the most important things in life aren't things.
  26. I’ve learned that the only people I need in my life are the ones, that prove they need me in theirs
  27. I’ve learned that there is a very, very, very, very, very, very thin line between knowing when to give up and when to try harder
  28. I’ve learned that true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. I’ve heard that the same goes for true love.
  29. I’ve learned that while it is important to win, it's even more important to remain undefeated no matter what happens.
  30. I've learned that learning to forgive takes practice, and more practice, and more practice, and more practice...
  31. I’ve learned that I don’t know much yet..... or may never come to a point that I will know enough about anything in life

31 of arteo's favourite watch.........

Below is the list of my all time favourite movies that I've watched, from 1979 onwards (according to production year):
  1. The Muppet Movie (1979)
  2. The World According to Garp (1982)
  3. Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
  4. Batman (1989)
  5. Dead Poet Society (1989)
  6. When Harry Met Sally... (1989)
  7. Die Hard 2 (1990)
  8. Hook (1991)
  9. Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
  10. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
  11. Pulp Fiction (1994)
  12. Speed (1994)
  13. Babe (1995)
  14. Toy Story (1995)
  15. Mission: Impossible (1996)
  16. Romeo + Juliet (1996)
  17. Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
  18. Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)
  19. Boogie Nights (1997)
  20. Contact (1997)
  21. Face/Off (1997)
  22. Gattaca (1997)
  23. Good Will Hunting (1997)
  24. Men in Black (1997)
  25. My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)
  26. The Fifth Element (1997)
  27. A Bug's Life (1998)
  28. Armageddon (1998)
  29. Babe: Pig in the City (1998)
  30. Deep Impact (1998)
  31. Doctor Dolittle (1998)
  32. Patch Adams (1998)
  33. Pleasantville (1998)
  34. Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
  35. The Mighty (1998)
  36. The Truman Show (1998)
  37. The X Files (1998)
  38. There's Something About Mary (1998)
  39. Urban Legend (1998)
  40. What Dreams May Come (1998)
  41. Wild Things (1998)
  42. 10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
  43. Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)
  44. Dogma (1999)
  45. Fight Club (1999)
  46. Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
  47. The Matrix (1999)
  48. The Sixth Sense (1999)
  49. Toy Story 2 (1999)
  50. Charlie's Angels (2000)
  51. Dancer in the Dark (2000)
  52. Finding Forrester (2000)
  53. How the Grinch stole Christmas (2000)
  54. Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000)
  55. Remember the Titans (2000)
  56. X-Men (2000)
  57. X-Men (2000)
  58. A Beautiful Mind (2001)
  59. Artificial Intelligence: A.I. (2001)
  60. Billy Elliot (2001)
  61. Monsters Inc. (2001)
  62. Monsters, Inc. (2001)
  63. Moulin Rouge! (2001)
  64. Moulin Rouge! (2001)
  65. Shrek (2001)
  66. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
  67. Y tu mamá también (2001)
  68. A Walk To Remember (2002)
  69. Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002)
  70. Bend It Like Beckham (2002)
  71. Star Trek Nemesis (2002)
  72. Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002)
  73. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
  74. Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003)
  75. Love Actually (2003)
  76. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
  77. X2 (2003)
  78. Shrek 2 (2004)
  79. The Passion of the Christ (2004)
  80. Batman Begins (2005)
  81. Constantine (2005)
  82. Robots (2005)
  83. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005)
  84. The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005)
  85. Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005)
  86. Borat! Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006)
  87. Happy Feet (2006)
  88. Superman Returns (2006)
  89. The Da Vinci Code (2006)
  90. The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
  91. X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
  92. Across the Universe (2007)
  93. Juno (2007)
  94. Shrek the Third (2007)
  95. Transformers (2007)
  96. Sex and the City: The Movie (2008)
  97. Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008)
  98. WALL-E (2008)
  99. Avatar (2009)
  100. Monsters vs. Aliens (2009)
  101. Star Trek (2009)
  102. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)
  103. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
Okay, my bad... I meant to stop at 31 but I got carried away...

weight loss tips from yahoo.......

Taken from Yahoo!Health 16/02/10

6 Easy Slim-Down Strategies

By Liz Vaccariello, Editor-in-Chief, Prevention

Losing weight is about a series of small steps--one less dessert here, an extra 10 minutes on the elliptical there--plus smart lifestyle moves that continually inch you closer to your goals. But like any change, try to do everything at once and you could wind up feeling deprived and deflated (and not in the good way). So instead of vowing to cut calories AND exercise 7 days a week AND forsake ice cream and pizza for the rest of your life, start out with a few of these research-proven tricks that can help you drop pounds. Once you've mastered one, add in another; before you know it you'll see results on the scale--no drastic changes required.

1) Weigh yourself daily
Why It Works: Weekly weigh-ins are a staple of many popular weight loss programs, but some studies show that daily weighing can be key to lasting weight loss. When researchers at the University of Minnesota monitored the scale habits of 1,800 dieting adults, they found that those who stepped on every day lost an average of 12 pounds over 2 years (weekly scale watchers lost only 6) and were less likely to regain lost weight. Step on the scale first thing every morning, when you weigh the least. Expect small day-to-day fluctuations because of bloating or dehydration, but if your weight creeps up by 2% (that's just 3 pounds if you weigh 150), it's time to skip dessert.
I think I can continue to do this... been doing it for the past year already. Maybe need to work with the other tips to dip into the synergistic effect...

2) Keep TV viewing under 2 hours a day
Why It Works: TV junkies miss out on calorie-burning activities like backyard tag with the kids; instead, they become sitting ducks for junk-food ads. One study found that adults who watch more than 2 hours of TV per day take in 7% more calories and consume more sugary snacks than those who watch less than an hour a day. Wean yourself off the tube by introducing other activities into your life. Eliminate the temptation to watch between-show filler by recording your must-see programs so you can fast-forward through the ads. Or subscribe to a mail-order DVD service like Netflix, and make a movie the only thing you watch all day.
This is easy. The only TV I watch nowadays are the Nanny reruns at 12am... maybe that's the problem too...

3) Eat 4 g of fiber at every meal
Why It Works: A high-fiber diet can lower your caloric intake without making you feel deprived. In a Tufts University study, women who ate 13 g of fiber or less per day were five times as likely to be overweight as those who ate more fiber. Experts see a number of mechanisms through which fiber promotes weight loss: It may slow down eating because it requires more chewing, speed the passage of food through the digestive tract, and boost satiety hormones. To get 25 g of fiber a day, make sure you eat six meals or snacks, each of which contains about 4 g of fiber. For to-go snacks, buy a piece of fruit; it's handier than vegetables, so it's an easy way to up your fiber intake. One large apple has just as much fiber (5 g) as a cup of raw broccoli.
Will try on this... but I eat mandarin oranges like nobody's business this season, I don't see myself slimming down!!

4) Sleep at least 7 hours a night
Why It Works: A University of Chicago study found that people deprived of Zzzs had lower levels of the hormones that control appetite. "The research suggested that short sleep durations could be a risk factor for obesity," says James Gangwisch, Ph.D., an epidemiologist from Columbia University Medical Center. Sure enough, his follow-up study of 9,588 Americans found that women who slept 4 hours or less per night were 234% more likely to be obese. The key number for most people is 7 hours or more a night, he says, so set an early bedtime and stick to it.
Okay, guilty as charged. Will try this year.

5) Drink 8 glasses of water per day
Why It Works: Water is not just a thirst quencher--it may also speed the body's metabolism. Researchers in Germany found that drinking two 8-ounce glasses of cold water increased their subjects' metabolic rate by 30%, and the effect persisted for 90 minutes. One-third of the boost came from the body's efforts to warm the water, but the rest was due to the work the body did to absorb it. "When drinking water, no calories are ingested but calories are used, unlike when drinking sodas, where additional calories are ingested and possibly stored," explains the lead researcher, Michael Boschmann, M.D., of University Medicine Berlin. Increasing water consumption to 8 glasses per day may help you lose about 8 pounds in a year, he says, so try drinking a glass before meals and snacks and before consuming sweetened drinks or juices.
I'll cut off cola and the likes. But I can still take Pepsi Max, right?

6) Stick to an 8-hour workday
Why It Works: A University of Helsinki study of 7,000 adults found that those who'd packed on pounds in the previous year were more likely to have logged overtime hours. Lack of time for diet and exercise is most likely the cause, but it's also possible that work stress has a direct effect on weight gain through changes in hormones like cortisol. Set firm limits on your workday so that when you're done, you still have the oomph to take a bike ride and cook a healthy dinner. To help you stay productive enough to finish on time, set an hourly alarm; when it goes off, deal with your most pressing duties.
This can be difficult when I'm in Beluran...

But my biggest problem maybe because my diet always starts tomorrow... Isn't yours?

20100214

arteo turns 31........

Emme, Brandon, Effendy, STeo, Arteo, BKTeo, Grandma and Nigel
Didn't want to make a big fuss out of this day, but still glad and thankful for all the well-wishes by phone and on my Facebook wall ;o)
And a big thank you to Boidea gang for throwing a low-key surprise with song and cakes. Yes, I said cakes...

31 songs on arteo's playlist...

By no means exhaustive, I've looked back to my favourite tunes on my Sony Walkman, and decided that these 31 songs brings back most memories of the past 31 years. Each of these songs has had their own air-time, as the theme song at some point of my life.
  1. Angel's Lullaby - Richard Marx
  2. Canon in D - Pachelbel
  3. Desperado - Eagles
  4. Doesn't Really Matter - Janet Jackson
  5. Fire and Rain - James Taylor
  6. Free - Lighthouse Family
  7. Getaran Jiwa - P.Ramlee
  8. Glad - Tyler Hilton
  9. Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) - Green Day
  10. Grace Kelly - Mika
  11. High - Lighthouse Family
  12. I Don't Want To Be - Gavin DeGraw
  13. If - Bread
  14. I'll Be There - Jackson Five
  15. Just One Me - Carrol Spinney
  16. Kekasih Gelapku - Pasha, Ungu
  17. Love Always - Roger Wang
  18. Lovely day - Bill Withers
  19. Lovin' You - Minnie Rupperton
  20. Mulberry Bush - Mia Palencia
  21. My Way - Frank Sinatra
  22. Postcard From Heaven - Lighthouse Family
  23. Prayer To St Peter - Edwin McCain
  24. Senandung Rindu - Tohpati
  25. Somewhere O'er The Rainbow - Judy Garland
  26. Story Teller - Emil Chow
  27. Superman - Five For Fighting
  28. Tercipta Untukku - Pasha, Ungu
  29. Welcome To Our World - Chris Rice
  30. What a Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong
  31. You've Got a Friend - James Taylor

20100210

arteo's newest coffee blog.....

I've been giving it a thought, about commercializing my coffee blog and getting my own (dot) com for philosoffee. The proper website is not yet up, but I've already got ideas of merchandising it, heh..

Do drop in, leave a message or two. I've got nothing much up yet, but that's just a matter of importing all I have from blogspot to this new one.

20100201

KASIH fund raising projects updates.........

I would again like to personally thank you, friends and relatives, for being supportive of KASIH's effort to raise fund to support their works in HIV/AIDS care in Kota Kinabalu. Two fund raising efforts have been successfully carried out since end of last year, and during the recent committee meeting, some figures were given out for transparency of financial management of the funds.

For the Cupcakes Project, a total donation of RM350.00 were collected from friends and relatives to support the cost the cupcakes. The bakery, during the last minute of delivery, decided to slash down some more the cost of the cakes, bringing it down to RM200, so we have extra RM150 from the estimated cost of cupcakes. Yippee!! During distribution, random contribution were collected from the public using milk-tins with perforated caps, and although skeptical about the collection at first, we managed to round up RM743.85 in half a morning!!

My car was fined for parking on the curb that morning, and KASIH has been kind enough to foot the summon, hehe... RM30 down on charity for me ;o}

Total of nett collection in cash for Project Cupcake 2009: RM863.85

The second project was slightly more ambitious, called Bag2School Project, with aims to collect RM5000 from monetary contribution alone. The project was closed at 50% the marked target, raising only RM2500 in donation. This money is used to help children infected and affected by HIV to buy new school uniforms, stationery and school-books.

A lot of contribution came about in forms of goods, creative ideas and services were brought into this project, and for these, I would like to thank these companies for their kind contribution:
  1. STARBUCKS COFFEE (KK)
  2. BODYSHOP (KK)
  3. V-CHOCOLATE
  4. TROIKA DESIGN
  5. IDEAL PRINTING
  6. not forgetting all friends and relatives that has made financial and time contribution towards this project
Gross total of cash collection for Project Bag2School RM2300.00

Not too bad for a start, eh?