text:
Someone wrote to me recently asking if they had any advice for getting out of a funk. You know the feeling – nothing seems to work out for you, you can't seem to pull yourself up and get motivated to do something, you feel bored, lethargic, and sad. You don't feel like anyone loves you.
I feel like this sometimes, too. So does my husband. We're lucky, because we can always tell when the other person feels despondant, and we know just the thing to cheer that person up. Not everyone is so lucky to have someone around 24/7 helping them to stay happy, so here are 101 ideas for cheering yourself up. Lots of these ideas would be fun to do with a friend or lover, but they work just as well if you're by your lonesome.
In bed. Just you, something (or someone) to snuggle, a laptop, notebook or sketchpad, some rad music, a good movie, and a hot cup of chocolate. It's the perfect antidote for dreary weather or cancelled plans.
Buy one of those "make your own sushi" kits from the supermarket, and learn to roll your own little roundels of heaven. Once you get good at the traditional Western "chicken teriyaki", experiment with kooky flavors. My favorite sushi is Avocado, Cream Cheese and Pinapple. No joke.
Eat your sushi sitting on the floor watching kung fu, Japanese horror, or a good ole-fashioned anime tentacle rape.
Buy a packet of ten postcards and send a note to your friends – even the ones you see every day. Tell them how awesome you think they are, and how much you love hanging out with them. Or, if you want to be less sappy, just quote some Manowar lyrics and tell them they smell. I even make heavy metal postcards for just this purpose!
You are going to a gig at the local metal bar. Bake a batch of cookies and bring them along to share. You have now made 50 new friends.
Find poems you like and hang them on your wall or write them on your diary. Every time I read words fitted together like an intricate puzzle, I feel like the whole world is magic. I really love the work of Catullus and Henry Wordsworth Longfellow and Richard Brautigen and Dean Koontz. Even old Aliester Crowley created remarkable imagery.
A Boat,
Richard Brautigan
O beautiful
was the werewolf
in his evil forest.
We took him
to the carnival
and he started
when he saw
the Ferris wheel.
green and red tears
flowed down
his furry cheeks.
He looked
like a boat
out on the dark
Create outifts of ridiculous clothes and accessories to do mundane tasks. Walk the dog in your bondage pants and Pantera shirt, vacuum the house in a tutu and high heels, buy milk at the store in nothing but a trenchcoat. (I'll let you invent your own definition of "ridiculous").
Learn a magic trick – it could be something a simple as a card trick or a slight-of-hand. Practise until you're really good, and delight your friends next time you see them. Don't give away your secret.
Buy a packet of glow-in-the-dark stick-on stars (you know the ones). Sneak into a friends house while they're away, and decorate the ceiling of their room. They probably won't notice till they turn off their light.
Watch a DVD of one of your favorite stand-up comedians. If you don't have a favorite stand-up comedian, I suggest you get one! Here be my favorites: Dylan Moran, Ed Bryne, Eddie Izzard, Flight of the Conchords.
Make a canopy and coronet for your bed. Go to the fabric store and choose luxurious fabrics – chintz and brocade and lace and satin – in your favorite colours. Gather them on the ceiling and tie them to the corners of your bed. You can attach curtain rods to the ceiling to create a dramatic canopy. If you have any leftover fabric, make a few simple pillows to match. You are now a princess.
Wear a paper hat. You don't have to stick to the simple boat-shape. Why not design a paper bowler hat, beret or top hat? I have a mini-top hat with a flower I made entirely from Braille paper, which I do wear out on occasion (I shall find a picture)
Go to one of those hippy shops and buy yourself something weird – a homeopath treatment or some incense or a dreamcatcher or a reiki massage or whatever they're got on offer. Hell, what have you got to lose?
Run yourself a bath. Gather together all your exquisite bathroom pampering treatments – all the luscious soaps and decadent shower gels you haven't opened because they're "special" and you don't want to use them up. Open them all. Use them all. Take the phone off the hook, put up a do-not-disturb sign, pour yourself a glass of wine or mead, put on some relaxing music, and read a book, or stare at the ceiling.
Blow bubbles. You can buy little jars of bubble mixture at those $2 shops, or make a simple bubble mixture at home using dishwashing liquid, water, and sugar or corn syrup. TIP: Storing your solution for a day can actually lead to better bubbles.
I never forget the thrill of a kite soaring through the sky, tugging at the string in a desperate attempt to be free. Some shops rent kites – CDH and I rented one from a shop on the Gold Coast once, but you'd have to google your area to find out where they are. Better yet, make your own kite.
Find one of those treasure-trove fabric and trimming shops with hundreds of bits of old lace and rooms of buttons and bins of fabric offcuts. Set yourself a budget – say, $15, and find a mad ensemble of items. Take them home and decorate a hat, headband, bag, necklace or bag.
Invite someone over for a midnight snack – someone who makes you laugh so hard your stomach hurts. Eat nachos from the plate together and giggle. Last night, CDH and I stayed up late watching old favorites from our DVD collection and eating apple and rhubarb crumble. We caught the Simpsons – it was one of the newer episodes where Grandpa drags the family to Ireland and Homer ends up buying an Irish pub, which they subsequently turn into a smokeasy. The programme ends, as the Simpsons stints abroad tend to do, with Homer on trial. Chief Wiggan turns up to escort the Simpsons home. Therin follows a hilarious sequence where Chief Wiggam hits himself in the eye while twirling his baton, then tries to soothe the bruise with mace, then somehow manages to taser himself, and of course, once you start tasering yourself, you actually can't stop. For some reason, this got CDH – he could not stop laughing. He rolled around for awhile and gave himself the hiccups. It was hilarious.
Wear a suspender belt with stockings. All day, every day. Even if your a guy.
Wear bells around your ankles. You can buy ankle bells at medieval markets. I love them, although you can never sneak up behind someone to surprise them.
Go to a shop like "Lush" and spend some time smelling everything. Then buy yourself a little treat. Many people like to buy incredible handmade soap from Etsy – I don't, because I live in NZ and the shipping makes it horrendously expensive. Plus you loose out on the smelling – the smelling is the important part.
You should drink water more often – it's good for you and makes you feel happy. But it should also be fun. Buy yourself a water bottle – not one of those one-use plastic ones, but something grymm, like a stainless steel masterpiece or a skull-shaped bottle. Or find yourself a beautiful vintage glass bottle and use that. I bet you'll feel like a pirate!
Quote Shakespeare at inappropriate moments. If you've never developed an appreciation for Shakespeare, it's never too late to pick up a copy of Richard III or a Midsummer Night's Dream. Or why not go against the grain and read some Ben Johnson or Thomas Marlowe instead? They were bloody good, too.
If you really, really can't understand the modern english, read Aristophanes – an ancient greek comic writer. He's hilarious. Seriously, laugh out loud funny, especially if you have a passing knowledge of ancient greek culture and mythology. Try the Lysistrata, a play about a group of wives who are desperate to stop the war between Athens and Sparta and bring their husbands home to sleep with them – so desperate, they declare a SEX STRIKE until the war is over. Hilarity Ensues.
Buy or make an amazing gift – like a mix CD of your favorite songs or a beautiful box of chocolates – and wrap it in a bix box with a pretty ribbon. Give it a tag saying "to you", and place it in the middle of the sidewalk outside your window. Watch how long it takes before someone picks it up.
Change your passwords on your email, your bank, your paypal account, everything, to words that make you smile. Banana, elocution, evisceration, duped, muggle, flippant, pumpkmen, snooty, sneed, salacious … the possibilities are endless!
Find a playground in your area. Swing on the swings. Better yet, if you have a backyard with a tree, build a swing for yourself. I find all the world's problems can be solved by a little swing-time.
If you're afraid of something, tell yourself you actually love it. I've found if you tell yourself something often enough, eventually you'll believe it. I used to be afraid of thunderstorms, until I started telling myself I loved them: the epic display of nature's prowess, the anticipation of waiting for thunder, that feeling of being warm and safe inside. Now I love them.
Go and see a play. No, not a movie. An actual display of live theatre. You can find descriptions of plays on theatre websites – local productions cost about the same as a movie ticket, and they often give student discounts.
You could travel even further from the norm and try the ballet. I went to the ballet once, and loved it, although it was a production of Dracula. The costumes … sigh! We are organising tickets for Sweeny Todd in June, another exciting outing for our friends. We're hoping to go to dinner somewhere that makes pies.
I also went to the opera once, in Greece. The greek opera – sung in Italian with Greek subtitles. There were two operas on in the one night, because neither was the length of a full opera (operattes?) The second was a traditional story (my expert opera-attending buddy tells me) but the first … well, there was a man trapped in a cell with a maid singing to him while she swept the floor. The curtains at the back opened and he had a conversation with some hooded figures. His guards came and sung to him then left him alone. He sang and sang and the lights went down and the music swelled and his cell door creaked over, revealing … a pot plant. Yes. A pot plant. He picked the pot plant up and held it and caressed it and a guard came in and he shot the guard, and I don't remember what happened after that, except I bet there was more singing.
Compile a list of all the people in the world you want to meet – all the amazing artists, writers, musicians, actors, thinkers, dreamers and activists who've inspired you over the years.
Start emailing them and making contact. Tell them everything you'd want to tell them in real life – how they touched your life and inspired your own creativity, which of their works had the greatest impact on you, what you think of their latest project. Ask their opinion on matters concerning the world and point them in the direction of your own work. You never know, you might even get a reply.
There's something very peaceful about reading a book under a tree, or while sitting on a wooden bench in a deserted rose garden.
I lived in Auckland for four and a half years before I joined the public library, and, although I had access to the university library, I regret my sojurn from fiction books. Now, I work right next door to the library, and I'm reading a book or two every week. Plus, you can use the itnernet there for free, and they run fun events and readings and competitions.
Stop watching TV for a week. Unplug the modem. Live in the real world totally and utterly for a week. Sometimes I feel as though we live too much of our life online, and we make contacts, but no real connections. Get out into the world and experience RL for a week – if nothing else, you'll have something interesting to write about when you get back to your blog.
The very act of focusing your thoughts into a hiaku relaxes and empowers you. (For those of you who don't know, a hiaku is style of japanese poetry: the first line has 5 syllables, the second line 7, and the third line 5. Write all your emails in hiaku.
I bet you keep your money in a plain leather wallet, don'tchya? Well, find something cooler. What about this fleur-de-lys Stone Hinged wallet? Or this Steampunk Gear leather wallet? Or a gothic cigarette tin wallet?
Think of your favorite food at your favorite restuarant. Now, scour the internet and all the fancy cookbooks for a likely recipe. Buy all the fresh ingredients and attempt to make your fave dish at home. You probably won't succeed, but you might come up with something even nicer, or, at the very least, a new appreciation of the skill of your favorite chef.
I love this tofu pad thai gai at the Thai restuarant across the road from my office, but I cannot find a recipe that comes even close to it's deliciousness. It doesn't help I have no concept of what to do with tofu.
Buy a weird plant and take care of it. By weird, I mean a deadly nightshade or venus flytrap or sarracenia or nepenthes. Check out this gothic garden livejournal community for more ideas.
I've always loved the tinkle of winchimes and crystals. I lined the entire length of my window in my room at my folk's house with various chimes – ceramic bells I strung up with beads, clear crystals that sparkle in the sun, blown glass droplets which make an incredible sound when they clink together, a ceramic wind chime, dreamcatchers, african animals with bells … it's so colorful and cheery.
During my second year of uni, a friend and I embarked on an important and dangerous mission: to banish those horrid words "like" and "totally" from our everyday vocab, when used as a sentence filler "You're like totally kidding me?" or "I want to, like, find that shirt I lost" or "Metallica were, like, my favorite band ever". So every time I'd say one of those words, she's interrupt me and I'd have to say the sentence again, without using "like". After awhile, your brain gets sick of being interrupted all the time and you stop saying them. It worked for a good two or three years. They've crept back into my vocab, and my writing, but I aim to remedy this!
Yes, you read correctly. You're probably not blind, but you could learn Braille anyway. First, you learn to read the dots with your eyes and interpret them as letters, and then you learn contractions "ed" and "and" and "st", etc. It's super easy, like learning a secret code, and will make trips in elevators more fun.
Also, you learn something of what it would be like to lose one of your senses. You understand that, no matter what happens to you, the world keeps turning, and dragging you with it. You can survive anything.
For the same reasons above.
If you're feeling lonely and self-conscious, why not hide your face with a mask? If you want to hide away, hide behind a wall of latex or leather or sequins or lace. You can find venetian masks at Masquerade Magic or cyber masks at Obscuria.
You know exercise is good for you, and it makes you feel good. So exercise! Run around the block, do star jumps in the living room. Find the local ice-skating rink or rock climbing wall, hike through the park, practise yoga, salsa dancing or burlesque (you can find lots of free lessons on youtube).
I am legally blind. I can barely see three feet in front of my face. Yet I love archery. Strutting around with a massive bow and arrows in your quivver feels awesome. I'm constantly posing like I'm in Lord of the Rings. Archery takes concentration, a steady hand and a keen eye (or a good spotter). It's a sport you do outdoors, rain or shine, by yourself or with a friend. There's no shouting, no balls flying everywhere, no team rivalry … just you and a bow and your own internal challenges.
Change your voicemail message to something hilarious. Mine says "Hello, you've reached Steff's cell. Unfortunately, I can't come to the phone right now, as I'm preparing for the imminent zombie apocalypse. If you're listening to this, I suggest you find yourself a sharp implement and head to your nearest shopping mall." All the messages I receive begin with the callers giggling.
Go to a religious service of a religion you don't belong to and don't believe in, (only if this is allowed and you're not offending anyone). Really embrace the experience with an open mind and try to learn something about who these people are, who they believe in and how their faith affects their everyday life.
Make yourself a pair of stilts. All you need are two sturdy planks or wood, and two wooden squares to act as footholds. Bolt / nail / glue the squares to the wooden planks, sand down the rough edges and practise your high walking!
Operation Beautiful's mission is to put up annoymous notes in public places for other women to find. The notes say "you are beautiful" and give the Operation Beautiful web address. I've put up a few around Auckland, and I hope they made somebody's day.
Dig out your favorites – the music that makes you feel the world is full of wonder. Play loud, sing along, dance on the bed, throw your arms around, headbang, smash something, slow dance with your cat. My feel-good favorites: Metallica – Ride the Lightning, Iron Maiden – Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, Manowar – Kings of Metal, Venom – Black Metal, Arch Enemy – Doomsday Machine, Bif Naked – I Bificus, The Dresdon Dolls – Dresdon Dolls, Blind Guardian – Nightfall on Middle Earth.
Have you ever had a dream come true? I can't describe the feeling – like everything in your whole life has lead up to that moment, and nothing will ever make you sad again.
I've wanted to see the Great Pyramids since I was … ooh, about seven. And when I stood there, and I touched them, and I went inside, I cried. Not very metal of me, I know. But they were more incredible than I could ever imagine. So get out there and make a lifelong dream come true.
Maybe you've never had a dream come true because you don't have a dream … or you don't think you do.
Write a list of things you wish you could do before you die. Keep the list nearby you and ad items to it constantly. Even write down the dreams you have for other people. Do you want to see your child succeed or your partner quit their job and pursue a lifelong passion? Add that to the list, too.
You'll discover certain items on the list tug at your heart-strings more than others. These are your dreams. Knowing what they are is your first step to achieving them.
Whatever it might be. I am partial to eating Tim Tams and watching Dr. Phil, or listening to the Rasmus. Be proud to be silly.
Don't go for the normal pizza – see if your favorite italian or moroccan restuarant do deliveries? Will the bakery send you out a fresh-baked loaf? Bask in the glory of ringing someone up and having hot food arrive on your doorstep. It's a womderful world we live in.
Dress up like a tourist (shorts, shirt, camera, "bum bag", ridiculous hat, guidebook in back pocket) and go do something really touristy: whale-watching, the tourist bus tour, or go to the over-priced amusements. Talk loudly, take hundreds of photos.
Find all the clothes in your wardrobe you don't really like and attack them with hundreds of studs and spikes. I bet you like them better now, right?
Buy a silly instrument – a harmonica, a tin whistle, a recorder, a djambje, anything as long as it's inexpensive and makes noise. Be loud and enthusiastic in your playing.
Make a "feel happy" soundtrack of your favorite songs, and stick it on your MP3 player. Put on your favorite walking clothes. Walk to your local park or river, stopping at the dairy on the way to pick up a loaf of bread. Walk through the park listening to your favorite songs, a find a good stop to sit down a throw morsels of bread to the ducks and geece.
Ducks are my favorite animals, besides cats. Ducks have it all – they can float, they can swin, they can fly and they can waddle adorably.
Find a secret place. Your secret place should be high up, with a great view. Look for tall trees in the park, abandoned buildings with easily-scaled roofs, or unknown nooks and niches above bridges. Take yourself there when you feel blue, listen to music or read a book and watch the city unfold around you. Be careful climbing to your secret place – falling from your favorite tree won't cheer you up!
In the cold of winter, your feet need all the warm they can get. A pair of ridiculous slippers – shaped like dogs, penguins or Eric Adam's loincloth – cheer you up.
Decide on new nicknames for all of your friends. Send them a text or email to let them know their new nickname, and call them that from now on. The more outrageous the nicknames, the better.
I have had many nicknames over the years: Scopes, Steffocles, Double F, Squints, Blinkin', Blinkie Bill (I detest this), Steffy, Steffy-waffles, Titi, Dozer and Beaker (those last two gens are from my husband. Such a caring fellow.)
Nicknames make a person feel loved, like they've reached a new level of intimacy with you.
Changing your morning routine can alter your whole day. If you shower at night, try showering in the morning, just after you wake up. What do you eat for breakfast? DO you eat breakfast? We need to change that? Do you open the curtains? If not, open them wide! Do you get up too early? Too late? Change up your routine for a week, and measure the affects on you whole persona.
Change your alarm clock to something fun. On our epic Europe adventure we had "Morning Manowar". I tell you, nothing makes you more excited to get up and explore castles than "Hail and Kill" at 7am.
A totem is an emblam representing a creature or object you feel a strong connection with. Carrying a totem on your person gives you the sense of being able to draw power from associating yourself with that creature. It's a little new-agey, but I also think it's quite metal.
My totem animals are cats, and birds – specifically ravens and ducks. We made friends with ravens in Norway, and ever since, I've fallen utterly in love with them.
Find a list of "what's on in your town", and for a week, do something new every day. Alternatively, search travel websites for reviews of off-the-beaten track things to do in your area – sometimes backpackers find the gems you'd never otherwise discover, because their hearts and minds are actively searching for those experiences.
One day I was feeling crap (I can't remember why), and CDH snuck out of the house. He returned 20 minutes later carrying a huge box. What was inside? A lego viking ship!
We spent the afternoon making it up and having high seas viking adventures. Best. Cheering. Up. Ever.
Who are you really? What are you about? What makes you tick? What morals and beliefs do you follow?
Write yourself a personal manifesto – who you are, who you want to be and how you're gonna get there. For more info on manifesto writing (an artform in itself) read about Nothing Elegant's Blog Manifesto project (pssst, you'll be hearing a lot more about this soon).
If you're a creative type, why not see if you can sell some work online. Etsy is a great place to sell handmade crafts or vintage collections. You don't have to try and make millions selling your work, but list a few of your best pieces and see how you go.
TIP: The key to success on Etsy (as far as I can tell) is to list lots of items, so your stuff shows up in more searches. Try to list an item a day for 30 days – you should start to see more regular sales once you have over 50-100 items in your shop (which is what I'm currently working towards). It's only 20c to list an item, so you not going to bankrupt yourself.
Mark Twain said "the best way to cheer yourself up is to cheer somebody else up". The man speaks truth. Call an old friend up, just to say hi. Text someone and tell them they're awesome. Take any idea from this list and do it for someone else, instead of for yourself.
Write a Gratitude List – I do this sometimes on the blog. It's called Up the Irons! and it's a shout-out to everything good in life. Sometimes, when you concentrate on the bad, you forget all the little things making up the world of good.
Clean out a drawer, cupboard, desk or room you've filled up with stuff. Pile up old clothes and books to give to charity shops, and toss the rest away (or recycle it, if you can). You don't need so much stuff, and having a clean desk/room/drawer feels like having a clean start. I feel instantly fresh and inspired after cleaning my eternally cluttered writing desk.
Don't you find something oddly comforting about a live, roaring fire? My family has always had open fires blazing throughout winter – I've never owned a heater till I moved to Auckland and lived in a hostel. We would sit round the fire at night and eat dinner, do our homework, watch TV. Sometimes, Dad would cook crumpets or pikelets on the fire, or we'd roast marshmallows.
If you have an open fireplace, light a fire in your living room and curl up next to it with a book and a bag of marshmallows. Hot chocolate, pikelet mixture, jam and chocolates work a treat, too.
If not, can you make a fire in a drum in your backyard? (check your local law about this). Pull up a chair, a can (or horn) of mead and a steak sandwich. Taste the night air on your tongue.
A diet of highly processed foods deprives us of much-needed nutrients, and nutrients make us happy. So give yourself a nutrient feast – find your local farmers market and spend up large and the freshest, most delicious fruits and vegetables. Toss into a salad, bake into a pie, boil up in a big vat of soup, or just enjoy raw with olive oil and hummus.
You're going to need a partner for this. Dig out all your "old school" board games – Monopoly, Hamburger (my favorite, cuz it's about food), Mousetrap, Trouble, UNO, Blackgammen … whatever you had as a kid, and play them all. Make fairy bread and drink orange juice and wrap yourself in big blankets.
I've never been an advocate for this method of dealing with an issue, because you're bound to find the issue waiting for you when you return from your sojourn.
But sometimes, you just need a break from the world. If you know you need to "get away" for a few days, really get away. Skip town, and don't take your cell phone. Go bush. Pack your tent and billy and find a corner of the wilderness unpopulated with human life. Relish the stillness of a world untouched by urban living. In the clarity of fresh air, all your muddled thoughts sometimes become crystal clear.
I bake bread every day. EVERY DAY. I don't use a breadmaker, or any prepackaged mix. I make bread the old-fashioned way – the way humankind has made bread for 10 000 years.
Throw away your modern conveniences and learn to make something to "old-fashioned" way. Can your own tomato pasta sauce, squeeze your own orange juice, make your own beer (I'm doing a home-brew course this year – exciting!), bake a loaf of bread from scratch … kneading that bread is theraputic, trust me.
Need I say more?
This isn't cheap, but I guarantee it will cheer you up. Go on a hot air balloon ride.
We took a hot air balloon ride over Cappedocia in Turkey. Not cheap (wiped our Middle-East budget clear out) but worthwhile. I never expected the sensation of being inside a hot-air balloon to feel like it did – everything is still. You can't feel wind. You just hang, and bob along. You can hear everything happening on the streets below. Amazing
Maybe it's just a New Zealand thing, but nothing says relaxing and good times like going to the beach.
Go to a deserted beach – they're easy to find if you know where to look. Pack a picnic lunch. Roll the legs of your pants up and run through the surf. Clamber over the rocks and find little fishies in the tide pools. Build a sandcastle. Watch the sun set over the water.
If you feel lonely, give part of your home to an animal without one. Every day, the SPCA and other animal shelters rescue hundreds of unwanted, neglected pets, and if no one comes to adopt them … you know what happens. It's shameful and we should all do our bit for these animals.
Scientists have proven stroking a cat enduces healing and reduces feelings of lonliness and anxiety. Pets love unconditionally, and they always know just what to do to make you laugh.
Who thought up such a ridiculous idea? And yes, as silly as karaoke seems, it's immensly popular and lots of fun.
Can't sing? Neither can anyone else. Just do the best you can. Ham it up, be OTT ridiculous. Death growl if you have to.
Wait until fireworks go on sale in November, and stock up on these little packets of joy. Bring out a few sparklers to light up your BBQs over summer, or just dance around the backyard when you feel a little feral. Spell naughty words in the air, have a dual against a tree, or just pretend you are a fire fairy. Sparklers rule.
Find your nearest ice cream parlour, and order the largest, most ridiculous sundae on their menu. Eat it all. Don't feel guilty.
Or, better yet, make your own concoction at home. Give it a hilarious name, like "Steff's Epic Metal Sundae Mountain of Doom", cover it in whipped cream, frosting, crumbled biscuits, cut-up Mars bars, nuts, sprinkles, chocolate chips, cherries, bananas, blueberries, sauce, fudge, sherbert and anything else you can think of. Eat it all. Don't feel guilty.
Go to the library or a second-hand bookshop and find some of those series books from the nineties: the ones you undoubtedly read: The Baby-Sitters Club, Sweet Valley High, Pony Club, Goosebumps, Fear Street. Read them all again. Damn, weren't they terribly awesome?
CDH and I are taking German classes at a nearby high school. It costs us $89 for seven 2 hour lessons, with all materials included. The school runs classes in everything: from burlesque dancing to Metalworking to Indian cooking. They are cheap, they are run by enthusiastic, experienced teachers, they are filled with interesting people, they enable you to learn new skills. In short – community classes are awesome.
Buy yourself a fancy notebook, and a nice pen. I love Black Spot Books and Bibliographica who handbind journals they've created using recycled leather and found materials. I also like Immortal Longing's Shakespeare-inspired journals. Lots of people adore Moleskeine journals, but I honestly don't see the difference between them and any other notebook.
What will you use your notebook for? Oh, the possibilities!
Open your gig guide, close your eyes, and point. That's where you're going tonight. Dress inappropriately, and make the best of it.
Find your local observatory or planetarium. Show up for one of their evening lectures – they normally set up telescopes so you can look at celestial bodies. Better yet, take a course in astronomy. Amaze yourself at just how busy it is out there.
My clever husband can navigate a boat by the stars.
If you can spare the dough, buy new sheets and a duvet for your bed. Find something completely luxurious in a your favorite colour. Make Over your bed, and you make over your sleep.
You know all those random "friends of friends' who keep adding you on Facebook? Strike up a conversation with one of them. You know you already have something in common, and they added you so they can't think your a serial killer or anything. Who knows, a "friend of a friend" might turn into an actual friend.
By Yourself. Yes, go out on a "typical" date all by yourself. Eat at your favorite restuarant (and don't bring a book. You don't need to distract yourself from your own company), and then go to a movie you really want to see. Buy yourself all the treats YOU want to eat, sit wherever you want (I love sitting right in the front row, and I fold all the armrests up and lie down. Cushiney!)
Write someone a love letter in chalk on the steps up to their apartment or the pavement outside their flat. Use several colours. Hide and watch their reaction when they see it.
Pull all the liquer bottles out of your cabinet and line then up on the bench. Now, go to the fridge and pull out all the liquids and fruits. Do the same with the pantry. Now, line up all your shot glasses and start mixing! You're searching for the perfect signature cocktail. This involves lots of taste-testing. Be daring, be crazy. Give your drink a wacky name.
This is an excellent way to use all those liquer bottles people have left with half a centimetre of liquid inside.
Road trips kick ass. A car, good music, an adventure, bad food, what more could you want? I love a trip when you know roughly where you're going, but you don't have a specific schedule, so you can stop and look at random things on the way. On the last road trip I went on – up to a campsite by a lake – we stopped to take air-guitar pictures outside a picturesque white chapel in the middle of a rolling field. Next, we made faces underneath a duck-crossing sign.
It could be anything – I collect miniature trinket boxes (I want to start collecting pill or snuff boxes exclusively), and fossils, and I used to collect locks of hair. CDH collects vintage books about trains. I have a friend who collects typewriters, another who collects statues of elephants.
Once you've decided on your collection, spend hours scouring eBay or Amazon and making a huge wishlist of all the items you want to add to your collection. You probably can't afford to buy them all, but maybe splash out on just one.
Owing people money stresses me out. I feel like a failure if I haven't budgeted accordingly to be able to pay for something in cash, or I have to borrow money from a friend.
So sit down and make a plan. Many people find great success in Dave Ramsey's "Debt Snowball" plan: you write a list of all your debts in order of how much money is left on them. You make sure you're paying the minimum on each, except for the one with the least amount left to pay back. You throw everything else you've got at that payment, and as soon as you've paid it off, you throw everything at the next smallest, and so on. It's not the most cost-effective way (if one of your larger payments has a much higher interest rate) but most of debt repayment is about staying focused, and it's hard to stay focused if you don't see any results. Getting rid of each payment is like a little present for all your hard work – you stay motivated.
You can buy a decent-sized paddling pool at the Warehouse or Para rubber or whatever the equivelent house-of-plastic-crap is in your country. Fill it with water (warm or hot) and bubble bath. Pour yourself a glass of wine and have your own private paddle spa in your backyard. I like to do this at night when you can see the stars.
You might have realised by now, I'm a big fan of celebrating random and made-up holidays. I've written before about remembering Dimebag Darryl and having a metal Christmas, but I'm sure you can think of lots of ideas for random or made-up holidays.
Celebrate the birthdays of your favorite writers, musicians and artists. Celebrate crazy religious holidays – Gala Darling wrote about celebrating Holi – a hindi festival where everyone throws coloured powder over everyone else. It looks like the most fun ever.
On a couple of occasions I've had to let go of friends who were hurting me. They were good friends and good people and I loved them and didn't realise what a negative effect they had on my life, until it was too late. Sometimes, loving someone isn't enough, when they expect you to carry them too.
Let go of the people who cause you pain. Set them free to find themselves. Be the hero – be the person brave enough to say "this isn't working and it has to end." Letting those people go was like a huge weight lifting from my chest.
I'm a firm believer that if the friendship is meant to be, it will come back, stronger than ever. And ending a friendship doesn't undo all the wonderful, amazing good times and experiences you had together.
Choose a culture or time period you don't know anything about, but have always been fascinated with, and start reading books and websites. Whether you choose ancient Egypt, Communist Russia, Imperial China, the Maori or the Inuit, start a love affair with another time or place.
Bake a cake for a friend, or for your colleagues at work. For no reason, except "just because". I find the act of baking theraputic – no matter what's going on in the world, you still stir the batter, lick the bowl, and make your house smell amazing. Plus, you get to surprise someone with cake.
I love hugs – they're my favoritest thing in the whole world. If you hug someone (a friend, a parent, a lover, a stranger), chances are, they'll hug you back. Yay, hugs for everyone!
TIP: If you ever meet me, give me a hug. I will love you forever.
Even if no one else cares, even if no one in the whole wide world wants to listen to you moan or growl or cry or scream or laugh or sob or growl or smile – I do. Shoot me an email at email@example.com – I always answer, even if it takes me a few weeks to reply (I get a LOT of email these days)
Phew! I'm all out of ideas now. What do you do to cheer yourself up?
Want to stay up-to-date with news, book releases and articles from the blog? Then subscribe to my infrequent newsletter.
Love metal? Don't forget my metal novel, At War With Satan, is now available for $2.99 from Amazon, Kobo, and Smashwords.
I truly treasure your piece of content, Great post.
He started, Init [the rockefeller groundwork] has in fact
been performing exercises an idea to exterminate our persons
by inoculating individuals sad plenty of to visit them disease of incurable illnesses including cancers.
By site, several variations have already been used: the diagnosis of requests
inside surgery diagnostic hub (oac) as well as a no cost 30-day time reservations of a suitable are
already eradicated and. Yorkshire is quite possibly the most
effective inside the history of the tournament:
they have gained the concept on 30 different occasions.
The action may on the other hand have came from back then when exactly the rather abundant
in he uk ended up in a position to retain kits utilized for
tracking, forcing the pet poachers to hide their illegal
ferrets inside their jeans to avoid diagnosis by.
Inside of many days, this initial straight down is substituted with another, paler pair of
along duck down, that happen to be in turn substituted with building young plumage.
They are seen as a source of information provided by Internet
users across the world. Knowing their path carefully will
prove to be beneficial to them, as there is no other way to succeed other than to
go through each path slowly, but surely. Promoters who belligerently promote their businesses realize this with all their might, that if they act
cute and overlook the importance of these services, their venture
will go to the dogs.
This article is truly a nice one it helps new the web
users, who are wishing for blogging.
Quality posts is the secret to attract the people to
visit the website, that's what this web page is providing.
Please let me know if you're looking for a author for
your weblog. You have some really great articles and I believe I would be a good asset.
If you ever want to take some of the load
off, I'd love to write some articles for your blog in exchange for a link back to mine.
Please send me an e-mail if interested. Kudos!
Hey there, I think your website might be having browser
compatibility issues. When I look at your blog in Chrome, it looks fine but
when opening in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping.
I just wanted to give you a quick heads up! Other then that, awesome blog!
What a great post! Keep up the good work.
I read this paragraph completely concerning the comparison of most recent and
preceding technologies, it's awesome article.
whoah this blog is magnificent i like reading your
articles. Keep up the good work! You understand, lots of
persons are hunting around for this info, you could
help them greatly.
Actually when someone doesn't understand afterward its up to other viewers that they will assist, so here it happens.
It comes as no surprise that in the last five years the print journalism industry
has been struggling to find its place in the media marketplace.
I have written many articles in different ITcertification as well
as he has a vast experience in IT industry. Our innovative design and development
team can help you refine your vision.
However, the dangers are still present because
of the high temperatures that they can reach and damages that
they can cause to the structure. Ask for customer references and consult with steel companies – This
serves to validate the company's professional ethics and to make sure
the correct protective coatings are applied to the steel to increase the durability and
anti-corrosion effect. Other than rain, powerful winds are also fairly typical in the early spring.
Writing poetry, love letters for a notebook can be a good idea but love your fear seems not be a good idea for an optimistic idea but i agree with almost all 99 suggestions
Currently it looks like BlogEngine is the preferred blogging platform out
there right now. (from what I've read) Is that what you are using on your blog?
Very good blog! Do you have any hints for aspiring writers?
I'm planning to start my own website soon but I'm a little lost on
everything. Would you suggest starting with a free platform like WordPress or
go for a paid option? There are so many choices out there that
I'm completely overwhelmed .. Any recommendations? Thanks a lot!
I am so happy I stumbled upon your site. I really found you by mistake, while I was browsing on Yahoo for something else. Anyways I am here now and would just like to say thank you for a informative post and an all round enjoyable blog. (I also love the theme/design), I don't have time to read through it all at the moment, but I have added your website to my favorites, so when I have time I will be back to read more. Please do keep up the awesome job!
Many people find switching from dry loo paper to wet
wipes designed for ultrasensitive skin as an alternative to stitches.
Microbes do not need to be able to starve the cancer cells, but also
allows genetic defects and medical disorders to be propagated in the breed.
uh… huh… well, that actually cheered me up =)
I think we've found number 102 – find a specialised forum of some kind and write totally random inappropriate comments on it.
If some one wishes expert view on the topic of blogging afterward i suggest him/her to visit this blog, Keep up
the nice work.
Normally I don't read article on blogs, but I would like to say that this write-up very compelled me to check out and do it! Your writing style has been amazed me. Thanks, quite nice article.
Hello, i think that i saw you visited my blog
so i came to "return the favor".I'm attempting to find things to enhance my website!I suppose its ok to use a few of your ideas!!
Hi, nice website but there is a problem whereby on occassion I am sent back to the main page when I view other pages within this page.
Also, we need to determine the rounds of the quiz according to it.
Local country clubs are offering trivia fun for as little as
forty dollars per couple. The Bull's Head Pub, Bangkok.
Fantastic article…… I like your writing and the way you present your information so much. Keep up the great work!
Hey there would you mind sharing which blog platform you're working with? I'm
going to start my own blog in the near future but I'm having a tough time selecting between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your layout seems different then most blogs and I'm looking for something unique.
P.S Sorry for getting off-topic but I had to ask!
Since the admin of this web page is working, no question very
shortly it will be well-known, due to its feature contents.
Very soon this web page will be famous among all blogging viewers, due to it's pleasant content
If you desire to increase your experience only
keep visiting this web site and be updated with the most recent news update posted here.
Also known as an e cigarette, this smokeless device
functions with the aid of a rechargeable battery. Unfortunately, prolonged use reportedly
leads to undesirable flavors. The smoke can goes up in the
air, and people can breathe it in anytime anywhere.
I love the background design of your website! Sweet!
I CANNOT BELIEVE HO I HAVE MAGICALLY STUMBLED UPON THIS. The gods of cheerio's are with me today LOL.
Random Internet Surfing That Has Paid Off.
Hehehe now time to test this all out. My inner craziness has been officially released (not that it ever was contained lol).
Thanks! ^_^
You are amazing Steff, seriously.
I am working on the hugs but I do send you lots of love, light and also a huge hug.
Thank you!
I'm not that much of a online reader to be honest but your sites really nice, keep it up!
I'll go ahead and bookmark your site to come back later on. Cheers
This is such a cool blog you've made there. I've shared it on Facebook and Google.
This website is really a walk-by means of for all of the information
you needed about this and didn't know who to ask. Glimpse here,
and also you'll undoubtedly discover it.
Great ideas. I got the killer mommy I'm bored today and starting looking around for ideas. I showed my son your pirate kite and that fixed everything. Thank you.
Thank you very much! :)
I have a friend not very good at the moment and I want to cheer her up. I'm a bit known around my friends of having great ideas… But I also search for them. That's how I found your list and it really is what I was looking for!!! I'm thinking of making her a cheer-up-surprise. Once more thank you, you list was very helpful.
(About my english, I'm not very good at it… Sorry)
I found this while searching for "I don't want to be cheered up" as a Google term. Because there are so many ways in which sadness is okay. But your suggestions are outside the box and some of them really got me. I emailed the URL to myself for future reference. Thank you!!!
Thank you for a such great post, Steff! It is the first post I read on your blog. And I immediately bookmarked the site :)
For whatever reason, I LOVE the be a tourist idea. It looks fun, haha…think I'm gonna give it a try.
HAIKU – HAIKU not HIAKU.
The list seems really well-though-of, with the exception of the aforementioned irritation. Well, I barely read a line after this anyway…
I mean, as a person who is occupied with language and editing grammatically incorrect texts all day… this definitely didn't cheer me up.
The slave will be whipped immeadiately
Seems hypocritical to me.
When i'm in a funk I just crank up some Helloween and grab my guiter and play some less then badass blues XD, but that really makes the day a little better.
Find out to compose himself, the write-up from yet another source
My skeertuig is vol palings. lol
AMAZING post, Steph!!! I'm stuck at an odd moment that's roughly half-irrational cheer and half gloomy, over-rational funk. I'm trying your suggestions to counter the funk. I live in a place where metal is really, really frowned-upon, and I found a metalhead girl I really, really like. We've spoken for hours about amazing things we have in common both in and out of metal. I took her to a Haggard gig… and I got less of a response from her than I would have expected. (Specifically, she said goodbye in a most perentory way after we dropped her home and wouldn't even let me see her to her door.) So I'm having very mixed feelings at the moment. I'm using your list as a checklist and asking her out again this weekend (to another one of your 10 metal dates) and see what happens. I CAN take a no, provided I actually get one. Horns up!
Find Afrikaans on Google translate, for example: 'Jou engles is baie goed.'
Its a crack up, try making up your own pronounciation to suprise your manager.
Drink Guiness instead of beer
This is one crazy blog post, it must have taken ages to write down a list of 101 advices. However, #41 does it for me. Wearing masks or disguises makes me happy. But might aswell try some of your advices, especially the unusual ones.
None of these worked
there has been this cat at are house sens yeaturday it is a kitten it is white and orange it is a kitten that we have never seen befor it is a very very very!nice kitten oh and this is a true story can anyone tell me if this cat souds famillyer to your cat please it seems like it is very sick because it is really skiny
i shattered my wrist and havent been able to do much of anything:( finding your 101 ways to cheer yourself up deff works! today i changed my voicemail and currently working on Operation Beautiful. and i checked out Holi, AMAZING. we should do this everyday. im going to make creations with on door steps with chalk. and i did this all listening to John Butler Trio. Grreat music:) thanks a whole bunch. no more stuck in the funk!
Tried everything i could, it didnt work on me. I probably will die of sadness, help me. Im going crazy OMG why am i so sad??
this was amazingly nice to read, the second i crossed flight of the concords i smiled, my smile turned into a grin when you mentioned you living in Nz, tho the cause of me being sad enough to run to the help of strangers blogs to cheer me up is because of me missing my boyfriend in New Zealand, this came to comfort me i have no idea why, one would think it would make things worse….anyhow, many thanks for being from nz, tho it is seemingly ridiculous that is was that that cheered me up and not all your ideas, though they are all amazing, many i have suggested when my friends ring me up in tears…anyhow, just ranting really, i find comfort in doing so, being the literature freak i am…anyhow, very sorry to have bothered you for my boring talk of problems but i guess i needed to…thank you, very much, and well done on this blog, it is pretty awesome :)
la idea Excelente
This cheered me up just reading it, thanks for making my day
Dude, you are awesome! I am sick of being down and upset, it's all I have done for the past few months. This blog really has given me some ideas, thank you!
Wolfie xx
I just want to say how much I loved this list. I sent this to a few friends of mine too who were feeling blue. Thanks so much for all these great ideas! They're so original. Stay metal
I see so much of things of myself and others here, really, thanks Steff!
I like the ManoWar idea lol. Whenever I am in a bad or sad mood you can always depend on some ManoWar to lighten the day. " Call to Arms" for me. Lol. I'm gonna try some of these ideas. Also, My dog always knows when I'm down and he will try to bust down my door to comfort me, It is nice.
Best.Blog.Post.Ever, bookmarked it as " :D ", whoever you are, steff – you rock
Best list ever hands down! Thank you so much for putting this together. I am so glad I stumbled across it.
I have been pathetically laying in bed all day, moping, and you have just cheered me up. The ideas are fantastic, I am going to try some of them out and undoubtly will not be able to help smiling while I do them. THANK YOU!!
hey! u know, reading this has actually made me feel better already! i cant wait till i try your advice..:) im feeling excited to try new things…..thanks for your ideas!
Most.Epic.List.EVER. And -attacks with hugs- nice to know im not the only hug-lover out there :D
thanks steff, i was really upset about things, some of this cheered me up ! :D *hugs* <33333
omg!!! i waz looking up ways to make my bff feel beter, wen i found this! life saver!!! literaly. I LOOOOVE YOU!!!! *hugglez*
this is amazing, you seem like such a fantastic person, thankyou.
I love wearing Venetian ball masks myself, loved tip No 41 Steff! :-)
Just so you know – I've made up my mind to do one of these things every week. I shall be blogging about it. You definitely know how to make people smile.
Best. Post. Ever!
I effin' luurve this list! >w<
I'm so going to try a few of these things, since I haven't really been feeling the best lately. But, yeah. I'm gonna dress up funny. And since my friend and I dare each other to hug people, I'm going to give someone a hug without notice. So, thanks. Thanks a bunch.
Lotsa love,
Sara <333
Wow Steff,
I'm quite amazed of the interest you take.
Concerning your questions, yes, there are cosplay photos online, available here, on my ID-Card at a Anime Network: http://Yumi-chin.animexx.jp (It's however a German Anime-Network, they just have the Japanese subdomains for style reasons^^)
My next Cosplays will be some rewears. The Maid Cosplay (see on the page) will have its first working day, after that the German Roleplay Convention will require one of my "fantasy" Cosplays (still unsure wether it will be a black wearing troll or my Shadowrun char).
But after that, I've a new Cosplay in my row, a Victorian inspired Outfit. You can follow its creation here: http://natronundsoda.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=48462 (Also a German network, this time for sewing, especially Gothic and other dark outfits)
I hope, I could answer your questions^^
Amazing list, Steff! (Y)
I just did idea 100 earlier today and it actually helps (a lot). Hugging ftw!
Stay metal \m/
Even reading this cheers me up^^
My personal Cheer-Up-reciepe:
1) Draw a sketch of my next costume
2) Buy fabrics (always moe then needed… but they're so nice…)
3) Spend days on the sewing machine, realising just a little sketch
4) Wear the outfit on the next Con and get photographed by everyone^^ And get hugged by them (the best thing on German Anime Cons, they're hugging everyone^^)
This way I spent my last 3 holidays and I always came out completely satisfied.
Schöne Grüße aus Deutschland
I believe this is the best blog post I've ever read. I had to bookmark this individual post, so I can come back to it.


text:
CricBuzz article.
WICB Media Release.
BENGALURU, India – Andre Russell completed the remarkable feat of four wickets in four balls in what was a sensational bowling performance for West Indies A against India A on Saturday.
ST JOHN'S, Antigua – President of the West Indies Cricket Board, Dave Cameron is offering congratulations to the players and management of the West Indies A team which recently defeated their India equivalent in the three-game one-day series.
Cricinfo article.
Bangalore, India - Bat first, win the match. That has been the pattern in all four limited-overs games in this tour.
The Hindu article.
Bangalore, India - The India 'A' side has been as erratic as Bangalore's weather that varies from sunshine to dark skies while the West Indies 'A' seems to have turned the tide.
West Indies Cricket Board Inc.
P.O. Box 616 W, St. John's, Antigua
Tel : 268-481-2450
Fax : 268-481-2498
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Nutritional Info
- Servings Per Recipe: 4
- Amount Per Serving
- Calories: 152.2
- Total Fat: 10.6 g
- Cholesterol: 3.6 mg
- Sodium: 77.5 mg
- Total Carbs: 11.1 g
- Dietary Fiber: 3.9 g
- Protein: 5.7 g
View full nutritional breakdown of Romain Heart Salad with Apples and Almonds calories by ingredient
Romain Heart Salad with Apples and AlmondsSubmitted by: SLIMSHANN
IntroductionServe with chicken fillets for a great supper or lunch Serve with chicken fillets for a great supper or lunch
Number of Servings: 4
1/2 cup almonds toasted and cooled (toast in 350 oven for 10-20 mins watch carefully)
1 med head of Romain lettuce - Soaked and washed.
1 apple cored, sliced thinly
add and whisk together
1.5 TBSP cider vinegar
1 tsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp. honey or agave nectar
1 TBSP mayonaise
1 Tbsp soft goat cheese (optional)
1-2 Tbsp plain low-no fat yogurt
place lettuce, apple and almonds in bowl add dressing, toss and let sit for 10-20 mins to allow the flavors to mix (optional)
makes 4-6 servings
Number of Servings: 4
Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user SLIMSHANN.
Number of Servings: 4
Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user SLIMSHANN.


text:
Reading your Exchange email
You can read your Exchange email with most popular email clients. However, for full use of calendars, scheduling, and other features, use Outlook; other clients will vary in functionality.
For configuration instructions, click the appropriate link:
|Full-featured clients
|Outlook 2013, 2010, 2007
|Allows use of all Exchange features.
|Mac OS X
|Outlook 2011
|Allows use of most Exchange features, including calendars, address book, and scheduling.
|Web-based clients (Outlook Web App)
|Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, Chrome
|Allows use of most Exchange features.
|IMAP clients
|IMAP connections permit you to read your Exchange
email, but with few or no additional features. While this is not an
ideal solution if you wish to access these features, IMAP setup is
useful if all you need is email.
Note: Mac OS X (10.6 and later) does give access to a basic set of Exchange features through Mail, Contacts, and iCal; however, its implementation of Exchange is still limited with respect to the needs of advanced users.
|Mac OS X
|Mozilla Thunderbird
|Mobile clients
|iPhone, iPad, iPod touch
|Allows use of some Exchange features.
|Allows use of some Exchange features.
|BlackBerry 10
use of some Exchange features.
Note: BlackBerry OS 6 and 5 can use IMAP to connect to the mailbox only. While some Exchange functionality for devices prior to BlackBerry OS 10 is available via IU's BES, that service is scheduled for retirement in 2015, and no new accounts are being created; see About the BES retirement.
While UITS has tested the programs listed above and supports their use, other email clients may work as well. For general instructions, see If my email client is not covered in the Knowledge Base, how do I configure it to work with IU email systems?


text:
Major Contributors
Laguna Art Museum thanks its 2012-13 contributors who gave generously to support exhibitions, education programs and special events. The museum's Board of Trustees, staff and volunteers deeply appreciate your continued commitment.
This list indicates gifts to Laguna Art Museum between July 1, 2012 and June 30, 2013. It does not include general membership dues.
Please inform us of any updates or corrections.
$100,000 and above
Antoinette W. Ayres Family Trust
Laguna Beach Visitors and Convention Bureau and the Business Improvement District
Yvonne Boseker
Jean Gaulin Foundation
The McBeth Foundation
Auerbach Family Trust
Barbara Steele Williams Designated Agency Endowment
David Dedmon and Charles Atwood
Robert Hayes and James Burba
Bobbi Cox
Priscilla and Ranney Draper
Draper Family Foundation Fund
Teri and Marshall Eichenauer
First Foundation, Inc.
Pacific Life Foundation
Robert Hayden III
Janice Johnson
Janis and Kenneth Kaplan
Liz and Sten Kramer
Karen McCulley
Michele and Emil Monda
Martha and James Newkirk
Julia Padach-Mathewson and Curtis Mathewson
Laura and Lou Rohl
Rick Silver
Judy and Keith Swayne
Betty Jean and Wayne Thiebaud
Bank of America
Festival of Arts Foundation
Rick Balzer and Lyn Burke
Ted Baxter
Curt Biddulph and Karen Lutomski
Robert Braun
Johanna and Gene Felder
Sara Forbes Heeschen and Paul Heeschen
Jane and Joe Hanauer
Sheldon Milner Harte and John Combs
Mike Hem
Jan and Mark Hilbert
Robin and Steve Kalota
Jon Madison and Ken Lynn
Nancy Moure
Mark Porterfield and Steve Chadima
Lynn and David Rahn
Chell Smith
Thomas B. Stiles and Barbara Alexander
Elizabeth and Tom Tierney
Karen Weinberg
Wells Fargo Foundation
Susan Wunderlich and Richard Hall
Leone and Rich Adler
Linda Banks
Gerald Buck
Simon K. Chiu
Diane and Gene Crain
Kingsley and John Croul
Janet Dickson
Janet and Henry Eggers
Nancy and Chuck Fry
Karen and Bob Hoehn
Patricia and Chester Houston
Kenneth and Jan Kaplan
Laguna Beach Community Foundation
Colleen and Randall Kroha
James and Suzanne Mellor
Katy Moss
Linda and Mike Mussallem
Lindy Narver
Linda and Garrett Pack
Greta and Joel Panish
Suzanne and Theodore Paulson
Ray and Barbara Redfern
Joni Rehnborg
Anne Reiss
Al Roberts and Ken Jillson
Angela Tesselaar-O'Donnell and Douglas O'Donnell
Ellen and Sam Rose
Sarah Thorne-Markman and Adam Markman
Shelley Thunen
Kathleen and Richard Tucker
Jean and Donald Vivrette
Ruth Westphal
Suzanne Wold
Gary Allen
Pat and Dick Amtower
The Arts Council of Laguna Art Museum
Joseph Baker
Marla Bird
Lynne Biscieglia
Leslie Blumberg
Genny Boccardo-Dubey and Frank Dubey
Choo Choo and Dennis Boyer
Yasuko and John Bush
Nancy Bushnell
James Caillouette and Gabrielle White
Jacques Camus
Mark Christy and Leticia Apalategui
Clark and Greg Collins
Kathy and Michael Conway
Donnie Crevier and Laurie Kraus
Barbara and Tad Danz
Sally Davis
Mary and Gregg DeNicola
Cindy and Mark Evans
Kathy and Tom Ferry
Lawrence Fodor
Susan and Richard Gordinier
Sue Greenwood
Cooper and Patricia Griggs
Hang Vinh and Daniel Hansman
Loren Harris-Heller
Vanessa Helin and Angel Garcia Maroto
Charles James
Mark A. Judy
Jack Kenefick
David and Deborah Lake
Mary and Matt Lawson
Lockie and Clark Leonard
Steve Lewallen and Bret Green
John S. Link
Lisa and John Mansour
Lori Marks-Newman and Kevin Newman
Ilona Martin
Judy McKay
Martin Medak
Kristy and Danny Melita
Nancy Miller
Elyse Caraco Miller and Bruce Miller
Melinda and Tony Moiso
Mark Moore
John Murphy
Pamela B. and James F. Muzzy
Lindy Narver
National Charity League, Inc. Laguna Chapter
Sherri Worth Nourse and Jerry Nourse
Gail and Peter Ochs
Elma and Earl Payton
Madeleine Peterson
Barbara and Richard Picheny
James Pick and Rosalyn Laudati
James B. Podlick
Chris Quilter
Ellen and Sam Rose
Lee Sandler and Kathleen Farinacci
Deborah and Robert Schlesinger
Sande and Richard Schwarzstein
Francine and Daniel Scinto
Sandy Sewell
Earlene and Herb Seymour
Hanna and Gregory Skjonsby
Theodore Slavin
Miriam Smith and Doug Greene
Marjorie and Vernon Spitaleri
Melinda and Lynn Stanton
Irene and George Stern
Laura Tarbox and Mike Nozzarella
Corinna and Justin Thavirat
Lindsay Tognetti and John Keith
U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management
Marnie and Brett Wall
Charles Walworth and Judson Slusser
Tracy Young
Blair and Donna Ballard
Pamela Banks
Byron Barker
Kerry Bartels and David Hulse
Nancy and Gary Beverage
Laura and Jerry Bieser
Paul Boschetto
Meriam Braselle
Linda and Jonathan Burke
In Memory of William Deming Burr III
Polina Chebotareva
Robert Chickering and Carole Urie-Chickering
Derry and Roger Coe
Laura Davick
Mary and William R. Cramer
Heidi and Mark Draper
Leanne and Howard Englander
Karen and Robert Gilbert
Deborah and Martin Hale
Nadine and Robert Hall
Sally Hill
Eric Jessen
Elizabeth and Don Johnson
William A. Karges
Jim Loss and Katie Burnett
Barbara and Greg Macgillivray
Mike Meyer
Catlin Moore
Nicholas Yrizarry Wealth Management Group
Michael Ray
Susan and John Reese
Fritz Reynolds
Chris Richter
Lynn and James Saivar
Igal and Diane Silber
Merrily Smith
Patricia Turnier
Jill Watkins
Denise and Ralph Wintrode
WPO Pacifica OC
Betsy Anderson
Bette Anderson
Lauren and John Arabia
Faye and Wayne Baglin
Kacey and Joseph Baker
Sharlene Baker
Robert Barich and Julian Ramos
Linda and James Barisic
Serena and Matthew Benson
Marc Berger
Judith Bijlani
Paola and Richard Bisson
Suzanne and Harry Bithell
Ward Blackburn
Janet Blake and Ken Zandieh
Ellie Blankfort and Peter Clothier
Derek Boorn
James Brown
Yasuko Bush
Matthew Carpino
Brigette and Jose Collazo
Howard and Rita Conn
Bob and Tina Cook
Patricia Corrigan and Leonard Schwigen
Suzanne Curtin
Katherine and Ralph Cygan
Barbara Davidson
Alexandria and Chris Del Rosso
Carol and G. Leslie Elliott
Sylvia and Bennett Engelman
Ginnie and Stan Eschner
Virginia and Jeffrey Fahrni
Ingrid Feeny
Mary and Joe Ferguson
Rory and Thomas Ferlauto
Robert Fraser
Jeanne Gemmell
Julie and Steve Hamm
Tiffany and John Hammer
Nancy Handel
Norma and Michael Helin
Cythina and Randy Higbee
Lisa and Doug Holte
Denise and John Hooks
Alethea Hsu
Karen and John Jaffe
Kim Janson-Smith
Paul Jillson
Jennifer and Fred Karam
Rhonda Karp
John Henry Kaufman
Suzette Kirby
Janne Kouri
Anne and Ted Kucklick
Laguna Craft Guild
Sheryl Laulhere
Lisa and Jeffrey Lawson
Patricia Levine
Ron Lussier
Jeffrey Mallin
Kaveh Matin
Laura Mayo
Matthew McCullough
Ann McDonald
Catherine and James McQueen
Cynthia and Chris Mellow
Donna and Thomas Miller
Sheri Morgan
Simara Nahabedian
Gregory Nathanson
Sheri Newcomer
Robert Normile
Ashley Pak
Adam Panish
Thomas Panno and Tony Maquet
Raza Pash
Elizabeth Pearson
Kent and Pat Powell
Rick J. Delanty Fine Art
Amber and Ken Rohl
Rita Rollar
Keiko Sakamoto and Bill Witte
Susan and John Sanders
Harriet and Jim Selna
Somona and Carl Smith
Joyce and Spencer Spriggs
Arnold Starr and Bonnie Starr-Olsen
Diane Steffy
Jean and Linda Stern
Arthur Strick
Janne and Robert Stollar
Mary Linda and Jay Strotkamp
Gregory Vail
Cynthia and Michael Waldman
Joyce Weatherford and James Cushing
Terrence M. White
Anila Whitney
Wendy and Scott Wirth
Toni and Len Wood
Debbie and Kevin Wulff
Diana Wypich
Jennifer Yelland
Zinc Cafe & Market
Dennis Aigner and Camille Bertolet
Rosemarie Allaire-Bosson and George C. Bosson
Brien Amspoker and Ellen Breitman
Grace Kook-Anderson and Lev Anderson
Gertrud and Jay Andrus
Leslie Arnold
Angela Ashmoore
Sandra and Richard Azera
Laurence Bolton
Randy Boyd and Mr. Richard Zinni
Heather Burek
Heidi and George Burkhardt
Capital Group Companies Inc.
Mary and Gus Chabre
Bonnie Changstrom-Simon
Marriot and Timothy Clark
Debra Copeland
Sharon Davison
Jeannie Denholm
Scott and Catherine Doll
Carol and Dennis Eastman
Carol and G. Leslie Elliott
Ann and James Farris
Allan Feker
Karen Feuer-Schwager
Joan Finn-Hanson and Fred Dungan
Ruben Flores and Nelson Coates
Jessica Frandson
Stacy Garcia
Gertie and Jacques Garnier
Patricia Gately
Scott Gladstone
Lori Gottlieb
Judith and Robert Hall
Anny Heid
Apryll Held
Sophia Hernandez
Mary Ann and Joe Herrera
Heather Hobbs
Ayden Hofius
Gregory Holland and Carlos Lazaro
Eunnie Hur
Dorothy Hurford
IBM Matching Grants Program
Carmen Italia
Gary Izumi
Jackie Jacobson
Skip Johnson
Arlena and Kari Kauppi
Todd Kenyon
Philip Kieffer and George Resner
Barbara Klein
Robert and Barbara Klein
Teresa Knox
Helen Kramer
Elaine and Adrian Kuyper
Alyce Lamb
Vickie and Tom Lamb
Michelle Lane
Lois and James Lasry
Zahide and Harry Lawrence
Carlos Lazaro and Gregory Holland
Kathleen Lechner
Bea Lilly
Stephen Lubman and Athena Wright
Ohara Maile
Mick Manzi
Suzanne McClaire
Patsy Metcalf
Patricia Minassian
Mary Minerman
Milan Mitrovich
Kirra Moore
ELizabeth Morgan
Tim Nicol and John Secretan
James and Shirley Nielsen
Lynnea Oakes
Patti and John Ohslund
Marshall Parker
Patty Patterson
Leslee and Michael Perlstein
Theodore Peterson and Elizabeth Emison Peterson
Barbara Peyton
Barbara and Richard Picheny
Randy Higbee Gallery
Barbara Ring
Jarrow Rogovin
Terri and Brian Ross
Celia Ruelas
Timothy Saunders and Sherry Way
Linda Saville
Nola and Malcolm Schneer
Earl See
Krista and Robert Shaw
Homa Shoghian
Carolyn Skenderian
Mike Solton
Lozowski Sonya
Luke Stark
Bibe Stockmann
Jeanne and David Sullenger
Dorothy Sully
Alexandra Swellen
Grace Taylor
Zara Terrazas-Graham
Zen Thai
Judy Thomas
Patricia Truman and Laural Taylor
Patricia Twitty
Myron and Marolyn Wacholder
Lynn Weiser and Michael Tompkins
Lois Wilcoxen
Linda Wolcott
Jinha Yoo
Linda Young
Lois Zeller
Up to $99
Ethan Anderson and Jamie Diaz-Anderson
Susan and James E. Bollingmo
Shirley Bowen
Michael Brickman
Robert Briggs
Ellen Brooks
Linda Buckley
Katy Crumley
Jeff Davis
Patricia Didiomete
Mary and Bill Duffy
Heather and Craig Fish
Jenine Fisrette
Shirley and Robert Foster
Robin Fuld
Sally Garrett
John Gizzo
Ron Goulden
Rose Hancock
Dina Harros
Joyce Henry
Tom Hodges
Arline and David Isaacs
Soheila Jafazadeir
Elizabeth and Gary Jenkins
Jeff Kaplan
Neil Katz
Sigrid Kielty
Henry Koza
Elizabeth and William Kramer
Molly Levitta
Donna Liss
Greg Miles and Jane Casanova
Meri Mitta
Liz Nedza
Jane and Ray Neufeld
Sharon and George Orff
Cathy Parks
Megan Pitt
Julie Schimitz
Viviana Schulman and Peter Hands
Eldon Sextro
Carolina Sims
Gay Sutherland and Gretchen Westgaard
Carol Swanson
Sandra Van Duyne
Leah Vasquez
Felix Veski
Gayle Waikes
Kat Wallace
Fritzi Werner
Madelaine Whiteman
Lesghinka and Ritchie Wilson
Norma Young
24 Carrots
Montage, Laguna Beach
Roberto Cavalli
Capelli Antiques
Christie's Los Angeles
Copain Wines
Jon Madison
Riviera magazine
The Showpros
Broadway by Amar Santana
Beach West Plumbing
Casas de Santa Fe
Change a Life Foundation
Ferguson Supply
Fine Art Connoisseur
Jacques Garnier
Laguna Beach Independent
Laguna Beach Magazine
Laguna Nursery
Newport Beach Magazine
OC Weekly
Pelican Hill
Plein Air Magazine
Sara and Paul Heeschen
Shield's Construction
St. Regis, Monarch Beach
The Inn at Laguna Beach
Nirvana Grille
Crystal Cove Art Alliance
Macaroni Automotive Museum and Foundation for Kids
Michelle haut Chocolat
Southwest Art Magazine
Tamarind of London
The Cottage Restaurant
Romeo Cucina
Cookes Crating
Dierberg & Star Lane Vineyards
h2hotel, Healdsburg
Nelson Fine Art Framing
Simply Sweet Cakery
Wine Gallery
14 Hands Winery
Paul Fenner Floral Design
Randy Higbee Gallery
Savoir Fare
The Observatory
The Spice Merchants


text:
St Mary's Lighthouse
In an unlikely setting just north of Whitley Bay on the north east coast of England, St Mary's Island and its crowning lighthouse can be an enchanting spot and all the better for being so unexpected. I've painted it three times now and I'm sure I'll paint it many more; I love the clarity of light here and the scale of the landscape.
Tuesday, 15 November 2011
St Mary's Lighthouse 70cms x 70cms
4 comments:
just took a quick look at the blog. c/o YORKSHIRE PUD... absolutely love the pig picture ( i keep pigs)ReplyDelete
It was rather nice.... mind you the mackerel picture is cracking too!!!
best wishes
Glad you like John and thanks for the kind words.ReplyDelete
I love paintings that make me want to touch them! But I have no idea how you create this effect - is it painted using a brush?ReplyDelete
By the way, I hope you stumble upon a fishwife who shares your passion for this rather lovely spot...
I mostly just chuck paint around and hope some of it sticks in the right places Susan!ReplyDelete
Ha ha - I'm not sure I could cope with the fishwife mitherin' on in such a peaceful spot.
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Get MOH Blog Posts by Email
Cincinnati Zoo fields calls for Mr. Lion -- April Fool's Day, 1972
The Cincinnati Zoo reported receiving over 1000 calls from pranksters (or victims of pranksters) on April 1st. There were 224 calls specifically asking for "Mr. Lion." In anticipation of the calls, the zoo had given the job of answering the telephone to six girl members of the Junior Zoologist Club:
Linda King, one of the club members, said she received one call for President Nixon and another from someone wanting to know if "Batman was fighting the Penguin." Then there were callers who had been duped into calling the zoo number thinking they were calling someone else. The owner of a blacktopping firm called saying he had been asked to telephone about a "seal job." A department store clerk called to say the handkerchief order was ready for "Mrs Lion" to pick up. Another woman reportedly became upset when she thought she had been calling an exclusive downtown store about girdles.
[Ohio Chronicle-Telegram, Apr 2, 1972.]
April Fool Categories: Animals, United States, 1972, Telephone Pranks, Zoo Prank.
There are no comments yet for this article.
Submit a CommentIn order to post comments you have to register as a member of the site.
All text Copyright © 2014 by Alex Boese, except where otherwise indicated. All rights reserved.


text:
The wrong newborn was mistakenly breastfed after two babies were switched in the nursery at Abbott Northwestern Hospital [Minneapolis].
According to the child's aunt, her sister's baby was accidentally given to the wrong mother and breastfed before the error was corrected.
Stacy Engebretson said the switch happened early Wednesday morning.
After the mistake was realized, both mothers and Engebretson's nephew had to undergo blood testing for HIV and hepatitis


text:
Pure (like Snow White in 1937), sheltered (like Sleeping Beauty's Princess Aurora in 1959), self-effacing to a fault (like 1950's Cinderella): For decades, Disney's heroines reflected the feminine ideal of the times in which they were drawn. They were often bland and always sweetly wholesome. Wholesome they remain, but the studio has wrought a babe-ization of its animated leading ladies, an evolution that culminates in Aladdin's serenely sexy Princess Jasmine.
It was The Little Mermaid's Ariel who signaled the sea change in 1989. Showing off her clamshell bra with complete sexual confidence, Ariel was unmistakably a woman. She didn't float idly by waiting for a prince, she sought one out and blithely used her body to land him, having sacrificed her voice to gain legs (a plot point many women who otherwise admired Ariel found objectionable).
The unseen hand stirring the shift was studio boss Jeffrey Katzenberg. ''Everything gets run past him for approvals, and he's a real strong romantic,'' says animator Mark Henn, who handled the main chores on Ariel with Glen Keane. ''Jeffrey likes his leading ladies to be very attractive.''
Of course, this being a family-fare company, there are still limits. For the pioneering Ariel's costume, ''We wanted just the shells,'' Henn recalls. ''But the studio kept saying, 'How are they on there? You've got to give her a seaweed strap to make sure it's logistically clear.''' A naughty drawing on a wall at Disney's Glendale, Calif., animation facility immortalizes that battle, showing a chagrined Ariel popping the halter clear off her chest.
Katzenberg was so pleased with Henn's work on Mermaid that the artist was called on to bring out a sensual side in Belle for some scenes in Beauty and the Beast. Now, as chief designer of Aladdin's Princess has taken 'toon sexuality even further. ''Jasmine turns on this playful, false come-on to Aladdin and to Jafar, something we've never shown,'' he says. His goal was to make the teen royal ''a real babe,'' so Aladdin's infatuation with her would be believable.
Much as Katzenberg had liked his past work, though, Henn was nervous when he first unveiled Jasmine's cinch-waisted design for his boss. He needn't have worried. ''Jeffrey said, 'Home run,''' Henn remembers. ''Then he looked at me and asked, 'What is it with you and these women?'''


text:
What's New?
Thursday, November 12, 2009
The Sanctification of Time
In the sixth part of this new series, Fr. John Finley introduces the Feast of the Theotokos, paying particular attention to the parallels between Mary and the Church.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
OCMC Missions Opportunities
On a new Ancient Faith Presents, Bobby Maddex interviews Andy Lekos, the Mission Teams Director of the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC), about some exciting new missions opportunities. Will you answer the call?
Monday, November 09, 2009
Catechizing From The Barber's Chair
It's not often that one gets scalped by a Christian, rarer still is when a priest willingly airs his failures (of "Biblical proportion").
Angels and Demons
Having just celebrated the Feast of the Angels, Fr. Tom Hopko asks - Who are the angels and the demons? Were the demons created evil? Can they repent? Get the answer to these questions and much more in this episode.
Friday, November 06, 2009
Secular vs. Christian Mindsets: Part 3
In the third part of his series on "secular vs. Christian mindsets," Fr. Gabriel Rochelle enumerates the various ways in which secular individuals replace the one true Messiah who is lacking in their lives.


text:
Penn State Brandywine
Online Materials / Links
Click here for the CIA's World Factbook (A CIA online resource)
Click here for links to the Department of Defense News Service and other military related sites, including the military services and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Click here for link to the Center for Military History, U.S. Army War College.
Click here for link to the Natural Resources Defense Council, a national nonprofit environmental organization.
Click here for link to CNN breaking news for U.S. and world.
Click here for link to the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) Web page, which also includes links to many useful sources in security, defense and foreign policy studies.
Click here for Steve Cimbala's recent book information
Click here for new textbook in U.S. National Security
Click here for the Department of Defense Website on "Transforming the Military" to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century.
Stephen J. Cimbala
Stephen J. Cimbala is Distinguished Professor of Political Science, Pennsylvania State University (Brandywine Campus). His teaching and research interests include international politics and foreign policy, defense and security studies, arms control, peace operations, conflict termination and information warfare.
Dr. Cimbala is the author of numerous books and articles in professional journals on topics related to national security. His most recent books include: THE PAST AND FUTURE OF NUCLEAR DETERRENCE (Praeger Publishers: 1998) and COERCIVE MILITARY STRATEGY (Texas A & M University Press: 1998).
Cimbala is an award winning teacher, having received the Pennsylvania State University's Eisenhower Award for Distinguished Teaching in 1995. He was selected for inclusion in 2000 Outstanding Scholars of the 20th Century by the International Biographical Centre, Cambridge, England, and is a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, Leadership Honor Society.
Cimbala serves on the editorial board of five professional journals and his recent lectures to military audiences include the U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania and Headquarters, U.S. Special Operations Command, Tampa, Florida.
He has participated in numerous exercises, studies or other research visits involving military commands and schools, including: NATO military headquarters, Mons, Belgium, arms control briefings and special operations planning; U.S. Army war games (OPFOR) at Ft. Irwin, California; U.S. Naval War College, Newport, Global War Game; and a U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff panel on the Future of Aerospace Power at the Air War College, Montgomery, Alabama.
Cimbala has served as a consultant on arms control to the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency (1997-1999), to the U.S. Department of State (1999) and to private defense contractors. Cimbala is a faculty associate of Penn State University's Institute for the Study of Nonlethal Defense Technologies.
Personal Information
He lives in Drexel Hill, Pa. with his wife Elizabeth Harder Cimbala, sons David and Christopher, numerous stuffed animals, and several aging vehicles. He has never undertaken an acknowledged covert operation.


text:
Sunset Sessions
Main Navigation
Shopping Cart
Sign In
Contact Us
Quick Search
Advanced Search
Our Products
Welcome to
Sunset Sessions
Thank you for your interest in Sunset Sessions! When filling our your registration form in comments please make any notes for your badge, ie name, company and company city and state. Also when purchasing a day pass please indicate which day the pass is for. Please note we do not accept returns on any of our products including registrations, so no refunds will be issued.
Terms and Conditions
About Us
Site Map
Copyright © 2011-2014 Sunset Sessions. All rights reserved.


text:
Journaling ideas since 2003
Advertise with us Subscribe to newsletter
Advertise with us Subscribe to newsletter
A Refrigerator That Only Opens If You Smile At It
Only the Japanese can come up with a smile-activated refrigerator.
Developed at the University of Tokyo, the 'Happiness Counter' is designed to ensure that one smiles often despite the humdrum of daily life.
Equipped with a camera that can detect smiles, the refrigerator door will only open if you flash a beautiful smile at it.
This may also be the solution to curbing emotional binge-eating.
[via Rekimoto Lab]
Receive interesting stories like this one in your inbox
Advertise here
Subscribe to our email newsletterPrefer RSS instead?
More news on
Also check out these recent news
Product Design


text:
U.S. Olympian Josephine Pucci a hit at her old Pearl River school
Team USA player visits kids at her old school
6:04 PM, Jan. 17, 2014
You will be redirected to the page you want to view in seconds.
Excitement creased the faces of more than 260 kids, standing, clapping and cheering, filling the St. Margaret School gym with happy noise for the guest of honor at this assembly, the woman at the
A link to this page will be included in your message.
Real Deals
Flip, shop and save on specials from your favorite retailers in the Lower Hudson Valley, 10604.GET DEALS NOW
Sign up for a Full-Access Subscription!
Twitter ActivityTweets by @LoHud
Staff Blogs
Facebook Activity


text:
Skip navigation
Event Enquiries: 01604 731731Bedroom Booking Hotline: 08455 049550e: firstname.lastname@example.com
Sundial Group Home Page
"The event was a great success…the venue met all our requirements with ease, I would highly recommend Highgate House"
© 2014 Sundial Group Ltd +44 (0)1604 731731 - Privacy PolicyHighgate House, Creaton, Northampton. NN6 8NN. Registered in the UK no. 3432674


text:
Critic & User Reviews
Very Good
A good lego view of batman
posted by Endgamer77 (DEER RIVER, MN) Jun 1, 2009
Member since Jan 2009
5 out of 5 gamers (100%) found this review helpful
Above Average
I made a decoder ring out of LEGOs!
posted by JCDenton (FREEDOM, NH) Sep 28, 2008
Member since Mar 2006
12 out of 13 gamers (92%) found this review helpful
Throughout the game, you play as Batman and Robin, tracking down escaped convicts from Arkham Asylum who have gone on a crime spree. More well-known villains such as Joker, Riddler and Penguin are aided by less known gems like Killer Croc and Mad Hatter.
The gameplay is pretty similar to other LEGO games. You collect studs, smash random objects and build things that help you progress through each level. Occasionally, you'll run into a bunch of goons, who are dispatched with simplistic fighting (keep hitting that Z button). There are also a few vehicle levels, which have you shooting everything made of LEGO bricks and driving like a madman. And that's fun.
A new game mechanic for the series are the interchangeable suits. Find a suit change location and you'll unlock special abilities you'll need to collect objects or progress. Batman has a demolition suit for blowing up shiny objects, Robin has a dive suit and magnet suit to access new areas, etc. Another cool game mechanic is the Batarang, used to hit multiple targets that are out of reach.
There's quite a bit of game here. Batman will traverse 15 levels to catch all the criminals, and you'll have to run free play to get all the goodies. But that's only half the game. In a stroke of brilliance, you can access Arkham Asylum and play 15 more missions taking the same story from the villains perspective. Throwing heavy objects around as Clayface or using Riddler's mind-control ability really adds to the game.
If you just want to run through the game, it might not take you very long. But getting 100% will eat up a fair amount of time. It's not hard and it's pretty repetitious, but it's still fun to play and quick enough to hold your interest. Take a trip to the Batcave, you might want to check this one out.
Very Good
"LEGO Batman": Another LEGO Hit
posted by JMichaud (BETHESDA, MD) Sep 26, 2008
Member since Jan 2008
8 out of 9 gamers (89%) found this review helpful
You guide your avatars through a course, building things, making jumps, and using that character's special abilities (or costumes) to solve puzzles. There are many collectibles along the way and several places that can be reached when you play that level a second time in Free Play Mode.
But one difference between this game and Star Wars/Indiana Jones is there are levels made for the bad guys. But it's not a big difference; you go about the same jumps/solve problems/collect items/get to the end of the course that you did when you controlled the heroes.
But this game is nowhere near as dull as I'm making it to be; the cut scenes are great (as always with Traveler's Tales), the story is interesting, it feels really good to be the villains, the controls work very well and there's a lot of levels to get through. Oh, and the game is a lot of fun to play.
Unfortunately, there are a few flaws here. The fighting isn't as exciting; you just punch your way through the bad guys. The camera can make spotting important items hard. And some puzzles are very tough; you can get stuck really easy.
Despite that, LEGO Batman is another hit in the LEGO universe. I wonder who's next for the LEGO treatment.
Above Average
Bad Camera
posted by badguyman (TULSA, OK) Oct 8, 2008
Member since Feb 2008
4 out of 5 gamers (80%) found this review helpful
The Best of the LEGO Games: The Brick Knight
posted by lemonball (CHARLESTON, SC) Dec 28, 2008
Member since Dec 2007
2 out of 3 gamers (67%) found this review helpful
Great Game...
posted by Daddyof2 (EAST SYRACUSE, NY) Dec 5, 2008
Member since Jan 2008
2 out of 3 gamers (67%) found this review helpful
Controls are very easy to use, story line is great, and a all-a-round great game.
the game
posted by jarrad (SAGINAW, MI) Feb 22, 2009
Member since Feb 2007
2 out of 4 gamers (50%) found this review helpful
Not as good as Star Wars
posted by mrbigtime (FAYETTEVILLE, GA) May 27, 2009
Member since Mar 2009
1 out of 2 gamers (50%) found this review helpful
Very Good
Pretty Entertaining
posted by momplayer (MARION, NC) Jan 9, 2009
Member since Oct 2008
1 out of 2 gamers (50%) found this review helpful
I did have to cheat and use a walk through guide to get through the game, but I'm not much of a game player and have little patience to try and figure things out. Not to say it is really all that hard, I just didn't want to take the time.
Overall, enjoyed it!
Nothing New...
posted by puzzlmastr (TORRANCE, CA) Oct 2, 2008
Member since Sep 2008
1 out of 3 gamers (33%) found this review helpful
-does a good job of sticking to its original premise of jumping and punching to uncover secrets.
-has nostalgic appeal of Batman
-mini-kits, and whatnot, are a bit easier to find
-same old Legos game
-story mode is a joke in difficulty as previous Legos games
-the nostalgic appeal wears thin in the first hour of gameplay
-glitchy, glitchy, glitchy:
-wife (who isn't a gamer) couldn't even play because you must learn to manipulate the glitchy gameplay in order to get through it
- when playing solo, the computer would get stuck in corners (once even kept jumping off a ledge over and over again for no reason)
-but, probably the worst glitches of all are the fact that once you've unlocked certain features, they don't always work. for example:
-sonic area
-score x4, 8, or 10....I spent hours collecting 4,000,000 studs (yes 4,000,000) to buy a score x8 that I had unlocked, and the game took my 4,000,000 studs and nothing happened. I did not begin to see my score multiplying by 8, or anything for that matter. In essence I collected 4,000,000 studs just to lose them for no purpose at all. That's about all I could take before I sent it back.
In conclusion, the game is fun for a short while, but don't waste your time trying to take it seriously. It's definitely geared towards young children and nothing more.
I Might Of Had A Glitch: This is a partial review!
posted by miko25 (LARGO, FL) Sep 24, 2008
Member since Nov 2004
1 out of 9 gamers (11%) found this review helpful
I loved it
posted by tallmario365 (BETHESDA, MD) Apr 14, 2012
Member since Mar 2012
Very Good
posted by ftdsalways (NASHUA, NH) Feb 24, 2012
Member since Jan 2012
Love it
posted by stephzac04 (CENTERBURG, OH) Dec 2, 2011
Member since Dec 2011
LEGO games are the best games
posted by martha00jackson (DENHAM SPRINGS, LA) Aug 4, 2011
Member since Apr 2011
Very Good
Twuz good!
posted by WiiNii (ROCHESTER, WA) Jan 1, 2011
Member since Jun 2010
Sending back!
Thanks GameFlies.
indeed the worst lego game in the universe.
posted by superg (BLAIRSTOWN, NJ) Jul 28, 2010
Member since Jul 2010
this the wworst batman game in history! its so bad i cant even explian how bad! it is! if you want a REAL bat man game i heard batman arkham alsum was good.
Batman Meets the Bricks!
posted by tomkarl (HAMILTON, MT) May 24, 2010
Member since Mar 2009
So Like Me!
posted by Shadowkid (SAN ANTONIO, FL) Jan 4, 2010
Member since Jan 2010
Really Bad
Lego Batman Leaves Extremely Not Exciting
posted by Mantis7 (LAFAYETTE, CO) Dec 20, 2009
Member since Dec 2009
posted by way2crazy (AUSTIN, TX) Nov 27, 2009
Member since Nov 2009
Above Average
Motion Sickness Cam!
posted by Hoopie (KIHEI, HI) Nov 13, 2009
Member since Nov 2007
Very Good
Minimum Requierment of Awesomness Met
posted by DaTruth78 (BLOOMING GROVE, TX) Nov 2, 2009
Member since Dec 2008
posted by Jysontodef (MARIETTA, GA) Sep 6, 2009
Member since Jul 2009
Very Good
very fun yet very hard
posted by jal117 (SUGAR LAND, TX) Jun 25, 2009
Member since Jun 2009
the bad parts were the levels were too hard and the camera angle didnt help
so theres just a few things they couldve changed in the gameplay


text:
RSS 18 deals tagged "italian-wine"
Vitanza Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 2006 (94-pt WE) for $49.99
@ wineshopper.com | 0 comments | food, wine, red-wine, italian-wine, fine-wine
4 months ago
Santa Cristina by Antinori Rosso 2011 12-pack case for $99 + free shipping
@ wineshopper.com | 0 comments | wine, grocery, food, red-wine, italian-wine
a year ago
Free Shipping on the Last 6-Pack Cases! « Shoppers Vineyard for $60 + free shipping
@ shoppersvineyard.wordpress.com | 0 comments | wine, chianti, free-shipping, italian-wine
Di Majo Norante Sangiovese 2009 6-Pack for $45
@ wineshopper.com | 0 comments | wine, redwine, sangiovese, italian-wine, pizza
Free Ground Shipping on This Pinot Grigio Case for $96 + free shipping
@ icontact-archive.com | 0 comments | wine, italian-wine, pinot-grigio
Elena Fucci Aglianico del Vulture Titolo 2007 (93-Pt WA) for $19.99
@ wineshopper.com | 0 comments | wine, redwine, aglianico, italianwine, food
55% OFF 2004 SuperTuscan Dream Deal! for $19.99
@ icontact-archive.com | 0 comments | wine, tuscan, italian-wine, discount
Elena Fucci Aglianico del Vulture Titolo 2007 (93-pt WA) for $19.99
@ wineshopper.com | 1 comment | redwine, wine, southernitaly, italianwine, aglianico
2007 Spellwine Napa Valley Tuscan-Blend Sangiovese Half Case for $77.94 + free shipping
@ lot18.com | 0 comments | redwine, sangiovese, wine, italianwine, food
2009 Tenuta Vitanza Chianti Colli Senesi Half Case for $89.94 + free shipping
@ lot18.com | 0 comments | wine, tuscany, chianti, italianwine, redwine
2009 Biscardo Valpolicella Classico Ripasso Duo (last day free shipping) for $44.98 + free shipping
@ lot18.com | 0 comments | corvina, redwine, valpolicella, italianwine, italian
2007 Giacomo Grimaldi Barolo Trio (92-pt WA) for $139.99 + free shipping
@ lot18.com | 0 comments | barolo, italianwine, redwine, wine, nebbiolo
Luca della Vite Toscana Lucente 2007 for $19.98
@ thewinebuyer.com | 0 comments | grocery, wine, italianwines
4 years ago
Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio / Prosecco 2 Bottle Gift Pack for $31.99
@ thewinebuyer.com | 0 comments | wine, italianwines, prosecco, pinot, grigio
4 years ago
Pieropan Ruberpan Veneto 2004 (90-pt IWR) for $19.99
@ wineshopper.com | 0 comments | wine, italianwine, vino, veneto
Arnaldo Caprai Grecante Bianco Grechetto Umbria - Shoppers Vineyard for $15.99
@ shoppersvineyard.com | 0 comments | italianwines, wine, shoppersvineyard
4 years ago
Argiano Non-Confunditor 2009, Tuscany for $18.69
@ peteswineshop.com | 0 comments | food, tuscany, wine, redwine, italianwines
Sponsored Deals
They're like ads, but good.
OK, yes, companies pay a little something to be Sponsored Deals. But we don't allow just any old crap in this section. Sponsored Deals are proposed to us by other retailers, manufacturers, and even other daily deal sites. If we find the deal compelling enough that our members will appreciate us bringing it to their attention, we'll feature it here. Believe it or not, we have a reputation to uphold. If your store would like to be considered for this space, please contact us for details. But if your deal is lame, or sketchy, no amount of money will let you buy your way in.
Community Deals
It's whatever you want it to be.
Pretty much, anyway. This is where you find the deals that wooters like you have ferreted out and brought to light. We're thinking it'll turn into a massive database of discounted products from around the Web, constantly expanding to absorb the newest deals from the very moment their prices are slashed, with each deal immediately rated by hordes of savvy voters to spotlight the very greatest deals in the world today. Hey, we can dream, right?
We use a fancy algorithm to determine which deals are catching the most buzz – they're under the Popular tab, which is the default view of this section. You can look for the most popular deals today, this week, or this month. The Fresh tab features the most recently submitted deals, so that's where to look for deals that everybody else doesn't know about yet. And the Search bar does what a Search bar does, only, uh, much wootier! Yeah! Right on!
Ask The Community
They probably won't bite.
Organic bullets? Vegetarian haggis? Cheap tickets to Antarctica? The best high-performance sweatsocks for under $100? If you're looking for a deal that doesn't appear to show up in our Community Deals section, throw the question to your fellow cheapskates. Or answer a question for one of your fellow cheapskates. Or vote for your favorite questions, or your favorite answers, or… maybe we should call this section "Ask, Answer, Comment On, And Vote In The Community", but that won't fit on the page.


text:
MAF is looking for people with a heart and passion for Christ, and the desire to serve in a cross-cultural context. There are opportunities to serve using aviation, education, information technology, and more! If you wish to learn how you can serve with MAF, please choose your area of interest:
MAF-US needs - Nov. 2014:
MAF-International needs - Nov. 2014:
MAF is a member of:
1-(800)-FLYS-MAF (359-7623) email@example.com Contact Information »
Mission Aviation Fellowship P.O. Box 47, Nampa, ID 83653
MAF is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit charity and a member of ECFA CFC #10989 Use of this website constitutes acceptance of the MAFPrivacy Policy and Terms of Service


text:
Medium Bodied Wingman #9 Cigar Sampler
$47.99Retail Price: $ 74.95
In Stock
In Air Force terms, the Wingman is a second pilot who protects the lead pilot by flying just behind his right wing. To that end, we've paired great cigars that perfectly complement each other in these affordable samplers. Presented in packs of 10 cigars, you'll love these high-flying match-ups from the leading cigar makers that cover a wide range of countries, strengths and wrappers. If you like one cigar, odds are you'll like the other, too. Browse the list and order your Wingman now.
Sampler InformationThis sampler includes:
ReviewsBrand Reviews | All Item reviewsShowing all reviews...
"A good package "
Buy these and save the Black Markets for yourself, and give the La Glorias to yo... more
Famous Smoke Shop Premium Cigars at Discount Prices! Order Toll Free: 1-800-564-2486 Contact Us