A Place in the Sun

I've just discovered that National Geographic actually give out grants!  They state that they "i nvest in bold people and transformative ideas in the fields of conservation, education, research, storytelling, and technology. Our goal is to identify, cultivate, and develop the world-changers of today and tomorrow". Joining a grant scheme means joining a community of like-minded people, as the site says here . " The National Geographic Society awards grants for conservation, education, research, storytelling, and technology through its Committee for Research and Exploration. All proposed projects must be novel and exploratory, and be of broad interest. National Geographic Society grant-funded projects should be bold, innovative, and transformative." Nat Geo has always been my passion and this year I have renewed my subscription after finding out that I end up buying most of the year's issues anyway. I guessed I may as well!  Embarking on the...

I was in much of a quandary as to what to do with my Christmas as I was not in a great mood to make any plans. In part I have been suffering from anxiety, and was not up to parties - even because all the eating and boozing does nothing to effectively help the morale.  Indeed, great alcohol intake triggers off anxiety once the initial effect has worn off, which is not something I need.  Being out of a stormy relationship and having stepped away from an inefficient attachment, I found myself on an emotional plateau that I did (do) not want to disturb. So, I spent Christmas lunch at mum's with all my family, as I usually do (bar the times I travel) and it was quite fine, except for raging stomach pains from having partied too hard in the two days prior.  Indeed, my work lunch and evening party meant that I had eaten more than I could handle and had more to drink than I should.  Nevertheless, I survived and watched a couple of cute films on mum's sofa in the evening...

It is hard to believe how fast this year has flown, and what with a steam-rollering of events and a quick succession of changes, I find myself looking towards Christmas with no other plans that my mother's Christmas lunch with my family, which of course always makes me very happy. Christmas is a time for being with family and friends, but it seems to me that we are all taken up by the upsurge of shopping, even against our will.  Well, not really. The matter is that it is nice to be out on the streets during Christmastime, with all the music and lights, but obviously the sad thing about it is that it is a public-relations exercise, and pretty little else. At this time of great cheer, we sometimes forget those who are not able to celebrate, or not in a place to do so. A little bit of generosity goes a long way to making others happy. The Malta Community Chest Fund organises L-Istrina every year - and raises large amounts of funds for the entire community, going to a number of...

And it is the weekend before Christmas ! This weekend, everyone will be bustling, shopping, dining and partying... So meanwhile, think of those who have dreams to fulfil but not the potential to do so! Malta has seen the set-up of the independent  initiative,  Children's Dreams , a project that collects and publishes children's dreams, an held in collaboration with the Foundation for Social Welfare Services .  These children live in Homes or are under some other social situation where they are being overseen by social workers.  You can then select the dream and leave your details so that the social worker can contact you and you can see how you wish to fulfil the dream and provide your gift. Isn't it a lovely thought ?

So this year I hit the big 40...  and (naturally by coincidence), a number of changes have hit me hard, starting from a few months before the actual day. I have resolved to do much with my life and the first thing I needed to do was to change job to something I like much more.  This came after a harrowing experience (on more than one count) in the previous workplace which rendered my position there impossible.  An undermining of character, unreciprocated loyalties and a boredom with the general workflow put me in such a position that I was required to move.  And so I did and initially it all worked very well.  However, when you give people the benefit of the doubt too easily, you find you might just consider yourself a dupe.  Making mistakes on top of that is enough to propel you into a state of despair... although I hope to update you with positive improvements on that one. One of the first things I planned, just before my birthday, was a trip to Pari...

In an article published in Maltese by inewsmalta , it was revealed that a report proves that small chemical dozes which affect hormones are found in a multitude of products we use daily. These include plastic containers, detergents, toys and cosmetics, and can all have an effect on our health. The study was carried out by The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, a medical journal, and shows that chemicals known as EDCs can potentially cause neurological damage and can even result in autism and/or ADHD. While these chemicals are invisible, they have been described as very dangerous and can also result in obesity, diabetes, certain types of cancer and male infertility.  So, how about thinking of both the environment as well as our own health, and reduce the use of plastic ?

Blogging has somehow lately become the trendy thing to do. Everyone seems to feel the need to create a blog – a space which belongs solely to themselves, and which one can use for many purposes. Be it for professional reasons, as an artistic portfolio, as a creative display, or even just as an online diary where the individual vents their frustration and inescapable tirades as a way to try and deal with an uncaring world, this virtual area, which is always online and available to the general public, can be said to be first and foremost a way of reaching out. It’s a means of defining ourselves amongst the faceless multitudes; the hoards of other people navigating the endless universe present within the internet, not to mention social media . I have heard blogging being mentioned as 'online journalism' or, eve, online journal-keeping.  The ability to express ourselves online has entailed an inundation of information all over the web - with people's opinions being publis...

I do love the concept of using buses , and the possibility it provides to save having to park.  I must say that frequency has improved around my home, and with the new Tal-Linja App , this has become easier indeed as I can get a good idea of scheduled transport times. The problem is that increased traffic gridlocks are making transport impossible - especially since bus stops are so frequent: if one only thinks that from my home to Valletta, there are as many as 25 stops, it's downright madness.  Stops are a couple of hundred meters - if at all - and while this makes it easier for persons who have difficulty walking, it does mean that the buses are also slowing down traffic.  The streets are too narrow to allow safe overtaking when a bus stops, particularly the seafront road, which is one-lane each way and the bus lanes are not always wide or, even, available.  It doesn't help that there is a practice not to use the bus lanes, but just stop in the middle of the ca...

Cannot wait to visit the Valletta Boat Show this weekend! Although I am currently not doing much in terms of yachting, I still have a passion for the yachting world, boats and the sea.  This event is being held between Friday and Sunday, at Dock 1 in Cospicua .  There should be a number of exhibitors and, I bet, a number of people I know from the world of boats and yachting.  It is nothing like the Monaco Yacht Show , at all, but it's a welcome event indeed. I couldn't attend this last one, so Valletta Boat Show will have to do ! (I can never stop gazing at the lovely Ulysse Nardin watches... I would prefer that to any other brand of expensive watch, I tell you ! ) In any case, I am glad there is something open-air to do this weekend, and I am hoping that the weather will be nice ... I think that this is where I will spend my Saturday evening! 

This yo-yoing of my weight is driving me round the bend! I have recently found that I am becoming far too lazy to actually go into strenuous exercise and, when I do, my head begins to ache and my blood pressure really soars.  I wonder, is it lack of fitness or is it simply that I am meant to exercise more gently and for longer periods rather than the 'short sprint, high impact' style ? I used to go to Zumba this time one year ago, and Wesley and Ilona are great teachers, providing plenty of motivation and fun. I am also aware that Maria is coming back to Zumba - plenty of reason to get motivated and start a variety of classes.  Other than swimming, dance is the only form of exercise I can do consistently and not get bored, but I do need to change between types of classes as having the same routine each time I go tends to be a bit boring (especially considering that I used to dance at a rather higher technical level with ballet). I recently found my will to charge the Wi...

This weekend I attended the 25th, and last, Voices concert at the MFCC auditorium in Ta' Qali, Malta.  In its own words, published before the event, VOICES celebrates its 25th anniversary this October. In our largest and final concert, we shall be revisiting some of the most memorable moments and numbers from past years. 250 former VOICES choir members re-unite for one last time to perform some of the most iconic and renowned songs including tunes by Michael Jackson, Queen, Adele, and Coldplay amongst others. and, what's more, they have donated 2M Euro to various philantropic organisations, both in Malta and abroad. This year, the 25th anniversary from the very first Voices concert (which began in order to raise funds for the St Aloysius Sixth Form premises - which I very happily attended between 1993 and 1995, bringing some of the sweetest memories) - is the year when the curtain falls on this stunning show, bringing an era to an end.  I still remember Tony Vella guidi...

The traffic keeps making the headlines , but really, it is no 'news'. While traffic management is not optimal, it has not been in a while and the increased use, by the public, of cars has created a vicious circle: there is now so much traffic that a bus journey can never make sense because the bus gets stuck in traffic as much as any other car (bus lanes are not sufficiently continuous to guarantee that they truly are effective). School transport is perhaps too expensive for those on the lower scales of income so they have less incentive to use it.  But the less it is used, then the more traffic is created as parents barge through traffic to try to get their children to get to school on time.  The more traffic there is, the longer do journeys take, driving up prices of this important service. While tax incentives are a welcome introduction, the current incentive hardly makes up for the yearly cost of using school transport since it is only an allowable deduction, not a reba...

Watch: Malta, stuck in a jam : Traffic misery continued for thousands of motorists across the island yesterday as massive tailbacks were reported around Malta. Police and wardens were out in force but motorists said their presence did little to mitigate the problem. Numerous readers told this paper that they would be waved...

And so I've started reading again, something i hadn't done in quite a while.  I had been marvelling at my addiction to technology - TV, tablets, phones, even having my laptop in bed to watch a film or browse the Internet for some interesting tidbit or some gossip. As things go, I recently travelled without my phone (bust it), forgot my tablet and had chosen not to carry my laptop.  I only had my copy of Reader's Digest and my Kindle.  How to fill a lonesome night in a hotel room if not read?  I wasn't about to watch BBC or Euronews loop their news stories endlessly, nor was I about to start watching an entire film or talk show in French. Read it was, and now I'm hooked!  I read 3 books - well, 2 and a half since one had been started) in less than a week.  Well, travelling for long plane journeys with plenty of airport time helps and so does sitting alone in a hotel room in an area where it may not be safe to go out, or where there is nothing much to do...

... and I am so, so tired.  Weekends are just not long enough and the working day in the summer appears to be just too long.  I have so much to do that the 48 hours from Friday night to Sunday night just fly too fast and I end up lying in bed for 12 hours - from 7/8 pm to 7 am and still find myself unable to drag myself out of bed.  Weekdays leave me with little time to be able to do anything much other than go to work, come home and do a few chores. In any case I'm glad Friday's here ... I have much to look forward to this weekend.  Boat will be back in the water after having been taken up for some repairs and I will hopefully be able to enjoy it...

“I no longer have patience for certain things, not because I’ve become arrogant, but simply because I reached a point in my life where I do not want to waste more time with what displeases me or hurts me. I have no patience for cynicism, excessive criticism and demands of any nature. I lost the will to please those who do not like me, to love those who do not love me and to smile at those who do n ot want to smile at me. I no longer spend a single minute on those who lie or want to manipulate. I decided not to coexist anymore with pretense, hypocrisy, dishonesty and cheap praise. I do not tolerate selective erudition nor academic arrogance. I do not adjust either to popular gossiping. I hate conflict and comparisons. I believe in a world of opposites and that’s why I avoid people with rigid and inflexible personalities. In friendship I dislike the lack of loyalty and betrayal. I do not get along with those who do not know how to give a compliment or a word of encouragement. Exaggera...

And how time is flying! There is never enough time to do all that I want to do, and before I know it weekend's up! To make it worse, by the end of the day there will be gone the entire month of August - another month of summer over! I cannot say it's that bad now that I have a fixed job - I no longer suffer the extreme cold and wet that comes about from having to drive around for a greater part of the day. Most days I am snuggled up at my desk, working.  However, I do prefer the summer weekends, when I can swim and do all sorts of stuff. Today I feel inclined to sleep. I am just so exhausted. Mondays always begin with me being utterly tired! 

Goodness, goodness! It is the middle of August and I have discovered this website / blog full of lovely recipes! Roberta is someone I knew at school, though we have lost touch a long time ago! Well she is running this blog, Chorizo & Thyme , where she blogs her favourite recipes, and boy are they yummy! This Chocolate Orange Drizzle Cake looks so scrumptious, that I might just try it out! That being said, it is really too hot to be considering ovens at this time of year.... but you never know... I might use my small convection oven (which doubles up as a microwave, but with the oven only option) and make it... just for kicks. Then again, I did promise myself one week of healthy dieting and full out exercise, to kick start my dieting and metabolism.... so I might just delay that a little for now.  I am busy with monitoring food intake, and healthy options, as well as attending Zumba classes as often as I can, since they are my movement for the day - or even for the week, e...

What a lovely concert! Joseph Calleja hit the crowds again yesterday with some of his legendary achievements, wowing the crowds with his wonderful voice. He had some of Malta's best performing alongside, including Winter Moods , Red Electrick and a large choir of children, setting the stage for crowds to cheer and sing. The aspiring tenors, Nico Darmanin and  Cliff Zammit Stevens joined him on stage, making this a stunning performance by three amazing talents.  The Maltese Philarmonic Orchestra with its most competent Maestro provided great backing, with the legendary Carmine Lauri heading the violins. The Maltese music scene has shown a huge upwards stint in the last few years, with ever-increasing professionalism and quality not seen before in this scenario - or at least, not enough to bring such prominence to this amazing talent. The much-loved Anastacia graced the stage a few times, her powerful voice echoing across the auditorium. Well done to NNG Promotions for sett...

I often sit and wonder what it is that so poisons my soul on a Monday morning.  I suppose most people get Monday blues - but I am only delving into my own abyss. Part of the thing that so pollutes my consciousness is that narrow-minded mentality of certain people one comes to meet on a routine basis - be it in the place of work or other environs (e.g. shopping) that one does not engage in during weekends. This is not a specific comment - it's the whole 'starting again' of the week's activities that generates this negativity... Until someone, this morning, landed a large slice of delicious chocolate cake, almost first thing in the morning.  Soul pollution or not, it lifted my spirits - and my calorie count, but who cares? I can make it up later!