Enjoying the full flow of the moment
It may seem odd that the simple and straightforward enjoyment of the “simple” things of life should be a life challenge. Where is the difficulty in enjoying the obvious satisfactions of life? What is so arduous about the lighthearted companionship of friends, the physical pleasures of good food, music or art or simply relaxing and doing nothing but admire the scenery?
The challenge for many lies in engaging fully in the present rather than be caught up in the nostalgia of the past and what might have been. For others the difficulty is in switching off from pressing work and domestic concerns to attend fully to what is enjoyable right now in the moment. It also lies in experiencing what is good now rather than anticipate the problems that lie ahead.
Others face a very different challenge: to enjoy the full pleasures of the moment with moderation rather than with that kind of reckless abandon or excessive indulgence which might jeopardise other life goals.
Meeting and overcoming this life challenge:
Knowing how to relax and enjoy your recreational time |
Friendships and Relationships |
Finding aesthetic pleasure from the finer things in life |
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Knowing how to relax and enjoy your recreational
time
There isn’t much “slack” in life. The demands and
pressures of domestic and working life mean there are few opportunities
to stop. But the moments of “stop” are important. Not only
do they give us the opportunity to recover and re-energise, they provide
the time to rethink life priorities. Use your moments of “down
time” well.
“The time to relax is when you don't have time for it.”
Jim Goodwin
Slowing Down and
Relaxing
Relaxation to maintain our physical and mental well being is not achieved
through slumping on the sofa to watch TV. Genuine relaxation paradoxically
requires effort and discipline.
“Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save.”
Will Rogers
www.helpguide.org: sleeping advice and resource
www.relax-yourself.co.uk: portal with information, advice and tips to relax
www.changeforgood.com: reports, articles, tapes and other resources to manage stress
www.slowdownnow.org: the almost serious antidote to workaholism
The Perfect Weekend
There is of course no perfect weekend. But there is a huge difference
between a well planned break that revives and restores your life
equilibrium and a frantic few days of travel jams, queues, lousy
service that frazzles the nerves
“Always strive to excel, but only on weekends.”
Richard Rorty
travel.guardian.co.uk: if you've got a few days or even a weekend to spare ...... this is the place to look for holiday ideas
www.brilliantweekends.co.uk: short breaks and weekends away for corporate, sports and social groups
A Fantastic Holiday
We work hard and we look forward to that two week break in the summer
when we can take it easy. But somehow the holiday – travel
hassles, accommodating conflicting tastes and expectations, adapting
to new surroundings and a different climate and cuisine – makes
for an exhausting experience and we need another week to recover.
Be imaginative in reviewing your options and be organised in planning
the logistics to ensure you actually do enjoy your holiday.
“Most travel is best of all in the anticipation or the remembering; the reality has more to do with losing your luggage.”
Regina Nadelson
travel.guardian.co.uk: for the independent traveller to create their ideal getaway or to select from hundreds of flights, late deals and packaged holidays.
www.vtourist.com: worldwide travel guide, tips, reviews & photos plus hotels, restaurants and activities
Immersing Yourself
in Hobbies and Pastimes
Hobbies and pastimes provide the opportunity to develop a passion,
a passion for something outside your normal day-to-day experience.
And there is an amazing array of options (from amateur radio, arts
and crafts to bird watching, cake baking, collectibles, genealogy,
kites, magic and optical illusions, photography, treasure hunting),
to name only a few. Take an active interest in something completely
different to your typical life activities.
“A hobby is only fun if you do not have time to do it"
Leo Beenhakker
www.webworldindex.com: lots of links to specialist sites
hobbyline.com: the Hobby Line Internet Directory
www.diynetwork.com: do it yourself ideas and tips
Physical Fitness & Sport
Enjoying the Full Flow of the Moment can be achieved one summer afternoon
in a hammock and sipping a glass of champagne. But it is more than
idleness. Physical activity has long been associated with health
and overall well being. And science has confirmed the overwhelming
benefits: people who lead active lifestyles are less likely to die
early, or to experience major illnesses.
“The only exercise some people get is jumping to conclusions, running down their friends, side-stepping responsibility, and pushing their luck!”
(anon)
www.choosefitness.com: access to a range of sites and resources for health, well being and fitness
www.looksmartsports.com: lots of sports stuff
www.bbc.co.uk/health: healthy living and medical advice
Friendships and Relationships
Much of life happiness stems from our relationships, the positive interactions
we have with our family and friends. Current relationships provide
the support to face life’s pressures and the intimacy to share
what is important to us. And developing new relationships provides
the excitement of fresh possibilities in life.
“A good friend is a connection to life - a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world.”
Lois Wyse
www.buzzle.com: directory of sites focusing on close relationships, including dating, marriage, divorce, parenting, widowhood, matchmaking, sexual orientation, and making and losing friends
Old and New Friends
Keep in touch with old friends and former work colleagues. Some of
your childhood and school friends and work associates you will no
doubt want to forget. But others will enrich your life, reminding
you of who you were and how you came to be who are today.
“I get by with a little help from my friends.”
John Lennon
www.friendsreunited.co.uk: the massively popular site to help put old school friends back in touch
www.tellmehowto.net: articles on networking
Finding a Life Partner
A tricky theme as this area on the Internet has been largely taken
over by charlatans and fraudsters. However sites which provide listings
or practical information to guide you through the maze:
“You have to kiss a lot of toads before you find a handsome prince.”
(anon)
"Some people ask the secret of our long marriage. We take time to go to a restaurant two times a week. A little candlelight, dinner, soft music and dancing. She goes Tuesdays, I go Fridays."
Henry Youngman
dating.about.com: masses of articles, tips and links
www.ivillage.co.uk: relationships articles, tips quizzes etc on dating and relationships
www.uksingles.co.uk: listings for matchmaking and dating services
www.sharpman.com: a curious site but with lots of articles for men looking for “real life” advice
Parties and Social Events
Social events and parties can be exhilarating fun – for the extrovert.
For those less socially confident they can be fraught. Some sites to
help organise parties that you can enjoy as much as your guests and
tips for going to parties and having a great time.
“The dying process begins the minute we are born, but it accelerates during dinner parties.”
Carol Matthau
entertaining.about.com: an archive of helpful entertaining tips
www.partydomain.co.uk: costumes and other accessories for parties
www.deliaonline.com: on line recipes and cookery school
Improving your Sex Life
As Woody Allen said, “Love is the answer, but while you are
waiting for the answer, sex raises some pretty good questions.” But
sex is hardly ever just about the sex.
“Ann Landers said that you are addicted to sex if you have sex more than 3 times a day, and that you should seek professional help. I have news for Ann Landers: The only way I am going to get sex 3 times a day is if I seek professional help.”
Jay Leno
"I believe that sex is a beautiful thing between two people. Between five, it's fantastic."
Woody Allen
www.bbc.co.uk: 70 romantic ways to have fun
www.sexuality.org: articles and links with the aim to inform and educate responsibly
Finding Aesthetic Pleasure from the Finer Things in life
Our happiness is enhanced by our enjoyment of the good things in life,
the good things we either take for granted or the pleasures we haven’t
yet learnt to appreciate fully: the discovery of good food and wine
and the pleasures of the arts. And the more effort we put into these
pleasures the greater the enjoyment.
“In the end we will have had enough of cynicism and scepticism and humbug and we shall want to live more musically.”
Vincent
van Gogh
Pleasure from Food and Drink
Food and drink can be seen as essential to life survival, and nothing
more than that. Or they can be viewed as amongst the greatest of
life’s pleasures.
“The trouble with eating Italian food is that five or six days later you're hungry again.“
George Miller
“Tell me what you eat, I'll tell you who you are.”
Anthelme Brillat-Savarin
www.free-gourmet-recipes.com: “the realm of delicious, mouth-watering flavours that will mesmerise your taste buds”
www.gourmetsleuth.com: recipes, articles and other good stuff
www.wine-lovers-page.com: for beginners and experts, learning more about wine
www.superplonk.com: offers and tips from wine guru Malcolm Gluck
The Arts, Literature and Music
The sheer range of artistic and cultural activity and output is testimony
to the creativity of humankind. The options open to you are enormous: architecture, art festivals, museums, galleries, books, ceramic
arts, decorative
arts, films, music, painting, performing
arts, photography, and more. A few sites to fire your curiousity and
imagination:
“Art is the imposing of a pattern on experience, and our aesthetic enjoyment is recognition of the pattern.”
Alfred North Whitehead
“Who among us has not gazed at a painting of Jackson Pollack's and thought: What a piece of crap?”
Rob Long.
www.artcyclopedia.com: the guide to great art on the Internet
www.classicfm.com: music guide
www.classicalcdguide.com: a beginner’s guide, “So you want to start listening to classical music, but don't know where to begin”
www.classical.net: a useful guide to building a classical CD collection; advice and links
www.greatbuildings.com/: a gateway to architecture, models, photographic images and architectural drawings, commentaries, bibliographies and web links