When life gives you lemons, be sappy!

Here's a round of sappiness. But it's the good type of sappy. It's the hopeful type of sappy. It's the happy type of sappy. So for a small moment in time, let's just be sappy!

 

Decisions, decisions

School and procrastination have been keeping me quite busy these past few weeks, but last night I got inspired and started watching some TED videos. This is an old one by Dan Gilbert (I really love this guy! Funny AND smart! Now if only he was younger and had some hair... oh well!)

The future need not be bleak

We need inspiration more often than we think. So what if it is an emotional response? So what if it is artificially created through images and sounds and specific words that are designed to make us react? If it can push us to greatness, then I am all for it!



Small note: greatness is good, but Nazi camps were not. In hindsight we see that, but in the moment, the line between the two can be blurred. So here's to being responsibly great!

My confessions

Ok so I have something to confess. About a month ago, I liked one of those "Spotted: (insert university name here) Library" on Facebook. Guilty pleasure I know, but it makes me laugh to see the kind of messages that people send each other under the cover of anonymity. That's the innocent part. The scarier part was this morning when for the first time ever I get an unknown text message on my phone (obviously spam) that was very similar to the ones on that page. Coincidence? I think not! Or maybe I'm just paranoid...

In any case, it does make you wonder just how much of your online activity is collected by Google and Facebook in their effort to "better target their advertising placements". Already I'm seeing almost only finance related adds on YouTube (after spending extensive time on Yahoo Finance, The Street and The Motly Fool these past months). Which makes sense considering that YouTube is owned by Google.

What's that there? Oh, just your private life going out the window....

To rule or not to rule... that is the question

This morning I was taking a break from studying for my risk management exam while going over today's Financial Times (yeah I know... some break!). And of course, about a third of the headlines were in relation to the Italian election results. But there was one article that I found particularly interesting in the sense that it was talking about how their political system changed since 1945 and how there are so many layers of government right now that it is almost impossible to take swift action to get the country out of the crisis. And it's true that we see this more and more in various countries whether it's the US, Canada, Romania or others (well I think.... I don't follow governments in other countries much). There are so many political actors that it is almost impossible to reach a consensus. Even in the US where they only have 2 parties, they can't seem to agree unless they have a knife to the throat. So is the solution to simplify the process? To strip down the layers and concentrate the decision-making power? We would have less trouble for sure! But coming back to Italy, the main reason they created this system was to prevent extremists like the fascists from taking over. It's a tradeoff like everywhere else: either efficiency or security, either high return or low risk. Somehow you still wonder if there isn't some magical middle ground that somehow we never considered. Beneath the edges of a cube, there's a sphere waiting to be revealed and a wheel with it.

The social purpose of Valentine's Day

I was thinking about this while walking back home the other day... alone... in the dark... When you're single, Valentine's day tends to suck. Like big time. You start your day good enough. You wake up. You have your coffee. You get ready. You're determined to have a good day. And the minute you walk out the door you're actually in a good mood. You're going to make it! This is going to be a great day! For once that it's actually not that cold... You only make it as far as the metro or the bus. And there they are. Holding hands. Making lovey dovey faces. Making out. IN YOUR FACE! First one's ok. Second one, ça passe. Third one, you try to look away. But by the fourth couple encounter, it starts to wear you down. And from there it's only downhill.

 But in all my dark mood, I realized something. Leaving aside the marketing aspect and the flower shops which make their yearly sales in this one day, Valentine's day has a more social aspect. If people are social creatures and our ultimate purpose in life is to find companionship, then this one day has the ultimate purpose to remind you where you stand and what is still left to be done. All year round you manage to drown that little voice in your head and only focus on the benefits of being single. But this one day gives you a quick reality check and reminds you that you're still not there yet and there's still work to be done. And sometimes you need that slap in the face to wake you up.

 So, if watching people make out in the metro makes you cringe in envy not horror, and it makes you want to lie down and cry not run away as fast as possible, then maybe it's a sign that you should refocus your priorities. Maybe it's time to put yourself out there more often. Sure you'll get your heart stomped on more than you can count. But in the end, it's the things you never did that you regret most and much more than those you did do.

 After the traditional New Year's resolutions, I think this occasion calls for Valentine's resolutions. And here's mine. Figure out what the hell I want. I think with just that I have my hands full for a while.

 

I'd rather be late, but on the right path, than early and heading in the wrong direction.