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| Monday, May 19, 2008 |
| Rediscovering Happiness by Being a Kid |
Isn't it amazing to learn something from someone you least expect to? They say that one learns much through the eyes of a child. That somebody was not kidding at all.
Yesterday taught me a lot from my kids. Something irreplaceable and true, that somehow I had forgotten for a long time. It is relatively easy to forget the simple pleasures of life once you reach a certain age. You get jaded and too stressed to even think of smiling. Yet you wonder and envy how small tykes can smile and laugh despite their obstacles and occasionally falling down.
I was amazed looking at my baby boy and little girl, yesterday, as they played with my younger cousins outside at the lawn. You could see the wonder in baby boy's eyes as he examined the grass, the leaves, and the small plants. One could see the laughter in their eyes as they watched how the others ran around, jumping, attempting to cartwheel across the grass. Pretty soon, little girl was bowing on the grass trying to flip over, too! Baby boy wanted to do so, too, but he later stuck to his conquests around the garden.
By and by, I joined the games as well. I attempted to cartwheel, too! To my dismay, I just couldn't quite get it right. After a series of tries, my babies were squealing with delight as they saw me tumble on the ground. Both ran to me laughing and giggling, it just made me smile more.
I've thought about it, and I wondered. When was the last time you had genuine fun? No, not shopping, not playing online games, just old fashioned playing. Kids these days do not exactly play hopscotch, jungle bars, and stuff. Perhaps we should do these things too..
Here are some things I could think of that perhaps you would give a try. Let's see how you feel after picking something from the pack:
- Cartwheels. Do you know how to do cartwheels? If you don't, don't you think you missed something in life by not being able to do it? If you do know how to do cartwheels, do you think you still have it in you?
- Rollerblades. How long has it been since you've put on a pair of rollerblades? Wasn't it fun to rollerblade or rollerskate? I bet you fancied yourself to be Evel Knievel to jump places and race on by.
- Skateboards. I love skateboarding. Turns out, I still can manage to stay on board the skateboard, but I'm having problems doing a 360 deg these days.
- Hopscotch. We all have our different styles of playing hopscotch. But when was the last time you played it? I can remember the last time I played this was back in elementary. Too long ago.. I'm thinking of playing this next Sunday.
- Jump Rope. Perhaps you use this as a training device, or for fitness. But do you remember how it felt to jump rope just because? Or played Double Dutch just because it was fun. I'm willing to be there are some of you who can hardly make it to 20 counts before you trip your feet.
- Dodge-ball. There would be some who would have nightmares because of this game, but there are some who love it, too! I can still remember the laughter and shrieks of joy when my playmates and I did this. Last night, the kids had fun trying to hit me with their toy balls. Pretty fun though.
There are so many games and things we used to do as kids without the determination or seriousness of an adult. It would be very nice if once in a while we relaxed a bit and remembered how it was when we were younger. I guarantee you'd be grinning like the Cheshire cat after a couple of tries. Just like old times.
Have fun!!
 Labels: family, fun, games, happiness, homegrown, improvement, kids |
| posted by Ann @ 5:15 PM
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| Wednesday, April 30, 2008 |
| Browser-based Games: Online Fun Without the Hassle |
I have always been a fan of online games. Since I pretty much live and breathe the Internet, I have dabbled in quite a number of online games. To name a few, I tried Ragnarok Online (PH), RAN, Tantra, GunBound, Flyff, Pangya, etc.
Those games mentioned above had to be installed into the computer. I had tried most of these games when I logged in at a cafe downtown or at a friend's house. Sad to say, my computer could not stand most of these games because it is quite ancient.
Since I could not play these MMORPG at home, I had to find some other means of online fun. That meant browser-based games. Surprisingly, I found some of these games more fun than the ones where my eyes would get damaged more. Here are the following games I tried:
- EARTH:2025 - A browser-based strategy game by Mehul Patel. Get a kick at ruling your own country. Choose your own type of government and watch your country grow. Make sure you don't get farmed or annihilated!! I played this game for a couple of years. I think I am one of the very few Filipinas who play it. I was even part of The Pinoy Alliance, where I held office as a Foreign Affairs Officer, and hubby was the VP.
- Kingdom of Loathing - Pretty funny RPG with stick figures. Fight monsters, go on missions, and earn meat! Try to dress up your stick figures and imagine them using their wacky special attacks. The GiGC got me playing this years ago. I cannot exactly remember how long ago. Great language and situations.
- Utopia - Another strategy game by Mehul Patel. I did not last long. Just a couple of months. But it was still good!
- Travian - Strategy game by Travian Games. I am currently addicted to this. Pretty cool, if you ask me.
All of the games above are free, unlike the ones mentioned waaaay above. And they go in turns so you can actually leave it alone for a while and get back to it.
There are other games aside from the ones I mentioned above. You can see a listing of these games here.
So, what do you say? Wanna play?? ;)
Labels: browser-based games, games, online games |
| posted by Ann @ 5:57 PM
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| About Me |
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Name: Ann
Home: Philippines
About Me: even when she has fairy wings on, this girl is anything BUT dainty. perhaps the size, the weight, and the personality alone are just too much for her to be considered delicate, prim, proper, and refined. this girl with the mud smudged cheeks has been down on the ground one to many times. these times forced her to be tougher, smarter, and more savvy than she has ever been. perhaps she will always be, never dainty.
email me: neverdainty [at] gmail [dot] com
See my complete profile
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