Wake up

The rise of a leader (who believes in another leader - Rick Grimes).
Extra kudos for being a woman!

Live your dream, invest in yourself

it's only a shame you see no women in the video...

Is Learning a Foreign Language Really Worth It?

Freakonomics Podcast

CAPLAN: "If people are going to get some basic career benefit out of it, or it enriches their personal life, then foreign language study is great. But if it’s a language that doesn’t really help their career, they’re not going to use it, and they’re not happy when they’re there, I really don’t see the point, it seems cruel to me."

100% agreed.
Learning a language not to use it, is a complete waste. I was fortunate to grow up listening to english and spanish on a daily basis, so I don't really count the time I spent learning them at school.

It's a bit like me and french. Despite the fact that if I listen or read french I can understand quite a lot (it is similar to portuguese), I feel that most french I "learned" in school went down the drain. I don't even know what I don't know when it comes to french, because I simply don't use it. Well, it wasn't  really a waste, because I think I still know the basics - again, it's similar to portuguese - but my speaking skills are probably very close to zero.
I had to learn french for 3 years because it was mandatory (kids now have other options besides french - I only had options in during high school, between spanish and german. Most of the class chose spanish so we had spanish.)

treasure chest

Found this inside a chinese chest I inherited from a "great great family member" that lived in Macao for many years, many many years ago.

cool, huh?

Amazing how I need the hustle and bustle of a cafe environment (drinking coffee and eating a toast, people talking, tv, the sound of coffee making machines, people coming in and going out all the time) in the morning in order to get my brain working and personality to fully wake up. If I stay home I can't "start". I need movement.

There's a lot of people going to Carnival today, so don't mind the funny looking people.

What does this mean?
My heart beats faster with this many people. If I'm in a place alone I have to be the one making it beat faster (inducing excitement, perhaps?). Because I notice that I go down when I'm in a place or situation in which I'll see no people. I've written about this before. It's just something I'm trying to fully understand.

I guess this is good.

I have a theory, I think that when I'm in the more individualistic self (part of the brain that makes me use english instead of portuguese - because in Portuguese I have an established identity to the people I know, whilst in english, I don't because I don't know anyone who knows me as an english speaker, therefore I am able to be myself fully) I'm stronger. In Portugal people know me with x characteristics I have since I was a child and therefore I can't change they ways I behave with them not how they behave with me most of the times.

But it's just like I heard yesterday in "The Walking Dead" - "Got to stay who you are, not who you were."

edit: actually, I think I haven't changed, rather I just came back to what I used to be as a child.

So, X (had a self) - Y (selfless) - X (back to the core self I was before Y)

“You can say the right thing about a product and nobody will listen. You’ve got to say it in such a way that people will feel it in their gut. Because if they don’t feel it, nothing will happen.”

Bill Bernbach

This reminds me of something...