Obscure Journey

Money can't buy happiness ...

Publié le 1 Septembre 2023 par Charly C.

Catégories : #beliefs, #challenge, #controversy, #happiness

... or can it?

They say that "money can't buy happiness."

This sentence makes me hysterically laugh for days. You may be wondering why. Well, let's see some examples.

Proof #1: Actual happiness

I found this charming pendant in a downtown tea shop. It's pretty easy to read "serotonin" on it, along with the discounted price. Was it a pendant or earrings? I forgot, but it was made of silver. The bottle was small and i really liked how it was sold.

In this example, one can literally see how they can buy actual happiness.

I would rest my case here, but this is somewhat of a silly entry and i have a few more examples.

Proof #2: Hobbies

Here i inserted 2 pictures because there are almost countless types or forms of hobbies. But look at the doll and see just how happy she is and it's infectious. Every time i see this doll, i start smiling like a fool. She was expensive too.

Now, if i didn't have the money to buy her, then i would be less cheerful or even happy.

Let's have a look at the second image here. It's an incomplete collection of a Japanese comic (=manga) by the name of "Inuyasha." I own many similar collections, some complete and some incomplete. It's probably been like 15 years or so since i bought them.

Of course i didn't buy them all at once, but whenever i had enough money, i's buy maybe 2 to 4 at once. I had to cancel some orders at times. But my point still stands: without money, i wouldn't have the collection i now have. And it does bring joy.

The same can be applied to any other hobby: sewing, cosplaying, cooking, stamp collecting, woodworking, and whatever is out there.

Proof #3: Health and other stuff needed to stay alive

I hope i don't need to explain the above picture.

In the first pic, i was waiting for an IV in the ER. Here, going to the ER is free of charge, but this isn't the case for all countries: I'm especially looking at you, USA. And you can go to the ER for almost any medical emergency, regardless of the investigation or treatment we receive.

Yet, we have to pay for anything health-related that is not an emergency. Even these can be free of charge if you're employed: health insurance is dependent of your employment status. Of course, you can pay for your health insurance out of pocket to the state or to a private insurance company. Even with insurance, some investigations are not free of charge. Some examples include the ATPO blood test, an EEG, most surgeries, and going to the dentist.

The ATPO costs about 10 euros, the EEG costs about 100 to 150 euros, and the price for any dentist visit depends on what you need. If you go to the dentistry school, you can have various treatments done for free, but you'll have to pay for the materials used, such as the stuff used for fillings.

What we can understand is that without money, it is quite difficult to properly take care of your health. But having the money to pay for your medical bills, life is easier and less stressful. This adds to a person's happiness.

Now, food. Sweets are not essential for survival, but most of the savory foods are. Simply put, we die without food. However, if you don't grow your own food, you'll need a lot of money for a week's grocery shopping trip. And even if you grow your food, you will need money for the tools or substances you need to use. And even after paying for these agricultural helping items, you'll know if you grow everything you need to cook or not. Let's take black pepper, sugar (of any kind), pans, pots, cooking and eating with utensils, glasses, and cups, all require you having to buy. Of course, depending on what you need, you may have to pay just once, and you'll use them for years.

Depending on the item you need, your bill will need a different amount of money. Without money, it will be difficult to buy any of the items mentioned earlier.

Other stuff that requires you to be "loaded" are: a place to live in, clothes, maybe a car (that will add other costs) or some sort of transportation, clean running water, cleaning supplies, and possibly electricity. Without the right amount of money, it will be difficult to maintain any of these things, especially if you consider using them for years to come.

This is it for now, i think. If i come up with more examples, I'll have to write another entry.

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Laying on a bench

Publié le 23 Décembre 2024 par Charly C.

A blanket of green and yellow on too

From the fields, crows fly home

Their lovely cries fill the air

Late October but the weather is pleasant

Humans in a hurry to go home as well

Either driving or walking

No time for nature

No time for regrets

(c) late October 2024 - for the poem

Charly C.

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thoughts and gratitudes: 2 days in 1 entry

Publié le 12 Septembre 2023 par Charly C.

Catégories : #health, #mental health, #life

Hi guys!

This is another entry where i combine 2 days into a single entry. Where do these days come from, you ask? from my diaries, of course.

One is dedicated to gratitudes and the other to my feelings or mental health-related stuff.

if you also wonder why didn't i write here directly, it's because it's easier for me to write by hand and i was feeling very shitty because our beloved cat left us too soon. shitty is actually a huge understatement: i was devastated.

well, anyways, let's move on to the day's entry.

dilapidated building, architecture, urban, building — a dilapidated building

september 9th

1. HAPPY I DRANK A HOT CHOCOLATE AFTER A FEW DAYS OF NO CAFFEINE. yeah, guess what? due to the treatment I'm under, i can't have caffeine, chocolate, and alcohol. You can also add sweets to the list.

Of course, i can't stay away from these "demons."

2. HAPPY WE WERE ABLE TO GO TO THE POOL THIS WEEK. what can i say? it's relaxing to go to the pool.

3. GRATEFUL AND HAPPY I MANAGED TO MAKE THE CHARGER OF THE COMPUTER TO WORK AGAIN AFTER THE ANIMALS MESSED WITH IT YESTERDAY. luckily, they were fine, I'm not sure what they did, but the charger refused to charge the computer, but i fixed it quite fast.

a) GRATEFUL TO WAKE UP FOR ANOTHER DAY. We really can't take for granted the days we were given for we never know when they run out.

b) GRATEFUL MY HEALTH IS NOT CAUSING ME PROBLEMS TODAY.

again, most of us take our health for granted. we simply have to be happy with the health we do have and try and do the best we can if we suffer from any illness, seen or not, diagnosed or not.

c) GRATEFUL I'M ABLE TO SHARE EVERYTHING WITH ANNA FOR ANOTHER DAY. <3 :) i don't think i have to repeat myself. go read point "a)" again.

september 12th

yesterday i had a bad panic attack/PTSD episode. We took one of the cats for his first vaccine. Of course, he started crying on the way there. This reminded me of the day we lost our 2nd oldest cat.

That day, he couldn't breathe well, so i rushed him to the vet, hoping they could do something for him. But he was crying sadly, begging me to take him back home.

1. Happy and grateful that we had Mickey in our lives for almost 12 years.

2. Happy and grateful that we managed to rescue so many cats off the streets

3. Happy and grateful that we stuck together through better or worse.

Charly C.

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Limits and Boundaries

Publié le 5 Septembre 2023 par Charly C.

Hi all!
Anna and I just had a conversation that led to limits and boundaries. I think i wrote about this topic before. If i did and i find it, i'll link it here - so, if you see no link it means i didn't write, i didn't look for it, or i didn't find it.

So, limits and boundaries.

We ALL need to have them. With EVERYONE! And, yes this means all the members of the family, all the friends, and especially co-workers and even bosses.

However, limits and boundaries are not completely the same things. they differ a little bit and i'll try to explain them separately in a single blog entry! I'm not sure, but it could turn into a short novel, so grab some water, though you can always stop reading, of course.

Limits

what i understand by limits is like a line or border [between countries] over which we can't cross either with our actions, thoughts, trust, or other similar stuff.

Most of us learn as we grow and mature. In most cases, they're taught and drilled into us by our elders.

For instance, we're told how we act around other children, dogs, and property of others. We're supposed to ask for permission before interacting with others and their property. We're also taught that certain actions have severe consequences, such as lying, stealing, killing, bullying, and so on.

Most of us are being told all the things we're not supposed to do are limits, but there's more to limits than this. There are some limitations as far as our physical well-being is involved.

For instance, some of us could suffer from a serious health condition that prevents us from performing certain actions. Some folks are able to overcome their health-related conditions and learn how to complete tasks within their limits.

These kinf people have a great deal of opportunity of becoming an influencer and motivator for others that suffer from the sme conditions.

Boundaries

In my book, boundaries are other lines that represent how you allow others to treat you.

For instance, these are stuff such as:

allowing others to use you as their personal credit card =you always when going out
not reacting or being ok when others insult you or strangers for whatever reasons
hitting or slapping you
bullying others
torturing animals
allowing others to call or message you at any given hour
having to explain every single move you made and why you can't reply the second you hear the phone

The list can go on.

While the limits are usually well set, the same can't be said about boundaries. This doesn't mean we don't have boundaries at all: we all do. They just work differently with different people we meet.

Those who come in our lives and we get along with well, will not cross the boundaries. Then others, come in our lives with just a goal in mind: see how much they can use us and for how long can we take it.

The problem is due to their ability to blend in like a chameleon and make us believe good things abut them, until it' too late.

Do you want to buy me a coffee? this is a 1-time donation, thank you very much!

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Gratitutes for 2 days in 1 entry

Publié le 1 Septembre 2023 par Charly C.

Catégories : #happiness, #thoughts, #life, #life experience, #dogs, #health

So this entry has to be a bit longer, than what i wrote in this diary, so 2 entries are coming your way.

my blog my rules, so ... i don't know what to tell ya.

august 25th

1. GRATEFUL I HAD ENOUGH ENERGY TO CLEAN THE FLOORS YESTERDAY.

i had a period when i was feeling very tired. maybe it was the depression controlling me.

2. GRATEFUL AND HAPPY I HAD THE INSPIRATION TO PAINT OVER A LARGE PRINT.

- sidenote: i found these 2 large prints from IKEA. I like one of them more than the other. i decided to turn the one i liked less into an actual painting, by painting over it.

of course, this wasn't done in one evening, but still. I used mixed media to cover the original image. this is an attempt for me to curb my controlling tendencies. long story that i don't think I'll talk about.

the painting is not finished yet, as i type this (feb. 14th, 2024) ... and yes, i can post in the past. yay, internet.

3. GRATEFUL AND HAPPY I FINISHED THE TASK EARLIER THAN I WAS SUPPOSED TO.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

september 4th

1. GRATEFUL AND HAPPY WITH (BECAUSE OF) THE YELLOW SKIRT WE GOT ON SATURDAY.

that day we went out to check out some second hand stores. i forgot what exactly what else we found, but that skirt is really pretty and spring-like. i don't think it still fits me because i gained some weight. maybe I'll lose the extra kgs until the time comes for the skirt time.

2. GRATEFUL ANNA TOOK THE DOGS OUT THIS MORNING.

i suppose i was really tired that day. it is helpful to sleep for longer at times.

3. GRATEFUL WE GOT A NEW TASK A FEW DAYS AGO.

this needs no more explanation.

icecream, chimney cake, dessert, — july 2022

A\ happy we went to the pool twice last week.

B\ happy i found some paper, net, and a traditional bowl. it's very cheerful and beautiful.

as you can see, the entries are posted in between the 2 days of gratitudes. this seems better for me than posting for one day or the other.

the ice cream has nothing to do with going to the pool. unfortunately. it's just a dessert we had back in july 2022. I suddenly remember that the place selling this dessert didn't have anything to carry them home. the day was very hot and they were melting quite fast, and we were FAR from home.

i had to go to a different ice cream place and demand for a container. oh, the drama i had there until the manager decided to take the money i was offering for the container. I was pretty upset and worked up over these incidents. almost 2 years later and this doesn't matter anymore. funny how life is.

but seriously, if someone offers you money, as a store, you take it: it's in your best interest.

Do you want to buy me a coffee? this is a 1-time donation, thank you very much!

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Another grateful day

Publié le 20 Août 2023 par Charly C.

Catégories : #life, #life experience, #happiness, #freelancing

Hi. These are blog entries that i wrote in some agenda. In an attempt at decluttering, i will digitize whatever i can, so here we go.

1. GRATEFUL AND HAPPY i FOUND A SACK FILLED WITH SHEETS, AND MOST OF THEM ARE IN A VERY GOOD CONDITION - don't get me started with consumerism, shopping, etc.

2. GRATEFUL WE CAN WORK FROM HOME - this one will forever stand.

3. GRATEFUL WE HAVE A PLACE WE CAN CALL "HOME" FROM WHICH WE CAN WORK. ;P

A. happy with the two small cacti we bought. - i managed to kill one by drowning it. the other survives. I don't have a picture of the cactus, so i used an image of yellow tulips in a vase.

The vase is there, i promise.

Do you want to buy me a coffee? this is a 1-time donation, thank you very much!

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august 17th - positivity

Publié le 17 Août 2023 par Charly C.

Catégories : #about life, #advice, #beliefs, #depression, #dreams, #happiness, #helpful, #learning, #life, #lifestyle, #mental health, #self-love, #thoughts, #updates

I started writing such small lists down to remind me and to pull me out of the misery i was in after losing Mickey. We still strongly miss him.

1. GRATEFUL I FOUND AN IKEA TABLE - yes, found at the trash. home with us it came.

2. GRATEFUL TO THE NEIGHBOR FOR GIVING ME THOSE MATERIALS FOR PAINTING AND OTHER PROJECTS.

3. RATEFUL I HAVE THIS AGENDA/BLOG TO WRITE IN WITH MY FAVORITE FOUNTAIN PEN.

a. happy we swam a lot at the pool

b. happy i painted the table - i don't care it doesn't look perfect.

I have a business idea that I'm sure will work out. <3

I hope this blog entry will give you a bit of hope to find small bits of happiness and gratitude in every small thing you encounter.

I think I'm back for some time. i missed my blog.

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What Is left

Publié le 29 Mars 2023 par Charly C.

Catégories : #poem, #poetry, #cats, #memories

what is felt of you

lovely memories and a handful of whiskers

you were so small when you came into our life

then you started growing

sleeping with your spotted belly up

looking like a frog

what is left of you is a small black jar with ashes

many memories full of love and a handful of whiskers

all the places where you slept while i was trying to work

you gained a lot of weight because of me

you became cuter

a very good sleeping buddy

what we have from you are some pictures

a handful of whiskers and a small black jar

soft pillows were your favorite

as was sitting under the opened rain umbrella

in my arms or on my belly and chest

you rarely sat next to anna

but those moments are precious memories for her

our little fatty alien

we will always miss you

expect to see you come and eat

hope to hear your voice again

what is left of you...

RIP Mickey 2011 - 2023

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Blogmas day 8 - giving 3 cats a furrever home

Publié le 9 Décembre 2022 par Charly C.

Catégories : #about life, #advice, #animals, #cat adoption, #cats, #help, #life, #life experience, #love, #opinion, #pets, #real life, #blogmas

Hello there!

I decided to make this entry as part of blogmas 2022. The challenge is for day 8 and it consists of some gift ideas. There are many ways of making a person happy, but not many think of making animals happy. I wish this would change.

Several entries ago, i wrote about adopting animals. Read one of them here and read the other one here.

Last year in the summer, my partner decided to take a walk in Carol Park. I wrote about it in this entry, if you're curious. So, we go in the park, on a certain side path. As we walk, we see a white and orange kitty. As we approach, we see the kitty has more brothers. They also had some food and water container that other people filled. We also ran to the store and bought some kitten food. which they ate.

The white and orange kitty had a white/black brother, a 3 colored sister, an all-orange and stripy sister (we first thought it was a boy), and 3 all-black brothers. We first saw just 1 of the black cats. Then, we saw the 2nd one after some time. And yet, after some more weeks, a 3rd fully-black cat cam. We only realized this because all of them were present at the same time.

feeding stray homeless cats des Chats sans maison

In these 2 pictures, we can only see 3 of the cat brothers, eating well. They were hungry even though they had quite a bit of food. brought to them by other people.

In some ways, they were lucky because several people were passing by daily to feed them and to give them water.

The first cat that got a family

The first cat that wanted and found a family is the one that appeared in front of us, the white and orange one. he's not seen in the pics above, but below.

The image is blurry, sadly. I believe this is an iPhone 4 picture. He was maybe 2 or 3 months old at the time, and a bit on the skinny side.

When we saw him that evening when he got home, he appeared not to feel very well. Clearly, thinking he was sick, we decided we take him home, regardless of the fact that we had no bag or cat carrier on us.

It didn't matter, because he acted sick all the way to home. Once we 'quarantined' him, he sprang back to life. He was eating, and drinking, and i think he even used the litter box right away.

We didn't think we can keep him, and personally, i didn't feel much attachment towards him. :( We knew someone who wanted a cat for some time, and we also wanted to rescue as many of his brothers as possible. So, Whuay went to another home where there were no other cats to compete for human attention.

He did spend some time with us, getting used to life indoors which seemed to be all he ever wanted. I say this because once at home, he started exploring the "quarantine" room right awaya and wanting to make friends with our older cats, Whiskey and Mickey.

As far as we know, he's doing fine, he's loved, and this is what matters. I do miss him now that i looked at the pics i have of him.

The 2nd cat getting a family

The second cat finding a family is the white and black one seen in the first image. This is because we still went every other day to give the kitties water and food. That summer was brutal, with very high temperatures.

His current name is Churro, but when we first saw him, we called him Oreo because of his color combination.

I have basically 2 memories of this kitty in the park, though we saw him more often than that. One time, when we went to feed them, he was up on the tree, trying to sharpen his claws. We knew he is a very playful fella right then and there. He was absolutely adorable.

The other memory i have of him from the park is from one evening when 2 young girls came to feed the kitties. However, this is not all they did: they also left with this kitty but said they'd bring him back.

Why did they take him, you ask? it's because they wanted to play with him in a safer environment. They couldn't keep him though, as it was their parents who had the last word on the matter.

We got quite mad with the girls because they gave Churro, at the time Oreo, fake hopes of a home. :( One of the next times we went to feed the kitties, only Churro/Oreo was there, all alone. He looked sad and lonely. We didn't think twice about it, we just grabbed him and went home with him, after leaving food for his brothers.

Look how handsome he is! Sadly, the red bow didn't last for long, but it sure fitted him. However, the surprized face expression persists, and he's just amazing!

The 3rd cat coming home with us

The 3rd cat that came home with us is probably the black one in the first image. Why do i say probably? Because they were a total of 3 black cat brothers! proof below! The black cat we first saw got named Shadow, and then all the black kitties received the same name because we couldn't tell them apart.

There are 2 things i need to mention:

we didn't know there are 3 black cats from the start
the 3rd cat didn't come home last year like his brothers, but this year

I forgot how many of the kitties we saw the very first time we went. I do remember that we were surprised to see a completely black cat among the others. Then, one evening, we saw a 2nd completely black cat. Again, we were surprised and felt as if someone played a trick on us.

But, then! a 3RD FULLY BLACK kitty appeared from nowhere! They were there all 3 at once, as seen in the pic above, and all of them were boys. One of them was more scared of us than the others, and another one more friendly.

Another memory i have regarding these black brothers is that one time, one evening, just 1 of them was there out of all the remaining brothers. Not only this but the one that came to eat was one of the friendlier black brothers. So, i managed to touch him and cuddle him.

I believe that was the evening he followed us through the park, almost close to the entry point we use. He was also crying/meowing and looking sad. T_T We were certain he wanted to come home with us. We ... just ... thought we couldn't deal with so many cats. We felt really bad and sorry we didn't take him with us that day.

Almost a year passed by. During these months we continued to take food to the kitties. however, sometime in spring, they disappeared. The area where they were being fed was demolished further - it used to be a restaurant type of location that caught fire at some point.

This led the kitties to scatter, we think, or perhaps someone took 2 of the remaining cats, leaving the 3 black brothers. Then, not even they came to being fed anymore. So, we stopped going seeing that there were no more cats to feed.

But life is twisted and at the beginning of September '22 we went again just on a whim. And we found Shadow! He recognized us by our voices and came to eat and drink. The next day we went with the cat cage in tow, hoping to find and catch him. And we were lucky! he was very easy to "catch" and now he has a furreverr home and he adapted VERY well to his new environment.

In the middle, is Scotch the dog that i haven't introduced yet. We currently have 4 cats, a dog, and a crow. Life is stressful with so many pets, but we are very happy to have rescued 3 kitties out of maybe a total of 7 brothers.

Do you want to buy me a coffee? this is a 1-time donation, thank you very much!

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Blogmas '22 - days 1 through 4

Publié le 4 Décembre 2022 par Charly C.

Catégories : #blogmas, #Christmas, #celebrating, #challenge, #memories, #winter

Hey there!

It's that time of the year again - December, which means Blogmas around here. Since i didn't post in a long time, this will give me a chance to update the blog.

DAY 1

On the first day, over-bloggers were challenged to participate in a contest for a paid account.

The conditions were to tag 2 people and like the page - easy peasy lemon squeezy. I have no idea who won. The winner hasn't been announced yet.

DAY 2

blue car traveling — a random car we saw in summer, uptown

On the 2nd day, we're supposed to write our wishlist to Santa. OK, Santa, i hope you're ready for this:

move to Japan in 2023
buy a house
succeed at making a life for us in Japan

Putting this out to the universe, because.

DAY 3 and 4

It appears that the staff forgot to give us homework for the 3rd day. And the 4th day was designated a rest day.

However, i didn't rest almost at all. I cleaned the bedroom and tidied up a bit along with doing some decluttering. This feels great :D

I guess we'll have another update soon enough.

See you soon!

Do you want to buy me a coffee? this is a 1-time donation, thank you very much!

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