Alizorina's Blog

Build a successful Marriage

alizorina — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:18:26 +0000

How to Build a Successful Marriage
MARRIAGE can be likened to a journey, an odyssey that presents many surprises—some exquisite, others painful. Unforeseen “terrain” can present unexpected obstacles, some of which may seem insurmountable. Nevertheless, many people make this journey successfully and happily, with only minor mishaps. Indeed, success in marriage is not measured so much by the highs and lows of the journey as it is by how couples deal with those ups and downs. Here are some key Principles to help keep your marriage successful▸

Speak respectfully. Researchers have found that most conversations end the way they start. Hence, if a conversation starts respectfully, it is more likely to end that way.

Cultivate kindness and compassion. By striving to be kind and compassionate, you can do much to help smooth the road to a peaceful marriage.

Show humility. Lowliness of mind, or humility, can help you suppress the urge to insist on being right in a disagreement

Do not hastily take offense.Try to avoid the inclination to refute your mate’s viewpoint or to leap to your own defense if your mate questions something you have said or done.

Know when to keep quiet. This can be a time to do active, purposeful listening—a vital part of communication that involves finding out what your marriage mate really feels and why he or she feels that way.

Violence Against Women

alizorina — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 18:20:37 +0000

Violence Against Women—A Global Problem
NOVEMBER 25 is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. This day was recognized by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1999 with a view to raising public awareness of violations of the rights of women. Why was this step deemed necessary?
In many cultures women are viewed and treated as inferior or as second-class citizens. Prejudices against them are deep-rooted. Gender-based violence in all its forms is an ongoing problem, even in the so-called developed world. According to former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, “violence against women is global in reach, and takes place in all societies and cultures. It affects women no matter what their race, ethnicity, social origin, birth or other status may be.”
Radhika Coomaraswamy, former UN Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on violence against women, says that for the vast majority of women, violence against women is “a taboo issue, invisible in society and a shameful fact of life.” Statistics issued by a victimology institution in Holland indicate that 23 percent of women in one South American country, or about 1 in 4, suffer some form of domestic violence. Likewise, the Council of Europe estimates that 1 in 4 European women suffers domestic violence during her lifetime. According to the British Home Office, in England and Wales in one recent year, an average of two women each week were killed by current or former partners. The magazine India Today International reported that “for women across India, fear is a constant companion and rape is the stranger they may have to confront at every corner, on any road, in any public place, at any hour.” Amnesty International describes violence against women and girls as today’s “most pervasive human rights challenge.”

Try a pair Quick Ones

alizorina — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 16:23:47 +0000

Chopsticks are slender sticks about eight to ten inches [20-25 cm] long. The upper half of the stick is often squared. This makes it easier to grasp and prevents it from rolling around on the table. The lower half is usually rounded. Often, Japanese chopsticks are shorter and end in more of a point than Chinese ones.
In these days of mass production, many restaurants provide prepackaged chopsticks that are still joined at the upper end. The diner must pull them apart before they can be used. Because they are for one-time use only, such chopsticks are made of plain wood or bamboo. Chopsticks used at more expensive establishments or in the home are often quite beautiful, made of polished bamboo, lacquered wood, plastic, stainless steel, or perhaps even silver or ivory. They may also be inscribed with poetry or decorated with a painting.
How to Use Chopsticks
Many visitors to Oriental countries such as China and Japan are fascinated when they see a small child of perhaps just two years of age eating with a pair of seemingly oversized chopsticks. In no time at all, the contents of the bowl are transferred piece by piece to the child’s mouth. It really looks easy.
Would you like to try using a pair of the “quick ones”? At first you may find it awkward to get the chopsticks to move in the way you want them to, but with a little practice, it becomes easy and the chopsticks become like an extension of your hand.
Chopsticks are held in one hand only, usually the right hand. First, cup your hand, with your thumb apart from your fingers. Place one chopstick in between your thumb and fingers, resting it against the base of your index finger and the tip of your ring finger. Then place the second chopstick parallel with the first, and hold it with your thumb and index and middle fingers, as you would a pencil. Get the ends even by tapping them on the table. Now, keeping the bottom chopstick stationary, move the top one by flexing your index and middle fingers up and down. Practice until you can bring the tips of the chopsticks together easily. You are now ready to use these versatile implements to pick up any of the delicious morsels served in a Chinese meal—from a single grain of rice to a quail’s egg! Chopsticks and Chinese food go well together because the food is usually cut into bite-size pieces.
What about dishes in which a chicken, a duck, or a pork rump is served whole, without being cut up into small pieces? Usually the meat is cooked to such a degree that chopsticks can easily be used to separate a bite-size portion. Chopsticks are ideal for fish, which is often served whole; you can avoid bones with a facility not so easily achieved with a knife and fork.
What about eating rice? If the occasion is informal, you may pick up the rice bowl with your left hand, take it up to your mouth, and scoop the rice into your mouth with the chopsticks. At a more formal meal, however, you would pick up the rice with the chopsticks, a small amount at a time.
What about soup, which is always a component of a Chinese meal? A porcelain spoon is usually provided. But if the soup contains noodles or dumplings or pieces of vegetable, meat, or fish, try using your chopsticks in your right hand to pick up the food and the spoon in your left hand to help transport it to your mouth.