上路啦, Come On!

The stage is more beholding to love, than the life of man. For as to the stage, love is ever matter of comedies, and now and then of tragedies; but in life it does much mischief; sometimes like a siren, sometimes like a fury.

You may observe, that amongst all the great and worthy persons (whereof the memory remaineth, either ancient or recent) there is not one, that has been transported to the mad degree of love; which shows that great spirits, and great business, do keep out this weak passion. You must except, nevertheless, Marcus Antonius, the half partner of the empire of Rome, and Claudius, the decimvir and law—giver; whereof the former was indeed a voluptuous man, and inordinate; but the latter was an austere and wine man; and therefore it seems (though rarely) that love can fine entrance, not only into an open heart, but also into a heart well fortified, if watch be not well kept.

It is poor saying of Epicurus, as if man, made for the contemplation of heaven, and all noble objects, should do nothing but kneel before little idol, and make himself a subject, though not o the mouth (as beasts are), yet of the eye; which was given him for higher purposes.

It is a strange thing, to note the excess of this passion, and how it braves the nature, and value of things, by this; that the speaking in a perpetual hyperbole, is comely in nothing but in love. Neither is it merely in the phrase; for whereas it has been well said, that the arch-flatterer, with whom all the petty flatterers have intelligence, is a man’s self; certainly the lover is more. For these was never proud man thought so absurdly well of himself, as the lover does of the person loved, and to be wise. Neither does this weakness appear to others only, and not to the party loves; but to the loved most of all, except the love be reciprode. For it is a true rule, that love is ever rewarded, either with the reciprode, or with an inward and secret contempt.

By how much the more, men ought to beware of this passion, which loss not only other things, but itself! As for the other losses, the poet’s relation doth well figure them: that he that preferred Helena, quitted the gifts of Juno and Pallas. For whosoever esteemeth too much of amorous affection, quitteth both riches and wisdom.

I know not how, but martial men are given to love: I think, it is but as they are given to wine; for perils commonly ask to be paid in pleasures.

There is in man’s nature, a secret inclination and motion, towards love of others, which if it be not spent upon some one or a few, doth naturally spread itself towards many, and maketh men become humane and charitable; as it is seen sometime in friars. Nuptial love maketh mankind; friendly love perfecteth it; but wanton love corrupteth, and embaseth it.

An element of surprise! This not only tickles your lover’s fancy but also adds an air of excitement to the date. The next time you invite him or her out, don’t tell her where you are going. Imaginative lovers might even want to blindfold their partners until you reach the surprise destination - a picnic laid out for two in a park or a living room strewn with rose petals.

Mutual Interest. Try to remember which interests brought you together in the first place. Check the past to see if you are dragging a disinterested boyfriend to art openings or a bored girlfriend to football games. Are you both interested in art? Try making your own pottery. Do you both love animals? Try a trip to a zoo.

Creativity. It is definitely time to appeal to your imagination if the two of you find yourself stuck in a rut. Maybe you are renting a video and falling into bed every Friday night or eating at the same restaurant every day. Think of ways to entertain your lover, such as renting costumes and holding your very own “theme” night, complete with food in your apartment.

The following suggestions for creative, fun and imaginative dates also might help spice up your relationship as well as delight your partner on a first date!

Old Fashioned Picnic - Pack treats in a wicker hamper and bicycle out to your favorite park to relax in the sun and enjoy long conversations with each other.

A Night Under The Stars - Why not take your date to the planetarium to view the constellations from a telescope or watch the stars whirl beneath the dome?! Purists might want to consider finding somewhere private, in your garden or on a beach, laying out a blanket and candles and enjoying an evening together watching the stars in the real sky.

Amusement Park - Bring out your partner’s “child within” by treating your partner to cotton candy, rides on the Ferris wheel and shots at winning a stuffed toy.

Zoos and Aquariums - Animals appeal to people’s sense of romance, as well as sense of humor. This is also a good suggestion for a first date as observing the antics of animals has a way of breaking the ice.

Mini-Golf - Even dates that are professional golfers find this mutation of this game to be silly, fun and exciting. The relaxed pace of the game encourages conversation and lots of laughing.

Comedy Club - Liven things up by treating your date to an evening of stand-up comedy at a local club. This is a great suggestion for a first date as you can tell a lot about a person by what material amuses him or her and what material seems corny or offensive.

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Continued: Date Ideas 2

等著電話響時總始終不響，當你到外面曬衣服時，一進來就有個Miss Call；

你一般是不會忘記按煮飯按扭的，可是當你炒完菜，肚子餓得咕咕叫時，你迫不急待地去裝飯時，打開電飯煲才發現鍋裏水還是水，米還是米；

鍋裏的菜炒到一半熟了，准備放鹽時，卻發現家裏沒鹽了；

你剛到火車站，火車也已進站，於是你以為反正是趕不上了，所以慢吞吞的走。可是火車似乎還是在那裏等你，你便毫不猶豫的沖了過去，它卻瀟灑的走了，留下站臺上氣喘吁吁的你；

早就養成了在電腦上打資料有存盤的習慣，偶爾有一次卻忘記了，便遇上了停電；

上班本來就要遲到了，走到大廈樓下時，外面的雨還沒停；

公司的洗手間你不用的時候，也沒有人用它，當你鬧肚子時，裏面的人一直不出來；

你去考試時，最好帶兩支筆。因為往往在這種情況下，其中一支筆一般來說是寫不出來字的，盡管它昨天還用得很正常。

你去國外旅遊，帶了點禮物回來送給親朋好友，等回到家才發現那些禮物其實是“Made in China”;

你喜歡某一款衣服，於是一次就買了個四五件，回家一試原來一件都不合適。

這就是與你鬧別扭的生活！

Jerry was the kind of guy you love to hate. He was always in a good mood and always had something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, “If I were any better, I would be twins!” 

He was a unique manager because he had several waiters who had followed him around from restaurant to restaurant. The reason the waiters followed Jerry was because of his attitude. He was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.

Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Jerry and asked him, “I don”t get it! You can”t be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?”

Jerry replied, “Each morning I wake up and say to myself, “Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.” I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.”

“Yeah, right, it”s not that easy,” I protested.

“Yes, it is,” Jerry said. “Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It”s your choice how you live life.”

I reflected on what Jerry said. Soon thereafter, I left the restaurant industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.
Several years later, I heard that Jerry did something you are never supposed to do in a restaurant business: he left the back door open one morning and was held up at gunpoint by three armed robbers. While trying to open the safe, his hand, shaking from nervousness, slipped off the combination  The robbers panicked and shot him.

Luckily, Jerry was found relatively quickly and rushed to the local trauma center. After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body.

I saw Jerry about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, “If I were any better, I”d be twins. Wanna see my scars?” I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the robbery took place.

“The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back door,” Jerry replied. “Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live, or I could choose to die. I chose to live.”

“Weren”t you scared? Did you lose consciousness?” I asked.

Jerry continued, “The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the emergency room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read, “He”s a dead man.” “I knew I needed to take action.”

“What did you do?” I asked.

“Well, there was a big, burly nurse shouting questions at me,” said Jerry.

“She asked if I was allergic to anything. “Yes,” I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, “Bullets!”

Over their laughter, I told them. “I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead.”

Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.

Attitude, after all, is everything.