Chop chop!

Do you blink when you chop something? say a chicken or pork ribs? (sorry to all the vegans out there!) u know, things which require some strength to get through and it's easier by sending that chopper all the way from the top? of course, the second chop may not be where the first chop landed, but u get there in the end. that stubborn bit of tendon will finally give way...

but i tend to blink just before the chopper impacts (or during impact.. it's difficult to tell). it's sort of a reaction to fear, fear of loud noise? fear that the chopper might land wrongly.. (dread to think!) it's difficult not to blink, for me anyway. i've tried (really hard!) by keeping my eyes wide open. i think the wifey is scared more of the wide-opened eyes than the fact that i'm holding a chopper. in any case, it will be good if i can keep the eyes open to see where i'm chopping. any ideas?

of course, i would rather have my eyes closed all the way with an onion. or maybe goggles help. has anyone tried that?

Categories:

• kitchen
• mind

The HIGHS and lows of playing games

why is the urge to win so strong? is winning a game everything? to some, it is. when i come back from a game of, say badminton, the common question from others is... "Did you win?"

i think winning is good. it gives u a good feeling. what feeling is that, i'm not sure. is it a superior feeling? is it because you've shown that you're the better player? or was that your boss you're trying to beat just because u feel surpressed at work... (i don't play any games with my boss thankfully! i'll be trying hard to let him win!!) whatever the feeling is, i guess it's just a sense of satisfaction.

we don't think of these things after the game. if you lose, you feel bad. if you win, you feel good. end of story. but i have been dwelling deeper into why i feel the way i feel. i don't feel good when i win. i feel best when i was able to conquer my inner demons, winning or losing.

i can get really frustrated if i can't execute a shot. was i not patient enough? was i not fast enough? was i just not good enoungh? actually, none of those matters. it doesn't matter that you're not good or fast enough. you can always compensate by really knowing where your limitations are and work on your strengths. but when it comes to a game, i falter because i do not have that extra edge, that extra strength to hold on just that bit longer.

if only there's a way to remind yourself just to hold out that bit longer... it makes all the difference! i think the same concept applies to life, love and everything else that's worth doing... by holding on that bit longer...

Categories:

• sport
• mind

Bonsai & the BIG boys

Bonsai, the art of cultivating a tree in a small pot. What has this got to do with the big boys? by that i mean large corporations!

I don't myself grow anything green. i've even had a cactus died in my house! i guess that sums up the traces of any green genes i have in my DNA make up... (i do remind myself that they could be dormant, until maybe the next generation... can't really see myself mutating in my life time!) but speaking to a friend this morning, due to the outgrowth of the only plant he displays in a non-plant related shop, he had to change his pot. He also made a passing comment on how you need to shape the plant when it's young such that it doesn't outgrow the pot easily, or rather, make full use of the space in the existing pot.

His comment somehow reminds me of bonsai, how people painstakingly mould the plant into a shape. Initially, the owner of the bonsai (let's call this person the bonsaier for simplicity) has to let it grow and see what kind of shape it'll take. When the growth is to a certain level, the bonsaier will have to mould it with some support (wire frames come to mind!) and trim it now and again to keep that mould. If the bonsaier allows the plant to grow on past a threshold level without any intervention, it could easily outgrow its existing environment.

A large corporation will also need to grow its staff from before a certain threshold level, the infancy stage. A free reign although promotes flexibility and creativity, if undisciplined, will just be wasted and discarded, causing frustration on both the corporation and the employee. The corporation will think it has wasted all the resources on the employee, and the employee will think that all his/her creative energy has been let out in all directions, but nothing comes out on the other end.

So if you ever think of being frustrated as an employee, don't fight discipline as though it restricts who you actually want to be. Think of it as a focus for your creative energies. Suddenly, all your creative energy will seem to flow like the river.

If you're the boss... just think of the bonsai.

Categories:

• work
• life
• society