Article: How You Can Manage 'Winter Blues" and Depression

I tend to feel depressed in winter, especially in February rather than January. Usually, I just wait for the feeling to pass. Next winter, I want to try some ways to prevent the winter blues. I'm interested in drawing and using scented candles.

The judge I'm working for is on holiday this week. He left me with enough work to keep me busy though. I'm trying to get as much done during the week so I don't have to do anything on the weekend.

Earlier this week, I experimented a new sleeping routine: I would go to bed 15 minutes earlier, and I would not use my phone 30 mins before bed. Ironically, since then, I haven't been able to sleep well. I usually don't have many problems with sleeping: I can get myself to sleep quite easily and my sleep is usually deep. But I guess my body prefers a fixed routine; my body is more sensitive to any change in my circadian rhymthm that I though, so I couldn't get to sleep and ended up staying awake until 3am.

However, the tiredness from the lack of sleep starts to catch up with me today. I feel sleepy and tired quite early. Not to mention the fact that this has been a stressful week at work; our event will be held from tomorrow to Sunday. I can't afford to show up tired. I both want to sleep and need to sleep. So I hope sleep will come to me today.

One small note: I realize that I get pessimistic and are more prone to feeling anxious, stressed, and worried when I don't get enough sleep. So I have trained myself to not act on my emotions, and to be more generous and kind to myself on these days.

I am currently traveling in Japan.

Even though I'm more comfortable with English.

I try to speak Japanese here.

I always try to learn the local language

when I travel partly out of a desire for knowledge, but also because people tend to be kinder when I try speaking their language, even if I sound a bit clumsy.

So, i wondered what is your travel style when you are abroad?

I’m thinking about going to an open-air swimming pool tomorrow. I’ve never been one before, but every time I watch swimming pool scenes in TV series and movies, I always dream about jumping right into the water to cool off. I’ve decided that tomorrow is the day. If I wake up at six in the morning again, I’ll get up and go to the swimming pool.

I think I need to get a new phone. I often write drafts for this streak on my phone, but it’s been incredibly slow and thus frustrating. Also, its battery doesn’t last long anymore even though I use it pretty much just for the above-mentioned purpose and listening to podcasts and music. In addition to those problems, the right edge of the screen hasn’t been reacting well. It makes sense considering that I’ve been using it for over six years. I distinctly remember buying it in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Not only is it a financial burden, it is hard to decide what to buy.

I've been trying to read more every day considering that I have an e-reader, but I've noticed that I struggle to read on it after a waking up or a while before going to sleep. I usually set the brightness to a low level that makes it comfortable for reading, but I still feel some kind of tiredness on my eyes after a few minutes.

A friend of mine works at the library desk. Every time I enter the library, I invariably run into him and exchange a few words. Most of the time, he is studying or working on a paper, and he'll explain to me what he's writing about. I have no real grasp of his field, but he turns out to be a great teacher.

In the last few days I consumed a lot of English contents, so I decided that it was a good time to start writing here. Since I'm practicing my reading and listening skills every day, for sure my texts will also get more easy to improve. I'm seeking ways to improve my speaking too, but I don't know how to start yet...

A few moments ago I have watched the video that compared Naruto 1 and Naruto Shippuden series. The conclusion was that Naruto 1 was better due to its consistency and lack of big flaws, but Naruto Shippuden still had many amazing moments.

Generally, I agree with that opinion. Naruto 1 was an introduction to the world of ninjas. The show unfolded the world in which the characters lived and how it worked. We met a lot of interesting characters and watched memorable fights. Truly, there was nothing to complain.

On the other hand, Naruto Shippuden brought the action to the next level. We saw many clashes on the highest level. The characters unveil their mysterious and powerful techniques. The stakes were bigger and the plot became more intense. Unfortunately, some concepts were weird or just simply bad.

Naruto 1 is like a lean company that produces high-quality everyday items. Everyone likes them because they are durable, practical, nice and just good. On the other hand, Naruto Shippuden is like a big company making the cutting-edge products. The products are very exciting, but they have some bugs and sometimes are just irritating.

Article: Maintaining Social Connection in Winter

Spending time with other people is actually stressful for me. Movie nights sound fun, but I still feel that it's more comfortable to watch movies alone at home.

I feel like I'm the subject of everyone criticism.why am I like this?I let everyone walk over me. why am I like this?. My mother prayed for me day and nights for my future and career .I neglected those prayers and gave up on myself.why am I like this? today I decided to correct the mistakes I made over past 25 years. today onwards I decided to reset my like and begin a new journey with god.

This is what I have come to realize. I usually have no problem working on a difficult project. However, it's getting myself to start working on it that is difficult. I have to overcome my laziness, my fear, my tendency to stay distracted. But once I begin work, I rarely have any problem and get momentum quite quickly.

It's true that you can't rely on motivation. Discipline is a much better and more reliable engine.

Today around noon, I wrote a text on here. I described what I was seeing when I looked out the window and how surprisingly cold it was today. Unfortunaltely, for some reason, the text didn't post. I'm really glad I checked reddit just now - otherwise, I might have lost my streak!

Yesterday, while I was on my way to the restroom, I almost bumped into one of my female colleagues.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," I said.

"It's alright." she said.

When I was about to leave the office, I ran into her again at the same place.

I looked at the floor as I walked past her.

"Bye-bye," She said.

"Oh! Bye-bye" I replied to her a few seconds later.

My friend said that the next time, I should just say hi to her.

Today, I went to Shitennoji And Umeda.

Shitennoji holds a market on the 21st and 22nd of every month.

So, I looked around the market.

it was a really interesting and traditional market.

After that, I went to Umeda.

and bought two Pokémon card packs.

Among them, there was not a single Pokémon I knew.

By the way, I was really surprised in Osaka.

Because whenever I went into a shop and spoke to someone,

everyone was so kind.

I'm really grateful to them.

There is a snob in the book club I recently joined. She is desperate to appear cultured. Whenever I run into people like this, I get the urge to test them. They act like they know everything and that every concept is crystal clear to them, but that's rarely true. I like to hit them with a very simple yet fundamental question and watch them struggle to answer it. In the end, it turns out they don't actually know what they're talking about, and that the issue isn't nearly as straightforward as they pretended it was.

I feel like my ability to adjust my focal point has gotten worse. I believe it’s because I’ve been staring at screens for too long. I use a computer whenever I’m at work, and it’s unlikely that I can shorten that time. Therefore, I have to cut down the time outside it. Going outside, especially to greener areas by taking a walk on weekends might be an option, but it is way too hot for that. I have to think of a way to achieve that at home.

I'm officially on break from college for about a month or so. That means I didn't fail any class and my worries were in vain. Either way, I'm planning on getting back to a personal project I put on hold a while ago and potentially trying to learn new stuff given that I have more time when I'm not working.

Hello everyone!

I am a nurse from Italy. I work in a geriatric ward. My favourite shift is the day shift because I love spending time with my family. In our free time, we love going around the world together.

My English is beginner level, so please correct my mistakes. Nice to meet you!

Nothing comes to mind today. Just writing to keep the streak.

Well, a few days ago I mentioned about submitting the final assignments for each class and how key they are to pass them. I have already passed 2 out of 3! And I don't think I will have any problem with the pending one.

Article: Alcohol Alternatives in Recipes: What to Consider When Swapping

I like both cooking and drinking, but I don't drink brandy, kirsch, coffee liqueur, or sherry. I usually substitute alcoholic ingredients with non-alcoholic ones when a recipe calls for alcohol that I don't normally drink because I don't know what to do with the leftovers.

When I use alcohol for cooking, I usually buy a cheaper one because I feel that using high-quality alcohol in cooking is waste of money. I'd rather drink it as it is.

Since I started documenting my life by filming, it has officially been a week! Actually, it feels much better than I expected. I thought it would be cringe-worthy or boring, but I just pretend that there are people in front of me while I'm filming.

I feel like a little youtuber right now. It's probably not a professional one, but it's definitely an authentic one.

Today, I went to Himeji Castle.

It looks an amazing castle.

Although we made a mistake by riding the Shinkansen to go there, I was fine. It was a good experience to ride the Shinkansen anyway.

Today was really fine.

It’s so easy for me to just open up my availability to teach Spanish and get quite easy at least 4 students a day particularly weekends and Tuesday’s. Which is good because the money but I still need to find a way to balance it with time to write my thesis.