Make Memories

How to be Happy

Once in a while, it's nice to be given a straightforward "road map" on what it takes to feel better. Like a recipe, just read and follow.

This "How to be Happy" talk was given at the girls' school last month, and was open to the parents. Unfortunately I wasn't able to attend. Fortunately, they posted these fliers on the middle school bulletin board.  As a self-improvement junkie, I also noticed the same messages printed on tarps hanging from the hallway ceilings.  The message is worth sharing.

Read, follow and be happy!

Five ways to wellbeing 

The following steps have been researched and developed by the New Economics Foundation.

 

Connect

There is strong evidence that indicates that feeling close to, and valued by, other people is a fundamental human need and one that contributes to functioning well in the world.

It’s clear that social relationships are critical for promoting wellbeing and for acting as a buffer against mental ill health for people of all ages.

With this in mind, try to do something different today and make a connection.

• Talk to someone instead of sending an email
• Speak to someone new
• Ask how someone’s weekend was and really listen when they tell you
• Put five minutes aside to find out how someone really is
• Give a colleague a lift to work or share the journey home with them.

 

Be active

Regular physical activity is associated with lower rates of depression and anxiety across all age groups.

Exercise is essential for slowing age-related cognitive decline and for promoting well-being.

But it doesn’t need to be particularly intense for you to feel good - slower-paced activities, such as walking, can have the benefit of encouraging social interactions as well providing some level of exercise.

Today, why not get physical? Here are a few ideas:

• Take the stairs not the lift
• Go for a walk at lunchtime
• Walk into work - perhaps with a colleague – so you can ‘connect’ as well
• Get off the bus one stop earlier than usual and walk the final part of your journey to work
• Organise a work sporting activity
• Have a kick-about in a local park
• Do some ‘easy exercise’, like stretching, before you leave for work in the morning
• Walk to someone’s desk instead of calling or emailing. 

 

 

Take notice

Reminding yourself to ‘take notice’ can strengthen and broaden awareness.

Studies have shown that being aware of what is taking place in the present directly enhances your well-being and savouring ‘the moment’ can help to reaffirm your life priorities.

Heightened awareness also enhances your self-understanding and allows you to make positive choices based on your own values and motivations.

Take some time to enjoy the moment and the environment around you. Here are a few ideas:

• Get a plant for your workspace
• Have a ‘clear the clutter’ day
• Take notice of how your colleagues are feeling or acting
• Take a different route on your journey to or from work
• Visit a new place for lunch. 

 

 

Learn

Continued learning through life enhances self-esteem and encourages social interaction and a more active life.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that the opportunity to engage in work or educational activities particularly helps to lift older people out of depression.

The practice of setting goals, which is related to adult learning in particular, has been strongly associated with higher levels of wellbeing.

Why not learn something new today? Here are a few more ideas:

• Find out something about your colleagues
• Sign up for a class
• Read the news or a book
• Set up a book club
• Do a crossword or Sudoku
• Research something you’ve always wondered about
• Learn a new word.

 

 

Give

Participation in social and community life has attracted a lot of attention in the field of wellbeing research.

Individuals who report a greater interest in helping others are more likely to rate themselves as happy.

Research into actions for promoting happiness has shown that committing an act of kindness once a week over a six-week period is associated with an increase in wellbeing.

Text from here.  My photos.

Just Call Me...Martha!

I've had this collection of blue and white plates stashed in my cabinet for so long and I finally decided to do something with them. 

I found some cakestand hardware online and ordered a few sets. It arrived in the mail with these complicated instructions on how to drill centered holes.

I read everything, carefully followed the instructions, and tried to mark the plates.

Then I handed the pattern guide to my carpenter so he could do the same. Instead, he didn't even bother with the instructions and did his own thing.

He measured across the plate, taped the center, and started drilling away. 

I was still reading the instructions and marking plates and he had already drilled a few. Sometimes instructions make things more complicated.

The plates are quite old, some more than the others-- but they are not precious-old.

 I collected them over a span of a few years and many are from eBay. I love all the patterns.

And now the exciting part--assembling.  I don't know if I threaded them correctly.

Et voila!

Now that I have all these tiered plates, I try to use them whenever I can.

And here they are in action...

So perfect for serving little snacks, cupcakes, and uh..pizza. 

Sometimes I amaze myself with my (or ok, my carpenter's) crafty skills. Martha would be proud.

Our Little Cherche-Midi Apartment

Old leather armchair, mid-century brass clad coffee table, 

zebra skin, vintage globe light, books galore!

B joined a Philippine business mission that spent 2 nights in Paris, and 1 night in Bordeaux. Of course I was going to tag along but it was going to be too short a trip for too long a flight, so I made a deal:  If you want a roommate, can we stay 3 more nights in Paris on the way home? (Although I wanted to say one-week more, I was being realistic and mindful of his business schedule).

 

Still, this was not going to be a quick fly-in, fly-out workaholic trip. That is being too disrespectful to Paris!

Black and white photographs on the walls

We decided on the trip rather late so I didn't know if I could still find a suitable apartment online for our 3 extra nights. And then I lucked out! An apartment right on Rue du Cherche-Midi, in the 6th, was available on the exact 3 nights we needed! Our host was squeezing us in between two other week-long bookings she had.

 Our host said almost all the furniture and tabletop decor came from fleamarkets and brocantes

It was a third floor walk-up, but I didn't think twice since we could use the exercise. It was also tiny at 36 m2, but compared to a hotel room in the same area, which is about 18m2, this was going to be luxurious.

Best of all, the price was right.

 Kartell Bourgie lamp and Philip Starck ghost chair

Rue du Cherche-Midi is an exciting street for me. There are the numerous home design stores,  brocante stores, the restaurant Chez Dumonet, the bakery Poilane, Le Bon Marche and Le Grand Epicerie down the road...you get the visual. (My heart is racing just typing this).

Bon Marche department store

Upon entering the tiny apartment, I was happy as  it was tastefully decorated with old flea market finds--wonderfully creative, homey, comfortable--just my type of place.  The one-bedroom apartment was expertly laid out and seemed much bigger than its actual 36m2.

It's always amazing to stay in 5-star luxurious hotels but I save that experience for places in Asia where one gets the most bang for the buck.  In Europe, luxurious hotels are so expensive that it hurts not only the pocketbook but also the conscience.

 iconic mid-century Nagel modular chrome candelabra 

(Ahem, notice the correct order of my adjectives--print these writing tips for you and your kids)

The cost of our three nights here was  going to be equivalent to one night at the  Sofitel Faubourg, where we were booked with the group (and I overheard that we were already given an extra special deal for those Sofitel nights!) I was pleased.

Then it just happened that it is decorated in a way that speaks directly to my soul?!  What a stroke of luck! I went from pleased to ecstatic.

It turns out that our host's boyfriend is a brocanteur and interior designer. No wonder the interior design is a deliberate mix of iconic finds. It is done up very confidently too--low key, practical and tasteful.  There were tons of French interior design magazines on the bookshelves of the apartment.

I was conflicted--should stay in and devour all the design magazines (it didn't stop raining all weekend)?  Or go out and rummage through the weekend brocantes? This is Paris... we have to go out--rain or rain!  In the end we did both.

This particular trip was filled with so many highlights for me; the people in the group were all wonderfully warm and gracious, and the events we attended were exceptionally special.

 I didn't take a photo of the opposite wall--she had lovely cookbooks and the pantry was stocked with high quality olive oil and balsamic, artisan sea salt.

Simple as it was, this well-located, tasteful little Cherche-Midi apartment was also a highlight for me and the perfect epilogue to a very memorable trip.

don't I look thrilled?

The Marais, Hotels Particuliers and Place de Vosges

Let me introduce you to the Marais, one of my favorite areas of Paris.

Paris is neatly divided into 20 districts called "arrondissements" (Ah-hrohn-dees-mohng), starting with 1 at the center, spiraling clockwise in the shape of a snail. Each of these arrondissements has its own particular atmosphere. Check out this post by a New Yorker on the different Paris districts.

Pedestrian street Rue de Rosier at night

I know many people who prefer to stay in the upscale residential neighborhood of the 7th, and in the expensive St. Honore area of the 8th, where all the high-end boutiques are located. Then I also have friends who favor the energy of the student-populated 5th--the Latin quarter.  Saint Germain de Pres, the 6th, is actually my favorite, but then it's also almost everyone's favorite.

The 4th arrondisement and part of the 3rd is known as the Marais (Mah-hrheh--French accent please).  It's trendy, hip, and happening. It's also the  historic Jewish quarter, and the gay area.

I'm not trendy or hip, nor Jewish or gay--but I always like to know what's the buzz.

The garden of the  hotel particuliers Carnavalet

Way back even before the 1600s the Marais was the favorite district of rich. Many aristocrats had urban private homes here-- known in French as "hotel particuliers".  In 1700-something, when Louis XIV and his gang moved from the Marais to Versailles, Marais lost its exclusivity.

The Marais then attracted merchants, became a commercial area, eventually got overpopulated, run down and depressed--remaining that way for a long time. While Hausmann re-designed much of Paris, giving it its grand boulevards and neat buildings, the Marais' small narrow streets remained untouched.

It was only in the 1960's that many hotels particuliers were restored because of some government heritage preservation law.

(That is few hundred years of French history condensed into a few sentences--I know, shortcut. Sorry!)

Because of all the restoration going on in the 60s, the Marais began to flourish again. Today it is considered one of the trendiest arrondisements in all of Paris.  It is said that fashion you see in the streets and shops of the Marais will most likely become the general trend the following year.

The Marais' narrow streets are filled with cafes and restaurants, art galleries, fashion boutiques and one-of-a-kind artisan shops. Many antique and brocante stores are also concentrated in Village Saint Paul.

Many of the restored hotel particuliers now house important museums (many don't charge an entrance fee!).

The garden of Hotel Lamoignon (which houses the archives of Paris) is open the public.

The shops in the Marais remain open on Sundays while everything else around Paris is closed! On Sundays too in the summer,  motorists are blocked from going into the Marias. Only pedestrians and bikers are allowed in.
 
I discovered the Marais for the very first time around 6 years ago when we booked an apartment  instead of staying with Bea in her apartment in the 15th.  When she found out I booked an apartment in the Marais, she worried that we booked a seedy dump in an undesirable area.

 Our first experience in a Paris rental was a one-bedroom on Rue des Rosiers

 Artsy tableware

Imagine her surprise when she saw our spacious, artistic, comfortable, fully-equipped apartment right in the heart of the Marais. This unit was a pied-a-terre of a woman who lived in Hawaii.

It turned out to be a wonderful find and we felt like locals, enjoying the energy of the Marais.

A whole closet of books at our disposal

Since that experience, I've preferred apartments to hotels and have also stayed in the Marais a few more times. 

The front door of our rental apartment on Rue Francs Bourgeois last summer

Parallel to Rue des Rosier is Rue Francs Bourgeois--one of the main shopping streets of the Marais. We stayed in an apartment here last summer. From our first-floor window, I would watch the scene below while having breakfast. I tried to see if I could tell the chic Parisians apart from the not-as-chic tourists (I wish I took more photos ala Sartorialist).

 

 

Rue des Franc Bourgeois runs straight into the Place de Vosges, the very first square in the whole of Paris.  How wonderful is it to see a huge lawn of green in the middle of the metropolis? Among the famous residents of the Place de Vosges was Victor Hugo.

 Getting some sun in the Place de Vosges

Also right on  Francs Bourgeois is the Musee Carnavalet, originally a hotel particulier. It is now a museum showcasing the history of Paris.  Musee Carnavalet deserves a dedicated post.

I probably lived in a hotel particulier in my past life--maybe as a servant who lit the candles. That would explain my fascination for chandeliers (and all things old and French!)

The garden of Hotel Sully

The Center Pompidou, which is the home of modern art is also located in the Marais but at the opposite end from the Place des Vosges.

The building is a wild contrast to the quaint streets of the neighborhood, just like how the modern I.M. Pei glass pyramid contrasts against the renaissance-style Louvre, and how my future acrylic coffee table (I am still looking for it) will contrast against the rococo-style mirror in my living room. 

More than the trendiness and the shops of the Marais, I like the history of the area, and specifically love the hotel particuliers. On one trip,  I went finally went inside a few of them. I was instantly enamored.  If you love French interiors of the Versailles kind, you will be too.

The Marais is the very first arrondisement of Paris I got to know well--only because of that fluke of booking that Rue des Rosier apartment.

On a recent business trip, we met a young Philippine embassy lady who lived in Paris (we weren't staying in the Marais on this trip) and when she was trying to explain to us where exactly she lived--as it is not really in most Pinoys' radar of places to stay-- "I live in this area, umm...which is the jewish area..."  I interrupted with "the Marais? I know the Marais..."  Her eyes lit up.  I instantly felt young and trendy, just like her.

Coincidentally, her apartment was on Rue Francs Bourgeois too, just a hop and a skip from the apartment we had the summer before!

We ended up having drinks the next couple of nights in "our 'hood".

The view from Rap's 4th floor apartment on Rue Francs Bourgeois

Every arrondisement in Paris has its own charm, with art and culture, shops, cafes. But the history of the Marais, and the way it has evolved over the years is unique. Even if I stay in other arrondisements, I always seem to gravitate towards his area--it has become one of my favorite places in Paris.