Archives For Feel Good Friday

Guardian Gang cuddle

You see, what you need is…

Jennifer D Begg —  August 10, 2012 — 1 Comment
Free hugs

Do you want a cuddle?

A few years ago, I worked in an office with a guy who was known for being really grumpy and prone to outbursts of annoyance. He was (and still is) cynical and hard to please. He was my favourite.

The moment I knew we would be friends was when he was having one of his famous rants and I just said quietly from the other side of the office “John, do you want a cuddle?”. I wish I’d recorded the belly laugh that I got in return, it was wonderful! From then on, we had so much fun and yes, many, many cuddles.

When someone in my family (I can’t remember now who) asked my mum what she thought of Simon, she said “he’s just like us, he gives a good cuddle”. And with that, Simon was completely accepted into the Evans clan.

Everyone needs a hug or a cuddle or, as they say back home, a bosie! Whether you’re happy or sad, stressed and emotional or elated, excited and overwhelmed, there is nothing like a cuddle.

I love the story of the campaign for free hugs. The guy who started it explains that he arrived home in Sydney where there was no one to meet him and all around the airport other passengers were being greeted with big hugs. At that point in time it’s what he needed most too. So what did he do? He got a big sign and wrote on it “Free Hugs”. Excellent. This is what happened:

“For 15 minutes, people just stared right through me. The first person who stopped, tapped me on the shoulder and told me how her dog had just died that morning. How that morning had been the one year anniversary of her only daughter dying in a car accident. How what she needed now, when she felt most alone in the world, was a hug. I got down on one knee, we put our arms around each other and when we parted, she was smiling.


Everyone has problems and for sure mine haven’t compared. But to see someone who was once frowning, smile even for a moment, is worth it every time.”

Given my current Olympics obsession, I couldn’t do a post on hugs and not mention Sir Steve Redgrave, henceforth to be known as “King of Cuddles”.

King of cuddles

So go on, make someone’s Friday and give them a hug! Pass around a little joy on this Feel Good Friday :)

Guardian Gang cuddle

GROUP HUGS! Best kind

Related Posts

In FeelGoodFriday, Jennifer D , , , , , , ,
permalink
Gold No 5 for Sir Chris Hoy

An olympian feat of feel goodness

Jennifer D Begg —  August 4, 2012 — 5 Comments

Two weeks and one day late (turns out there’s nothing feel good about a cold), I couldn’t not mention the feel goodness that is London 2012. So here is my Feel Good Friday / Saturday post.

Brits are known for being cynical but I can’t tell you how much I love the sentimentality that’s swept through my most cynical friends. We’re all in love with the Olympics. If the opening ceremony wasn’t enough to have you reaching for the nearest Union Flag, watching the athlete’s excitement and talent will definitely be getting to you by now. For me it’s not only the sense of national pride but the brilliant showcase for women in sport, both the athletes and the presenters who have been chosen for their skill and knowledge, bravo ladies!

Jessica Ennis from Algernon Felice Jr on Vimeo.

Special mention for the f*ckwittery of Andrew Brown’s column in the Telegraph (you know the one, where he worries about Gemma Gibbons and her soft skin…). It made me very happy to see the way he was smacked down on twitter, within his own blog comments and by other bloggers. It’s about the athletic skill Andrew, nothing else.

We’re all crushing on Clare Balding, no really, we absolutely are! She’s been a bit of a hero in our house for a long while (especially when she stood up to AA Gill for his ridiculous comments on her sexuality) so it’s nice to share our love of the Balders with the rest of the UK. Here she is being interviewed by De Montfort University. What a great ambassador for sport, women and Britain.

I love what Clare says about the importance of spreading sport around the world and the freedom it can give women worldwide. In the run up to the Olympics, Stylist Magazine has been running the Fair Game Campaign to eradicate sexism in sport and despite a couple of dissapointing front pages (I’m looking at you Guardian – I love Bradley Wiggins but he didn’t win Team GBs first Gold medal) there’s been such a feeling of support for all of Team GB, no second class athletes here.

And it’s not just the feeling of everyone watching but the response from the athletes. They all look so excited and touched by the support.

I defy anyone to watch the interview with Mark Hunter and Zac Purchase and not shed a cheeky tear (skip to 1:18:35). What absolute heroes.

It’s hard to pick a favourite moment, there have been so many. This wins so far though:

Gold No 5 for Sir Chris Hoy

Gold No 5 for Sir Chris Hoy * dust in my eye *

We’re heading off to see the Gymnastics tomorrow so I’ll keep you posted (threatening to wear my old team shell suit, I draw the line at a leotard…)

What’s been your favourite moment?

Related Posts

In FeelGoodFriday, Jennifer D , , , , , , , , , , ,
permalink
download

8 things making me HULK SMASH ANGRY!

Jennifer D Begg —  July 12, 2012 — 14 Comments

Sorry for the shouty caps in the title, just wanted to catch your attention.

For anyone who’s been following #FeelGoodFriday, you would be forgiven for thinking that I’m the most annoyingly upbeat and cheery person ever born. Not so. I spend quite a lot of my time being irritated, outraged and angry about things. I have a rule that I’m not allowed to moan about something unless I’ve tried to do something about it but let’s face it, everyone needs a free for all moanfest occasionally.

So here is a list of things that I’m angry about at the moment. They’re not in any particular order and it’s definitely not an exhaustive list:

1. Our ridiculous and comedic government (though let’s face it, the joke got old a while back)

2. Gender marketing

3. Aggressive misogyny (actually any kind but particularly the kind that thrives amongst YouTube comments)

Ill Doctrine: All These Sexist Gamer Dudes Are Some Shook Ones from ANIMALNewYork.com on Vimeo.

4. Forced prostitution

5. The amount of girls in the developing world who are kept out of school

6. Honour killings

7. Female Genital Mutilation

8. Racism, Sexism, Homophobia and all other discrimination that basically makes one person act like they’re superior to another. They’re not. No one is.

This isn’t very “feel good” I hear you say – correct. However, good sh*t gets done when good people get angry!

Many things on my lists are out with my control (or seem that way anyway) but there are things I can do to make a difference. Too long have we been bombarded with negative images that make problems seem so big that we can’t change them. We can.

Even if all you do is tell people. Raising awareness is your first line of defence against apathy. Apathy is the enemy of positive change!

Next you can support a charity that is working against an item on your HULK SMASH ANGRY list. Get out there and protest, talk to your MP, vote for a different party, start your own political party!

If that last bit sounds ridiculous, have a look at these short clips from the Guardian Activate Summit. Birgitta Jónsdóttir, member of the Icelandic parliament and Rick Falkvinge, founder of the Swedish Pirate Party told their independent tales of changing laws and governments from the inside. At the heart of both movements is the spirit of disruption in order to instigate change. Impressive stuff.:

So… what makes you HULK SMASH ANGRY?


GIFSoup

Related Posts

In FeelGoodFriday, Jennifer D , , , , , , , , , , , ,
permalink
February-24-2012-02-26-42-tumblrlzpy15GJYc1r3hifp

Inspiration: Where do you find cheer?

Jennifer D Begg —  July 6, 2012 — 8 Comments

Yesterday I had no inspiration what so ever for this week’s #FeelGoodFriday post. It’s been a really busy couple of weeks and to be honest, I couldn’t really find the joy that I usually tap into to write FGF.

Thankfully, twitter had the inspiration I was looking for. The lovely Sarah Strong suggested “small things that make you smile”. This reminded me of where I usually go when I’m feeling down, what cheers me up?

My first go-to  is the YouTube clip Dance Like Nobody’s Watching. Let’s face it, who hasn’t wanted to just do a knee slide across a laundry floor?!

Next up is the always inspirational Steve Jobs

“Your time is limited so don’t waste it living someone else’s life”

So true. The bit that also really resonates with me is when he talks about doing something that you wouldn’t be happy to do on your last day on earth. Do that for too many days and you have a problem. There was a time when I saw this clip and thought “it’s alright for you to say that, you have money and choices” and that may be true but it doesn’t mean that it isn’t still the way we should all be thinking.

I love TED.com and always find sources of inspiration there but the videos I like the most are a little too heavy for this post (save them for another day) so I’m going to finish with my other favourite go to place for smiles, my Pinterest “Cute Animals” board. I think you’ll be able to tell I have put a lot of effort into collating quite the extensive collection *bows*

Cute, funny and a bit weird in equal measure...

Cute, funny and a little bit weird…

What cheers you up?

Related Posts

In FeelGoodFriday, Jennifer D , , , , , , , ,
permalink

Inspiration and Motivation: I’ve been down there before and I know the way out

Jennifer D Begg —  June 28, 2012 — 2 Comments

Inspiration

I LOVE this clip! Not only does Derek Redmond show true spirit and sportsmanship by carrying on despite losing his race, the race he’s worked for his whole life, his father shows his immovable, unstoppable love and support for his son. What an example to us all.

So, in celebration of life’s obstacles, this week’s #FeelGoodFriday is in honour of the ones that keep us going . You know who I mean, the ones who won’t take no for an answer. The ones who believe in you when you’ve forgotten how to. I married mine (lest he try to escape – then what would I do!). I also have a couple in reserve who’ve known me so long that ditching them is definitely the more dangerous option!

Ah, Leo McGarry, your sage wisdom knows no bounds…

It doesn’t matter whether it’s a really old friend, family or a complete stranger. We’ve all had someone pick us up. We’re all the products of the people around us, the people who have made us stronger, changed us, helped us, loved us and driven us crazy. So I say it’s time to say thank you. Whether you send your mum a text and say thank you for making you do your homework, email an old friend who lent you that tenner at university or buy your old boss a drink for taking a chance on you when you were just starting out – say thank you now. Go on, say it. It only takes a second. People should know that they made a difference.

(I’ve never been able to resist a Buffy clip)

One of the things I’m most grateful for in life is that I got to say thank you to my mum. Soon after moving to London, I sent her and my dad this card:

She may never have understood how proud we were to call her our mum but at least I got the chance to say thank you. So take your chance now, don’t leave it another day. Say thank you to the ones who’ve made you who you are.

Who do you want to say thank you to?

Related Posts

In FeelGoodFriday, Jennifer D , ,
permalink

Inspired: A thoroughly Good Week!

Jennifer D Begg —  June 22, 2012 — 8 Comments

This week’s Feel Good Friday is dedicated to (and inspired by) A Good Week (thanks Lesley for the heads up!).

A Good Week is part of a global celebration of good stuff. They’re not prescribing what good should be, but their website is full of ideas and events for you to get involved with.

The A Good Week Launch 2011 from A Good Week on Vimeo.

My GREAT week started a little bit before Monday with a visit to my cousins with my dad.

Me & Dad

Dad looking slightly bemused

It was a year ago this Monday that my big cousin Graham was killed in a motorbike accident. I didn’t spend nearly enough time with him, geography and life meant we only caught up every couple of years. That didn’t matter though because when we all got together we always had a brilliant time, followed by us all promising to keep in touch more.

Graham & Rachel

Since last year, my cousin Helen, Rachel, Jack, Harvey and all the Evans Massive (I’m including Claire, Louise, James, Brenda and all the gang in this by the way) have done a much better job of keeping in touch (Facebook has been a great help!). So, when we got together last weekend it was with great festivity and family friendship that we celebrated life, love and my truly excellent cousin.

Father's Day fun

Fathers Day: Not sure how they managed this after Brenda’s HUGE breakfast!

 

At the Park

And this was before the Bouncy Castle. Rain can’t stop us!

As you can see, we didn’t let a bit of wet weather stop us. We had a great time running around, drinking, laughing, making new friends and catching up with old ones. Now that for me is A GOOD WEEK!

If you haven’t had such a Good Week, here are some things for you to enjoy and share:

And of course, there are always the other #FeelGoodFriday posts if you’re stuck ;)

So – What kind of week have you had? What made it A GOOD WEEK?

In FeelGoodFriday, Jennifer D, Tiny Tales , , , , , , ,
permalink
Stella the dog

We could be HEROES!

Jennifer D Begg —  June 14, 2012 — 5 Comments

Following “If Nothing We Do Matters” post from last week, I thought I’d make it easy this time and ask you to nominate your heroes. So, here’s your chance to share the people you think make the world a better place. Plus – excuse to open a post with David Bowie = WIN

Here’s mine (in no particular order):

Jimmy O’Neill (AKA Jimothy / Mr Spiller). Jimmy is the loveliest, funniest and most generous person. He’s also been a fireman for more than 16 years which pretty much means he’s a superhero in my book. Plus he let’s me call him Jimothy. Nuff said.

Joe Manganiello

This is how Jimothy looks to me

Simon (AKA Husband / The Mrs). When I uttered the imortal words “what I’d really like to do is build a school“, Simon didn’t even blink before saying “Do it!”. Simon’s my hero because he makes me feel like I can do anything. He’s also a much better feminist than I am which I think counts as another of his super powers.

Simon

Simon *ahem* saving Ally…

Jonathan Emmans (AKA Secret Millionaire… not really). Some of you may have heard the story about my twitter friend who surprised me by donating his pay rise to Janie’s School, well, that was Jonathan. Say hello, he’s really nice. I particularly like having him on my list because then we can have Stella the dog as his sidekick!

Stella the dog

Stella springing into action as Jonathan’s sidekick!

Father Coyle (AKA Santa. Actually, I’m pretty sure that’s blasphemous. But he does have an awesome Santa beard!). Father Coyle made it fun to go to church when I was a teenager and never shied away from my constant questions. He’s also never lectured me about not going to church and is a constant and valued friend. I defy anyone not to love this man. He is a true super hero, running to the rescue of those less fortunate (actually, running’s pushing it… I’m still trying to convince him he needs a stair lift but he’s having none of it). Think I might have to get him a cape though *gets craft kit out*

Paula (AKA Supermum / my big sister). I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who is quite so oblivious to how great she is (actually, I’ve met at least 4 other people like that… see above). I don’t know what I would have done without her when mum died and I can’t thank her enough for the way she keeps an eye on my dad (you know you need the watching father *pointy finger, teacher face*). Superpower = Hulk like ability to lose her temper

Wonder Woman

Paula could totally pull off this look, she just wouldn’t want to show the rest of us up

*all of these people (with the possible exception of Simon) will be horrified to be on this list and therefore definitely deserve to be on there!

So… who are your heroes?

In FeelGoodFriday, Jennifer, Jennifer D, Tiny Tales , , ,
permalink