5 տարբերակ վայելելու առանց էլեկտրականության մեկ ժամը

Որոշել եմ մեկ-մեկ էլ հայերեն գրել, քանի որ անգլերեն նյութերի պակասություն ինտերնետում կարծես թե չկա, ես էլ անգլերենս կատարելագործելու էդքան շատ կարիք չունեմ այլևս, կարող եմ անցնել հայալեզու պարունակության հարստացմանը :)

Այսօր ամբողջ քաղաքակիրթ աշխարհը մասնակցում էր «Երկրի ժամ» կոչվող էկոլոգիական ակցիային, որին նույնիսկ միացել էր Երևանի քաղաքապետարանը (մեկ ժամով անջատելով փողոցային լուսավորությունը) ու մի քանի մասնավոր ընկերություններ: Ֆեյսբուքով ու որոշ հեռուստաալիքներով լուսաբանված ակցիային միացան նաև շատ անհատներ, մեկ ժամով իրենց տան էլեկտրականությունը անջատելով: Ես նույնպես տանը հայտարարեցի` «լույսերը անջատելու եմ, ու շատ խնդրում եմ նաև հեռուստացույցները անջատել», սակայն ցավոք հեռուստացույցների հարցով մերոնց համոզել չհաջողվեց :( Մոմերի սեփական հավաքածուից մի շարք մոմեր տրամադրեցի սենյակների լուսավորությանը ու քրոջս հետ ճաշեցինք մոմի լույսերի տակ: Քույրս նույնիսկ հիշեց, թե ասում են որ մթության մեջ ուտելիս ավելի շուտ ես կշտանում սովորաբար :))

Մտքովս անցավ, որ կարելի էր շատ հանգիստ նախապես հայտարարել ու 1-ժամանոց հովհարային անջատում կազմակերպել քաղաքում: Չեմ կարծում թե շատ մարդ կտուժեր: Ոնց էլ չլինի համարյա բոլորը գիտեն ինչա դա նշանակում, բացի դրանից քիչ չի եղել որ մի քանի ժամով հոսանքազրկվել ենք տարբեր վթարների պատճառով: Այդ մեկ ժամը մթության ու էլեկտրական սարքերի (հատկապես հեռուստացույցի) լռության մեջ շա՛տ շատ օգտակար ու հաճելի կարող է լինել: Օրինակ`

1. Կարելի է ընտանիքով կամ ընկերներով հավաքվել ու մոմերի լույսերի ներքո լոտո, մոնոպոլիա կամ այլ նմանատիպ խաղ խաղալ (արևածաղկի սերմերը` ըստ ցանկության):
2. Մենակ լինելու դեպքում կարելի է առանց խոչընդոտների ու խանգարող հանգամանքների մտածել, պլանավորել, խորհել դեսից-դենից… կարծում եմ ոչ միայն ինձ մոտ է նման կերպ «առանձնանալու» ցանկություն լինում:
3. Կարելի է կազմակերպել 90-ականների հիշողությունների երեկո, հանել հին լուսանկարների ալբոմները և հիշել/գրի առնել հետաքրքիր պատմություններ ու դեպքեր այդ տարիներից:
4. Երկար ժամանակ անտեսված ու հետաձգված շատ գործեր կարելի է անել հենց այս ժամանակ` վերջապես դասավորել դարակը, դասակարգել լուսանկարների ալբոմները, վերջացնել սկսած բայց չավարտած շարֆի կամ գուլպայի գործելը… հաստատ շատերի մոտ նման պարտականություններ հավաքված կլինեն :)
5. Վերջապես, կարելի է գազի վրա ջուր եռացնելով թեյ պատրաստել, փաթաթվել ծածկոցով, մուրաբայով թեյը խմել ու նայել մոմի լույսին: Աչքերին էլ է օգուտ:

Այս ամենը մտքիս որ եկավ, հասկացա որ ամսեկան կամ նույնիսկ շաբաթական 1 առանց էլեկտրականության ժամը շատ տեղին կլիներ գոնե ինձ համար: Ոչ մի հեռախոս, նոութբուք, ինտերնետ, (ձայնագրված) երաժշտություն կամ արհեստական աղմուկ… միայն մոմի լույս ու հանդարտ մտքեր:

Եթե գրածս կարդացիք ու հավեսի ընկաք earth hour-ին մասնակցելու, բայց հետո գիտակցեցիք որ այս տարվանը բաց եք թողել, կարող եմ հուշել որ սեփական earth hour-ներ կազմակերպելու համար շատ բան պետք չի :) Տանը ավելորդ լույսերը անջատելը ոչ մեկի վնաս չի տա, իսկ առանց էլեկտրականության ժամեր կազմակերպելու համար, թերևս պետք է միայն տնեցիների համաձայնությունը, կամ էլ` նրանց տնից բացակայելը:

Spring, Serj Tankian and VO.X made my week

Spring is definitely here. Apricot trees blossom and Yerevan's cultural life is getting more active. Needless to say, i'm very happy on both occasions :)

Within last week I managed to enjoy 2 concerts of which i'm going to tell you.

The first one was on March 13 at my favorite Cafesjian Center for the Arts' Special Events Auditorium. It was the British-Armenian band VO.X with a britpop, jazz, blues, pop-rock, some Spanish program. I first heard about them thanks to the video "Made in Yerevan" which I love :)

Then I loved their "Nor orva yerg" and "No Matter" which by the way brought VO.X the British Gospel Music Awards nomination as Best British Group in 2003.

The concert rocked and I haven't seen the Auditorium so crowded before.

The next one was not a real concert but a recording of it, however on a big cinema screen. Organized by Barseghyan Media Factory, this was the Yerevan premiere of the movie which is being screened in various locations at the moment. It was an amazing show: Serj Tankian's Elect The Dead Symphony together with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra. I loved that album, but I didn't know it would be so terrific live and with orchestra. Enjoyed every sound of it.


P.S. Sunday marked the first anniversary of ma preshs.

Why it does (not) suck being sick

It Sucks

• You feel weak, bad, and wish you could take a magic pill and recover asap
• You have to miss some really important work back in the office
• Everybody's asking why it happened? did you catch cold? do you drink tea? etc...
• Your parents/siblings annoy you with lectures on how to take care of yourself
• Sometimes you are so bad, you can't even hold the netbook to watch/read anything :(
• Most of the time you are forbidden to hold your netbook and do smth, cause you're sick and computer's making you even more sick! (c) parents
• If you hate taking meds, this is when you can't really resist them, since sometimes they may be your ultimate chance to get better. so you have to stuff your body with unknown chemicals with no proven result
• If you are used to taking meds, you know that you may experience the full gradient of their side-effects at the meantime financing the evil pharmaceutical companies
• You need to keep distance while greeting/kissing people or avoid them at all
• While some people enjoy it, others hate lying in bed doing nothing at all! including me. 

It Doesn't Suck

• You are getting some more attention and care from others, it feels good.
• While in fever, you have the chance to watch some surreal dreams of yours. Like last night, i met Lady Gaga in my neighborhood... don't laugh! i may even open a separate blog for describing my dreams in fever. They are something :)))
• You have enough time to read some unfinished books, watch movies that you have downloaded for a while, write blog posts, like this :)
• You can stay in bed as much as you want :) everybody will be convincing you to recover "fully" before going out.
• If you are in a temporary state of being tired of everything, this is a good chance to have a rest and think about future )
• Friends may visit you and bring fruits and natural juice :) feels good to be loved and needed.
• You have plenty of time to think and develop new ideas, write down thoughts and answer to starred emails. 
• You have the time (and can't skip) watching television and get to know all the actual trends on national television, finally find out what was that show everybody was talking about recently.
• You can lie in your bed and listen to your favorite music for hours.
• If you have a pet, you get some quality time with him.
• If you're not on antibiotics, you may find comfort and relax in alcohol :) will be good for the throat too, btw :)

You're welcome to add more points to either of these statements.

Moleskine, the legendary notebook on my desk!

I am now a proud owner of a Moleskine notebook. It's even the special Woodstock 40th anniversary edition!
Sadly, Moleskines can't be found in Armenia, so I had to wait to get it from somewhere else. I'm so thankful to my friend Gohar, who brought it for me right from Italy!

It's a hard cover ruled notebook, perfect for writing down my thoughts, the most positive ones :)

When I posted about the Moleskine in Facebook, I was surprised to see that so many of my friends are its fans and seem to know why Moleskine is special and is not like any other notebook.

I love everything about this notebook. The quality of the paper, its smell, and the expandable pocket!
I now feel as a part of a special community :) (especially after registering in the website :)

"Moleskine is a family of notebooks with a rich history that has captured the hearts and minds of people the world over."

If you are not familiar with Moleskines, read further for some interesting info I digged on the web.

Just felt like writing

I'm frozen. It's the end of January and the winter has just arrived. I took my usual longest way to home from work in order to have a walk, but when i got home, i didn't feel my feet and fingers. Hate feeling cold!
I guess I have to limit my walks, despite the fact i badly need that time for organizing own thoughts, listening to music and checking the streets for "updates" in terms of stores and other news. Oh yea, i hate missing any important update in the city (well, and in general too).

The job

Since the holidays finished, I've been working like never before. I'm being quite productive, organized and even actually efficient. If before I was mainly just generating ideas and developing some of them up to a written project, these days I'm actually implementing the ideas and creating something measurable and complete.

I developed a workaholism of a certain level and didn't even notice how my job took over my entire life at the moment. My brain's CPU is 100% busy with job-related tasks, even if I'm taking a walk, having a shower or going to bed. I'm constantly making charts, organizing information into tables, creating task lists, reading stuff needed for specific projects. Although my super accessible netbook and the lovely MindManager are making my work more efficient and easy, i'm actually afraid that i will feel lost when i won't have them around. I also started to rely on an online task manager TeuxDeux, my daily planner (portable hard copy) and also a weekly planner that hangs out on my desk in the office. It may seem that i have to spend quite a while in synchronization between them, but actually I use all of them for different planning and so far it has made me considerably more productive.
So what, that I work on Saturdays and holidays and evenings and (shame on me) even Sundays (from home though)? To the people who wonder why I do this - I just wish them someday to have the amount of satisfaction, recognition and appreciation in the workplace that I do. I am never forced but driven by an intrinsic motivation.

via Design Crush

Btw, a small and interesting e-book on motivating creative people for your reading.
I hope this energy boost won't decrease in the near future, however I will put some emphasis on my social life too.

The habits

I also advanced in terms of self-management, getting rid of some bad habits and working on improving my health. I mostly used to have a plain coffee in the mornings and then having some buns at the lunch time. I did realize that it's unhealthy but didn't have an idea on what I can manage to prepare for myself as a breakfast when I'm in a constant rush in the morning (that's the reason for not having a breakfast at all). [oh yeah, I am a long sentences' fan]
Also, I almost didn't eat any dairy product which was bad for my teeth and bones.
In the recent weeks I started to actually eat curds mixed with mashed apple. This mix is both easy, light and tasty. Thanks to my cousin for the tip!
After that I am having my coffee in the office and I'm actually being early in the office! что не может не радовать..(и не только шефа :)

The music

I'm very busy and I do a bunch of critical stuff. I can't allow myself to feel down or negative in any way. I didn't choose it intentionally, but I feel that the only TV channel I actually feel like watching/listening is the MTV Dance. I'm jumping, dancing, singing like a teenager. I completely overwrote my music playlist and no pixel of melancholy can be seen there. It really helps to keep my mood up high.

The death
A relative passed away last week. He didn't live only 2 weeks till his 50th anniversary. It was a lung cancer. The ironic thing was that the wife of that man who died, has been smoking extensively the following days, because she had to calm her nerves and nothing could be done about it. She had lost her son just the previous year. Nobody can even begin to imagine how she actually feels now. Cigarettes help to calm the nerves, but they often become the reason people suffer.
I can't help myself from being anxious, realizing that my dad won't even consider quitting or limiting his smoking.
I also discovered something rather shocking for me. It's that the relatives sometimes prefer to hide from the cancer patient the real reason of their illness. The man died without knowing what he was dying from. And I was being convinced that it's a right thing to do. I won't go into details now, but I strongly believe that it's very, very wrong. Not for everyone, however...

photo via Titania Aelita

Yoga in Armenia: what is yoga and how to get started?

One of my discoveries of the last year was certainly - yoga. Not that I learned about it just this year :) I just realized it this year that it's the perfect thing for me this period of my life and found the most amazing yoga studio in Yerevan. I had some friends who have been attending there for quite some time already, but never actually considered to enroll myself into a class too. I knew almost nothing about yoga but I was driven by curiosity and the promise of getting some peace after the hectic work days was convincing.
I had no problem deciding with the studio, since I only started yoga because of discovering Shoonch.

While this post will be about my perception and experience of yoga, it may also contain some voluntary advertisement of Shoonch yoga studio.

Armenian Winter Resort Tsakhkadzor aka Armenian Alps

I spent the weekend in the city of Tsakhkadzor (alternatively spelled as Tsaghkadzor) situated about 50km north from Yerevan.

The main attraction in Tsakhkadzor is the ropeway on the Teghenis mountain.
During Soviet times, the lifts and other sporting facilities were built to prepare Soviet athletes for the 1988 Winter Olympics. The town was further developed into a ski resort and later fully modernized with the old lifts being replaced. It has started to be rapidly developed during the presidency of Robert Kocharyan who is an avid skier.

Ex-President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan skiing.  © PanARMENIAN Photo / Davit Hakobyan

Currently it's the most popular winter holiday location in Armenia, which also attracts hundreds of ski and snowboard enthusiasts from around the world.

ALL of the guesthouses and hotels (despite of their prices being comparable to those of Alpine resorts) are fully booked for the new year holidays and first weeks of January even since October.

Tsakhkadzor is especially popular among Yerevan citizens this year due to the fact that there has been no snow in Yerevan so far and Tsakhkadzor is covered with a beautiful layer of white pleasure. Moreover, the weather these weeks is just perfect - sunny and warm.

Photographers of our photo agency PanARMENIAN Photo captured the beauty of the ski resort in the most favorable weather conditions. I have not heard of Ararat mountain being seen from the Teghenis mount before (probably because it has mostly been cloudy and foggy in this ski season). This time both Sevan lake and Ararat were perfectly visible from the 2nd lift of the ropeway on Teghenis.

So those magical images are by my favorite photographers ;) Vahan Stepanyan, Davit Hakobyan and Sedrak Mkrtchyan © PanARMENIAN Photo!

The last photos are by me (of course you can notice the difference between Canon Mark II and my poor BenQ). Even though those scenes weren't captured by our photographers, I thought they are worth posting :)

This is Ararat seen from Tsakhkadzor! © PanARMENIAN Photo / Davit Hakobyan