Anastasia

Cosmetic Surgery

 

Marble statue of Aphrodite - the Greek goddess of beauty (1st century BC)

Few people are born with a "perfect" body.  A certain obsession with physical perfection is no longer confined to middle-aged women. Across the USA and in many European countries teenagers and men are becoming the latest patients to seek medical "remodelling". Teenagers are going under the knife, financed and encouraged by doting parents who consider bodily perfection to be a more desirable birthday present than the latest playstation version or even a car. They argue that surgery can help cure the insecurity and self-consciousness that comes from a lack of self-esteem. What I find even more shocking is that some Asian teenagers are having blepharoplasty to produce a more rounded Caucasian look! Surgeons have also developed a technique by which men no longer have to spend hours in gyms to achieve bulging muscles.

I am not against cosmetic surgery in so far as it helps correct deformities, such as remove acne scars. But I don't think I'd ever go under the knife to change or improve a part of my body. without a serious reason to do so. I believe that we should love ourselves the way we are. I find that women who grow old naturally are more beautiful than women who have gone through cosmetic surgery to look 10 years younger or a few kilos slimmer. Each one of us has something special, something unique. Besides, a balanced diet, exercising and cosmetics help us greatly to improve on nature without having to spend a fortune.

Is it true that beauty is in the eye of the beholder or do we have a uniform concept of physical beauty?

Would you consider undergoing cosmetic surgery? Why? Why not?

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Mothers and Daughters

My mother and I don't always get along very well. More often than not, it seems that one of us is saying the wrong thing, presses the wrong buttons and, as a result, our conversations tend to be quite explosive! Yet, in our heart of hearts, we know that we love each other dearly. I always felt, though, that my dad could understand me more than any other person in the world - this is probably why I'll never get over his sudden death eight years ago.

With my mum - Nicosia, September 1958

I've often had a rather strained relationship with my mother. She'd criticise almost everything - my hair, my clothes, my friends, my behaviour or attitude, my opinion on various issues, the way I decorate my flat, my flat in general - the list is endless! I strongly felt being under scrutiny and, as a result, I avoided sharing my secrets or troubles with her. On the other hand, I admit to my flaws. I'm kind of blunt and always speak my mind because I'd rather say something to somebody's face than behind their back. In other words, I'm not diplomatic! Our relationship improved a lot when I decided to see things from her point of view.

My mum - Christmas Eve 2004

I felt I could understand her better and eventually realised how much she cared and how wrong I was to pick on her. By appreciating the positive side of her character, I was able to connect with her and communicate much better. For example, she never meddled in my life, never made any comments whatsoever. On the contrary, she was a pattern of discretion. My mum is the sweetest and kindest person I've ever known. Despite her occasional criticisms, she's always been there for me offering her support in times of hardship and sharing my happiness in times of joy. Now I know that she's done an excellent job and I'll be forever thankful for all the sacrifices she's made for me and my brother.

On a summer holiday with my mother - August 2005

All day today, I had in mind to post something about my mother and, in the first place, I considered reblogging my post from last year. Finally, I realised that I had a lot more to say about the most wonderful mum in the world!

Alkis' 60th Birthday

Both workwise and socially, it's been a very busy week which started on a bright note - Valentine's Day on Monday. I know I promised to cook a special dinner - I had thought of paté of  duck liver terrine for starters and roast saddle of veal in cognac cream sauce with glazed shallots and pesto gnocchi. But due to work I didn't have time to cook, so we had an exotic meal delivered and a great greek red called "Vivlia Hora".

However, the highlight of the week was Alkis' 60th birthday - a milestone - which we celebrated just the two of us last night. A couple of weeks ago, I suggested throwing a big party, which wasn't such a great idea as we both had to get up early this morning. So, I surprised him with the traditional birthday cake which we devoured soon after a cosy and festive dinner out.

Tomorrow is the parents' evening - a cocktail party I organise for my students' parents during which we have time to talk about their children's performance and, of course, spend a pleasant evening together.

Do video games help shy youngsters build social skills?

 

Photo Credit

Hong Kong - Scientists have found that children who spend hours playing online games may be developing friendships and nurturing vital social skills, a news report said Tuesday.

Rather than causing them harm, playing computer games can help boost the self-esteem of shy youngsters and increase their satisfaction with life, the South China Morning Post reported.

The benefits of online games were similar to those of making friends in the real world, the researchers from the Chinese University in Hong Kong concluded.

More than 600 primary school children were interviewed for the study, which found they spent an average of 67 minutes a day playing online games and 44 minutes using hand-held game consoles.

Nearly one-fifth of the pupils interviewed said they played for three hours a day or more, according to the newspaper.

Dr Angel Leung of the university's psychology department said: "Online friendship is ... especially important to those who are extremely shy or introverted - those who have difficulties making friends in real life."

However, she conceded that playing online games too much could adversely affect their academic results with English the subject most affected by game playing, the report said.

Copyright DPA

via www.earthtimes.org

If you ask me, online games and more specifically these interactive video games can eventually turn out to be detrimental to a child's physical condition and psychological growth. They contribute greatly to child obesity and to aggressive personalities. I really don't think they can help shy children build social skills. On the contrary, they tend to cut off children from the real world by making them unfriendly and anti-social while their grades can drop dramatically- not only in English but in all other school subjects. What's worse, these games can become terribly addictive for the child who gradually begins to live in a virtual world of make believe. Children need to go out and play, run, jump, skip, meet their friends, practise sports and take up creative hobbies. That's how they can develop real social skills.

On the other hand, technology is part of both adults and children's lives. Some online games can be really fun for children and can help them develop creative skills, yet, even in this case, parents should, by all means supervise their children, set time limits and stick to them and, most importantly, talk with their children in order to make them realise that real life doesn't work the way they see it in their online games. In this way, children will be able to see the difference between the virtual, unreal world of a video game, and the many benefits they can gain in the real world.

Healthy Eating Habits For Children

I came across a very interesting post the other day at Ayala's Herbal Water in which she suggests some useful tips on how to get children to eat fruit and vegetables. I think she has a point when she says that children copy adults, so it is as clear as daylight that children won't eat F&V if the parents are meat lovers, like most parents in my country, or if they give in to their children's wishes to have pizza or a MacDonald's meal every other day.

In Cyprus, a very serious effort has been made recently to include fresh fruit and vegetables as alternative snacks to chocolate, ice cream, crisps, cheese pies or doughnuts during school recesses. Unfortunately, children ignore the fruit and veggies and would rather give their pocket money for a packet of crisps instead of a banana or cola instead of fruit juice! On the other hand, I was very happy to hear that most playschools provide the parents with a list of snacks for their children to bring to school, such as apples, bananas, oranges and brown bread sandwiches with tomato, cucumber and low-fat cheese and ham. You may smile but I think that a child needs to get used to healthy eating habits at a young age.

Despite these efforts, there are still a lot of obese children in Cyprus aged 8-12. To me, an obese child will almost invariably grow into an obese adult although once in their teens, things seem to change. Many teenagers - especially girls- go on extreme diets in an effort to look like Beyonce and, as a result, they become victims of various eating disorders.

Depriving children of their favourite foods is also wrong. Once a week , they can have their favourite junk food , their favourite sweet, their favourite ice cream. But getting used to eating F&V at a very young age - as young as the age of three - children will grow into happy, healthy adults who will never have to go on diet simply because they eat a little bit of everything.