Lost in Arabia

The 1761-1767 doomed Danish expedition to the Middle East was little known for many years. In Felix Arabia, an account of the expedition recently published in a new edition, Thorkild Hansen sometimes doubts the expedition’s influence. But since, its reputation has burgeoned. Despite the losses and decay suffered by its findings, the maps, studies in zoology and botany, and other discoveries were a gift to the future. In 2011, the 250th anniversary of the expedition’s departure was celebrated with pride.

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3 Ways To Inject More Humor Into Your Relationship

As soon as you stop laughing with your significant other, you’re pretty much guaranteed to find yourself on the miserable road to relationship hell.

The person you were once so enamored with will start to take on the look of a hairless cat that’s been left out in the sun for too long. You’ll hear the cell block doors slam shut on your relationship as you look forward to a dim future with your crusty ball and chain.

And one day, you’ll gratefully fling your carcass into the earthy arms of an early grave.

Ok, we’ve taken a dark turn here. Let’s go back to the actual issue.

The real question is, how can you keep things fun and new? Let’s move on to the humorous portion of this article and explore a few ways to bring the laughter back to your relationship.

Why Laughter is Good for Your Relationship

In addition to the fun and happy moments that laughter provides, there are also some scientific reasons why humor is great for your relationship.

According to a study performed by the University of North Carolina, couples who laughed together reported better quality of relationship with feelings of closeness and support that stemmed from it.

Some of the findings include:

  • While women laughed more often, men’s laughter was found to be more contagious.
  • The female’s reciprocation of laughter had a positive effect on the men.
  • The longer the laughter continued, the greater the men’s rating of satisfaction, commitment and passion toward their partners.

Laughter makes us feel better, both physically and emotionally. This is likely to make us nicer to our partners. When you laugh more often, you’ll typically become less defensive, more spontaneous and you’ll have less inhibitions. In other words, your interactions can become much more upbeat and positive. You’ll end up enjoying each other’s company to a greater extent.

So, how can you tap into the benefits of laughter and use them to improve and maintain the quality of your relationship? Check out these three relationship humor tips you can actually use.

 

Going Back to Your Early Years

relive childhood days

What is your favorite childhood memory? Which places do you remember playing and laughing in when you were growing up?

If you know your partner well enough, it’s likely that you’ve heard about a few of their fond childhood memories. Taking the time to revisit the places or reenact the events together can be a fantastic way to tap into happy moments.

Sneaking off to the park and swinging together under the moonlight, watching an old treasured movie while you’re curled up together or dancing like nobody’s watching are just a few ways to bring back the magic of youth.

The Spontaneous Trick

be spontaneous

Some of the best fun is often the result of spontaneous choices.

Breaking away from the old routine might not be easy, but it’s a great way to bring more fun into your relationship. Some things you may want to try include:

  • Taking an unplanned trip
  • Trying something new together
  • Switching up the sexual routine
  • Saying yes to unexpected opportunities

Whether you are laughing at the ridiculous positions you find yourself in while taking that yoga class for the first time or find yourselves lost in a small town with a suspicious looking clown on the side of the road, you’re guaranteed to create some interesting memories when you make an effort to be more spontaneous.

A Good Old Fashioned Gag

This tactic is powerful, but it’s often neglected.

Most of us can probably remember the last time we picked up some flowers or a thoughtful trinket for our partner. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a nice gesture. But, how often do you bring home a great gag gift?

Bringing the laughter back into your relationship will probably take less time than you think when you implement a few of these relationship humor tips. Give them a shot today and experience the joy that comes with a good belly laugh.  

Are there any other techniques that you’ve used to amp up the humor between you and your partner? We’d love to hear about them in the comments section below.

See Also: Five Traits Women Want In A Partner

The post 3 Ways To Inject More Humor Into Your Relationship appeared first on Dumb Little Man.

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3 Simple Steps to Balance Your Emotional State

We are emotional creatures.

If you are a human being, you know how hard it is to keep tabs on how you are feeling. Whether it be jealousy, anger, depression or anxiety, we all go through a constant cycle of emotions throughout our lives.

But, what happens when we feel out of balance with our own emotions?

Sometimes, we can have such strong feelings that we tend to start acting differently from how we would normally act. We can begin to not feel like ourselves and take it out on our loved ones. This constant roller-coaster can get tiring, especially if you are in constant search of a peace of mind, like myself.

So, how can we practice emotional balance to achieve better mental state?

There are a few mental tips that I find especially handy anytime I fall into an emotional whirlwind. These are my top 3 that I believe are the most practical.

Be Aware of it

This may sound very vague at first, but I truly believe self-awareness is an insanely important aspect of life. Someone who truly vouches for this is Gary Vaynerchuk.

I completely agree with him on striving to know who you are. Knowing yourself, in this case, can mean knowing your emotional state or your emotional patterns. When you have the skill to stop whatever you are doing for one second and recognize what you are feeling, you are a step closer to finding peace.

Now, when I say finding peace, of course, I do not mean “feel-good” peace. This obviously would not be the case. If you are feeling irritable, recognizing you are feeling irritable won’t make you feel “good” or “better”.

The problem arises when you can’t directly identify the emotion you are feeling at the time because you’re not aware of it. When you become aware of it, you can then step back from the emotion in a way and watch it come and go.

This is an important first step in achieving emotional balance because being aware and kind to yourself for feeling the emotional turmoil sets the base for change.

Read about it

research on emotions

When feeling emotionally out of balance, try to be aware of what it is you are feeling and what might be the root of it. Once you have the slightest understanding, use your phone or a laptop to look up how you are feeling. Search for blog posts you have already read or brand new information you have not read before.

A good tip is to bookmark some of your favorite pages that really speak to you. Once you begin to read or re-read an explanation of what you are feeling and why you are feeling that way, you can begin to shift your perspective.

You can begin to be objective and continue to disassociate from the emotions you are feeling. In another way, reading can also take your mind off of getting so caught up in your emotions and allows a mental break in a way. This mental break, for me, is usually what I need to put a halt to the rapid tornado of thoughts. Use the Internet to your advantage.

Talk about it

talk to somebody

You might have heard this a thousand times, but this is one of the best ways to get a sense of closure. I used to always bottle up how I was feeling when I felt emotionally distraught or out of balance. Most of the time, I kept the mindset of “I’ll fix it myself”. I never wanted to come off or be seen a certain way by those close to me.

But, the more I accepted myself for who I was, the more comfortable I became to share my emotions with the people closest to me. I believe this is such an important part of balancing your emotional state.

When you talk about it, you are owning what you are feeling in a sense. You own who you are and how you are feeling and this makes you feel okay with what you are going through. It represents you making peace with the part of you that tends to get emotionally distraught from time to time. This also makes you feel not so alienated and different for the way you are feeling.

Listening to some advice your loved ones can give you might not directly help, but it assures you that you have people that care enough to be there for you in the first place. This reassurance of a support system can give you the courage to do your best in dealing with how you are feeling.

See Also: 5 Steps To Release Bottled Emotions And Live Happier

Conclusion

After completing one or all of these steps to the best of your ability, you should notice your emotional state slowly tilting back to equilibrium. Once this happens, I usually feel like more of myself again. I feel like I can finally think clearly.

Trying to think yourself out of an emotionally imbalanced state usually does not help and can actually lead to further turmoil.

That being said, all we can do is be as practical as possible with ourselves and our emotions. Understanding that we are imperfect beings and are not alone can go a long way. Emotions are what make us unique and human, so I guess we should try to be grateful for even the worst of them.

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Ingenious Wooden Shed Full of Surprises in the Outskirts of Eindhoven

There are ideas that definitely marvel us and make us go “Wow!” by how much they impress us. For me, this is one of them, and who wouldn’t want to be there and enjoy the wonderful views of a starry sky on clear nights or the sun on a sunny day? Sign me up! This building, which seems to open up like an accordion, or with each section appearing to..

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Over millions of years, wind and rain have eroded sediments from…

Over millions of years, wind and rain have eroded sediments from the Guadalupe Mountains in Texas, exposing the limestone of an ancient reef. Embedded in the stone just below the state’s highest peak, fossils records give evidence of Earth’s largest extinction. That’s just one chapter of this amazing landscape’s history, which also includes 10,000 years of human history from bloody conflicts between Mescalero Apaches and Buffalo Soldiers, the coming of ranchers and settlers, and finally, the making of Guadalupe Mountains National Park. Photo by Brandon Cozart (http://ift.tt/18oFfjl).

7 Best Secrets To Building Lasting Relationships

Despite all the disastrous relationships we’ve experienced and witnessed in our lives, there’s always a couple that restores your faith in love and lasting relationships.

As a young person, you may not value stability. However, as you grow older and when you’re in the later stages of life, your spouse can be the core of your support system. Numerous studies have revealed that having a happy relationship with a spouse leads to improved health and can prevent loneliness among seniors.

Nail these tips on how to make lasting relationships and you’ll be headed in the right direction!

Share core values and interests

Opposites do attract, but it is better if your relationship has core values and interests you both share. It is important that you have a similar outlook on life.

Sharing core values means you can agree on the major aspects of life. A good example is the number of children you want and how you wish to raise them.

It can also help if you have similar personalities and that you come from the same background. Not having any common ground with your significant other makes it difficult to get enthusiastic about what interests him. Whether you admit it or not, it’s always nice if you have a partner that can get excited about the stuff you’re interested in.

Place importance on physical attraction

Yes, what’s on the inside matters more. But, physicality and attraction play a huge role in keeping couples together, too.

A relationship is highly unlikely to develop if there was no physical attraction in the first place. Of course, it shouldn’t be the basis of the relationship, but it is vital in keeping your partner hooked and invested in the relationship.

This doesn’t mean you have to look like Hollywood celebs, but keep your weight and appearance in check. Remember, physical attraction is a key component of maintaining intimacy with your partner. Make sure you’re doing what it takes to keep them interested in you.

Communicate

Communication is essential for the health of all relationships. It is, however, that much more integral in your relationship with your spouse.

Ideally, you should be spending the majority of your day with your spouse. Your partner should be the one you turn to in times of peril. If you aren’t able to relay your concerns with them, then expect problems to arise in the relationship.

The inability to trust your spouse with your problems and concerns is sure to place a wedge between the both of you. If your communication line is ineffective, you’ll come to resent each other as the distance between you grows.

Compromise

You can’t have it your way all the time. There are going to be countless occasions where one of you will have to bend in order to accommodate the other.

It’s not right for one partner to be the one making all the sacrifices. Actually, you shouldn’t think of compromises as sacrifices at all, as much as you can think of compromise as a negotiation.

You shouldn’t feel like you’re giving something up. Instead, think of it as adjusting a little for the sake of your relationship. Negotiate with your partner until you reach an agreement that seems fair to both individuals.

Have the conversation only when you’re ready to talk without getting overly emotional and impulsive. Try and come up with solutions that the both of you are somewhat content with. Forcing a compromise at a time where you’re feeling resistant to one another will only worsen the situation.

Make an effort to enjoy your partner’s interests

fun spousal activities

There are activities, movies and music that your partner is passionate about which don’t interest you at all. Despite that, you should still consider giving it a genuine chance. Your partner will surely appreciate your effort in trying it for his sake. The more you can enjoy together, the better it is for your relationship.

See Also: 7 Ways To Inject Romance Into Your Relationship 

Constantly challenge yourself

Making new memories together will always strengthen your relationship. Doing the same activities over and over again can make things mundane.

Keep things fresh, make it a point to go to new places, meet different types people and try new activities together. Pushing yourself out of your comfort zone is important for personal growth and to keep your relationship exciting, too.

Don’t go to bed angry

spouse argument

The is probably the best relationship advice ever.

The idea of resolving issues as soon as possible is the easiest way of preventing the buildup of anger and feelings of resentment. Do yourselves a favor and resolve your conflicts before you go to sleep. You’ll save yourself a night of restlessness and, most importantly, you’ll wake up without the burden of a fight.

See Also: 7 Ways to Make Your Angry Wife Happy

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Chalet with Luxurious and Galmorous Atmosphere in France

This beautiful and elegant chalet is located in the heart of Val d’Isère, France. Its atmosphere of luxury and glamour surrounds us as soon as we enter the space, and every detail will leave us stunned. There’s no doubt that the exteriors are privy to some spectacular vistas, but the interiors will leave us breathless. The spaces with high ceilings are completely covered in beautiful wood. It’s not just the..

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Hair Treatment: 6 Foods To Prevent Hair Loss

Hair loss is an issue that both men and women are concerned about. It can affect the way you look and feel about yourself. In some cases, it can even weigh your self-confidence down.

Hair loss can occur for many reasons, such as stress, frequent use of chemicals, heat tools, diseases and hormonal changes. However, what few don’t usually take into account when they suffer from hair loss is that diet can play a big role in its development, too.  And, it could also be the solution.

When your hair falls excessively, it is best to consult with a physician to determine the cause of the problem. Apart from medical consultation, you can also increase your intake of the following foods to prevent hair loss.

Antioxidants

antioxidant food

Fruits and vegetables are the largest sources of natural antioxidants that we can find. Including them frequently in your diet can help strengthen your hair and stimulate its growth.

Recommendation

For your hair, it’s recommended that you increase your consumption of fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C. Good examples include orange, lemon, kiwi, broccoli and spinach. They can increase the production of your hair’s collagen, cells and other components.

Some people choose to take antioxidant supplements. If you are considering adding a supplement to your diet, it is advisable to talk to your physician first. Many dietary supplements do not have a balanced content of vitamins, enzymes and minerals and this can have an unfavorable effect on your health.

See Also: 10 Amazing Foods You Should Include in Your Detox Diet

Vitamins

vitamin rich food

Lack of vitamin A can also be one of the reasons for hair loss. This vitamin is responsible for preventing and blocking the drying of the sebaceous glands. These glands function to lubricate the hair follicle to reduce hair loss.

Vitamin A also favors the oxygenation of follicle cells, thus strengthening the hair and promoting its growth.

Recommendations

Improve the condition of your hair by increasing your intake of liver, eggs, vegetables in general and fortified milk. Fish oils, sunflower and olive are great sources of the vitamin, too.

Green leafy vegetables

green leafy vegetables

In addition to being rich in antioxidants, green leafy vegetables also have a high iron content, which is a vital nutrient to strengthen and stimulate hair growth. For this reason, it is recommended to include foods such as Swiss chard, Brussels sprouts, spinach, radicheta and arugula frequently in your diet.

Zinc

Zinc is an essential nutrient for the chemical reactions of different enzymes in your body. It includes energy production and protein formation. One of the rich sources of Zinc is meat, which also contains iron, proteins, B6 vitamins and B12 vitamins. These vitamins and minerals are associated with the prevention and treatment of hair loss.

The recommended daily dose of zinc is 15 mg and you can find it in these foods:

Chocolate

chocolate rich in zinc

This is good news for those who love chocolate! A bar of 100 grams chocolate- without added sugar- contains approximately 10 mg of zinc. This is equivalent to 65% of the recommended daily amount.

White mushrooms

Zinc is found in white mushrooms and they are best consumed when cooked.  It can help you acquire about 6% of the required amount of zinc you should consume in a day. Zinc is also present in celery, asparagus, figs, potatoes and eggplants.

Foods with Biotin and Folic Acid

foods with biotin

Together, these two substances help to balance the metabolic activities of tissues that have cells that rapidly multiply. This includes your hair, nails and skin.

Recommendations

Biotin can be consumed through foods, such as liver, yeast bread, cereals, hazelnuts, peas, wheat bran and banana. Folic acid, meanwhile, can be found in chicken liver, veal, turkey. You can also get them from legumes, like chickpeas and beans.

Conclusion

Hair loss remedies aren’t limited to expensive methods, such as laser hair treatment and PRP hair treatment. It should be noted that the food you eat also plays a big role in how your hair behaves. Hair loss can happen when your body doesn’t have the right nutrients to function properly. For this reason, make sure you eat the right foods to prevent hair loss. They can boost not just your hair growth, but your health, too.

See Also: 6 Surprising Remedies That Reverse Hair Loss And Regrow Hair

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Stunning Beach Resort on Koh Samui Island, Thailand

This spectacular resort is located on the Eastern coast of Koh Samui Island, in Chaweng Noi, Thailand. It was designed by architectural firm Sicart & Smith Architects in 2015 and has a total area of about 1,000 meters squared. It was built on a hillside, and thus, required a number of different floors to adapt to the terrain. These floors are all connected via staircases. It’s surrounded by dense vegetation..

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The 3 Undeniable Laws Of Success

Note: This post is written by Zak Khan

It is an unfortunate reality that most schools don’t teach learners how to succeed at life in a realistic and practical manner.

Sure, an elaborate understanding of Mathematics and Science can open many doors but when challenged with real life problems, most of us crumble and fall into stagnancy.

Over the last 7 years since finishing school, I’ve been through quite a few ordeals. Overcoming a life-changing disease was just one of the battles I won and you can read about that in a previous post I wrote for Life Optimizer (3 Ways to Overcome Adversity).

What I care to share with you today are the laws of success that often go overlooked. These are the laws that celebrities and entrepreneurs obsess over on a daily basis which brings about ridiculous success and rewards. If you’re sick and tired of being stuck in a loop of failure and mediocrity, this post is for you!

Without further ado, here are the 3 undeniable laws of success.

1. You Have to Show Up Daily

Part of why some people achieve the impossible whilst others look on in disbelief is because they show up every single day despite every reason not to.

Look, you’ve seen it happen time and time again. Someone who wouldn’t strike you as special comes along and does what everyone didn’t even bother attempting. You brush it off as luck and move on with life. But, guess what? It wasn’t luck! It was deliberate.

Despite all the negative thoughts and opinions surrounding a particular objective, the people who show up in an attempt to succeed are the ones who usually succeed.

You can chalk it down to pure luck or chance but the fact of the matter is that for as long as you show up each and every day, the possibility of success immediately changes from impossible to possible.

For as long as you don’t try, impossibility is a reality. This form of impossibility has nothing to do with circumstances preventing a goal or dream from being realized but from self-imposed limitations.

You can only get better at something or unlock rewards by being present. When the opportunity arises to accomplish the impossible, you’ll be the one reaping the rewards because you showed up when everyone else didn’t.

Success doesn’t chase you, you chase success.”

2. Hard Work Is Non-Negotiable

Once you show up and an opportunity arises, what do you do? Getting by on the bare minimum will only generate the bare minimum results. The best results in life require the best effort you have to give.

Are you familiar with the notorious fighter Conor McGregor? He’s the first man to hold two championships at the same time in the UFC. Not only has he accomplished something nobody else has but he’s made millions of dollars at the same time.

Many people attribute his success to luck or talent but in reality, it all boils down to hard work. If you don’t believe me, listen to what he had to say in an interview, “If you put in the work to become number 1, you will become number 1. If you put in the work to become the runner up, you will become the runner-up. I put in the work to finish first!

If a millionaire, record-breaking and double champion attributes his success to being a workhorse, shouldn’t we take that at face value and adopt his attitude to success?

What this means is that despite a lack of natural born gifts and talent, someone who is willing to work harder than anyone and everyone else has a fighting chance at being the best in the world!

Look beyond the bare minimum. When I was in high school, all I wanted to do was have fun. So, when it came time to prepare for examinations, I aimed for a passing grade. Most of my results were a reflection of my intention.

I worked for average results and I attained average results. However, when I entered University and started studying Law, things changed. A desire to achieve great results wrapped itself around me and I attempted to do something I never did before – work hard.

Rather than aim for simply passing, I set my sights on those 80 – 90% grades. I hit those grades in quite a few of my modules! The ones that weren’t in that percentage category were often in the 65 – 79% category.

I went from 50’s during my high school years to 70’s, 80’s and 90’s. This growth can be attributed to the following 4 fundamental changes:

  1. An attitude and mindset adjustment.
  2. Higher minimum requirements.
  3. Maximum effort at studying.
  4. Daily sacrifice.

I showed up every day, set ‘my minimum passing grade’ to be much higher than the average passing grade, put in the work and most importantly, I sacrificed time-wasting activities that were once fun for hard work and success.

In the end, it paid off when I was on stage accepting my Bachelor of Laws degree this past April. If there’s one thing I learned, it’s that hard work, even in the face of obstacles, can overcome all adversities in life.

3. Momentum Trumps Motivation

There will come a time in every new venture when motivation depletes and the only thing that keeps you marching forward is momentum.

Unlike fleeting emotions like motivation and inspiration, momentum relies solely on movement and/or progress.

If you’re familiar with the cumulative effect, you would know that by simply taking action over and over again, you accrue small but significant results that add up to create a big reward over time. Similarly, when you take action on a daily basis, the movement or progress you make from previous attempts carries you forward day after day.

After some time, it feels second nature to partake in the activity you’ve been consistent at. Ask anyone who has exercised for longer than 4 weeks, they can attest to the principle of momentum.

The first few days of starting an exercise regimen are physically, emotionally and mentally brutal. If you were to stop after the first day, all the soreness and cramps last for many days, even weeks. However, if you exercise the next day even though you feel sore, mid-way through the workout all of that clears up.

By the next day, you wake up feeling less sore and less exhausted. The more you do it, the stronger you become and the less noticeable is the pain and suffering.

Momentum brings about this wonderful phenomenon. Do something for long enough and the results accumulate. During this accumulation of results, the side effects reduce drastically until it’s mostly invisible.

Rather than relying on erratic emotions, engage in motion and movement to truly accrue results and success. While everyone else is waiting for the perfect moment to get started, you’ll be the one achieving your goals and dreams.

When I was tasked with studying thousand-page-long books on Law, many times I felt overwhelmed and challenged. Time was never on my side and I could never find the perfect moment to get started. I could have waited until it was too late but I quickly realized that hard work will never feel easy.

I couldn’t rely on emotions because their erratic nature left my future up in the air. The only thing that guaranteed progress was sitting down at my desk, opening those textbooks and working through one page at a time.

The more pages I worked through, the less overwhelmed I felt because progress was visible. What seemed impossible no longer did.

If I Can, So Can You

The most pivotal message you can take away from this article is that if someone with autoimmune diseases and a lack of talent can achieve his goals and succeed in his ventures, so can you. There’s no excuse for why you can’t be successful at meaningful objectives in your life.

Everyone has problems and circumstances that make achieving success difficult. You merely have to work around those circumstances and rely on brute force to achieve your greatest desires.

Excuses are for quitters. Ditch them and embrace these 3 undeniable laws of success. If you do, there’s no telling what you’ll be able to accomplish in the near future!

– About the Writer –

Zak Khan is a full-time writer and author who shares his insights on productivity, self-development and writing over at Zakwrites.com and his journey to health and wellness on Servedhealthy.com

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