"Love is all that you can't leave behind"

"Time flies. Time waits for no man. Time heals all wounds. All any of us wants is more time. Time to stand up. Time to grow up. Time to let go. Time." (Grey's Anatomy, season 3, episode 1)

Yet another year flew by. Inevitably for me, there's a sense of nostalgia whenever another year comes to an end. I am never sure whether I want it to end but it is out of my hands so all I can really do is go with the flow. Smile. Drink champagne. Kiss someone at midnight. Make room for other feelings such as the anxiety and the excitement for something new...a new year, a new start. When I was a high school teenager and a college student afterward, the nostalgia was mixed with the feeling of being utterly annoyed by the fact that the holidays were ending, school was about to start, and more exams were knocking at my door. I can't say that I loved being in school back then, even though I always had good grades. I am now grateful and glad that I stuck with it but back then all I wanted was to be free and sometimes school felt as a form of confinement and not challenging enough to keep me interested. I wanted to experience life, travel the world, meet new people, listen to music, hang out with friends, read books, go to the beach and be a free spirit. I enjoyed learning about the stuff that I liked and was interested in. The rest, I'd just wing it. Not to brag, but I'm kind of smart :P - luckily I used to be able to go through the course material of an entire semester in just two or three days right before the exam and because it was about stuff that I really didn't like, I was just happy to get it done and put it behind me.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Little Things That Count - The Weekly Roundup December 23

Music: Eminem - Not Afraid. WHY? I am not necessarily an Eminem fan, but when this song came up on TV this morning - even though I had already listened to it a thousand times this year, as it's been heavily rotated and you couldn't really avoided if you tried - I found myself just sitting there on the couch thinking that, not only it's a good Eminem song (Lose Yourself is still arguably his best song and his most successful single to date), but this guy has somehow managed to rise from his own ashes yet again. He released a new album in 2010 - appropriately called "Recovery" - to huge commercial success and it's well deserved: it's a good record. Does the world really love Eminem so much? Yes. His fan base has been incredibly loyal throughout the years and all it takes is one good song and he's back to being ubiquitous. After all, this is what being a real fan means: sticking by your favorite artist despite all the ups and downs. And Eminem has had his own share of downs, culminating with prescription drugs/alcohol dependence and contemplating suicide. Read more about his struggle to stay alive, get sober and return to top of the charts in Eminem: The Billboard Cover Story. To summarize here's why this is my song choice for this week:

Little Things That Count - The Weekly Roundup December 13

Music: Tinie Tempah feat. Eric Turner - Written in the Stars. Britain's biggest breakthrough act of 2010, Tinie Tempah released this little number at the end of September, but it's still rocking 3 months later. If possible, please ignore the awfully cheesy single cover.

Movie: Going back to classics this week. Scent of a Woman starring the beloved Al Pacino is a great movie, in case you haven't seen it. Al Pacino's outstanding performance won him an Academy Award in 1993 and, as strange as it may be, it is the only Oscar Pacino ever won.


Food/Dessert: The Holidays are here and I believe in desserts. I'm also a firm believer that, while money can't buy you happiness, it sure can buy you dessert. I also think that happiness comes in many forms, one of which is dessert. So there you go. Money can buy you portions of yummy happiness. And isn't happiness supposed to taste sweet anyway? Everybody loves chocolate cake...well, almost everybody. A classic one to try is the Devil's Food Cake or if you want something a bit different, here's an equally tempting Chocolate Panna Cotta Layer Cake. If you're a peppermint fan, you can go for a festive Peppermint Meringue Cake with Chocolate Buttercream or, if you love the chocolate-orange combination, an Orange-Scented Bittersweet Chocolate Cake might be up your alley.

Random post: 15 things House-related

1. House is one of the best TV characters ever created.

2. House can be a jerk. A jerk who saves lives, how about that?

3. All hospital admins should look like Lisa Cuddy.

4. Lisa Cuddy is hot.

5. House is hot.

6. Hugh Laurie has never won an Emmy Award for his portrayal of House. What is wrong with you people? Just give him the darn thing, he deserves it.

7. If it looks like lupus, double check. Triple check. It's (almost) never lupus.

8.  If I ever have to choose, I'd rather have a jerkenius (jerk + genius = jerkenius) doctor treat me and not give up until he figures out what's wrong with me, even if solely for his own pleasure of solving the puzzle. I don't want someone who holds my hand while telling me :"I'm sorry, there is nothing more we can do".

9. Some people take a crap load of pills that they don't really need.

10. Sticking a thermometer up a policeman's butt may get you in a lot of trouble.

11. Lars Ulrich is the best drummer ever. House said so and I happen to agree.

12. House is not just a character. He is a way of life. You either get him or you don't.

13. House is a genius.

14. Genius does have side effects.

15. Everybody lies. Ain't that the truth?

Little Things That Count - The Weekly Roundup December 6

Music: Adele - Rolling in the Deep. It has been playing obsessively in my mind since I first heard it a short while ago and it is going to do the same on UK radio and TV. This is the first single taken from "21", the upcoming album by the very talented British singer Adele.

Food/Dessert: Tyropites rocked my week. They are Greek Cheese Pies with phyllo dough. You can also use spinach and they become Spanakopita. They freeze well, are easy to pack and take with you for a lunch snack on those hectic days. As far as dessert goes, brownies are always a yay for me.