If you’ve wooed your partner with a fantastic first date, you’re going to have to keep that creativity going to show them it wasn’t just a fluke that you chose such a fun activity. Or, perhaps you’re in a relationship that seems to be getting a bit stale. Many couples will often get stuck in the rut of doing the same thing every time they get together, and it can start to feel boring or suffocating even. Adding some spice to your love-life is important.
Whether you’re looking to impress a new person you’re dating, or put some excitement into a relationship that you’ve been in for a while, these fun date ideas are sure to please.
1. Volunteer
Use your time together to serve up food at your local soup kitchen. It will be a new experience and you’re helping your community at the same time.
2. Take a tour
Most cities have some sort of factory, whether it’s a brewery, a button factory or maybe a cookie factory. And – most factories offer free or low-cost tours. It’s like watching “How it’s Made” in person.
3. Be a tourist
If you’re like most people, there are tourist attractions in your very own city that you’ve never bothered to go see. Grab your camera and fanny pack and go see the sites in your own town.
4. Go to an arcade
Arcades are fun, but you’ve likely forgotten about them since you were just a young teen. Grab some tokens and take to some friendly competition in a computerized motorcycle race.
5. Batting cages or driving range
Both of these places can show off your skills (or lack thereof) but you’ll have fun doing your best. Make a friendly wager that the person who does the worst has to buy the ice cream afterwards.
6. Adrenaline junkies
If you’re both adventurous, try going bungee jumping or sky diving. The adrenaline rush will bring you guys closer together and you’ll have something to talk about for a long while after.
7. Have a picnic
It’s a simple idea that often gets overlooked. Take a packed lunch and go down to a nice park or find a lake where you can watch the ducks and enjoy the outdoors.
8. Theater
The theater allows you to get dressed up which is a fun element, and unlike a movie – you get an intermission which allows you to chat about what you’re seeing.
9. Karaoke bar
Break out in your favorite ballad together, and then sit back and pretend to be judges on a reality show. You’ll definitely have a few laughs.
10. Museum or art gallery
Going to an Art Gallery or Museum takes some of the pressure off of coming up with conversation, because you have so much to look at and comment on.
11. Watch a little league game
If you’re not close to a Major League sports team, don’t worry about it. Grab some coffee or ice cream and head down to the nearest park that holds little league games. You might be surprised at how much fun they are to watch.
12. Themed restaurants
Going out to dinner can get old, unless you go to a themed restaurant. There are many restaurants that include some type of show or audience interaction to add some spice to a normal dinner out.
13. Go to an art class
There are many one-hour classes that you can sign up for that don’t cost much. Try a ceramics or painting class. And you’ll have a souvenir you can bring home too.
14. Planetarium
It’s dark and cozy, and you can keep the romance going when you leave by finding a nice place in an open area to lay a blanket and try to find the stars you just learned about.
15. See a psychic
If you’re daring enough, find a local psychic and have your palms read or your fortunes told, then compare your future life paths.
Posted in Love / Romance
Every Saturday morning, I jog with my chatty friend Maria. It’s great to be with someone very talkative and bubbly; you get to enjoy the company without realizing how many laps you have wrapped up. But last Saturday, I was a bit surprised because my usual gabby jog- mate is not in her usual self, she was surprisingly silent. After a few lapses, we took a rest and she opened – up. “Jake, called me last night. Said he wants us to cool-off for awhile. He said he needs time and space to think. We all know, Ruth that it’s just men’s polite way of saying ‘We need to break-up.’ That was the third time I heard the ‘It’s- not- you- its-me’ excuse…
Men always break-up with me. I don’t know what I’ve done wrong!” Needless to say, I comforted her and gave her some practical advice on how to get over a break up. I also gave her some pointers on why men break-up with women. With all fairness to the male species, it’s not always them or what they did cause the break-up. What I am about to share are the most common and consistent answers when asked why some/men decide to split up and get moving. One of the reasons why men initiate the break-up is because their partner is not listening. Men always want someone who understands them. I think we all want that in a relationship.
That’s why; if you want to keep your man, listen to him if he needs you to. He may not always be right but make him feel that what he says matters. Another cause is that some women allow their girl-buddies get in the way of the relationship. It’s not difficult for a man to understand the tightness of a female bonding but if you constantly put your man aside over your girl friends then don’t be surprised if he leaves you a break-up message in your answering machine. One more cause is if you treat your relationship like an open circus to your friends and family.
There are certain things that you need to share with your friends and family but there are those that you need to keep between the two of you. If you go yak every fight to your circle then things are bound to get more complicated. Furthermore, being too possessive and too clingy can be a major cause of a break-up. You have to remember that you are his partner not his parole officer. In some cases, too much independence can drive a man away. Call it male ego or insecurity, but if you habitually make your man feel that you can do everything on your own, he gets to think why else do you need him around for? Sounds lame but yes, his ego needs constant feeding.
Another reason why men break up is when there is no bone of encouragement in your body. I don’t mean that you treat him like a first grader but saying something nice and encouraging when he feels down helps a lot. Lastly, men call it quits because there is no growth in the relationship. You have to remember that people do make mistakes but what matters is, we should learn from those mistakes not live by them. It really helps a lot if you let go of your own issues and see the real person in your partner. Sometimes if you are too consumed by your own standards and expectations you will fail to see that the person you have always wanted is right there in front of you.
Posted in Love / Romance
With all the parties going on here and there, there is no other perfect opportunity to meet your perfect man than this holiday season. And if one of your goal this year is to be with your perfect man, then you better start strutting your stuff, because the year is about to end. If you don’t know where to start looking, then here are some ideas to get you blasting off to world of romance. Here are some great ways on how to find the perfect man.
There are a hundred ways to meet your perfect man, and you can have all the information and great ideas in “Wanted: Mr. Right,” but these ideas are useless, unless you make that decision to go out there! So don’t pass up the chance to be with your perfect man before the year ends. Go and get out there and be in love.
Posted in Love / Romance
For most of us, unconditional love is a difficult – if not impossible – concept to grasp. In an egocentric world bogged down with terms and conditions, the idea of loving someone unconditionally is akin to inviting a thief to one’s house and giving him a set of keys – pure trouble. Stipulations govern most aspects of our lives – employees are sworn to uphold a code of work ethics or risk discharge; students are required to follow school policies or hazard expulsion; churchgoers are expected to abide by the church set of laws or run the risk of banishment.
Our personal relationships are not spared from such onslaught-prenuptial agreements doom a marriage before it has even begun, and marriage itself is regarded as a contract to which husband and wife are bound for life. Burdened by all these requisites, it is no wonder that the majority scoff at the notion of loving completely.
But just what is the meaning of unconditional love? How do we practice it and not lose our sense of selves? Unconditional love is comparable the adoration existing between lovers. But while the latter is usually confined to feelings that are romantic in nature, the former encompasses all kinds-religious, familial or storge, philia as present between friends, and self-love.
Of all these, the unqualified love of self takes primacy for one can not even begin to care for another without first caring for himself. Crucial to the idea of unconditional love is the absence of stipulations- its existence does not depend on a condition being met, a task being accomplished, or an order being obeyed.
One superior example is parental love. A child may vacillate between loving and hating his parent as he goes through life, but a parent’s feelings for the child never wavers. A mother does not love the child for being good and she does not stop loving the child when he misbehaves.
Loving unconditionally also means loving freely, without expectations of reciprocity. It is thinking of another’s happiness without regard for what one might get for oneself in return. A person who loves unconditionally loves because he feels so, regardless of whether the feeling is reciprocated or not. This may sound masochistic, but the very essence of unconditional love is that it is an act of feelings apart from will.
One can not say that he has loved unconditionally if the affection given is dependent on being loved in return. Unconditional love is inexhaustible. It forgives and forgets transgressions, without holding grudges. Loving someone unconditionally implies separating the individual from his conduct and beliefs, and accepting the person for who he is.
There are instances, however, when a loved one’s behavior becomes unhealthy as in the case of alcoholism, drug abuse or domestic violence. This is when unconditional love of self takes precedence and a person would be wise to distance himself from such violent behavior. But perhaps the most defining characteristic of unconditional love is that it is unrestrictive.
It means giving others freedom to pursue their own happiness for their own good. A parent who loves absolutely will let go of the child’s hand so he learns to find his own way in life. Similarly, one who loves wholeheartedly will not stand in the way of the lover whose happiness lies elsewhere.
As we can see, unconditional love is a state of being and feeling, independent of the actions of the loved one. It is devoid of stipulations, expectations, and limitations. Loving unconditionally maybe the hardest thing we can do, but it is also the most rewarding. As the saying goes, what you give comes back to you many times over.
Love unreservedly and you will be loved back the same way. And that is the essence of happiness.
Posted in Love / Romance
It is human nature to crave for companionship, so it’s no surprise when most singles dream of being in a relationship. Of course there are some who have a profound fear of commitment and stay with a partner for only a few months or years. But what most singles really dream of is meeting the one person whom they can be with for a lifetime of love.
Even those who are already in a relationship, albeit a chaotic one, still hope for the best and make every effort to spend their whole lives with their partner or spouse. Divorce rates may be high, but a lot of people want to avoid breaking up as much as possible, and so do their best to find a way to work out each other’s difficulties in order to have a lasting love.
Yet most people think that a lifetime relationship is distant and passionless; the scenario is always an old couple living under the same roof, barely talking to each other and having separate sleeping quarters. While this situation happens quite often, it doesn’t mean that all relationships will take this road.
There is always a way to have a lasting love filled with passion, but the road is never easy and requires tremendous courage and determination. Here are some important insights of what it takes to have a lifetime of love: Most couples tend to think that a relationship is ok when they are always happy and comfortable.
However, when difficulties arise and result in conflicts, they think that they are with the wrong person because they are at odds. It is unfortunate that some people think this way, because the truth is, conflicts and difficulties are a normal aspect of any relationship. Locking horns with a partner doesn’t mean that you are wrong for each other-it only means that the relationship is going on a deeper level and problems can actually teach a lot of valuable life lessons.
Sometimes it is easier to shut up and avoid having a fight with a partner than to say what one truly feels. But, looking the other way when we get hurt or don’t like what’s going on can actually be more detrimental in the end. Suppressed feelings of anger and hurt can fester and eventually cause resentments.
This, in turn, can cause friction between couples and more often than not, creates a bigger and deeper conflict when the feelings finally blow over. Speak up when you have to and learn to deal with your feelings right away-unless you want ill feelings to slowly work its way into your relationship and cause irreparable damage.
Being in a relationship and loving a person makes one a part of a whole-two people are united and become one in love. However, it is not right to cease being your own person when in a relationship. A couple is composed of two persons, and they are two individuals with their own hobbies, friends, wants, needs, ideas, dreams and ambitions.
When you love another, it is right to take part and try to love the things that matter to that person. Harmony is not achieved by being a clone of one’s partner—if he/she loves classical music, it doesn’t mean that you have to throw away your extensive CD collection of rock music! Harmony and lasting love is achieved by the meeting of both yours and your partners’ world, all the while enriching each other to become a better individual.
Posted in Love / Romance
