Here's Some Library Etiquette

by Daniel Chiam

I am writing this post from inside the library of University Malaysia Sabah. Initially I was doing my work, when all of a sudden this group of student sitting two table away from me starting to talk loudly when some of their friends joined them.

This group of students talks loudly in the library of University Malaysia Sabah

I don't know about you but library etiquette was something that was taught or made known to me at a very young age. Unless you NEVER visited any library before, you will not know what the rules are then, but I believe even before you step into a library, there will be a few signs that will let you know how to behave inside a library.

Apparently these bunch of students are either being ignorance or just plain inconsiderate. So because of that, I will be sharing with you some of the basic library etiquette that you MUST remember when in a library.

01. KEEP YOUR VOICE DOWN

It's a freakin' library and not a night market for you to hard sell some of your cheap stuff. If you want to share your life stories with your friends or have a group discussion then I suggest you find another place where you can freely and audibly express yourself. In a library keep your voice at 0, and 1 when talking.

02. PLACE BACK THE BOOK(S) THAT YOU TOOK

Just DON'T BE LAZY! If you took a book to be use, please please please put it back to where you found the book at first. Someone might be looking for the same book and because of your laziness, they can't find that book at it's section. Don't make it hard for others, be considerate.

03. DO NOT EAT or DRINK

Mainly for cleanliness purposes, please don't create the opportunity for the place to be dirty and also the books to be stained by your food and drink. I don't wish to have any ants or cockroaches to run around while I'm trying to get my work done or reading a book that smells like freakin' KFC.

Those are the very basic library etiquette that you must know when using the library. Just remember that the library is not your personal room or a private lounge for you and your friends to hangout. There are many others who are using the library for the peace and quite that it provides to get some work done. So please, be a considerate user and don't be a distraction to others.

Do you have any experience where some bugger(s) is just so annoying in the library? What did you do when bugger(s) like that is around? Share it down at the comment box below.

Photo source 1, 2

"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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Meditating for Better Skin

by Marcela De Vivo

Meditation is practiced worldwide as an excellent way to reduce stress and improve mental and physical health. Did you know, however, that meditation can also help improve your appearance?

When practiced properly and consistently, meditation is one of the few natural ways to improve the quality and tone of your skin, and even combat any number of skin ailments, ranging from acne to rosacea to premature wrinkling.

How stress affects your skin

The body responds to duress by releasing cortisol, a stress hormone. Cortisol, while necessary in small quantities to help you deal with “fight or flight” situations, is not meant to be sustained at high levels for prolonged periods of time. Continued production of cortisol can result in a variety of negative health issues including fat gain around the visceral organs, blood sugar imbalance, decreased bone density, higher blood pressure and of course, skin problems. 

Cortisol can result in an increase in oil production, which can lead to acne and acne-related problems.

Additionally, when cortisol is released by the body, sugar levels in our bloodstream go up. Increased blood sugar promotes glycation in our skin, which damages collagen. Damage to collagen can lead to more lines and wrinkles.

As soon as cortisol is released by the body, sugar levels in the blood increase. We know that sugar spikes are especially bad for diabetics, but increased blood sugar also promotes a process called glycation in our skin which damages the collagen. Collagen is what makes your skin both firm and pliable. The breakdown of collagen leads to fine lines and eventually wrinkles.

Cortisol acts to dehydrate the skin by decreasing your skin’s production of hyaluronic acid, a natural moisturizer for the skin. And it compromises the skin’s barrier, which allows hydration to evaporate instead of staying in the skin.

Another byproduct of stress that works negatively on the skin is adrenaline, which decreases blood flow to your skin and leads to a pale, wan complexion.

Image courtesy of marin / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Better skin through meditation

Research has shown that meditation is a powerful stress-reliever. When you meditate, you slow your heart rate and produce less cortisol even as your immune functions improve. While difficult to adjust to initially, a consistent practitioner of meditation reaps myriad mental and physical benefits, including reduced stress responses and improved immunity to stress.

Reduction in stress naturally leads to reduction of stress hormones like cortisol, which allows your skin to continue to regenerate normally .

People have found that after consistent meditation, they see fewer lines and wrinkles, improvement in acne, fewer dark circles or bags under the eyes (due in part to improved quality of sleep that comes with meditation), and a healthy glow.

Note: For maximum benefits to your skin, do not shower immediately after meditation. Some studies have suggested that chemicals produced during meditation can be beneficial to the skin. Showering would not only wash off those beneficial chemicals, but also produce a shock to the nervous system, increasing the stress response which is the opposite of the intended goal. If you must shower post-meditation, try to wait at least half an hour to an hour. Ideally, avoid any kind of water exposure or submersion post-meditation.

Other health benefits of meditation

Reduction in stress levels and improved skin quality are not the only benefits experienced by practitioners. Most people report increased energy, better quality sleep, improved personal awareness and mindfulness, improved response to stress, healthier circulation, and a stronger immune system.

While meditation can help your skin, remember that you must support your efforts to de-stress and improve your overall health to maintain the progress you see. Pay attention to the kind of food you are eating; make sure you drink plenty of water. By taking a complete approach to your health and incorporating meditation, your skin is sure to glow.

Photo source: 1

Marcela De Vivo is a freelance writer in the Los Angeles area. Her writing has covered everything from marketing, technology and health. She currently maintains a beauty blog. 



"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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Top 10 Men's Fashion... You Just Don't Get It

by Max Law from MaxMayo.com

We understand that not all fashion are meant to be worn on the street, but there are times when even the fashion lovers can't get what the designers are trying to express in their works.

Art and beauty is a subjective field, but when 9 out of 10 fashion lovers gave the same response on a work, you'll know that the response won't go wrong. Here are the Top 10 Most Popular Men's Fashion that fashion lovers just can't appreciate:

1. The Origami

2. Mankini

NSFW so please don't search for this word if you're in office. :)

3. Monster Shoulders

4. Big Knit

5. Men Tube Top

6. Something like 1-piece skirt

7. Garbage Monster

8. The Transformer

9. The Seeing-My-Dentist

10. Carbon/ Driftwood

Hope you enjoy the pictures. Haha!

Photo source: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9


Regards,
Max Law
Menswear Fashion Blogger

Checkout Max at MaxMayo.com and follow him on twitter @maxmayo for more updates and fashion tips!

"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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Do I Really Need It or I Just Want It Badly?

by Anwarul Amirah Bt Zulkifli

Whenever we pass the toys or candies aisle, we would probably see a kid throwing a tantrum because they want something from the shelf. May it be a new cool toy being constantly advertised on tv or just a colorful-eye-catching-wrapped candy.  Don’t deny it. We were once that kid once upon a time and hey- may still be like that deep in our conscience. How is that, you may ask? Well.. Just like our child-self, we have a blurry and vague concept of what we want and need.

We justify the things we purchase as something we dying-ly need. Like that new-in-fashion tops or shoes. We’ll say things like, “I REALLY need this” when in actual fact, we have tons of clothes in our closet. Or another scenario, suddenly feeling this relenting guilt after buying something. Does that sound familiar?

What we need to do first when we face this ‘wants vs needs’ situation is ask ourselves, ‘Is it something I need?’ or ‘Is it something I would like to have?’. When you have that answered, further ask yourself, ‘What is the purpose of it?’, ‘Is it really necessary?’ and ‘Can I afford it?’. For instance, you need your own transport to commute to work. You have a choice of a fuel sufficient car with a low monthly commitment and another smokin’ hot car which probably will hurt your wallet. What you need would be the first choice and what you want would be the latter. This goes for almost everything. 

Always jot down the pros and cons of each choice. Measure what is the best option, then, wallah!, there’s your answer! Although, I’m not saying that wanting to have what you want is a crime. But it won’t hurt to be more alert of what you purchase and for what reasons. Not only that, save a few bucks for those rainy days you may encounter some time down the road. I do advise you to reward yourself by getting something you want once a month or so for being such a good spender.

Image source: 1

"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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The Return of Paramore 2013 Live in Kuala Lumpur was a BLAST!

by Daniel Chiam

A special thanks to Kastumized.com for the custom tee. Love it!

Paramore returned to Malaysia for the second time after their first concert in Malaysia back in 2010. This time in a much smaller stadium compared to last time but the crowd was bigger and better than before! The opening act was by the band mewithoutYou who apparently is Hayley's favorite band since 10 years ago.

mewithoutYou brought something new to the Malaysian stage with their spoken-word vocals and free-ranging drums, bass, and guitar. Tho very new to most of the crowd, but the crowd still managed to sing along with some of the tunes, claps and cheered for the band. The part that got the crowd excited was when Hayley suddenly appeared from behind and started to sing together on one of the band's song.

mewithoutYou and Hayley on stage

It wasn't Paramore's turn yet! The stage was later being rearrange again after mewithYou had finished their performances. Having seen Paramore's previous show, I know they will need much more space on the stage for the band members to move around, especially Hayley. She was so energetic and hyper active during her last visit and I'm expecting nothing less this time.

There was no dramatic intro for Paramore this time. The light went out and boom... with the first hit of the drum, lights on and there they are, Paramore taking over the center stage and the crowd goes wild. Everyone was shouting all out for Hayley. Paramore's first song was from their newly released single - NOW. Lights flashes, crowd was jumping, sing along and it was such a beautiful scene to be able to be apart of.

Paramore opening song - NOW

I remembered 3 years ago I was standing way up there in the cheap seat looking down on the people who gets to go crazy in front of the stage, wishing I could be there too to get the real feeling of the concert and this time, thanks to Livescape Asia and Gush Ad for the 2 free passes to be at the rock zone! I get to see the band nearer than last time, yeah!

It was really surreal to be able to be so near where I could see and listen clearer. Hayley is really beautiful (and sexy too) and I like her red hair a lot! She keeps running all over the stage and headbanging! Jeremy and Taylor did the acrobatic act again this time! Their energy on stage keeps fueling the crowd to rock even harder! 

Listening to songs like 'Decode', 'Ignorance', 'Playing God', 'The Only Exception', 'Brick by Boring Brick' (from the album Brand New Eyes) being sing live, and be able to party hard and rock hard with other fans, it was just an awesome experience.

Paramore also performed all the songs from their Singles Club - 'Monster', 'Renegade', 'In The Mourning' and 'Hello Cold World'. Hayley even praised the Malaysian crowd for being able to sing along all the songs better and louder than the previous countries that they toured. It was a compliment not to be missed out in this post xD

I was hoping to be able to listen to some of their new songs from their upcoming self-titled album that is going to be launched by this April 2013, but that didn't happened. This time, Hayley really took the time to thank the Paramore's fans. All the tough time that Paramore had gone through this past 2 years, and the reason Paramore is still going strong is because of the continuous support from the fans. Keep on making great rock music Paramore! I love you Hayley!

Look at the awesome crowd behind!

Only a few songs from the album All We Know Is Falling and Riot! were performed that night. 'Careful', 'That's What You Get', 'Pressure', and 'Misery Business' for the ending and it totally rocks my socks off! It is my all time favorite from Paramore! It was seriously awesome to be able to listen to it live in a much hype up environment. I can't help it but feel really happy that moment xD

Hayley headbanging!

Like last time, Hayley will choose someone from the crowd to go up the stage and share the stage with the band to end the night. This time, it was lucky Lucy - the girl in the green stripes. Hayley asked her "do you know the song better than I do?", Lucy said "yes", crowd cheered! When it's really the time to rock on the stage, indeed Lucy made Malaysia proud. She rocks the song like nobody business, owned the stage and even swirl and twirl like how Hayley did it... freaking awesome rock chick! Didn't manage to get a picture or video of that cause phone's battery was running really low (don't you just hate it when that happened?).

Oh yeah, did I mentioned after the song, Lucy took out her camera and selca with Hayley and then she ran to Jeremy (or was it Taylor?) and took another selca with him. The most interesting part is that Lucy stayed for too long on stage that she needed to be escort off the stage to the backstage along with PARAMORE! Omigosh, she get to spend some personal time with the band backstage and I want that too!

It was really a great night spent with all the rock fans in Malaysia. Can't wait for Paramore to come back again next time. Hopefully by that time, I'll be qualified enough to be the one who is taking awesome pictures of the band.

"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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