Sometimes, warranties are fabulous.

Last year, I purchased this pair of Bose headphones:

I loved them dearly - until they completely went kaput today in the middle of my workout. How infuriating! I bought them for $130 at the time, and that’s way more than I am willing to pay this time around.

Luckily, when I purchased them, I also bought the extra Warranty that Future Shop was providing. This covers a lot of things that are under $200 - they will replace it within the warranty time. So, I trekked on downtown and complained about how I had to finish the stairmaster without any (good) music (okay, I didn’t, but I did whine a little, I’m sure). They quickly replaced it with a brand new package of the same pair of headphones. Relief!

Pros: They replaced it with no questions asked.

Cons: Apparently, after you fulfil a ‘replacement’ credit during your warranty time, if your item poops out on you again before your warranty is up, they will give you store credit instead. Wtf?! Didn’t I pay for 2 years? Isn’t it called a ‘Product Replacement Plan’? D’UHRRR.

Oh well, at least I have a new pair of headphones! I lost a couple of the in-ear covers during a snowfall (and mysteriously found it on the sidewalk after the snow had melted) anyways.

So with that - maybe it’s worth spending an extra $15 on a Warranty on beloved items. Oh how I love thee!

Nice gestures for (seemingly) nice people.

I’ve been on this weird kick lately to try to do nice things for random people. I’m usually a pretty reserved person and it is not in my personality to stop and talk to a stranger (or to interact with anyone that i don’t know). It’s not a snobby thing (please don’t think that!), I just assume that everyone wants to be left alone (mostly because I usually just want to be left alone).

The other day, however, I became a regular good Samaritan. Evidence:

1. Sitting on the subway going home after work, a pregnant lady came on and I quickly jumped out of my seat and let her sit. There were a ton of people around (it was rush hour) and she seemed very thankful (and very relieved). However, as I was standing amidst the mess of other hot, grumpy people, I found another standing pregnant lady and I was really disappointed in the lack of chivalry around those parts. Seriously! Let the lady sit!!

2. I went to Rogers Cup a few days ago and Rexall (a pharmacy shop) is a big sponsor. They were giving out free mini packs of tissues and they shoved a couple into my hands. Being the type to always be prepared, I gladly accepted and went on my merry way. Fast forward to a few hours later when BF & I were at mall and a poor young boy and his kid sister panicked after his sister spilled her melting ice cream all over her hands and legs. I quickly gave the little boy a package of napkins and he gratefully accepted. He was really relieved that he had something to clean up the mess. He was also equally surprised that a stranger would just give him a pack of napkins.

I did some other miscellaneous “nice” stuff - like busting in on random people’s conversations @ Rogers Cup to tell them that really great (read: Nadal) matches were over to save them from walking all the way to centre court. HEY, it’s baby steps.

All in all, it felt great while I was doing them, and a ton great after I did them. I only wish I knew if the people I helped in turn helped other people. Or you know. Stuff.

The ‘101 Things in 1001 days’ Project

I am all about changing myself for the better, so I found this interesting project that I might have to start on my own: The 101 Things in 1001 Days project.

From their website:

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year’s resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Some common goal setting tips:
1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.

2. Stay Focussed. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.

3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.

4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.

5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.

Stay tuned for my list! It will definitely take me a few days to gather my thoughts and come up with a list of great things I want to accomplish in just under 3 years.

prioritizing life.

if there was only one thing that i learned this year, it’s that in order to work toward something, you need a goal.

one example is that i’ve wanted to tone up for a while and losing the last 10 lbs is the first step - i’ve been wanting this for the past few years but i’ve just been ‘willy nilly’ going to the gym and not really setting myself a goal. i got fed up with this attempt and sat down and came up with a realistic goal - and now i’m already on my way to completing it! i am incredibly excited.

with that, i decided to have a sit-down and “real” talk with the BF this weekend to establish our goals and priorities. over mojitos and appetizers, we discovered that we both have ‘travelling’ high up on our priority list (over buying a home, getting married, etc etc). this was thrilling, so we decided to start planning on getting something in the works.

our rough plan is putting money away each pay cheque in order to cover travel expenses. this will cover plane/train tickets, accommodations and some food. it would just be up to ourselves personally to cover any additional goodies (like expensive, wonderful souvenirs - louboutin’s in france anyone?).

i am really excited - knowing that we’re both on the same page and knowing that we’re both taking an extra step towards getting what we want out of life.

i will definitely be putting this action into the rest of my life - hopefully it’ll all become less chaotic and more streamlined.

Photo courtesy of czechbyclick.com.