I did some researches.

Now it appears to me that I got knocked out by a sleeping pill or something after all. That’s probably why I don’t remember anything about getting more than $1000 stolen from my bank account. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, read my previous post. (It’s long. The relevant section is towards the end if you want to skip the first bits.)

This might sound insane, but this whole thing makes me curious about what happened to me and how the criminals got the money out of me. There’s a part of me that hopes they threatened me, because that would give me an explanation as to why they managed to get the pin number for my cash card. Also, if that was the case, I could be grateful that I wasn’t kidnapped or murdered.

In fact, I’m grateful that I wasn’t kidnapped or murdered. I’m grateful that what they took from me was only my money and nothing else.

Financially, I feel like I fell down to the bottom of a pit. I could interpret this situation, roughly, in two ways.

1. Oh my god, what am I going to do, it’s the end of the world. There’s nothing I can do about it.
2. Wow, this is a great opportunity, because there’s no more falling down and I can only rise up!

I choose #2, with the spirit of no worries.

I want to become able to say, later on, that this experience of getting scammed/robbed was the best thing that happened to me. Not that I want to experience it again, but I will use it as a leverage and a motivator.

Knocked down 7 times? Get up 8 times.

There may be a lot of negative things around you, but at the same time, there are a lot of positive things as well. Today is the best day to be grateful for what’s around you. Not yesterday, not tomorrow, but today, and right now.

I thought it would be a good idea to write about things I’m grateful for. Then I remembered James Altucher wrote a post about being grateful. In that post, James talks about going on a grateful diet, which is to “be grateful non-stop for the next 21 days” by being “grateful for every object, person, thought, situation, that enters your mind”.

I will be on a grateful diet from today, and I invite you to join with me. Read James’s post and you can start working on your grateful diet right now. If you choose to do it, let’s start today. There’s no reason why you should put it forward. Also, do let me know if you are going to be on a grateful diet. I want to hear from you about your experiences.

On that note, here’s 23 things I’m grateful for. (23 things, because today is May 23. No deep meaning behind the number.)

1. I’m alive!
2. I have so many supportive friends.
3. I lost money, but I didn’t lose my other precious items like my passport.
4. I had a great training session at ATOS Philippines and they are very friendly and technical.
5. The guest house I’m staying at now (Red Carabao) gives us bread for free for breakfast.
6. I can get instant coffee for free at the above mentioned guest house.
7. MacBook Air is such a great computer and I’m grateful for Steve Jobs and Apple.
8. I’m grateful for my mother for giving me some emergency money.
9. I’m grateful for this speech by Neil Gaiman that I watched earlier today.
10. I was actually inspired to write about things I’m grateful for after watching this video of Lady Gaga. Yes. Lady Gaga. I’m grateful for her.
11. Writing this list makes me smile… I’m grateful for that.
12. As I write this, I’m listening to my favorite band FC Five. Their music cheers me up and I’m grateful for that.
13. A couple staying at this guest house bought me dinner yesterday. I’m grateful for them.
14. I’m grateful for being able to do what I’m doing right now.
15. I’m grateful for The Ars Amorata, because it taught me the importance of ease and delight.
16. I’m fit and healthy and have access to food and shelter. I’m grateful for that.
17. I found a great Couch Surfing host in Saigon. I’m grateful for Couch Surfing and that host who accepted my couch request.
18. I’m grateful for everyone who influenced me one way or another and made me who I am today.
19. I’m grateful for the fact that I can come up with things I’m grateful.
20. I’m grateful that someone is reading this (yes, you).
21. I’m grateful for Skype, because it makes it so easy to contact people in other countries.
22. I’m grateful that I can make my own choices.
23. I’m grateful that today is a nice, sunny day.

If you are feeling shit, try going on a grateful diet. If you are already feeling grateful, try going on a grateful diet anyway. If you want to change yourself for the better, try going on a grateful diet. In short: let’s do it. Join me and we will be much, much more grateful for the moments we are living now.

(Again, James Altucher’s post is here. Read it and learn how to be grateful for things around you.)