The Art of Writing: The Love Letter

     We have been waiting with great anticipation for this post, after a long wait, it's here! That's right, the love letter. This is the hardest to write about as it is the most heart felt, and for most guys, it's hard for us to put how we feel into words. Well, most of us, there are some who can put their thoughts and feelings into words.

     The original article that inspired this is from Art of Manliness

     While we could cheep out and say, read this, they already did the work, and they're bigger/better than us, but no, we're going to write this! Now there are two questions, why and how? First the why. They are tangible, they are real, you can hold onto them. Emails just don't have the same specialness as a letter. When you give the letter to your girlfriend, or if you're lucky, your wife, they hold onto it forever, or at least they should. But anyways, it should be special.

     You can never tell the girl (or woman) to many times that you love them. The love letter allows you to express yourself differently than what you express yourself on your normal day to day basis. It give you a chance to show your more romantic side. They'll never get tired hearing how beautiful they are and how much you love them, that you love just as much, if not more than when you first met.

     Now, what do you write in a love letter? This is where guys generally have a hard time.
First, let them know the reason for the letter, this will help you keep on track. Recall a great memory the two of you have shared, either recently or a long time ago. Now you can use this to transition to write about the things you love about her, whether it be her personality, her talents, or her looks. Next, let her know how much she means to you and how much she has changed you into a better person. Try to avoid the cheesy "You complete me" line, sure if you want to use it go ahead, but try using your own words. And last, ready for the close with reaffirm how much you love her and that you are committed to loving her and caring for her.

     It's ok to get a little side tracked here and there as it makes the letter authentic, and she can tell that the letter came from your heart, some fun things to add onto the letter is to have a little bit of your cologne on it. I know that as a guy the first love letter I received from my girlfriend I cherished it very much and smelling the perfume she put on the letter. As it is I have the letter close by right now as I am writing this. Another fun thing to do is to seal the letter with wax, this can be a little more expensive and difficult as finding wax seals and sealing wax is hard to find these days, but some tips for some improv is to use something that can make some sort of seal that your girlfriend or wife would recognize is from you, as for the wax, you can use a candle's wax. Just light the candle and melt some of the wax, when you have enough, carefully pour some out over the part of the envelope that is licked, then use your seal.

     Actually, while I was writing this article, I came across another dealing with wax seals and I thought that it would be perfect to include in this article. How to Make a Wax Seal

     Well, now that the big one is out of the way the next and last part of the Art of Writing series will becoming shortly, and that is on story writing. But that will be another day, another post, another Guru. Cheerio!

The Art of Writing: The Journal Entry

     Hello again everyone! I'm honestly and pleasantly surprised as to how well this blog is going on it's own. While I'm not able to write every week, just seeing how many visits is encouraging me to keep up on this! The more you gentlemen and ladies get involved here just makes my day! Anyways, to get to business. This next post is the third part of the Art of Writing: The Journal Entry.

     The Journal Entry in many regards is actually the easiest to write as it is the least formal. However it can also be the most challenging as usually you want to make it something that you do daily. But do not let that get you down if you miss a day, just make up for it on the next day. Now you may be asking, "Why should I keep a journal? Isn't that for girls?" Oh, how much we all need this post right now, myself included.

     The reason why you should keep a journal is, most obvious, to chronicle the events of your life. But you can use it for more than that, your journal could be used in a way that you can always carry it with you, and you can write down your thoughts throughout the day. You can also save it for the end of the day and write down everything at once as if giving someone a report of your activities that day. Probably a mixture of the two is best however, as it can bring your journal to life when read not only by yourself but by others. Now you're probably thinking, "People are reading my journal?!" Well no if you don't want them too, but they probably will if/when you pass away. But anyways...

     Now we here at the Gentleman Guru are here to give a few tips on what to look for in a suitable journal book contestant. You will want either something small enough to carry in a pocket to a book about 5''x7''. You can get a spiral bound notebook if you're poor, but you can save up a little and then get a leather bound notebook, which is much more classy. Thankfully they are surprisingly not too expensive and you can get them at most stores. Now if you don't like the selection, you can find a Barns and Noble bookstore and find a good selection there. The last factor to look for is of personal choice, do you want your notebook bound to the cover, or do you want it "disposable?" Now when we say disposable, we don't mean, "That was a horrible journal entry, I must throw it away!" What we do mean is that the banded paper can be slid out of the cover and have a new band placed in, either way the price is about the same.
     As a side note, if you enjoy reading this blog, leave a comment, send an email, share on Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Google Plus, Pinterest, or where ever you go for your socializing. Feel free to also ask for requests on future articles to write about. The next post will be the dreaded *cough cough* love letter. Actually, we're looking forward to writing this one,and we hope that all of you will be waiting with great anticipation as well! But that will be another day, another post, another Guru. Cheerio!

Update From the Guru

A thousand pardons from the past few weeks of absence. Things have been busy as college is at midterms, which is when there are many projects going around and all the teachers think that their class(es) are the most important. Anyways, in the next week their may be some photos and a shout out to another project from the creators of The Gentleman Guru. As for the shout out, that will be in a further post.

Sticking to the cause of the post, further on the update we have been getting beyond the basics of web designing, so we are currently working on making an actual web site, not just being here on blogger. When we make our transition, we'll have more options of what to have on the web site, so we are fairly excited about this. However it could be a bit of a wait before you will get to see this.

Our next post will be a continuation on the Art of Writing. Cheerio!

The Art of Writing: The Thank You Card

      The next few posts will be continuing on the theme from the previous post "Writing Art." It was left vague because there are different ways to write given the context of the reason why you are writing.

Article of Inspiration: Write a Love letter-by The Art of Manliness

      To begin, a Thank You card should be written whenever there was a favor done for you or when you received any sort of gift, it shows that you really appreciated their action of generosity. Things to include into your Thank You card is, their name, the item or action received, and a small bit describing how you appreciate the item or action they did.

      Another factor to keep in mind is how soon you write the card the better, as it is fresh on your mind and your appreciation it at its greatest. Another item to keep in mind is who is receiving the Thank You card. If it is to a woman, you can have an increased liberty to choose a card to send. You can have the design to be simple, elegant, or flowery. As for a male recipient, it's better to stick with a basic design. Either way though, you show how much you appreciated what the person did for you.

     One nice thing about a Thank You card is that it is rather simple to write as it does not need to be long, but actually should be kept short and to the point. After all, you are simply thanking someone for what they did for you. As said before, have the card hand written, it adds to show that you took some time to think of them. Our next part will be on writing a good journal entry. But that will be another  day, another post, another Guru. Cheerio!

The Art of Writing

Handwritten Letter

      So many of us have lost or forgotten the importance of writing. When we say writing we mean getting out a pen and paper and just sitting down and writing. Whether it be a love letter, a good story, a journal entry, or just a note. Most of us in todays technical age will stick with our computers and smart phones if we want to record something. But there is always this timeless quality to something written on paper. Which is the topic of this weeks Guru Guidance.

      Today we will not be covering any specific style of writing, but covering some of the basics of good writing. As we said earlier you will want pen and paper. You may want something to drink as you could be a little longer than you might realize. You will want to put personality and thought into your writing, even in the most simple writings, the penmanship can tell many things about how you felt when you wrote something. Typing is much faster and neater, so if you want you can write your rough draft on your computer and then write the final draft on paper.

      In another post we will talk about how to write a thank you note, a love letter, a journal entry, and a tad on skills for writing a good story. But for this discussion, we are only talking about writing handwritten notes and the importance of doing so. When someone writes something via computer or some other electronic device, it is hard to portray the personality that was put into the writing. There are some perks to writing electronically, such as neatness, using cool graphics, and overall price is pretty much free. However, with paper and pen, while it still takes some work, the personality comes into view much more easily with a handwritten subject. As for any specifics on technics, that will be another  day, another post, another Guru. Cheerio!

Photo Slide Show

An Outside Opinion

*Note: The following video was not filmed by Go Light Studios nor any of the members here at The Gentleman Guru. View expressed and other content may not be approved by The Gentleman Guru.*

This video talks about different tips on how to dress well

Link to original Video

Tea or Coffee?

     Tea or Coffee? The Guru was going to leave the post such as is, but we encouraged him to go on and tell us which is better. Instead he told us to search for ourselves then gave a hearty "Cheerio!"So we were left there on our own for this weeks post. We did some digging around and asked some folks which was better and which they preferred. Come to find out they each have their own health benefits... depending on the brew.

Coffee Beans & Tea Leaves

Coffee

     To start off we'll go with coffee. The good things are that, most obvious, it serves as an energy booster and stimulant. Drinking coffee will also prevent liver cirrhosis and decreases the chances of kidney stones. Now the bad side to drinking coffee is that prolonged consumption will stain your teeth and give you bad after breath, not a good way to add to your gentleman look. Consumption will increase headaches, constipation and general indigestion. It can also cause a loss of appetite, so if you need to loss a few pounds, perhaps you will want to try coffee for a while to lessen your appetite. Unfortunately though, coffee can increase chances of heart disease. So, after hearing this we were discouraged to drink coffee, but were quickly informed that de-caffeinated is the way to go. It eliminates the caffeine content, thus eliminates the problems that go with it, making it healthier.

Green Tea

     Now for our discussion on tea. Tea is packed with anti-oxidants, reduces the risk of cancer through presence of polyphenols, rich in vitamins C, D (which is nearly impossible to get enough anyways), and K as well as amino acids. All of those are required for good bodily functions. It has a relaxing and soothing effect on the human body, so if you've had a hard or stressful day of work settle down with a good book (if that's your thing) or snuggle with that special someone, put on some relaxing music and get a good cup of hot tea, and just relax. Also, tea contains compounds which strengthen your teeth. Now the downside of tea is that the high fluoride content will increase your chances of osteoporosis and fractures. Unlike coffee, the over consumption of tea will INCREASE the risk of kidney stones. If you consume tea in large amounts, you could be at risk of liver damage. The best brew of tea is green tea as it helps in fat loss and filled with antioxidants. Tea bags are also better than loose leaves as they can be easily over cooked and loose it's good effects.

     So after looking at both beverages pros and cons, we came to the conclusion that it's a matter of taste, but if you can drink both you'll end in the best of both worlds. We suggest to start the day with a cup of coffee to get things going, then when you return from work, unwind with a cup of tea. Avoid drinking coffee on breaks, but instead take an energy drink. As for specific blends that will be another day, another post, another Guru. Cheerio!

Welcome Sirs!

Winston Churchill

     You maybe familiar with the phrase, "like a sir," with the cartoon wearing a monocle and top hat while holding a tea cup. While fasion may not be your cup of tea, fasion is only a small part of being "a sir." The articles on this blog is all about being a genlteman, whether it's through dress, manners, or actions. Being a genlteman is not about gussied or greassed up, but a genlteman is timeless and comes back every now and then. What once was common place to be a genlteman is now a rare thing to find.

     You may think that this blog is just for men, but being a gentleman is for all ages. It helps train boys and teenagers how to treat fellow people and those close to heart with care and respect. Women should not be left out at all as they too should know what to at least expect from men. For too long men have sluffed off in there responsibilities and leaving everyone else around them feeling like trash. A gentleman should not behave as such, but instead, encourage those around them to be better individuals.

     A gentleman does not need to have a small fortune invested into what he wears, where he lives, or what he does in his spare time, but he should have a sense of behavior that makes people around him to have respect. The Gentleman Guru's goals are to help reshape the mindset of people to have a respectable image from others, and not a self image that is out of proportion.