a few of my favorite things from 2017

While I'd like to forget most of what happened in 2017, and still kind of feel like I'm living in some sort of whacked out alternative universe, there were a few things that happened that made me happy. They were mostly simple things -- music, well-written/acted/produced television, friends, family and cute little people starting to display their cute personalities :)

Favorite New Song: This just makes me happy every time I hear it :)

Favorite Moment of Television: DRACARYS!

Favorite Moment with My Favorite Little People: Cousin Swingtime

            

Speaking of my favorite little people, they dominated my "Jar of Joy" this year -- shocker ;)

• 1/1/17 - 4-mile walk to and from and all around Lake Balboa. Gorgeous day after New Year's Eve rain..
• 1/3/17 - Escape from Jury Duty after only 2 hours!
• 1/16/17 - Won $50 Amazon gift card from work for the 4th quarter FitBit challenge! 
• 1/20/17 - My niece Teegan is born! 
• 1/21/17 - Women's March LA.. I was one of 750,000 united for goodness vs. evil! And then, I went to meet Teegan in person! LOVE
• 1/22/17 - Facetime with Kaden
• 2/16/17 - Birthday at Burke Williams + yummy dinner with mom and dad
• 2/17/17 - Nieces day with Teegan and her big sisters 
• 2/18/17 - Bday dinner #2 at Buca de Beppo with VIPs
• 2/19/17 - Bday dinner #3 with BFFs
• 2/25/17 - Quickie unexpectedly returns to the lineup. Kings beat Sucky Ducks 4-1!
• 3/25/17 - Drive to Vegas early for Kaden Time (before CinemaCon)
• 3/31/17 - Auntie Kim and Kaden day playing and doing "the diggy"
• 4/8/17 - Walk MS in Thousand Oaks. Mom is named this year's "Most Inspirational Walker" in a surprise (to her!) announcement :) 
• 4/22/17 - Saw Dave Grohl and his mom talk about her new book "From Cradle to Stage" at the LA Times Festival of Books
• 4/27/17 - Business class cubbie to Australia!
• 4/29/17 - Land in the land down under and see the Opera House
• 5/5/17 - Meet a koala bear in Sydney
• 5/13/17 - Chevy Metal w/ Dave Grohl @ Conejo Valley Days
• 5/20/17 - U2's Joshua Tree 30th Anniversary concert at the Rose Bowl
• 5/27/17 - Kaden's 1st Birthday Party!
• 7/2/17 - Kari and Kaden at my 2nd of July BBQ! Kaden's first time in the bounce house is NOT a success ;)
• 8/12/17-8/13-17 - Listening to U2 in Joshua Tree and seeing the milky way in the clear night sky during the meteor shower
• 8/21/17 - Total solar eclipse in Oregon with JZ and RZ
• 8/23/17 - Buying baby Nikes for Kaden and Teegan at the Nike employee store
• 8/26/17 - #saturdayswithteegan start :)
• 8/30/17 - Hamilton at the Pantages! Finally!
• 10/7/17 - Cal Jam 17! Foo Fighters live!
• 10/14/17 - Gorgeous sunset on the way home from San Miguel Island
• 11/8/17 - Trip to Vegas to see Kari, Kaden and Aunt Gertie. Kaden's new thing is giggling whenever the dogs bark
• 12/9/17 - Collected 31 toys for tots at Christmas Cocktails. My friends rock! 
• 12/10/17 - Downtown Adventure day + The Nutcracker
• 12/17/17 - Holiday lights at the Venice Canals with Mo and Qball
• 12/23/17 - Kaden and Teegan meet in person and play and swing and open presents together!
• 12/27/17 - Took Kaden to the LA Zoo!

the 2017 vision blog

First up.. this! (Posted by FB Friend Stacy last night.) Love it!

-------

So to that end, the "be healthier" challenges:

• Cut out the sweets I've become addicted to this holiday season (after I finish eating my cookie tin... hey, I'm trying to be realistic here ;)
• Drink more water 
• Go back to the "wake up early and work out on the Wii Fit" routine that helped me so much six years ago. To accomplish that I will need to..
• Go to bed earlier than current midnight-ish.

-------

I want to do at least one new thing a week. 

• I started today by -- for the first time in 8 years at my house -- walking to Lake Balboa park from my house and walking the entire perimeter of the lake for the first time ever. It was a gorgeous day after all the rain yesterday and I felt so refreshed. I realized I need to spend more time at that lake -- it's so close and very peaceful (when not near the playground ;). Perhaps I will take my beach chair and books there on Saturday afternoons...

-------

Speaking of books, here's my reading pile for the year.. a little less ambitious than last year (it's actually just what I didn't even start last year). So hopefully I will finish it (although that Nora Ephron book is thick!)

-------

The hope behind the choices in that book pile is to inspire me to write more. To that end, I am toying with the idea of starting a trendy bullet journal... it's a way to write and be crafty and organized all at the same time. We shall see... I have a hard enough time remembering to write in my normal journal. But this Buzzfeed article makes it look more fun than the official site does :)

-------

Speaking of crafty, I think I have finally saved enough wine corks the last year to make a small version of this, which I saved off Drew Barrymore's instragram around Valentine's Day last year. I think it's pretty (and it's all recycled!). And it represents Love ... I'd like more of that in my life in 2017 too. :)

-------

I hope to remember this each day...

-------

And... the holdovers from last year:

Two weeks split between here....

... and here

-------

For a certain twosome who love complaining about my crappy front door, I will get a new one, sort of like this...

With that front door, I hope to kickstart other items on my home improvement list too.... anyone know a good handyman? 

my joys of 2016

Back at the start of 2015, I started keeping a Happiness Jar, inspired by Eat, Pray, Love author Elizabeth Gilbert. I tried to keep it going this year, but there are full months I apparently had no joys :( Oh well. LOL.

Here are what all the little pieces of paper I folded up throughout the year and put in my jar said.. Here's hoping I find more joy (or at least more time to write them on little pieces of paper) in 2017!

• 1/1/16: Lazy day of magazines and movies.
• 2/13/16: Massage in Santa Barbara + room service with wine
• 2/14/16: Walked 5 miles in gorgeous Santa Barbara and sat looking at the blue Pacific for three hours
• 3/18/16: Amazing dinner at The Little Door with James, Daryl and Karen
• 3/26/16: DTLA Adventure Day with Daryl, James and Karen. Random run-in with R2D2 :)
• 5/27/16: Baby Kaden Michael is born!!! I'm an aunt! :)
• 5/29/16: GNO Dinner at Mo's with La Lizzzz and Susie. 
• 6/4/16: Finished "Wild" ... Book #5 this year!
• 6/4/16: 1st Summer Grillin' Saturday with Susie and Mo
• 6/5/16: GDO (That's a Girls Day Out) to see "Me Before You" with Linda, Ingrid and Nicole at the fancy theatre in Westlake with waiter service and reclining chairs. 
• 6/6/16: First Hollywood Bowl show of the summer - "The Little Mermaid Live" with Katharine
• 6/11/16: Bought new MacBook Pro (after 6.5 years of the old slow Mac)
• 6/14/16: Bought a Pantages Theatre season package to guarantee seats to "Hamilton"... 14.5 months from now. :p
• 6/16/16: Met Kaden for the first time. LOVE.
• 7/17/16: Sting and Peter Gabriel at the Bowl!
• 8/10/16: Adele at Staples Center - AMAZING!!!!
• 8/19/16: Weekend with Kaden! Yay!
• 8/28/16: Beautiful day in nature on Santa Rosa Island. Saw a dolphin pod swimming free on the way there! 
• 9/4/16: DTLA Adventure Day with James and Diana
• 9/11/6: Found out I'm going to be an auntie again!!! Ryan and Brittany are having a baby girl in January. 
• 9/22/16: Vancouver weekend with QBall! 
• 9/24/16: Beautiful Vancouver day at Capilano Suspension Bridge and Stanley Park :)
• 10/2/16: Fun day unpacking with Hayden and Mackenzee :)
• 10/8/16: Kaden's first trip to the pumpkin patch! 
• 10/17/16: Wizarding Wold of Harry Potter with Ruthie, Jen and Leslie!
• 10/19/16: Kari sent the cutest video of Kaden singing in his bouncy seat
• 10/26/16: Kaden makes his TV debut on Fox 5 News in Vegas with his pumpkin patch photo
• 11/11/16: Cousin Josh texted adorable pic of Baby Ava in her "Cute" hoodie I sent her
• 11/12/16: Lucky's roses are finally blooming in the garden
• 11/24/16: Thanksgiving dinner at my house with Mom, Dad, Ryan, Brittany, Hayden and Mackenzee
• 12/10/16: Christmas Cocktails! Fun. No stress for Year #2. Yay for Joan's Mac & Cheese :)
• 12/23/16: Dad's bday dinner with the whole family!
• 12/24/16: Christmas lights walk with Kaden in his cute Santa hat and 1st Christmas onesie 
• 12/25/16: Kaden's 1st Christmas
• 12/27/16: Discovered that the pizza place near my house that used to suck is now AMAZEBALLS. 

the 2016 vision blog

My light reading pile for the year (collected over the last two years). What should I start with?*

*After I finally finish The Interestings... which I've been half reading for 16 months. Oy. 

-------

A return to this view... which will help me get through the pile above :)

-------

Two weeks split between here....

... and here

-------

For a certain twosome who love complaining about my crappy front door, I will get a new one, sort of like this...

-------

And this....

my joys of 2015

Long time, no write. I knew I hadn't blogged in a while, but I didn't know it had been almost two whole months. Oops. Well, it's almost a new year, so I can once again add "write more" to my list of New Year's resolutions... maybe 2016 is the year it will stick. I have a good feeling about next year... numerically, it's got two of my birthday numbers in it (2 and 16) and I'm already feeling a pull towards it. This year was sad and stressful. I'm ready for a change in a warm, fuzzy, happy, laughing way next year.



That's not to say all of 2015 was bad though.... at the start of the year, at the urging of Eat, Pray, Love author Elizabeth Gilbert (who I now follow on Facebook), I created a "happiness jar." I started with a small jam jar because I knew there was no way I'd remember to toss a piece of paper in there daily... and I didn't. BUT, I am happy to report that as of December 30th, "Kim's Jar of Joy" is pretty full. Maybe next year I will graduate to a pickle jar ;)

Here, in random order as I pick the dumped-out slips of paper off the sofa, are things that brought me joy in 2015:

• 1/15/15: Molly's going away from Disney drinks and seeing Molly, Lisa, Jason, Gino, Dana and Johannes again.
• 5/16/15: Lucky's liver numbers back to 49! Dr. Pitt says he's doing better (ed note: now this makes me cry :*(
• 5/6/15: Gorgeous hike with Marleine at Solstice Canyon, followed by food and cocktails on the beach :)
• 2/16/15: My bday Burke Williams massage and yummy dinner with Mom and Dad at Tuscany
• 11/22/15: Foos website countdown finally opens to new FREE 5-song EP, St. Cecilia. Woot! 
• 1/2/15: I just bought a RED washer and dryer!! Crazy!
• 6/23/15: Just bought Duran Duran tickets for the Bowl on 10/1/15... soon-to-be reunited with my first rock star crush named John. 
• 1/17/15: Mom and Dad's 45th wedding anniversary
• 8/13/15: Portland bound! Long vacay weekend with JZ and RZ! 
• 1/25/15: Finished Breaking Bad. SO GOOD!!!
• 5/30/15: U2 Innocence + Experience concert with Qball. Two+ hours of love, joy and music. 
• 6/19/15: Travel to Taos, NM for Josh and Emily's wedding. Stopped in Santa Fe for sopapillas. Fried dough heaven. 
• 10/18/15: Foos at the Love Ride with the Jorgies. Dave's throne updated to a motorcycle :)
• 2/21/15: Kings beat the Sharks in the the Stadium Series. Win #7 in a row! Back in 3rd place.
• 6/5/15: Finished binge watching Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Love it!
• 8/1/15: Grillin' Saturday with James, Daryl, La Lizz, Juanita, Susie, Bhavani and new friends Pinky and Scott
• 8/17/15: Six cactus flowers blooming upon my return from Portland. A sign from Granny :)
• 11/20/15: New Adele album out today.. now on repeat in the car and my office iTunes. 
• 6/15/15: Finished throwing out a TON of old articles/papers from my office closet. Simplify! Purge! 
• 1/24/15: Five hours in the garden with roses, flowers.. and chicken manure - lol = Bliss!
• 9/13/15: New car! Zoom Zoom!
• 12/12/15: Christmas cocktails... I simplified this year and actually got to talk to people. Yay!
• 1/28/15: The Kings, who've sucked lately, beat 'da Blackhawks 4-3. Awesome game!
• 5/1/15: Avengers: Age of Ultron ... 2x in one day!
• 7/18/15: It thunder/lightning rained today!!
• 12/26/15: Updated the OS on my MacBook Pro for the first time in five years... and it still works!
• 7/27/15: RZ's Hermione Granger wand arrived today. Can't wait to give it to her :)
• 9/4/15: E.T. @ the Bowl!! LOVE. 
• 3/11/15: Just finished two days at Disneyland with Denise and Emily.. her first time. So fun! Met most of the princesses. Win!
• 4/11/15: Walk MS 5k with the whole family. Raised $8,502!
• 11/28/15: Brooklyn... loved, loved, loved this movie!
• 6/20/15: Josh and Emily's lovely wedding
• 9/11/15: Lenny Kravitz @ the Greek with Qball... and a guy who JUST turned 21. LOL
• 5/8/15: Awesome card in the mail from RZ about purple cups, Harry Potter and fun facts about cholera. Love that kid! 
• 6/3/15: My Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt screener finally arrived!
• 3/7/15: Luc Robitaille statue unveiled! Saw Luc, Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Blakey and Matthew Perry (who did not look good :(
• 9/21/15: Foos @ the Forum w/ Christina, Niki and Lisa. Still in love with Dave Grohl's baby blue guitar.. even tho he broke it tonight. Also love the throne. 
• 12/18/15: Kings destroy the CaSucks 5-0. Tyler Toffoli hat trick #2 of his career!
• 5/4/15: Lucky gained weight and is seeming okay after almost dying a week ago (ed note: more tears now)
• 5/17/15: Got a TON done! Painted garage trim, gardened, cleaned black gunk off mailbox
• 10/4/15: Van Halen with DLR at the Bowl. Concert bucket list item = done!
• 5/14/15: Aveda Rosemary mint body wash - opened the BIG bottle! Love this stuff!
• 1/17/15: I've now seen by two favorite hockey players' numbers retired by the Kings. Tonight #4

happy birthday audrey

Today would have been Audrey Hepburn's 85th birthday and Google is celebrating her with today's Google doodle.

She's perhaps best remembered for starring in one of my favorite movies, Breakfast at Tiffany's.

But later in her life, helping children became her passion. So on her birthday, let's remember one of her favorite poems, written by Sam Levenson, which she is said to have read to her children on her last Christmas Eve before she died in early 1993.

Time Tested Beauty Tips

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.

For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.

For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.

For beautiful hair, let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day.

For poise, walk with the knowledge you'll never walk alone.

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; Never throw out anybody.

Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm.

As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.

The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole, but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows, and the beauty of a woman with passing years only grows.

gal pals rock

I went to an event with my dear gal pal Cwennen on Saturday night at her church (yes I went to a church) in celebration of International Women's Day. Her's is not a normal church like I - the ex-Catholic - grew up being forced to go to. They had a rock band playing and people singing rock/pop songs for the first 15 or so minutes of the event, which whatever remnants of a Catholic still exist inside me had a hard time comprehending. But the overall theme of the evening was "amigas" aka girlfriends, and their girl power. And that's something I could get on board with. 

Our "parting gift" was the "suitable for framing" card below, which I loved so much I had to share. I'm lucky to have Cwennen and many other amigas in my life that fit this bill :)

the important things

Tis the day of every year when Americans plan an entire day around one, usually very traditional meal that inevitably sends everyone into a tryptophan-enduced food coma. 

It's also a day to give thanks for the good things in your life... like being lucky enough to have enough food on your table to send you into a tryptophan-enduced food coma.

A lot of people on social media spent the past few weeks saying one different thing they were thankful for each day leading up to Thanksgiving. I thought that was a cool idea, and considered  doing it myself, but it seemed like a lot of pressure. Having to come up with a different thing to be thankful for 27 days in a row? I could see that getting snarky or superficial pretty quickly (especially in my sarcastic brain) and that would defeat the purpose of recognizing the really important things I'm thankful for, which have been front and center the last two months because those two months have kind of really sucked.

See, when the going gets tough, recognizing the important things is really easy. 

When a loved one dies, you miss them and wish you had more time with them. Time is precious and so is family. I am thankful for the precious time I've had so far in my life with my loved ones.

When a loved one's health is jeopardized, you miss the time when health wasn't a constant worry and hope for recovery. I am thankful for modern medicine and trained doctors who can remove disease from a person's body and help them eventually feel better. I am thankful my mom is on the road to recovery. I am also thankful for my own good health to date. 

When a lot of stuff goes bad in your life at one time, you miss being able to laugh and wish for more carefree times. You also need a shoulder or two or five to lean on. I am thankful for my rocks, the friends in my life who take me out for wine and let me vent, give great hugs, call to check on me and my family, and in a few special cases pray for me (and get their whole church to pray for my mom). I don't know what I'd do without my friends.

And when it pours rain, you miss the warmth of the sun and wish for brightness. I am thankful I've made it through the last two dreary months and can smile again. Being too emotionally exhausted to actually experience life is no way to live. So even though one part of my life is still in a potential downward spiral, I'm choosing not to focus on that.

One of my favorite inspirational blogs had a post a few months ago titled, Nine Things You Do Not Need to Be Happy. This line flew out at me, because I truly believe this, but often forget it: "The best thing you can do it let go of what you can't control and invest your energy in the things you can." It also says the formula for being happy is to do your best and appreciate what you have.

So that's what I did today .... and will continue tomorrow and every day after. Focus on the good things and appreciate them while I still can.

You don't need a tryptophan-packed turkey dinner for that.

anniversary of "the white folder club"

One year ago today pretty much sucked. It was the day "The White Folder Club" was formed. The members of this club did not choose to join it. But when I think about it now, I think most members of the club are much happier for being a part of it.

You see, a year ago, 100 or so people walked into a building (that some of them had been walking into for a decade or more) and then walked out 2-3 hours later with a white folder full of information about employment severance from the entertainment conglomerate they'd dedicated thousands of hours of their lives to.

At the time, there was shock and tears and fear. But there was also an unexpected and thoroughly incredible new sense of camaraderie. While sadly watching co-worker after co-worker be escorted through the lobby carrying that tell-tale white folder, something happened: a major shift in perspective. Suddenly those with the white folders realized they were free.

Now I realize not everyone who was forced into the club that day may agree with me (as not everyone's white folder was as thick as those that had been walking into the building for more than a decade). But I -- and many of those that I am close to -- believe getting that white folder was an amazing blessing.

I'd given way too much of myself to that place. But being (figuratively) smacked upside the head with a white folder was the wake up call I'd been needing for at least five years to move on to something that puts a smile on my face versus knots in my neck. And that white folder was my golden ticket.

My current conundrum is I'm not 100% sure where I want that ticket to take me. But that's okay... for now.

I've landed in a new place with a great new title and really nice co-workers and I walk out of the office most days at 6pm on the dot. Am I doing what I want to do "when I grow up"? Nope. But I think getting to that ideal place where creativity meshes with my monthly mortgage payment might take some time. So for now, my goal is work/life balance.

To me, that means focusing on things I neglected for years. So, a little less than a year ago (after the white folder shock wore off), I made a list of all the things I'd wanted to do for years but put off because I was too busy working all the time. And I started checking things off the list.

The list included practical things like painting my guest room, changing the 60+ year-old-doorknobs on the closet doors of my house, and tending to my gardens that I love.

After much contemplation, research and threats from people who were sick of hearing me talk about "someday..." for years, I added a two-week trip to Italy to the list. My mom joined me, and I will treasure those memories forever.

It also included things I had to do for my own sense of well-being. I started signing up for workout classes and got into a schedule to keep myself sane. And I made myself start writing more. I missed writing.

And the list also included fun activities -- museum visits, hiking, trying popular restaurants when they weren't totally packed -- that I and many of my fellow members of "The White Folder Club" started doing together on weekdays ... because we could :)

I'd always said the reason I stayed at that place so long was because of the people I worked with. And that (plus being too tired to update 13 years of my resume) is the honest-to-god truth.

So a year ago, when all but eight or so people I cared about all got the boot at the same time, cutting the cord was surprisingly easy for me. I went back to pack up my office and never looked back.

Early this morning, a fellow member of "The White Folder Club" published a blog post about our anniversary today. His blog mentioned someone comparing that day one year ago to "The Red Wedding" from Game of Thrones. And as bloodbaths go, it's hard to argue.

But his post also pointed out all the things he's learned since then.

My comment: "Well said my friend/fellow member of The White Folder Club."

His response: "If only John Hughes was still alive to write a film called 'The White Folder Club.'"

It's kind of crazy how dead-on that implied comparison is. I don't think any of us who declared ourselves "The White Folder Club" one year ago today while sitting in the The Federal Bar in Noho consuming a lot of alcohol at noon were thinking about that quintessential coming-of-age flick from our teens. (At least I know I wasn't.)

But I do know that -- like The Breakfast Club -- we've all learned a lot about ourselves and are better because of it. And we're all bonded in a way only we will ever understand.

So, my fellow members of "The White Folder Club," congratulations on entering what seemed like a scary void a year ago and coming out on the other side.

And here's to friendship, remembering what's really important, and new adventures in this thing called life.

don't call them resolutions...

... because resolutions usually fail. :)

Instead, every New Year's, I choose to look at what I achieved the year before, the fun I had and new things I experienced. And then I set goals for the coming year that will hopefully become part of my daily existence, rather than some dreaded item on a list I feel guilted into doing. I am happy to say that -- considering many of my goals have carried over year-to-year with little or no tweaks -- I think this tactic is working.

So for 2013, with the overall goal of living a happy, healthy, balanced life where I continue to grow as a good human being, I've set the eight goals below for myself. In addition, I'm also vowing to keep these 12 items, which I found in my Twitter feed this morning, in mind: 12 Powerful Resolutions You Should Make Every Year -- I think they will help a lot with a few of my goals below. 

Health

1. Physical / Live Healthily: Eat healthy food most of the time, but don't deprive myself. Maintain my goal weight and work out at least two-to-three times per week. 
2. Emotional / Let Go and Move On: I've spent a lot of time the last few years trying to force things to work that are more harmful to my psyche than helpful. Why? Because I like being hurt and disappointed, or getting stressed out and pissed off? No more. Life is too short. And it should be about enjoying time with the people in your life that selflessly care about you. I've learned who my true friends are, especially over the last few months, and they are where I will focus my free time in 2013. No looking back.

Happiness

1. For Me / Travel: When meeting with my new investment adviser in November to plan my financial roadmap to retirement, I listed the following as my travel goal -- Actually take my vacation days each year, traveling somewhere domestic and relaxing at least one week per year, with a longer international trip every other year. Since I went to Italy last year, that means that 2013 will include a relaxing domestic trip -- I could visit an island other than the Big Island in Hawaii or head someplace on the mainland with good food and/or spas (like NYC, Santa Fe or New Orleans... or a place closer to home on my "places to visit" list like Carmel or Ojai).
2. For Others / Help Good Causes: Once again I will lead a team for "Walk MS" in April to raise funds for the National MS Society. This will be super easy since this year there will be a walk in the San Fernando Valley, about three minutes from my house (aka: where I ride my bike around the actual Lake Balboa). I also want to donate my time to a charitable organization or two. It would be great to find a charity that needs my editorial or home improvement skills so I'm also increasing my knowledge as I give. 

Growth

1. Creative / Write More: Keep blogging five to 10 times per month. AND (this is the challenge) write a short story.
2. Intellectual / Read Books: Recycle my goal to read at least one book per quarter in 2013, but this year, one MUST be a classic novel that's been sitting on my bookshelf too long.
3. Culinary / Host a Dinner Party: In addition to the annual events I host for major holidays, I want to throw a dinner party where I can use my fancy drinking glasses and linens and cook an actual meal in my kitchen that is new to my limited cooking repertoire (ie: not appetizers, spaghetti or something grilled).
4. General / Try New Things: Not sure how this will specifically manifest over the coming year and I'm also not going to worry about it. I just know I want to be open to new experiences whether that means trying a new food, visiting a new place or learning a new skill. 

Happy New Year! Here's to a 2013 full of great new adventures! 

love is...

My 84-year-old grandpa in New Mexico sends a lot of email forwards. Many of them spout political propaganda that I immediately delete. However, some are gems of beautiful and/or funny photos, or wise words to live by.

One last week kind of falls into the "wise words" category.

I thought it would be perfect for Valentine's Day. Enjoy!

-----------------------------

A group of 4-to-8-year-olds were asked What does "love" mean? Their answers were broader and deeper than you'd imagine:

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands get arthritis too. That's love." - Rebecca, age 8

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth." - Billy, age 4

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs." - Chrissy, age 6

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired." - Terri, age 4

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK." - Danny, age 7

"Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss." - Emily, age 8

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen." - Bobby, age 7

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it every day." - Noelle, age 7

"During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore." - Cindy, age 8

"Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken." - Elaine, age 5

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day." - Mary Ann, age 4

"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget." - Jessica, age 8

i hate beer, but...

 I LOVE this commercial!



Thanks to my Canadian, hockey-loving/playing co-worker Scott M. for sharing :)

five rules of happiness

More words of wisdom from my new favorite site-o-lists, Marc and Angel Hack Life ....


1. Don't Hate 
2. Don't Worry 
3. Give More 
4. Expect Less 
5. Live Simply


I need to work on #2 a lot more... especially this week. Oy. (That's actually my word of the week :) 

happy friday!

My 84-year-old grandpa in New Mexico sends me tons of forwarded emails. (Tons.) In my inbox today was an email titled "The Positive Side of Life." It included lots of clip art with positive statements about life on earth. This statement stuck out and made me smile:

"We could learn a lot from crayons: all are different colors.... but they all exist very nicely in the same box."

Speaking of a lot of different colors (or breeds... if you will) co-existing nicely in the same space, the latest viral video from the awesome VW agency -- a teaser for their "Big Game" commercial -- hit the web earlier this week. LOVE THIS! And I really hope mini-Darth Vader will be back in some way, shape or form on "Big Game Day" :)

adorkable overload

What's my fave new show this tv season? If you'd asked me back in October, I would have given some highfalutin answer like Person of Interest. And while I do enjoy that drama from the mind of the awesome JJ Abrams, I have to say the new show I most look forward to each week is the adorkable (yes, I just said that) New Girl, starring queen of the adorkables, Zooey Deschanel. It's not like it's ground-breaking TV. And it's never going to unseat Friends as my fave sitcom of all time. But New Girl makes me happy. From the cute theme song ("Who's that girl?.... Who's that girl?.... It's Jess!") to the totally stereotypical three guy roommates who all secretly crush on Jess in their own adorkable (yes I said it again) ways, the show just makes me smile. Maybe it's because I secretly wish I could be as cute, quirky and carefree as Jess... adorkable (yeah, yeah), if you will. Whatever the reason, I'm glad other people agree with me and love the show too. It's very in sync with my unwritten 2012 goal to surround myself with more positivity, so I'm glad it's not in danger of cancellation anytime soon.

Zooey also is co-founder of a cute, quirky, drowning in positivity blog with an adorkable (last time... I promise.) name, HelloGiggles. And while I think I'm probably not their demo (since I'm old now), I still enjoy checking it out every now and then. The Treats section has some good recipes. And the How To's section is always educational. Take this recent post titled How to Small Talk. I learned things you should make small talk about include BBC Masterpiece Classics and your favorite Goldie Hawn movies, and you should never make small talk about your job. This explains a lot about my social life (or lack thereof) and why I hate going to parties where small talk might be required. ;)

inspired

So for some odd reason, I've been really inspired as of late to be here on my blog. I changed the design and have been posting regularly for like a week (lol). Not that there are a lot of people here with me, but I'm enjoying it anyway. It's been a good creative outlet in a time of utter work craziness and sad pet parenthood. A few coworkers have really great blogs seeping with positive energy they've posted links to on Facebook recently, so I have to thank them for my inspiration. I've also been exposed to a bunch of self-help "list" articles the last few weeks. The most recent one is 25 Things Writers Should Stop Doing. Part of item #1 is "Your writing will never chase you — you need to chase your writing." Maybe that's why I am bringing myself back here over and over, writing about little things I like or have seen. I'm chasing my buried creativity and searching for a big idea. I've actually pulled two of my favorite writing exercise books from college off the shelf -- The Artist's Way (which now has a companion blog site) and The Wild Mind. I remember my awesome creative writing professor, my sophomore year of college, leading us through writing exercises... mind dumps where you just put pen to paper and let the thoughts flow, with no roadmap or plan. That's the year I wrote my only printed, personal works... a compilation of poems and short stories titled "From a dusty room... " Now I have housecleaners to dust for me, so maybe its sequel will be shinier.

wise words for the new year

A friend just posted a link to this blog on Facebook... wise words we all need to remember and think about integrating into our daily lives: 30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself

Then that lead to these great finds:

• 30 Things to START Doing for Yourself

• 12 Things Happy People Do Differently

Enjoy!

a good reminder

Someone sent this to me in an email today. It's a great reminder to be thankful for every day and your health... not everyone is so lucky:

A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." There were only a few coins in the hat.

A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words.  He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.

Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning?  What did you write?"

The man said, "I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way. I wrote: 'Today is a beautiful day but I cannot see it.'"

Both signs told people that the boy was blind. But the first sign simply said the boy was blind. The second sign told people that they were so lucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective?

Moral of the Story:  Be thankful for what you have...

• Be creative.
• Be innovative.
• Think differently and positively.
• When life gives you a 100 reasons to cry, show life that you have 1000 reasons to smile.
• Face your past without regret.
• Handle your present with confidence.
• Prepare for the future without fear.
• Keep the faith and drop the fear.

The most beautiful thing is to see a person smiling. And even more beautiful, is knowing that you are the reason behind it!!!

grace

I received some great smelling Philosophy lotion and bath gel from my friend Niki for Christmas. And while I normally don't read packaging, the photo on the gift set was so cute that I read this one, which I find extremely poignant...

How you climb up the mountain is just as important as how you get down the mountain, and so it is with life, which for many of us becomes one big gigantic test followed by one big gigantic lesson. In the end, it all comes down to one word: grace. It's how you accept winning and losing, good luck and back luck, the darkness and the light.


Sadly, not a lot of people seem to know how to be graceful these days. When I think of that word, I picture Audrey Hepburn. Many know of her as an iconic actress, but towards the end of her life, she was a selfless humanitarian. This poem she quoted, when asked for her beauty tips -- originally written by Sam Levenson -- is one of my favorites:


"For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.
    For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.
    For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.
    For beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day.
    For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone.
    People, more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed.
    Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms.
    As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself and the other for helping others."