Three Things

Long time no blog.

Maybe it was just too hard to return and see A-choo's precious face in my last post.  Or maybe life got busy. Whatever the case I'll give it another go. 

I have good intentions with every new year. So on the eve of 2016 ~ here we go.

I woke early today feeling inspired. I long ago gave up making New Years Resolutions. I prefer to call them Goals. Same thing I guess, but goals seem more achievable. What I thought about this morning although seemed less like goals and more like a shift in attitude.

I now aspire to do three things each morning: Positive Thought(s), Positive Action(s) and Gratitude.  By this I mean I plan to start each day by jotting down a positive thought for the day, followed by positive action (my plan for the day) and three things I am grateful for. Easy peasy. But I do think it will set the day off on a good foot.

I dug out an empty journal (I collect them with good intentions...) and made my notes. 

Awake and inspired, with puppies sleeping at my feet I picked up a book from my bedside table. It is one I started a few months ago and never finished. I don't allow myself a lot of reading time so saving reading for nighttime is a mistake. I always fall asleep two pages in. 

The book I grabbed just happened to be another inspiration ~ "the life-changing magic of tidying up" by Marie Kondo. A timely read as January is typically when I think about things like tidying up. 

Only a few chapters in I found myself nodding in agreement with the thoughts on the pages. It comes down to three things (there's that three things thing again...): 

Discard (read that ~ get rid of a lot of stuff you don't even realize you have), Store (read that as things you really need like ~ oh I don't know ~ food and clothing) and keep only things that bring you joy (that one is self-explanatory).

That last thought resonated with me because ironically I had just heard it last night. In an episode of  "Transparent" Shelley (the Mom character brilliantly played by Judith Light) was in the process of a major purge and reorganization of her home. Her daughter, Ali, (the fabulous Gaby Hoffman) was upset that her Mother had tossed out some of her childhood art. Shelley's response? "It didn't bring me joy."

Boom. There it is. Surround yourself only with things that bring you joy. And as I looked around the room I saw a lot of "things" that are just that - things. They don't necessarily bring me joy; they just kind of take up space. And I am reminded of something I learned in photography ~ there is something to be said for negative space. 

On that note ~ I will leave you with someone who's space is positive (usually...) and definitely brings me joy.

Cheers!

Tick Tock. Tick Tock. Tick Tock...

The Universe must think I am an incredibly slow learner.  Waiting a week for biopsy results is crazy. And a test of my patience. And a test of my ability to handle stress. And a test of my wild imagination. And a test of my sense of humor. 

If you should ever find yourself in a similar situation, here are 21 things to do while waiting to see if you have cancer:

1. Rearrange your house.
2. See a comedy show.
3. See Steve Martin in concert.
4. Take your dog to the Vet for a mani-pedi.
5. Eat some wickedly fattening Mexican food.
6. Take a very long walk in nature very early in the morning.
7. Create something. Anything.
8. Back to that eating thing... ice cream. Lots of it. Within reason.
9. Purge your closet. And just about every other part of your house.
10. Alphabetize the DVD movies you never watch anymore.
11. Trim your rose bushes.
12. Do a little retail therapy. Within reason. Or not.
13. Ok, maybe I'm a little obsessed with the food thing - but make a homemade pizza. With lots of cheese.
14. Laugh. Because what choice do you have?
15. Spend time with an old friend. And laugh. A lot.
16. Stay positive. (Ok, that one's wearing a little thin.)
17. Remember and appreciate how lucky you are to have loving support from friends and family - and especially from that one special guy who is just as nervous as you are. 
18. Make plans for the future - vacations, more comedy shows, more concerts, plays... anything.
19. Stop worrying about your weight. It may turn out to be totally irrelevant. And the least of your problems.
20. Drink the good champagne. Within reason. Or not.
21. Calm the hell down. You're not in control of this one...

The Power of a Little 3 x 3

Remember when Berger broke up with Carrie on a Post-It Note?  So cold.

I'm counting the number of Post-It messages stuck to my monitors and speakers right now.  Let's see... 16. And three - oh wait - four more that have fallen down due to loss of stickiness.  I need a Post-It to keep track of my Post-Its.  They have important messages like: 

• passwords (come on - can you remember all of yours?) 
• ideas for blog posts 
• quotes 
• charities I want to follow up with 
• vacation ideas 
• when to pay my Old Navy bill (Yes, I'm an Old Navy girl. Where did you think all those Hello Kitty tees came from?)
• what size duvet cover to order 
• when the pink chenille will be back in stock at my favorite online fabric store 
• a reminder to carry our caterer/chef's business card in my purse 
• movies and TV series to check out on Netflix and Hulu+
• thank you notes to print and send
• canvas wraps to order
• and for some inexplicable reason - a note reminding me that back in 2010 I lost 26 lbs in a few weeks. That's probably to make me feel guilty every time I pop another mini Reese's peanut butter cup into my mouth...

You know, important stuff.

I keep a lot of my reminders on my Outlook calendar but for some reason I can't give up the Post-Its. The Mister and I are constantly putting Post-its on the door to the garage and the front door to remind us of things as we leave the house. (I think my kids do this, too. Apples. Trees.) 

I've had a Post-It by The Mister's espresso machine for three months to remind him to clean the dryer vent. I think he looks at it as a beautiful work of art now because I included flames indicating that if he doesn't clean the dryer vent the house will burn to the ground. 

I put Post-Its on the bathroom mirror to remind me when I have an appointment somewhere (dentist, hair,etc.) because I live such a workaday routine I have to remind myself to leave the house.

The Mister even writes me little love notes on Post-Its (very unBerger-like).  I tried to find the last one - I know it's purple and it was last seen in the kitchen junk drawer. If you saw my junk drawer you would understand. It is the Black Hole of useless things. Except love notes, of course.

I couldn't find the purple one but I remember the day I went out to my Jeep and this note was on the seat. With the Mister's business card - just in case I didn't know who left it. Yup, that's My Mister. :)

Last night, however, I learned a new way to use Post-Its. One that can make a person's day, bring a smile ~ who knows, maybe change a life.  And it all started with some little kids. (Take 2.26 minutes and take a peek at that video ~ it will make you smile!) What a sweet and simple idea to take a wall in a school ~ or in a workplace ~ or even a home ~ and let someone know you appreciate them.  Random Acts of Kindness. Little notes of gratitude. 

And a little boy who is exceptional at tying shoes.

So I think I'll hang on to my Post-Its and my obsession with them.  They're handy little things for - oh I don't know -  making someone's day.

xoxo, peeps Y