Absence Does Make the Heart Grow Fonder

After twenty-some years of marriage, I find myself missing my husband. Neither of us normally travels for work so our being apart is a rarity. I must say that I did manage to keep myself busy while he was away and I am happy with the outcome. I decided to treat his being away as a way for me to take a free sabbatical. I stopped taking calls, rarely face-booked unless it was to promote my new blog and my writing, I didn't clean, cook, or put on makeup. Over the week I wrote. I wrote over 8000 words.

Next week I’ll work a bit slower and do more editing, but I was thrilled with the progress.

Now, I’m pacing, looking at the clock, cleaning, waiting for the hour when I will see him again. Even though we spoke every night, a phone call is just not the same. I do not know how people manage to maintain long distance relationships. But, I do know that looking forward to seeing someone is a fantastic high!

I don’t think I would ever be this excited for him to come home at the end of a regular workday.

New Ventures, New Recipes, Lead to Yummy Fun

Today's Happiness Quota: 80, I am so glad things are going well in school. I am getting active in the community. Writing can be lonely. However, loneliness was easily fixed with a few volunteer hours, coffee invitations with friends, attending workshops and seminars in the community.

Today's Happiness Quote: To live happily is an inward power of the soul. Aristotle

Today's Thoughts: Time flies when you’re having fun. That’s what they say anyway. They. How exactly do we discover what they have to say? How is it that they are so wise? Time has been flying, I have been having fun. So I guess they are right. 

Yesterday I purchased a $1.00 reduced priced special at Vitamin Cottage of what I thought was cilantro and Romaine lettuce. Once I was home I realized I had beet green instead, how I mixed up the two I don’t know. In a hurry I guess. Anyway, I wasn’t quite sure what to do with it and found a great recipe and a fun new blog (cheap tastes good, don't you just love the url!) to follow. I didn’t have all the ingredients for the recipe but I sauteed the greens with some red onion and a bit of oil. They were delicious. I served them with pinto beans, a small amount of wild rice, and zucchini. Yum! I still have plenty of cilantro to add to a salad and chicken tortilla soup for dinner tonight.

Feng Shui Saves the Day

Today's Happiness Quota: 85 (this would be higher but I just did the Biggest Loser 10 minute workout on Exercise TV and I had to do the beginners version - Yikes!  Time to get busy and build my stamina)

Today's Happiness Quote: Being happy doesn't mean that everything is perfect. It means that you've decided to look beyond the imperfections.

Today's Thoughts: I feel so blessed. Life is really starting to get back into a positive light. I am keeping busy doing things I know will pay off in the future, which is fabulous and motivating. My capstone is coming along nicely. My book is continuing to flourish and develop into a good story. My house is coming together. I didn’t realize how much it had been affected by my scattered thoughts.

I know, I know. Everyone who knows me would be surprised by that statement, but it’s true. I have been losing a battle with my home for months. I felt like I could clean and clean and nothing seemed to look done. I couldn’t walk into any room without seeing piles of stuff that needed to be put away. This weekend, it finally dawned on me that I was not utilizing the Feng Shui tips I used to teach clients when it came to shelves and flat surfaces - mainly what I called the 1/3/5 rule: Flat, open surfaces such as shelves, tables, and counter tops can “house” 1 large item, 3 varying sized like items, or 5 varying sized like items. (Couches, chairs and floors also benefit from similar grouping numbers)

Once I realized that I had no groupings of 1/3/5s anywhere in the shared spaces of my house (family room, formal living room, formal dining room, kitchen), I understood why I had been struggling so much. What I like about the 1/3/5 rule is it makes you consciously decide what items to use and why. 

I have to admit I was shocked how quickly my home appeared cleaner by following the 1/3/5 rule. Now I know why I once recommended it! How about you? Are you up to the challenge to try the 1/3/5 rule?

Do Somethingness

Today's Happiness Quota: 75. 

Today's Happiness Quote: If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy, and inspires your hopes. Andrew Carnegie

Today's Thoughts: Life is getting back in the grove and I’m feeling good I have also been able to concentrate on eating well, exercising, dancing, being joy-filled. It’s amazing what a good to do list and a twenty-minute timer can do to lift a person’s spirits. Also, found the chapter on “do nothingness” in the David D. Burns book Feeling Good: the new mood therapy to be very beneficial - his to-do list suggestion is highly recommended.I am so glad the chapter was recommended to me.

Getting Back on Track After Unexpected and Heartbreaking Delay

Today's Happiness Quota: 50. I recently picked up Denise Linn’s book the Glory and Pleasure of being a Woman, as I am prone to do, and read a few pages at random. She suggested rating the top 10 accomplishments of your day on a pleasure scale of 1-100. This made me think of the 1-10 scale I’ve used here in earlier posts. I think I will give this 1-100 scale a try for a few reasons. First, it really allows for more thought and contemplation. Secondly, it screams for a detailed explanation (what makes a day’s quota a 75 compared to a 78). Lastly, I like the idea of having a quota in the range of 90-100, there seems to be something significant and substantial in those numbers.

Today's Happiness Quote: by Jacques Prévert “Even if happiness forgets you a little bit, never completely forget about it.”

 

Today's Thoughts: My quota today is not that high but I don’t really feel depressed or low. I planned to start the year out strong after taking off the last weeks in December to only work on my book and not worry about blogging or networking or school or housework. Then my mother-in-law, Mary, was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in the first week of this month and she succumbed to the illness quickly. I therefore spent the first part of the year with family, first in caring for this wonderful woman I had the privilege to call “Mom” for over twenty years and then in preparing for her funeral. This week I have allowed myself a little time to mourn, rest, and rebound and only expected to catch up with school. Class is tonight and although my paper might not be the best one I’ve ever produced, it is just about done. Now, I need to get back to work. Hopefully, soon, as I dive into working on the book again, my happiness quota will rise. That really is all I can ask for in living with the focus on the second chakra: I can take care of myself and my responsibilities - there is no reason to sacrifice one for the other.

Miracles

Today's Happiness Quota: 8 – fun, productive weekend – always makes it easy to enjoy life
Today's Happiness Quote: by Albert Einstein “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle”
Today's Thoughts: I am humbled and blessed that my life is the result of so many miracles. I came across a list of miracles that I started some time ago, probably the result of some journal suggestion, and it was certainly a pleasant find. It was also fun to add to the list, a great way to reflect on the year in the cusp of the holiday season. How many miracles would make up a list of miracles in your life?

Beautiful Hair - Beautiful Life

Blue Hour: – missed it – slept in ignored the alarm clock and the three phone calls, didn’t realize how tired I was until I crawled out of bed after 9am – almost 10am.

Today's Happiness Quota: on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the highest I’m about a 7. I never feel great after sleeping in, but I usually feel fabulous going to bed early and waking up early.

Today's Happiness Quote: by Buddha - All that we are is the result of what we have thought. If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, pain follows him. If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought, happiness follows him, like a shadow that never leaves him.

Today's thoughts: I am a brunette again. I love my new hair cut. I needed to make a statement that demonstrated I was on a new path and I am amazed, well not so much, at the effect a new hair cut can have on a woman. If you need a boost to make you feel great – go see your favorite stylist today and do something daring!