Mid-Week Confessions

  I was in the check-out lane at the grocery store the other day, (a-several-times-a-week-occurrence), and I was doing really well.  I'd stuck to the list.  There was nothing in my cart that didn't belong; nothing frivolous, last minute, or out of the ordinary.  
  I was feeling pleased with myself. 
  Seriously pleased.
  When my eyes were snagged to a halting stop on something shiny.  Sparkly.  Fancy and new!
  What is a girl, whose life is fill to an overflowing capacity with boys, supposed to do?  
  Well you guessed it. 
  I reached out with my right hand, slowly, to the small box that held the prize I needed to feel like a girl.
  Can you imagine?  Can you imagine what it could be?
  Maybe you need to understand first what was running through my mind, which I am obviously more than willing to supply the details of.
  It was earlier in the week and I was about to get sweaty.  Sweaty as in really, seriously get in a a workout.  It was girl's night out on the volleyball court and I was lucky enough to be a part of the game that night.  Only my hair elastic had other ideas.  
  Now, I have a love hate relationship with this mop of hair I've been growing, for what seems like forever.  Anyway, I raised my hands to pull on my hair to tighten and adjust the slender black band that held it in place when, you guessed it, it popped.
  My hair spilled down my back, and there is no way to functionally play with that disaster flying around my face.
   Luckily I had a spare.  Or three to be precise.  YES, I think in this particular instance, I definitely suffer a bit of OCD.
  You get the picture.  Thankfully I had a spare and the evening was saved, because, let's be honest here, it would not have been pretty had I not had a back up.
  Now you need to understand how cheap I am.  Like I seriously hate spending money.  So when I purchased the dollar store elastics I was feeling pretty pleased with myself and the thriftiness that often evades me.  
  Well speed forward a few days and although my jar of elastics was overflowing, I was also blowing through one a day.  Maybe worth it ... maybe not.
  Okay, so you must get the idea by now, aside from the fact that I am often a walking disaster I also have a story to wrap up here.
  So back to the grocery store.
  That sparkly box of clear, pale pink-plastic, ouch-less, tangle-free and, did I mention sparkly? elastics; they definitely called my name.
  So I failed at no embellishments at the grocery store, but I now am the proud owner of little kid, sparkly, clear plastic, ouch-less, ponytail holders.
  I can go further.
  Instead of hanging a spare elastic around my wrist or wrapped around my finger, stuffed in my pocket or hidden in my wallet, I now have a clear plastic sparkly band wrapped around my finger like it was the finest piece of jewelry.  I have no excuses to use.
  I have no daughters.
  My niece doesn't use them.
  It wasn't forgotten during a play date, and I didn't purchase them by mistake.
  No, indeed.
  I like these hair holders.
  I LOVE that they sparkle.
  I love that they really don't hurt when you pull them out recklessly.
  I love that they stay in, with only two wrap-arounds, in this disaster of a mop I have nearly lost all patience with and will likely cut in the next week or two.

  Here's what I know
  
  I am a girl:
  That means I like sparkly things.
  I sometimes enjoy the frivolous.
  It's alright if pink is my favorite color.
  I don't need an excuse to put some sparkle in my wardrobe.
  Accessories, even a sparkly hair band, can change the day.

  It's fluff.  I know.  I'm okay with it.  I take myself much too seriously more often than not, so this morning, I can embrace the silly and fly the flag.

  Cheers!
  
  

One Direction - Story of My Life

Morning!  

  Hold on, guys, I'm diving in!  Here is unequivocal proof that I in fact am a girlie girl!  I could deny it, shy away from it, and battle my love for this song all day long, but I'd end up listening to it over and over and come out feeling the same - loving it!
  I wasn't a fan straight away.  Maybe it was that internal battle of not wanting to like "the boy band", or the mainstream attention I typically shy away from, maybe it was something else that I haven't yet identified in myself. 
 Then one day I pulled up the video and I was lost.  Not swoony, "oh my, they're so good looking, I'm in love."  No, not that feeling, and maybe my real feelings were worse, but I'm going to share them with you anyway.
  I was emotional; teary eyed, water pouring from my eyes, heart beating fast and thick, emotional.
  WHAT?!
  I am not a little girl, how could this make me cry?  Well it did and now my heart is hooked.
  Watch this, dare I say, clever-emotional-small-masterpiece of work and tell me you feel nothing.
  In the very least admit it's done well!  
  Hahahahaha, oh man.  I've gone there; straight to crazy-old-lady-ville, though, no, I am not swoony and filled with inappropriate thoughts.  Forgive me if you now believe in full force that I have completely lost the plot!  The truth is, I lost it long ago, I just have moments where I hide it all very well!
  Here's What I Know
  I am touched somewhere deep inside; that's what I look for, that's what my spirit craves.  I want to be moved, pushed, challenged, and involved - I want to feel.  Judge me harshly if you will, but ... Mission Accomplished - I feel.
  Watch the video, and again, tell me you feel nothing!
  Enjoy. 

A Quick Note

 I believe beauty needs to be celebrated and, all too often, we're too busy to stop and appreciate what we have.
  My life, praise God, is over flowing with that beauty.
  My marriage which builds me up and challenges me to face my fears every day.
  My children who are an education unto themselves.
  My friendships which are an invaluable resource.
  My work: it inspires me, fulfills, challenges, infuriates, and stretches me further than I usually anticipate.
  There is an endless amount of fuel for my spirit in my life.  Most days it is staring me in the face and I need only slow it all down to appreciate where I am in the middle of it all.  Others it takes a bit more searching, but it's there - the beauty, nonetheless.
  Beauty, like the weather or the news or the air we breathe surrounds us whether we want to see, hear or feel it.
  I say embrace it, fill yourself up on it.  It's rare in the sense that it is often squandered and not given the appreciate it deserves.

Beauty is:
A smile
A laugh
A glimmer of hope
A moment of satisfaction
Shed tears
Perseverance
A generous spirit
Giving of yourself
Saying NO
Sitting in silence and allowing the silence to flood your spirit
A promise
An open palm that trusts the Guiding Hand

Beauty.  What does it mean to you?

Survivor - Eye Of The Tiger

  Very few things make me happier than driving and singing, but throw in singing with my boys while driving and, yep, there it is, even better!
  We were going about our business last week, running errands, heading to work and to the arena when this song started up on the radio.  I was about to change the station, because it was finally my turn to pick, but together in perfect unity and agreement both boys shouted, "no, mom, don't change it," and then they both proceeded to air guitar and sing along.
  My first question was how do you know this song? the second and most entertaining was, how do you know the words?
  Well they knew the words alright and they got right into the dramatic, theatrical singing opportunity this anthem provides.  Yep, guys, it was one of my favorite moments of last week!
  So here it is, to start your Monday off with an energetic boost, a good strong pat on the back, and maybe that piece of encouragement you need to be all that you can be by going after that thing that scares the crap out of you!
  Enjoy!

  All is quite here, the sun has not yet come up, the wind is calm, and a new day is on the horizon.  That is my best effort at the moment to sound dramatic and writterly!
  I've been pouring all my creative energies into my other project the past two weeks and when that happens this space tends to suffer.  There it is again, the you-can't-have-it-all problem! Though in this case it's not such a problem, because either way, I'm being creative and putting words on the page; it's a crazy-good feeling!
  What I know is that it's Friday.  How that happened so quickly is beyond me, in my mind it is still Monday and, after my previous post - on Monday, school was in fact cancelled after all.  So my week has been turned, shuffled, and reworked to look different than usual.  Throw in a last minute family gathering and four hockey practices and our week has been jammed packed.
  Anyway, that is all just blah blah blah, let's get to it, shall we?

Favorite Things

~ there are still Christmas chocolate remnants everywhere I go ..... that is definitely a good thing!
~ the colder than cold deep freeze I live in seems to be showing some amount of kindness by raising the temperature to a bearable and breathable degree!
~ all the Olympic build up that is being chattered about everywhere is so inspiring.  I can't wait, the Olympics are among my top favorite things ever!  I've already grown weepy over it on more than one occasion.
~ I have loved all the Best Of 2013 song lists and the other lists I've perused.  I love a list, (insert eye roll, right ... now)!
~ I also love the predictions for 2014, it's just fun.

  That's where I'm going to leave it this morning.  The morning sky is tinged with the promise of light and the bus will be here soon.  I've got to get off my butt and kick this day into gear.  I'm going to prescribe for myself a big, healthy dose of fresh air this morning, in the form of, you guessed it, an outside run!  My eyes will tear with the first blast of wind, the wires for my earbuds will freeze solid and my hair will become brittle as the sweat turns to ice while it drips down my neck; the best ever!  The snow will crunch beneath my feet and the sparkles the fresh flakes have left behind will propel, with it's intense beauty, each step I take.  Could it get better?  

Enjoy your favorite things.
Cheers, folks, it's Friday!! 

James Blake - A Case Of You (Live at Heaven, London)

  As I write this I'm looking out the window at the most beautifully puffy blanket of glistening snow, it looks beyond gorgeous.  The only problem is beyond my window the temperature is frigid; like -37 degree Celsius and -51 with the windchill, frigid.  That is well past the point of cold and dwelling in the deathly dangerous category.  
  In spite of all that I'm thankful.  Thankful I have sweaters to layer up with.  Thankful I have a kettle to heat water.  Thankful my furnace is in working order.  Thankful that the sun is shining.  Thankful.  Thankful. Thankful.
  We want so many things in this world, but need?  We don't need all that much.
  Today I need warmth, and thankfully I have access to it.
  Today is also the first school day of the New Year.  My kids I think were torn last night as I tucked them up in bed.
  "Is school going to be cancelled?"  was the question.  I sent them to bed with the assumption that there would indeed be school and that if it were to be cancelled we would deal with it in the morning.  Well our thermometer is one degree away from having another delightful day tucked away in the warmth of our home, and I gotta say, I would have been fine to have one final day of Christmas break.  But alas, it's not to be, so I will bundle them up in their warmest gear and send them away happily on the bus.
  I guess I'm thankful for that, too, not only because we will hit the ground running this morning with the return of our demanding schedule, but because we will all be where we are supposed to be!

  Now, down to business!  I can't get enough of this song, it's become one of my character's theme songs, much like so many songs before.  I've chosen this version because I really do enjoy James Blake, but there are many versions out there that are also so very beautiful, including the original by Joni Mitchell and James Taylor, as well as the album version from James Blake.

  It may be a little melancholy for a Monday morning but I think it's exactly what I need on this freezing cold morning to coax me from beneath the warmth of my duvet!  It will also help me dive into character as I scrape together a few moments to lose myself in another world.

  Have a listen, and check out other artist's take on this gorgeous song and, if it suits you, buy the song.... ah, A Case Of You, what a lovely thought!

  Stay warm, folks!

ZZ Ward - Grinnin' in Your Face (Live at The Troubadour)

Hey there all you beautiful people, and Happy New Year!

  I'm hoping the past few weeks where I had very little connectivity to the creative world, and even less time plugged into this space that I can get back to the business of words with renewed gusto!  
  I'm going to start here, though I did debate sending you over to hear 365 Days because that seemed like a great way to kick it all off, until that is, you hear the words.  But we can't ever have it all, can we?
  So here we go, a little advice to start the year off with a brush-it-off attitude.  Have a listen, and if you love this tune, its groove, the beat, and that catchy voice that is unlike any other you've heard recently ... hey, you know what I'm gonna say; head over and have a listen to the album and click that little button of support! You know the one, those three little letters, BUY!

  Happy First Friday of the Year, folks!