*SERIES* “Love & A Photo”: Christine & Scott

Name

Scott

Christine

Age

Scott: 54

Christine: 53

Lifes’ Work

Scott: Middle School Math Teacher

Christine: Middle School Office Manager

What city do you live in?

Summit New Jersey

How long have you been together?

Scott: About 13 years.  3 married,  1 engaged,  a couple confused, and a bunch  just as friends. I was really confused as to my feelings about her.

Christine:  about 13 years  3 married and a whole lot just confused and wondering what the heck was wrong with him because he would be just a friend and then it would seem that he wanted to be more than friends but that something was holding him back.

How & where did you meet?

Scott: We met when Christine came for an interview for the Office Manager position, which is in the office that I work . I thought that she was very pretty and I hoped that she would be back so that I could talk to her. She smiled a lot and had an infectious laugh.

Christine: My good friend Beverly was thinking of retiring from her job as the Office Manager of the Middle School. I came in to check out the position and to find out what the environment was like. I was introduced to Scott and thought Hmmmmmmmmm not bad. Being a single mom I was interested.

What was your first impression?

Scott- I thought that she was very pretty , had a beautiful smile, and laughed quite a bit which I liked and she had an enticing figure.

Christine What cute dimples when he smiles which he does often

Describe your first date.

Scott:  We went to the movies which was My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Little did we know that we would be having our own Big Fat Greek Wedding except not as many people that were named Nick. Then we went to a games center and she kicked my butt on the Go carts and now she does most of the driving when we go anywhere.

Christine: We laughed a lot at the movies and after I kicked his butt on the Go carts I thought that he would be upset but he just laughed. We later in the year took my son Theo to the Go carts and we both whipped his butt.

Tell me about the most funny thing your partner ever did to “impress” you.

Scott: I put my Hawaii outfit on, of  flowered shorts, Hawaiian shirt, long dark socks, sandals, a lei, straw hat, and a camera before we started packing to go to Hawaii for our 50th birthdays. I also would bring in little token gifts for everyone in the office and her first gift, just after she started working in the office was a chocolate valentine heart.

Christine: I started giving him Pez dispenser for the various holidays. The first one was a Frankenstein Monster .

When did you know it was love?

Scott: after we had been dating for a few years and I had to go away to a conference so we were away from each other for a few days and it just did not feel right. I felt like something was missing. I called her up and told her that I missed her very much and she agreed that we should not go on any trips alone anymore. So our next trip was off to Hawaii for our 50th birthdays. That was where I proposed to her. We had just been to a Luau and there was a ring around the Moon. So I figured that it was a sign.

Christine- When I could not stop thinking about him. When all I wanted to do was be around him so when we would go out to happy hour with a bunch of friends I would make my way around so that I could sit by him. I also would get him to dance with me when we went to weddings and parties.

Are you guys more of “perfect twins” or “opposite attracts”?

Scott: Perfect twins but sometimes we are like Jack Spratt in that she likes the crust of the bread and I like the middle

Christine: Perfect twins we both seems to think alike. I will be thinking of something and then he will start talking about the same thing

Retell the coolest travel adventure that you have taken together

Scott: Italy for our honeymoon was spectacular. The beautiful churches and the sculptures were breath-taking. The fact that someone could take a piece of marble and carve the statue of David with all its curves and muscle structure was just amazing. The beautiful beaches of Hawaii are something beautiful also. The soft sand between your toes, the sound of the waves lapping at the shore, the palm trees waving from the soft breeze, and the warm sun warming up your body. That is something very restful and it is even more romantic when it is the moon reflecting off the water. That is why I asked her to marry her on the beach on the island of Kauai.

Christine: We went on our Honeymoon a year after getting married and went to Italy. We arrived in Rome stayed there 4 amazing days. We went to the Coluseum and saw the ruins of the old part of Rome and wondered how it must have looked when it was a vibrant city. We took a car Through the Tuscany area for 4 days and arrived in Florence where we saw the statue of David and wandered around seeing various pieces of art and then took the train to Venice and stayed there for 4 days. The architecture was amazing. Went on a romantic Gondola ride around Venice through the small inner canals.

How do you share your creativity/gifts with the world?

Scott: I share my pictures that I take of the kids from our school with the kids and their parents. I have a great feeling of pride when I can give a parent photograph that captures their child doing something that they love to do.

Christine: i don’t have any but Scott says that i share my warmth and caring with each and every student that i come in contact with.

Scott:  Chris is a very caring and warm person. She treats all the kids in the middle school like they are her children. Last year at the end of the year a couple of the  eighth grade leaders at a morning meeting thanked Chris for all that she had done for them and said that she would be the person that they would miss the most when they moved up to the upper school

What was your first disagreement about?

Scott: probably about being on time for something or my driving

Christine: I don’t remember

What do you do after a ‘fight’?

Scott:  We give each other some space at first and then we sit down and talk about our feelings

Christine: We discuss it

Describe your love journey in 3 words.

Scott:  wanting, touching, caring

Christine:  laugh,touch, love

For the marrieds, how has life changed since you got hitched?

Scott:  I don’t have as much free time as I used to. I sometimes wake up and stare at my beautiful wife and am glad that I am with her. I thank God that he brought her into my life and I think about how much richer my life is with her. I love that she is in my life and that we can experience things together. Seeing the sun set into the tops of the cloud from the top of a volcano is much more spectacular when you have someone there to share it with you.

Christine:  I slack off going to aerobics!!  I am much happier then I have been in years.  I laugh at things as hard as I did when I was a young girl ☺  I am very blessed to have Scott in my life.

If you want more info about or to sign up for the Love & A Photo Project go here: Love & A Photo: A Glance

Bloggy Love: Meet Craig of Bloomverse

Bloggy Love came from a desire to introduce & connect really cool, creative peeps to each other.  So grab your favorite beverage, settle in and get to know Craig.  He is a super-duper encourager & loves to help peeps with their ‘stumbly bits’.

Craig

Why don’t you introduce yourself:

I’m called Craig, my body is 30 years old, I’m married to the most awesome gal I’ve ever met, and we have 2 boys who give me the perfect excuse to act like I’m 5. We have a 3^rd on the way too! I’m a musician and songwriter, a wannabe filmmaker, I like playing basketball, I play air drums compulsively, I try to make people laugh as often as I can, and I’m a total geek that likes tearing things apart & putting them back together. Seriously, I’d rather read technical manuals than fiction any day of the week. I’m always building and making stuff. It’s like a disease, but a really cool one.

Tell me a bit about how you share your creative gifts with the world.

Right now, I’m quite involved with helping others incorporate the Sedona Method in their lives, both through the BloomVerse community and also through personal coaching. It really came about quite haphazardly—some might even say accidentally. But I created the community to provide a friendly, encouraging place for people to explore the Method. I also blog about applying the Sedona Method in practical life, taking experiences that I’ve personally had and sharing them via the written word. I’ve also got some interesting things planned for the near future that I think will be both creative and extremely helpful.

Summarize the Sedona Method.

The Sedona Method is a really simple, but really powerful way to master your life by letting go of your emotional limitations and tapping into the incredible potential at your core. It’s living with your heart wide open x 10.

How did it help you make changes to your life?

Well, to be honest, by completely debunking everything I thought I knew about my life. As info-mercially as that may sound, I really don’t know any other way to put it. After deciding to use the Sedona Method habitually, I saw that every limitation I perceived in my life was a limitation that I consciously put in place. I also learned that the reason why they never seemed to go away was because I was willfully holding them in place. I learned how to just drop all the excess baggage and actually live life. I learned to stop trying to “make it happen” and just let it happen. Once I made that shift, every aspect of my life was given the space to improve on its own. Happiness, money, health, opportunities, relationships, you name it.

But the coolest thing I experienced was the fact that our basic nature as human beings is happiness. When you let go of all the emotional content, what’s left is happiness—and it’s effortless happiness. I honestly never knew that! I never knew that I could be happy so much for no reason at all.

Pick 3 posts on your blog that are your faves.

Why you should let go of wanting to change your life; and how to do it

4 ways to quickly and easily get unstuck

Right now you don’t have any problems

Who are some bloggy peeps that inspire you (3 max)?

I love reading what Brian Clark writes (and I dig his taste in music as well) and I’m also really enjoying Jonathan Fields. Both help me immeasurably in the area of getting across what I want to say. I really enjoy David Ellzey too. He doesn’t blog often, but he is such a creative and interesting Sedona Method teacher.

What does your typical day look like?

I’m up somewhere between 5:30 and 6:00 in the morning, and I go wake my oldest son (6 years old) up. We eat breakfast together and talk about things like Super Mario Brothers and what makes people float in space. I fix my lunch for the day and before I leave, I get my 18 month old into his high chair and we spend a few minutes making nonsensical vocalizations at one another. My wife takes over from there. I grab a coffee and head to my full time job, spending the 45 minute drive rocking out in the car. I work an engineering support job called configuration management for the prime Space Shuttle contractor at Kennedy Space Center. Throughout the day I check in on the online world via my phone and also scrawl out random ideas that pop into my head on pieces of notebook paper (There are folded up pieces of paper with these ideas stashed all over my workspace at home).

I get home around 4:30, eat dinner with the family, take my oldest to soccer practice if he has it, and afterwards I play with the kids (major highlight of the day). Then we get the boys bathed and ready for bed. Occasionally I play the Wii with my oldest, he loves it. I also work part-time for Google (I telecommute), so I’ll put in an hour or two a night doing that. Spend some time with my wife and then it’s off to bed around 11:00. That’s the usual Monday thru Friday. I work on BloomVerse projects throughout the day every day. I also hold personal coaching sessions with clients as-needed.

How do you motivate yourself when you just don’t ‘feel’ like doing a task.

Well, a lot of times if I’m not feeling particularly motivated I’ll just allow it to be that way. I’ve never really had much luck trying to force myself to do things in the past. So if I have something I need to do but am not really feeling any motivation to do it, I’ll just let it be that way. I’ll go move on to something else and come back when I’m ready.

What advice would you give to people who are taking a “leap”, creatively or personally?

Challenge your concepts of limitation. Doubt their substance. Examine them and test them to see if they’re real or not.

I’ve always been a really creative person, but I also had a lot of conditioning growing up which led me to operate from a perspective of scarcity and caution. That’s really not a combination of traits that complement one another. J Later on I found out that they weren’t real. They were illusions that I allowed to control my decision making.

Concepts of limitation can unfortunately influence people to refrain from doing really awesome things—especially creative people that want to do creative things for a living. But they are only feelings. So my advice would be this:

Be completely honest with yourself. What’s your leap? When you think about doing it, what kind of feelings does it stir up inside? Pinpoint the ones that seem to be blocking you from the direction you want to go in. Don’t fight them, let them be. If you stop resisting feelings you don’t like, they’ll just dissolve. It’s really that easy.

When you let the emotional content drop away, there’s nothing left but clear reasoning and a bunch of opportunity. At that point, my only advice is to have fun!

What kind of music do you listen to in order to focus your energy?

Being a musician for the past 18 years, I actually like a pretty broad range of music. I have a near obsession with 90’s alternative rock. My iPod is filled with it. So most of the time you’ll find me listening to that. But I also like roots rock, jazz fusion, blues, and even symphonic music. My oldest son and I have been known to wreak havoc on air guitar and air drums to harder stuff like Killswitch Engage sometimes as well. It really just depends on what’s calling my name at the time.

What is your favorite snacky food.

Right now, it’s Kettle brand Sea Salt & Vinegar potato chips. My wife stopped buying them out of frustration because I can seriously eat the entire bag in one sitting.

Animal crackers are a close second.

What are your top 3 goals for the rest of this year?

1) Continue to help people change their lives.

2) Poise to move my family to North Carolina.

3) Finalize an online workshop that I’m working on.

Share about what you are currently venturing into:

I’m currently doing a lot of “behind the scenes” work on BloomVerse. It’s a very young community (under 3 months old) but it is growing rather quickly. I’m creating workshops and training curriculum because I’ve gotten a ton of feedback showing interest in that. So I’m in a process of addressing the interests of the community members by transposing what has worked so well for me into actionable solutions for them. When I’m done I’ll be rolling out some workshops that will be incredibly unique, but more importantly, incredibly effective.

Craig recently wrote a book about the Sedona Method called Uncover Life (click on the title to check it out!).

Got featured.

I became a delicious encourager over at Brandi’s blog, Life is Art.

Today I got the great delight of being featured.

Tres cool.

Check it out!  If you dare.

Delicious Encouragers Spotlight: Melly

ps if you want to join & show your support to Brandi you can find out more here.

*SERIES* “Love & A Photo”: Kelly and Brian

Name

K = Kelly (aka Flying Mermaid)

B = Brian (aka B the Bike aka SequoiaFast)

Age

K: 32 technically. I usually feel and act like I’m 7

B: 32 and trying to age in reverse

Lifes’ Work

K: My day job is a writer at a clinical research institute. That is definitely NOT my life’s work. Life’s work = photography, playing with art, being the play leader, the one who is the first to get silly and play and encourage others to play as well, shining light

B: To gain knowledge and enlightenment, bask in Love, cherish friends and family, engage in creative endeavors and actively search out opportunities for adventure.

What city do you live in?

K: Durham, NC  -

B: Ditto

How long have you been together?

K: This is where our story gets interesting. We’ve been married for three months now, and this time around, we have been together for just over a year and a half. But we were together for a year in college (97-98). We didn’t speak or see each other for about 10 years. I googled him a few years ago, had to e-mail his boss because I couldn’t find his e-mail address..and about two years after I e-mailed his boss….he wrote back to me, in November 2007.

B: We have been together in spirit ever since we first fell in love. After being a couple for about a year we separated in 1998. We have always been each others ‘one’ despite our physical separation. I had a girlfriend when Kelly emailed me in 2006. I knew I couldn’t respond to her email, but I also couldn’t let her email go. I kept her email in my office desk and it traveled with me when I switched jobs. After breaking up with my girlfriend I worked up the courage to see if Kelly’s email address was still active. I contacted her in November 2007 and then told her in 2008 that I never wanted to be without her again. Frankly, she’s amazing!

How & where did you meet?

K: We met in college, through our mutual friend Chris

B: We met in college, but our first date was seeing James and the Giant Peach on campus.

What was your first impression?

K: I think I fell in love with B almost as soon as I met him. Funny, handsome, fun, silly, passionate, totally willing to be a dork or goofball like me, up for fun and adventures.

B – Kelly was quirky, funny and genuine. She was refreshingly honest at age when most people are trying to be something they are not.

Describe your first date.

K: We watched James and the Giant Peach at the college movie theater..the movie melted! The whole time, I was sooo hoping he would kiss me. We’d been friends for over a year at that point, and I of course always loved him, and waiting for him to want me was killing me!

B: I felt that both Kelly and I were nervous. I was not particularly suave in college (some things never change) so I hadn’t known that Kelly was even interested in me. It was like magic when the movie frame got stuck on the screen and melted. The universe gave us an easy marker to never forget our first day. I walked her back to her room after the movie and we kissed for the first time.

Tell me about the most funny thing your partner ever did to “impress” you.

K: I think of two kids in love, going out for a Valentine’s Day/B’s birthday dinner, underage, dressed up for a fancy dinner, ordering Strawberry Daiquiris and hoping we wouldn’t get carded!

B: I really don’t know. The truth is that Kelly is naturally cool. I know that she has done things to impress me, but I don’t know what because she hides them so well.

When did you know it was love?

K: I loved him almost immediately. I can’t think of a time of knowing B and not loving him and not knowing I wanted to spend my life with him.

B: Shame on me, but it has been so long that I don’t remember the exact moment. I do recall a night that she held me tight for hours on end to break my fever. That is one of the most memorable moments of my life.

Are you guys more of “perfect twins” or “opposite attracts”?

K: In nearly everything, we are perfect twins. We always think the same thing at the same time, we both love trying new adventures, we are both silly and dorky. And where we aren’t perfect twins, we balance each other well.

B: We are perfect twins. We enjoy adventures and lazy days. We can rock climb one day and have a movie marathon the next. In any room we are most likely to gross out the public due to our affection for each other. We will dance when the only music playing is in our head.

Retell the coolest travel adventure that you have taken together.

K: We haven’t had a chance to do a lot of traveling together yet. I would say our honeymoon to Belize was pretty incredible, lots of relaxing and exploring and photography (me) and videography (B) and water fun…and we both had some challenges on the trip as well, and we saw how well we help each other during challenges.

B: Our honeymoon in Belize was the coolest. It was my first time traveling internationally and it was our first real break after a year of busyness. We rode bicycles, swam with sharks, read and went to bed every night before 8pm. We reveled in uninterrupted time together.

How do you share your creativity/gifts with the world?

K: I am starting a photography business, I have my blog (my poor neglected blog that I haven’t updated because this summer has been crazy).  I try to dress creatively and fun, and encouraging others to do the same. I have ideas for children’s books that I want to write, I just need to work on them more!

B: I don’t have the confidence in my creativity to share it. I usually keep my creations to myself, but I hope to share more as I create more.

What was your first disagreement about?

K: Probably smoking. I hate smoking, have always hated it, and B used to smoke sometimes.

B: Ditto

What do you do after a ‘fight’?

K: I usually get really quiet and disappear into my head for a while, but this isn’t very nice or mature of me, I am trying to work on this and work on communicating how I am feeling.

B: I talk too much. I like to get everything out in the open to put it behind us. I’m working on letting things rest more.

Have you faced any adversity? If so, and you care to share- what…

K: We’ve had some, my mom has had some health issues, we’ve both had job challenges of feeling like we aren’t doing what we are meant to, I have some health stuff of my own that frustrates me, and I know that no matter what, B is my rock, my cheerleader and will always be there to help me back up and help me deal with what I have to do.

B: It was hard for me to leave my friends and family in NH to move to NC. I had wanted to move for a long time, but it was hard to leave my support network. Kelly provided me with a new home and encouraged me to maintain strong relationships with my past. She made my move successful.

Describe your love journey in 3 words.

K: Always connected. True love.

B: True Love Wins

For the marrieds, how has life changed since you got hitched?

K: I feel even closer to him. We are still learning our married rhythm.

B: Our marriage has made me happier and more comfortable in my own life. It feels like I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing.

Bonus Question: What is your favorite beverage?

K: Mornings, coffee, light and sweet. Oh for the love of coffee. Otherwise, water.

B: OJ for me

If you want more info about or to sign up for the Love & A Photo Project go here: Love & A Photo: A Glance

Gaining focus.

When I started a self-imposed mini ‘reading-other-blogs’ bloggy break.

I panicked (just a little, I promise).

My mind erupted with all sorts of thoughts on why it was a bad idea.

Here are a few:

“What if people forget you are here?”

“What if when you quiet your mind, there is nothing there?” (ridiculous, I know)

“Wait a minute, I thought you said that you were a giver, you can’t NOT visit & comment on peeps blogs.  That’s selfish”

“Blah, blah, blah…you won’t last”

“Are you serious?”

Those little icky thoughts seem to come at the moments I most need the quiet.  You see, I was enjoying the connection, comraderie, and inspiration that comes with reading other blogs but it started to overwhelm me.  I couldn’t keep up with all the “good stuff” being put out into the Universe.

I’m sure you have been there: trying to visit everyones blogs, make comments, twitter, write your posts, try new things, your daily life stuff, art projects, etc.  It was too much of a good thing (yes, I think that is entirely possible. well, for me it is.)

The past few days of slowing down my bloggy visits to none (working to that number), has been both a challenge & eye opening.  It’s interesting how much of a habit doing something becomes.  You just do it.  There is no longer any intention behind it.  When you are moving out of that area, it is much like quitting smoking or trying to stop chewing gum (if you always chew gum). WITHDRAWALS.

Not a fan of them.  However, I am being patient with myself.  Knowing that those feelings are there because I created a pattern plus I long for connection.  Neither one of those things are bad.

I just need a break.  A time to figure some stuff out.  Hear MY voice.  Dream MY dreams. Find inspiration in ME.

Will I give up other blogs forever, hell to the NO!  Just a mini break.

Call it “regroup-to-find-your-inner-awesomeness-again-and-let-your-dreams-explode” mini blog break.

I will still be writing posts & making little creative changes to my haven. It will also make me much more creative about how I keep in touch. That sounds fun~maybe I can incorporate my love for sending sparkle notes & small pressies.

Thank you for understanding, peep-a-leeps!

PS I started a *new* weekly e-note called “Moonlight & Moonstones” where you will get a burst of inspiration about finding your inner audacious soul.  It will be a short & sweet note delivered to you each Friday w/ the occasional surprise & offerings sprinkled in.  To sign up enter your name & email in the form on the sidebar.  Enjoy!  :)

PPS The old newsletter is gone. Just not suiting my needs.

Quieting the outer noise.

Every now & then you have to take a break.

A rest from gathering new things/ideas/thoughts.

If you can’t make any more room for outside stuff.

When your mind becomes so cluttered you can’t gain focus or clarity.

Resist the urge to look for the answer “out there”.

It’s right where it has always been,

in YOU.

Instead of just seeing it as a problem to fix,

Trust that the Universe will guide.

Move in the direction of YOUR dreams.

See what unfolds.

PS I bought this print last year, when I see it I think tranquility and peace.

If you would like to see more of Mccabe’s photos. Visit The Dancing Mermaid’s Photostream.

Transitions & me

When I left my last job, Pirahna 3D. I had the unsettled feeling I tend to get when a job wraps. That maybe that would be the last job.  It’s pretty common unless you are attached to a big star.

Another thought that hit me is:  Why did I turn down the chance to do a movie that would be a “big hit” next summer to go work on a semi-indie horror film with friends.

** It turned out that while that job was fun, I carried boatloads of yucky insecurities with me about being in over my head on such a big production.

It’s been a few months & gone through many different stages:

The this is cool now I have time to “recover” (after having done 3 movies).

to

Great!!  I want to visit family & friends, let’s go!

to

Ok, I’ll start looking for another job (it’s been a few weeks)

to

Maybe I should start a side biz for times like this.  I know I want to keep costuming but I have to bring the money in somehow.

to

Super.  It’s the slow time of year.

to

What if I never work again

to

Am I even anything without what i do?

to

Stop freaking out, it will be fine

to

Breath, relax into this time,

to

Guess what, you can be getting clear about what you want & how you hope to achieve it.  won’t that be better than being depressed and wearing your bathrobe all day.

to

I like that.  be deliberate. start focusing on what i want instead of just what i seemingly lack. (interesting it took me months to get here)

to

What I am calling “Melly’s Transition-o-rama of 2009″

Color me silly, I never ever imagined that I would suddenly be building important parts of my foundation in my mid-30′s (total late bloomer). I say that partially tongue-in-cheek since I understand it’s a lifetime journey.

I’m feeling the internal pull of a paradox inside me.  The one that is practical & needs to take care of the business of paying my bills, finding a “real job”, and buckling down and the one that says I just want to find a way to make money doing what I like to do, how do I create a whole world that supports that vision.

What would MY dream life look like? (Not in the hokey way but in the honest-to-goodness building a life you aspire to.  Living intentionally.  Making your own opportunities not taking jobs based on reactionary thinking.  Being able to enjoy life fully.  Where you make the rules.)

I *love* set costuming.  Funny coming from a just-this-side-of-tomboy.  I love clothes & how fashion can tell a story.  When I work on a movie, I swell with pride at the fact…yes, you have great lighting, hair and makeup, props but without the clothes you really couldn’t fully immerse in the experience.  The role of a set costumer is so interesting. YOU are the person who is there to keep the purity of the Costume Designers vision & please the director with the wardrobe.  The representative of your department.  There is taking care of the comfort of the actors- a helper of sorts (making sure they have coats when its cold or comfort shoes or robes for those “sassy scenes”).  You are required to take meticulous notes & keep continuity (make sure the actor wears the clothes how he should be since scenes are not shot in order).  It is the perfect job (for me) in many ways because there is so much variety, working with all different types of peeps, and creativity.  I get giddy just thinking about some of my past jobs (even though there were certainly tricky moments and lots of lessons)!

There is an aspect to the my job that I don’t enjoy.  The networking & going to mixers to “get my name” out there.  Those crowds can make me get uncomfortable with the overwhelming “look at me” atmosphere.  Plus the lack of a nourishing life when you work 14-16 hours a day can be taxing. However, those few quibbles aren’t enough to make me leave it. They are not deal breakers.

My internal clock is set to do 3 movies a year.  I need the balance of time off (something that does not happen if you jump from job to job). There is the challenge within myself: Can I get quality film jobs?  Do those 3 movies a year and then run away and have my play/other stuff  time?  In this business people tend to ‘forget’ about you if you don’t follow the unwritten rules.

I have a deep love for photography and travel.  Where does that play in the mix?

I’m entering a new zone.  Building confidence in the ability to define & call the shots in my own life.  Making plans without checking what people think every time. Learning to hear criticism or negative feedback, apply it…or not.  Not letting outside stuff tell me how to be or think.  This means family, friends, the news, peeps who claim to be experts, etc.  (Did you know that if your friends say your paintings are just “ok” or you make a choice they wouldn’t- you don’t have to take that burden on you?  Well I didn’t, until recently.)

I know I am offering more questions than answers but that is the reality of my life right now.  Lots of questions.  I think since making this inner vow, I’m more confused than before. Not in a bad way, more like “where are you heading? is this for real?”

I’m not going to be a person who shares only the joys because that would not be the whole picture & someone could think it is all ups and get discouraged in their path.  It so important for me to be real with peeps.  Stay true. There will be a good balance of both especially once I get walking along.  I want to share the ride with you.

What is true:  I’m intrigued by what this journey will look like. What will it bring? That I can define how I want my life to look.  I can take these baby steps to make happen how I long for my life to unfold.  Must remind myself though, that there is always a growing period & for those times patience is key.  Oh and a heaping tablespoon of kindness!

Can’t believe I am going to quote a Miley Cyrus song but it says so perfectly what I am feeling right now.

The Climb

I can almost see it
That dream I’m dreaming but
There’s a voice inside my head saying, 
You’ll never reach it, 
Every step I’m taking, 
Every move I make feels
Lost with no direction
My faith is shaken but I
Got to keep trying
Got to keep my head held high

There’s always going to be another mountain
I’m always going to want to make it move
Always going to be an uphill battle, 
Sometimes I’m going to have to lose, 
Ain’t about how fast I get there, 
Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
It’s the climb

The struggles I’m facing, 
The chances I’m taking
Sometimes they knock me down but
No I’m not breaking
I may not know it
But these are the moments that
I’m going to remember most yeah
Just got to keep going
And I, 
I got to be strong
Just keep pushing on, 

There’s always going to be another mountain
I’m always going to want to make it move
Always going to be an uphill battle, 
Sometimes you going to have to lose, 
Ain’t about how fast I get there, 
Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
It’s the climb

There’s always going to be another mountain
I’m always going to want to make it move
Always going to be an uphill battle, 
Sometimes you going to have to lose, 
Ain’t about how fast I get there, 
Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
It’s the climb

Keep on moving
Keep climbing
Keep the faith baby
It’s all about
It’s all about
The climb
Keep the faith
Keep your faith

Gentle Reminder for today

This nudge comes from my heart…

and goes to yours…

YOU have nothing to prove. Being YOU is enough.

Let’s not be boxed in.

This will come as a really brash statement but to me there is almost nothing worse than someone telling me to “feel better” or “look on the bright side of things” or you “need to be more positive” (my all time least favorite thing to hear during my “moods”).  When I find myself doing it to someone, I try to stop that impulse.  Not always successful but I make a real effort.

Why do people do this?  Is it because it’s messy to embrace a person who is complicated? Or if you let a person stew in that for a bit you will get ‘infected’ by the moody bug or whatever?

For me, I need freedom.

Freedom to live my truest ME.

Sometimes I share my joy.

Sometimes I am grouchy.

Sometimes I accept & love the awesome person that is me.

Sometimes I get so frustrated at why I can’t seem to make lasting changes.

Sometimes I am full of sugar & spice & everything nice.

Sometimes I’m not.

Sometimes I am the best, most productive me I can be.

Sometimes I waste time.

Sometimes I like art & playing with color and light.

Sometimes I just want to watch TV & eat salt and vinegar chips.

Sometimes I need people.

Sometimes I love being alone.

Sometimes I feel the fear of saying something different to the status quo.

Sometimes I like to “rock the boat” so peeps will not be so friggin’ uptight.

Like everything, it’s complex.  I don’t want to be boxed in.

I would imagine that none of us do.