Marigolds and Mother Nature

Wow - I just wrote my first full-circle entry. I started the list one way and ended it in the same manner with a bunch of "stuff" in between.  It's almost like a Seinfeld episode. 

1. Serendipity means a "happy accident" or "pleasant surprise"; specifically, the accident of finding something good or useful without looking for it. This is a word I live in and thoroughly enjoy those serendipitous moments in life.
2. "And do not even sweat anything.  You are like family and we take care of family and those we love and care about." This was said to me today and made me tear up. I appreciate my friends so much.
3. This past spring I was so excited to plant some seeds and grow flowers outside of my office window.  They did pretty well until it got REALLY hot outside. Unfortunately they all died off after I had a couple of sunflowers brighten my days and then whither away.  Today I stepped outside and was so pleasantly surprised. The plants that I thought had died had survived and thrived without any help from me - only the help from Mother Nature. The seeds found their ways to the cracks between the tiles and took root.  Nature never ceases to surprise me with its ability to persevere.  I take this as a testament to the human spirit. No matter how bleak things may become, over time you'll survive and under the right conditions, you'll thrive. Seeing these flowers made my day and hopefully this picture of them will make yours.
4. I took about a week off from running and ran today.   I felt pretty good and motivated to do my long run on Thursday.  Long meaning 20 minute run. I love how the endorphins make me feel. 
5. Some days I feel like I am a freshman in college. You know.. not having a clue what I want to do with my life career wise. While they feel unsure of their path they take classes in the hopes to discover it. In my case, I'm working just because that's what I'm supposed to do until I discover my "path".  It's not a bad thing. Sometimes that's just what you have to do. I'm okay with not knowing what I want to do because I know what I love to do. Make sense?  Probably not...  bottom line - I love being creative and artsy and I'll keep pluggin' away until I experience a serendipitous moment. :0)

Monday, You're Too Funky for Me...

There was a funk in my spirit today. I didn't want to do a think at work. Why would I need to work after not working for so many days? hahaha  I finally got into gear after 4PM and did two solid hours of work.  Aside from working in the office I've been working on my plan of action for the 30 days of crafting.  The excitement begins in just a couple of days.

1.  I'm glad all of the things I needed to finish for homecoming planning is nearly over. WHEW!
2. I love that I finally said what I needed to say. What a relief!
3. I found a new craft site that I love to death... Curbly!
4. Today Barbara brought me some large mason jars. I love how thoughtful she is.  I'm going to have to make her something for Christmas. 
5. The weather today was amazing. It just doesn't get better than that at the end of November in Northern Virginia! 70 degrees????

Super Soul Sunday

I haven't done a thing today and I am okay with that.  Although I never left the house, I did find 5 solid things that I loved about today.

1. Myra stopped by to return the key. It was nice to chill out and chat with her. She's a good friend in the area.
2. I saw a video today that promotes marriage equality. It was made in Australia. It was done so well that I had to share it on Facebook and now I'm sharing it here. The video is titled, "It's Time".
3. I've spent most of the evening looking for craft projects. I'm embarking on a 30-Day challenge to make one craft per day.  I've found about 15 strong projects today. Lots of the ideas came from Design Sponge. Heeeeeeeeeeey, Design Sponge! :0)
4. Waking up early and being able to go back to sleep for a 2 hour nap is something I love. To have no real agenda for the day is awesome!
5. Super Soul Sunday on OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network) was great today. They talked about Taoism.  Maybe I'm a Taoist?  I don't know. What I do know is that I was fully engaged in the program.

The Magnificent Metro and the Friends Along the Way

Today I commented on all of the people listing things they're thankful for.  It's a good exercise in gratitude.  It's kind of like the reason I do this blog - to find the positive things in life that I'm happy about or grateful for.  There are days where I am always trying to dig deep within to find a one or two more situations/items to list as a good thing.  It's especially hard if you haven't interacted with many people. Today I'm thankful for friends.

1. I had lunch with my friend Myra. It's always a good time. She's going to feed my dog while I'm away and I'm glad she doesn't mind.
2. Staying at my friend, Nicole's tonight so that my commute to Union Station is so easy in the morning. Shaving off an hour on the commute. I'm headed to NYC in the morning!  Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, here I come!
3. I love that Thai Crunch Salad at California Pizza Kitchen. I didn't realize that it had cucumbers in it though.... and despite the cucumbers, I still loved it. Now that's progress.
4. Sara brought me a brownie with sprinkles on it to my office this afternoon. That was really nice of her.
5. I loved that I rode the Metro today and I only had to wait about 4 minutes for the train to leave. That's pretty good timing - I guess it's pretty normal during the work week with lots of trains passing through. LOL  However, for me, it was something great that happened to me. :0)

The Best Things in Life are...

It's hard to stay motivated at work when you know you have a big trip coming up!  I'm headed to NYC on Wednesday to add another check mark to my Bucket List - The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!  WOO HOO! I'm sure I'll be adding a few NYC things to my daily dose of positivity.

1. I shared my "cakes in a jar" with staff members today and the best compliment was seeing a staff member running her finger around the inside of the jar to get the frosting out.  MY HOMEMADE FROSTING... clearly she thought it was delicious and that makes me smile!
2. I am happy to have friends around that I can ask favors of. It makes life so much more manageable.
3. I need more people to get hip to this particular CD, Michael Franti and Spearhead's "The Sound of Sunshine".  I heard "I'll Be Waiting" again today and thought, "Man, this song needs to make my list today!" Check out the lyrics.
4. This afternoon I was interviewed by The Daily Dot today for being a male seller on Etsy. It was pretty cool.  Shout out to Lauren Orsini for the interview.  The article should be published on Wednesday. 
5. Through a really good conversation with a student, I learned that he enjoys history and educating/mentoring youth. Who knew?  The lesson of the day - Never judge a book by its cover. I love when I have moments in life that remind me of the lessons I have learned.

I Hate to Go But I Simply Mustache....

1. After several days of skipping out on going to the gym, I made my triumphant return!  I am proud to say that I did it and wasn't winded! Ahh yes, progress!
2. I hung out with one of my friends who just moved to this part of Northern Virginia. I got to show her a new restaurant and where the ABC Store is. hahaha
3. Tonight posed a great surprise.  I got a message from a customer on Etsy who wanted to buy three bracelets. Got it, no problem.  Then she messaged me again and asked for another bracelet.  WOO HOO!! Who doesn't love making a multiple sale?
4. With the sale of these bracelets I get to move up in the fundraising boards for Movember!  LOVE IT! I get to add another $10 to the mix. Would you like to contribute? :0)
5. Today I finished working the first resume that Nicole and I have taken on in our resume business. Looks like we got our second one coming in!!

One-Hundred and Three!!!!

1. It's not everyday when a friend says to you, "your friendship is an important part of my world" especially when you haven't had the best day.  
2. Today I realized that I hit 50 consecutive postings since I made the switch to this blogging site.  My first post was on July 22, 2011! This post makes my 103rd!
3. I heard some music in a friend's office today that took me back to my childhood.  Madonna's "Lucky Star", New Edition's "Candy Girl", and Wham's "Careless Whisper". It brought up some great memories.
4. Avacadoes are 88 cents each right now.. That's a great price!
5. I saw a video tonight on how to cut glass bottles.  I love that the guy showed the technique. Now I'm excited to try it.

Pollyanna Prowess

The day started off rough - Lots of knee pain from running and body aches from bowling and running but it's turned out to be a pretty good day.  How could it not when you always look for the positive things in life that surround you?  I guess I've fully channeled "Pollyanna". 

1. Today I said farewell to a good friend at work.  Luckily she's not leaving the area though, so we can still hang out. I'm definitely looking forward to kickin' it with her in DC! I may not like the fact that she's leaving but I love the reason she is.  She is being FEARLESS and I love it!
2. LOL, watching American Horror Story tonight and a line from Jessica Lange's character cracked me up. She is a mess! LOL "Christ on a stick... " They can pretty much say whatever they want on FX.
3. Paisano's Pizza - that's some DAMN GOOD PIZZA (and they make a good salad, too).
4. I had a great conversation tonight and I'm liking what became of it. Good stuff! (big grin)
5. I love the lyricism of Burt Bacharach. I guess that makes me "old school". hahaha I listened to his music on my way home from work.

Do You know Where You're Going to? Do You Like the Things that Life is Showing You??

1. It's always nice to see friends when they're passing through your area. I haven't seen Kyle in about 2 years. I love that when he saw me he said, "Where did you go?" - meaning I lost weight and it's clearly noticeable. :0)
2. I got to see a someone again and that was great. Looking forward to the next time.
3. To almost be able to drive through D.C. without a GPS is something worth loving. I had the general idea of the direction I need to go and I was in the general vicinity. hahaha
4. I never really had a pumpkin iced latte from Dunkin Donuts until yesterday.  Man, those are REALLY good.  I will have to get another one some day this fall. 
5. The movie Moneyball was GREAT!  I wasn't too sure on it when I first saw the previews but then the reviews came out and it looked like a winner.  Don't you just love, when you're in a movie theatre, that the entire audience laughs, cheers and sniffles at the same time? That's the sign of an awesome movie.

Smile. Your Face Loves When You Do.

1. It’s been one of those days when you hear a voice sing and you just can’t get enough of hearing it.  Thank you Shirley Bassey,  I love your voice! (hear and see her performances here - just as I watched them today).
2. Tonight at work, I noticed that we have nearly 6000 students who have signed up on our Student Organization system.  WOW!! For the longest time I thought it was only about 1000.  What a great surprise and I LOVE surprises!
3. You can have a really trying day with people and there is always at least one person that can make you laugh and forget about it.  I love that about my friends. They have a knack for doing that even when they don’t know that they’re doing it.
4. Apparently my outfit today was looking good. I got several compliments on it.  Gotta love compliments.  It’s like a pay-it-forward esteem boost.
5. I love when I can make a person smile. I love it even more when people and things can make me smile just like seeing The Clark Sisters on the show, Unsung.