Monthly Archives: February 2007

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Happiness Is

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I don’t know who wrote the book, but I used to have one about happiness when I was a kid. Happiness was a bunch of things: a warm blanket, a puppy, eskimo kisses, etc. etc. Pretty mushy stuff. Sometimes though, it’s fun to think like a child again, to think about being happy, to focus on it and make it real for you in that moment.

 

Happiness is sending off the first chapter of your novel for revision.

Happiness is being scared, and embracing that scared-ness.

Happiness is that nothing exploded when you hit send.

Happiness is the hot cocoa that you made to celebrate.

Happiness is finding this picture on your computer in the VERY IMPORTANT FILES section, and smiling, because of course, that is exactly where it belonged.

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Phat Tuesday

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That’s what I’m having. Woo Hoo. By the end of the day today, the first chapter of my novel will be in the hands of an EDITOR, and I will be working on the second. I can’t tell you for the life of me why it took so long. It’s a challenge to do something this personal for me, I’m a little afraid of success, even more than failure (which of course is the most likely for any writer). Getting a book on the market will validate so much for me.

Procrastinating is easy to do, there are things that come up, excuses that I can make to avoid the work. Since there’s no time limit, no boss, no structure. It doesn’t come to you, and I’ve learned you really can’t force it. It’s rough work, slow going and intense, full of difficult thought and angst and pressure. I actually should be rushing to get it over with.

reading books
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Chinese New Year Presents

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Well, I may have missed it by a day, but it’s the year of the pig! Yay!

We did all the appropriate stuff, I ate some Ramen Noodles and we celebrated in the traditional method of watching 24 hours of Law & Order on the TNT marathon. I got to go out last night and see some old friends and of course, if you know anything, you know that RB is in town (this guy from San Fran) so we got to party, and that is always the Best Of Times.

The house is a full, shiny, happy place full of fun and wonderfulness, despite me waking up every morning with my face still in pain. Boo.

Don’t google year of the pig, whatever you do, there are too many gross pictures of carved up pigs on the internet, that is for sure.


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Made For Heaven

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My kingdom does not belong to this world.

John 18:36

 

Unhappiness on earth cultivates a hunger for heaven. By gracing us with a deep dissatisfaction, God holds our attention. The only tragedy, then, is to be satisfied prematurely. To settle for earth. To be content in a strange land…

We are not happy here because we are not at home here. We are not happy here because we are not supposed to be happy here. We are like “foreigners and strangers in this world” (1 Pet. 2:11)…

And you will never be completely happy on earth simply because you were not made for earth. Oh, you will have your moments of joy. You will catch glimpses of light. You will know moments or even days of peace. But they simply do not compare with the happiness that lies ahead.

-from Max Lucado’s Grace for the Moment


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Fonda San Miguel

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The restaurant itself is beautiful. It’s over by North Loop and Hancock. I’d never been before. I could meet anyone, anytime there for a drink, maybe even an appetizer. That part was yummy. After all that fun, the dining room and food left something to be desired.

Make no mistake, we managed to be almost the last table in there, so we tried our best to make our own good time. I just found the entrees pretty plain for all the other stuff being so much better. The company was great, and it was nice to have a relatively quiet weekend night, considering I’m still in recovery.

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Life, In Boxes

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Weirdest thing I’ve done in a while: I went through someone’s stuff. Their everything. This person had some things, well, all their things, left somewhere and never went for them. These boxes were made available to me as it was widely understood parts of my life might have found their way to these boxes as well. I wasn’t sure it was necessary, but part of me wanted to see the condition this person had given up in.

It was unsettling to be right, to see that people would take things and think nothing of it. It was also a memory of better things, and a realization of a life in need of saving, with no one knowing how to help. I really can’t get in to it much more than that, but can’t stop thinking about the situation. I’ve got some things back, sure, but someone else is missing so much more.


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I Got Implants

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Not to throw you off or get you too excited, that must be the nitrous talking – it’s not what you think. I went in to the dentist for what started out as a routine cleaning and found out there was this giant ruptured about-to-explode-all-over-my-face-tooth that needed to be extracted immediately.

I, of course, blame that on the crappy food in New Zealand, obviously I was served something that rots otherwise lovely teeth. We’re talking, got a sticker every trip to the dentist for years teeth. Hmpf.

Well, I’m a little lighter now, down one tooth. But then they IMPLANT you with BONE in your MOUTH but there’s still a HOLE and I have to go BACK and get some more FAKE TOOTH or something. Oh wait! I almost forgot to mention the STITCHES. In my face. Yuck.

This is what I think of when I think dentist:


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And now you’re telling me I have to go BACK? There will be a total of three days like this one, where I have a mouth full of gauze and can’t talk and have bottles of Vicodin lying around and I’m eating soup and drinking water (not through a straw!). This is not my idea of a good time, folks.

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Retail Therapy

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There is something about shopping, no matter what, that makes me feel so good. I understand this is a common phenomenon among the ladies, and I wonder why. I have continued to be a little miffed and tried some yoga, some wine, some reading, some talking, nah. But heading out and spending some time amongst the stores and getting a few new things was lovely. I hadn’t been out in quite a while. There’s nothing like it. Four bags full of new stuff later, I was ‘feeling no pain’. And now I’ll look cute for the next couple of weeks too. That never hurts anyone’s feelings. Maybe it’s because clothes don’t talk back. Maybe because things fit better than last time I went out. Who cares! Well, I didn’t until I read that it has a really negative connotation, check the link!

Here’s what wikipedia says: Retail Therapy

Boo to those guys, I say a little shopping never hurt anyone.


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Love Is In The Air

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Last night, I found myself peering across the table from a lovely date.

Last night before I left my husband for this date, he let me in on a little secret, that the night before Valentine is the common night that men take their mistresses out. He said he read it on the internet. Hmm. Well, this was KD, not my man or my mistress (well, I did get her a card), and I didn’t have time to wander the restaurant asking other people there if they were in the middle of being unfaithful. Maybe next year.

It was a blast to spend some relaxed time together after all the gym-ness we’d been rocking together.

All the holidays have been my favorite this year. Card shopping has been fun. Why you ask? I get to buy stuff that says “husband“. I have a husband. This is the first time that that has happened. All the holidays have been happier, even though we’ve been together for a long time, just knowing that we’ve cemented that. MK has always been the best guy at Valentine’s, a list of all my sweet and thoughtful gifts would make you want to puke, all the other gifts would make you want to rob me (why I’m not listing them). He reminds me everyday, not just today, why I fell for him.

Anyway, knowing there are some out there that are not in love with what I agree is a cheesy day, a commercial day (velvet and snippy), there are also those out there that think of it as a time to reflect, to be happy, to call their mother, to give their single friends cards, and eat a little candy, to kiss someone just a little longer, to remember the little school parties and construction paper cards. Either way, Happy Valentine’s Day!


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Writing Down The Bones

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There’s that little sidebar information about the novels and such that I’ve been getting into, which I assume that you’ve noticed. (Or are noticing now, I’ll wait, go ahead…)

Right. So, I haven’t made detailed comments on every book, and I feel as though I should let you know why that is.

1. That would be a lot of posts, I’m reading many many books lately.

2. I am a skilled book-picker-outer. If it’s up there, you should go buy it or ask to borrow it. It will be a good one.

3. Some of you (yeah, sorry to single you out) don’t know how to read if it isn’t a blog or an email.

4. Some of you (even worse than those in category #3) read – gasp – things like self help books and _____ for Dummies. Stop it.

Ironically enough, this will help you out a little if you’re in category #3. The book Writing Down the Bones was a gift from a client ages ago who was so impressed by me that he was convinced I would write a great book. He bought me this as a gift, for inspiration. And maybe also because he was all about meditation and there’s a little of that in there.

I implore you to check this book out. Even if you are not a writer, chances are you need a little order in your life, and this book will help. Every place she mentions ‘writer’ you could insert ‘stock broker’ or ‘checkout assistant’ and learn something.

find a good book
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