Category: Quotes and Thoughts

What do Dirty Foreheads, Chocolate, Facebook and Diet Coke have in common?

Simply put, faith. And check out the ash-happy job my priest did last year in that photo… impressive, huh? He said I needed extra ashes.
And come this April 5th, look out- don’t get between me and any corn dogs or chicken wings. You have been warned.

CatholicMemes.com for your hip humor needs.
CatholicMemes.com for your hip humor needs.

But I digress… all of the above are some common ways people sometimes remind themselves of what their faith means to them, and how they arrived at their beliefs. During Lent you, some of your friends, and acquaintances may be giving up chocolate, Diet Coke or Facebook; on Wednesday; February 18th you might see a lot of smudgy, dirty foreheads.

Why?
BustedHalo.com sum it up nicely in about two very jazzy minutes:

In choosing to avoid or give up something that is usually part of my every day life, I have the opportunity to remind myself, multiple times each day, of what my faith means to me. This year, it’s gonna be MEAT. Yow. This will be a toughie. Many times each day I will be reminded to stop and offer a prayer, give thanks, and contemplate my faith.

I’ve never given up coffee… I love my family too much to inflict a cranky, grumpy me on them.

Eleanor Roosevelt on Middle Age…

“Probably the happiest period in life most frequently is in middle age,
When the eager passions of youth are cooled, and the infirmities of age not yet begun;
As we see that the shadows, which are at morning and evening so large, almost entirely disappear at midday.”

Eleanor Roosevelt

In other words, if you are middle aged, you rock, should be carpeing your diems, and are basically in the best years of your life. Here’s to it, Eleanor! Thanks for putting so eloquently.

January Book and Project Wrap Up

I’ve been so focused on daily business that I rarely have done or tried anything new or challenged myself in what felt like YEARS. Bottom line is, running a blog about trying something new daily has become my way to get over the freezing effects of anxiety, to force myself to make decisions and not be afraid to try new things.

After only one month I’ve learned:

  • Trying to coordinate with extended family to attend a theatrical performance is even harder than trying to coordinate an appointment with my son’s ortho and dentist.
  • it is not easy to make Indian food, actually ANY food look good in a photo. Maybe February’s project will help?
  • Family is totally fun to mess with by dragging them into this project!

January’s Project has been to learn how to use WordPress, and although there are a few things I’d still like to figure out (how the heck do I hook up the Twitter and Facebook feeds in the Widget bar? How do I link a “featured image” to its original site? Dianne Parks has beautiful artwork that she graciously allowed me to feature but maybe feature images don’t allow it), at least I have learned the following-

  • How to upload my photos
  • How to link up within a post the web pages to my photos or to those that should be connected to an original site- like the Comic Pearls embedded in my post here.
  • inserting links wasn’t that hard, either,  like this!
  • The tech support chat really does work!
  • I love that I picked a layout for my blog titled “2015,” reminding me of the blog’s overall goal.

January’s Book of the Month, The Happiness Project,” by Gretchen Rubin… I get a kick out of statistics and studies, I’m weird like that, so I’ve enjoyed reading her summary of literature and philosophies, as well as the 12 months of tasks that she chose to explore.

These are a few of the great lines and quotes I found in the book-

  • “I’d often wondered why anger, along with pride, greed, gluttony, lust, sloth, and envy- were the seven deadly sins, because they didn’t seem as deadly as lots of other sins. It turns out that they’re deadly sins not because of their gravity but because of their power to generate other, worse sins. They’re gateway sins to the big sins” p. 47 (italics and bold are mine)
  • Oscar Wilde observed one is not always happy when one is good, but one is always good when one is happy.” p. 54
  • “Like grief has five stages, …happiness has four stages. To eke out the most happiness from an experience, we must anticipate it, savor it as it unfolds, express happiness and recall a happy memory.” p. 108

…and many, many more favorite passages could be listed, because I enjoyed this book tremendously. I definitely recommend “The Happiness Project” to anyone.

In one month I’ve banked two really enjoyable experiences- a new read and and a new skill. Here’s to the anticipating eleven more of each to come!

Cathartic Writing and Goodbyes

I have been to very few memorials or funerals in my near 50 years. I come from a small family and still have my maternal grandparents kicking around in their 90’s. Today, for the first time, I attended a memorial service for a person close to my family.
Willis “Bill” Rogers received a send off from hundreds of friends, coworkers, brother Masons, and family. I was privileged to know the Rogers since my pre-teen years and Bill served as my master teacher while I was student teaching. I tell you, it doesn’t get any better than when you get to review your lesson plans while drinking Cabernet on your father’s boat with a mentor that is as good as family!
If ever you lived in the cities of inland Southern California, I have no doubt that you have benefited somehow from the numerous clubs and organizations that Bill and wife Nancy have been a part of for many, many years.

“The great Creator having been pleased, out of His infinite mercy, to remove our Brother from the cares and troubles of this transitory existence to a state of endless duration, thus severing another link from the fraternal chain that binds us together; may we, who survive him, be more strongly cemented in the ties of union and friendship; that, during the short space allotted us here, we may wisely and usefully employ our time; and in the reciprocal intercourse of kind and friendly acts, mutually promote the welfare and happiness of each other. “
From one of the many prayers we heard today, found in the Handbook of Masonic Memorial Services

New Day, Words and Thoughts

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“With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.”

Eleanor Roosevelt

I’ve had a lot of fun planning, and my calendar is filling up with adventures big and small for the coming year!

Occasionally I’ll force one of my teenagers to feign interest in my ideas- I’m honestly looking forward to their surprised looks when I tell them that I will be unavailable to attend to their  whim and wish, as I have rounded up about, oh… 365 OF MY OWN!

The best part will be when they realize that they will have to participate in many of them.

Just kidding- the best part will be that they are actually pretty interested in tasting different menus, recipes and restaurants, and heading off to different places.