OM: Spontaneity? Yes Please.

I know I should take more time to voice what I am thankful for, heck I need to take more time to remind myself what I am thankful for.  I always want to share my “One Moment” of the week but lately it’s turned into sharing my One Moment of the half year. I am getting bad. Anyway, if I am forgiven, please read on.

This moment (or collection of moments) is something that I am totally proud of me and the man for. A good friend of ours called us up in mid January to tell us that she was going to be in Sacramento for a Wine Symposium for work. Her husband (also a good friend) was going to fly out to meet her and they were going to make a long weekend of it, hitting up Napa and San Fransisco. They wanted to know if we would be interested in going along. My immediate reaction? Ummm, no, are you kidding?! That leaves us no time to plan! Flights, hotel, rental cars, things to do… we would be flying blind and fast! I knew the man would feel the same way… fast forward to about a half hour later. The man, gasp, grabbed a Virgin America post card out of the trash (this granted us a major discount on flights in January, basically 50% off) and proclaimed proudly, let’s do it!

So what’s up spontaneity? We totally booked flights and worked with our friends on hotels, the rental and all the things that we did on this trip just this past weekend. We totally crammed in, yet enjoyed, a lot of sights and sounds. From the Redwood Forest to Wine Tasting to some Pier/Sea Lion action and on to Chinatown, we certainly made the most of our trip for sure. We even fit in a little retail therapy (hello Chinese Mary Janes, new spices and olive oils mmmmm).

So while we aren’t always spontaneous (hey being a planner is fun too!) it is pretty exciting when we can pull something off and “Live Life”. We have a lot of planning ahead of us with this wedding in a little less than a year so I guess in spreading a little spontaneity around, we can feel young and fancy free if only for a few moments.

OM is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment. Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, actively looking for and sharing these moments will promote balance in our lives. 

OM: Chill Girl, Chill

It has been awhile since I did a One Moment, and that is something I am not proud of. I feel like my job has taken a hold of my life and not in a good way. I am extremely overwhelmed and stressed on a daily basis and while I am thankful to have employment, I have to wonder what is it costing me. I constantly think about blogging, from building my readership to continually trying to come up with crafty and fashion worthy content but as of late, I have been lacking the motivation due to my job.

Anyway, as you can imagine, with so much work, I bring my laptop home so that I can continue to work, even on my “off” time. My One Moment this week happened on Friday night. While I was working on my laptop, I got the blue screen of death. You know what I am talking about. You computer gets a blue screen, then shuts down and then doesn’t come back on. As you can imagine, my immediate reaction was to FREAK OUT. I am ashamed to say I cried. The man told me to calm down and look at it this way, “You don’t need to work this weekend. You can craft”. After I spouted something incoherent at him, I slowly began to see his point. Yes, I do have a lot of work and yes, it is going to be such a PAIN to get a new computer and hopefully save some of my work but at the same time, I need to use my time off for the things I love to do. If need be, I can freak out again on Monday.

OM is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment. Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, actively looking for and sharing these moments will promote balance in our lives.

Pineapple

 

My One Moment came this past week when I asked the man to pick up some fruit at the grocery store so that I could make some fruit salad for a Memorial Day cookout. He was a good boy and went to the store last minute for me. He got all of the fruits I asked for and more… but I was surprised when that man walked through the door with a legit pineapple pineapple (not precut but rather spiky). I have never cut into a pineapple before. My immediate response was to be irritated at him because he didn’t get the pre-cut pineapple. Guh, what a raging maniac I can be. He went to the store for me on a Holiday weekend. If that’s not love, I don’t know what is. Thankfully, I didn’t vocalize my irritation.

I more voiced it in a “I don’t know how to cut a pineapple” kind of way… we would figure it out. We inherited a Pampered Chef Tomato knife that did the trick and don’t you know that fresh pineapple is like the yummiest in the world? My One Moment this week, if you hadn’t noticed, was me catching myself being ungrateful of someone who does a lot for me. Thank you pineapple (oh and Thank you Brandon).

*OM is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment. Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, actively looking for and sharing these moments will promote balance in our lives.

OM: That Baby!

This past week, I got to spend time with my cousin and her lovely little muffin baby, Addison. They live in NC so I rarely get to see them… and the thing about babies is that they grow up so fast! My fear is that one day I will be really old, she will be going into college and she won’t know who I am! Yes, that is dramatic but these special moments with our family are ones to cherish!

Other things may change us, but we start and end with the family.  ~Anthony Brandt

OM is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment. Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, actively looking for and sharing these moments will promote balance in our lives. 

Let Me Help with Your Hair

I have been traveling a lot lately for work. This wears me down and more importantly, it makes me miss home. My home has the things I love; my man, my furbabies, my struggling herb garden… all the comforts that home brings. This past trip was grueling because I felt not only was it a waste of my time work wise but in turn felt like it was a waste of my time life wise. Nothing was accomplished and nothing was gained… and to boot President Obama flew in/out of Philly the day I departed, leaving that airport in a state of upheaval and me sitting in between two businessmen with Kindles for 4-5 hours… it was not fun.

I was home yesterday for my first full day back but I went to work, came home, watched my America’s Next Top Model on the dvr and fell asleep on the couch… where I slept the entire night. It was only this morning, when manfriend asked me to help him do his hair, that I really felt so happy to be home. He has a new hairdo and he wanted me to help out to make it look handsome… whether he needed my help or not, he let me help with his hair.

Home is really where my heart is. 

Digital Print by A la mode

OM is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment. Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, actively looking for and sharing these moments will promote balance in our lives.

Appreciate Everything

I, like so many other people in the world, have turned my attention on Japan and the craziness that an earthquake then tsunami then nuclear worries have caused. It is amazing how you can expect today and then the next to be just like the ones before and then something like this happens and shatters that expectation all together. We are not promised a perfect world; it can be ripped away from us at any time and this whole week, watching things unfold, I have come to realize that more than ever. One Moment to reflect on all the sadness and destruction was not enough this week, it deserves action, even small. Here are some great things that our community has been doing to take part in even a little piece of the relief effort. Compassion is key for me and I wish for it to be key for many, many others.

Japan Disaster Relief Bracelet 100% of Proceeds, $5.00

All items from Drenculture from 3/15-3/11, 400% of all proceeds

Bari J is raffling off a bag, among other things until March 26th

Tree of Life Pendant from Iris Jewelry, 100% of proceeds, $39.00

“Compassion is not religious business, it is human business, it is not luxury, it is essential for our own peace and mental stability, it is essential for human survival.” –Dalai Lama

OM: Normal My @$$

As I was stalking my usual Tweeps yesterday, I saw a couple of blurbs that really made me appreciate individuality even when we feel like we are similar or GASP! … Normal. Gale at Wichser Studio started it…

@wichserstudio An old woman at the thrift shop today told me, “normal is nothing more than a cycle on a washing machine” #agreed

I have a lot in common with my Twitter friend (soon to be real life friend) Erin of Petal and Pink… we are always joking about how we are basically the same person because we like so many of the same things (ie Bravo TV, Colin Firth, pretty jewelry, Metrowest Massachusetts). Around the same time I saw Gale’s tweet, Erin and I had a silly little conversation about our shopping excursions to Marshalls:

@PrimandPropah I didn’t got BBandB tonight, I went to Marshalls… bad business, I spent some $.

@PetalandPink I’ve been so impressed with them lately! Serious bad news lol

@PrimandPropah I went in there to look for a pair of work pants. Yes, I came out with a pair of work pants but how do I explain the 4 tops?

@PetalandPink to go with the pants, duh! I found a pair of oxfords that were over 300 for 60 at my last trip! Love!

@PrimandPropah YOU SCARE ME… I just bought a pair of brown suede oxfords…
 

and my point is made here:

@PetalandPink lmao! Mine are black leather. I’m glad we still find ways to be ourselves in our similarities. 😉

My moment this week wasn’t something grand and really all the noteworthy but it was a special little moment nonetheless. It happened by myself, at the computer…. I just got to thinking… I love that I’m not normal, you’re not normal, NO ONE is normal. We are all unique and wonderful spirits that help weave the cloth that this diverse world is made of. Our similarities can help us bond but our intricate differences are what make us who we are, the opposite of normal.

Which is more exciting to you?

nor·mal [nawr-muhl]
–adjective

Conforming to the standard or the common type; usual; not abnormal; regular.

OR

u·nique [yoo-neek]
–adjective

Existing as the only one or as the sole example; single; solitary in type or characteristics; having no like or equal; unparalleled; incomparable.

That’s what I thought.

OM is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment. Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, actively looking for and sharing these moments will promote balance in our lives.

 

OM: Finding my Motivation

This past Saturday I started my journey into what I believe will be my most successful jaunt into weight loss that I have ever had. I joined Weight Watchers but not only that, I have the support of my mother (who is in this with me) and my man, who is on this ride with me whether he likes it or not! 

I have done WW before and other types of diets but never really stuck with them… or I’ve lost weight and gained it back… or I’ve just been unwilling to motivate myself over and over… but this time? I have found my will power. I have made healthy and delicious meals this week; I have felt satisfied. I don’t know what happened to me but I am hopeful, motivated and focused… all of which I will need to see me to my 20 pounds by May and 40 pounds by October. We have a cruise in November and I plan to be fit, healthy and self assured. So far so good… and I really feel like I can do it! Every moment this week felt like a good one!

OM is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment. Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, actively looking for and sharing these moments will promote balance in our lives. 

OM: Love What You Do

I have been totally letting my blogging go lately. I usually have ideas swimming through my head, enough so that I need to jot them down, but lately I have been feeling muted and blah. I just recently went back to work after being on leave ( a little too soon I might add) and I just feel like the landscape of my life has grayed a bit. It takes a lot more energy to do a lot less these day and my tolerance for BS is pretty low as well… all these things combined have made for a pretty lackluster creative flow as of late. So what do I do? I complain about it. Here is where my moment came this week. Convo as follows:

@TheArtistsHouse This whole “working” thing has totally made me behind in my quilting!

@PrimandPropah That’s alright. I’m not going anywhere 😉

@TheArtistsHouse You ever get in a funk where you look at your sewing machine and you’re like, Meh, too much trouble? That’s me lately.

@PrimandPropah No, that never happens to me, but I’m weird that way. I honestly love to sew, all the time 😉

I have a million projects I need to finish… cuffs for readers, steps in a quilt along, a multitude of crafty posts that I have started but just never finished…  Lately, every day I think about this list of “To-Do’s” that I am holding myself too, like a job, one that is a chore. What I really need to do is look at this whole kit ‘n caboodle like it really is, my labor of love. You know what Angela? I love to sew too! I love to blog about it! It shouldn’t be a chore, something I begrudgingly do. It should be what excites me and makes me happy. I am reminded of that Life is Good slogan “Do what you like, like what you do”… but I’ll take it one step further “Do what you love, love what you do”… Words to live by.

PS. This week’s pride and joy! I cared for my new Bonsai tree so much that I got my first bloom which in the dead of Winter is an inspiration in and of itself.

OM is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment. Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, actively looking for and sharing these moments will promote balance in our lives. 

OM: Try to Feel Young

So I am here to admit to you that my One Moment this week came in the form of made for TV movies. (Pause here to contemplate this) My last few weeks have been spent at home due to both a surgery and also the Northeast being pounded by snow week after week…. This has left me no choice but to spend my time doing things like crafting, reading, working and, that’s right, watching TV. 

I forgot how much I really don’t like daytime TV until this past month. I don’t dig soap operas or talk shows all that much so I have resorted to Netflix streaming through Manfriend’s XBox. They have a delightful variety of movies and tv shows but what I have been leaning towards are romantic comedies in the form of Made for TV… and not just any movies… those geared towards teenagers and college girls. Gah, I admitted it but importantly, I totally have enjoyed watching them. Just today, I watched Beauty and the Briefcase, starring a Miss Hilary Duff and Starstruck, even worse because it was made for the Disney Channel…. nope you know what? I might just whip out the High School Musical trilogy if push comes to shove. I like youthful silliness!

I know I am not exactly going out to pasture anytime soon but it is really easy to feel old doing the same stuff day in and day out. I realized that in watching my silly movies made for ABCFamily and The Disney Channel, that I am just feeding my inner teenager, quenching the thirst for fun and frivolity! I had to stop and think for a second… what am I holding back from… I should be going out of my way to feel fun and young as often as possible. Shouldn’t I? Dude, I might just have a new goal for this year. Feed my inner teenager (without the curfew and immature boys).

PS. Beauty and the Briefcase was actually pretty good. No joke.

OM is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment. Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, actively looking for and sharing these moments will promote balance in our lives.