Pack it up!

I don't know about you, but, personally, 2014 was a pretty good year for me.  It had it's up's and downs, but, mostly up's.  The world wasn't so "lucky."  So I am glad to see this year get packed up. We have no where else to go but up now, and I believe we all can see that happen if we stay in the moment, and live in gratitude.  Catboy believes that I should add frequent naps, stretching, and letting someone love and pet you often.  I believe he has the right idea!

Know that each day is a gift!

I am so excited that I woke up today!  O K, that sounds weird, but each day is a new chance to do something wonderful.  It is a do-over for what ever didn't work yesterday.  How cool is that!  So, today, I am going to pass out smiles and joy to all I see, and try and not freeze into a Popsicle. Make a ripple, share the joy, see what happens.

Another great human!

My hat is off to a gentleman who answered a plethora of questions I had this morning.  Not only was he patient, but so pleasant and willing to make sure I had all the information I needed.  I do a lot of business over the phone and I get from soup to nuts, sometimes.  This man, Rodney Ford, at DRS, was wonderful and I hope that his co workers and boss appreciate such a great employee! I certainly do.  Make a ripple, take a page, see what happens.

Now

It is the time of the year when I take inventory.  I have long ago given up on the New Year's Resolutions as we all know they don't work.  But I do try to look realistically at what the last year (s) have entailed.  Sometimes, I look too far back and get depressed about some choices I have made along the way, tho I have decided I really do like who I am. I know that is a combination of all I have been, done, and learned.  So the next time you start to feel less than happy with who you have been, remember, it has brought you here.  We all need a little tweaking, but there is goodness and generosity in all of us.  That is how we will make our ripple.  

I"m dreaming of a...

white day after Christmas.  Well, not really.  It is beautiful, and now that it is getting really cold, here to stay for awhile.  My great idea is that it might snow on the grass, rooftops, and all ski hills, but no where else. I don't relish all the crazy people who, oops, didn't get their snow tires yet, or are just stupid drivers.  It makes me think about the fact that something so light can cause chaos, slipping and sliding, crashing and banging.  It seems to me, it's the opposite in people.  When we are light, all things come to us. Make a ripple, lighten up! see what happens.

Laughter is contagious!

Have you ever noticed that it is almost impossible not to laugh around people who are laughing?  This reaction to happiness at it's best is so wonderful, and we do it so infrequently. How do you feel when you laugh?  It makes me feel so good, and the louder the better.  I know, we're so proper.  Well, for today, I am going to find lots of stuff that makes me laugh, and I am going to spread that around to all I encounter.  There is a book my mom used to read.  It was called "Laughter is the Best Medicine." Maybe we should all get a copy and read it en mass!  That would show them, and we would surely see what would happen.

Whew, that was fast!

The presents are opened, the mess is cleaned up.  Another holiday under our belts.  It always amazes me the effort put in on these types of things.  It makes me even more aware that being grateful every day is the greatest thing ever, and wanting little is a virtue.  One of the best gifts I received was a donation to a place in Africa which helps set up farms and food sources for the people.  It is named "HEIFER."  It filled my heart to receive this gift, as I have donated previously, and this year, couldn't.  I thank my dear friends for doing so for me! We all know that presents are not always things, presence is our time and effort toward other's, by staying in each precious moment.  Make a ripple, see what happens.

You are the present!

In some places, today is Christmas.  Obviously, in other's it is not.  But there is something we can give, all of us, that is invaluable.  It is the gift of being present.  Sounds easy, but it goes against how our society works.  So, just for today, "be here now"  as Ram Dass suggested.  Then, when you master being in the moment, continue with that behavior.  The world would change quickly for the better if we all could practice that!  Catboy sends his best, as do all of us to all of you!  He is sleeping in his Christmas box with his green holiday ribbon.  Smile, laugh, love and stay in the moment!  See what happens.

How appropriate!

While watching T V mindlessly last night, I picked up these words from part of a song.  I don't know the name or artist.  "We are how we treat each-other, nothing more!"  WOW!

Welcome Paraguay!

We are so glad to see you!  Please come back!

in a quandry

I have been talking to a good friend about the movie that is causing so much controversy.  This brings up so many things for me.  It makes me wonder about just how far we are willing to go to make a dollar.  It makes me wonder if we have lost all of our sensitivity and taste!  There are a number of other issues, including how such a big business does not have a secure website, and also freedom of speech.  But when it comes down to it, I think it speaks to the fact that maybe all of us need to take a sensitivity class!  Make a ripple, think hard about this, see what happens.

Everyone has an opinion

I guess this goes along with "would you rather be happy or right."  What I am learning is that everyone does, indeed have an opinion, including myself.  It is usually based on our life experiences, and family values.  Having an opinion can cause discomfort in other's who do not share it, but it is just an opinion.  When we feel uncomfortable with someone's  opinion, maybe we should ask ourselves, "WHY?"  We certainly do not have to agree, and they are entitled to it.  Make a ripple, let it be, see what happens. 

Be grateful!

to those who bring you joy and love.  Make a ripple, pass it on, see what happens.

The dilemma

Catboy and I have been in a lengthy discussion lately about being "in the box."  Whenever I order something to be sent from a store, he figures out it is for him.  Well, at least he thinks the box is for him.  He has been known to try and bite me when I take the box out to the garbage.  Of course, it never gets there which presents another dilemma.  The box has to go through the procedure of having him pose for pictures in it (Honestly!), then, he has to see if he can sleep in it, then he turns it into a flattened sliding device.  So, for him, "the box" is a good thing.  For me, it just seems to be a way to take away my movement, or make me just like everyone else.  NO WAY!  We can't come to an agreement on this, so maybe you can help us decide.  Make a ripple, figure this one out, see what happens.

It's in there.

Recently, I cleaned out a "junk" drawer. It is always interesting to do this because I find the weirdest and most interesting things.  There are broken rubber bands, keys to who knows what, nails, pens, long dead, but also, mementos from the past.  It is like a little trip down memory lane.  What I also find is a treasure.  This time, I found a picture of Catboy when he was a small kitten, and a pair of bee's wax candles someone had given me long ago. I think that sometimes we forget some of the things that meant so much to us.  So today, I am going to revel in the fact that I have a nice clean drawer, but also, think of other things I might dig through and see what I am missing. Make a ripple, try it, see what happens.

Every now and then

Know that it is okay to say "no," politely.  Sleep in.  Color outside the lines, and enjoy it!  Sing out loud, (even though they tell you you sound like a cat being tortured.) Smile at everyone you see, (especially when you don't feel like it!)  Take time to smell the air, (even when it sticks in your nose, in winter)  Congratulate yourself on a job well done, ( because you did your best!)  Wrap us all in the white light (every day)  because we need it!  All these things will make a ripple, and you will see what happens!

Serenity meow

Catboy has been discussing a class he would like to give us all.  He hears me growling when I pay any attention to the news lately and fears for all of us, if you feel the same way I do.  FRUSTRATED!  So he suggested he could have a class which teaches his form of meditation in order to smooth out some of the ruffles our lives take.  He tells me, after all, he has lived to be 131 years old with no high blood pressure!  What he suggests is to combine stretching, staring, and then napping.  He tells me that we all need to stretch every day.  It is also helpful to take a little time to stare out the window with an empty mind, just quietly watching, and then, of course, have a nice nap.  I have to say, he is seldom in a cranky mood, unless I harass him, or he gets the same canned food flavor two days in a row.  Maybe we all could sign up for his class, and see what happens.

Character vs Reputation

With all the things going on around the world and the talk about certain personalities, I started to think about these two things.  I have really mixed feelings about social media, sometimes I feel it helps us be informed, sometimes I think (because of bias) we are being led down a garden path.  So I began thinking about character and reputation.  It is easy to get a reputation!  Just be in the wrong place at the wrong time, or, vice verse, and there you go.  Character is quite another thing.  Character is the essence of who we are.  It is what drives us to do what we think is being true to ourselves.  Make a ripple, check out the differences, see what happens.

You can't shine the light...

if you don't carry the light inside yourself.  We all know how much better we feel in the light.  We also know that the light can and will heal us.  Many of us, though, do not know that the light must be within us to shine out to other's.  The light is made of love.  Make a ripple, love yourself,(and therefore, others,) see what happens.

Welcome South Africa!

We are so excited to see you!  Please come back and join us!

The importance

of the light.  I realize that not all of us are in winter.  For those of you who are not...celebrate.  I was going to write a post today called "Kermit the Fog," (No that is not a type-o)  I was just going to try and put a better spin on all the fog and rain we have been waking up to each day.  This is a free smile for you.  But I don't think we realize the importance of the light until it is gone for a week or so.  Yes, I know it is winter, but just to see the sun, today, I jumped for joy.  I am not a skiing person, but I think I just figured out one of their secrets,  it is often sunny on those mountain tops when it is grey down here.  So seek out the light whatever way you can, even the "full spectrum" lights you  can buy.  Make a ripple , sit in the sunny patch like Catboy, see what happens.

If life knocks you down...

stand back up.  Being on this earth school can sometimes be pretty frustrating.  Lessons sometimes come in the form of a cast iron frying pan to the head.  For me, those are the ones that I usually learn from the best.  And I have learned to "shake it off," and stand back up.  Don't you love that song?!  It seems, sometimes, that the harder I try, the more hard lessons I get, but I have to know that fully living is a messy and hard process from time to time.  It happens to all of us, and I would rather learn something once and for all than dink around and keep having the same thing pop up.  I have added meditation to the mix and it really seems to help.  Catboy tells me that's how he gets through things!  Make a ripple, live, see what happens.

Get out of yourself

today.  Just for today, think about how so many other's are doing.  Give food to the food bank, put money in the red kettle of the Salvation Army, spend a little time helping someone take out their groceries, and put away their cart.  I know it will feel so good, you will want to do the same thing tomorrow. These are small gestures which take little time and mean so much to people in need.  Make a ripple, for them, see what happens. 

Welcome Netherlands!

We are so glad to see you!  Please come back and visit!

Have you packed your...

emergency first aid kit yet?  Now may be the time!  The days are short and dark for some of us.  The world is not in such good shape.  I am afraid we are in for a bumpy ride.  So I am putting together something to help get through this.  First, I want to have a play list.  The two songs that seem to help me are: "Shake it off," and "Happy!"  These run a continuous loop in my brain, but they make me move and keep going.  Second, I have to have good chocolate, preferably with cayenne, third, and these are not in order, the love of my friends and family,  fourth, the will to stand up for what I think is right, and last, a good strong flash light to shine the light on all this darkness.  Make a ripple, put your kit together, see what happens. OMG! and Catboy!!  He got extra cookies because he was left out!

I wonder

what would happen if money did not rule the world?  What would happen if value was attached to kindness, charity, and love?  What would happen if we knew that we are all the same?  What would happen if we were color blind?  What would happen if we woke up every day in gratitude and paid it forward to someone else?  What would happen if we made a ripple, consciously, now?  Change would happen quickly!

Welcome Singapore!

We are so glad to see you!  Please come back!

What's that saying?...

"Innocent until proven guilty."  I had no idea it had so many things attached to it. Unless you are disabled, unless you are of color, especially a young black man.  What is wrong with us?  Human life is precious period.  No-one has the right to decide whose life is precious and if they feel that way, they are certainly in the wrong business. It appals  me to think that in the year of 2014, people believe they have the right to brutalize and kill one certain person!  Sadly, they get away with it.  WHO ARE WE?  It is my fervent wish that all this protesting makes a difference, especially when video taping doesn't seem to.  Make a ripple, take a stand, see what happens.

There is a solution for everything.

Life is full of dilemmas.  The important thing is how we handle them.  Sometimes I think we over-think our dilemmas, I certainly do.  Other times, I under-think them.  Funny, but those are the times my solutions work better.  I am the queen of over-thinking, but all that accomplishes is a big headache.  Make a ripple, enjoy your weekend, see what happens.

What's your excuse?

There is a saying:  "Excuses are like @##$%^&#, everyone has one."  Some people use belly buttons, I have another word which is not proper in polite company.  I could write a book of excuses, ask any of my friends.  While I am getting better at this, when I was younger, I had an excuse for everything.  I think making excuses robs us of responsibility, so I am trying hard to relieve myself of this particular habit.  I think it takes away from our knowing that we are human and therefore fallible.  So now, every time I think I need an excuse, I stop, just for a minute, and just get real with myself.  Make a ripple, skip the excuses, see what happens.

Bear, Catboy, and life

Years ago, I had a dog named Bear.  He was a 75% red wolf who I got from a friend.  A few years later, we rescued Catboy from the window well of our chiropractor.  I had given little thought to how these two would do, frankly, but the little kitten needed a home.  I brought Catboy home and gingerly introduced him to my 95 pound dog.  Catboy was probably 6 pounds soaking wet.  What formed was so much love and camaraderie . Impossible, you say.  Nope, Bear was an outdoor dog, but when he was in, you had a hard time keeping them apart.  It makes me wonder how much we miss by judging things.  Who would ever have thought these two would end up besties?!  Bear has been gone 10 years now, and Catboy still sneaks down to the basement and lays on his friend's rug.  Somehow, I believe we need to re-think a lot of things.  Life would change if we did, for the better.  Make a ripple, give it some thought, see what happens.

ALL LIFE MATTERS!

"L O L!"

It took me a while to find out what this really meant on a text.  As far as I was concerned, it meant "love you lots!"  It wasn't until I got an odd text from a friend that I finally got, "Laugh out loud."  I felt it wasn't as important as love you lots, but it had it's place.  When was the last time you actually laughed out loud?  I have to remind myself to do this, but it feels so good when I do, and the bonus is that it makes someone turn around and look.  We are so proper, aren't we?  To heck with that!  We need to find and appreciate the humor in life whenever or wherever we find it.  Make a ripple, laugh out loud!, see what happens. P.S. it doesn't hurt to love someone lots, either!

The Zen of Catboy

We have survived "Black Friday!"   We have gotten past "Cyber Monday!"  Personally, I don't do any of that but I know a lot of people who are whipped into a frenzy about the next holiday.  Then there is Catboy.  He wants me to remind you that I can buy him a bag of new toys, and he will crawl into the bag and fall asleep, totally ignoring the toys.  He will stretch for 10 minutes until his body feels good, and then take a nap to celebrate.  He is, after all, almost 19.  He enjoys just gazing out a window, or sitting in a sunny spot, but also being petted and spoken to.  In these coming days, it would do all of us well, to take some of his advice to find time to just be.  Think of all the stress we could alleviate!  Make a ripple, know what is important, see what happens.

Turn a mistake...

into a lesson.  Let's face it, we are all human and are prone to making mistakes.  But some of my best lessons have been learned from some of my worst mistakes.  It is only bad if we don't give ourselves the opportunity to learn and correct the behavior.  No one likes the pain it causes to admit a mistake, but I know, for sure, when I learn the lesson and do things a better way, life takes a turn for the better.  Make a ripple, know you are human, see what happens.

The best things in life

are not things.  Here is my partial list, not in any particular order: the sound of the ocean and salty smell, the sun's rays streaming through the window, a brisk walk in the park, the smile on a new mom's face, my cat eating and purring at the same time, a good nap, a look from someone that tells you they really care, being generous, being joyful, being loving, being color-blind, always having an open heart.  Make a ripple, write your own list, see what happens.