Tag: favorite things Friday

Herd It’s Friday

Oh yeah its friday quotes friday happy friday friday quotes hello friday | Its friday quotes, Hello friday, Happy friday

Good morning! Welcome to the lightest, airiest, “okay, now you can breathe out” day of the week! I LOVE Fridays! On Fridays, I list one, or sometimes even a few, of my favorite things. The things in life are what make life interesting, and material, and a tactile, sensory experience. Before I get to my favorite thing for today, I have a little personal story about sea anemone earrings. A while ago, I purchased perhaps the least expensive thing you could ever buy from Scully & Scully, a longstanding, staid, high-end store in New York City, that’s been around since 1934. I think I purchased probably a small set of coasters, or perhaps maybe even just one coaster, but ever since then, I get their catalogs and their online store pops up on my feed. For instance today, some offerings popped up on my Google, showing me a beautiful Meissen tureen for the bargain price of $125,000. (but does it come with free shipping?) Anyway, it’s a fun store to “window shop.” (If you like Herend figurines, they carry the entire line, and some.) The other day, as I was perusing the internet, and Scully & Scully popped up once again, suggesting that I might be interested in a pair of lovely $12,000 sea anemone earrings. They were gorgeous! And so unique! But sea anemone earrings are not what you call everyday wear, and I have two kids in college, and “good earrings” make me nervous because if I lose one, I’ll be sick about it for months, and I am not Kris Kardashian – I don’t have $12,000 to blow on sea anemone earrings, nor would I ever spend $12,000 on sea anemone earrings, because even if I were filthy rich, my ingrained midwestern sensibilities, practicalities and self judgments would intercede firmly and fiercely. But, man oh man, did I want me a pair of sea anemone earrings!! So guess what? I went to eBay, and Mercari, and the like, and I started feverously scrolling for sea anemone earrings and I found a really cute lime green pair made by Betsey Johnson for around $20, and I love them! And if I only wear them three times in my whole life before I lose one, I can live with that fact. And the point of my long winded story?! Go after what you want. Don’t get fixated on “THE one and only particular solution” to anything in life (i.e. job, person, house, college, vacation spot etc.) There are all sorts of “sea anemone earrings” out there, that will please you, and that will suit your particular needs and wants. Be open to what the Universe has to serve! Explore and enjoy!

On that note, I even have another bonus favorite for today, before I get to my real favorite. This is a favorite household tip. (insert my husband and children guffawing – housekeeping has never been my strong suit). If you have a clothes washer that tends to get smelly (ours is one of those. Years of washing six active, sweaty people’s clothes on a daily basis lends to pure stanky smelliness), pour a bottle of Listerine in it and run a cycle. The Listerine kills the bacteria that makes the washer smelly and the smell goes away instantly and you have a fresh, clean washer. I bought a drugstore brand version of mouthwash for $4, ran it in my washer, and it did the trick, after years of wasting money on “magic formulas” made specifically to clean washers which never worked. I found this household tip on one of my days of getting a little lost in clickbait (instead of doing laundry), and it turns out, the tip is a gamechanger. Enjoy!

Finally, here’s my real favorite of the day. I am fortunate to have a wonderful herd of elephants in my life. Actually, I am fortunate enough to have a few herds whom I rely on, when I lose my way. Do you? This is from the website that describes what these beautiful elephant ornaments really mean:

In the wild, female elephants are known as fierce protectors. They literally form a circle around sisters who are hurting or grieving. And often, they will kick dirt up around her to mask the scent of suffering…in turn, keeping her safe from predators.

And yet, we are the same. This is what we do. This is who we are. And this is who we are meant to be for each other. We all have elephants in our lives. Sometimes we are the ones in the middle, and sometimes we’re on the outside kicking up dirt with fierce, fierce love. But the circle remains.

The ornaments are as lovely as their sentiments. You can buy your herds some here as a way of letting them know how much you love and appreciate them:

Stainless "Friendship/Sisterhood" Elephant Ornament

And that is it for this Friday! Thank you for being one of my herds, dear readers! I hope that I have helped you in times that I have not been hurting and grieving, but feeling strong and positive. You have always surrounded me in times that I need it, and for that I am forever grateful. Have a wonderful weekend!

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

Treats! It’s Friday

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

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Happy Friday!! Happy Earth Day!! Happy Day to let your hair down and to relax and to take life a little less seriously! On Fridays, I discuss the frivolous. On Fridays, I try to list a few material things, songs, TV shows, books etc. that have enhanced my life in fun ways, and I encourage you to add your favorites to my Comments section. Friends, after writing this daily blog for going on almost four years, I have to admit that it is hard to come up with three favorites a week. I have shared a lot of favorites over the years, and as much as I love my things and my frivolities, I am going to have to subtract an “s” from my “Favorite Things Friday” posts. From now on, I will be doing “Favorite Thing Friday” and I will list only one favorite a week, versus three favorite things. This is not bad. In many cases, “less is more.” So without further adieu, here is today’s favorite:

“Old Enough” Netflix series – I thought that I would hate this Netflix series. Its premise sounded ridiculous to me. “Old Enough” is a Japanese show that has been aired for decades in Japan, in which Japanese children, ages 2-4, are sent on long, detailed errands (sometimes even involving public transit) for their parents. Before I watched it, the show sounded absolutely dangerous and preposterous! But of course, I was coming at the show with an American frame of reference. The TV show clips are relatively short. They are amusing, entertaining, and honestly, enlightening. Kids are capable of so much more than we realize, and seeing these young children being empowered to be independent was kind of awakening to me. It also makes me a little sad, that in comparison, our American society seems to be a lot more dangerous for our children, than it is in Japan. If you like to understand other cultures, and to learn about other countries’ customs, you will be surprisingly amused and entertained by this show.

That’s it! That’s today’s favorite!

“I look forward to Fridays because I know I have spent the week offering encouragement, solace, assistance, and good-will to everyone I have met through my journey.” – Byron Pulsifer

Be Byron. Let’s all be Byron in the weeks to come!

Good Friday

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

Dear Readers,

I started this blog in the summer of 2018, and I have written at least one short post practically every single day since then. However, every Easter weekend, I take the weekend off from writing on the blog. I consider Easter to be my annual reset button. Easter represents hope, and renewal, and fresh growth and life, like no other time of the year does for me. It is a reflective time for me. And taking this time off from writing has been a tradition that serves me well, even when I still feel the (sometimes even fervent) urge to write.

As always, thank you for being here, reading and supporting the blog with your time, understanding, love and comments. This blog is sacred to me, and you, my readers, are a vital part of that sacredness. Thank you. I love you.

I will be back on Monday. Sending blessings your way!

“Every day is a renewal, every morning the daily miracle. This joy you feel is life.” – Gertrude Stein

“God uses broken things. It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain to give bread, broken bread to give strength. It is the broken alabaster box that gives forth perfume. It is Peter, weeping bitterly, who returns to greater power than ever.” – Vance Havner

“The cyclone ends. The sun returns; the lofty coconut trees lift up their plumes again; man does likewise. The great anguish is over; joy has returned; the sea smiles like a child.” – Paul Gauguin

“There is in us an instinct for newness, for renewal, for a liberation of creative power. We seek to awaken in ourselves a force which really changes our lives from within. And yet the same instinct tells us that this change is a recovery of that which is deepest, most original, most personal in ourselves. To be born again is not to become somebody else, but to become ourselves.” – Thomas Merton

Fancy Friday

Funny Happy Friday Images With Quotes for Facebook, Whatsapp, Pinterest

Good morning! Happy Favorite Things Friday! My regular readers know that Fridays are devoted to the frivolous, here at the blog. There is nothing wrong with frivolity. We are meant to enjoy pleasures in life, big and small. Today, I am still getting my ducks in a row since returning from my trip. (We all bring home mountains from wherever we go, mostly Mt. Laundry and Mt. Chore Pile-up.) Therefore, today I will only be sharing one favorite. I purchased BuDhaGirl bangles from a wonderful boutique when I was away, and I am in love with them. As a woman with a small wrist, I have always loved the looks of bangle bracelets but they have rarely worked for me. They tend to be too big and too jangly and noisy. I discovered these bangles and I am sure that I will be purchasing even more in the near future. They are quiet, comfortable, beautiful and weather proof! The bangles come in three different sizes, plus they even have children’s versions. Here’s a description of the bracelets from their website:

“Handcrafted in Thailand by our team of really nice people. Each Plume All Weather Bangle is made by a team of 20+ artisans, each bangle is hand made, each is a labor of love. Plume All Weather Bangles® (AWB®) are made with organic products, at times a slight color differentiation might occur, this is only natural as humidity and temperature conditions do affect the outcome. Our Serenity Prayer Bead is made with uncoated brass which as time goes by, might develop a verdi-gris patina. Our point is that Plume All Weather Bangles are a product that will age, develop character, and will remain beautiful…just like our BuDhaGirls.

BuDhaGirl Plume All Weather Bangle bracelets are made of polyvinyl carbonate tubing that is a semi-flexible material, so there is a little give when you slide the bangles over your hand. The key to deciding your size…how the bangles go over your hand, not the size of your wrist.” 

Here is a link to a particularly pretty set, but frankly, they are all pretty:

Plume All Weather Bangles® (AWB®) – Serenity Prayer

Enjoy! I doubt that you will be able to keep it at one set, once you purchase these lovely baubles.

Have a fun weekend! See you tomorrow!!

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

Friday Gypsies

200 Happy Friday ideas in 2022 | happy friday, its friday quotes, happy friday quotes

Don’t worry. I won’t do a repeat of last year’s April Fools pranks. I got a little too much flack for that one. Plus, I think that you all might be too prepared this year. 🙂

My weekend is pretty filled-up with quite a few fun activities, so my blog posts will likely be a little shorter than usual for the next few days. Please forgive me if I seem distracted. As always, though, thank you for your support and validation. I love the connection that we have here at the blog. It is a constant in my life (and hopefully yours, too). I treasure my blog and I treasure you, my readers.

With that being said, today, I only have one favorite to share. My husband and I were recently at one of our favorite local hangouts and they had hired a singer, whom I found to be particularly good and soothing and entertaining. She has one of those deep southern drawls, with a bluesy edge, which is my favorite kind of country singers’ voices. Please give Aubrey Wollett a listen. Apparently, she has a decent following not just in Florida, but also in Nashville. Have a fabulous Favorite Things Friday!! Enjoy at least one of your favorites today or discover a new favorite! This is a precious day of your life.

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

Favorite Gestures Friday

I was watching a video showing Supreme Court nominee, Ketanji Brown Jackson, being asked about how she would inspire children of our nation to reach the great heights that she has reached in her career and in her overall life. She choked up when she answered the senator’s question. Ketanji Brown Jackson made a point that sometimes it is the smallest gestures that make a huge difference in people’s lives. She relayed the story of being a black young lady from Miami, with a public school background, being at Harvard University for the first time, during her first semester freshman year. She was not used to the cold weather of Boston, nor the abundance of prep school kids who grew up with an entirely different background that she had, and she was terribly homesick. She was questioning whether she really belonged there. Jackson said that as she was walking dejectedly on the campus, an anonymous black woman came up to her, out of nowhere, looked her straight in the eye and said to her, “Persevere.” Obviously, she never forgot that moment. Ketanji Brown Jackson was relaying this very story about a stranger, as she was choked up with emotion, to a senator during the hearings to see if she will become the newest justice of The United States Supreme Court, and to be the first black woman ever to achieve this role.

Today, I don’t want to talk about favorite things like I usually do on Fridays. Physical things are great. They make life fun and interesting and creative and tactile and sensory. They evoke happy feelings when we are experiencing using and admiring the things that we love. There is nothing wrong with physical things, particularly our favorite things. But today, I pose this question. What are three of your favorite things that people have done for you that have left a lasting impression on you, and possibly even changed your life??

This morning my friend shared a text of a beautiful jar, created for her, by her daughter for her birthday. It is filled with little pieces of paper saying different things that she loves about her mother. It reminded me of my third grade teacher, who every week, would make a poster with one of us students’ individual names at the top. All week long, the other students would go up and write what was uniquely special and interesting about that particular student. At the end of the week, each student went home with their poster, filled with pride and happiness that their unique qualities were noticed and admired and appreciated. I never forgot that experience. I loved my poster and I was so happy for every “student of the week”, in anticipation of their feelings of joy and connectedness.

Sometimes it is the littlest gestures that mean the most. When my husband and I were first married, we were visiting people, and we ended up having a difficult, tumultuous, emotional time with these people. I was dejected as I got into the shower, anticipating an even more upsetting evening as we were all heading out to dinner. My husband had just showered before me, and as I reached for the soap, I saw that he had carved, “It’s okay. I love you,” into the soap. It is these small, kind gestures that make me fall in love with him again and again.

Use some time of this glorious Friday in your life, to reflect on all of the small but meaningful kindnesses bestowed on to you, and also reflect on kindnesses which you felt compelled to bestow on to others. This is love in action. What are some of your most favorite memories of kindness and inspiration and hope in your life? This will flood you with wonderful, hopeful feelings in this time, in the history of the world, which we so desperately need more of these feelings of lovingness to abound.

(And if you are so inclined, I would love if you, my readers, would share some of your stories about these kindnesses in my Comments section.)

Have a great weekend!!!

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

I’ll Be Back! – Friday

https://twitter.com/i/status/1504426844199669762

I’m sorry to be delayed on my Favorite Things Friday post, but I just spent ten minutes watching Arnold’s thoughtful video. This video is one of my favorite things that I watched this week (besides last night’s big upset by the St. Peter’s men’s basketball team, the Peacocks, beating Kentucky – even if you aren’t a big sports fan, March Madness is a blast!). Go Peacocks!!! I hope that you had fun celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, too. I just recently found out from my DNA test that I am at least 12% Irish and that makes me proud!

Here are my other two favorites for this Friday. (Please check out previous Friday posts for more favorites and please share some of your own favorites in my Comments section):

GUND Baby Sleepy Eyes Owl Bedtime Soother Plush Owl Stuffed Animal Night Light & Sound Machine – I saw this precious owl in a local gift shop for kids recently and I fell completely in love. First, I adore owls, but second, this soother is the most comforting, mesmerizing “toy” that I have ever witnessed. I wish that I was going to a baby shower, because every baby deserves one of these darling owls. It is like the most comforting meditation you have ever experienced in soft plush form. My favorite part of the owl is that its eyes slowly close like it is going to sleep. There is a reason why 34,000 people on Amazon gave it a perfect five star rating.

10.5oz Eucalyptus and Patchouli Ceramic Face Candle Green – Opalhouse™ designed with Jungalow™ – I purchased this candle (exclusive to Target) the other day, and I adore it! The container of the candle is a woman’s face, but she also has ears, adorned with adorable beaded dangle earrings! Even when the wonderful smelling candle burns away, I will be left with a wonderful planter for a small plant. This is the kind of small, fun item, that brings me happiness every time I look at it.

Final Friday Bonus – I keep my entire blog, from the day I started to write it, online. It is always interesting to me when a post from years past pops up as having been read or is trending. This blog post (one of the first I have ever written) trends a lot, almost every day. This tells me that a lot us love our throw pillows!:

Along Came Throw Pillows

This second post popped out of nowhere yesterday, but I read it again and it really does have a helpful message, if I do say so myself. So if you are wanting to do some more reading, check it out:

Repeat Broken Toe

Have a wonderful weekend, friends!!! We have a lot going on in this world, but as the Italian proverb goes, Hope is the Last Thing Ever Lost. Don’t ever lose your hope! See you tomorrow!!

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

Tame Friday

It is not going to be a wild Friday night here at our household. My daughter got her bony impacted wisdom teeth removed yesterday morning, and in solidarity with her, in order to just want to veg on the couch together, I got my booster Shingles shot yesterday afternoon. We are both doing alright, but we are played out, to say the least. A lot of life events have been happening this week, and my whole family is a tad drained, physically and emotionally. We need rest and healing.

So, on that note, as much as I love Fridays and I love posting my “Favorite Things Friday” favorites, today I only have one favorite to share before I crawl back on to the couch next to my sleepy little Chipmunk Cheeks. This week, I tried this fabulous new hydration drink. It’s called Lemon Perfect Water. Lemon Perfect Water’s motto is “It tastes like you are drinking vacation.” And that is the absolute truth. These waters are sugar-free, and they taste fabulous. They remind me of a healthy version of those fresh-squeezed lemonades that you buy at state fairs. They come in many flavors and they only have 5 calories in each bottle. Go to the store, buy your vacation in a bottle, and drink up!!! Have a great weekend!!

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

Full-On Friday

Image

Good morning, friends. Happy Friday! Happy Favorite Things Friday!! The above picture is from one of my only two favorites for the day. That picture above is of Apollo, who is an orphaned black rhino. Due to poaching and hunting, there are only about 5,000 wild black rhinos left in the world. Apollo is taken care of by the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, an organization that is dedicated to taking care of orphaned elephants and rhinos, in order that they can be released back into the natural world, to be wild and free. Learn all about the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust here, at their website and watch their delightful videos of the precious, resilient, tough, very much alive orphans. https://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/

In times of trouble, I find so much solace in animals and in nature. Don’t you?

Remember, little ones have big hearts. Little ones are amazingly resilient, resourceful and full of life. It’s hard to keep little ones down. Little ones are our future. Let’s all do everything that we can do, to make sure that it is a beautiful future worth having.

 “And though she be but little, she is fierce.”

–  William Shakespeare

“Mighty things from small beginnings grow.”

–  John Dryden

“The world is moved along by tiny pushes of each honest worker.”

– Helen Keller

“Today’s mighty oak is just yesterday’s nut, that held its ground.”

–  David Icke

And this is my new favorite song. (I find a lot of solace in music, too. Don’t you?) This song is a lovely way to bring in the weekend. Have a wonderful weekend. We’re all under the same sun.

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

THE Favorite Thing Friday

Best Ways to Support Your Ukraine Workforce - DistantJob - Remote Recruitment Agency

I’m sorry, friends. In light of what is going on in the world these last couple of days, I am not feeling my usual lighthearted, “let’s just focus on the material stuff” Friday mojo. Like so many of us, I’ve been spending a lot of time reflecting on what is happening in the Ukraine. I’ve been noticing my feelings, and I have been spending a lot of time praying for everyone around the world who is suffering from pain, fear and disillusionment.

I’ve taken this current horrific situation going on, and I reflected on its “microcosm” that by now, at our ages, everyone has experienced at least once, in each of our lives:

“No one is coming to save you. This life of yours is 100 percent your responsibility.”

It’s a cold, hard truth and the first time that this truth smacks you in the face, it is so scary and dark and lonely and painful to fully realize this truth. It’s brutal. But then, the redemption occurs. This is the very moment that you learn to trust yourself. This is the very moment that you learn that you can rely on yourself. This is the very moment that you come to know your strength and your determination and your resilience like you never have before. You never feel more fully alive than when you fully realize your own worth. You realize that you are worth fighting for, that you deserve more than what you have been allowing, that you have people (and higher spiritual forces) who love you, and who support you, and who want to help you in your cause. This is the moment that you realize that you love yourself, and that you value yourself and there is no one who knows you, and what you need better than you. There is no one who will take better care of you, than you. This is the moment when you realize your own worth. This is when you experience your own personal freedom and victory. This is the day that you realize your greatest champion on Earth must be you. When this occurs, all the forces in the natural and in the supernatural are by your side, and the wind is at your back. You are filled with an energetic, wise knowing and confidence that you deserve to be the fullest creative expression of your truest self and you will let nothing will stop you from realizing your highest form of being.

Today is an excellent day to focus on your favorite being in the whole wide world, to focus on the person who was with you from the very beginning of your birth here, and who will be with you to the very last breaths of your stay here on Earth. Today is an excellent day to focus on your favorite being in the world who has been with you through every single up and down that you have ever experienced in every single day of your life. Today is an excellent day to be thankful to your favorite being for all of the experiences shared, the warm, supportive relationships created, and for the creative journey currently being experienced in the here and now. Today your favorite anything, should be YOU! Everything that you need, is inside of you. Your navigation system is forever connected to the Highest Loving Intelligence that exists. Trust this fact. Trust yourself. Love yourself. Your superhero is You. And you are more incredible and worthy and capable than you ever give yourself credit for being!

And also for today, my daily mantra on the blog is directed specifically to the warmongers in this world:

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.