Happy Friday!! Happy best day of the week!!! On Fridays, I give “the deep feels” a break, and I just try to have some light-hearted fun. On Fridays, I discuss “favorites” – the tactile, sensory things in life which make our lives such an interesting experience. Please check out previous Friday postings for some more of my favorites, and please share some of your own favorites in my Comments section.
Today’s favorite comes from another favorite of mine, which also comes from another favorite of mine. The Fresh Market (one of my favorite grocery stores) creates a $25 dollar family dinner deal (one of my favorite bargains) every single week, and this week’s meal featured a delicious dessert. Matilde Vicenzi Tesoro Chocolate Cream Filled Puff Pastry (they also come in vanilla cream) is incredibly delicious. I could eat a whole package in one sitting and still beg for more. Supposedly the Vicenzi family has been making pastries in Italy since 1905. Obviously, to be in business this long, they know what they are doing. If you don’t have a wonderful Fresh Market around you, I feel sad for you. Still, you can order these delicious Vicenzi delicacies on Amazon, or you can find them at the World Market. Squisito!!!!
Have a wonderful weekend!!!
Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.
Good morning! Happy Friday!! Happy Favorite Thing Friday!! I’m not going to write a lot today. I am currently with one of my favorite people in the world, my daughter, and we are adventuring, which is one of my all-time favorite things to do. Last night I experienced one of my favorite feelings – the giddiness of happy people from all over the world, convening happily together. (We are currently at one of the “happiest places on Earth.” 😉 ) Whether or not it truly is behind us, the pandemic felt like a giant afterthought last night, and it was wonderful. It was a healing moment.
Today’s favorite of mine is a phone game which I play all of the time when I need to get my mind off of things. I usually go to sleep after playing it for a while and it helps to lull me into a peaceful, healing sleep. The game is called Rings, and it is a mix of tic tac toe and color matching and for some reason it is one of the most satisfying games which I have ever played on my phone. It is the only phone game that I haven’t bored of yet. Download it today. You won’t regret it.
Have a wonderful, free spirited, happy weekend!!!
Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.
Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.
Good morning! You have landed on Friday! What a wonderful place to be! On Fridays, I keep it light and airy and on the surface. On Fridays, here at the blog, I call it “Favorite Thing Friday” and I list a thing or two (songs, books, products, foodstuff, etc.) that has made my life more interesting and fun. Please check out more favorites from previous Friday posts and please share some of your own favorites in my Comments section.
I’m feeling really good and lighter this morning. Last night was the high school tennis banquet, and as the de facto team mom, I was mostly in charge of planning and executing. It went really well. It was a warm, special night for my daughter and her coach and her teammates and their parents and we all enjoyed it a lot, and now, it is off my plate and out of my mind. Phew! One of my most favorite feelings in life is that of satisfaction and relief! And I have been cycling through those feelings a lot lately, as my daughter’s senior year in high school is quickly coming to its close. It’s exhilarating and exhausting. Emotional fatigue is real. Thank you, weekend, for arriving just in time!!!
One of my favorite accounts on Twitter is wise connector (@wiseconnector). Today he asked his followers to list instantly recognizable lines from movies. If you don’t think that writing is all that important nor makes much of an impact, that thought will change when you see some of these iconic lines that have become part of our everyday vernacular. Wouldn’t you love to be the writer who whenever he or she hears one of these lines, smiles knowingly to themselves, and say, “Yep, I wrote that line! That was me.” Here are some of these famous movie lines. I am sure that you can come up with plenty more:
“I’ll be back.”
“I’ll have what she’s having.”
“Show me the money!”
“I’ll be your huckleberry.”
“Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.”
“You had me at hello.”
“You can’t handle the truth!”
“Life is like a box of chocolates . . . .you’ll never know what you’re going to get.”
“I’ll give you an offer that you can’t refuse.”
“Things you own, end up owning you.”
“Here’s looking at you, kid.”
And here is my favorite material thing of the day. I was in one of my favorite Ace Hardware stores. By the way, I love Ace Hardware stores. They make me feel like I am stepping back in time a little bit. From the people in red jackets that pop out of everywhere and who make you feel like they actually do want to help you, to their beautiful flower selections, and on to their giant, kitschy, impulse item section right by their registers (that area was created for people like me), I just love Ace Hardware stores. Anyway, speaking of the impulse buy section, the other day, they had a whole stand of really adorable, stylish, yet sturdy readers. These readers are made by a company called Optimum Optical. My favorite pair that I purchased (yes, I purchased more than one) is a chunky blue pair of readers that reminds me of the glasses Oprah Winfrey seems to wear a lot. The style of the blue pair is called “Metropolitan.” They also come with a really nice pouch that doubles as a lens cleaner and they were only $16.99 each.
And I’ll end today’s post with this:
” Good Morning, and if I don’t see ya, Good Afternoon, Good Evening and Good Night!” (The Truman Show)
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:
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.
Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.
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 forwardto 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!
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 whichis deepest, most original, most personal in ourselves. To be born again is not to become somebody else, but to become ourselves.” – Thomas Merton
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:
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.
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’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!:
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:
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.
