Monday, December 19, 2011

On my mind.

May this Christmas end the present year on a cheerful note and make way for a fresh and bright New Year.


May your Christmas sparkle with moments of love, laughter and goodwill, and may the year ahead be full of contentment and joy.


The gift of love. The gift of peace. The gift of happiness. May these be yours at Christmas.


Sunday, December 11, 2011

On my mind.

This video has beautiful quotes. Things will be different for our holiday season this year and this video helps to focus what's important through the quotes.

Monday, December 5, 2011

On my mind.

In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.
~Albert Camus
People don't notice whether it's winter or summer when they're happy.
Anton Chekhov
Remember
This December,
That love weighs more than gold!
~Josephine Dodge Daskam Bacon


Thursday, December 1, 2011

The most wonderful time of the year.

And the grinch, with his grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.
~Dr. Seuss


I believe so whole-heartedly in the above piece from the infamous Grinch. Pause for a moment and think what it is you can do to give that isn't tangible.


May your December be filled with sparkles.


Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Monkey in the middle.

Kick back and chill today right beside this big guy. I know I sure wish I could.





Monday, November 28, 2011

On my mind.

I never look at the masses as my responsibility. I look at the individual. I can only love one person at a time - just one, one, one. So you begin. I began - I picked up one person. Maybe if I didn't pick up that one person, I wouldn't have picked up forty-two thousand...The same thing goes for you, the same thing in your family, the same thing in your church, your community. Just begin - one, one, one.
~Mother Teresa of Calcutta


Thursday, November 24, 2011

Thanks today.

Well wishes of a Happy Thanksgiving to my friends just south of the border today.
May you enjoy good food, great company and many thankful thoughts.


Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Where the Sidewalk Ends.

by Shel Silverstein

There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.

Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.

Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.




Monday, November 21, 2011

On my mind.

The greatest conflicts are not between two people but between one person and himself.


Whatever I do, I hope it's quality, I hope it's something that's class.


I want to get within myself and write. I really, really want to write.


~All quotes by Garth Brooks
(how I'd love to catch his Vegas show)


Thursday, November 17, 2011

Music makes me think.

Does it ever. While I'm no where near a music connoisseur, I will listen to just about anything and I find this spills over nicely into my flow of life.
In any spare moment I can swindle, I'm buried in my studies. Life is busy and finding a balance is hard. The pursuit of any designation requires determination, perseverance and some mad study skills. Add to that a busy household, two active kidlets, a hubby and the dog and it's a recipe for this mamma to lose most of her mind.
The Study Music Project created this play list which I find helps me zone in. When I hop on the one-track-mind-train into the books, this music blocks out the noise around me and sets me up in the study zone. It's also an nice play list for so many other occasions. Maybe you're an artist needing something with a soft flow or a writer who hears unwritten words in the melody. Perhaps you're hosting a few people for dinner and want something in the background. It also works if you've got a friend coming for tea. Grab a book and curl up in a cozy chair. The potential for this play list is endless.
I hope you enjoy.


Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Learning discipline.

Behind the desk, beneathe the books, connected and yet not.
An urgency settles in.
I am there.

Monday, November 14, 2011

On my mind.

The shell must break before the bird can fly.
~Alfred Tennyson
The difference between try and triumph is a little umph.
~Author Unknown
The best helping hand that you will ever receive is the one at the of your own arm.
~Fred Dehner


Thursday, November 10, 2011

Pillow, popcorn and a cozy couch.

No, this is not a love story.
But it is a story about love, and the power it has over our life.
The power to heal or destroy.
And this is where the story begins.

**
Mr. Vargas? Luis Vargas?
You don't recognize me, do you?
Miss Russell?
Yes.
Julia Russel?

Original Sin is a movie I fell for the moment I heard of it many years ago, so many actually that I owned a VHS copy. From the first few lines that are read to the music that had my heart pumping and me gasping in the same melody to the choice of actors and the locations, it was all delivered with just the right am
ount of desperation. As Angelina Jolie reads in the opening lines, it is not a love story but it is a story about love. I don't get caught up in what's "wrong" with the movie. I choose, instead, to get lost in everything that's right about it.
It's a late night movie or a rainy day one or one I can pop in when I'm looking for an intense heartstring story. It is thought provoking. Is it love? What is love? How far are some willing to go for love? What sultry deception or naive smile are we each willing to fall for?

Have you seen it? Tell me, what are some of your favourite, go-to movies?

You cannot walk away from love.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Elise, oh, Elise! C'est Fur Elise.

Another one of my favourites. I could listen to the sounds of the piano forever. Again, this piece fills my soul with snippets of stories, moments remembered and wishes for tomorrow.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Recap: Mission - October

Taking stock on last month:

1.Read my heart out. This may well be the last month for a while that I get the chance to leisurely read. I'm going to take complete advantage of it. Speaking of reading, I need to charge my e-reader...
My e-reader needs charging again and I've got in some serious and severe reading for my heart. Mr. Potter and I are nearing our end and already there are hints of a void.

2.Finish both my courses. Gulp!
I missed the mark on this one. I finished one and I've completed the mid-term for the other. There is some work to go but it's about to be wrapped up. Just a few more weeks.

3.Take pictures. More on this later.
I did. I'm learning that it isn't the picture taking that causes such a struggle, it's the picture maintenance that I need to work on. Uploading, sorting, labeling, filing, sorting, printing, sharing...

4.Dream something big.
I'm scatterbrained on this. I need something that hasn't quite come about yet.

5.Kick some stuff out.
BOOYAH! A whole bunch of broken things moved out. There's no need for them to stay. A few random "don't needs" left, too. One step at a time, it's coming together just the way things seem to.

6.Figure out a Halloween plan.
Check and check. Did you see the evidence?

7.Cheer on the return of our NHL team. We pick up our season tickets today! My stomach gets all fluttery just typing that.
Oh my my my. Welcome Home Jets! We're working it out. Game 1 was electric. Game 2 made more memories with my son sitting at my side.

8.Get some serious discipline in place. It's going to become essential to the winter ahead.
Needs work. That's the best I can do. I know what I'm in for and need to getting it together.


Monday, November 7, 2011

On my mind.

All the statistics in the world can't measure the warmth of a smile.
~Chris Hart
When the bold branches
Bid farewell to rainbow leaves -
Welcome wool sweaters.
~B. Cybrill
May you have warmth in your igloo, oil in your lamp, and peace in your heart.
~Eskimo proverb



Thursday, November 3, 2011

A love story.

This is my most favorite piano piece written. It haunts my heart. It moves me to tears every time. I see stories every time though there are no words. Sometimes they are the same one and sometimes not. I suppose that is the power that music has.
Tell me what story you see when you hear this piece.


Wednesday, November 2, 2011

On Hallow's Eve, my light shone bright.




It was a dark night. The air was crisp with a creepy feeling. Goblins, ghouls, zombies and the odd zebra were on the prowl. Mixed in was Rookie, the super dog, and Grandpa (just in case). All leashed up and away we went, an odd bunch for sure.
These two not-quite-monsters were troopers and Rookie was great. Grandpa took it all in with a sparkle in his eye that sent me back 20 years to when I was one of those almost-monsters dashing about. I only hope I was as gentle to my sister as my son was to his. Trick or treat mixed with a healthy dose of please and thank yous brought in a couple bags full of loot.
But see, I'm not big on the whole Halloween bit. I dodge horror movies like the plague and have been known to jump at the site of my shadow. My overactive imagination affords me a very generous dose of terror thankyouverymuch. So, at the first chance, I dodged the boo.
Near the end of our group adventure, I split away with my dogphew. He needed some good ground pounding. We walked fast. I can concoct this story or that about why but the truth is, I was nervous. My shadow was, after all, following us. My arms pumped the air with determination, my legs fought fierce and my knee screamed. While it has healed from the surgery I had 10 months ago, I'm not sure it has actually recovered. I pushed on, knowing the experience would be good for both the dog and my mind. As we rounded the bend on the home stretch, we picked up the pace. It was a run home.
Up the front steps and inside, he dashed for his dish, tongue hanging and slopping up water like it was going out of style. I gasped and heaved falling just shy of sharing with him. My legs burned. They felt raw. I paced slow, scared to sit thinking that perhaps stopping would make it worse. Before too long, the burn subsided and the jello set in. Mush was all that was left in my legs.
Much later that night I was laying in bed. As I slowly unwound from all the day offered, I kept coming back to the feeling after my walk/run. My head was clear, my heart was calm. The light bulb sparked and illuminated. I might have found another trick to tuck away in my life toolbox. I might be beginning to understand what the appeal is to running.











Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Mission: November

A balmy 10C (50F) here today. It's hard to think that the forecast includes words like "flurries" for the weekend.
November is off to a smooth start. Here's what I'm striving for this month:



  • Log 100KM on my bike (even if it is just stationary). So many reasons why this needs to happen.

  • Wrap up the Harry Potter Series. It's a stretch given that my leisure reading time is diminishing and the series is ramping up in intensity.

  • Cheer on the home team. They have a special piece of my heart. I'm working on a separate piece for this altogether.

  • Kick a few exam into the history books. It's time to be done. I'm growing impatient with myself.

  • Clear my camera card. I know the fundamental reasons why this is important although I don't get to it as often as I should.

  • Wipe out a chunk of my Christmas shopping. I'm growing less tolerant of the crowds and the chaos that so many make of the season, so it's going to be small stores, online adventures and some shop local jewels that I haven't visited in a while for me.

  • Create from the heart. Christmas cards on deck.

  • Say it with me, declutter.

It doesn't seem over-the-top but given the schedule I'm working with, it's going to be an adventure for sure. All right, Movember November, I'm with you here. Let's roll!


Monday, October 31, 2011

On my mind.

When witches go riding,
and black cats are seen,
the moon laughs and whispers,
'tis near Halloween.
~Author Unknown


One need not be a chamber to be haunted;
One need not be a house;
The brain has corridors surpassing
Material place.
~Emily Dickinson


When black cats prowl and pumpkins gleam,
May luck be yours on Halloween.
~Author Unknown


Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Welcome Baby Boy.

Over the weekend, we went to a celebration to welcome a sweet new wee one. The children played, the men watched football and the ladies gathered together cooing over the little man who slept soundly through it all. Intimate, serene, and comforting are three words that immediately come to the surface when I try and describe it.
As pictures have popped up sharing peeks into the afternoon, one very obvious pattern shone across the faces of everyone that held him - calmness. The new mom showed all the telltale signs of such, tired eyes, exhausted from the dramatic changes in schedule, the tenderness that postpartum affords us but she, too, radiated calm.
Maybe that's just what babies were meant to do.


Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Monday, October 24, 2011

Changed my day.

Because even though we've been married a few years and together for many, Hubby surprised me this morning with just a simple sweet phrase this morning. Just you and me. He took my breathe away in that moment. I love how he always knows just how to. So, instead of my usual on my mind today, it's this song. It's consuming me right now.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Bonnie's Day.

Iris Johansen is a favorite author of mine. She is a New York Times best selling author who now writes crime fiction. She has her main cast of characters that carry throughout her novels. Eve, Quinn and Bonnie are three of them. This year, she's finally released (in stages) the trilogy to explain the stories of each and how they've got to where they are.
Eve came out in the spring and it was largely the reason I purchased my e-reader...more on that some other day. I learned so much about her that I never knew. Where she started out, some of her secret struggles and so much character came out. I've read before that as an author you must know your characters right down to the last imaginable detail even if those details are never written. Iris Johansen has done a great job with that.
Quinn was a perfect accent to my summer reading and I raced through it because of the cliff hanger that was left from Eve.
Today, Bonnie makes her debut. I don't know yet if she completes the story but she does complete the set. I've bought my e-version copy and am now anxiously waiting until I can get home, grab a cup of tea and curl up to drink it all in. I have a funny feeling tonight is going to be a late one.
I'm also reading Book 6 in the Harry Potter series and my wonderful textbook at the moment. What about you?

Sunday, October 16, 2011

On my mind.

Funny thing about this video, I was find seeing the mountain climber but the window washers made my knees weak.
Happy Monday! I wish you a wonderful week.

Friday, October 14, 2011

I want to//I will

Craft to my heart's content//Mail off the crafts I've completed and wish I had just a bit more time to make more
Curl up in a comfy chair with a raggy quilt and read until I am engulfed by the darkness of night//Sit at the table drowning in a textbook
Write the words that are spilling over in my heart//Make course notes and study aides
Spend some time updating my iPod//be thankful that I have music even if it isn't the most current
See my sister//See my sister
This song is stuck in my head. Maybe it's a Sugarland thing. Happy weekend!

Thursday, October 13, 2011

I forgot.

Even when you get great news of "you passed", when you've got a loaded schedule there is no time to stop. The celebration of "pass" lasts for the few moments after you've processed the information and then you move on.
This next course is the other half. The yang to my pass yin. Thanks to some very misleading information, I just realized I'm about three weeks behind. Today's agenda will include some serious time-management planning to make up whatever I can.
How do you recover from a time loss set back?

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Childhood throw back.

Messing around on Youtube, I came across this great little video. How many did you watch?

Friday, October 7, 2011

Cram, Hockey and Turkey with a Side of Stuffing

That right about sums up my Thanksgiving Long Weekend. Despite the extreme winds today, the weather here on the prairies is over the top amazing. Sorry all my South friends, I'm soaking up every second because I know they are fleeting moments. It won't be long before stale grey skies stare down on us and white blankets our world.
Tonight is cramming in everything I possibly can in preparation for my economics exam tomorrow. I scheduled it. There is no one but me responsible for the Saturday of a long weekend choice. I am feeling OK but the jitters are creeping in. One more night and this part is done. One more...
Hockey! Hockey! Hockey! Yell it from the rooftops! Let the whole world hear. Welcome home, NHL. More on this later.
Monday will round out the weekend with a house full of chatter and a table warm with food. Family is what you make and it's time to stop and remember to be thankful for everything and everyone we have.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Dizzy.

Just enough tilt to make my legs start to shake. I love it!


Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Mission: October

Well, well, well...
It's been quite some time since I've ripped out a mission list. There are always to-dos and want-tos and other lists that I somewhat neurotically make but my missions are different.
Let's see what I can pull off in October:


  1. Read my heart out. This may well be the last month for a while that I get the chance to leisurely read. I'm going to take complete advantage of it. Speaking of reading, I need to charge my e-reader...

  2. Finish both my courses. Gulp!

  3. Take pictures. More on this later.

  4. Dream something big.

  5. Kick some stuff out.

  6. Figure out a Halloween plan.

  7. Cheer on the return of our NHL team. We pick up our season tickets today! My stomach gets all fluttery just typing that.

  8. Get some serious discipline in place. It's going to become essential to the winter ahead.

Friday, September 30, 2011

It's been much too long since I played along with Friday Fill-in's. Click over there and join the fun.

1. I need __some time to breathe___.

2. ___I'm always amazed by how__ lucky we were.

3. A great deal __of planning goes into so much of what I do___.

4. __Sparkling bubbly in___ big tall glass.

5. It was announced __that we are each awesome in our own ways___.

6. __Sharp forks paired with dull___ steak knives.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to __just resting___, tomorrow my plans include __helping out___ and Sunday, I want to __complete and submit this ridiculous report already___!

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Sucky Sick.

The end of September is making sure I know it's the boss. My chest has been invaded by some foreign lifeform that I'm convinced is trying to take over the world. I'm staying nestled in my bed, snuggled with my pup and hoping that this lets up soon.
The slow cooker is on with what promises to be a delicious stew for this evening. I hope this means things are on the up and up.
Sickness sucks.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Falling over.

Our days are undeniably filled with less sunlight. I catch my breath in the coolness on the air and wonder. Where did the summer filled with sunkissed days, lazy evenings and relaxing weekends go? What does the fall and inevitable winter have in store? When is a good time to pick pumpkins - a task we've quickly turned into a family event? What traditions will we establish without even realizing that is what's happening?
With Autumn making an undeniable statement of arrival, I am pensive and preparing for the long winter ahead. Have you noticed a difference in your thoughts or actions? Has the season begun to change for you? Has your heart?

Monday, September 19, 2011

On my mind.

I know it may be Monday morning, but do raise a glass with me to this one.


Thursday, September 15, 2011

Marry me.

http://www.mts.net/~nyckolas/kandm/

and I'm marry him again





Dr. Seuss said it right.

We are all a little weird, and when we find someone who's weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.
~Dr. Seuss


Happy anniversary to my love!


Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Junk, Trunk and Enough.

This morning started out like junk. Before 8AM I had managed to explode an entire bottle of coffee creamer, the really sticky kind, in my bag. It leaked all over my textbook, marinaded my cell phone, wrecked my day planner, soaked my keys and ruined my course notes binder. To add insult to injury, it leaked all down my pant leg and absorbed into my sweater. Because I'm not close enough to work to run home, I sat all day in the mess.
Mid-morning, I received a very disheartening email. The words written therein hurt. I usually try and fluff off the negative like water on a duck's back or take it in and grow from it. Today, it didn't work. Follow up said email with a phone call that was none too pleasant and let's chalk today up as one that just needs to be over.
Let's toast to a better day tomorrow.


Thursday, September 8, 2011

Today

...my sweet son will walk into his classroom fresh and ready to start a new year.
...I will wonder for a moment or two why August disappeared and how it's taken me eight September days to really understand this.
...I might add laundry to my long list of things that need to get done.
...I will read.
...music will fill my heart and soul.
...I will walk a step slower.
...I will wait patiently for my packages.
...I may finish the report that I've been much too lazy about getting to.


Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Scattered thoughts on nothing particular.

Let's tread lightly.
Please go slow.
There's no need to rush.
And do keep your voice low.


It's slow going for me today.
One foot in front of the other.
One step and then another.


Do be careful.
Please be safe.


I'll be back in the morning.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

On my mind.

A lot of photographers think that if they buy a better camera they'll be able to take better photographs. A better camera won't do a thing for you if you don't have anything in your head or in your heart.
~Arnold Newman
The important thing is not the camera but the eye.
~Alfred Eisenstaedt
The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it.
~Ansel Adams


Friday, September 2, 2011

Resting.


It's the labour day long weekend around here. It's the bittersweet opposite of the May long kickoff to summer. For me, this weekend marks the end of the summer season and infuses my heart with the hopes of an Indian Summer. This weekend means September is giving me one more opportunity to soak it in, make memories and be thankful for everything I was able to accomplish and experience this season.
I will spend some time reflecting, living and loving. I may plan a few things or write a few things or just sit quietly. I feel relaxed, peaceful. I'm not sure what this is but I'm enjoying it.
I wish you a restful and relaxing time, too!