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Sunday 28 February 2010

Happy Anniversary to me!

Blog Anniversary Image

Oh my gosh! I got so caught up in the hockey game and closing ceremonies of the 2010 Olympic Games, that I forgot to mention that Slightly Off-Center celebrates it's 2nd anniversary today. I have something special planned to mark my two years of being part of such an amazing blogging community, but it will have to wait until later on in the week.

Thank YOU for the support you showed Slightly Off-Center during these past two years.

Much Gratitude,
Jack♥

Saturday 27 February 2010

Butterflies in her belly


This is what I came up with for this weeks ACF Challenge.  This weeks image had me completely stumped so I made my creation into a Photoshop Brush and have made it available for download.

 {made with Adobe Photoshop.  Download the Photoshop Brush here}

Credits:


Every Friday the folks over at Art Creation Friday post a new challenge, a picture or a background. The challenge is to use that picture or background to make an atc (artist trading card) or card, altered art, altered digital art, or something else you like.

Want to join in on the fun?
Click the image above to visit Art Creations Friday

Friday 26 February 2010

Friday Fill-Ins #165


And...here we go!

1. A cup of tea (aka: a cuppa) is best made with looseleaf tea tossed into a warm pot, pour boiling water over the leaves and let steep for two to five minutes.
2. Warmth, love and comfort makes a place feel like home.
3." Everything has its beauty but not everyone sees it." - Confucius. 
4. Do you know how badly I am craving the smell and the taste of strawberries?
5. Art makes me happy, sad, makes me ponder and feel inspired.
6. LOL I just noticed I forgot to take something out of the freezer for dinner tonight -- oops, guess we will just have to order in or go out.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to my girl getting home from her trip, tomorrow my plans include a trip to the grocery store, hardware store, and most importantly... the liquor store and Sunday, I want to hit the highway and head into the valley for the day (weather permitting)!

Thursday 25 February 2010

Thursday Thoughts

*  My son asked me if I believe in fate.  I told him the Jewish story about a sage who had a reputation of being able to answer any question.
One day a boy was determine to prove that the sage couldn't know everything. The lad had an idea to prove the sage was faking so he told everyone to meet him the next afternoon. The next day he caught a small bird, met the sage and said to him:"You say you know everything, well prove it. What am I holding behind my back?"
The sage said: "I didn't say I know everything, but I believe you are holding a bird in your hands."
The boy then decided to ask the sage if the bird was alive or dead. If the sage said "alive," he would crush it and prove him wrong. If he answered "dead," he would set the bird free. Either way, he could prove the sage didn't know everything.
The boy said, "OK, so tell me, is the bird alive or dead?"
The sage replied: "The answer is all in your hands."

*  February 25th! Is it just me, or did February fly by really fast?

*  I'm pondering how I will handle my weekend while I am anxiously awaiting the return of my daughter from her NY road trip.

*  I have tried the medication route for my anxiety --which failed miserably, by the way.  Just wondering if I should consider therapy.

*  My husband never ceases to amaze me.  I truly do appreciate all the love and support he gives this crazy (and getting crazier by the minute) ol' bitch chick.

*  My blog anniversary is coming up soon.

*  It's getting really expensive and time consuming keeping up with the ever-growing grey in my hair.  Maybe I should stop colouring it and just let it grow out.

*  Boy oh Boy!  That was a really great Olympic Hockey game between Canada and Russia.

Whoopie Pies.

What thoughts are in your head this Thursday?

Monday 22 February 2010

Another week inside my head


Every time I pass by my reflection today I cringe. I look so tired and slightly frayed around the edges.  I haven't been sleeping all that well the past week.  I've been obsessively worrying again. My oldest daughter is off to NY with a few friends for Spring Break. That isn't all that worrisome, but they have decided to make it a road trip. The drive from Halifax to NY is 900+ Kilometers, a 17 hour drive - Ugh!

I hate obsessing over things I have no control over; it changes me, I become distant, withdrawn and anxiety consumes me.  I get all knotted up inside and the binding that holds me together tightens with each breath; it brings on an uneasy feeling that twists, flutters and eats me up inside.  I wish I wasn't like this.

So this week I will hide in my house, in my room and hide in my obsessive thoughts and worries. Only when she returns home safe and sound will I be able to breath a sigh of relief. It is going to be a very bumpy week folks!

Monday Question #8

1. What is your least favourite household chore?
2. What's the last song you added to your ipod/music player?
3. Sushi or hamburger?
4. What's your least favourite colour?
5. Name a kitchen appliance you can't live without.

My Answers:
1.  I am forever dusting.  Cat fur drives me insane.
2.  The last song I added to my ipod was Powertrip by Monster Magnet.
3.  Burger.
4.  Red.
5.  The dishwasher is my favourite kitchen appliance.

Monday Questions:
#7, #6  ,#5 ,#4,#3 ,#2 ,#1 

Friday 19 February 2010

Friday Fill-Ins #164


And...here we go!

1. Johnny Weir was robbed, robbed I tell you!  They say judging is better in Olympic figure skating but I disagree.  Darn shame!
2. I've had nothing on the TV but the 2010 Olympics.
3. And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. ~ Anis Nin
4. It's OK to belt out a tune anytime, anyplace if you get an urge.
5. Having sweet dreams would be nice for once.
6. What does it take to get a good nights sleep?
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to... hmm, not sure what I will do tonight, tomorrow my plans include the usual errand running and grocery shopping, then spending the night with my daughter before she heads off to NY for the week, and Sunday, I want to not worry about my girl being in a big city but I know that isn't going to happen (see fill in #3)! 

Thursday 18 February 2010

Do you believe in the supernatural? (part 2) - An Attic Experience

Have you ever walked into an old house or building and felt the place had a magical energy about it? It's like an atmosphere or eerie feeling you get the moment you enter the door. Old houses have a history filled with old stories from years and sometimes generations gone by; if their walls could talk, what tales they would tell us...

The Move:

It was November 1999. Hubby and I had decided to relocate from our suburban home to an area closer to the city. Our two oldest children were entering an age where they wanted to socialize with their friends, but living in the boonies and not being on a bus rout made it hard to get from place to place. We found a house for rent in an area inside the city limits not far from where Hubby and I grew up. It was only available for 12 months, but we figured that would give up enough time to find another more permanent residence in the district. The house was a 1920's Dutch-Colonial, original everything, except for the some upgraded electrical, and heating. This house was enchanting, from the wooden floors to the original glass door knobs, it had such a magical energy that I felt the moment I entered the foyer. I recall the day we moved into the house. I wandered around the rooms admiring all the old details, secretly wishing the householder would decide they wanted to sell so we could snatch it up and it would be ours. Hubby and I were so captured by the overall charm, that we did not notice some of the flaws of the house until we were moved in getting adjusted.

Old houses have secrets:

First thing we discovered, after burning some toast, the kitchen window had been painted shut. We decided to check all the windows only to discover every window in the house was either painted or swollen shut. The pipes in the basement would make an awful groaning sound whenever the hot water was turned on. The house was very poorly insulated, very cold and drafty; we spent an obscene amount of money on oil, just to keep our pipes from freezing and our wee ones warm and toasty in the cold winter months.

One night while we were sitting in the living room with some guests, when someone yelled "wasp!". There was a wasp crawling around on the window ledge. Then someone else said "another one!", and gestured to an electrical outlet. We watched one wasp after another crawl out from the electrical outlet, then we saw a few more crawling around on the window ledge. Nothing a little squirt of raid couldn't take care of but still pretty strange to see wasps crawling out of electrical outlets in the winter. The following morning, hubby checked the basement and attic for wasps nests but found nothing. We alerted the landlords and they came over to inspect the areas of the house that might have nests but found nothing either. They had the attic and basement sprayed for insects, just in case they missed something. It didn't stop the wasps. From time to time we would see wasps crawling around the floor or crawling through electrical outlets. Friends and family would joke with us calling the house the "Amityville House".

When we first viewed the house, we were shown a cold-room/root-cellar door located to the rear of the basement. The owners told us they couldn't find the skeleton key to unlock the door, but they would have a locksmith come in and open it if we wanted to use the space for vegetable storage. Hubby and I had zero need for a root-cellar so we told them not to bother. One day in mid December when I went down to the basement to do some laundry, I noticed the root-cellar door was wide open. When hubby got home from work that afternoon, I asked him how he got the cellar door opened? He came down to the basement with me so I could show him what I was talking about, he said he didn't do it. This door had opened by itself on several occasions after that. I asked the kids if they had been down there playing and opened the door, but the oldest two muttered it was way to creepy down there to play. I decided to put a stop to this once and for all so I moved a bunch of the owners stored furniture up against the door, blocking it from being opened again.

Christmas time we had a gathering of family one evening. We were all sitting around chatting and laughing, having a good time when we heard a hysterical yelling coming from upstairs. We ran up to find my brother's girlfriend had been trapped in the bathroom, quite frightened and sobbing. The door handle had somehow jammed and wouldn't turn and trapped her inside the bathroom. We had to remove the old hardware to get her out. Another time my daughter had a friend over and they both got locked into her bedroom closet. The kids started sleeping with a night light on and I would often find them in the morning all gathered into one bedroom. They would occasionally get frightened while playing alone upstairs, exclaiming it was too spooky being in their bedrooms alone and eventually the stopped playing up there.

There were many other things, from creaks to groans of the old house settling; noises that all older houses make, but still no less creepy. Then things started going missing only to be found in the most obvious place days/weeks later; we would make light of it saying it was the Minute Man taking our things. Whenever we went on the hunt for a lost item, we found a lot of things that weren't our.  Things tucked away into little nooks and crannies all over the house: One time my oldest daughter found a mans wedding band tucked away in the far corner of her bedroom cubbyhole. Another time I found set of old skeleton keys way up on top of a shelf ledge in the dining room. We found old children toys, photos, broaches, books, hand written correspondences... all sorts of interesting trinkets that we collected and tossed into a little basket in the kitchen.

The Attic Experience:
The access to the attic was located in the hall on the second floor that divided the bedrooms. It was a dirty, unusable space that was full of the owners old things, which didn't leave much room for us to use -I wouldn't have used the area up there but for the simple fact that the thought of potentially running into wasps or other creepy crawlers, gave me chills. The owners had installed one of those pull down hatches that had a ladder attached that folded down to the floor for easy access. One morning in March after the kids left for school and hubby for work, I went up stairs to make up the beds. I did the girls rooms first, the boys, then crossed the hall into the master to make mine. I was finished in no time at all, looking forward to getting down to the kitchen for a cup of tea and some toast. I walked out of the bedroom, into the hall and "bang!", right into the attic ladder. Stunned from the crack to the head, it took a few seconds for me to clue in. While standing there in the hall stunned, rubbing the knob that erupted on my forehead, looking up into the black abyss of the attic, I was dumbfounded. A cold, dusty, gust of air swished down for the dark hole in the ceiling waking me from my stupor, and I remember rubbing my forehead thinking: "What the #%!#!". I quickly folded up the ladder, pushed closed the spring loaded door and ran down the stairs two at a time -like the devil was nipping at me heals! I gestured for the dog to come and I locked the both of us into the den and called hubby. Breathless, I told him what happened. Hubby asks if I heard any noises and I tell him "no". He tells me to hang up the phone, get out of the house, go to my mothers and call him from there. I do! I grab the dog and rush out of the house like a shot, I drive down to my mothers, all sorts of things going through my head: "did someone break in and hide in the attic?"," how long were they hiding up there?", "a robber, rapist, killer?". I was so shaken, I could hardly talk when I got to my mothers and called hubby back. He told me to hang tight he was on his way out to meet me. When he picked me up, I told him the story again, how I was making the bed, how I never heard a sound and how I bonked my noggin on the ladder. I went back to the house with him. The house still locked up tight, no signs of any break and entry around the windows or other entry doors. Hubby grabbed a golf club from the trunk of the car and we headed inside. Up the stairs we go, round the corner and guess what? Yup, you guessed it! The freaking' attic door is open again, ladder folded all the way down. "What on earth is going on here?" My legs buckle from under me, I had to grab the wall to steady myself. Hubby turns to me with a "Shhhh!" gesture and starts to creep up the ladder, me tugging at his shirt whispering "no, no, no, lets just leave and call the police". Hubby disappears through the hole in the ceiling and I hold my breath... I hear his work boots on the floorboards and him moving some things around and then see his feet appear down the ladder. He reaches the bottom and gestures another "Shhhh!". He scoured the entire second floor, then we head down and do a thorough check of the first floor, then the basement. All clear! Nothing, nada, no-one! Hubby heads back to the attic to check around in there again before heading outside to check the garage, and the old wood shed at the back of the property. It was a total mystery.

Conclusion:

From that day on I felt very uncomfortable being in the house alone. The stillness of the house during the day was quite un-nerving and of course, my ears and eyes were on full radar alert to any out of the ordinary noises or sights. Although there weren't anymore attic or root-cellar doors mysteriously opening, there were still some strange noises and odd feelings we encountered. There were a few occasions that hubby had to be out of town for a few days for work. I would try to spend those nights in the house alone, the kids all cuddled into my bed with me, but all I'd need to hear was bang of a pipe or groan from the old house and I was packed and into the car with the kids and dog heading to my mothers for the night. Hubby and I focused on finding a permanent residence for us in the following months and found something not too far. October was a welcome month, we couldn't wait to be out of the old Dutch-Colonial. Ironically, the very house we wished we could buy 12 months ago, we couldn't wait to get out of.  We would drive by the house almost every day and I would find myself thinking back to that attic mystery and all the other goings on we experienced, wondering if there was something extraordinary happening inside that old house or were the things that happened all blown up by our imagination?

The house was going to be occupied by the owner's son after we moved, but it stayed empty for over a year, then there was a "for rent" sign on the lawn. A family moved into the house for about a year then they moved. The house stayed empty for a long time after that until last year we saw a work crew doing renovation in the house. Today there is another "for rent" sign on the lawn. Hope they fixed the attic door...


Related Posts:
Do you believe in the supernatural?
Monday Questions #6

Monday 15 February 2010

Monday Questions #7 - If...


All question this week were taken from "If... (Questions For The Game of Life)", by Evelyn McFarlane , James Saywel.

1.  If you could change one thing in the world right now, what would you alter?
2.  If you could permanently alter one thing about your physical  appearance, what would you change?
3.  If you could have permanent possession of any single object in the world, what would you want it to be?
4.  If you could have had the staring roll in one film already made, which movie would you pick?
5.  If you could psychically transport yourself to any place in the world at this moment, where would you go?

My Answers:
1.  Clean water. Clean rivers, oceans, streams and lakes all over the world.
2.  My teeth.  I would like to have the straightest, whitest, brightest smile.
3.  A Leica M9 please.
4.  I would be Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's
5.  A seaside Villa on the Italian Coast.

Monday Questions: 
#6  ,#5 ,#4,#3 ,#2 ,#1 

Saturday 13 February 2010

Beautiful Annabel Lee

{made with Adobe Photoshop.  I followed this tutorial by abduzeedo}


Every Friday the folks over at Art Creation Friday post a new challenge, a picture or a background. The challenge is to use that picture or background to make an atc (artist trading card) or card, altered art, altered digital art, or something else you like.


Want to join in on the fun?
Click the image above to visit Art Creations Friday

Annabel Lee - Edgar Allan Poe

It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.

I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea:
But we loved with a love that was more than love -
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.

And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her high-born kinsmen came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.

The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me -
Yes! that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud one night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.

But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we -
Of many far wiser than we -
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling -my darling -my life and my bride,
In the sepulchre there by the sea -
In her tomb by the sounding sea. 
Happy Valentines Day to everyone!

Thursday 11 February 2010

I Believe! + Friday Fill-Ins #163

(I'm a bit early with my Friday post this week.  I wanted to post this video before the start of the Olympic Games tomorrow.)

16-year-old Nikki Yanofsky sings the official song of the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver, British Colombia.  "I Believe," has hit No. 1 on the iTunes Canada Top Songs chart this week.  The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games begin on February 12th...

I Believe!
Do You Believe?


Now on the the Fill-Ins





And...here we go!

1. Pickles and Fritos are a great side for a deli flatbread sandwich.
2. Welcome!  Please have a seat and make yourself  at home.
3. The snow is going to melt eventually and I will be so happy when it's finally Spring.
4. I'm already making plans for Spring.  I have plans for some adventures in nature.
5. It's 5:16 PM; that means I'm sitting down for a nice dinner with my family (chicken Kiev, corn on the cob and smashed potatoes).
6. A good tasting peach in the winter is hard to find.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to relaxing after work with a magazine and glass of wine, tomorrow my plans include shopping and a gathering with the hens and Sunday, I want to spend the day with the family then out for dinner with my Valentine!

What are your plans for the weekend?

Tuesday 9 February 2010

Do you believe in the supernatural?

There are an infinite number of universes existing side by side and through which our consciousnesses constantly pass. In these universes, all possibilities exist. You are alive in some, long dead in others, and never existed in still others. Many of our "ghosts" could indeed be visions of people going about their business in a parallel universe or another time -- or both.
PAUL F. ENO, Faces at the Window
Monday Questions I posted this question: "Do you believe in the supernatural?"
Here is the explanation I promised would follow my answer.

I'm not a person that believes in paranormal issues just because of the popular shows on TV (Paranormal State, Ghost Hunter, Destination Truth) or photos of superimposed images on the Web of shadows people claim to be a ghost. I never really thought of my encounter as anything "Supernatural" until years later.

The year was 1990. Hubby and I were renting a townhouse in an community of Halifax called Cowie Hill. Cowie Hill was developed during the early 1970s.

One evening, while suffering from a bad migraine, I decided to head off to bed early in hopes some sleep would ease the pain in my head. The kids were in bed sleeping soundly and Hubby was downstairs in the living room watching a hockey game. Wavering between asleep and awake, migraine still pulsating, I had a strange feeling someone was in the room with me -probably Hubby not wanting to disturb me, quietly getting ready for bed. I continued to drift deeper into sleep, in and out, in and out but mostly out. I awoke with a start. I had that odd feeling that I wasn't alone in my room. With my eyes still closed I felt beside me for Hubby but he wasn't in bed. I could still hear the hockey game on the TV in the living room so I knew I couldn't have been asleep very long. I opened my eyes slowly, my focus adjusting to the darkness of the bedroom. While my eyes were focusing, a blurry shape started to emerge from the darkness of my bedroom. More and more I was able to focus, until I saw him. There was an elderly gentleman wearing an overcoat and a felt fedora. He was leaning over me and I could see his face clear as day; he had a huge grin on his face and I could see some teeth, yellowed and rotted. I screamed for Hubby, he came running up the stairs rushing into the bedroom, flipping the light switch and lighting up the room with such a bright light it hurt my eyes.

Hubby: "What's wrong? You screamed bloody murder; scared the sh#& out of me!"
Me: "There was a man in here. He was standing beside the bed leaning over my face; I could smell his breath he was that close.

Poor Hubby. He had this strange look on his face like I had totally lost it.

Hubby: "How's your head? Do you think we should go to the Hospital?

Okay, he thinks I'm seeing things. He thinks it's something my mind manifested because of the migraine. Can I blame him? I would think he was out to lunch too.

Me: "No! I'm serious. There was an old man standing over me grinning. I swear to it!"

Hubby humors me and starts his search around the house. He looks in the closet of the bedroom, under the bed, behind the door. Checks the bathroom, kids rooms and continues his search down on the first floor. I hear him opening and closing doors then the TV goes silent and he heads up the stairs. Asks me again if I am sure I don't want to go to emerg. and be seen by a doctor. Now fully awake with just a mild headache, the migraine is getting better I decide to stay home. The image of the man in my bedroom and my memory of what I thought I saw starts to fade with the headache. I think to myself - "Ugh, that was a bad one!" -and I drift off to sleep.

The next morning the migraine hangover was wicked; the worst ever. I spent the entire morning with severe nausea and feeling really groggy and dead tired. My memory of what I thought I saw the night before was still present but not nearly as real as it was. I chalked the experience up to hypnagogia and nothing more. I never told a soul about it, only Hubby and myself knew I saw "dead people" that night.

Years later, last summer (2009) to be exact. We were at a BBQ at my mom and dad's house. All my brothers and sister, wives, hubbies, kiddies were all there for a summer shin-dig. The ladies were all sitting around on the lawn chatting about this, that and the other. My sister-in-law speaks up.

"Oh my gosh you guys! I had something really freaky happen to me this morning that I have to tell you. I was walking up stairs with a basket of laundry and I had this feeling someone was watching me. I looked over my shoulder and reflected in the living room window was an old man. He was wearing an old fashioned long coat and a old hat, his teeth were all rotted and he was smiling at me. When I looked to the spot he would be standing, there was nobody there."

My heart skipped, and my breath caught in my throat. The first thing I thought was that Hubby had blabbed my temporary insanity all those year ago. My next thought was - No, why would he do that? Neither of us have thought about that night in 19 years.

Side note: My brother and sister-in-law live in a townhouse in Cowie Hill, not far from the one we lived in in 1990.

Sis in law laughed. "You guys think I'm crazy?"

Finally, I piped up. "Did you smell an odd odor?"
Sis-in-law: "Yeah, how did you know that?"

I told everyone about my encounter that night back in 1990. The rest of the family just sat and listened, deducting the two stories were both very eerie. Especially their similarity to one another.

When I got home, I did some searching on the internet for a ghost of Cowie Hill and came up with ziltch. A few days later we all met up again at my mom and dads for Sunday dinner. My Sis-in-law told me she was telling a neighbour about the refection of the man she saw in her living room window. The neighbour told her there have been others who claim to have had an encounter with the mysterious man of Cowie Hill. Old long coat, hat, always with a grin on his face. Some smelled an odor like bad breath after their sighting.

Hubby and I moved shortly after my experience - not because we thought the house might be haunted, but because we had our car broken into twice, stolen once, and had a man expose himself to me in my backyard (not an ideal area to raise children).  And my sister-in-law hasn't talked about any more experiences in her house.  Anyway, that's my paranormal story. I'm a believer; I believe there are entities that exist but I don't think I ever would want to experience it again.

Come back next Tuesday to read about my Attic Experience in a different house.

Monday 8 February 2010

Monday Questions #6


1.  What stirs up your imagination?
2.  Do you believe in the supernatural?
3.  Do you cross your fingers for good luck?
4.  If you could possess a superpower, what would it be?
5.  Do you think "the man in black" (the smoke monster) is Esau, Jacob's brother? (For Lost Fans)

My Answers:

1.  Nothing stirs up my imagination more than people watching. 

2. I know I will have to give an explanation sometime after I answer this question.  Yes, I do believe in the supernatural and have had (what I think) were two supernatural experiences.  One was something I saw many years ago and the other was an attic experience.  (Explanation post in the near future)

3.  I do cross my finger but only on one hand.  Two hands with crossed fingers bring bad luck. 

4.  When I was younger I always thought I would like to read people's thoughts.  Now, I would love to possess powers of persuasion (put thoughts into peoples heads).

5.  Lost.  LOVE it!  I have this theory that Lost is an allegory for The Bible and Christian beliefs.

Monday Questions:  
#5
#4
#3 
#2 
#1 

Friday 5 February 2010

Childhood

(made with Adobe Photoshop)
This little doll resembles my cute little niece Bella-Ella.

Credits: 
Sky 
Crown Brush

Every Friday the folks over at Art Creation Friday post a new challenge, a picture or a background. The challenge is to use that picture or background to make an atc (artist trading card) or card, altered art, altered digital art, or something else you like.
Want to join in on the fun?
Click the image above to visit Art Creations Friday

Friday Fill-ins #162





And...here we go!

1. I know it's odd to tidy up shelves in the supermarket while shopping.  OCD can make you do some strange things.
2. January, February, March are the longest months.
3. You can't help but wonder why black attracts dust like a magnet.
4. I'm waiting for my new vacuum to be delivered; bring it on!
5. Where have you looked for your phone?  Did you leave it somewhere?
6. I was surprised to see that Easter Candy is now available.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to not having any obligations at all and just staying home or doing whatever I please, tomorrow my plans include shopping and Sunday, I want to clean out the storage closet!

Wednesday 3 February 2010

seize the day and be HAPPY!

Ever have something some has said get inside of your head and stick there for days, sometime even weeks? Are you like me, and play it over and over again 'till you're sure you will go insane?

5:30 came so early after a fitful night's sleep! The sky was pitch-dark, and the stars still had some sparkle left in them. I hauled myself out of my soft, warm bed and into the kitchen and put on the kettle; some hot tea will wake me up. The weather station says it -19°C with highs of -15°C, brrrrr! I'm so thankful to be warm and safe inside my cozy house, sipping on a hot cup of tea on such a cold morning. Looking out my kitchen window, I can see the first rays of the sun jutting up just behind the tree line; it will be a magnificent sunrise... and I count all my blessings.

I haven't been sleeping that great this past week. I have something on my mind that won't go away, something that someone said last week has been playing in my head, disrupting my slumber. The lovely LarryG asked a question last week on Facebook. He asked:
"Is it right to be happy when there is so much suffering in the world?"
Hmmmm. At the time I didn't know how to respond to this question, just thought and thought for days about it.

There are so many types of suffering; so many people in pain, forget about the world, but right here in our own city, right in our own back yard. I look around, and I am overcome by the number I encounter on a daily basis. The homeless who huddle in the alcoves of the city to keep warm on these cold nights. The girl who works back to back shifts at the drive-thru to keep her family safe and fed; she gives a wan smile as she hands me my coffee through the window. The man who stands on a street corner with his guitar and dog; the guitar he plays for donations of money or food, his loyal companion keeps him warm when the temperature dips to -20. The teenager at the local high school who's home life is a mess, wonders if life really is worth living. Pain and suffering comes in all different shapes and sizes, in every neighborhood, all over the world. So, why do I deserve happiness when there are other people who don't have it?
"The Better, Happier Me.
The Better, Happier You.
A Better, Happier World To Live In. " ~ Matthew Good
I believe that happiness begets happiness.
Being in a positive frame of mind is a duty we owe to ourselves. The fact that you are happy does not interfere with caring for others who are less fortunate. Just the opposite -  A happy person has more enthusiasm and energy to help others less fortunate, whereas the unhappy person has nothing to spare of his own time or energy, he needs every bit keep himself going. It’s not just okay to be happy; it’s the best frame of mind for making a difference.

So go on!
Go out and seize the day and be HAPPY!

Thank you LarryG for always keeping me thinking.
{{Hugs}} to you all today ♥

When tempatures drop to -18°C...

{Wordless #62, Make Double Fudge Delights}
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Monday 1 February 2010

Monday Questions #5

1.  Do you have any regrets from the last week?
Nope.  Not last week, last month. Well... maybe one or two small things but nothing major.
2.  Are you where you are in life, because you fell down or you got up?
Right now, at this moment in my life... I would have to say upswing.
3.  Left, right or straight ahead?
I would like the straight ahead path but on occasion I find myself veering to the right. (I'm like a car who's tires are a little out of alignment)
4.  What lies beneath the shadow of the statue?
I know.  Do you??? 
::Answer here::
5.  Are you ready for LOST?
Yay!  I have been re-watching episodes and watching the re-cap shows in preparation for sixth and final season of LOST... SO EXCITED!

Monday Questions #4
#3 
#2 
#1