Monthly Archives: January 2017

27Jan/17
a man who can fix things

“It’s So Nice To Have A Man Around The House”

Especially when they can fix things…

a man who can fix things

he really loves to fix things…

Both Dinah Shore and Eartha Kitt sang this song back in the day, but it sure says what I’m feeling this week. And no I don’t have a man living in my house. And I didn’t all the sudden find the man of my dreams(does one such man even exist) What I have found is something better… A good honest man who can fix things and doesn’t charge me an arm and a leg to do so.

I bought my little old 1890’s built house 9 years ago. It is a double house, not a duplex but a house that had another full house attached to the back of the parent house. I wanted a house where I could have my own place and my son and his family could have theirs. We decided to do this together and I would charge them less rent because my son would do all the work on the house and also take care of the yard work and snow removal. He took care of everything from electrical problems to plumbing and everything in between…and I mean everything. There wasn’t anything he couldn’t fix. It worked out great for us all. If I ever had a problem I told him and it was taken care of. And I was there to help out with the grandkids.

This situation worked great for all of us until my son’s death in July of last year. I was grieving the loss of my son but also I was constantly stressing and worrying about how I was going to take care of this big old house that always, always needed something fixed. As I have mentioned before, I have awesome friends and one of them gave me the name of a man she said was a wonderful handyman should I ever need one. So many things had been happening over the past few months that I put off calling him. I have had a few leaks in the ceiling and lately they had gotten to the point where I couldn’t ignore them anymore. So I finally picked up the phone and called him last week.

His name is Calvin. We talked for a bit and he mentioned my friend had told him about me and that I might be calling him. He told me he would stop by the next day to go over what I needed done. When he arrived he wasn’t what I had expected from our conversation but then no one ever is. I always have a picture in my mind of people and somehow they never turn out looking like what I expect them to look like. Back to Calvin. I showed him around the house and told him all the things I wanted done eventually but what I needed now and what was at the top of my list was the roof fixed and to stop the constant water coming in whenever it rained. He said no problem and would be back the next day to take care of it. Just like that.

Calvin worked 2 days fixing all the leaks and was up on the roof yesterday in gale force winds trying to get everything done so we wouldn’t have to worry about any more water coming in. He found so many spots that needed repair and places that I didn’t even know were leaking. I kept going out to see if he was ok and that he hadn’t blown off the roof. Seriously… I thought he might. When he finally finished up and had loaded up the ladders and his tools he came in to present me with his bill. I was a little concerned because he did buy quite a few supplies and also worked 2 long days. I almost fell over with relief when I looked down at the amount. I won’t go into details here but lets just say I was very very happy with Calvin.

When I told my friend I had called him and how happy I was to have him she said…”Everyone should have a Calvin.” And she is so right. All of this talk about how much I liked Calvin made me think of Brooke Shields and her Calvin Klein ads back in 1980…so to do a little play on her words…”nothing’s going to come between me and my Calvin.”  My whole point is this…. we all need a Calvin. An honest man that fixes things that we can trust. Now, I can fix a broken toilet, put a new faucet on, etc, I have many times. I once lived with a man who couldn’t fix a single solitary thing… so I did. But this house is overwhelming and as I’ve said.. old. It needs a lot of fixin. I am not sure if I will continue to live here or not. There are a lot of happy memories here but then some not so good. But they say not to make a big decision until at least a year after the loved one passes so I am not rushing into anything. We will see how it goes..but in the meantime I have my Calvin.

Do you have a “Calvin” in your life? I hope so.

“Every job is good if you do your best and work hard. A man who works hard stinks only to the ones that have nothing to do but smell.” ~ Laura Ingalls Wilder     I loved this….

Oh by the way, here is a picture of Calvin..

Brad in Thelma and Louise

Calvin…LOL..just kiddin, it’s Brad in Thelma and Louise.

 

 

20Jan/17
crap

Do We Have Too Much Crap?

well I do and where does it all come from…

crap

yes, I said crap…

Since the weather was so warm this week it tricked me into thinking Spring was here, and because of that I decided to do a little Spring cleaning…Now if you know me at all you also know I hate to clean, so I have to pounce on these moments when they happen. And believe me they don’t happen very often.

For some reason, things in my closet seem to multiply. I really don’t understand this. I was just talking to my friends about this very thing and they agreed it happens to them too. The question is… “How” does this happen? Do little gnomes sneak in while I am sleeping and put stuff there… because I know I couldn’t have purchased all this crap. Ok, it isn’t really crap, some of it is really nice stuff. There is just way too much of it in my teeny closet.

I do feel like I just went through all of this about a year ago. Sorting through clothing, shoes, boots and handbags, getting rid of what no longer made me feel joyful. I have heard this quote on many occasions… “Discard everything that does not spark joy.” ~ Marie Kondo  I am not ever sure I can do that totally… How can I get rid of the washing machine or the stove? Anyway, my point being is it is hard to get rid of some things you may have gotten attached to or maybe thought you would wear to that wonderful event in your head that has never happened.

I decided to start with shoes and boots. I made a brilliant discovery while doing this…if you keep shoes and boots in boxes and can not see what is in those boxes, you will never wear them, And when you open aforementioned boxes, you may be quite surprised to see a pair of boots you bought 3 years ago on sale at the end of the season and have never ever worn. Note: this may or may not have happened to me… I could not believe how many pairs of shoes I had and many I have never even worn. I went through them like a crazy woman, throwing into a pile the ones I will donate and others to people I think might want them only keeping the ones that bring me “joy.”

“If you always add and never subtract, you will eventually bury yourself.”~ Peter Walsh

When I moved to this house 9 years ago I got rid of everything that didn’t make me happy or bring me “joy,” I really purged, I figured what better time to do this and there was no reason to take things I no longer loved to the new house. It was so sparse in the new abode, The basement was clean as a new born babe. I had listened to Peter Walsh’s advice about how we move boxes to new houses and never even look inside to see what we are moving. He also advised that if you had things saved from your family members who were no longer with you, to go through them and keep just one thing from the box, but display it. I thought this was good advice and I did that. It was hard getting rid of my grandmothers dishes but now I have one sitting on my dresser in my bedroom with a candle on it. I can actually see that every night and think of her.

But I digress, back to the task at hand. The shoes, boots and handbags are finished… its on to the clothing. This I’m afraid is taking much longer than the accessories. My underwear drawer alone is a daunting task to be had. There are so many different sizes and so many different types in there it is a little scary. Who is going to wear all this crap? Who did I buy these for? Ok, let’s leave that discussion for another day and maybe a therapist.

Last year I made a decision that if I purchased anything new I would get rid of two things I had. I did this for a few months and it was working. I don’t know what happened to that plan but I have now started doing it again. First of all I want to state right here and now and want you all to hold me to this…I do not now or ever in the next few years need a pair of shoes or boots…well that might be a little over the top, I may need a pair of sneakers…walking sneakers…they do wear out. and I walk a lot. But as far as clothing, styles come and go and we do need new things every now and then to perk us up and make us feel fresh and “in style”… I don’t know about the rest of you but at this age I need all the “perking up” I can get.

I don’t know if this is normal or if others tend to do this,  but I seem to get the same things over and over. If I find a certain type of shoe or sweater I am drawn to buy more of that same kind. I don’t know what that says about me or why I do this. I blame it on my Mom. I told my daughter recently maybe we should just take a picture of something we think is cute instead of buying it, that way we can look at it without the expense. She didn’t seem to like this idea. I just know I can’t keep up with all this “crap”.  I had a rough year last year and maybe all this clutter is a sign of that. I need to clear out the crap and get on with my life. This year will be all about clearing out and “healing”…

I will let you know how the closet cleaning is going and by the way if you don’t hear from me for awhile I may be lost in there and can’t find my way out. Please check on me…

Do you do this? Do you have too much crap? How do you keep it under control? I really hope I’m not the only one, let me know in the comments.

“Collect moments, not things” ~ Unknown

 

 

12Jan/17
questions anyone?

Weird Sayings That Make No Sense

and I mean they make no sense at all…

questions anyone?

Huh??

The other day I heard someone say, “That is cheap at half the price.” Huh? What does that even mean? Ok, I know what it means but why say that? Why not just say, “that’s an excellent price for that top.”  So having heard that got me to thinking about all the other weird sayings I have heard over the years and I have come up with a list. Here are some of the dumbest sayings I can think of.

  1. “I am under the weather” – ok, I know it means you aren’t feeling well but really what does this saying mean….A cloud came down and is pressing on you…snow fell on your head…how do you get “under” the weather?
  2. “Happy as a clam” –  Just how do we know clams are happy? Have you spoken to one lately? Maybe they aren’t happy at all, maybe, just maybe… they don’t like being in that shell.
  3. “He really tied one on last night” – I know it means someone got drunk. But what did they “tie” on to get that way? I may have gotten a little drunk in my day but I don’t think I ever had anything tied on me when I woke up (well at least not that I recall).
  4. “You need that like you need a hole in your head” – Ok, I get this one. You really don’t need that $200 purse..but then just say that. Of course we don’t need a hole in our head. Got it!
  5. “I knew him since he was knee high to a grasshopper” – Do you even know how small that would make someone be? I’m guessing you knew them since they were a fetus. And maybe you did.
  6. “Up Sh*t Creek without a paddle” – First of all i would not be putting my canoe or kayak in a sh*t filled creek. End of story.
  7. “If that don’t beat the band” – I really don’t get this one at all, I have no clue what this means. Who wants to beat a band? Bands do have the “beat” but don’t think that is what it’s about… No clue.
  8. “He made it by the skin of his teeth” – Since we have no skin on our teeth, how did he make it? Guess he didn’t..
  9. “It’s like trying to find a needle in a haystack” – Got it, it’s hard to find.. but who put the needle in there in the first place?
  10. “He who laughs last, laughs best” – Why does he laugh best? Maybe he just didn’t get it and laughed anyway.
  11. “I’m off like a dirty shirt” – My daughter always liked this one but I don’t get it. Does it mean you are going somewhere fast… cause I would take a dirty shirt off pretty quickly? I don’t know. Do you?
  12. “Can’t see the forest for the trees” – Huh? The trees are the forest. The forest has trees. Just don’t get it.
  13. “She is dressed to the 9’s” – Does this mean she almost was a 10 and missed it?
  14. “It is what it is” – I absolutely hate this saying. What does this mean? Of course it is what it is. It is totally redundant. I had a boss who used to say this all the time and I really could have smacked her. Did I say I hate this one?
  15. “Six of one, half dozen of the other” – Sometimes you really just need to say this. It means that it is even. So it does make sense. My daughter hates when I say this. So I say it a lot. LOL! My other daughter hates when I ask rhetorical questions. So I do that a lot too!
  16. “Colder than a witches tit” –  How does anyone know this? Who has ever done it? I have to admit I do use this one from time to time. To me it means it is really really cold. I like this one.

I know there are a million more and maybe you have a favorite that you can share in the comments. Do you use any of the ones I have on the list? Do you ever wonder why we say them? I wonder about a lot of things.

“Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” – Alfred Lord Tennyson  I think this is kind of a weird saying(quote) and to tell you the truth I am not completely sold on this one, Alfred.

04Jan/17
peace, calm and healing

My Word For The Year Is…

well you didn’t think I would just blurt it out now did you?

peace,  calm and healing

Namaste peeps…  

I have chosen a “word of the year” for the last 3 years. Prior to that I would write the endless list of New Years resolutions on New Year’s Day that most times wouldn’t even make it past the first week. I got tired of doing that every year and then I also got tired of  feeling like such a loser when the year ended and I hadn’t accomplished anything on my list.

In 2015 I read about picking a “word of the year.” Just one word. I thought this was a great idea and wanted to give it a shot since I was so over the whole resolution thing. The word you pick should define you and the direction you want to see things go in your life. It should set the tone and focus for your whole year. Resolutions can be broken so easily and make you feel like giving up. But having a “word” for the year is different, If you forget about it for one day or even a week, it is still there waiting and you have the rest of the year to focus on making it work for you.

I decided I needed to give this “word” thing a try and chose the word  “Gratitude” for 2015. I was trying to find things to be grateful for after losing my dream job in February of that year. Every day I wrote things down in a journal that I was grateful for and it made me so aware of what I “did” have and not focus so much on what I had lost.  Last year, my word was “JOY”. I loved the word and tried to find as much of it as I could, and I did. That is.. I did until July when my son died. It was very hard to find any kind of JOY after losing him. But somehow the word kept coming up and I started trying to find more of it. And unbelievably, I did. I had so many friends and family members who showed me love and compassion that it made me believe I could have JOY even in the darkest hours of my life. So you see it works. If I could find JOY at the worst time of my life, then anyone can do this and make it work for them too.

Ok, I have made you wait long enough. Here it is…My word for 2017 is.. drum roll…”Healing”. I picked it due to the obvious fact that I am healing after losing my son…but I picked it for other reasons as well. I honestly just love helping people heal. I make essential oils for my friends and family members to help them with health issues. I love showing them alternative ways to help them heal by using Coconut Oil and Apple Cider Vinegar instead of medicine. I have helped several friends who had severe health issues, so much so that their doctor asked them what they did differently to get these results. When they said they were using Apple Cider Vinegar, their doctors all said keep doing what you’re doing cause it is working. Score!

Another reason I picked “Healing” is I am also looking into taking classes so I can teach Reiki. If you have never heard of this you need to. It is amazing. I looked up the meaning in the dictionary and here is a simple explanation of it. “Reiki is a technique based on the principle that energy can be channeled to the recipient by means of touch, activating the natural healing process and restoring physical and emotional well-being.” Sounds cool, right? Well it is and I want to learn more about it and possibly be a Reiki Master. I want to heal others and also myself.

So you can see how having a “word of the year” can truly define your year and your life. I am excited for what this year holds in store for me and also to see how many ways I can “Heal” or help someone else “Heal”.

I hope I inspire you to pick a word for 2017. A few of my friends already do this. One of my friends picked “Rejuvenate” and another picked “Grateful.” They both helped me to find “Joy” this year so of course, I plan on helping them find ways to be rejuvenated and grateful. Maybe I can also be helpful by “Healing” them in some way.

Well now you know what a “word of the year” is. And you know mine. Have you ever had a “word of the year”? Are you going to pick one for this year? I hope you do! Please comment and tell me what it is.

“Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.” ~ Rudyard Kipling