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Archives for January 2010

A Few Random Thoughts Plus One of the Best Quotes About Life… EVER

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Well, hello.  You remember me, right?  Oh, come on… you do so.   I’ve gotten behind this month on Self Help Daily as well as my other blogs – with writing, responding to comments, and just about everything else.  I served all of January on jury duty and had to sit got to sit on the jury for a major trial.

It was an utterly fascinating, gut wrenching, educational, and profoundly moving experience. I’ll never forget any of it for the rest of my life.  I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again – if you ever are chosen to serve on a jury, just do it.  Don’t do back flips trying to get out of it or throw the notice away, acting like you never saw it.

You’re cooler than that.

For one thing, you could get into a lot of trouble and who really wants to invite trouble into their home… especially the kind in uniform.  For another thing, it’s the least you can do to serve your community and to stand up for your neighbors.  Lastly, why should ANYONE run scared from something that others are facing head on?  The entire process is laid out for you plainly and like most things in life, your primary responsibility is to just care enough to show up.

If you’re lucky, really lucky, you’ll be rewarded with the honor of serving your community and getting a chance to meet life head-on out on the battlefield.  Invigorating.  Very invigorating.

As I pointed out in a recent post (Behold: The Land of the Lost... sorry, someone had too much coffee and not enough chocolate that day.  There’s a sweet balance and when I get out of rhythm, I’m thrown. Too much coffee and not enough chocolate makes me testy.  Too much chocolate and not enough coffee makes me punchy.), doing things such as serving on a jury or even just reporting for jury duty is considered out of the ordinary and most people hate “out of the ordinary.”  Yet, this  is where TRUE growth happens.  Out of the ordinary is where you learn new things.  As I said in the testy post,  Each experience helps you to develop new layers and fill up fresh wells of life experiences to draw from.

I didn’t start out to lecture you on jury duty – honestly. I just wanted to take the opportunity to let you know where I’ve been and why updates have been unusually sparse.   I also wanted to say that I’m nearly caught up on responding to comments and e-mail.

I have also gotten behind… make that VERY BEHIND on books I’ve been wanting to review.  I’ve read some amazing books lately and can’t wait to share them with you.  Book reviews take a little longer with me simply because I don’t just say, “I read this book. I liked this book.  You should read this book.”  My approach is this:  If the book was worth my time and I believe will be worth your time, I incorporate the book into an article that could stand on it’s own.  That is, I try very hard to tell you about the book and review the book without making you feel like you’re in the midst of a book review.

The book that I’ll be focusing on in the next post is called Better Because of You by Ginny Hutchinson and Cathy Haffner.   I read it this month during my jury duty – on breaks when no one was around to talk to. When others were near, I talked with them.  I love books, but I’d never ever choose one over a human.   Anyway, this is a fantastic little book and I’ll tell you all about it either later today or tomorrow.

I want to end this post with a quote from this particular book.  I read it during a long day of jury duty.  A day that found me missing my family, my cats, my house shoes, and my kitchen  – and hoping they all remembered who I was.    I was on schedule with my coffee/chocolate balance, so I wasn’t punchy or testy.  However, I still got a lot out of this quote and loved how it showed up at just the right time.  I’ve written this passage down and I think you’ll want to do the same.  Heck, I’d recommend starting each and every day by reading the words from front to back.

Best Quote About Life

This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; the being a force of Nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy.

I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community, and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can.

I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live.  I rejoice in life for its own sake.  Life is not brief candle to me; it is a sort of splendid torch which I have got a hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.  – George Bernard Shaw

Splendid, Mr. Shaw, splendid.

How Do I Love My NordicTrack, Let Me Count the Ways!

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[ Not that it should (or remotely does) matter, but none of the links in this post are affiliate links of any kind.  They’re simply helpful links to information and resources. It’s also not a paid review or a solicited review in any way.  What it is is this:  Someone who is beyond delighted with something and is enjoying getting healthier so much that she wants to see everyone else rocking the same happy boat. ]

Well, we did it.  We talked about it for probably over a year, and a few weeks ago we purchased and set up a NordickTrack A2550 Pro.  I couldn’t be happier with it.  If you read any of my writings (and I couldn’t love you any more if you were coated in chocolate for doing so), you know that I love to walk.  Because I’ve been blessed with chronic asthma, I’m a little limited in what I can do when it comes to fitness and exercise.  Different people have different levels of asthma and mine is simply a beaut. If I walk outside in the cold, for any length of time – we’re talking a full blown attack.  So, even though I adore to walk – when the weather turns cold, my fun’s over.

At least it WAS.

Anyone who walks regularly knows how amazing it makes you feel.  The benefits can be felt to an even greater extent than they can be seen.  You have more energy, your mobility is better, you’re thinking is clearer, you have a natural glow, your mood is fantastic, and your heart loves it.  The benefits of regularly walking go on and on and on.  If you’re wanting to lose weight, look younger,  be healthier, and feel better than ever before – you have to walk out to meet it.

If the weather (or other factors) keep you from walking outside, consider walking at your local mall or even a large department store.  Just be prepared to make a lot of trips around the store.

Better yet, I strongly recommend that you do just as my family did – get a treadmill.  You’re certainly smart enough to pick out your own treadmill and research the benefits of each but I would love to give you my recommendations if that’d be okay.  My husband researched the dickens out of treadmills before making the purchase.  I believe he knew all along he wanted to buy a NordicTrack.  He’s the most brand-loyal person I know and really you can’t fault brand-loyalty.  If someone never lets you down and always seems to be evolving as a company and a brand (such as NordicTrack, HP, Vizio), why look elsewhere?

He read about each NordicTrack on the market and considered what we wanted to use the treadmill for, who would be using it, where it would sit, and so on.  He made an outstanding choice and, as I said at the beginning of this post, I couldn’t be happier.

We set our NordicTrack up in our bedroom, near the television.    I’ve had a regular routine for two forevers that I swear by – I break away from working online at some point in the afternoon, usually about an hour before or after lunch.  My cat, Alexa, and I head to the bedroom for a wonderful, relaxing trip to Mayberry, Lucy and Ricky’s apartment, or the Clampett’s mansion (courtesy of dvd collections).  During this time, there’s no such thing as Twitter, e-mail, seo plugins, blogs, comment spam, vacuuming, or laundry.  It’s a wonderful little escapism that I’ve enjoyed for years.

Keeps me sane.

I enjoy it even more now.  Sure, I walk or jog through Mayberry, Beverly Hills, or a hilarious apartment in NYC now but I feel incredibly invigorated afterwards.  Alexa curls up in the window and seems to find me much more entertaining than anything on the television.  I watch two episodes and find that I’m super-charged to finish the rest of my day.

This NordicTrack is extremely comfortable and easy to use.  There’s a display that allows me to keep  track of how long I’ve been walking, the distance I’ve gone, my pace, and the calories I’ve burned along the way.  You can affect these calories by adjusting the speed and/or incline.  My current choices in incline and speed allow me to burn 200 calories in 30 minutes, or 200 calories per visit with Lucy.

I’ll take it!

I’ve also found that when I’ll be walking at a moderate pace, I can prop a magazine or book in front of me and read.  As a book lover,  I love that.

When I’m not trying to listen to characters on tv (even though I can.. and often do.. say the lines right along with them at this point), I crank up the speed and incline. I’ve worked up to a combo that allows me to burn 325 calories in 30 minutes.

The invigorated feeling after this particular workout is accompanied by sweat and a lot of iced sweet tea.

I hope you’ll click through to read about the NordickTrack A2550 Pro and all of its features (click on DETAILS).  I know it’ll blow you away.  I believe NordicTrack.com has a current special that’ll save you a lot of money.  What’s more, they’re offering free shipping.  More money saved!

This is one of the smartest investments we’ve ever made – because it’s an investment in the health, fitness, happiness, and lifespan of each member of the family.  I just strongly urge you to consider making the same investment.  If I could, somehow, allow you to feel how wonderful I feel right now (fresh from a workout), you’d order your own within 10 minutes.

Whether you order your NordicTrack online or find one at your local Sears, just stop thinking and start doing.  Also, one other piece of advice:  If it’s available, pay for delivery and set up.  Trust me on this one – this is a major piece of exercise equipment and any money spent on allowing someone else the pleasure of moving it and setting it up is money very, very well spent.

“A Goal is a Dream with a Deadline.”

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A Goal is a Dream with a Deadline. - Napoleon Hill

 

A goal is a dream with a deadline. – Napoleon Hill

One of my favorite authors of all time is Napoleon Hill. He was a brilliant man, in every sense of the word, and I simply cannot read a single paragraph written by Mr. Hill without wanting to take on the hounds of Hell with my Swiffer mop.

Napoleon Hill was born in 1883 in a one-room cabin on the Pound River in Wise County, Virginia. His life as a writer began at the ripe old age of 13 when he became a mountain reporter for a small town newspaper.

This mountain reporter went on to become one of the greatest forces the motivational world has ever known. Men and women will quote this great man forever because his words will forever be worth repeating. Napoleon Hill passed away in November 1970 but not before securing a beautiful legacy anyone would be proud of.

For today’s Thursday Throwback, I’d love to direct you to a wonderful piece of writing by Napoleon Hill titled Three Feet From Gold.

Now where’s that Swiffer…..

Time for a Reality TV Adjustment

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Day Of Anger Poster Print

I’ve noticed a very disturbing, yet escalating trend: People seem to be more disagreeable than ever before.  It seems to me that they’re lashing out with less provocation, disagreeing more readily, and all but refusing to see the other person’s point of view.   I don’t know how people who work with the public on a daily basis stand it.  If it keeps going like this, Wal-Mart greeters will need to arm themselves with mace.

Okay, I’m exaggerating but you get the point.

Frankly, I think part of the blame lies in the the things we watch on television, specifically certain reality shows. The ones that treat fighting, yelling, name-calling, and being obnoxious as something desirable and even entertaining. Is this really what most people are drawn to these days? The Reality shows on MTV are the worst.

My husband and I went to Best Buy a few nights ago and as we were leaving, some kids were standing near the door.  A few young girls were yelling and cussing – really trying to be toughies, yet looking and sounding ridiculous.  The loud f-bombs, the overly dramatic anger, the attempts to seem out of control..  it was obvious that they regularly bowed at the alter of reality television.  I’d rather have my toenails yanked out one by one than to see the average young lady begin to look and sound like these girls.  Instead of looking bright, the future would look (and sound) dim, dark, and dank.

More adults need to pay attention to what their kids are watching – and think twice about what they’re watching, themselves.  I really am sorry if that sounds…. no, I’m not.  I’m not sorry how it sounds – it’s the truth.

Don’t get me wrong, a few of my favorite shows fall under the heading of Reality TV.  I just dare you to get between me and The Biggest Loser or Survivor!  These shows, however, aren’t the ones causing the problems.  The ones that are beginning to spew nastiness out into our culture are the ones that serve absolutely no purpose at all – other than polluting their viewers, especially the ones who are a little weaker emotionally and/or mentally.  They’re the shows that highlight crass behavior, yelling, crudeness, and vulgarity.  They’re the ones that celebrate depravity and tastelessness.

I think everyone needs a refresher course in class, decency, and what it means to have character rather than be a character.

The other day, I was reading a thread of comments under a blog post.  The post was about one of these ridiculous reality shows, one of the newer ones – Heaven help us.  I’ve never seen an episode, nor would I watch one for money – but I have seen  previews.  The most recent preview showed females fighting, screaming, and then being carted off to jail as men stood around laughing.

Wow, so entertaining.  So enriching, educational, and uplifting.

One of the comments said something to the effect, “Remember when America had class?” I have no idea whether or not this was an American who made the comment or not.  Either way, as a proud American, I found the comment to be very depressing.   I’d like to go on record as saying that, as a whole, we do have class.  Most of us still shun this sort of ignorance and we cringe when people act like barbarians in public or private.

Our biggest fault, I suppose, may be the fact that we’ve remained too quiet and too laid back for too long.   I’d l0ve to see a big, beautiful, long overdue movement rise from the heartland of America.  A movement that said we’re tired of what television is doing to our country and its young people.  A movement that said, America has as much class now as it ever did!

Remember, just because you can watch morons on television acting like morons on television and realize that they are abnormal doesn’t mean that a young person is capable of the same separation. Even the most intelligent and mature young person will come away from these types of shows worse than they were beforehand.  Sit down with the young people in your life and watch what they watch with them – if you can stand it.  Ask yourself if there’s anything remotely in this show that will make them a better, stronger, more intelligent individual.  Does the show promote class, character, or tastefulness in any way?

If you think I’m over-reacting, you haven’t seen what’s on television right now.  Sadly, odds are that the young people in your life probably have.  Don’t feel left out, though, given enough time, you’ll  see exactly what they saw.  Through them.  And it won’t be pretty.

Loving Your Family and Showing It!

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First of all, I haven’t drowned in a river of coffee – – – though, what a way to go.  I haven’t been on Self Help Daily in quite a few days simply because I’ve been a busy bee, buzzing around everywhere else.  I had a few blogs that were demanding a great deal of work.  Plus, well I’ll just be honest, I got a lot of cool kitchen appliances, pans, gadgets, and gizmos and I’ve been having the time of my life cooking and baking.

It reminded me of Christmas when I was a little girl, I’d get so many Barbies (along with Barbie airplanes, cars, and houses) that I wouldn’t know where to start – I’d just plop down in the middle and lose myself for hours.  Seriously, sometimes I’d forget to eat.

A few (he he he) years later, I took the same approach – perched myself in the midst of fajita makers, iron skillets, a huge new griddle, gadgets, bowls, new dishes, etc and lost myself for hours.  And hours. And hours.  Somehow I don’t forget to eat these days though…

During the holidays, I noticed a number of things that I’m particularly grateful for with my family; traits that each member has that I love even more than kitchen gadgets.  I may be biased because these are the people who hung the moon and stars, but I think there are certain things we can all learn from each, so here goes – My I’M GRATEFUL FOR list that has a few lessons hidden in its midst:

  • I’m grateful for a husband that gets along beautifully with our daughter’s boyfriends.  He doesn’t look down on the young men for enjoying video games – he just tries to beat them!  I’m also grateful that he not only keeps my vehicle going and checked over, our girls’ cars going and checked over… he even looks out for their boyfriend’s cars.  I think that’s too cool for school.  It makes the family dynamic so much sweeter and funner when everyone looks out for one another.  The fact that all of the kids love spending time with us and around us will make my life a lot happier for years and years to come.  Family is the most important thing in the world to me and when mine’s around, the sun shines brighter, the coffee’s warmer, chocolate tastes even better, and the birds sing a sweeter song.
  • I’m grateful for my oldest daughter (Emily) who genuinely loves spending time with her mom.  We go shopping, we eat out, we look at clothes, we talk for hours in the kitchen, we go to the library, and we most definitely do the whole Starbucks thing.  She’s an absolute joy to spend time with and I’m grateful that she considers “mom” cool enough to hang out with.  She’s a ridiculously bright girl who keeps me on my toes.
  • I’m grateful for my youngest daughter (Stephany) who is the most spirited and, beautifully strong willed person I’ve ever met (right up there with my husband/her father).  She will take nothing off of anyone, and has a way of putting them in their place that simply amuses me.  With this girl, I know someone may offend her once, but they won’t do it twice.  I love her spirit and I love her strength.  She is, at once, incredibly sweet-natured and very petite but also strong-minded and strong-willed.  Like her father, she doesn’t suffer fools well and that keeps them at arm’s length…. and out of harm’s way.
  • I’m grateful for my middle daughter (Brittany) who amazes me with her grit and determination.  If the girl wants something, she makes it happen – whether it’s a car, her education, a job… she’s a fighter in every sense of the word and sometimes it’s just fun to sit back and watch. If she came home today and said, “I want to go to Hawaii for two weeks next summer,” I’d buy her a cool new pair of sandals and tell her to bring me back a coffee mug.  I’d also sit back and enjoy watching her make it happen.
  • I’m grateful for my daughter’s boyfriends. Dill (Emily’s) never fails to make me laugh.  His personality is larger than life and to know him is to adore him. When this kid opens his mouth, you tend to stop what you’re doing because you know it’s going to be priceless.  I don’t know where he comes up with the stuff he comes up with, but the world’s a funner place because he does.  When he and my husband are watching a game together or playing Madden football, the rest of us just listen – they’re a couple of characters and laughter always follows them.  Rusty (Stephany’s) quite honestly lights up the room when he comes through. He’s full of life, fun, and (like me) never met an animal he didn’t love and want to name.  Left to our own devices, we’d surround ourselves with more animals than Noah ever saw.  Rusty and Steph are hilarious with gifts.  They (without fail) always give me gifts early.. whether it’s for Christmas, my birthday, Mother’s Day or just a day they wanted to buy me something… they’ll come through with Cheshire grins and I know I’m about to get a goody!  The concept of making others happy makes them happy.  Come on, how cool’s that?    Chris (Brittany’s) is one of the nicest people I’ve ever met.  You hear that saying thrown around a lot, but this kid lives up to each word. He keeps me armed with Starbuck’s cards, but he’s such a sweetheart I’d think the world of him even if he didn’t!  I’ve never heard him raise his voice to anyone and can’t even begin to imagine him saying anything bad to or about anyone or anything.   My mom and dad and my in-laws would have adored each of these boys and they would have been popping-at-the-seams proud of their granddaughters.
  • I’m grateful for my cats – each one makes me melt when they look at me!

I’m not boasting or bragging with these words, just stating facts.  The people and cats around me rock.  These are just a few of their wonderful traits that I’ve been thinking about lately – they have countless more.  They’re just beautiful people, inside and out.

The thing is, I’m willing to bet the people around you rock too.  If you haven’t thought about it in a long time, think about it now.  What traits do they have that mean the world to you?  Do they make you smile?  Do they make you laugh so hard you have to double over?  Do they seem to know just the right thing to say at just the right time?  Spend more time with positive thoughts about your loved ones and refuse to let the negative ones hang around.  Really, nothing good comes from them.  In fact, I”ll tell you what DOES come from negative thoughts:  Negative words and negative actions.

If you keep thinking negative thoughts about the people in your life, how long do you think it’ll be before you say something negative to them or about them.  Something that’ll only lead to tension, unhappiness, hurt feelings, and misery for everyone.

Negative begets negative.  Positive begets positive.  Mark it down.

If you have people in your life who smile when you come into the room, you have all the riches you will ever need.  It’s my hope that you will truly appreciate them, treasure  them, look out for them, love them, and smile at them so often they think you’re up to something.