I was waiting for this one, I mean for a genie to show up and grant whatever my heart desires. Oops, sorry, genies are not that generous, they grant a few wishes and not an unlimited amount. Why is that? Have you ever had a genie grant you a wish? Never? Me neither.
This is the time to take advantage and to ask for whatever I want right? Bummer! Nothing comes to mind. Rubbing Chachi’s head and thinking hard!
Ok, genie if you’re listening, I want that guy to show up.
What guy?
The one I’ve been dreaming of.
Hmm….keep rubbing Chachi’s head! He’s lost somewhere and I can’t help you there. Taking directions is not his thing and if you think you’re stubborn, wait till you meet him! That is if he finds his way to you but I’ll say keep on dreaming! Next wish please….
You’re no fun!
Fun is not part of my repertoire! I grant wishes not some impossible dream you’ve come up with. That guy doesn’t exist….next wish please.
You do have an attitude!
Try living in a lamp and let’s see how you feel!
Okay, let’s try this one. How about a happy life?
That’s another impossible dream where you’re concerned. Again my dear, you have no idea what “happy”means. Can’t do that either!
ENOUGH! Chachi, go get him!
Gladly mommy. I didn’t like the looks of him anyway. Come here guy…..I’m in the mood to play!
That was the end of the genie…..next time send me a genie that will play ball and not one that comes up with excuses!
You may ask what is a side-hustle. It is “any extra job or paid activity that you do in addition to your main full-time or part-time job to earn extra money.” I don’t hustle and neither do I side-hustle. I am a free person and do whatever I like and by the way, side-hustling sounds stressful and it probably is.
However, if you have your sights set on making it big or having enough money to do the things you want, it all depends on what kind of hustling you do. Some jobs pay more and some don’t. Dog walking doesn’t pay that much, cat sitting is not that bad since I pay quite a bit for someone to come over and cat sit my little darling. Half an hour is about 30 euros and that is not bad money considering the fact that all you have to do is to make sure the cat has clean water, food, and the litterbox is clean. Depending on the cat, it is an easy job. However, if the cat is hard to handle, then that money is not worth the effort.
I’m not sure about this but I think that digital hustles such as offering computer support, selling digital products, and or virtual assistance probably pay much more and if you’re a computer or tech whiz, it wouldn’t be too much effort and you get paid good money as well. There are people out there who wouldn’t mind paying to get some help with what needs to get done. I’m one of them!
Side-hustle is not my thing and that is my answer to this question. Moving on….
When I sat down to write The Excellent Adventures of Honey and Hubie, I wanted to capture the kind of day every child secretly hopes for: the day when the world opens up beyond the garden fence and you discover that courage and friendship live inside you. Honey, the little Italian greyhound, begins the story very much like many of us do–safe, loved, and yet quietly restless. She has a warm home, caring owners, and a familiar routine, but her heart is tugged by the idea that there might be “something more” just beyond the fence. Hubie, her bright green frog friend in a pirate hat, is that “something more” come to life: he is curiosity, mischief, and optimism all rolled into one.
As Honey follows Hubie out of the garden, the story becomes a journey through all the magic I remember from my own childhood walks in the woods: talking animals, music in the trees, and tiny folk who live in unexpected places. Along the way Honey meets the Buttercup Fairies, joins the Moppets’ grand celebration, learns to swim with the help of a graceful swan, and even helps rescue baby Carmelia from the fearsome Screeches. Each encounter is meant to feel like a small complete adventure, but they all circle back to one idea: we grow braver and kinder when we step outside our comfort zone for the sake of someone else.
At the heart of the book is the friendship between Honey and Hubie. They tease, they disagree, and they frighten each other at times, but when real danger appears, Honey finds herself willing to risk everything to protect her friend. That moment–when a quiet, uncertain little dog stands up to a threatening Screech–is the true center of the story. Hubie later tells her that real friendship is where you care so deeply for someone that you would give your life for theirs without thinking of your own. I wanted young readers to see that bravery doesn’t always roar; sometimes it looks like a trembling friend who refuses to run away.
The book is dedicated to my son, and that dedication is very real. I wrote this story hoping that he, and children everywhere, would never lose their sense of fantasy, because it is where compassion, courage, and creativity first learn to walk. Honey ends the day muddy, tired, and smelling like a skunk, but she is also changed: she has danced, swum, rescued, laughed, and learned what true friendship feels like. It is not a “perfect” ending, but a perfectly honest one–a reminder that the best days are often a little messy, a little risky, and filled with memories that last long after the bathwater runs clear.
I work out a lot and I’ve been told to scale it down before I hurt myself. It went in one ear and out the other. Sometimes, I think that I live to workout! However, life has showed me that sometimes that is not possible. After my OP, I was told NOT TO workout except for a few rounds around the garden! It was a huge scale down from working out 40 to 60 minutes a day and that walking around the garden was for the birds! However, I did comply and am now doing 10 to 12 rounds along with another 30 minutes of something else. So far, so good.
I started out slow and as they say, where there is a will, there is a way.
Here are five favorites that don’t put too much stress on a wound and if you’re just starting out, you’ll be done in no time and FEEL like you’ve achieved much in a short amount of time.
Walking
This one doesn’t require open spaces, you can do it barefoot and within the confines of your room without too much effort. However, even five minutes gets your heart going. Just put on your favorite music and start moving! That is all it takes. Worked wonders for me and before I knew it, I was doing 20 minutes without much effort and it was fun.
Strength Training
This is a necessity. Cardio and strength are both needed to balance out your workout. I have a small set of weights, nothing heavy, and I do several reps of shoulder workouts, triceps, biceps, and the back as well. All you need to do is just 5 to 10 reps and you are well on your way to being fit.
Stretches
This is important as well. Your muscles tend to get tight after a workout so don’t skip those stretches. Just five minutes of stretching in all directions keeps you limber and flexible and who doesn’t want that right?
Breathing
This one is not considered exercise in the true sense of the word but you can turn it into one by doing specific breathing methods. I like diaphragmatic or rather belly breathing. This one engages and strengthens your diaphragm and this is how you do it. Sit comfortably. Place one hand on your upper chest and the other on your belly. Inhale slowly for 4 counts, exhale gently for 4 to 6 counts. You’ll feel your belly working. Continue for 5 to 10 minutes. Believe me, it will feel like a workout and the added bonus is that it relieves stress as well.
Yoga
This is my go to stress buster and it keeps me looking and feeling young! There is a reason why yoga is called the fountain of youth. All you need is a mat and you are ready to go. Five or ten minutes and you will feel like a million bucks, well maybe not but headed in that direction!
Those are my five simple exercises to do at home. It doesn’t take much effort but it takes willpower to keep at it and to achieve results. Good luck!
When you fully trust someone without any doubt, you finally get one of two results:
A person for life or
A lesson for life.
Unknown
I learned this lesson the hard way. My relationship with my ex started out as all love stories do, one of trusting each other and wanting the best for each other as well. However, circumstances change and the once trustworthy and nice guy changed into someone I didn’t recognize. He looked the same but the “inside” had changed. Throwing trust out the window, he went on his merry way.
“SORRY” works when a mistake is made, but not when trust is broken, so in life, make mistakes but never break trust, because forgiving is easy, but forgetting and trusting again is sometimes impossible.” Unknown
It is exactly what happened when I went from the, “love of his life” to nothing because someone else walked in and he was ready to take off for greener pastures. It wasn’t that he was in love with her or even cared about her, he wanted that adrenaline rush that cheating brings. The relationship if you can call it that lasted for a few months and it was over and so was the marriage and the “TRUST” I had placed in him.
I learned that trust is not what it seems. Once I thought that believing in someone meant trusting the person wholeheartedly, now I know better. Love all you want but NOT with blinders on. Pay attention and observe what is going on. If it looks like a duck, and swims like a duck, than it is a DUCK or a cheater at play!
Which relationship has taught you the most about yourself?
One week to go and I’m climbing walls again. A friend told me that he would bring a ladder the next time he comes to visit instead of flowers since I love climbing walls so much!
What can I say? I’m a wall climber! Well, only when the unexpected is facing me and I don’t know what the outcome will be. Google is telling me, “You’ll be fine. You are well-prepared.” Yes, they’ve been a big help but still the worries are there. What if I get a surgeon who had a bad night the evening before and took to the bottle? What if I get an apprentice who doesn’t know what he/she is doing? What if……God these what ifs are driving me up the wall. There’s that wall again!
Thursday I have the pre-op. I will get a chance to ask all the questions I want. I have another problem, my throat is acting up. Not sure why but I just did a saltwater gargle, hope that helps. I think I’m just nervous and my body is saying, “I can’t take this STRESS anymore!”
My overnight bag is packed, just in case I have to stay in the hospital. I have a long list of stuff to get tomorrow. I never leave anything to chance so a friend is coming over and we will do the rounds of getting everything I need for when I come back home. I’ll invite her out to lunch as a big thank you.
Other than that, I’m trusting and believing that all will go well. I hope I don’t freak out and call the whole thing off! The doctor has already warned me that if I do that, it will be to my own detriment. “Get it done,” was what he said and the other two doctors agreed.
Looks like it is a go. I’ll just have to bite the bullet, gather up my strength and courage, believe that I’m in good hands and go through with this. What could go wrong? P L E N T Y! That is the problem.
Ok, taking a deep breath. I seem to be doing that a lot these days. Taking another one to calm myself down and another one for good measure.
Wow, this is hard but I can DO HARD THINGS. Didn’t I write a post about exactly that? Someone else told me to take my own medicine meaning the posts I put out with the help advice. Agreed, BUT I know that I’ll be climbing walls as it gets closer and there is nothing anyone can do about it. It’s just the way it is and I’m a worrywart so it comes with the territory.
Life often speaks in whispers at the beginning, it stomps its feet if you don’t listen and it screams to get your attention when you’re heading towards a head-on collision. Through it all, it has your back and is on your side if only you are willing to pay attention to what it has to say. And that is the hard part.
“Consider for a moment what you pay attention to all day long. What seems important to you, what do you take for granted and hardly attend to at all? Write it down. Do not judge your answers. Be honest and simple. As you keep track all week long, you’ll be amazed at what claims your attention what you give your precious life force to.” Brenda Shoshanna
The truth is as “humans” we march to our own drumbeat. We see what is not good for us, we know it spells trouble and we know if we keep going down that path, it will take us to exactly where we don’t want to go BUT we are hell-bent on doing it anyway. Are we wired for destruction, is that what we seek? At times, it seems that way but luckily for us, life comes in and shows us the way out but only if we pay attention.
“Pay attention to the signs. Stop making excuses for people. Stop defending their inconsiderate ways. Start taking care of you and your own needs.” Unknown
I do that all the time. Make excuses for inconsiderate people that is, BUT there comes a point in time when I say enough is enough and then I shut the door behind me but unfortunately, it is always a day late and a dollar short. I’ve learned my lessons the hard way but most of us do. Don’t ask me why but we just do. Do we get a thrill out of pain? I don’t know but not paying attention when life is screaming seems to be the problem.
When we don’t pay attention to love, it has a tendency to bring us down to our knees and then we ask what happened? We know exactly why. The answers have been staring us in the face even before the collision happened.
Pay Attention To Her:
When a woman is “tripping” she cares, when a woman is “mad” she believed in you and you let her down, when she is “asking questions” she is trying to gain clarity, when she is “quiet” and letting things slide she is giving up….And when she is not doing all of the above…just know you have lost a good woman.” Unknown
AND
“Sometimes you have to put aside what you feel for them, and PAY ATTENTION to what their actions are saying they feel for you.”
Finally, paying attention seems to be the key to a better life, better relationships and a better way through the intricate maze we call life. Pay attention to the signs before it is too late. Not easy to do but there is no other way it seems.
Listen to the wind, it talks.
Listen to the silence, it speaks.
Listen to your heart, it knows. Native American Proverb
