Lightening my life...

I simply have too much.  I'm not complaining, per se, but I'm feeling bogged down with all the "stuff" I own, and I want to simplify.

I am so very blessed.  We are far from wealthy but we really don't actively worry about where our next meal is coming from, or if we can afford to put gas in the car, or if I want to buy an extra magazine in the grocery store...  Since J's retirement is looming on the horizon, we've been talking a lot more about how we spend, what we buy, what we need, what we want, how we'll live, where we'll live...

But when I walk into my house, into my room, into my spare room, when I go into my closets, I just feel as though there's too much stuff in my house.  I simply have wasted too much of my money in the past buying things, things I don't need, things I just wanted, and now I feel the need to just unburden myself.

I've always donated clothes and miscellaneous household stuff to the Vietnam Veterans of America, or to the Lupus Foundation.  I've decided that I'm going to put together a selection of work clothes I don't wear too much and contact a woman's shelter to donate them:  there are so many women escaping abusive husbands, women who need a helping hand to move up in the world, and perhaps my work clothes will be just what they need to wear on that special interview. 

I have so many extra scrapping things; I've been donating them to my scrapping group.  But now I'm going to put together some small activity kits and bring them to the hospital and donate them to the pediatric ward.  Perhaps there are a few children who can use a distraction while they're in the hospital for treatment, or while they're recovering...

I was so enlightened by the sheer amount of food I had to throw away after Hurricane Sandy.  I just go to Shop Rite, and I buy what catches my eye.  I never worry about a food budget, or if I should or could buy those chips/cookies/sodas, etc.  I vowed to not buy too much anymore, not more than I can realistically use.  I promised not to overstock my refrigerator and freezer.  FAIL!  I'll have to take a picture of the inside of my fridge/freezer and add it to this post tonight...  We are cooking more, and eating out less, since J is pretty much homebound since his surgery, but I still have so much I really don't need to store.  So I'll be putting together some dried goods and bringing it to the church this weekend.  We have a food box in the vestibule where you can donate foodstuff, and members can help themselves to what's there.  There are quite a few elderly parishioners and some lower income families in the parish, so there are some more people I can help.

I haven't done any of this yet this week, but my heart already feels lighter!

Resolutions for the New Year

It would be silly to list all the things I plan to do that I will wind up not doing, so rather than THAT lengthy post, here's the short list of things I truly HOPE to be able to do this year:

1) Be a better wife, mother, sister, aunt, in-law, friend, employee
2) Stick to WW (or at least follow the plan more closely than I have been!)
3) Invite my faith into more of my life than just Sundays - not that it's not there - I just want it to be more front and center!
4) And for that silly, frivolous resolution TOTALLY related to #2 above, find an AWESOME dress for the wedding we're attending in Cabo in April!!!

My Intentions for 2011

Be a better wife, daughter, sister, friend, aunt.
Eat healthier.  Move more.  Lose weight.
Find a great dress for G & R's wedding in Cabo in April.
Read more.
Learn to use the settings on my camera - the ones other than "AUTO."
Make my incentive at work every quarter.
And tons more - get the picture?  I want to do better in every aspect of life.
Consciously.  With determination.
Successfully.

Wish me luck and willpower!

Whatever happened to polite?

I found this blog entry at Ordinary Courage. All I can say is "thank you" to Brene! Thank you for speaking so eloquently to this very real lack of respect that is permeating society today.

Is it really so hard to be polite? To say "thanks" or "you're welcome" or "excuse me"??? She was prompted to write about the rudeness of people on cell phones, how self-absorbed some of these people are, how they ignore everyone around them, how they ignore others and treat them as if they're not even there, how rude and ignorant they are to those who are working for them or doing something for them...

One of my pet peeves, and, yes, it's one of many and it's not going to save the world... one of my pet peeves is when I drive through a tollbooth and I hand that person my hard-earned money (we don't have an EZ-Pass), 9 times out of 10 they don't say thank you. Now I know they're getting paid to be there, and I know that I'm not giving them money out of the kindness of my heart (I sort of have to, if I want to go any further on the road!), but would it kill them to say "thanks" or "have a nice day" - especially when I say (and I don't know why I do this!) thanks to them (for taking my money????)? This will ALWAYS prompt me to make a nasty little comment like, "How RUDE!" as I drive off to finish my trip.

I hope I remember to always be polite and considerate and not take anyone for granted. And please, remind me I said this if you see me treat someone like the dirt on the bottom of my shoe!!!

Words to live by...

From Stuff Happens (and then you fix it!): 9 Reality Rules to Steer Your Life Back in the Right Direction, by John Alston and Lloyd Thaxton

1. Learn to say "thank you" when you wake up in the morning. After all, if you woke up you're still alive and in the game!
2. You must never forget that life is a gift, don't trash it.
3. Shout "Why me?" when good things happen.
4. Every day walk around with your head up and a smile on your face shouting "I am the greatest."
5. The most important gift you have is your mind. Use it and your life experiences to grow.
6. No problem is bigger than you are and you have all the resources to make your life work.
7. Find out what you're good at, develop it and give it back to the world. The world is waiting for your contribution.
8. Always be the most decent human being that you can be... and
9. DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME!

I found these 9 rules when I first started working here at my current job. I've had them hung up in my cubby for the past 4-1/2 years and since I was rearranging the stuff on my cubby walls today, I thought I'd share them with you!

And then I found something else... Procrastination is a bit of a problem for me. Even though I.HATE.BEING.LATE.FOR.ANYTHING, I have no problem putting little things off until I sometimes have to scramble to get them done by their deadlines. I'm going to scrap these on a page and create something to hang in my office... (I have no idea where I found these; I would credit the author if I did.)

OVERCOME PROCRASTINATION
1. Do it once.
2. Clear your mind.
3. Solve problems while they're still small.
4. Reduce interruptions.
5. Clean up backlogs.
6. Start operating toward the future instead of the past.
7. Stop worrying about it.
8. Now, feel better about yourself.

My new mantra, borrowed from Leo Babauta at ZenHabits. Found him on Ali Edwards' blog.

Stop waiting for happiness. Happiness is right here, right now.

Love this!!!

Please watch this, and thank them all.

http://www.gratitudecampaign.org/fullmovie.php

Today is DH's LAST DAY OF SCHOOL.
For the summer.
For July and August.
Until September.
There's a fine line between love and hate.

Now I know he's going to be REALLY busy with the addition to our house this summer, but he's still NOT WORKING. Not at a "real job." [I'm glad he doesn't read this blog!] Yes, I'm feeling sorry for myself, that I haven't won a bazillion dollars so I don't have to work at all, that I wasn't born independently wealthy and a part of the nouveau riche (believe it or not, I spelled that right without checking first!), that I have to answer to someone else to collect a paycheck (even though I really do like my boss!), etc., etc., etc.

Okay, done with that sob session.

I just found out that I got a 4.57% raise, and a $12000 bonus (before taxes)! YAY!

What will I be doing with my time this summer? DH will be staying at the lake several days a week. Now, I will miss him, yes. I will miss going to sleep with him and waking up with him. I will miss him deciding it's time to do the laundry "now" and doing it for me.

But I will enjoy my time. I will clean what I want to clean when I want to clean it. I will throw away what I want to throw away when I want to throw it away. (Are you seeing a pattern here?!) Me. Myself. I. For a change. Sounds like a plan!!!

I think I'm going to go to an all-day crop on July 14, for at least most of the day. I'll discuss with DH tonight...

I've been thinking... yea, I know, haven't much used this brain in a while, but it's about time...

New Year's Day is always the day I make resolutions. I make them. Notice I didn't say I keep them.

I think it's time I make a couple more.

1. I will try to be a better wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunt, cousin, friend.
2. I will try to live a life that honors God and country.
3. I will try to be a good example.
4. I will try to keep my house cleaner and more organized.
5. I will try to stay on my WW diet a bit more closely. [I can do this. I will do this. (Yes, you've heard this before!)]
6. I will try to use the brain God gave me for the good.
7. I will try to do a better job at work, spend less time on non-work and more time on work.
8. I will try to manage my time better, which will allow me to stick to some of my other resolutions (see numbers 1 through 7).

There are probably more things that I will try to do, but I think I'm off to a good start. "Everyone" says you should start with one, not try to overwhelm yourself by trying to reinvent yourself. But these are all things I can do without completely becoming another person, so I'm going to try.

I could use your support.