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Random Message from the Universe

I received a surprise package today. A special deck of cards that each contain a different writing prompt. Questions like, “What decision should you have made yesterday?” and “How do you define success…?”

I have no idea who sent it. I’m not sure I want to know, though. Sometimes, puzzling over stuff like that is half the fun.

Then again, how can I thank the mystery sender for this really cool gift?

I started to look for a nice EOA (emoji of appreciation), then decided a Bitmoji would be better. That’s when I found this…

I have no idea what it means, but how can I not share a ToadMama as Avocado Bitmoji? Anyone have any clue what THAT is supposed to express? Maybe it’s a spin on “cool as a cucumber,” but with a bit of a mean twist? “Awkward as an avocado” perhaps. Or  maybe it’s “absentminded as an avocado.” Because, you know, everyone knows how avocados affect a person’s memory. Especially if they come in contact with that big-ass seed.

Seriously, though, I do want to share an actual, appropriate ToadMama Bitmoji.

AND I sincerely wanted to say Thank You. For real, as I suspect someone who reads or has read this blog may have sent the deck. It was a kind thing to do, I can always use some inspiration, plus, it’s just a cool idea. So, thanks.

Of course, the best way to express my appreciation would be to actually use the deck.

Now, there’s an idea!

On another note… I took my computer on vacation. An actual laptop, so I could maybe write some blog posts and/or share some pics.

But, during the day, I just couldn’t bring myself to look at a computer, tablet, or even phone screen for any length of time. Why sit indoors, looking at my screen, when I could look at and listen to stuff like this?

Hawaii was awesome. We didn’t do much of anything, which is a big part of what made it so awesome.

I stared at the water A LOT. It was pretty.

Like, seriously pretty. And it was off season. So, other than places like Pearl Harbor and the world famous Waikiki Beach, there weren’t many people, so it was quiet. If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen some of my pics.

I took around 2,000 pictures. I’m guessing at least half will be deleted. Have YOU ever tried to capture that perfect crashing-wave shot? Or fidgety yellow bird? Or ghost crab?

I DID manage to capture at least one good crab pic.

I might share some more here one day. But it won’t be anytime soon. We’ve got some special stuff going on this week. More on that later.

Thanks again for the cards, friend! I’ll try hard to put them to good use.

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Stable Expansion

Our stable of vehicles has expanded temporarily. Hubby got a new bike!

Hubby’s New Ride

It’s a 2015 Honda CTX-700 DCT with ABS. That’s quite a mouthful, isn’t it?

He’s had his eyes on that model for a while now, and was just waiting for the right one to become available locally. It only has a little less than 1,700 miles on it. The previous owner used it for commuting. He’s moving and didn’t want to take the bike along, so now it’s ours.

Now we need to re-home the big-ass Victory that’s carried Hubby all over and around the US as well as into and through southern Canada.

Mike says he is through with long distance motorcycling. By that I mean, things like the Four Corners Tour, last year’s ride to Hyder, Alaska, and riding to Utah just because he’d missed “the middle” of the US when he did the Four Corners. There’ ll probably be more long weekend rides for us in the near future.

But first… we’ve got a trip to Hawaii coming up. We were supposed to go last year to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary, but the timing didn’t work out.   If all goes well, we’ll be on a Hawaiian beach in a little over two weeks.

That’s the only state where Hubby has not ridden a motorcycle. Yet. So that will be one of our must-do activities on one of the islands.

Other than getting to and from the islands plus making lodging and car reservations, we have no set plan for our time on the islands. We will do some touristy stuff, but we will will also be relaxing, too.

I’m sure I will have lots of photos to share AND lots of down-time in which to share them.

Chillaxin’
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The Change

It is March. January and February 2019 both flew right past me. On one hand, hard to believe. On the other hand, “life” has been so chock-full of Stuff, it’s easy to see how two entire months seem to have escaped me.

March

That photo was actually taken in February during one of my recent stays at Dad’s house. He is 80, and he’s been having some health issues. I’ve been trying to help get him back on track, but it’s hard. He lives a three-hour drive away from us. I do what I can. My brother is trying to help, too, but he lives even further away. Eventually, we will have to come up with a long-term solution that fits everyone’s needs.

Work has been crazy-busy for the past month, too. I managed to keep things on track there somehow, even while working extra-remotely from Dad’s house, his hospital rooms, waiting areas, etc. Having empathetic colleagues and bosses helps tremendously. But it’s all been rather exhausting.

I’m determined not to work a ton of extra hours, as I’ve had to do in the past, but that means I cram a ton of stuff into my “normal” day. At day’s end, every day, I am mentally wiped out.

It’s been nuts. But it could always be worse. I am not complaining, really. I’m alive, relatively healthy, happy. I have a wonderful Hubby, great kids, grand kids, a broad range of friends, all of whom are also doing relatively well. And there’s fun ahead.

Right now, it’s cold. Winter is dragging on. I know there is light at the end of the tunnel, though, so I’ll keep plowing forward. That’s all any of us can do.

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Random Happiness Welcome

I believe in the power of positive thinking. Really. As in optimistic thinking. Happy thoughts, good vibes, smiles, and stuff like that create positive energy. And positive energy always beats negativity. When there are a lot of negative things surrounding me, be they thoughts of my own, criticism from others, trash on the ground, a friend’s complaint about her husband, an ugly image, a horn blaring, or even something as simple as a frustrated tone of voice, I can feel the energy shift.

Because there is so much negativity in the world in general, I find that staying positive is getting harder and harder. It’s either that, or it’s always been this way and I am just plain TIRED of working so hard to stay happy.

I think that’s why inconsequential stuff makes me smile. Like this yoga dog.

Peace, friend.

My saying I work hard to stay happy sorta sounds like I’m alluding to depression. I am not. I’m talking about everyday life. Negativity, in any form, coming from you, directed at you, or even just going on around you offsets positive energy.  It’s draining. If one isn’t careful, those negative thoughts and emotions can really get under one’s skin.

In years past, I’d listen to people’s complaints. I’d try to empathize a bit, commiserate, somehow make them feel better, you know, be nice. Lately, I’m discovering that I have less and less patience for that sort of thing. I can’t just “be nice” all of the time anymore. I don’t have patience for Debbie Downer or Wallowing Wendy. Life is too short. And it really does feel like it’s getting shorter.

A four month hiatus and I come back with this wackadoodie post?! LOL.

if I’m being honest, the last four months have been mildly tumultuous in many ways. But things could always be worse. I’m doing my best to stay positive. Life is an adventure. I’ve always said the more twists and turns, hills and valleys, the better the ride. The road can be unpredictable, so I arm myself with a bunch of kind words and smiles, plow through the day doing my piece to keep Negative Nelly in her place, far away from me.

 

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The Good Kind of Surprise

I have been neglecting you all again. Sorry. Finally, there was some excitement today that I think some of you will find interesting.

Mike and I had a lovely lunch with some friends today.

They were in the neighborhood to visit family and decided to drop by.

For those of you who don’t know those folks, it’s Richard and Bridget Machida from Fairbanks, AK. I know Richard through his blog, Richard’s Page. We all met in person a few years back, for lunch in a different place. So it was nice seeing them both again and doing a bit of catching up.

Our favorite Mexican restaurant caught fire a while back and we are still waiting to see if it will re-open. So, no fancy food tales, but we did have a lovely, lunch together.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t until after Mike left us that I thought about getting a picture. But at least we got one of the three of us. In front of our local LOVE no less.

I even took them to the famous local  caboose photo spot. Now if I can manage to get a second photo uploaded, I will have successfully written this entire post on my phone. (I had to resize the image with an app on my tablet in order for it to post.)

All in all, it was a very nice visit. Maybe we will see them in Alaska next time.

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How Photos Hurt Nature

I stumbled across an article this morning that talks about how geotagged social media photos can change the natural landscape. Sounds a bit far-fetched, right? Check out this video.

Apparently there are now movements amongst nature photographers to stop sharing specific location information when sharing images captured in remote, hard-to-find areas.

On one hand, that sounds a bit extreme. On the other hand, it makes perfect sense. If you’ve ever visited one of the iconic national parks during prime tourist season you’ll probably agree. People can be rather stupid and inconsiderate, especially when traveling in large groups, which is quite common at places like Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, and Zion National Parks.

So, if you find a secret spot and capture a lovely image or images, do share, just don’t share the exact location. Otherwise, next time you go back, there could be a huge parking lot, fences, people, trash, etc.