Sears Granting Wishes

I Challenge You...

On a day when life seems like it's just not what you would like it to be (translation: it sucks!), witness something like this and tell me there's absolutely no joy in your life.

Sure, my life doesn't always unfold how I had planned, it's not always easy, and I never seem to have enough money or time or whatever is required of me, but what I do have is an abundance of love and joy (which is the definition of a rich life anyway, isn't it?). On days when "life sucks" that's the fuel one needs to drive them forward.

I challenge you to find your fuel.

Starry Ceilings and Lost Treasures

Have you ever taken your life for granted and then the simplest little moment snaps you out of it and you realize how truly blessed you really are? Thank goodness for those little moments.

Last week I was working on a large jewelry order for a company Christmas party. I made 50 necklace and earring sets all with various colours of Swarovski crystals. Oh, how I love crystals. All the sparkle of diamonds (almost) but only a fraction of the cost. Anyway, I was sitting there toiling away and was sort of feeling a little irritated at all the work I still had to do. After completing that order I still had about 5 others to finish. I was teetering on the edge of feeling like I was somehow a failure - like I should be doing something more than just sitting here making trinkets. Then I looked up. What I saw took my breath away for a second and a wave of calm and awe washed over me.

Although the photo didn't capture half of what I was seeing, I'm afraid that it's lost even more of its lustre during upload. However, you can trust me when I tell you that those little sparkles you see on the ceiling, they were everywhere and they were all colours of the rainbow but in pastel form. It was beautiful.

In that moment I suddenly felt grateful. For everything. Grateful that I was alive and could see this lovely sight, grateful that I had hands that worked well enough to do what I do, grateful that people enjoy and believe in my work and don't think of them as merely "trinkets", but most of all I felt grateful for my husband. I'm no longer working full time outside of the house. That might not be permanent but for now it is what I need to do and he supports me 110% on that. Our children are all teenagers but in many ways, they need me more more now than they did when they were toddlers and I choose to be here for them. He agrees, and he works so hard to take care of us financially while I tend to our family. In the meantime, I'm also trying to make somewhat of a contribution by growing my jewelry business which of course also nurtures my creative spirit so it's a win-win situation for me. All in all, I'm a very lucky girl... and I know it, I just sometimes forget to remember that. ;)

*a free gift to anyone who can tell me in what movie "sometimes forget to remember" was said

How lucky am I to be able to take care of my children, our home, our dogs, and make pretty little things that make people happy and earn a bit of money from doing so? Sure, I won't be sitting next to Trump at the next fundraiser gala but you know what, I don't need to be in order to be happy. No offence Mr. Trump. Everything I already have is all I need to make me happy. How lucky am I to have figured that out?

Here is a sample of what I do. It's also the source of the epiphany-inducing light show.


This week, it happened again. I found a cassette tape that was made for me by one of my bestest buddies back in 1990. Wow, nineteen years goes by so quickly, doesn't it? A change in schools and many years separated us. Then a couple of years ago, through the wonders of modern technology, we reconnected via Facebook. We haven't actually "seen" each other but it's nice to have her back in my life in any measure.

When you're young and you lose a friend or life separates you, it's heartbreaking. This is also true when you're an adult, however maturity also allows you to appreciate that you had them in your life at all. I had so many great times with this girl. She was also a fellow 'merd' and so as you can imagine, I loved her! She was a great friend and always made me feel good. I'm thankful for her and for so many others, both current and past. Finding that tape made me remember that. :)

"We met as friends and you were so easy to get to know. Will we meet one another again? Oh my, I hope so..." - the Small Faces

Reflect. Be Thankful.

Because it is Fall, after all...

I love love love Autumn. I love the coloured leaves, the cool air, the hearty foods, and the ability to use our fireplace. The icing on this spicy cake is of course, Halloween.


As always, we're oh-so-busy and so we haven't been able to do much prep work yet but that's okay, we do our best work in a pinch anyway. I did manage to put up my Happy Halloween garland though, and pick up just a few pumpkins.



Finally, my new favourite (and my kids favourite as well) are pumpkin pie muffins. I've shared the recipe on the new "Nine Inches Too Short" blog. Enjoy!

Let me tell you a little something about... "The Magic"

Until the age of 32 I had never been anywhere that couldn't be reached via car in 8 hours or less. I had been on mini trips to Montreal, Quebec City (the old city, which is breathtaking), Toronto, and Niagara Falls. In high school I spent March Break in Stroudsberg, PA with my best friend visiting his family, and Mr. B and I visited friends outside of Scranton quite a few years ago. Although I realize that some people live, grow, and die quite happily without ever wandering beyond the county borders they were born inside, but for someone with itchy feet those little excursions were just never enough. It always somewhat irritated me that my grandmother had been to Disneyland more times than I can remember but I had never gone further than the Poconos.

One cold January, that all changed.

My first real vacation and first flight was to Oahu. Beautiful Hawaii, thirteen flight hours away from home. *pause for a moment of peaceful bliss* Okay, I'm back. I can't tell you how absolutely amazing that trip was. There are hardly words. There was so much more to experience than I had ever thought possible and I left the island wanting more. I left knowing there was so much more that I "needed" to see and do. I shall go back someday.

But... this post is not to lament about the beautiful scenery, people, music, food, and atmosphere, no, it is to teach you about magic. I was introduced to Paradise by my darling Mr. B's parents. They have been there so often that a parade is held the morning after their arrival. (Remember that, it will be important for later.) Anyway, despite my limited means and lack of stamps in my passport they somehow knew that I would "get it". The magic, that is. They told me about how travel can change a person if they're truly open to the whole experience of it. I'm not talking about the experience of laying in a beach chair sipping cocktails on a resort for a week, not that there's anything wrong with that - those types of vacations certainly have their benefits, what I'm referring to is totally emerging yourself in the culture, the atmosphere, and the adventure that can be found and how it changes how you look at life afterwards. I'm sorry Jiminey Cricket but it's NOT a small world after all. I've seen very little of it so far and I can honestly say that it's pretty darn huge!

You might be saying, "Well, that's nice but you still didn't explain what magic means." Well, it's that little something extra that happens, if you're open to it, that just seems to happen especially for you. For example, the morning after our arrival in Hawaii we were sitting having our breakfast in a glass front restaurant overlooking Waikiki Beach (could it be more perfect?) and out of what seemed to be no where, a parade started. Of course it wasn't to celebrate our arrival but we had researched the events happening while we would be there and we didn't recall reading that there would be a parade. It was such a pleasant surprise that we decided it was indeed just for us. That's one example.

I have a few more that I could tell you about but this most recent one is really worth the use of characters. To set the scene I must tell you that I have wanted to visit NYC since I was 13 years old... maybe younger. I should also tell you that although I had never been there, in my heart I simply knew that I would love Central Park. It's also important to understand that for many years I have loved jazz music more than any girl of my limited years probably should.

So... all that being said... here's what I found in Central Park on my very first day in New York City:

This, my friends, is "the magic".

I have been changed for good

There's this little song in the musical Wicked! that goes something like this:

"Who can say if I have been changed for the better? But because I knew you, I have been changed for good."

Think about that for a minute. I'm sure everyone has had special people in their lives who have changed them and couldn't imagine living without them. But this particular line made me think about those others as well. The ones that we all encounter and wish we hadn't. The ones we think our lives would have been better off without. Maybe that's true or maybe it isn't because although it might have been a very difficult experience, we were changed by it and learned from it. Maybe I just think too much.

The point is that there have been many people, both positive and negative that have passed through my life or are in it still that have changed me. There have also been many experiences that have also changed me in ways that I couldn't even imagine possible. Travel is one of those experiences. I have something from my trip to NYC that I'd like to share. Soon. In the meantime, think about what has changed you.

Maple Syrup Day

Look at me go! I haven't posted for months and now all of a sudden I'm stacking up two in the same week. Don't get used to it. Just two more sleeps and I'll be in the Big Apple for a week so there will be, "No more posts for you! Come back one week!" Ahhh... how I wish I could actually "do" funny.

Anyway, today will be another random thought entry. Some days I need inspiration to beat me over the head with an idea and other days, they just flow like golden maple syrup. Today is a maple syrup day.

Toddlers With Chainsaws
Now that the kids are back to school the doggies have had the house to themselves during the day. The first few days weren't too bad. Unfortunately, Mr. B left his Rush hat out somewhere before he left for 'la Belle Province' and it was mistakenly identified as a chew toy. The next day I think perhaps their allergies were acting up because they used ALL of the Kleenex but were not polite enough to put them in the garbage when they were done. I see that we'll have to have a refresher course on proper etiquette. The day after that we were very careful to remember that dogs have the capacity of a toddler. A toddler with a chainsaw. That day was incident free. Yes! We're on to something here. (insert big sigh here) But alas, all good things do come to an end eventually. Although we didn't get a picture of the actual presentation they chose for their masterpiece, I did manage to grab a shot or two of the gathered disaster. This is what they did:

Quality Over Quantity

Has something bad ever happened to you that you were actually thankful for afterwards? One of the books in there was a special little book given to me by a dear friend. A dear friend who loves me as I am and who probably knows me better than I know myself sometimes. She shares my passion for photography, particularly black and white, and she shares my view of quality over quantity when it comes to friends. We're the kind of girlies that stand the test of time. All that being said, it was quite fitting that she gave me this book. She gave it to me many years ago for no other reason than she knew I would like it. Those are the best kind of presents, aren't they? It's been proudly displayed on my bookshelf since she gave it to me but I shamefully admit that I've only looked at it two or three times.

I was very sad to see that my goggies had chosen that particular book to chew but I'm not angry that it happened. When I found it, I sat down and looked through every page to assess the damage and it occurred to me that they had actually chosen the perfect book to destroy.

You see, I needed a reminder of sorts. I didn't need a reminder of how much I love Shannon or that I should spend more time with her or any of the typical things that would go through one's head at such a time. We have extremely busy lives but we use every resource we have to communicate and get together when we can, stress free. We both appreciate every minute no matter how frequent or far apart they are. In fact, the NYC trip is a sort of celebration of the friendship that she, her beau, Mr. B, and I all share. So, I didn't need a reminder of what a good friend she is, I'm well aware of and thankful for that. I did however need a reminder of just how rare our friendship is and how amazing we are together, as well as individually. I needed a reminder to remember those things in me which she loves. I needed a reminder to stop using my camera just to take pictures and start capturing moments and telling stories again. ;)

My Life in Coffee Cups

I won't go into my rant about how difficult it is to be a Gemini again, you've heard that enough but it's necessary to touch on it to explain the dilemma I faced this morning.

A huge part of me loves order, balance, and coordination. Another huge part of me hates performing the work necessary to obtain order, balance, and coordination as is evident by the photo of my drink ware cupboard.

If you look closely you can see that I have a rather large collection of just plain white cups and just clear tumblers... somewhere in behind the beer glasses of the world and the mish-mash of coffee cups.

When I open this cupboard I usually feel this overwhelming sense to straighten it and hide the monstrosities that do not match but then my desire to actually use one of them dominates and I leave it for another day. A day that comes only two or three times a year when the control freak in me can no longer take the disorder.

I saw things differently this morning. The need to match, tidy, and organize lasted only a second and then I had trouble deciding from which story of my life to drink my morning courage. I placed them all on the bar top so that I could examine each one individually, remember where each of them came from and why my love for each is stronger than my compulsion and make a well deserved choice.

It was not an easy choice.

I had my RadarSat-2 cup which is important to me because Mr. B and I were part of the team that built that satellite and other cool stuff including the OBSS that allowed NASA to "Return to Flight" and reignite the shuttle program. Although we were just small drops in the bucket of effort to make both of those missions happen, we contributed and are therefore entitled to a little piece of the pride. We met astronauts and had lunch with NASA execs. That's a huge deal to two little Canadian kids who started their life together far too young and who never thought they'd amount to very much. To you it might look like just a cup, to us it's a symbol of how far we've come and how far we can still go. (and how yummy the spacecraft factory breakfasts were)

Then there was my Gemini cup from the Disney Store with Stitch on it. I love Hawaii, I am a Gemini, and I love Lilo and Stitch (Mr. B's folks call me Lilo, I love them) so this mug represents a whole lot of happy to me. However, I just whitened my teeth and so I really shouldn't drink quite that much coffee today, so I decided to pass.

That left me with my hibiscus mug that I bought at the ABC store in Hawaii, my Wicked! cup that I bought when I went to the musical last year, a beautiful Starbucks cup and saucer given to me for my b'day by my pal Marianne (because we always meet there), and my Wicked Witch of the West cup that Mr. B bought for me because it says, "I'm a wicked witch. What's your excuse?" and well, it suits me. All very important to me for various important reasons. I usually always use the wicked witch cup so I gave it the day off.

It was a tough decision but I chose the Wicked! cup because in just four more sleeps I'll be sitting in 4th row at the Gershwin Theatre in New York City with my dear friend and our darlings watching my most favourite musical. I'll try to remember to capture the moment but I have to admit that I'll be more concerned with just living it.