Quote of the Day
“Love is what we were born with. Fear is what we have learned here. The spiritual journey is the relinquishment – or unlearning – of fear and the acceptance of love back into our hearts.” - Marianne Williamson
Reflecting on 2012 Part 1
Happy Black Woman did a post the other day about reflecting on the previous year to help jumpstart the new year. I answered the first five questions...
What is the most valuable lesson you learned this year? Time waits for no one...my mom says this all the time, and this year proved it. I spent most of the year dealing with fear, depression, bitterness and jealousy. I could have spent more quality time with my husband and children and starting a business....not laying in bed.
What was the biggest milestone you reached in your relationships, health, finances, education and/or lifestyle? Towards the end of 2012, I read more than I had in a while- thanks to an awesome library down the street from us. We also moved into a much smaller place closer to my parents and civilization(lol). It was a hard decision but I feel much happier with the move. I decided to divert most of my mindless web surfing to reading more for pleasure and education. I also maintained a plant-based diet for the year (expect during my setback in December) Unfortunately, I didn't notice much improvement in my finances and personal relationships. I didn't save any money and pushed away most of the people interested in forming a friendship.
What professional accomplishments were you most proud of this year. I started my Youtube cooking channel. I was sooo nervous to do it. I set a goal of 1,000 subscribers by the end of 2012 and ended up with over 1,500 subbies. Crazy! :-) I also upgraded my camera, purchased a microphone and took more care in editing my videos in a format that's comfortable for me.
What was your favorite family/friends moment from 2012? I had such an awesome time recording vlogs with my family this year. In a few years it will be priceless to look back on this footage with my hubby and kids. We hiked in Kentucky and Eric and I experienced Boston together for the 1st time.
What was the best book/song/movie/restaurant/city/country, etc you discovered this year? I experienced breathtaking Denver during my birthday. I'm so thankful for those beautiful mountains and didn't even mind the chilly weather at night. I wish I took more pictures and video!
I watched tons of Scandal and loved several Youtube webiseries.
I also discovered Bernice McFadden, fell in love with her writing style, and devoured two of her books.
I listened to a lot of Pandora...Nora Jones, Corinne Bailey Rae, Lauryn Hill, ratchet songs, and 70s music on Youtube-it kept me sane through many moments of uncertainty.
Happy Black Woman also has a 30 day reset your life program. Check it out here.
I really need to do this lol
Part 2 of reflecting on 2012 coming next week
Make Me Smile....
*quiet early mornings
*discovering new (to me) music on Pandora
*when my baby sister visits
*free unlimited access to the library
*clean sheets and firm pillows
*Paperblanks hardcover journals
Music In My Ears: "All Gold Everything" Trinidad James
#dontjudgeme This ratchet song is so catchy lol
Don't listen in front of the kids!
*bobbing my head under headphones as I type*
"Wild" Book Review "It Was Ok"
I wanted to stop reading this book more than a few times over the last few weeks.
It's the story of Cheryl Strayed, who hiked over 1,100 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail without much planning or purpose (in the beginning). The writing was decent but the author drove me crazy with all the selfish & reckless behavior and entitlement. She whined a lot and most of the problems were self-inflicted. Go figure!
After seeing Wild
Overall, I was glad to finish the book, but I can't say I recommend it. I admire her courage and strength because there's no way I could've done it the same way myself, but she complained too much for my taste. I do like the way the story ended, and felt she redeemed herself in the end. It wasn't horrible per say, but it was very easy to put down and pick up other books. lol
My notes...
*I giggled when Stray referred to her younger brother as "irresponsible" and as "hard to reach" Umm, that's you, boo! lol Who goes on a 1,100 mile solo hike without testing their equipment and with no hiking experience? *shaking my head*
*The kindness of strangers is prevalent in this book and it warmed my heart over and over again. I had the feeling a lot of it was due to Stray's pretty face, and this was confirmed by other hikers on the trail later in the book. I didn't really care though, because I enjoyed reading the stories.
*Stray was very candid about her drug use, horny thoughts, and random sexcapades. She even took a huge roll of condoms on the trail with her. Who does that? lol I'm no prude, so I was happy to get the details *shaking my head* lol
*I teared up more than once when Stray talked about her mother. How much she loved her, how much she hated her for leaving (dying), and her journey to healing (somewhat) from her death.
2 of the best quotes...
When an attorney marveled at the idea of Stray hiking the trail and blamed his job for never doing it himself, Stray told him, "You could. You should. Believe me, if I can so this, anyone can."
While hitchhiking, a lady gave her opinion on hiking the trail solo
"...I think it's neat you do what you want. Not enough chicks do that, if you ask me-just tell society and their expectations to go fuck themselves. If more women did that, we'd be better off."