Am I political (part Two)

And then there is the climate and vaccines and all the crap in our foods! GMO’s ???What the hell??

 I seriously can’t keep up with EVERY flippin thing I am supposed to think and worry about. I donate money to help feed the homeless a few times a year and I volunteered my time for a local shelter this year. Whenever I do I lift my head and thank the heavens that I am not in that situation. In fact lately whenever I lay my head down in my OWN bed with a roof over me and my husband next to me, I give thanks.

I KNOW how lucky I am and I know how much worse things can be. That is what I think we all should know. That it can be you without food or without shelter. It REALLY REALLY can be.

If being political is caring and giving a shit about my country and this world, well, I guess I am. I wish we could all realize what we have been given. Look at the world! Isn’t it amazing? Why do we not think we need to care for it? It is our home, we all live here. I keep up the maintenance of my house, why not our Earth?

Humans have fought wars from the beginning of time. I honestly don’t think that will ever stop. I really do think that it is part of our nature. Oh I can hear some of you now...Oh no it’s not, blah blah blah. Really? Well I can’t remember a time when we haven’t had war somewhere on Earth, can you? There you go… .

I used to believe that we could end all wars if we would all just try. I do not believe that anymore. I seriously don’t think humans can be truly happy living peacefully. They need turmoil. They are territorial. Not so different from other animal species. We have just found more deadly ways to kill each other than we used to. Yes, there are some of us that are more peaceful than others. Usually there is a balance of good and bad. But what we are seeing now I fear is an unbalance in nature. A pretty severe one that threatens our very existence on this earth. The sad part is I am not sure we will be able to overcome the bad with the greedy attitude that has run rampant. From our politicians here to the drug lords in Mexico, greed and power are running wild.

Maybe it’s a crisis of faith? That is what some would say. I am in my 50’s. How long will I be blessed to live on this plane of existence? Who knows? I fear most for my child and her children. It’s increasingly scary out in the world. So many people just don’t value life. We NEED to teach our children compassion for others. They learn from example so we must give them some. I became more available to my community this year and that is a vow I will have to make for each year forward. Become charitable, become aware, and become involved in the area of which you live. If we can all do something, we really CAN make a difference. If we do these small things, we have all become political. Because being political is caring! It’s wanting EVERYONE to be safe and secure and happy.

Am I Political? (Part one)

One of my friends called me Ms. Politics this week. I laughed about it because if she thinks I’m political she should meet my brothers and my sister. I try to be politically aware. But I am far from as informed as I should be. I must confess that it all is confusing to me. Politics remind me of advertising, mostly bullshit to try to sell you something. I haven’t much faith in most all of the politicians that I listen to. And I am frankly shocked at how people with relatively low I’Q’s have even made it into the political arena. In a game where you need to be able to keep up and think fast or at least remember your notes we are being presented with people like Michelle Bachman and Rick Perry.

I got all excited last election and I got caught up in “the change” that was being offered us. I still feel that Obama tried to make some of the changes he talked about. But he turned out to be part of the same machine. I am convinced that it is the machine that is broken and needs fixing. Congress and the senate have shown all of us that the only thing they really know how to do is try to make each other look bad. Its’ all about chess moves to them. You (any president) try to get this done and we will block you so that you don’t look good. God forbid one party gets one over on the other. They have all forgotten that they work for “all” of us…oh wait it is I that have forgotten that they work for the highest bidders (banks, Big Pharma, ect ect) and us poor “people” don’t have the clout anymore to get their attention.

People have said to me “I just don’t “get” these occupy protesters. What is that all about? I don’t even know if they know why they are protesting.”  What? You don’t get it? I guess you must not know anyone that has lost their job to outsourcing, lost their home to the banks, have run out of unemployment after filling out like a gazillion job applications, graduated from college after working hard for a degree to not be able to find work and on and on. Been denied medical bennies because of a preexisting condition….Umm watched the banks get bailed out and still STICK it to us and drive all our property values into the toilet. People are just SICK and tired that’s what it’s all about. People don’t know what to do to be heard anymore. Who’s in charge of this Occupy movement people ask? Well let’s see, the people I guess. Anytime someone steps up to take charge they get shot, history has shown that. So how about we all just step up..Can they shoot us all? The police come out in full riot gear these days… when you come dressed for war well, damn, someone is going to get hurt I guess. Shameful.

I see so many people in my job. All different types of people. They come in for a small piece of relaxation. They talk, I listen. Four of my clients have lost loved ones to suicide this last year. All ages, from 28 to 58. One from a medication side effect (they are suing the pharmaceutical company, good luck with that, I wish them success) the other three from job loss, failed marriages, stress.  I share in my client’s joys and I share in their grief. The main thing that sticks out is they are all good people. They love their families they want to work and retire and feel safe and secure.  They are all stressing.

Neighborhood community organizations have popped up around Detroit in the last year. Detroit 300, It takes a village, ya’ll. They are trying to work with the police to make the city safer and get the community to work together to fight crime. This is a good thing. God knows Detroit has been raped to the point of extinction by its city government for the last 30 or so years. They have left that city barren. I know we will need to all have such organizations in all our neighborhoods soon if we are to survive.

15 Years Already!!

Its been 15 years since Craig and I married. I have to say that I would do it all over again! He is truly my better half. Sure no relationship is perfect and we have had our spats and rough patches. But honestly not very frequent or never so bad that I would truly give up .He has been there for some of my roughest times in my life and he has held me up. I have also been there for some of his roughest times and held him up as well.

This is my third marriage and I can truly say ,my last. If for some unforeseeable reason we were to decide that this marriage was over,I would not marry again. I can't see that ever happening but life has taught me that you can not predict the future and it is never set in stone.

All that I DO know is that I felt comfort and inner peace with this man by my side. And I still get that flippy feeling in my stomach when I see him after a long day. I can not imagine life without him. I still love him with all my heart! Happy 15th Craig.

Dad,oh how I miss you still...

My father passed away in 1995. Yet I still can remember the feelings like it was last week. Sure the sharpness of the pain fades away as the years go by,but the missing him never stops. My dad was my "person". The one person that I felt the closest to in the whole world. Even though I loved my mother with all my heart we did not have the same connection that I shared with my father. We simply "got"each other. One look and we knew how each other was feeling. I looked up to him as this larger than life person. I am sure that much of who I am and the way I behave is based on what he thought or what he would think of me and my actions.

He always gave me the benefit of the doubt and respected my opinion. I used to worship him when I was young,Then as I got older and I found out he was flawed and imperfect in many ways,I simply just loved him because of his un-failing love for me.

I am sorry he has missed out on so much. My daughter was only 12 when he passed away and she has memories of him, but limited. He missed her high school graduation ,both of her college graduations,and her wedding. He missed my third wedding (although he did meet my future third husband) and I wished he had been there to see that the third time has truly been the charm for me. He would simply be happy that I am happy.

He was larger than life. A truly fun fun man to spend time with. He liked to tell jokes and he had tons of friends. He was so generous, always giving people money or food or whatever they needed. He had a large personality. He loved to treat people to dinners. Food being his drug of choice and what would eventually ruin his health.Many of my memories revolve around going out to eat with him.
He confided in me. Liked to dump his worries and troubles on me because he knew I would listen and try not to be judgemental. I knew also in return he would always be there for me if I needed anything.

I think of him allot this week ,one, because it is coming up on the one year anniversary that my daughter lost her father and two because my sister n law just lost her father this week.
I take comfort in knowing that he is still somewhere sending his love to us and sharing in our lives still. He is in my heart all the time.
I miss his laughter and the look in his eyes when he would gaze at the ones he loved. I even miss his grumpiness and stubbornness. I miss the way he would bob his head and dance his shoulders when a song was on that struck his fancy.The way he could tell a joke,never forgetting the punch line. He was opinionated and at the same time fair. He stood up for unions and the workers rights. A advocate for justice. He was union steward for his local for many years.
He would hate what this country has become and for that I am glad maybe he is not here to see it. He loved to travel and he would abhor what we have to go through at the airport now. I am sure if he was still around he would be writing letters to congress and senate and the local papers. As he did so often.

Yes Dad ,you are on my mind these days. I miss you.

Where did summer go? Getting organized!!

Yep ,here we are again. At the tail end of summer.
September =warm days leading into crisp cool nights.
I LOVE THIS UPCOMING TIME OF YEAR!! Fall is BY FAR, as far as I am concerned, the best part of living in Michigan. September is usually very moderate.Temps are comfortable and mostly it's dry.

October? OK,so its getting cooler but not too cold,light sweater or jacket and the best part? The leaves!! OMG it's beautiful driving down Metro parkway in October. Colors blazing as the sun filters through the leaves.
 Two months of goodness..then....November.....

Well we won't talk about that for now. I am learning the day at a time thing for more relaxed living,Ha!

So I usually feel more energized this time of year. I will attack a household project. Many times its painting. This year its' been closet reorganizing. I'm pretty well done with the upstairs three closets. The next one to tackle will be the front closet in the entryway.
Then the dreaded basement under the stair storage area...This project will need husband help. We are trying very hard to weed out stuff we do not need and or use and GET RID OF IT. I also want to put stuff we are keeping in plastic totes. Out with cardboard boxes!! I have known way to many people with water issues and the thought of losing some precious memories to water damage makes me sick.

Now I'm not a messy person. Anyone that's been in my home can attest that we are very neat uncluttered people. But I have a hard time parting with clothes....Yes, its an issue. So I tried very hard to part with as much as possible while going through the upstairs closets. I made progress ,but I still have way more than I need. Oh well,A little at a time.

So much has happened

since I last wrote in here. Mothers day this year was magical. My daughter arrived with a very thoughtful gift,Yoga pants and a beautiful green cloth yoga mat holder. She also gave me a card with news inside that I was to be a grandmother! I was over the top with joy. We took a trip to White Chapel where we tending to my mothers grave site and gave her the news of the upcoming great grand child.
 It was a joyous day of the two of us being very happy and close and excited. I have to say one of the most memorable mothers days ever for me.

The weeks following were of excitement and a trip to the Doctor with my daughter and her husband for the first ultra sound. There it was a tiny heartbeat! Wow! We never had ultrasounds unless they felt something was wrong back when I was pregnant with my daughter.

I got excited with thoughts of shower planning.... Calling my daughter daily to see how she was feeling. Things seemed to be going textbook and I felt after her miscarriage in the fall ,this was going to be fine....
Week 8 into her pregnancy and cramping and bleeding began. Bed rest did not help and she was headed into another miscarriage. Sorrow. Sadness. Loss.

The distinct awareness how fragile life really is and how easily things can change in an instant.
Again we grieve. All the things people say ... "Its natures way...things just were "not right" "better now than later" None of it helps,and of course we already know all those things.

I am most worried about my daughters health. Number one always. Such an up and down hormonal roller coaster ride. The main thing is she has a great marriage and she has me and her step dad and all the other family that love them both. Things will be OK.
Someone told me that life is going exactly how it should be. I honestly can say I don't always "get IT" Looking back there are many things I would do different in my life,but then many other things would also be changed and I would not be where I am right now at this moment. So maybe they are right,life is going just as it should be.
Hang on ,some times its a bumpy ride.

Color Needed!!

Since spring has decided not to make an appearance till maybe summer I decided the best way to cheer me up was to add some color to my Beige on beige living room. I went with orange accents!. A couple of orange pillows.

A nice orange rug in front of the couch!

A couple of new lampshades.Like the one below,

And best of all I put up new art work above the couch and got rid of an old picture that I was never all that fond of but had sentimental value. Hard to let go of that stuff.
I am AMAZED how just these few things picked up the mood of the room! So much more warmth and cheerful.
Just the perk I needed while waiting for warmer weather.

Grief

After having a couple heart to hearts with my offspring lately it has come to my attention that sometimes the people closest to you are the most ill equipped to help you through the loss of a loved one. Sure they can be there to love you and well,just love you. But because of their own grief over the loss of that person ,they may not be the person to hold you up at that time.
Grief,its so individual and personal that no one person makes their way through it exactly the same as the next. BUT that does not mean that the struggle is not the same. Grief never ends it just takes on different colors as time goes by. It will be 16 years this August since the loss of my father. Yes ,the sharpness of grief has lessened with time. But the loss is still felt daily. I will try out a new restaurant and automatically think "Oh,Dad would love this place" Or I'll have a hard day and think "Wish I could talk to dad about this" Or my daughter graduates with her Masters and I think "oh Mom and Dad would be so proud to see her today"
It never ends,and it never will.
The other day I was especially down and started talking to my Dad. Yes you do talk to loved ones after they pass on.Well,I do. And I don't see anything wrong with it. No,I haven't heard any voices back. Once in awhile I "think" I feel an emotion from them. A feeling.... Wishful? Maybe,who knows. I choose to believe in it. I did have a "visit" from my father about two weeks after his passing,but that is a post for another day.

Yes grief,an emotion that can paralyze you and for some people alter their lives so completely that they can't function for the rest of their lives. For most of us ,we deal with it and get back to the business of living. We all know none of our loved ones want us hurting at their loss to the point that it stops us from living fully the rest of our life.So we try hard to carry the love we have for them in our hearts and remember the good times the best we can . And if there were bad times or unfinished business with the lost loved one we also have to move on . Regret,another emotion that walks hand and hand with grief.
Life,I haven't figured it out at all. You do get wiser with age in many ways. You find out that certain things are just not worth carrying to long on your shoulders. Shrug it off. But get any closer to figuring out what this life is all about? Well I haven't. Sure I know that loveing each other is the most important thing. Stop being selfish and extend yourself to help others that have it worse than you. But suffering and illness never seems to be dealt out fairly and that is the biggest thing about life that I doubt I will ever understand.
Yes grief ,the hardest part of life,without a doubt.

Is the Film Industry Good For Michigan??

I am personally rooting for it. I LOVE movies! Having owned a Video Store for 10 years when video renting was at its peak I have a personal interest in this industry. There is nothing better in my opinion than losing yourself in a great movie. It takes you to places that you can only conjure up in dreams. A good love story can touch you deeply,a good comedy can ease your troubled soul. I personally can not even imagine a life without this great art form.

I have read several reports pros and cons over the last couple weeks since the governor proposed his plans to cut the incentives. Most of the studies done have been favorable in stating that a movie being made here does indeed stimulate the economy and boost up the local areas business. Tourism also increases where movies are made. Mackinaw Island can testify at how much the filming of Somewhere In Time boosted people who visited the Grand Hotel since it was made. All in all most studies done have been in the positive vein. I do feel as with any type of breaks for business's this one included that there should be stipulations. Hiring stipulations,example,A certain percentage of the film crew should be filled by locals. Also local governments should NOT be allowed to get into joint building ventures with proposed film studios.
Since we are giving such huge financial breaks to the Industry we should not risk local government spending on joint ventures.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. I can not see how pulling the plug on this now is a service to Michigan.

Communication,easier said than done

Communication. That is the key to success in ALL relationships. But oh how hard it is to do at times. Miss communication is the number one problem in the breakdown of friendships, marriages and between parents and children. It can go bad before you know it.

How to stop this from happening? Well I am no expert by any means. But I have raised a successful daughter in an environment that could have been toxic. Not that it was perfect and there isn’t a residual effect but over all I feel the communication between my daughter and myself was key to our success.

We have a mutual respect for each other as women that makes our relationship one of the most successful in my life. I wanted my daughter to become a strong woman. I wanted her to have pride in herself and be able to stand securely on her own two feet. Not to have to depend on a man to support her financially only to join with a man for love and companionship. The key to that was education and belief in herself. Many obstacles fell in the way of her path toward achieving these goals. And they were HUGE obstacles. None I could have ever foreseen happening. I had to make sacrifices for her that I wasn’t prepared for and she had to make sacrifices that she should have never had to make. When her father got so gravely hurt and she became his caregiver it would have been easy for her to abandon her goals of education and try to get a small paying job to help while she caregived him.

I was adamant that NOT happen. You must continue your studies I said. What do you do when in five years your father is not here and you are left with nothing for yourself? I said to her. There was one thing her father and I did agree on and that was this girl had the smarts to achieve whatever she put her mind to. It was a brain that should not go to waste. She just had way too much to offer. I knew I had to help to make sure that she could go on and get her education. Easy?? A big fat NO ! It was hard work for her. She almost lost her mind many times throughout the course of her studies. And so did I. I was running the race with her. Helping with her father as much as I could. Working long hours to help with expenses. Trying to talk with my daughter and COMMUNICATE. Never stop talking. Take the time.

The same with your spouse. So easy to fall into the day to day. So easy to think you’re on the same page and then all of a sudden to find out your not. Make that time to just really listen to each other and really understand what that person you share your life with really is feeling. Even if at times you don’t think they will want to hear your feelings, you still must listen. Not in judgment but with understanding.

These are lessons I continue to learn. Easy to go off the path. But much easier when you get back on the right path. The riches that you can share when you communicate in all your important relationships are so abundant!

The Wedding of Doleila and William

Had the honor to attend the wedding of my brother in  law Bill to his fiance Doleila this past Saturday. It was the first time that I have ever attended a Muslim wedding in a Mosque(Masjid).Primarily I was attending to celebrate in Bills happiness at finding a women to share his life. But I also was curious as to the customs and was anxious to observe.
Being agnostic I am curious about other religions. Understand that being agnostic does not mean that I am not spiritual it means that I do not practice any" formal "religious practice.I choose to not belong to any specific congregation of any religion. If I were to define my belief system it would be that I feel there is only one "God" and that we are all his/her children.I do not follow the belief that if I do not accept Jesus as my savior that I will be condemned.
I practice Yoga,which feeds my soul and my body in a way that I find comforting and spiritual.I practice my beliefs everyday with how I treat others and conduct my life.

But back to my experiences at the above wedding,
The first thing to note is that all women entering a Mosque must wear something on their heads. A scarf is what usually is worn.
When we arrived ,the woman were directed to a separate entrance labeled for "sisters". The men entered the Mosque from another door.

Once inside we were told that we could walk on the green carpet with our shoes on,but the brown carpet was not to be walked on with shoes. Then the woman were directed to a back room for us to take off our shoes and coats. I immediately stepped slightly on the brown carpet without intending to and was hustled off much to my embarrassment! I hadn't even been in the mosque for 5 minutes and I had already broken a rule.
Sigh..and I had planned to be so good at this.. anyway all of us women sat around on the floor in back waiting to be brought in the other room for the (Nikaa) ceremony to begin.

I could not help but be curious as to what all of the men were up to. As I looked around I felt that was what other non Muslim women may have been thinking also.

After a short time we were told we could put our shoes back on. Off the carpet of course. If I had known there would have been all of this on and off of the shoes I would have worn my mules,I was thinking to myself....
We all filed into the room that was set up for the wedding and  (Waleema) reception. There was a curtain divided from where the women would sit and from where the men would sit.We could not see their side and they could not see us.
 All of us women sat down at various tables.
We could see the Musalla (prayer area) from our tables. Not sure that is the proper word for where the ceremony takes place or not..note to self..(look this up). The bride was sitting at the tables with the rest of the women. There were chairs lined up in the Musalla and all the men were seated in chairs in a row. I kept waiting for the future Bride to go over to the musalla and join her future husband. That did not happen.
There was prayers said,of which they translated  from Arabic to English for those of us that only spoke English. Then the groom got up and the Brides Father got up and went before the Imam (who we refer to as a Priest to those of us unfamiliar).
I kept watching the future Bride during all of this and saw her mouth moving along to the prayers and her head nodding in agreement throughout the ceremony.
The next part consisted of  William asking for Doleila's hand in marriage from the brides father. The priest talked about what it is to join in marriage. It sounded like they strongly encourage members of this religion to marry. The only excuse given not to marry would be the inability to afford to.
Soon it was over without the bride ever being along side her husband. There was a signing of the Marriage license(Nikaa).
 I found this all so different to the modern western way of marriage. Felt a bit like more of an agreement between the Father and the future husband. Very old school,I thought to myself.

There was another period of praying of which some of the women left and went back to the room we first were in and prayed. Women do not pray in the same room as the men. The bride explained that she could not take part in this as her gown would not allow her to bend down and bow as is needed. They kneel on the floor and bow down in a pose that I refer to as the Child's pose in yoga.My daughter told me they remove the shoes to get better grounded with the earth as they pray to god.

Next it was on  to the Waleema,the feast or meal. The men were served first. They filed around the banquet table. When they were done ,the woman were asked to go up.Great care was taken to allow the guests (us) of the Mosque to go up first. While we were eating we were able to speak with the new bride a bit ,who is very outgoing and down to earth. We found out that her girlfriends had straightened Doleila's hair (which is down to her waist) and put her make up on for the wedding.They commented that she is a bit of a tomboy and does not usually wear make up.Doleila wanted to have her hair straightened as a surprise to her new husband. We had no idea her hair was so long as it was covered under the head piece and scarves and could not be seen.The bride was beautiful in a blue gown.
Some of us women were getting all the more curious as to what was going on on the other side of the curtain with the men. Some started to text them (which we were told was OK to do). They texted back with a bit of info as to what they were up to. My mother n law commented that she was missing her husband which I laughed about. Maybe that's the point of all this separateness I wondered. Makes the heart grow fonder?hmmm they could be on to something I mused. My daughter also commented that these customs must encourage a close bond between women.I liked that they referred to all women as "Sisters" Very nice. She also commented that wearing long loose clothing also may make the women less self conscious of their bodies. I had to agree.
After we ate the main meal I noticed they put a table of fruit between the women's side of the room and the men's. Both men and women were allowed up at the same time to take from it. Then it was on to the cake ceremony and the exchange of the rings and jewelry.

The bride and groom gathered behind the cake and cut it together very similar to western weddings . They exchanged bites. then they exchanged rings and the groom also gave his new bride a bracelet.The bride had wanted an Opel surrounded by blue stones. It was beautiful and went with her blue gown wonderfully. There was much picture taking all around with everyone wanting pictures with the new couple.

Then It was on to cutting the cake and enjoying that. Also the men and women shared the cake at the same time. So mainly after the main meal it appears that men and women can eat together.
The Gathering dissipated soon after with the new Bride and Groom off to enjoy their first night together as man and wife.
The women exited through the "Sisters" door as when we had come in and the men through their door.
All in all I came away with joy for the two of them. Also with a renewed understanding of another culture and religious belief that I was previously unfamiliar with. I was very aware of some very basic things. We are not all that different.We just try to get to happiness in different manners. No matter how we express our love and wanting to share this life with another human being,we all want security and love.

What is in those Flu shots??

The following is an excerpt from a reader of a forum I follow. This was written 2 years ago but the facts she states still apply today.

Many of the flu vaccines contain a whopping 25 mcg of mercury. That is 81 times what is considered the "trace" amount of 0.3 mcg that is now in many other vaccines. Women are now advised by their doctors to get the flu shot while pregnant, and most get the shots with 25 mcg of mercury, because those brands are the most available. So even with the reduction of mercury in most childhood vaccines, being exposed as a fetus causes a lot of damage. Pregnant women being advised to get flu shots is a very new thing, and happened after the reduction of mercury in most other shots, cancelling out a lot of the benefit to public health that would have otherwise been seen.



Vaccines also contain a lot of aluminum and formaldehyde. Even a little bit of injected mercury makes the blood-brain barrier more permeable, allowing the neurotoxin aluminum to enter the brain.


As much as it is inadvisable to eat high-mercury fish and aluminum containing baking soda, there is a world of difference between getting injected with something and eating something.


The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) admits that 1 in 150 children now has autism. More recent statistics from Tricare, the military's health care system, shows that 1 in 67 children has autism. Twenty years ago, the number was 4 in 10,000. So there has been a huge, huge, increase. In that same 20 year time period, there also has been a huge increase in the number of vaccines that are routinely given in childhood.

I can not understand why this is still allowed . And why they are now pushing Pregnant women to get the flu shot. The fetus is extremely susceptible to the dangers of mercury and other poisons. I continue to urge all of you to please research everything you put into your body in the form of these recommended shots. Look up the ingredients of what they want to inject you with and then determine if you feel this is something you need to risk putting in your body.
I frankly feel that we are the only ones that can look out for ourselves any more. Most medical people are trained in an environment that is skewed by the pharmaceutical companies. They fund many of the medical schools. This is fact. I see nothing wrong in us taking our own health and our children's in our hands and being INFORMED consumers.
This is not to say I am against ALL vaccines. Many of them have done good things. But it has become big business and when anything becomes big business the protection of the health of the people becomes secondary. Hence all the recalls on drugs that happen all to frequently now. The costs to develop medicines and vaccines need to be paid for. The only way to recoup this money is to sell it to the public.
It has turned into an insidious business and we and our children are all paying for it dearly. I will not feed into this cycle of abuse and you should not either. Know what you need to do to protect your health and what you don't need to do. Unfortunately your doctor may not be the best way to find this out. Do your own research.
Just be informed please!

New Year already underway..

Here we are with a brand new year. I gave up making resolutions a few years back. I do however try to use each new year as a clean slate. Time to get back on track with all the healthy things I do for my body. Nothing like the holidays to screw that up for everyone. So it's back to Yoga and cutting out the sweets. Stepping up the exercise routine and just generally back to eating healthy.

I have decided that this year I will become more active in charity work and being more vocal about some of the issues I feel strongly about. The last nine years I helped take care of my ex husband who was disabled. Since his passing in September I find I now have time to devote to others that are also in need. He would like that. And I know he is looking on and urging me in that direction.

Over the holidays my work took on Solid Ground as the charity we would help with monetary donations,clothing,and other stuff for Christmas. We also took on the Christmas gifting needs of one of the families that is staying there right now. One of the directors from the shelter told us a bit of how that family came to being at the shelter and it felt good to know we could help make their Christmas brighter.

My boss ,Suzanne is helping to organize a Golf fundraising event for them this June and I hope to help as much as possible with whatever they may need .

I also plan to take a trip this year with my husband to celebrate our 15 years together. He stresses about how we will afford it. Money has grown tighter the last few years for everyone,us included. So the challenge for me will be to find an affordable vacation place that will still be special to us,yet will not put us in the hole.
I have a few ideas that I need to check into further. But I am confident that we can have a nice trip without it turning into a big drain on the wallet.

Also I am purging "stuff" from my life and reorganizing my living situation. This started last year and is continuing into this one. I find that I feel more together and have peace of mind if my "house" is in order. Plus I just don't need a bunch of stuff around.
The laundry room is done (keeping that one organized has been a constant challenge tho.Its such a catch all area...ugh.
The bedroom is repainted and new dressers are on the way. The next room is the spare room ,that has turned into a spare bedroom /spare computer/library room . I know ,crazy... and then finally my work room will be tackled.
The closets redo will be thrown in there at some point too...

So as you can see already I will be having a busy year. Have to cram in allot of living and working. No wonder the years fly by sooo fast .
Hope you all have some plans of your own. Good Luck with them and happy new year!