Tag Archives: Life

Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?

Posted on by
8

If you read the headline in the voice of the rock band Chicago, we are kindred spirits. Their 1969 song “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?” has been on my mind lately. 

While my work life revolves heavily around the clock, I want my personal life to be less centered on the time and more on how I feel. Feeling like we answer to the clock 24/7 is exhausting.

So I was delighted yesterday when I realized I had no idea the time, nor did I care. 

This feels like a sign of success to me. To be unaware, uninterested and blatantly disengaged from the clock means that we are so busy living life that we forget to note time passing as we do it. 

When do you check the time most? When you are doing something you don’t enjoy, right? You check the clock at work, from the treadmill, during a boring meeting. In these situations you are likely monitoring the passing time and willing it to move more quickly. This isn’t the case when you’re having fun or satisfied with your current circumstances. 

Yesterday was a standard Sunday at home beginning with CBS Sunday Morning followed by light chores that will make my life easier this week. I have written about this kind of day as a self care day and you can find that story here.

This was hardly a fun day but I was content.

Isn’t that what it’s all about? Being so content with our lives that we can’t imagine doing anything other than what’s that’s in front of us right now is a true gift.

The Ruler Doesn’t Know

Posted on by
4

This quote presented itself one day, just when I needed it most. It intrigued me and has provided food for thought. Perhaps it will do the same for you.

You don’t need my editorial comments but I do hope you’ll think about how you have been measuring your own life.

“You will realize you are enough when you recognize there is no measuring stick. It’s all made up. The ruler itself doesn’t even know the rules.”

Pierre Alex Jeanty, Haitian-American author

Solving The Unsolvable With Help From The Cat

Posted on by
10

Christmas brought me a new jigsaw puzzle. This 500 piece puzzle features some cute woodland creatures gathered around a fire in a forest clearing. 

It’s larger in size than a typical puzzle and the pieces are cut in unusual ways. They aren’t uniform and some are rather large while others are kind of small. I knew it would be hard because so much of the image is dark night sky and snowy trees. 

I had no idea it would be the hardest puzzle I have ever worked on. 

It has been set up on the dining room table for couple of weeks. If I have a few minutes, I stop and fiddle with it a bit. Some of the pieces are cut odd oddly enough you can’t tell if they’re border pieces or if they are just cut straight. Edges are usually my first step and I build inward. For this one, I did what I could with the edges before focusing on the animals. 

That has worked well but I’m now up to sky and trees and the pieces all look alike. I was lamenting this fact Sunday night as I sifted and dug through hundreds of pieces that are devoid of any defining characteristics. 

Scout isn’t permitted on the dining room table so he was blissfully unaware there was a project underway until he noticed this weekend. Now he can’t unsee it and refuses to leave it alone. 

He hopped up on a chair and began carefully and oh so gently moving pieces around. He wasn’t sure what was happening but finding 500 small cardboard pieces at his disposal was awfully handy for an idle little boy who only has dozens of store bought cat toys to amuse him.

He normally is forced to play with old bottle caps and wadded up papers he fishes out of a trash can.  This was a delightful change of plans, he seemed to say, as he gently pushed three sky pieces to the floor below. 

Isn’t this a great analagy for life? 

I mean, you’re walking around life with a box full of small problems that you’re doing your best to fix and puzzles you’re trying to solve. Then someone else comes along and decides to offer unsolicited advice or blatantly meddle and you’re back to square one in the search for answers.  

Sigh. 

Such is life. 

While I do my best to keep the cat away from the puzzle, I can’t resist asking a question. Do you have tips for assembling a puzzle like this? I would appreciate help before I descend into madness! .

Appreciate This Day

Posted on by
8

It’s Monday. For many of us, those two words mean just one thing: there are five days to survive to get to the weekend. 

It’s like we’re wishing our lives away.

I’m certainly guilty of this. The workweek can be busy and tiring. I like my job but have a rich and fulfilling life outside of work and look forward to living it. 

This week I’m committed to focusing on appreciating each day – even the long and frustrating ones. After all, we aren’t given many days in this lifetime and it’s best to not squander them wishing for another.

So, friends, I wish you the very best this day and the rest to come. Happy Monday!

The Year That Was

Posted on by
Reply

As I write this, it’s just after midnight on New Year’s Eve. In less than 24 hours, we will greet a new year and with it the proverbial blank slate I have been craving for some time. Today’s date is December 31, 2023 or 123123.  I imagine this date is popular with gamblers, astrologers and couples looking for a unique wedding date. 

For me it marks the end of a year marked by mixed feelings. There were fewer adventures this year and most didn’t go as planned. There were disappointments in the realms of my health and career as well. I haven’t felt well for so long I can hardly remember what it’s like to actually feel good. Now I have bursitis in one knee that’s slowing me down. In other words, lots of small annoyances have plagued life this year. 

But it wasn’t all bad.

I did get to travel some. I am employed and I continue to fight for good health. So I’m luckier than many and I haven’t given up yet.  My parents have experienced some issues as well but they haven’t given up either so that’s good too. 

This year brought a truly wonderful human into my life and I hope the coming years will allow him to stay. These last five months found me out on the trail a lot more than had been possible before. That time in nature and all those miles hiked gave me exercise, peace, friendship and understanding of the world around me. 

These hikes gave me time to breathe and to enjoy the beauty of southern Ohio. 

I have plans for myself in 2024. Not resolutions, mind you. I have actual plans and challenges that are designed to keep me on track and I am excited for what the winter holds. Nonetheless, I’m done with this year.

It’s the year that was and that’s the best I can say about it.

I intend to observe the last day of 2023 by putting clean sheets on the bed, spending some time in nature and going to sleep early. The old year can see itself out and I’ll greet the new one first thing Monday morning. As for New Year’s Day, I plan to spend it lounging with a good book. It will be my last day of vacation before heading back to a busy season at work and I intend to enjoy it doing something important: nothing. 

How was your year? Are you excited to celebrate or happy to go to sleep early tonight?

Happy Christmas!

Posted on by
12

It’s Christmas Day and that means a lot of things to different people. Hopefully you still view the holiday as a magical time when miracles are possible and when Santa lives within us all. I trust that all my readers were good this year and that Santa left more than a lump of coal in your stockings. If not, better luck next time!

If this is a happy day for you, I wish you the Merriest of Merry Christmases. 

If this is a not-so-happy day for you, I wish you inner peace. Go for a hike, hit the Chinese Buffet (yes, they’re probably open) and reminisce about better days. Build new traditions. Take care of yourself in the ways that matter to you. 

Most of all, remember that you aren’t as alone as it may feel and that it’s ok to not be ok.

Happy, sad or indifferent, please accept my warmest holiday greetings. Scout and I wish you the very best.

There’s a meme circulating that basically says that any sentiment other than Merry Christmas is meaningless this time of year. Personally, I’m just glad for someone to say something nice to me and am more than happy to meet you where you are. So, please read below and find the greeting you like best and feel free to comment with something that’s not here if you wish. I’m always excited to learn.

Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Happy Kwanzaa. Yuletide Greetings. Happy Holidays. Joyeux Noel. Feliz Navidad. Seasons Greetings. Blessed Christmas. Warm Wishes. Be Merry.

However you say it, I hope you find peace in what you do with this day.