Love this, Sue. I'm endlessly entertained by the fact that much of the human race expects things to stay the same. Like the seasons do. Like children do. Like anything does, right? LOL. NOTHING STAYS AS-IS! And thank gawd for that. We would be so bored. And how could we appreciate anything if we didn't lose something/some of the time? And saying that is not to minimize grief or loss or pain. But we will not escape this life without that experience. Might as well be present to it, whether that loss is ours or another's. If there was a recipe for life, someone would've made billions off it, and we'd all be living easier. Instead, we get to choose being closer or farther away from fine. And the rub, there, is it's our choice. Lead the way, Sue. xo
Boom! and YES. Could we go so far as saying the losing defines us way more than the pleasant things? I'm willing to stick my neck out there as guinea pig #1 and say that. (although do guinea pigs even really have necks? I digress.) I don't want to escape life by living small. I know the price of living large. I'll keep paying it even when it hurts. Thanks, kindred spirit! And subsconcsiously all your earworms in Notes must have inspired this song-related post, so I should have credited you. I'm still building castles with Freya! (I think that's her name?!) xoxo
I love it, Sue! That's the power and beauty of earworms! They spread and joyfully infect! And Freya is a goddess. I love that song. Today's worm was pushing it...but I felt like we needed some comedy on a Monday after a long weekend. And YES to living large and taking chances, and sometimes being dumb about it (raises hand), and EXPERIENCING all of it -- the good, the grand, the hard and awful, and the beige of it. xo
Belted out this song by myself in the car for months when I first had the album/cassette/CD? Anyway-it is a great one for accompanying confusing times and you wrote a wonderful piece describing that. Thanks!
Looking forward to listening to this interview when it’s live! FWIW, I was nodding along with your paragraph about nuance (and also smiling when you mentioned Great Falls...I used to live in DC and Falls Church and remember my walks there fondly.)
The photo of your purchased and unfinished books, though? SO relatable. 🫠
Thank you for helping me feel less ashamed about my book buying habit Maddie! I keep thinking there are worse vices but that's going to be tough to explain when an episode of Hoarders happens at my house. And yay to think we might have been crossing literally paths in Great Falls some time in the past before you became the 'other' Washington girl. xo
Great read this weekend, and relation to "Closer to Fine" is spot-on! I find so much meaningful nuggets for life in music. Sometimes my kids would ask me why I like listening to melancholy songs or music and I tell them the lyrics or music are cathartic in dealing with the memory they tap into. And then the books, oh lord, I get it!! ....although I don't typically go to books in print form much anymore, the front page of my eReader looks like your couch, which is why I can relate to doing the same thing but with sample downloads.... There's just not enough shelf space in my house!! 😂🤣
Between the non-fiction; self-help and bios and the historical fiction/thrillers and such, I enjoy these to help keep me balanced, spending my spare time in what I believe is time well-spent; trying to figure it out, whatever "it" is today, yet at same time using the fiction as my down-time release.
To paraphrase Mr Miagi... "All about balance, Daniel-san" 😎🥰❤️
“How to move on from the physical objects tied to our no-longer-here loved ones“: this is something I need to learn. My house is full of the many deaths of the last decade: my husband, my father, my in-laws most prominent among them. Can’t wait for the podcast.
Thanks Sheryl - - come to think of it, this sounds like a good topic for an entire post. Thanks for the inspiration! And also, please make sure you watch The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning on Peacock (that find attributable to @SandraAnnMiller of A Sassy Little Substack fame). There are six episodes (I think??) and a couple of them will be super helpful as you puzzle through this issue of belongings!
For attaining peace of mind, my suggestion is A Course in Miracles. It takes half an hour a day - I did it on awakening every morning, when everything was quiet and alertness bears - for a year.
Love this, Sue. I'm endlessly entertained by the fact that much of the human race expects things to stay the same. Like the seasons do. Like children do. Like anything does, right? LOL. NOTHING STAYS AS-IS! And thank gawd for that. We would be so bored. And how could we appreciate anything if we didn't lose something/some of the time? And saying that is not to minimize grief or loss or pain. But we will not escape this life without that experience. Might as well be present to it, whether that loss is ours or another's. If there was a recipe for life, someone would've made billions off it, and we'd all be living easier. Instead, we get to choose being closer or farther away from fine. And the rub, there, is it's our choice. Lead the way, Sue. xo
Boom! and YES. Could we go so far as saying the losing defines us way more than the pleasant things? I'm willing to stick my neck out there as guinea pig #1 and say that. (although do guinea pigs even really have necks? I digress.) I don't want to escape life by living small. I know the price of living large. I'll keep paying it even when it hurts. Thanks, kindred spirit! And subsconcsiously all your earworms in Notes must have inspired this song-related post, so I should have credited you. I'm still building castles with Freya! (I think that's her name?!) xoxo
I love it, Sue! That's the power and beauty of earworms! They spread and joyfully infect! And Freya is a goddess. I love that song. Today's worm was pushing it...but I felt like we needed some comedy on a Monday after a long weekend. And YES to living large and taking chances, and sometimes being dumb about it (raises hand), and EXPERIENCING all of it -- the good, the grand, the hard and awful, and the beige of it. xo
Belted out this song by myself in the car for months when I first had the album/cassette/CD? Anyway-it is a great one for accompanying confusing times and you wrote a wonderful piece describing that. Thanks!
Thanks Sabrina. We were buring a hole in our CDs together I am sure! Thanks for reading.
Looking forward to listening to this interview when it’s live! FWIW, I was nodding along with your paragraph about nuance (and also smiling when you mentioned Great Falls...I used to live in DC and Falls Church and remember my walks there fondly.)
The photo of your purchased and unfinished books, though? SO relatable. 🫠
Thank you for helping me feel less ashamed about my book buying habit Maddie! I keep thinking there are worse vices but that's going to be tough to explain when an episode of Hoarders happens at my house. And yay to think we might have been crossing literally paths in Great Falls some time in the past before you became the 'other' Washington girl. xo
Great read this weekend, and relation to "Closer to Fine" is spot-on! I find so much meaningful nuggets for life in music. Sometimes my kids would ask me why I like listening to melancholy songs or music and I tell them the lyrics or music are cathartic in dealing with the memory they tap into. And then the books, oh lord, I get it!! ....although I don't typically go to books in print form much anymore, the front page of my eReader looks like your couch, which is why I can relate to doing the same thing but with sample downloads.... There's just not enough shelf space in my house!! 😂🤣
Between the non-fiction; self-help and bios and the historical fiction/thrillers and such, I enjoy these to help keep me balanced, spending my spare time in what I believe is time well-spent; trying to figure it out, whatever "it" is today, yet at same time using the fiction as my down-time release.
To paraphrase Mr Miagi... "All about balance, Daniel-san" 😎🥰❤️
Thanks Keith, you join me and Maddie in our terrible book buying habit. At least we are keeping other authors in business!
“How to move on from the physical objects tied to our no-longer-here loved ones“: this is something I need to learn. My house is full of the many deaths of the last decade: my husband, my father, my in-laws most prominent among them. Can’t wait for the podcast.
Thanks Sheryl - - come to think of it, this sounds like a good topic for an entire post. Thanks for the inspiration! And also, please make sure you watch The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning on Peacock (that find attributable to @SandraAnnMiller of A Sassy Little Substack fame). There are six episodes (I think??) and a couple of them will be super helpful as you puzzle through this issue of belongings!
Oh thank you for this suggestion, Sue! I certainly will watch that show. I have so much work to do and I'm exhausted by the mere thought of it.
Would love to read a post on this topic!
For attaining peace of mind, my suggestion is A Course in Miracles. It takes half an hour a day - I did it on awakening every morning, when everything was quiet and alertness bears - for a year.
Thanks John for the tip...will check it out!