Blogs

A little something new…

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After seeing my niece a week ago, I have to say I have baby on the brain. My good friend is also going to be a momma any day now. With all these precious munchkins on the mind this video just hit the spot for me. It brought tears the first time Chris showed it to me, and since then I continue to see it being shared all over different social networks. What is it about watching a belly grow over time, to inspire and remind us of the precious little one growing inside? I know, I know, some of you might think wow you sure have blogged about babies lately.

I am not sure if there are words to explain it. There was a connection with my niece a week ago, that has not left me. Maybe it is because it is my sister’s baby, but there is a love there that I cannot begin to explain. It makes me think how much stronger and how fierce will that love be when it is my little one that is welcomed to this world. I cannot yet imagine.

In the below video, the father, Tom Fletcher, who is the lead singer of British band “McFly” wrote the song “Something New.” His wife, Giovanna, was photographed each day while pregnant in the same outfit and they put it together in the below video.

I love the line: “I guess I’m ready, I think I’m ready, I hope I’m ready, for something new.” I think I might soon be ready for something new.

 

Badass self, no apologies

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I love when people are wholeheartedly themselves. They say what is on their mind, and sometimes do not have a filter. I very much say what is on my mind, and while I do know when to have a filter in most situations, I am still blunt and say what I think. Last September I wrote a blog about being “Unapologetically herself.” It is my modus operandi. Why should we be anything other than who we are? Why should we hide our true selves?

Last week I wrote about the book: “Mile Markers.” After traveling and a full week, I can tell you I am now two-thirds done with this book, and have a zillion dog-eared pages. An idea jumped off the page at me when I was reading last night. It is from writer-comedian Katie Goodman that the author has framed on her desk:

“There will invariably be people who do not accept you. And in that case you must be your own badass self, without apology.”

I think I want to steal the idea and add it to the other thoughts and inspirations that sit above my desk. I am less worried about whether individuals will accept me and more interested in making sure I am being me. Life is short, YOLO (you only live once), so why should we not live each day as our badass selves? How and when did we start to apologize for ourselves? I try to think back to when I started apologizing for myself, and it is a blur. My dad raised us that children should be seen and not heard. Why, oh why dad was that important to you? It makes me want to bring together all my friends that have just had babies and say, please, oh please raise your children each day knowing their worth, and encourage them to live their lives to the fullest as their individual badass self.

Forget the nay sayers, the poo poo-ers, and those that discourage you in life. Let go of those that shut or knock you down, belittle you, or potentially throw you under the bus (as the saying goes). Lead your own life, if you do you will be strong and unflappable. I am not going to apologize for glorious me, and you should not either.

No apologies.

Give and take energy

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I have written often over the past year about energy. What energy do you bring into a room, a group of people, a home, your place of work? I constantly go back to the idea of energy and how we always have control over our own and how we allow it to ooze, and cover whatever we touch. Some days the sun is shining brightly and it brings a smile to your face and that energy is spread to everyone else. Those are the good days and that is the energy that is contagious. Other days we step in gum, cannot find a parking spot, and feel our energy is just off, and sometimes that bummer day is spread to everyone else.

I love this quote about energy from a Daily Om “A Question of Balance.” While it talks about intimate relationships, it actually really applies to any relationship:

“One of the most beautiful qualities of an intimate relationship is the give and take of energy that occurs between two people.”

Whether the relationship is with a co-worker, a close friend, a sibling, or significant other, the energy you share with them matters. Think about how it feels when you walk into a room and you feel completely welcome. There is a warm and happy glow. Do you ever think about the energy you give, or what you bring to each interaction? How does your energy level, your positive (or negative) emotions bring others up or down? Do you come into situations with the intent to help elevate others, or do you intend to bring them down?

At times I feel like a sponge, absorbing the energy around me. What takes the most energy and effort is to walk into a room of negativity, and gloom and keep yourself above it while also attempting to elevate or raise the energy and emotion of others. It tends to be easier to join a negative environment then it is to raise the bar from negative to positive. A happy and positive environment is always easy to join, as I said before, it is contagious.

Bring on a positive, slap happy, environment full of laughter. I will be there with you any day.

Have you Spritzed yet?

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Have you heard of Spritz? A new app and technology that allows you to speed read. Spritz, the company that invented “Spritzing” defines it as: “…reading text with Spritz Inc.’s patent-pending technology. When you’re spritzing, you’re reading text one word at a time in our “redicle,” a special visual frame we designed for reading.”

I have tried the examples and am interested, although I have to say it does make my head spin a bit. Your eyes do not have to move back and forth across the page, rather your eyes stay in the exact same place and the words move fast right in front of you. Allowing you to focus on the words and thus read faster. Elite Daily explains it well:

“The “Optimal Recognition Point” (ORP) is slightly left of the center of each word, and is the precise point at which our brain deciphers each jumble of letters. The unique aspect of Spritz is that it identifies the ORP of each word, makes that letter red and presents all of the ORPs at the same space on the screen. In this way, our eyes don’t move at all as we see the words, and we can therefore process information instantaneously rather than spend time decoding each word.”

You can try it for yourself on the Spritz website – just “click to Spritz” on the top right part of the page. Here is more Q + A on Spritzing. Currently this technology is only available on the Gear2 and S5 Samsung phones. I have to say it does sort of remind me of Chuck. Did you ever watch that TV show? He would put on these glasses to review intel that would go into his brain very, very fast, and sometimes it effected him for the worse. Are we to the place where we have to absorb words so fast we no longer “read?” Is curling up with a good book a thing of the past? 

What do you think about Spritz?

Share your hair?

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Emily is my new hero. At 3 she might still be too young to understand cancer, but she already understands what it means to help another individual. When she got her first haircut, she decided (after her parents explained what she could do with her hair) to donate her hair for wigs for those with cancer. Emily agreed to it, as long as her Uncle (a hair stylist) cut her Dolly’s hair first. I love this, I love her, I love listening to her talk. Her parents own FlyPress Films, and decided to film the entire process.

You will love her, her uncle, and her sweet voice as she tells you what she is doing. The background music is also perfect to get you in the mood and maybe, like me, leave little pools in your eyes.

Click here to read more of her story.