Humor

What Makes You Happy?

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Do you ever stop and think about what makes you happy? Is there something that brings a smile to your face throughout the day? Or even once a day?

Chris brings a smile to my face. When I think of him during the day, when I see his name show up on my phone. A text, or a voicemail. It is a reminder to me that he is thinking of me. I try to return the favor. It is nice to be thought of isn’t it?

Little babies that start laughing and cannot stop. That makes me happy. Laughter in general makes me happy. When you watch a genuine moment between two individuals, whether two co-workers are making a connection, or you see someone at the store helping another person.

Seeing someone passionate about something makes me happy. It could be when you hear someone sing and it sends chills throughout your body, because you feel the sound of the music and their voice together and it moves you. When you see a couple dancing, and you can see and feel their connection.

Smiles make me happy. You know the kind where their eyes are crinkled and you know that it is real, genuine happiness. When you nail it in a work meeting, or you someone else brings their game to the table and you are just in awe of what they are capable of and what you know you can learn from them.

Hugs. Hugs make me happy. They ground me. I love this quote from this recent Daily Om:

“Many of the happiest people on earth are also those coping with the most serious challenges. They have learned to make time for those simple yet superb pleasures that can be enjoyed quickly and easily. Cultivating a happy heart takes no more than five minutes. The resultant delight will be neither complex nor complicated, but it will be profound and will serve as a reminder that there is always a reason to smile.”

laugh as we have always laughed…on side of Portland building

What makes you happy?

Do You Watch Jeff Lewis?

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I was talking with someone last week about Jeff Lewis. Have you ever seen either of his shows? His first show was: Flipping Out, and his more recent show is: Interior Therapy. Both are on Bravo and are about designing homes. Jeff Lewis is a character. He is direct, crass, and definitely not politically correct. I am not sure I could ever work for him. I do not have the patience that Jenny (his assistant) does. He would definitely fire me quickly, because I would have to tell him how horrid he is to his employees.

Having said all that, he is hilarious to watch, and he has impeccable design taste. I would live in one of his designed homes in a second (if I could afford one)! I decided to Google him a bit, and found his Facebook page. I had fun seeing all his candid photos of random people or things he finds while out in Los Angeles. Of course I had to “like” it so that his random posts will show up in my Facebook feed and I can smile, laugh, or roll my eyes.

Flipping Out is a show about flipping homes that started a few years ago. When flipping homes slowed down with the economy and real estate plunge, Jeff shifted the show towards his design expertise and helped individuals redo their internal spaces, rather that flipping large homes. The theme that was thread through the show was that Jeff also would flip out at his clients, employees, and subcontractors. All the time. As with a home that is being flipped, time and effort improves the home. The same has happened with Jeff. Over a few seasons, he flips out less. A new season of Flipping Out has just started. Try it out. (I also included part of a random episode below).

You might find it is one of your new favorite shows, or you might find that Jeff’s design skills rank way above his people skills.

Have You Seen: “The Parent Rap”?

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I found this video from a Facebook friend last week. It is called: “The Parent Rap.” As you may be noticing, I am finding more and more parent things that interest me. I thought this was a clever rap from a family with four kids (no, do not worry Chris, I do not want that many). In any case, take a minute to enjoy!

Did you have a few laughs? I did. Hopefully all the parents out there had a few more, and that it resonated with your daily life. Although maybe they should have added in a section about “sleep.”

The Parent Rap vaguely reminds me of the “Swagger Wagon” video from a few years ago for the Toyota Sienna mini van. If you have not seen it before, take a moment to watch it now:

That is all for today folks.

Happy Friday!

Happy Birthday Matty!

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Today is a special day. It is my brother-in-law’s 21st birthday! I have known Matt for about 9.5 years, which means he was 12 when I first met him. A lot has changed (for both of us) in the past 9 years. Mostly I have enjoyed and appreciated watching him grow into the man he is today. He has tried new things, pushed boundaries, explored the world, seen more of the US and the world than I have experienced, and grown the peach fuzz. Okay I digress.

Matt in action

My message to the birthday boy: “Matty, you mean the world to me and to Chris. We are so excited to have the opportunity to watch you grow into yourself. You light up the room when you walk in the door, with your grin, your sassy wit, and enormous hugs. You can carry on a conversation with anyone. What I love though is that your maturity shows through because you humbly make sure you connect and engage with others in the conversation, and ask questions about their life. There are many people twice your age that still have not figured that out. Can you tell we love you? You are the little brother I never had.”

And now, a little message about Matt from his big brother:

“My lil’ bro Matty-boy is one solid fella. He’s loved by everyone and disliked by none. He can schmooze with the most elitist of adults, business owners, and politicians. The boy’s got mad social skills… and like we always joke about, he could sell a ketchup popsicle to a woman in white gloves. At the same time, he can hang with friends he’s known all of his life and even makes the time to entertain and engage with their younger siblings who look up to him as if he’s a rock star. Speaking of which, he’s that too. Killing it on the drums whenever he has the chance… or gets paid to do so. I’m proud to be his big bro and can only hope that the examples I’ve set, good and bad, have and will continue to help push him further in life. Happy 21, bro. Proud of ya.”

Happy Birthday Matty!

Two Favorite Apps + Two New Tips

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I am someone who likes to share a good thing. When I find an amazing local bakery, I cannot help but share and tell others. If a great company gives stellar customer service, I tell others. I will also warn others about bad customer service. I apologize in advance that the rest of this post is going to be app/iPhone-centric. I do not know if these apps are available for non iOS devices, but they might be.

incredibooth photo

My newest favorite app is called: IncrediBooth. It is a 99 cent app, that lets you take four different pictures and puts it together in a photo booth style photo. There is something about the nostalgia of photo booths. There used to be a toy store in Portland that had an old-fashioned photo booth that gave you a black and white photo. I love the fun and spontaneity of these booths. Now I can do it right from my phone!

Wunderlist. A free app. It creates lists that you can update online or from your iPhone or iPad. Chris and I keep our lists of weekend To-Do’s, movies or TV shows we want to watch, restaurants we want to check out, etc. I could add an item to a grocery list from home and Chris could sync the list when he gets to the store to find my additions without having to call or text me.

Ready for some tips now? I have had my iPhone for a few years now, and I just learned two things last week. Someone at work told me how to close out of your apps (I always thought I had been when I got out of them). Only to find out that they are still open in the background taking up battery life. To close them, double-click the home button and all open apps will show in the bottom bar. Hold down on one of the apps to get them into close mode and they will all show up with a red X. Then close the apps you no longer want open.

My second thing I learned last week is that you can set up a more complex password on your iPhone than just the traditional four numbers. I had no idea! If you want to make it more complex, go to Settings, General, then Passcode Lock. You will have to enter your current Passcode, then turn “Simple Passcode” to Off and your iPhone will prompt you for a longer, more complex Passcode.

What other random iPhone or iPad tips do you know? What apps have been your recent favorites?