It's Tuesday...and shocker, two days in a row!!

People are going to wonder if I've gone off my rocket, I know - two posts in two days???  Someone go check on her!!  lol  But to be honest, I'm totally bored at work and this is something I can legally do to cheer my co-workers, so I do it.  :)
Not a lot of stuff, but some fun things for today...

First - it's National Hot Pastrami Sandwich Day - which is good to mention.  The true pastrami sandwich is on rye bread with dark mustard, but I wouldn't prevent anyone from using sourdough, lol.  Apparently it's a big NON-Jewish thing to do... and did you know that Deli's are apparently a Jewish type thing?  I had no idea.  And they are fading...there used to be several hundred in New York and now there are only a couple hundred in the whole country.  Interesting how food trends go...  Do you ever go to a deli?  I don't know that I've ever been to an official deli outside a grocery store deli counter.

Dress Up Your Pet Day - Which is kind of fun, my daughter has a mini dachshund (wiener dog!) and she just made him a sweater because he's been cold.  It's so cute!!  There have been some really cute videos of dogs dressed up...but who would think that far in advance?  I like this scene from Secret Life of Pets...

International Kite Day - I don't think today would be good for kite flying around here... we have better winds in March, right? 

National Poetry at Work Day - This is fun.  I think businesses should have a poetry contest.  Perhaps who could come up with the best limerick or rhyming lines - even a haiku!  

Here's what I came up with:

 

The bleakness of winter

the grayness of sky

all brighten with sunshine

and smiles of those walking by.

No winter is so bleak

or sky so dark

that a warm smile cannot banish

or bring a happy spark.

or a haiku...

Winter bleakness

Sunshine conquers

Smiles bring joy

I'm not real good at haikus...or poetry, lol

National Shop For Travel Day - well, sounds like a plan to me.  I hear that most people plan their next vacation right after they have returned from one.  I think a lot of people plan vacations depending on the weather.  They plan for beaches in the winter and cool locations and breezes in the summer.  When is your favorite time to shop for travel?

Organize Your Home Day - kind of ironic that yesterday was clean off your desk at work...now it's time to organize your home.  Ever notice that right after Christmas they start selling all the big totes to organize and store your stuff in?  Like that's the only time you're going to be wanting to do that...  And speaking of organizing your home - have you noticed all the storage places popping up?  There's a new one on Antelope, and it seems everytime a business closes it's taken over by a storage place.  K-Mart is a case in point...  good grief.  I guess most people don't have a garage (lol) or an attic where they can store things.  Does that people have too much stuff?  My daughter lives at home and has a storage place for her stuff left from when she lived in an apartment.  My hubby keeps telling her that over the years she's been paying for that spot, she could have purchased the stuff twice over....  Food for thought...

Anyway, hope you have a great day and enjoy some pastrami.  B'tayavon, as they say in yiddish... it means basially the same as Bon appetit!

 

 A photo of one of Katz Deli sandwiches

(I always thought rye was dark!!) 

and - shocker alert - I looked up the Katz deli menu...and the prices are horrendous!!!  How do people afford to eat there??  😲

It's Monday, are you ready?

For another week?  I don't know if I am or not, but it's one of those 'ready or not, here it comes!' type things.  And we have another round of snow, which on one hand petered out - dang it, and on the other hand - petered out, cool, I don't have to drive in it.  Ya know?  If we're going to have snow, can't we get the whole dump so we get a snow day out of it??  I mean, it happened last year for some people...

That makes me sound like I don't like my job.  I do - but sometimes Mondays call for an extra day off to recoup from all the stuff needing to be done on the weekend because there's not enough time during the week.  Sometimes I think our society is just too busy.  Argh.   Well...  regardless, we're back at it, right?  And it's all good.  We're fortunate to have jobs, to be active and working, and to have the chance to interact with others.  One of the reasons I like my job is that I feel like I'm also serving others at the same time.  Does that make sense?  I guess it's kind of like being a firefighter or a policeman.  You are providing a service to the community at the same time you are working to earn a living.  Kind of cool.  Education is the same way.

Today I'm feeling a little bit of a creative emptiness.  You could almost say writers block, except I'm not in the middle of something.  It just feels as if the creative juices have dried up for a bit and I've got to figure out how to make them jazzed up again.  How do you get your day going when it doesn't feel like there's anything out there for you?  I'd love to hear your ways of beating the wintry Monday blues.

Well...  perhaps some silly things will help the day brighten a little.  There's a couple of things to contemplate...


Make Your Dream Come True Day - making goals and resolutions and all that is all fine and good - but what about making your own dreams come true?  We don't get fairy godmothers in reality, we are our own fairy godmothers and have to rely on ourselves and our own desires and passions.  What does it take??  You want to be a _____?  What does it take to get there?  What is it you need to change in your life to make that happen?  Sometimes it's just time and practice and determination.  We don't always want to hear that anything is possible, but it takes work.  We want it to happen with the snap of a finger, without having to spend hours and years to make it happen.  I wanted to be a writer when I was a teenager.  I didn't really do what I needed to do consistently until I was MUCH older.  But it has come.  It will always come if you really work at it...  so the question is, what is your dream and what are you willing to do to make it happen??
This blip from Pretty Woman came to mind...

Hopefully you can hear it, I couldn't, lol
 

National Clean Off Your Desk Day - this is always good, we always need an excuse to clean off our desks, right?  Well, those of us who are less consistently organized than others, lol.  My desk at work is great - my desk at home is quite the opposite.  My husband was commenting that his desk was being taken over by his balloon stuff.  (He twists balloons on the side, and all his supplies are on his desk.)  I said I had the same problem with my paint and business stuff.  When you have to mix business with life, I think it's harder to keep the desk clean, is all I'm saying.  Well....those of you who have clean desks have time to go do something else today.  I don't know that I'll get to cleaning mine off today anyway, lol.  I think this is the best idea...

 
Rubber Ducky Day -  there's a debate as to when the real rubber ducky day is... between now and February and so, you get to choose.  I'm making note of this one just because it's silly... 


National Peach Melba Day - And the only food thing worth mentioning is Peach Melba.  What is Peach Melba anyway?? peaches, raspberry sauce and whipped cream.  I'm not a big fan of peaches unless it's peach cobbler...so, won't be celebrating this day, lol.  My daughter wanted to make cookies yesterday, so we might have to be making them today.

Hope you have a great day and get enjoying the Mondayness of life!! 

Snow thoughts

ever feel the touch of snow on your face?  Light flakes that are just floating down and land on your cheek...  It's light as a feather, almost a caress as it lands and sits there for a moment before melting.  Made me think of kitten paws and cotton balls and down feathers.

It's one of the reasons I like snow more than rain...  I don't feel wet in snow for some reason.  I don't use an umbrella unless it's really coming down.  I like the sound when it hits my coat...the light/soft plink.  It makes me think of white rose petals drifting down.

I watch as it piles up on the bushes outside my window, or the tree leaves and branches.  I spent an hour or so one Sunday watching little birds flitting about in the snow on a tree limb, it was fascinating.  Have you ever taken the time to live in the moment?  That is kind of the encouragement right now - learn to meditate and live for the moment. 

I'm trying to enjoy the moment right now, watching the snow and drinking hot chocolate.

Enjoy your day!

It's Thursday...

and the week is almost over.  First week back to work for some of us of the new year.  Has it been a good week?  I've heard mixed reviews.  Some teachers are glad to have some structure back in their lives, lol - and some are wishing they hadn't slept in the whole two weeks.  It made it Sooo much harder to get up early on Monday.  sigh.  It all comes down to sleep, right? 

have a couple of fun things for today, so hopefully if you are feeling a little down by the week, look forward to tomorrow, it's Friday!!

Balloon Ascension Day - In honor of this day 1793, we think all things hot air balloon!!
I think hot air balloons are amazing.  We have gone to the one in Eden every year for the past four years, and it's the funnest thing, watching them rise up in the morning!!  At night they do this awesome glow, where they just get the flames going inside so you can see the balloons.  It's cool stuff.  I haven't ever had a chance to go up in one, but I think it would be amazing.  Have you?

Law Enforcement Appreciation Day  - and for those of you who know and appreciate the law enforcement people all around us, this is the day to show them your appreciation.  I like that it's because of all the negative feelings and actions around them in today's society.  I have an older brother that was a deputy sheriff for over 20 years.  His body took some major abuse, but he lived for the job.  There were times when he'd tell me about separating a couple in a domestic violence call and how it took all he had to not beat the spouse to a pulp.  The restraint the good ones exert is amazing, and it takes a special person to fill this job.  I know I couldn't do it!! I have a nephew on my hubbies side that's a deputy now.  He's been the resource cop at one of the junior highs for a year or so, and has loved working with the kids.  I tell ya, these are some great guys.
I love the movie It Could Happen To You where Nicholas Cage's character just loves being a cop - even after he wins the lottery, all he wanted was to be a cop.  I tried to find a clip of him saving the day in the grocery store, but no one has done that. 


National Cassoulet Day - I always thought Cassoulet was the beginning of the casserole.  How many of you thought that??  Well, according to The Nibble, apparently it's an acual dish or pot that the stew was made in, way BACK in time during a siege in France.  It's main ingredient is meat with some beans.  Apparently you can't leave out the beans - they are the main thing. In fact, this dish is often served on Bean day, which is the 6th.  Go figure...  It just makes me think of the scene in Last Holiday where the chef is making a gourmet dinner at a high class hotel...

I love this movie... 

National Static Electricity Day - static electricity is a strange thing.  It's one of those things that everyone loves to play with, but no one likes to get shocked with, right?  One the favorite shows I used to watch with my kids soooo many years ago, was Bill Nye the Science Guy.  His shows were geared for kids, kept their attention, and were highly entertaining as well as educational.  This is one of the spots where he demonstrates static electricity.


Our favorite principal has a new video out, it's about classroom management for this week back.  I think it's pretty fun...although, is it me or does he seem to be including alcohol a lot in his recent videos??  lol Not sure it's a good thing to encourage classroom drinking, right??


So - hope you have a great day and weekend.  It's a great day!!

and for those of you hating the winter days....

Happy New Year!

Well... ready or not, it's 2020 folks.  More and more I feel like I'm living in a sci fi movie and I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing, lol.  I already know the ending, but getting there is the mystery.
sigh
Things have been pretty crazy at my house... and I feel like I've been loosing it a little.  I'm wondering if age is really bringing on mental issues or if I'm just stressed and not realizing how much it's affecting me.  I didn't work on ANYTHING book or art related the last week, due to grandkids and stuff...and I'm feeling it, let me tell you.  I've got to get sooo much done today.  I was able to work on stuff yesterday, and I'm sorry to admit that I'm so thankful grandkids are back in school!!!  lol  I go back to work on Monday, but it gives me 2 days to work on stuff without interruption.  Well...so I just have to control my own type of ADD. 
I'm beginning to wonder if I have too many irons in the fire...  too many things I'm trying to do.  Have you ever felt that way with your talents?  Your goals and dreams?  I'm doing more creatively than I've done in years, and on one side, it's awesome - the other side I'm beginning to feel the stress.  I've been praying lately for guidance on how to approach things.  Only the Lord knows if I'm going in the right direction...
Well...  since I'm crazy busy - as stated - I'm keeping this short.  Hope you had a marvelous Christmas (ours was insane and it didn't really feel like Christmas AT ALL) and a fun New Years.  We had grandkids and watched movies and toasted the new year...  six year old was mad she was distracted and didn't see the ball drop...  lol
Hope this year is awesome for you!!