synchronicities...

i have been reading simple abundance
along with doing the artist way book...
and it is funny to me the same themes are showing up
but framed in a different light...

AW has morning pages,
SA has inner dialogue done in stream of consciousness
(which is how i do morning pages also)

AW has artist dates,
SA has a list of suggestions at the back of each month
of things that you can do during the month...
i have been using some of these suggestions
as my artists dates.

AW had the reading deprivation week,
SA suggests going a day without reading or watching tv...
the whole idea in SA or how i interpreted it
was to stop listening to the opinions of others
(whether it be news or tv or newspapers or gossip columns)
so that you could listen more deeply
to yourself and find your own opinions on things.
When i thought about this concept, i realized how
much of an on-the-fence person i can be sometimes...
how i can be not so much a black or white but
always-negotiating-the-grey-kind-of-person...

i guess what i am saying in a round-about way
is that i am enjoying reading simple abundance
along with artist's way...they compliment each other nicely...
they play well together...
and in my line of work, i'm always looking for
people that play well together...
:)

i had one other little synchronicity that i thought
was interesting enough to note...
when i was in grade five, we knew that we were
going to get a certain teacher for grade six.
we dreaded it.
we wrote a petition at the end of grade five
to convince the powers-that-be to let us continue
on our educational path with the teacher we
currently had.
we could hear our prospective teacher yelling at his
students daily and knew that he was very cross.
he would also be our first male teacher.
we were terrified.

but we had him for grade six, despite our best efforts not to
and, as it turned out, he was the best teacher i ever had.

i told him that one day in the mall where i worked.
he didn't remember me because alzheimers had begun to set in
but i felt good because i got to tell him.
he died a couple of years later.

yesterday i picked up a peter gzowski book at
the used bookstore and debated whether or not
to buy it...i opened the front cover
and there was his name...
as the previous owner...

i bought the book.

sweet and sunny saturdays...



































i woke up early this morning
and went for a walk.

the fog was suddenly heavy and thick.

i walked down by the water where people
appeared and disappeared,
weaving in and out of the mist
as i took pictures of the rocks
and the uncertain loose borders
between frozen water and sky.

as i walked home
i was smitten by the outline
of the trees
against the crisp blue.

it made me laugh out loud
in wonder
it made me feel small against the universe
but it made me aware
of being alive...
giddy and gracious
and full of words and plans.

looking forward to menopause.

ok.
i was going to do a friday grateful list
or a weekly recap of things i have read/done/watched
but
the truth is
i am too damn cranky right now
to do anything.

there was no school today
the kids fought all day
i am pmsing
and i am so sour right now
i feel like i could chew my arm off.

so instead of waxing poetic about
the things i did enjoy all week
i am going to sit here and stew in my frustration
by blaring music into my head via headphones...
ear damage be damned.

heh.

SCORE...(teehee)

my sister in law is teaching
english is korea...
she sent us a box of goodies
for christmas
and we just received them this week...
behold...
(heehee)

these above are the coolest,
(well, the warmest, i guess...technically)
they have a gel inside them
and a little metal disc that you bend
and poof!
they get warm and you put 'em in your mitts
(if you are my daughter)
(if you are me, you would be more likely to put 'em
in your socks)
my own personal haul
hurrah for the socks...holy-sweet-softness!
like walking on little puffy pillows...
and the stripey slippers...i adore them...
and glitter glue AND glitter pens...
she knows me well

ten's socks and cool marker and hand warmers
i just adore the illustrations and the colors
and could NOT get enough of them...

i could have also shown you six's treasures,
but he is too fast for me...
he is mainly just a noisy, entertaining, talkative blur
most of the time...
:)

forces are working against me.

its a storm day.
i have my own computer
not needing to be shared with the whole family
for once.

the hell with it.
i'm reading blogs.
i went for 2 days.

the more i thought about it yesterday
the more i thought,
this is where i get my inspiration and ideas,
this is what gets me excited and makes me think...
when i wasn't reading anything,
i spent all my free thinking time
thinking about bills, the kids i look after,
my own kids...i wasn't getting anywhere on "me"...
and it was bringing me down on top of that,
so...
i'm done...
i'm back
with
a
vengenance...
teehee.