Off the Wall kinda' guy

My son Myk told me to stop being so serious after reading my last post! Well....I get where he was coming from. But every now and again you need to revisit what matters in the affairs of the heart.
Now I was wondering what to write about, what did I think was cute-funny-upbeat that makes me smile and laugh? My mind went directly to Jessy, a younger son. Now Jessy is a young man that is really hard to be put into words. He is more of a "you gotta' experience this guy" kind of dude.
Now Jessy was born in distress, bluer than a bruise, needing oxygen to get him breathing. Then he was nearly deaf the first three years of his life. Rough start, right?! Jessy found his light in life being the comic of the family. He was always trying to get a laugh out of you. When you were angry he would do whatever he could to step in and make it all right in your world. He does whatever he can to lighten the mood-just plain get in your face and go crazy with zany way-out-there kind of skit like comedy to get you smiling; then have you laughing until your face hurts! He is slow to anger and even then you think- you wished everyone had that kind of control....Jessy, although a young man, still has kid qualities in the sense that he finds joy and happiness in the simpler things in life. All he really desires is to be loved and to share his compassion with others. A very selfless human being. Being his mom, I guess we tend to gush over our children. But I think there was more of a spiritual intervention given to this guy before he was born. I think he was infused with a part of Gods funny bone. A heavenly jester maybe???? Whatever it be, I was blessed with him. And so is the world.
During our large family reunion/vacation last April a load of us rented a 10 passenger van and headed to southern California. After about two weeks of playing around, having one adventure after another we ended up spending a day at Universal Studios. A common vacation spot. My son, Jessy who is also one of the most frugal people I know with his money spotted an unusual backpack to cart his belongings in around the park. So out he comes wearing this funny fury contraption

Oh, by the way, did I forget to mention he is the best Chewbacca impressionist I know or heard of ? The funny thing is, this bizarre backpack made my son more popular than Scooby doo and the Shaggy actor who was running around shaking hands with tourists! So many people had to stop and ask him about it and marvel at its fun unique fury-ness...The joy on Jessy's face was priceless. He was doing what I'm always preaching...give people a reason to smile! He hit the jackpot! Even when I followed behind him going through a walk-through haunted house attraction....a  zombie creature (actor) came up to us moaning and growling, trying to scare us- and mid vocal creep out, spotted Jessy's Chewbacca and started to purr "oooohhhhoooo...and started to pet his backpack while following Jessy a little while through the house! Quite a few people and I as well, were laughing our rear-ends off!! It was one of those, you just had to be there moments! It's put a visual in my mind that I can go to when I need to laugh and lighten my day up when I'm feeling a little frustrated about something. How awesome it must be, to be in Jessy's mind?? He definitely thinks in a different way, he understands things in his own unique way...I would hope the world would never change this amazing character I get the pleasure of calling my son!

Carry on Magoo!

The world is your stage~

Peace out

find your inner Jessy and smile until your face hurts ;)

A marriage that lasts beyond all else

Love. When one person loves another, love in the true sense of the word-and you make a covenant with that person; I don't believe that bond dies with death. Unfortunately, some marriage bonds get cut before there is a true understanding about one another-through an easy-no fault divorce. There are  many good reasons why some marriages fail. But there are more that didn't even get a fair chance. I may be old fashioned in my thinking, but I think it is very sad. There are no classes to teach us what it takes to be in a good marriage. Most young people these days think that "love" is that chemical infused passion you get when you first fall in lust with each other. Then when the feeling subsides and you get tired of being around each other...you split. You rush off to find another person to rev up those intense feelings with. On the contrary~
When you marry the one you love and time goes by and those intense feelings rumble down; that is when the real deep love is ready to grow. A marriage is like a safe- that holds all that's valuable and precious to you, under lock and key. It's contents is only as good as what you 'both' put into it. If one of you keeps putting in valued items like, time, acts of love and care, conversation. special fun things for the other ( like a dinner out to celebrate your loved ones birthday so they know how special they are to you )

 

Or just cuddling and sharing a warm moment, and being a support when things are rough..... but the other one just keeps taking the stuff out of the safe- it will eventually become empty. The safe has to be filled with love/works from both parties to build its contents of worth. Then locked to keep others from stealing out of it.

I believe it's important to keep your marriage sacred because there are others out there who would come into your space and like a thief who is jealous of what you possess, pick the lock and take away what you worked at so hard to preserve.

Real true love is hard to come by. You have to both have faith. You both need to nourish it and not take it for granted. I am a big believer in also smiling and laughing with each other-be each others best friend. Be mates for life. Have each others back at all times. Wake up thinking " what can I do today to make this person I love, smile inside and out?"

 I have found that there is a 'forever'. I've seen it with my own eyes. I believe it is possible, even for me. I had to go through a learning process, a trial and error, an awakening of what real spiritual, positive, patient working love looks like. We must not take our commitments lightly. We must help the younger generation understand that the love bonds of marriage take work, love and persistence, support and forgiveness  time and time again, never ending. It's what they mean by * it's a labor of love*. There is no sweeter job I would so desire than to have a love that is forever and always~

 

Love IS the answer~

Peace out my friends~

 

 

Rip Van Winkle

Out on my deck this morning...

Wait...what???

Did I miss the memo? Did I pull a Rip Van Winkle and sleep through winter???

I have new shoots on my dwarf ever-bloom potted lilac- already!

With this revelation, I decided to meander around the neighborhood to see if I was the only one experiencing it. There seems to be cherry blossoms and tree shoots and little daisies covering the grassy pathways. The sun is gracing my part of the world with warmth and light that makes the little steams of water dribbling down the pathways sparkle.

 

The sound of the water rushing down to the beachside that flows into the ocean is pleasing to my senses. I can hear small birds singing deep in the trees to each other. I'm enjoying this too much to put my headphones on. The calendar says it's still winter. They say the ground hog saw his shadow and we have a longer winter to endure. Well,  he must live over on the East side of the USA.

 Here, it seems, mother nature has spring on her mind. And I for one couldn't be more pleased. This year, I have more aspirations of being outside getting more exercise. Moving, breathing, appreciating what I have right in front of me right at that moment- being in the moment. Feeling some  peace and finding more enlightenment. This is how I revitalize myself for what lays ahead during my day. IT makes the speed-bumps I hit less intense. It takes away any back-up spike strips some people throw in your days journey. Those can be a real big bummer and hard to recover from. If I start off in a good place in my soul, I can keep my smile, in true form, across my face no matter what.

Another analogy of a negative thrown in your day, is walking along your days path and passing a stink weed flower. ( I don't know what the true name of this plant is, but it smells like a swampy skunk flower-nasty enough to have you make a face and want to walk the other way)

It's looks can be deceiving. There is no doubt the smell is bad and no one wants to stay in it's presence. You deal, then walk away hopefully not to get into that scenario again. Live and learn! Too many speed bumps in life can be jarring to the brain!  :)

I am grateful to have this early peek into 2015 springtime. It's got me all wound up for planting my herbs that I cook with and finding a new variety of colorful fragrant flowers to entice my nose during a smooth breeze.  I am so blessed to live pretty close to the pacific sea and in a small city that boasts to be the friendliest place of the coast. I can't find fault in that claim!

Wishing everyone that isn't experiencing beautiful weather can live vicariously though this post!!

This Rip Van Winkle is glad she awoke to an early pre-spring. Can't wait to stop and smell the roses...literally!

Peace out~

A tribute to Valentines day and being single~

That's right, another Valentines day is here and I am without a sweetheart. Guess what? Its all good because I don't put too much effort in caring for making one day 'special' for saying I love you, etc. As you can tell, this has never been my favorite day- single or with someone. I can't get past the fact that everyday your with someone you care for, someone you love; there should be a want for letting that person know how much they mean to you. How precious it is to have that love in your life. Too much is taken for granted. Valentines day.....

Still, I awoke to find fluffy puffs of clouds floating in a soft blue sky. I couldn't wait to whip my walking shoes on, grab a banana and jet outside for a glorious morning walk in the sunshine. Apparently many others had the same inspiration as I. I got to see many cute dogs on leashes with their masters sauntering beside them as they too enjoyed a good walk. Oh, deep breathing the fresh salt air from the ocean nearby was invigorating for my soul. I am in love...I'm in love with life...with nature...natures candy! Happy Valentines day to me! It's all in how you decide to perceive your surroundings.

I got a call from my youngest son who finally had some time to let me take him and his longtime girlfriend out to lunch. I made a commitment to myself this year, that I would give each of my four sons special time...because they are all so unique in personality and talents...just real good human beings! I gloat...and I smile. We had a good time talking and sharing and expressing ourselves. Laughing and eating some good old Irish food from an Irish café in the art district of Nye beach, Newport, Oregon. We come from a heritage of Celtic and Scandinavian background. My son cherishes his Irish roots.

I sincerely think he is part energizer bunny. He has enough energy to stop a buffalo stampede! But fortunately, he uses his energy to be an amazing worker in life. Each of my sons have a great talent, positive gifts- as most people have a special quality of their own in life. It's what you do with your gifts that make a difference in life. Using them to the betterment of others along with your own path  is a blessing no one can take away from you. It's God given. ( to all you unbelievers- work with me here please :)  ) Call it what you want, I call it Love.

If Valentines day is about love, than I can work with that. Whether single or with a special loved one, go out every chance you can get, not just "one day" and fill your time with love. Feel it, share it, where ever your spirit moves you. It all comes down to the most important thing in the world-as far as this lady is concerned

"L-O-V-E"

Happy Valentines day

Peace out

~and don't forget to smile~

Don't let the sun go down on you with a sad  lonely heart

A little moonlight in my world

I just got back from a lovely trip to Monroe,Washington, my old stomping grounds of  younger days. I went to help out an old high school friend with her daughters baby shower. Its my friends first grandchild. I have to admit, when you get a houseful of ladies of all ages in one room-it can get very comical, crazy and outright entertaining! A good time was had by all. I  had the pleasure of putting one of the soon to be moms baby gifts in a gag box. The box had an infant sucking out of a giant gerbil-like water bottle hooked to the crib. It touted to be the best new invention in baby care. haha.!! The funniest part of that was, once she opened it....there were many in the room that thought it was an actual gift and didn't question the authenticity....!!! If you could only hear the laughter in my head...priceless. However, the mom to be laughed herself silly. She had a wonderful sense of humor. She has my heart and smiles.
I had the rest of the weekend to spend with a few girlfriends from my old high school days, eating in quaint old town cafe's and staying up late having the most amazing talks and watching a scary movie that was based on a true story " The shadow people" ( jury is still out on this one in my opinion, lol) Some of the discussions were about faith and religion. It was a very intense talk. We all were bouncing off of each other-our beliefs, what we questioned, how we connected in such. The greatest thing about it was, there was no slamming, no arguments, no negatives; just good banter, knowing each other better, all positive and a little uplifting of each other. Many people cannot debate this subject without dividing each other.
Love and respect is the answer. Period.
To get to the end of my week, happy- but so very tired for the lack of any real major sleep....I find myself surprised that many moons have come and gone and at my age, I was doing quite well with the little slumber I obtained. I didn't partake in alcohol or coffee either. I felt pretty refreshed and happy.....go figure! But there it is...I'm not as old as the number of years I've been on this ever rolling earth that has a claim on me! What's in a number? It's your soul, heart and wellbeing that keeps you kicking with joy and anticipation of what's to become of your life next.
I am lucky to have been shown new and exciting doors to open for new chapters I get to write for my life. Just when I thought I was running out of breath and gumption...here I am with a passion in my heart and a hunger for more reading and knowledge in my new path this year.

I am however going to take time to sleep when my friend the moon comes to call. He gives me the extra energy I need to revive my body so it keeps up with my mind- all I want to accomplish!!!
I wish for all of you to get out of your comfort zone once in a while and grab hold of that unknown door handle and whip it open and step inside. It's a rush of fresh air!
Enjoy
Peace out~
Your best blogger friend ;)  Lisa

For the love of trains

Maybe this is my inner geek coming out-but I love trains! That's where this story is going to end up- the long way to that revelation!
 I had a hard time staying asleep one night, ( well that actually happens a lot) but this time my eyes flew open and I was done slumbering...at least that is what my brain decided. Have you ever just woke up out of a dead sleep for no apparent reason? Or if it be the case, set your alarm and woke up slightly before it went off and struggled for those last few minutes of sleep...that you just couldn't obtain? Frustration....ugh. I drug myself up vertical; still not sure of why I was even getting out of bed to check the house- like I was doing guard duty after midnight.

Crawling back into my warm, cozy white down comforter covered bed with way too many pillows ( who am I kidding...their so FLUFFY!!!! lol ) My mind went to the previous day. I was gearing up for a trip to Washington, to visit some friends and family for a week or two. I decided to get a rock chip repair done at a local auto glass shop. Inside the office, that was still decorated in Christmas décor like a magical holiday workshop, were two older gentlemen who both looked liked Santa Claus

 ( I kid you not!)

This was quite a fun and slightly funny experience for me. They talked about how most people around town know them as Santa....I've lived here for four years...how did I miss this???

While Santa no# 1 worked on my windshield, I wondered back into the office to pay Santa no#2 and check out some of the interesting displays. In the corner, there was a large plywood table covered with green felt and an old miniature train set. A whole tiny town with worker people, stores, houses...the whole nine yards on display. It was the coolest tiny train town I've seen in a long while.

I told Santa no# 2 how much I liked his mini train set up. In my head, I was thinking about the twilight zone episode where human people wake up in an empty town with a train....only  to find out they are in a similar toy mini town for some kid to play with- to their horror.. ( of course I didn't say this out loud, some things are best to the amusement of our quiet selves-right?!)

I went back to where my vehicle was being serviced and commented to Santa no#1 how much I liked the train set up. He shared with me that he lost his mother a while ago (Mrs. Santa to no#2) His mother used to come in every day and run the train set because she loved it so much. It was a source of her daily joy. After she passed away, Santa#2 can't bring himself to go near it. It hasn't run since then. Its dusty and unloved to this day.

It was a very sad story. I wanted to run in and hug Santa 2 and let him know that his wife's joy needed to bring him joy too. I wanted to share some great and fun train stories I had to make him smile. But who am I to tell someone how to deal with their grieving? Instead, I went back in the office and spent some extra time chatting him up with the biggest smile I could muster. I joked with him until I got a grand ole smile to stretch across his face. Bless his heart, he kept giving me things like a company pen, a mini calendar and a date book..... He really seemed to enjoy our  time together. I did too! I did manage to tell him how much I loved trains and that he had a mighty fine little set up. He looked at me with the sweetest smile and a twinkle in his eyes and said-'thank you'. Maybe in some way, he can find a smile when looking back on that day too. A smile can go such a long way and do so much good. I know how much I appreciate someone pouring some sunshine on my day when I feel a little low.
 Find someone yourself to shine on with this week!
I can't wait to get another rock chip!- And talk trains!
Peace out-