the meaning of life

be happy. show up. follow your heart. find a new perspective. have a sense of wonder. find people you love. set goals. help others. dance. pamper yourself. face your fears. go to a museum. exercise. limit television. get in touch with nature. lighten up. get a good night sleep. read books. buy yourself flowers. don't compare yourself with others. don't beat yourself up. be open to new ideas. don't focus on negative thoughts. focus on creating what you desire. make time just to have fun. keep the romance in your life. make a gratitude list. love your mother earth. want what you have. be true to yourself.

the power of one

i spent the past week in lewiston, idaho at an americorps conference. why? because i had to. i am an americorps member working as a youth development professional at the boys and girls club. some of you already knew some (if not all) of that, but did you know that this is my second year doing so? my position with americorps (not sure what americorps is? find out here) means that every so often i have to take a break from my time with the kids and spend a week receiving additional training and the like. i kind of hate these things. 7 hours on a bus (each way) with 60+ strangers, 12 hour days filled with less than stimulating information, and sleeping (ish) in a not-so-classy motel while fellow members party in the parking lot leave me tired, cranky and uninspired. usually. this conference really wasn't all that different from any other, with a few exceptions. first, we had the privilege of spending a few hours learning really useful and applicable information about service-learning from the one and only cathryn berger-kaye. amazing. secondly we started each day with a short video. i was pleasantly surprised by them. surprised enough to share them with you. you know how i love youtube :) the video i am sharing today is only a minute and a half long and i hope you will take the time to watch it.

"i am only one, but still i am one. i cannot do everything, but still i can do something; and because i cannot do everything, i will not refuse to do the something i can do" -helen keller

feeling cozy

can i just say how much i love sitting around in my sweats on a lazy fall afternoon enjoying the chill in the air and a big owl of soup? 'cuz i seriously love it. a lot.

happy birthday to me

i am 27 years old today. 27 and single. very single. sometimes, it's easy to get a little depressed about that (especially when i receive wedding announcements from children i babysat). the thing is, being single really isn't that bad. in fact, there are things about being single that are pretty wonderful. so, my friends, in honor of this momentous occasion i have compiled a list (i like lists, remember?) of all the reasons being single kinda rocks.

1. i don't share my bed with anyone. which means i can sleep in any position i want, right in the middle, and there is no one to complain about me being a "bed hog"
2. i get the whole closet to myself too. another pair of shoes? yeah, i can make room for those.
3. speaking of shoes, i get to buy as many pairs as i like (which is a lot) since i'm spending my money and taking up my space.
4. as for my space, it's just that. mine. i decorate, redecorate and rearrange however and as often as i please.
5. i have plenty of opportunity to cultivate and develop my talents and interests.
6. or just sit around and do nothing.
7. i facebook stalk without wondering how someone else is going to feel about it. (don't judge me, you do it too)
8. i sometimes eat dinner at 10:30, and i'm okay with that
9. nobody feels neglected when i do things just for me
10. no husband means no children and no children means i never smell like baby puke or look like i've been standing under a tree which is heavily populated by birds with tummy trouble.

while i'm on the subject, let me just say on behalf of all singles, that we HATE it when you ask us why we're not married or why we aren't dating someone. seriously?! there are really only 2 scenarios here, either we're single by choice or we're single due to circumstances out of our control. either way, we probably don't want to talk about it and you question is offensive. okay, getting off my soapbox now.