Friday, November 24, 2006

Gratitude Day

Yesterday was Thanksgiving Day or as I like to call it, Gratitude Day. One of the things I was grateful for is that I didn't cook this year. Although I generally enjoy cooking the Thanksgiving meal, it was nice not to this year. My job often entails cooking and serving food demos, so it was a nice break. The weather forcasters were predicting rain mixed with snow and we were driving about 40 miles. I'm grateful that the sun came out and we had a perfectly lovely drive.The gratitude didn't stop today either. The company that I work for is grateful for we employees hard work in dealing with a successful grand opening for our new store and at the same time working hard to make holiday sales soar.They are providing our lunches for three days to thank us. Just think! the more you are grateful for things, the more the Universe provides. What a nice arrangement!

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Some Observations

Did you ever notice that the harder you work and stress to fix a problem,the slower your progress gets? Maybe this does'nt happen to everyone, but it seems like the more I stress about something, the less efficient I get. I'm talking about negative stress here, the kind that gives "fight or fright" ir's name. When I get this way, I find that taking a break and relaxing can sometimes get things back on track. Sometimes it takes more than a break, it takes getting away from the problem completely for a day or two, just to hopefully, get a new perspective.

Of course there's the positive stress of being excited and turned on by a project.That's a whole different thing. Usually, the problem here is stopping long enough to relax and get some rest. If you get over-tired, you may find that stress going to the wrong kind and spoiling the "high" you got over the new project.

Most of the time, I'm just doing my job, trying to do my best work and feel good about it. I can hopefully do that without getting tired and/or discouraged enough to bring on the bad stress.

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

Looking Forward to Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is only 8 days away. It's a Holiday that most of us enjoy, but seems to get lost in the shuffle on a comercial level-except for grocery stores. My handicapped daughter loves Halloween, but this year she put all her Halloween decorations away a day early and started talking about "Turkey Day".(her term). She even forgot that her birthday was the week before Thanksgiving until I reminded her. I'm not sure what excites her, the food, the preparations, but mainly the traditions. She really gets insistant about traditions and it can be perilous to make changes without making sure you discuss it with her. I like Thanksgiving, the family together, at least as much as possible. I enjoy watching the Christmas parades on TV. This year, instead of pumpkin pie, we're haveing pumpkin cheesecake. I believe that we should practise thanksgiving every day of the year, not the eating, but the gratitude. Every single day of our lives there is something to be thankful for, even if it's just waking up still breathing in the morning. Most of us can find multiple blessings to count every single day, we just need to be aware of our lives. I try to think of "gratitudes" every night before sleep. It's great for your perspective!

Friday, November 10, 2006

A New Day?

Just a couple of things today. First, sorrow at the death of Ed Braddley, a reporter of honesty and integrity. He will be missed!
About the election results. Finally, the American People remembered that we have the power to change things if we'll only use it. Hopefully, the Democrats realise that the vote was more of a vote against the Republicans and less a vote of confidence for the Dems. Now it's up to the Democrats to show what they can do and to lead, not just occupy space or play political games. Hopefully, they can build some bipartisan bridges and actually get some work done.