Quotes That Resonate

"Having a strong desire or being successful does not mean that you are going to feel great all the time. No matter how enlightened I become, I will not be positive all the time. You have to understand the swing of the pendulum. It must swing back and forth. The only other alternative is to sit still in neutral, which is precisely what most people do."

~Thomas D. Willhite~

Friday Is Reason Enough To Be Happy

Don't you agree? It doesn't matter if you work a regular Monday through Friday job or some other combination of days, everyone seems to agree that Fridays have a special appeal. I know there is no other day that I wake up feeling like I do on Fridays. What do you think, is Friday reason enough to be happy?

Happy Talk

Did you know that having a meaningful conversation can actually boost your mood? A recent study suggests that interaction with others may have a positive effect on your happiness. In this study, those who reported the greatest levels of well-being spent less time alone and more time talking with others. In addition, the happiest study participants were twice as likely to engage in deep conversations and truly connect with other people, and one-third less likely to make "small talk." While it can be fun to talk about your favorite television show or the latest celebrity, according to this study, the key to "happy talk" is to focus on having conversations with substance. Share!


Source: www.healthfinder.gov

The Roses Are Not All Rosey

Part 2 of Is Your Outlook A Habit:

I pointed out in the last post about how Dave seems to be "happy" when he is feeling life's pain. That wasn't to bash Dave, it was to merely point out what I have been observing as we have begun tackling some of our personal issues. The other point I wanted to make about the habit of the way we see things is that the "Bright Side" is not always the best outlook. There are times when I immediately go to what is good in a situation and miss what I really need to see.

I could be called gullible or naive' in that I will automatically gravitate to what is good or how good can come from the bad when in fact, it might be better to recognize that the situation or person I am dealing with sucks! It's bad and we need to address that it's bad. For me that means I made a poor choice or led us into the bad situation. I don't like that feeling...much the same way I suspect Dave doesn't like the feeling of "happy-happy, joy-joy" that he sees me expressing so often. It's not that he doesn't want to be happy, I believe he feels it can't be real when it's as frequent as it is with me. It can and it is, but there may be times when it's not as certain as it could be.

So here is where we are...he's asking himself if he gets off on the pain while I'm pondering if I'm masking my inability to deal with the negative feelings by smiling and looking at the bright side. What do you think, are these habits that we can break or do you think there's more to it? I'll let you know what we discover as we make our way through this journey.

Is Your Outlook On Life A Habit?

I would go out on a limb and say it is. Dave and I have been making some changes in our lives as individuals which spills right over into out life as a family. What I'm finding as we tackle the things we want to improve is that the way we see our day-to-day life is a habit.

I see things through rose colored glasses, almost always seeing the bright side. Dave tends to lean toward what is not pleasing him, the things he wants to be see improved. Now don't get me wrong, there are things I want to be better but I don't talk about it much, I just do what I think it will take to change it. Dave is not the doer in the same way I am.

Here is where the habit theory comes in, we both have our knee-jerk reaction to whatever it is. For me, it's usually whatever is good in the situation and what's not, well, I do something about it. Dave will typically get right to verbalizing whatever it is about the thing or situation that he doesn't like. He may add in something positive or of value, but going down the "what's wrong" road first, makes the compliment seem contrived, basically, not sincere. It's my observation too, that Dave doesn't do anything about what's wrong. He simply wants to make the point and keep living with the pain. This is clearly a habit, the way we have both done things for so long, it's just what we do...how we see things.

What do you think, is your outlook on your day to day life a habit? Can you change it? Do you want to? I have one more piece to this theory that I'll post next week. Let me know what you think, I really am interested.

Happy!

It's Not Tragic, It's Life!

It's not some tragedy that things go wrong, it's merely life. If we didn't have the crap, it would be impossible to appreciate the wonder. We all have so much to be grateful for even if the car needs new tires (air in twice each day), the bed needs repair, the insurance isn't covering the new computer, all the vehicles need smogging AND registering at the same time, and we are having to fight to keep the government from attaching Dave's wages for a bill we already paid! Yes, we have the proof, but they say they can't stop the process. Really? Next time I'm finding all is going well, I will know how I know! Big smiles and Happy Monday!

Lazy Summertime and Crashed Computers!

I guess this is the perfect time for my computer to crash...if there really is ever such a thing! I have been struggling with getting mine replaced, but to be very honest, unplugging has me spending more time outside with Mason.

I have to, at some point, get a new laptop but for now, my posts will not be three times per week. Mason goes back to school in the next three weeks and I figure I will push harder to get back to work then!

Let's just call this a little August Hiatus! Why don't you take one, too. Smiles!