In further conversation with that passenger I traded emails with last week, we talked about helpful, inspirational reading which brought to mind a book I read in my 20's titled "On a Clear Day You Can See Yourself..." by Sonya Friedman.It made a HUGE impact on my self-esteem and confidence. In it she outlined 9 Facts of Life and I took those 9 "facts" to heart and copied them down into every journal I kept for the next couple of years. They became a permanent part of my subconscious and made my life bearable. (I won't get into all the details of why I thought life was so hard at the time because frankly I don't remember why!) I think they're still important and being reminded of them won't hurt me any. (They are now posted and residing here ..well actually over there -----> (scroll down a bit)) While looking through the journals to find what I needed, I noticed in the back of a couple of them some poetry and quotes I had copied down from various authors/books and I'll share a couple of "gems" I liked.
These are from a journal kept between August/September 1994 to March 11, 1995
"I've suffered a lot of catastrophes in my life - many of which never occurred"
Mark Twain
----isn't that freakin' brilliant???
and a cool poem by ?? (didn't make any note of her name, but maybe it'll come to me)
Love me with your whole heart
or give no love to me
Half-love is a poor thing,
neither bond nor free
You must love me gladly
soul and body too,
or else find a new love
and goodbye to you
And now from a journal kept between August 3 and December 22, 1995. Some favorites written by Dorothy Parker.
The Flaw In Paganism
Drink and dance and
laugh and lie,
Love, the reeling
midnight through.
For tomorrow we
shall die!
(But alas, we never do)
(I wonder at these choices of poems I wanted to "keep" when I was a young 'un at that tender age of 25/26.)
Unfortunate Coincidence
By the time you swear
you're his,
shivering and sighing,
and he vows his
passion is infinite,
undying -
Lady, make a note
of this:
One of you is lying.
Experience
Some men break your
heart in two,
some men fawn and
flatter,
some men never look
at you;
and that clears up
the matter.
Ah, the memories. I had been introduced to Dorothy Parker by a roommate of S's at the time when he still lived here in MN. Her sharp wit was appealing to my cynical self. I read a lot of her poetry and then watched "Dorothy Parker and the Vicious Circle" (wasn't Jennifer Jason Leigh's portrayal of her excellent?). Most of what I copied down is of the "aren't men bastards" persuasion. Yeah, I can see that appealing to me around that time. I'm sure it was during one of the "off" times with B. Being a drama queen I loved stuff that said what I wanted to say in a more ...dramatic fashion.
While the anal part of me wants to now take every single journal and add them to my computer (so I don't have to lug the box of them around), I won't. I don't think I could bear to re-live the past while typing it up or catching glimpses while scanning pages into the computer. Besides, what would I do with these lovely books (because I liked buying artsy journals) when I was done? The whole point being to get rid of them. Maybe I could have a bonfire and burn them in a symbolic gesture of erasing the past. Invite friends over and make it a party. Nah. I've got more important things to do with my time right? Right.
As I was digging through boxes, I also wanted to pull out my photo albums so I can scan and post pictures that will soon jazz up my Facebook page. Choosing photos was an interesting job. I'm opting for some not-so-recent photos of family and friends and very few of myself (the ones of me are where I don't look stupid or have an awful haircut -there are a LOT of those!) I'm reminded again that I really should get the rolls of film I've had forever developed, since they'll have the more recent photos.
It's a gorgeous day and as usual, I'm inside. But I'm being productive! I'm doing laundry and doing this blog entry. Later I'll be scanning photo's on to the computer. I'm just so glad to not be working today.
Musings from a big and beautiful sometimes "drama queen" on her current state of existence
What's It All About?
"The unexamined life is not worth living." Socrates
While you’re here, in this time and in this space, you are beautiful and you are perfect.
You are right where you need to be to get to where you want to go, so start asking yourself where you want to go.
Noire
She'll be 2 years in 2 months! Time flies!
Things I'm grateful for everyday....
- My family
- My friends, old and new.
- A roof over my head.
- My computer & internet access
- Being employed (even if I don't always like things about my job)
- The public library and the joy of borrowing books with/on/for my Kindle
- That I can walk on two legs, use 2 arms/hands, have ten fingers/toes, can see and hear, etc. (uh, no offense to anyone who is physically challenged)
- Other people's creativity and efforts
- The love of a good man (he IS good)
- My friends, old and new.
- A roof over my head.
- My computer & internet access
- Being employed (even if I don't always like things about my job)
- The public library and the joy of borrowing books with/on/for my Kindle
- That I can walk on two legs, use 2 arms/hands, have ten fingers/toes, can see and hear, etc. (uh, no offense to anyone who is physically challenged)
- Other people's creativity and efforts
- The love of a good man (he IS good)
Current Favorite Quotes
“Be content with what you have, rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.” - Lao Tzu
"The privilege of a lifetime is to be who you are." ~ Joseph Campbell
"Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." ~ Charles Dickens
"We either make ourselves miserable or we make ourselves happy. The amount of work is the same." -Carlos Castañeda
"..there’s something lovely about knowing that when it’s right, you really know it’s right because you’ve already been through all the wrong." ~ Sade
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." ~ Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss)
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." —Mark Twain
(This bit not so much as a quote but somethings I wrote down that I want to keep and this looks like a good place to do it)
7-25-07
1. Almost everything comes from almost nothing.
2. The best way to predict your future is to create it.
3. Leap and the net will appear.
"The privilege of a lifetime is to be who you are." ~ Joseph Campbell
"Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." ~ Charles Dickens
"We either make ourselves miserable or we make ourselves happy. The amount of work is the same." -Carlos Castañeda
"..there’s something lovely about knowing that when it’s right, you really know it’s right because you’ve already been through all the wrong." ~ Sade
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." ~ Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss)
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." —Mark Twain
(This bit not so much as a quote but somethings I wrote down that I want to keep and this looks like a good place to do it)
7-25-07
1. Almost everything comes from almost nothing.
2. The best way to predict your future is to create it.
3. Leap and the net will appear.
Facts of Life (per Sonya Friedman)
- 1. No one can bring your life to you
- 2. No matter what you do, someone important isn't going to like it
- 3. Though painful, rejection won't kill you - it may even lead to growth
- 4. Every choice means giving up something different
- 5. Some people aren't capable of giving you what you're trying to get from them
- 6. The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others
- 7. There are no quick fixes that can permanently change your life
- 8. Life is on a rheostat, not an on/off switch
- 9. Some problems cannot be solved - but you can make peace with them