Category Archives: Daily Life

16 Awards!!!! Starting with the Sunshine Blogger Award

06 Wednesday Jun 2012

Posted by in AWARDS, Daily Life

≈ 41 Comments

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I have 16 awards to work on.  Yes,  you heard me!  16!!  SIXTEEN!!!

I want to state for the record that I will mess up.

I know I will:

Forget to thank people

Forget to nominate blogs that really deserve a nomination

Nominate some blogs twice for the same award

Get the award rules confused

and for that I apologize in advance.

I am going to start with the Sunshine Blogger Award.

THE RULES

sunshine-blogger-award1

1.Repost the award in a post that includes the blog of the person that nominated you.

2.State 10 things about yourself.

3.Nominate 10 people.

1. Thank you to the following bloggers for thinking of me.  Each one of them is special to me in an unique way.  They have great blogs that I recommend you check it out.

http://frankoshanko.wordpress.com

http://thejoylevel.com/

http://thetopleftkey.wordpress.com

http://greatgreths.wordpress.com

2.Ten things about me (very random)

  1. I never had a peanut butter and jelly/jam sandwich
  2. I have stuffed animals on my bed to keep me company
  3. I have to have bread and butter every morning
  4. I work in the very non creative financial industry
  5. I graduated magna cum laude going to night/ weekend school and holding a full time job
  6. I adore anything coconut
  7. Faith and hope rule my life
  8. I enjoy tv a little too much
  9. I am nothing without God/Higher power
  10. I love rain and thunderstorms

3. My 10 nominees (times 4):

The good thing with getting many awards, other than feeling special, is getting to nominate a whole bunch of people.

The blogs I am nominating range from poetry to recipes, from photo blogs to dating life, from book reviews to bible verses and everything else in between.  They are new bloggers and old ones.  Some post everyday while others are less frequent. But they all have something to say and they all have commented on my blogs and I appreciate them all.  Go and check them out.

Without further ado and in no specific order:

http://waitingforthekarmatruck.com/

http://meditatingmummy.wordpress.com/

http://gypsyroxylee.wordpress.com/

http://crashleadership.com/

http://theblazingtrail.wordpress.com/

http://todayiprayed.wordpress.com/

http://silentlyheardonce.wordpress.com/

http://readersheaven.org/

http://grandmothermusings.com/

http://gswaterman.wordpress.com/

http://mylifeuncutalmost.wordpress.com/

http://veggiewitch.wordpress.com/

http://spiritualworldtraveler.wordpress.com/

http://catseyesk.wordpress.com/

http://maribelskidneystory.wordpress.com/

http://aspergersgirls.wordpress.com/

http://atasteofmorning.com/

http://photosunterwegs.wordpress.com/

http://ssbuckmaster.wordpress.com/

http://thenovicehousewife.wordpress.com/

http://zygerina.wordpress.com/

http://terriskitchenuk.wordpress.com/

http://pixilatedtoo.wordpress.com/

http://wordsandherbs.wordpress.com/

http://discoveranddevour.com/

http://dragonflydreamsandbutterflykisses.wordpress.com/

http://nickijay.com/

http://magikdolls.wordpress.com/

http://lostupabove.wordpress.com/

http://elladeewords.wordpress.com/

http://momentmatters.wordpress.com/

http://livinginfairyland.wordpress.com/

http://larrylootsteen.wordpress.com/

http://jnanahodson.net/

http://bareyournakedtruth.wordpress.com/

http://francineinretirement.wordpress.com/

http://laurasusanneyochelson.com/

http://beyondcenter.wordpress.com/

http://foreverpoetic.me/

http://creativenoshing.wordpress.com/

Now need to go and get to the other awards …

To Blog or not to Blog …

03 Sunday Jun 2012

Posted by in Daily Life, Finding Me

≈ 85 Comments

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The last few days I have been debating if I should continue blogging or not.

I started blogging to get stuff out of my chest, heart and mind. And it has helped – a lot! Then I received a comment to one of my posts that left me unsettled, sad and deeply hurt.  The impulsive Aries in me just wanted to stop blogging.  The hell with it, I don’t need this aggravation!

But nothing like time to give us clarity! After a couple of days I realized the following:

1) I don’t have as tough a skin as I thought I did.

I thought that after getting through all the hurdles and roadblocks to get to where I am today I was tough and hardened and things such as other’s opinion of me didn’t affect me.  I have had to fight for everything since arriving in the US at 17 years of age.  I heard a lot “no”s and derrogatory comments and somehow turned those in weapons to make me stronger (or so I thought).

Since when did I became so sensitive?  Something else for my list of things to work on.

2) I was taking things personally

One of my favorite books is “The Four Agreements” by Don Miguel Ruiz.  In it he says that if we live by 4 agreements we will experience personal freedom and a life infinitely better.  I am not going to discuss all 4, but one of the agreements is:

Don’t Take Anything Personally. Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.

It was so good to be reminded that I have been lax in living by the 4 agreements, specially this one.   It is freeing to realize that other’s words and actions are not about me, but based on person’s own problems, misconceptions, agendas, truths, etc.

3) I have a need to please people and want everyone to love and accept me

Why am I wanting/needing other’s approval and acceptance? I know that I cannot ever please everyone, therefore I must continue on my path to speak from the heart and my own truth at that very moment of writing.  If others misunderstand me, I will explain it as many times as necessary, but I will not change my truth to conform to a norm or acceptable standard.  I know who I am and what I am about, if some people get it wrong it is on them not on me.

4) Everyone is entitled to their opinion

I must respect the right of people to have an opinion and voice it.  If I say/write what I want, I must, therefore, be able to hear/read what I don’t want.  And I should be able to take it with class!  After all,  the comment section on my blog says: “Leave a comment”, and not” Leave a good comment”, therefore more than ever all comments are welcomed.

5) I love blogging too much to stop

Blogging has been Godsend to me.  It has given me my own voice back.  It has given me a connection to people, it has given me friendship. It has given me an alternative to lying in bed crying.

So, I decided I am not stopping! I am taking criticism and smiling (perhaps through tears).

I appreciate all comments, good or bad.  The harsh comments are the ones that will make me look inward and question myself.  The harsh comments are the little steps on my stairway to a better person.

ps. thank you sis for saying: Don’t stop it is helping you! and thank you Frank for reminding me to follow my heart!

Very Inspiring Blogger Award

30 Wednesday May 2012

Posted by in AWARDS, Daily Life

≈ 16 Comments

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I have received the Very Inspiring Blogger Award!!!

Thank you Paula http://paulaacton.wordpress.com for thinking of me with this award! She is a talented writer and mother.   She writes short stories, poetry and family.  I also enjoy her book reviews.  Please go check her out!

Here are the rules to this award:

Thank and link to the person who nominated you

Tell people 7 things about yourself

Nominate 7 people for the award with links to their pages for the for the Very Inspiring blogger award .

Here we go, 7 things about me:

1) I have an identical twin sister that I adore!

2) My first language is Portuguese. I was born in Brazil and travel there twice a year to see my family.

3) I love dogs, but don’t have any. I miss terribly the dog that I had with Ex. I don’t miss Ex anymore, I miss C., the dog.

4) I am not afraid of dying. I am afraid of getting old and losing my independence.

5) I choose to be happy on a daily basis. I am an optimist and feel blessed to be here.

6) My car is 25 years old. I hate driving and the best guy for me will enjoy driving me around.

7) Aries is my sun sign.  I am a horse in the Chinese horoscope. I am independent, born to be a leader, impulsive and stubborn.

I am choosing to nominate the blogs that have been my first followers and commentators.  Their support have inspired me to keep going.  They are all fun blogs that range from daily observations of life to poetry and everything else in between.  Please check them out!

1) Moments Matters. http://momentmatters.wordpress.com/

2) An etiquette guide for sluts. http://livinginfairyland.wordpress.com/

3) Ella Dee. http://elladeewords.wordpress.com.

4) Musings of the Amusing Muse. http://musingsoftheamusingmuse.com/

5) Larry Lootsteen. http://larrylootsteen.wordpress.com/

6) Jnana Hodson. http://jnanahodson.net

7) Denise. http://veggiewitch.wordpress.com/

Congratulations to the nominees. Let us all continue inspiring one another!

First e-harmony Date

29 Tuesday May 2012

Posted by in Daily Life, Dating, Reviews

≈ 43 Comments

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I would say that my first e-Harmony date went pretty well.  Everything close to perfect. It would have been perfect if I had liked him in a romantic way.

There was no chemistry.  At least on my part. Him?  I can safely say he was smitten and wants to pursue a relationship.

Let me give you a summary of the date.  We met in the lobby of his hotel (he is from another state). From there we took a cab to the Hurricane Club http://thehurricaneclub.com/

The place was a little louder and larger than I would have liked for a first date, but we started talking and enjoying ourselves that we just forget the loudness and largeness of the place.

The food was great. I specially enjoyed the Double-Crispy Beef.  The meat is so tender it melts in your mouth. Of course I had to have dessert and even though I am not eating chocolate for now, I managed to enjoy some of the Samoan (angel food cake, coconut and caramel). Coconut is my second favorite thing in the world.

Now, ladies and gents, I have a question.  Is it okay to take home the leftovers when you are on a date?  I hate to waste, specially food, so there was no way I was going to leave that beef behind.

**

From there he wanted to go to a roof top bar.  One would think that because I have been working in Manhattan for the past 12 years I would have a good idea of where to go – I didn’t! I managed to get lost while trying to find this one bar that I used to go to years ago.  We ended up near the Empire State and he suggested we go up.

Perhaps kind of lame, but it was great!

Even though they were announcing zero visibility we could see plenty. We stopped awhile at the 86th floor observatory and from there we went all the way to 102.

There were no lines, barely anyone was going up since they said you couldn’t see anything. I think that employees just wanted to leave early or something, you could see everything. The pictures don’t do justice to the view.

After that we took a pedicab to Times Square, and then walked to Grand Central, where we said good bye and I took my train home.

He was a true gentleman, evertyhing was perfect, the conversation flowed, we have the same values and habits, but I couldn’t see myself kissing him. And that to me is a deal breaker. If I can see myself kissing this person there is no way this can go any further.

What is your test to see if a second date is warranted? Does chemistry can suddenly materialize? I don’t think so, I think is either there or not there.

He has e-mailed and I replied saying I want to be just friends. He replied again and ignored that and when on to ask me how I want to be treated.

I am glad I got the first date out of the way. It was fun playing tourist and doing things I never done before (Empire State at night and pedicab ride). I was lucky that it went so well.  It got my spirits and hopes revived.

Next!!

The Beautiful Blogger Award

28 Monday May 2012

Posted by in AWARDS, Daily Life

≈ 14 Comments

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I have received 4 awards this weekend.  I feel overwhelmed with happiness and gratitude towards all the bloggers that nominated me and all that follow me.

But so it doesn’t feel too much like homework I will work on them slowly.

I will start with The Beautiful Blogger Award, which I received from Boomie Bol http://boomiebol.wordpress.com/

Thank you Boomie for thinking of me!! Your comments and support have been a bright light on my blog.

This one doesn’t seem to have many rules, here they are:

Thank and Link-back to your nominator;

~Nominate 7, 6, or fewer (or more) other blogs that you enjoy to receive this award as well;

~Post a comment on each of your nominees blogs with a link to your page for the details;

~Paste the Award image somewhere on your blog, if so desired;

So here are my nominees:

http://frankoshanko.wordpress.com/ – Frank is someone that used heartache and addictions as a springboard to the pursuit of self discovery and fulfillment. He is a person full of gratitude and love for life. His comments to my blog have been right on target and what I needed to hear. Thank you!

http://athingirl.com/ – Susannah is a smart, cultured and sophisticated city girl! She has a discerning eye for details and a creative mind to go along with that.  She has a fun way of writing about the world around her, normally describing details that we miss.  She tackles any subject with grace and humor. She has been  a very supportive blog friend! Thank you!

They are both beautiful people in and out, therefore deserving of this award!

Relationship Smarts?

24 Thursday May 2012

Posted by in Daily Life, Finding Me

≈ 52 Comments

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Disclaimer:  I happen to be a woman that has relationships with men. So when I write I write from that view point. I know that some fellow bloggers will be tempted to point out to me that women can be users too.  For the record: I understand and agree!

***

Are we ever smart enough not to be fooled by a man?  Are we ever aware enough not to confuse lust with love?

My verdict? No, never! No one is immune to a charming man.  No one is ever immune to the right words at the right time. No one is immune to physical chemistry, to that combination of want and need.

I know this woman, not really a friend, friend of a friend type of thing.  This woman is light years ahead of us mere mortals, as someone once described her.  She is a master at yoga, has read all the great books by great authors, has taken countless workshops, retreats, etc.  She has dedicated her life to the pursuit of knowing herself, body and mind.

I would think she would be able to spot a poser, a fake, from miles away, wouldn’t you? Not only she didn’t, she fell for it, hook, line and sinker!!

She called him: “The best choice I ever made”.  She wrote him notes proclaiming her love for him and “all his body parts”, thanking him for “amazing days together”.   And she started making plans for the future.

Fast forward a couple of months and guess what? She realized she had been deceived!  He is no longer her best choice, probably one of her worst.  As for loving all his body parts, she probably now has different ideas of what to do with them.

Moral of the story? No one is immune! If this woman fell for it, what are my chances?  If somebody so smart didn’t see the writing on the wall how can I, simple me, barely crawling on the road to self discovery have any chance?

I am not putting down this woman and all her knowledge, in fact I strive to have similar knowledge.

Perhaps because of the knowledge she has of herself and others she was able to figure him out within months, not years.  Some of us would be still there trying to make this relationship work.  For some of us it would have taken years of delusion, deception, pain and suffering.

I am really trying to be open to, not only to new romantic relationships, but to new friendships and new adventures, to the joy of having new people come into my life; but I am also trying to protect myself from needless pain. So I have to have my guard up, and at the same time not let the fear of getting hurt cripple me. It is a balance oftentimes hard to achieve.

I hope I will be able to pay more attention to the actions and not only to the words.   I hope I will not be blinded by appearances, and instead see the core.  As far as lust and love I am still trying to figure those out.  How do I distinguish between those two? Those are two equally great feeling in their own right.

This is what I have been doing in an effort to minimize my exposure to some of the men out there that don’t have the best intentions:

1)      I pray!  No shame in asking for help from above (or within).  I believe in the power of prayer.  So I pray to God to put good people in my path. I pray that when I encounter people not so great (we need them to learn and grow) that I can learn the lesson quickly and move on.

2)      I try to be the best person I can be!  I believe what I send out in the Universe comes back to me twofold, so if I am good, honest, generous, fun, etc, people that are similar and hold similar values will gravitate towards me.  I am becoming the person that I would like to hang out with.

3)      I am treating myself kindly!  I am being extra nice to myself. I am buying myself flowers, treating myself to nice dinners.  I am allowing myself to take naps.  When I make a mistake I don’t get mad with myself, I forgive myself quickly and move on.   I am paying attention to myself.  I am romancing myself.  That way I am not so needy and starved for attention that I will fall for anyone just because they are showing me attention and being caring.

4)      I am enjoying being single!  I am having fun.  Looking for a partner is no longer a priority. When and if he comes I will welcome him with open arms and we will have fun together, but in the meantime I am enjoying myself.  Being single and free has its perks.  No one to explain or justify anything.  I work each day on finding new joys in single-hood.

Are you able to pick the good ones from the bad ones? Are you able to distinguish between love and lust?

 

Over 200 Followers!!

24 Thursday May 2012

Posted by in Daily Life

≈ 19 Comments

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Happy! Happy!

I am writing to myself, but to have people reading it is the icing on the cake!

Thank you followers!!!

Ode to PMS

22 Tuesday May 2012

Posted by in Daily Life, Poetry

≈ 45 Comments

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I wake up and there is no spring in my step

Where is my smile

Where is my pep

Nothing seems worthwhile

Why this feeling of doom

The world seems so gloom

There is a dragon inside of me

Angry and breathing fire

Nothing in my mind seems to agree

This situation feels dire

I am enraged

I am sad

I am crazed

I can’t stand myself

Crying for no reason

Anything sets me off

I am not myself

Then, in an instant, I realize

And what a blessing it is to know

No more need to analyze

This soon will flow

This is just passing

And not long lasting

No need to despair

Just grin and bear

So welcome my friend

But don’t get too comfortable

Don’t even try to blend

This relationship has an end!

In another day or two or three

I will be free!!

shhh! Don’t tell anyone, but I took a nap today!!

21 Monday May 2012

Posted by in Daily Life

≈ 32 Comments

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I took a nap today! Yes, me!! The one that thinks that sleeping is wasting time.

I am forcing myself to some times do nothing! I have so many plan and ideas and I want to do them all now! But reality is, often times, I am busy, busy, busy with 300 different things and in the end I accomplish nothing.

I do lack focus, just one of the many things that I am trying to work on.

Just a quiet Sunday. Breakfast with the paper. Oh and speaking of the newspaper: Last weekend I was reading the Real Estate Section and saw the question and answer section, so I decide to e-mail the NY Times to ask them to answer a question that I have been pondering over for the last few months.

They say they cannot reply to your e-mail and will answer the question only in the paper. I wasn’t sure when and even if that they would answer.  So you can imagine my shock when I opened the paper yesterday and there is my question and the answer! I am so truly impressed! Thank you NY Times!!

Anyway, continuing with my Sunday, after breakfast I had my Pilates session, which I can’t stop raving about it.  Then ran some errands, then decided to go the park to get a beach and park pass.  That is where that picture above is from.

Got home without the pass because didn’t realize that they need 2 proofs of residency.  Oh well, but it was good just going there and getting the fresh air.

I worked a little bit on my mosaic project. Read a couple of chapters on a couple of books, took a nap.

There was something so luxurious and calming about it.  The idea that the world is going at many miles an hour and I decided to stop and do absolutely nothing just felt incredible!

I recommend it!!

Proud recipient of the Liebster Award!!

20 Sunday May 2012

Posted by in AWARDS, Daily Life

≈ 29 Comments

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I got the Liebster Award!!!

My second award! I am getting addicted to this, I mean used to this!( I do have an addictive personality)

I don’t want to seem dumb, but, who is Liebster or what is a Liebster? Was it a typo? perhaps it is Lobster?

As far as I understand, this one is awarded to new blogs that have under 200 followers. ok, I qualify on both counts. Perhaps Liebster is the “keep going, don’t give up” award!

Whatever it means, I feel special getting it! Getting any award is fun!!! Well getting anything is fun, some times even getting a cold can be fun (you know, staying home from work, in bed, watching tv, mom making chicken soup).
 
Thank you http://boomiebol.wordpress.com/ for thinking of me!

This should be an easy award to accept and pass it forward, but of course not that easy to this newbie.  And here is where my WordPress blog ignorance will really shine: How do I know how many followers a blog has?

So I am going to figure that and then return and update this post.

In the meantime if anyone can give me the answer and save me some time, I will be forever grateful.