Sunday, December 29, 2013

2014.....are you ready?

Well only a few more days left to the year.  I haven't written in awhile....not because of lack of time or inspiration, but because of disappointment.  When you write a blog, you can write privately or share.  I was so disappointed after sharing on facebook to see where traffic to my blog was coming from.  The surprise and again disappointment led me to stop writing.  Which in the end left me disappointed in myself because I didn't fulfill a goal and blamed someone other then myself.   Each year I set my goals, and see what happens.  I think 2013 was a miracle.  We as a family have had so much of our hard work come shining through.  My children graduated college....not a small feat!  My mother was so sick when she was treated her heart stopped beating and was put on a respirator.  After a month in the hospital, I think she is better then ever at 80!  Our store was able to open and Glen opened a second location called Covers and he received a patent for a design of a record tree.  Kaylyn went to China and taught kindergarten for a month and a half.  Ian has played with at least 6 different bands and ended up touring with a band  to England and Germany with Glen joining him for a week.  Glen and I really enjoyed this summer following Ian around and enjoying a great band at great locations we would never known about if it wasn't for them.  Like spending a Sunday in the pinelands of New Jersey is my new favorite way to spend a  day off.  I have started back at a job I am very comfortable in.  I am exhausted, but am ready for 2014 to start again and renew some goals and travel!!!!!  Looking forward to picking a word for 2014!!!  Truely grateful for the miracles of 2013!  Wishing you a Happy New Year and may all your dreams and wishes come true!

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Talk about a dream........try to make it REAL

Lights out tonight, trouble in the heartland.
Got a head-on collision, smashin in my guts man.
Im caught in a crossfire that I don't understand.
But there's one thing I know for sure girl:
I don't give a damn for the same old played out scenes
I don't give a damn for just the in-betweens.
Honey I want the heart, I want the soul, I want control right now.
You better listen to me baby:
Talk about a dream; try to make it real.
You wake up in the night with a fear so real.
You spend your life waiting for a moment that just don't come.
Well don't waste your time waiting


Lyrics to songs.....listen to a song and have it have a whole new meaning when you hear it two days later.  On Friday night as I drove home from a full day at work.  It was my day off, but I went in anyway I went in extra early and still left late feeling defeated and drained in every sense of the words......felt very uninspired.  I listen to E Street radio and it is an escape.  Well, Jim Rotolo's show was on live this Friday night and they were talking about Bruce's live box sets.  One of my favorites to talk about in the store too....starting to get ironic.  But, then someone calls from Asbury Park and my heart is lifted.  So, happy to hear someone telling the world to visit Asbury in the off season.  Then Jim Rotolo actually mentions me and then the caller Frank mentions Glen.  JOY sets in.  I am elated.  What better song to celebrate then to sing along to Badlands.
Saturday I get in the car to work a late shift.  Echoes of Glen warning me to put the @#$@$%& insurance card in my car that has been sitting on the kitchen counter for weeks.  I put it in the car and start noticing how neglected my car is that has been so good getting me back and forth this sixth day of working this week.  I start driving.....I think I should make a quick stop on my way to get some supplies to make some things for Greetings from Geralyn.  I then decide I am doing the wrong thing that there will be lines.  I should call work in case I am late.  I look with one hand in my bag to make sure I have the number......I know I should just wait........I stop looking....now I am stopped at a traffic light....I should look again  I look down and decide it's a bad idea.  I take my foot off the brake and the next thing I know I have hit the car in front of me.....life changes in a second.  Racing thoughts and I have to make sure the person in front of me is ok.......I then see the dog cages in the back and have to be reassured they are ok.  The person I hit goes on to tell me what a horrible day she is having and is very sweet...I am repeating I am sorry over and over again.  I am not thinking right and am happy to just sit back in the car and just think.........think......think.   What if I didn't put the insurance card back in my car? ALL  the all ifs are running through my brain.  I instantly have an I give up attitude swimming through me......like a deflated balloon I wait and wait and wait for the police to arrive.  But, I sit and go from a shaking mess to calm.  I call Glen.....I call my manager and tell them what is up.  Long story short.......I am not hurt....the person in front of me is not hurt.....my car has damage to the plastic  bumper.....I still am not sure if I damaged her car...will have to see what the accident report says.  The officer gives me a ticket but tells me to go to the court date to fight it.  I write down what he tells me.  I surprisingly drive to work and arrive to work about a half and hour late which shocks me because I sat there for 40 minutes.     I work my shift and drive home.  Wake up this morning and tell Glen to listen at 8am for the repeat of the radio show.  I end up driving to Starbucks to refuel my tank (it is empty at this point).  I listen again to the songs that lifted my spirits so much on Friday.  Jersey Girl and those words of my job leaving me so uninspired......No Surrender is meaning don't give up Geralyn.....hang in there!!!  And finally they talk about Convention Hall again and I feel so GRATEFUL!  And then the words of every lyric in Badland has a different meaning for me, as always.  But, now I REALLY have a head on collision to deal with not just with my car, but my life!  Why do the lyrics from Bruce's song ring so true to me?  Why sometimes is it just not my feeling that, but something REAL happening?  Why did my husband stress the importance of putting the insurance card in my car?  All I feel to help me IS to  make sure I am on board......I am on the train......I am on that track and damn it......I am rising above these Badlands anyway I know how and that is by showing up!!!!!  I am on board!!!!  Get ready because this train is still a roller coaster for me, but I believe with all my heart that it may be a wild ride but, it is one that is worth it!!!!!!  It ain't no sin to be glad you are alive.

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Superstorm Sandy a year later......

This picture was taken in 1986.  Notice the tape on the windows above.  Glen ended up building a beautiful deck with a firepit, corner gardens and benches all around.  We celebrated the firemen winning the County Bowling championship and had many summer evenings spent back there.  We sold this house.  We survived many storms living there, before selling it about ten years ago.  The house is just an empty lot now.  Sandy knocked the house right off it's foundation.  It was torn down and not even a piece of wood is left there.  The same goes for the house Glen grew up in and later renovated by putting in a brand new kitchen.
     Now, that Glen and I are in our fifties we have made a lot of decisions.  For me, I was tired of watching Glen work so hard.  He worked physically hard as a union carpenter.  Financially a very tough way of living.  Building in this country has had it's highs and lows.  So, during the lows Glen would work on our houses.  Once, the children were born we had two houses for him to spend endless hours not only renovating but, making larger.  Always having the big picture in mind.
     Circumstances and finances started to change when our house values became better.  But, on our income it became harder and harder to afford our property taxes.  It was time to sell.  When, we sell our first home we invested in finishing our home we lived in.  We changed the liner in the pool.  The utility bills were huge and way beyond our means.  When my dad died, we still weren't completely finished with the house.  But, we had family come up from Texas and a week to get ready.  So, Glen put wallpaper on the walls and we were proud to show our house as finished for the first time.  We had savings and investments and the stock market tanked along with what we had put aside for the children for their education.
     So, long story short we ended up selling that beautiful home that you could call our dream house.  Glen had changed every wall.  Built a second floor with a master bedroom and bath and a room of their own for Ian and Kaylyn.  Built me a kitchen that I designed.  Put in a  bathroom where you would walk in the back from the pool.  We had many celebrations in that back yard.  Prom pictures were taken by our fireplace and we felt proud to have this be our home while the children were in their teenage years.
      Senior year the department store I worked at closed.  But, I was able to see every activity my children were in.  We had the time to throw the cast party for a play Kaylyn starred in.  We went to every Jazz band concert and marching band activity Ian was in.  But, as the decision came for college they both decided on the same.  University of the Arts.....googled it.....oh my god.....$30,000 a year......times 2 !!!!!!!
        So, the real estate market is bad.......really bad!!!!!   I get a full time job in Princeton for a year.  Glen wants to retire and he should there is no building going on.  But, their education is going to cost $240.000!!!!!!  Yes, scholarships and grants helped.  But, here we are and they did have to take out student loans that become due this month.
    So, when Sandy hit we are in our new home.....five miles from the beach.  No big trees,  utilities are all underground.  Glen is still a fireman, but he stays home for the first time.  Ian is a fireman and sleeps at the firehouse for three nights. We have a store in Convention Hall on the boardwalk in Asbury Park.  We food shop and watch the storm unfold on tv and on the computer.  The wind and rain starts early and there is a constant worry.  When I am watching tv I see Anderson Cooper on the boardwalk and what I see is devastating and realize it was filmed earlier.......the tv goes off and total darkness sets in.  I still have the battery on the  computer and then my son starts posting pictures and I ask him to stop I can't take it.  I see the medallion in the Casino building in Asbury Park is blown in......I see trees falling around us. I see pictures of trees on houses.  I close the computer and vow not to open it again.   I hear the wind howling for hours......candles our blown out and we go to bed and end up sleeping until daylight.

This Hard Land (Kilkenny 07/28/13)

Sunday, October 13, 2013

Birthday blessings

 Sun Halo in the spring.......never saw in my lifetime until this year.  Without facebook I would have never known to look outside to see this....and without my iphone I would not have taken a picture.
I have mentioned shark's teeth and my dad before.  We used to search for days on end and we never found much together.  Towards the end of the summer a huge slab of cement fell off the ceiling on the Northeast corner of Convention Hall.....it did NOT hurt anyone....thank god!  But, it was a sign of what is to come for the building....the entire building is not safe.  Our store is open, but the future is unclear.  The day this happened I had not had my day at the beach, so I decided to combine a visit to the store and the beach.  We weren't sitting long on the beach and my husband said let's go look at the damage.  I took two steps from my chair and this is what I found!  A sure sign to me that all will be ok.
     So, these are a couple of signs in my year of a miracle....the others include:

Kaylyn and Ian graduating from college
Kaylyn landing an internship teaching kindergarten in China and being there for 9 weeks.
Ian playing with 6 different bands currently.  I included the picture video above because in November he leaves with the Billy Walton band to play in Germany and England
I got a job as Department Manager for Boscov's
Glen is still working driving the bus for Colt's Neck school system
My mom was very sick and on a respirator, but has healed and looks better then ever

As we move into November I am truely grateful for my blessings.

Pete Feenstra interviews Billy Walton and William Paris - All Saints Art...

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Who could make up this birthday wish?

So last year I had an amazing birthday with my family in New York city.....we went to see the Warhol show at the Met, had macarons from Lauderee, went to this gallery full of rock celebrity photographs, stuffed our faces in Little Italy and topped it off for a walk through Greenwich village to look through galleries and record stores.  The best!!!!!  This year I am spending the weekend watching my son play the trombone with the Billy Walton Band.  This is a dream being played out like no other.  I don't know how Billy Walton is doing it, but it is starting to play with my head.  The first time I saw them play was down at Golden Nugget in Atlantic City.  Billy has a very cool style of playing the guitar full of blues and soul.  He also does not have a set list.  So, it is sort of a mystery night of sorts to see what he will play.  Well, the first time he started playing a Chicago song which includes the horns, of course.  But, as soon as the horns would have a part he would stop.  Wow!!!! What a tease.  So, each time I see them now I stop pulling out my camera, because in the beginning I thought I would catch a video that would mean so much.  As, my husband and Ian are such big Chicago fans.  The last few times he does get to the horn part and actually starts a verse and then ends it real quick.  I am starting to think the only thing I am wishing for is a full version of this song and hope I catch it on video........let's say if prayers are answered, weather cooperates, phone battery charged......I could maybe show you a video of the best birthday ever!!!!!

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Badlands

 These our some pictures of our check it out America summer.  This picture was taken in Orlando after a day at Disney.  The sunset, the camper, and Glen being relaxed.  It was a great day and I am so glad I have pictures to remember it by.
 This is the day we had a visit with Glen's family and they took this picture of us.  Yes, our dog Chivas accompanied us cross country.  A challenge sometimes when we had to go to dinner together and it was hot.  But, as you can see in the following picture he really enjoyed the trip.
 I remember thinking our dog had the best life.   He got to enjoy his golden years by traveling with us.
 Glen and I would agree this was the BEST breakfast we ever had.  We rode horseback to see Mount Rushmore close up.  Then at the top of the mountain we all got off our horses and watched as the crew made pancakes and sausage on the grill.  They cooked the sausage in the maple syrup and the weather and view was perfection.  The shade of the giant trees and the sound of nothing but, birds and rustling leaves made it absolutely perfect.  The smell of the breakfast cooking was pretty special also!

And, finally seeing the BADLANDS in person.  When you drive cross country it is an amazing experience.  By the time you get to Kansas you realize how much corn this country actually grows.  We experienced so many unexpected parts of the country.  It was like life itself.  In the beginning of our trip our camper broke down.  We were advised we should go to Indiana where they actually make the campers.  We ended up in the heart of Amish country.  It was nothing like Lancaster, PA.....it was real Amish country where we experienced so much culture we knew not too much about.  Very unplanned and could have been negative since we were experiencing a broken camper, but ended up a favorite part of the trip.  Hence, the song Badlands.  Like I said in the post before Badlands got me through my teenage years.  But, so many times in my life it has helped me know I get through anything with my strong belief system.  Glen and I are different religions, different genders, different personalities, etc. etc. but, we have the same beliefs.  We lose faith in our country from time to time, but deep down we want what we had for our children......but, better!!!!!

Monday, September 23, 2013

On Bruce's birthday I thought I would reflect on the American Dream verses American Reality.  The ideas, hopes and dreams of our generation.  How when I was graduating high school our economy tanked.  How the eighties were seen historically as an economic boom, but yet it was the time of the angriest music including punk and heavy metal.  When Glen and I were first married and Born in the USA came out and we questioned why it is thought of as patriotic......but, it is true reality and that is why it is a good song to represent us.  The sixties a great time in American history, especially with Art, music, television and the movie industry.  Yet, the most turbulent with civil rights tensions, assassinations, Vietnam war, etc.  The music tends to be an escape...if it's good or bad times the music tends to reflect it.   When Wrecking Ball first came out....I was so disappointed.  I listened to it in the car and cried a lot.  Then Sandy came and went and Wrecking Ball had a new meaning.  This storm did a lot of physical damage, but the psychological and economic blows it took will not be wiped away anytime soon.  But, now I listen to Wrecking Ball and it is so helpful.......hard times come..........hard times go.  I am in awe of the depth of songwriting of Bruce Springsteen.  I am thankful that I have the music to help me through the hard times and celebrate the good times.  I remember the first time I put the needle on the record of Badlands and how it helped me through the end of my teenage years.........you just gotta get through the bad times and know just around the corner is the light of day.

Bruce Springsteen discusses "Wrecking Ball"

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Talk About a Dream........Try to Make It Real

This is the most haunting picture I ever took.  I remember taking it and thinking my children were growing so fast.  We were cruising out of New York City and appreciating the New York skyline.  Little did we know how much life would change after this picture was taken.  But, really life is about changing, growing and dealing with loss.  After all, life changes everyday and we grow older.  Is it a loss or a gain?  Well, I guess that is how you look at life?  I have always been conservative, not ready to dive into anything without a certain amount of time given to make sure I was making the right decisions.  I am so happy I was blessed with twins, because it never gave me the time to think. I just did what I had to do and focused on keeping my children safe and healthy.  Then something huge happens like 9/11 which was totally out of my control.  But, I knew after this I had to be the best example for my children.  Just go on going on....take them to school and get back to work.  I had started a new job twelve years ago and we were about to open the Boscov's at Monmouth Mall and I remember our local economy was already on the decline.  Boscov's closed in 2008 and I was lucky to find a job within six months as an assistant manager for Paper Source in Princeton.  It was a dream job for me.  Kaylyn and Ian were attending college and Glen was ready to retire.  After six months working this dream job, every morning I woke up with one thought and one thought alone.  I have to have a store of my own.  Every morning I woke up with a space in Asbury Park in mind.  Before I knew it each morning the store was filling with merchandise.  What makes you have dreams like this?  What creates that thought in your head?  What makes you leave a dream job and sign a lease for that storefront in your dreams the next day.  What makes you take a leap of faith without any consideration for anyone else?  I know I never did anything like this before, because I was afraid of the risk financially and the fear of failure.  All I know is I don't have any regrets for this decision.  I have met people I would have never met.  It ended up a great creative outlet for Glen, also.  Well, thanks for reading my reflections on the day after 9/11.  Raise a glass, raise a flag to our land of hopes and dreams and may all your dreams come true!

Monday, August 12, 2013

Land of Hope and Dreams

http://youtu.be/gtAK1EQC2uA
EVERY morning driving to work  I hear this song.  It plays on E Street Radio at 7:30 am.  Sometimes I am picking up my co-worker and I am saying all aboard as the door opens for her to get into the car.  It is the perfect song to hear as you face a day of hard work.  We filled our store in two and half weeks.
We dropped boxes in departments, planned where the merchandise would go, processed or hung the merchandise on the fixtures, communicated with buyers and our new co-workers, and opened this weekend to large crowds of customers.  Opening a store is exciting and challenging.  Now, we finally get some time off, but it is hard not to be there, hoping all is going well.
   We had some local people win the powerball lottery last week.  When faced with the question of showing up to work the next day, I often wonder if I would.          I would.   I work for the money and security, but I find to be the best person I can be it is not just about having money.  It is finding something you enjoy and having someone appreciate it.  I work for a company that is family owned.  The owner is in his eighties.  He has been in the store for twelve hours a day since opening and has come to my department several times.  He came to me yesterday to shake my hand and say thank you.  Sometimes when you work for someone that is all you need.  A warm handshake, direct eye contact and a thank you.  Yes, I work for the paycheck.  But, I know when I saw him on the first day I shook his hand and said thank you to him.  I appreciate the work and he appreciates me.  That is all you need sometimes.  I am back onboard and it feels good.....every bone in my body aches, but all will be back to normal soon.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Mirror mirror on the wall........

.....Will my life have a fairy tale ending after all?
 Every corner is not perfect, but it contains memories of my jobs and what I love.  This corner has a mini Spode plate I was given on a buying trip to New York City when I worked for Brielle Galleries.  Above it is a tiny eiffel tower I purchased when in Paris, France.
This contains a  pin from when I first had my twins and it was hard to get out of the house.  I started doing home parties for The Homemakers Idea Company and I sold baskets.  That is one of my favorites because it shows home is where the heart is.  And, it makes me remember how wonderful and supportive my friends and family were who had or went to a party of mine.
 This corner shows a little Madame Alexander pin which I wore at the Grand Opening of Boscov's at Monmouth Mall in the year 2001 and shows how life is a circle as I am working for them and training to open a Boscov's in Woodbridge in August.
 This one shows a little teapot and the rectangular piece on the bottom is a barrette I bought on a trip to Mexico and has sat in my jewelry box since 1975.
 This one has a pin from Crabtree and Evelyn which planted in my head the idea of owning my own store one day.
 This is the finished mirror and when I look into each day I can feel thankful, loved, well traveled, and accomplished.  Those are great feelings to have.  To be creative, to me, is one of the best feelings in the world.  First to have the idea and hold on to it.  Then think about it and collect objects I might use some day is the most fun.  Then to finally finish the project and not how I intended.  And finally liking it more, because it is my idea and not someone elses.  Yes, life is like a mosaic and to make one on a mirror to reflect my life, well that is satisfying to say the least!  I also would like to thank Mark Montano for all of his inspiration in his books:  Big Ass Book of Crafts  and glue e6000 which I won in a contest and used for this project.

Saturday, June 29, 2013

Once Upon A Dream

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Thursday, June 13, 2013

Willie Nile - American Ride

This reward of traveling cross country we gave ourselves.....not just once but, three times that year.  Glen had lost his father a few years before and they were VERY close.  We even lived with him for a period of time when we renovated our beach house.  We took a train, plane and then my favorite our Voyager(sometimes referred to as the Voyageralyner) and a pop camper cross country.  We called it the check it out America tour.  We mainly went to visit Glen's dad's younger brother and family.  But, we also wrote down every single thing we always wanted to see in this most wonderful country of ours.  No regrets, no thoughts of how we wished we went somewhere.  We went to almost every National Park out west.  We would buy a classical music CD and ride, ride, ride through the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone.  It was a dream come true for both of us.  We contemplated moving to our three choices.  St. Augustine, FLA, Kansas City or Camano Island north of Seatlle, WASH.  We came home and sold the camper and after renting the house out, I think we actually broke even and had a trip of a lifetime.

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Working on the Rewards


Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Bruce Springsteen - My Beautiful Reward - MTV 1992 (Subtitle ITA)


Well, we are half way into year and I feel I need to conclude all that I have written already.  Rewards....as a youth I didn't get any.  Jobs, yes, I worked all through high school and summers.  I was a chambermaid at the Country Club Motel and the Warren Hotel.  I worked at Evelyn's in Belmar from the age of sixteen until I was twenty-five.  I never received a blue ribbon or a trophy.  When I graduated High School they announced my name to stand up because I graduated with honors.  Really?  I had no clue until that moment.  I went home and read the graduation program and saw where classmates were going to college and the scholarships they received---I did not receive any.  I went to Brookdale Community College, because when my father asked what I was doing....he said I better do SOMETHING!  I always had money to see whatever movie or concert I wanted.  At this point I had seen Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes with Springsteen and Miami Steve closing the show Many times, the Eagles, Jackson Brown, Leo Sayer, etc.   My friends and I were going to the local bars like The Ship Wheel, Royal Manor, Silver Dollar, The Osprey, the Ale House, the Headliner and dancing to the best bar bands ever!!!!  It was a fun way of life.  I met Glen two months after I turned eighteen and we continued going to the same places and dancing almost every night away.  Life was good.  I enrolled at Bloomsburg State College the next Spring and attended for three years.  After I left there, still working at Evelyn's now as a waitress Glen and I got engaged and married a year later.  Whewwww......we bought our first house the next Spring.  It was a 1920's bungalow on Brielle Road and located across street from the water slide and beach in Manasquan.  We didn't even have to step off the curb to get home from Leggett's or the Osprey.  Glen worked very hard as a union carpenter and I still waitressing.  Life was good.  We worked for many years with whatever extra money we had to put on a second floor and a modern kitchen and bathroom.  Glen drew the plans and I couldn't wait to decorate it when it was done.  It seemed like we worked on it for many years.  We decided we were ready to start a family and much to our surprise that ended up not being very easy.  It involved me having to go on for fertility drugs and I had surgery to help.  We rented our house out one summer and traveled cross country.  At this point we had been married for seven years and I took one year and went back to college and received a degree in Art from Georgian Court College.   This trip was a reward we gave ourselves....talking ourselves out of the guilt we felt by taking a summer off.  We both had worked very hard every summer since we were thirteen and we had to tell each other (many times) we deserved it.  It was I think life changing for us.  We almost moved to Washington state, but I had to go with my gut and decide to go back home and continue my infertility treatment with the same doctor I had been seeing for the past year.  When I went to college I had a great job merchandising costume jewelry to area stores and another job at Crabtree and Evelyn on third avenue in Spring Lake.  I loved my job at Crabtree and Evelyn and it made me fall in love with Spring Lake all over again.  My dream was to own a store, have children, own a bunglow on the beach and live happily ever after.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Making the most of moments to make good memories!

 Have you ever had a moment?  You know, a moment in time when you feel perfect.  You feel like the planets have a aligned and you just feel like every thing is right in the world.  My latest moment like this was when my husband and I went on a cruise to the Bahamas.  We went on Carnival and there was a lot of bad news with 3 different Carnival cruise ships before we left on this cruise .  This also happened before I got a terrible sunburn and every meal we sat down to I would end up running back to the cabin so I could get under the covers because of the chills I had, which led to a bad cold.  Anyway, Glen decided we should have a nice lunch instead of the buffet.  The waiter took our order and then laid this origami shirt by my plate.  I looked up and thought and said out loud.  "You have no idea what this means to me"!!!!  Then Glen chimed in and said "Really, you have no
idea.....that is really great what you made".  I mean really, he folded the paper
into a hawaiin shirt that reminded me of one Ian had wore on cruises we had taken many years before.  He drew a little picture of the sea, again it was perfect with sea gulls.  I love blue and white.  He wrote my name making it completely personal.  He wrote the name of the ship and the date.  It could have been jewelry worth millions of dollars, but it was a simple folded paper with a pen drawing and it meant everything to me.  But, at the moment I was sitting across from my husband.  My husband of thirty years.  A man that realized how much that meant to me.  I am blessed.  I am blessed beyond my own comprehension.  I am so grateful for all that life has offered me so far.  I have had my challenges, but along with them I have had my moments.  Good or bad moments and slivers of life I will be forever grateful.  So, cheers
to this life of ours and hope you have moments of your own to soak in an celebrate!  Life is too short!  Enjoy the moments and remember everything that went into making those moments happen!


Saturday, April 27, 2013

Life is like listening to your car radio........random!!!

Life is so full of uncertainties.  I find myself hopeful and doubtful all at the same time.  Realizing when we don't know what the future brings it is hard to focus and enjoy the moments.  Especially, when it comes to income.  When you start having more go out then coming in, it gets pretty scary.  The last few weeks I would get in my car to do errands and I would listen to the local radio station and listen to whatever random song came on.  A couple of times the songs made me happy.  One day every song that came on made me cry.  I was happy to be alone in the car and then proceeded to sob.   Knowing I would have to go to the bank with red puffy eyes....I didn't really care.  I would just blame the allergies.   I started thinking how when you listen to random music.....it is a lot like life.  You can't pick and choose what's going to play next.  But, wait you can.  Yes, you can change the channel.  
Glen and I drove to Philadelphia yesterday in the car that had Serious radio.  So, Glen had total control of what music we could listen to together and be happy.  We ended up on the 60's channel and we would sing along and it was an enjoyable ride.  We are celebrating the children graduating in a couple of weeks.  I don't think we live in the past, but I do think the music of the 60's was so optimistic and fun.  I even forgot about the term bubblegum music.  It gives me hope for the future that so many things in our life are out of our control, but living a life with music......well, it just soothes the soul!

Sunday, March 17, 2013

One step UP and two steps back

Oh no...........I have been talking about religion and now politics.  Something never to talk about!  This picture was taken a year ago during the Film Festival.  The big party was held in Convention Hall.  So much has happened in a year.  Ed Asner, who is pictured, was hospitalized this week. The bar Aqua across the way did not renew or finish their 5 year lease.  When I first opened the store I knew it was a dream come true.  I shared how I felt about the building, before the threat of the building being closed happened.  I share my one step up....two steps back attitude about EVERYTHING.  I am always knocking on wood before I share anything good  happening in my life.  I love our country, but I have to say the government has killed any dream I have ever had.  I take a wait and see attitude.  It took me at least 30 years to open a business and now this.  I don't blame who I rent my space from like most people do.  No, we have had experience in owning rental property.  Ten years ago paying high taxes, carrying flood insurance, not getting tenants because of  laws being enforced for noise violations, not getting tenants because of debris  washed ashore, we had to sell that property.  Then, the house we lived in became to hard to pay for without our income property and taxes became too high and flood insurance was needed there, also.  Most was local government, some state and some federal.  Just enough to say, enough already!  Before, we had children we did do a cross country trip calling it the Check it Out America tour.  We picked out about three places we felt we could move to for a better life.  Camano Island by Seattle, Washington, Kansas City, and St. Augustine, Florida.  Camano Island we actually were so close to buying a house it was embarassing that we didn't sign the papers.  I couldn't, I was being treated at home for infertility and wanted to continue with the same doctor at home.  So, that September we came home.  We both started back to work and worked full time and very hard and were blessed with me being pregnant with twins by that December.  I am getting very side tracked here.  But, anyway the very things that we want, just don't come easy.  Then when we get them they become even harder to keep.  I am used to this by now.  I will have to adjust.  We will be some place on the boardwalk and hope for the best this summer.  I want the big picture.  I want to have my own business and be a part of something.  I am not going to lose hope or faith.  I can't wait to see what three years looks like on the Asbury Park boardwalk.........I am going to take those two steps back........just so I can be there for the one step UP!!!!!!!

Friday, March 15, 2013

To Everything There Is a Season.....turn...turn...turn....

Wow......eleven days have passed.  When I think of those years of the early 70's I truly am as sad as when it was all happening and I do get quiet and it is sometimes too painful to dredge up.  A lot has happened in the last few days.  The new Pope Francis was announced.  Seeing St. Peter's reminds me of the church I went to as a child and was baptized in.  It is St. Catharine's in Spring Lake.  March 13th also reminded me of the Anniversary of the first sighting by the three children at Fatima in 1917.  I always loved the story because it was two girls and one boy and I couldn't imagine how brave they were to unite 70,000 people to witness the dancing sun on October 13th.  Since, this is my birthday  I always related to the story also.  Again, since I am looking for a miracle this year I am looking to the past.   The last few weeks I have been dealing with Convention Hall may be closing for a year or two to put in a sprinkler system.  I wrote in the beginning of February what the building has meant to me.  It is making me pretty crazy.  Luckily, we have booked a vacation for the end of the month.  I am probably not going to do any more writing until I come back.  Trying to find the positive in all this is exhausting and paralyzing.  My mom has visited Yugoslavia and Argentina to see the current day Apparitions.  I have always admired the spirituality quality of my mom and am starting to relate more to that side of me as I get older.  She really has a deep core of belief and faith and practices it daily.  I tend to just rely on it to know everything will be alright in the long run.  But, I am glad for my childhood education and core beliefs.  Just like the blossoms of those trees in the picture of St. Catharines......they are just buds barely in sight but, soon they will be beautiful flowers.  To everything there is a season......

Monday, March 4, 2013

Eric Church - Springsteen

I want to share my story, but I don't want to hurt anyone.  So, the best way I know how to put  this is:  my family, like our country, suffered a very disheartening time during the seventies.  My brother and sister became teenagers during this time.  And, with all that happened it took all of my parents attention and energy to help them survive that time.  All, I can say is I was the observer.  It changed my thinking and my dreams forever.  My mom said I was born stubborn and independent.  Anytime she said she would try to help me.....I would put my foot down and say I can do it!  I knew if I wanted anything in this life it was up to me.  Like I said earlier I wanted the storybook life, but I wasn't so sure during this time if anyone would want to share that dream with me.  I was very shy and quiet and it was a great defense of getting close enough to anyone to have to tell anyone what was going on in my household.  Once I turned sixteen I would say that all changed.  I think I had to grow up pretty quick.  As much as what all happened was very sad, it helped me want to be in control of myself and not get into any trouble.  I knew my parents had enough going on, they didn't need  anymore worries.  So, I started working after eighth grade as a counselor for children with learning disabilities.  This was a great summer job.  It got me out of the house and with other people and I met a few people I would see in High School.  I went to Manasquan High School which has seven sending districts.....so out of about 360 students I was now attending school with about 30 people I knew.  I stayed  friends with my best friend who went to St. Rose and that was my social life for the first two years of High School.

Saturday, March 2, 2013

My hometown

I don't have many pictures of elementary school, but this year was special because I reunited with some of my friends that I had not seen since eighth grade.  Some memories were stirred up.  Everyday after school included a walk to town, where I would cross the foot bridge, walk the indian trails, swing on a swing, buy a candy bar and walk home.  Also, like I said there was not much social time on weekends. I did go to girl scout meetings.  Also, one of the funny things I remembered was there was a group of girls and the two girls next to me were included.  We formed a club and it was  called the club.  We had a president, vice-president, secretary and treasurer.  It consisted of about ten members.  It was a bit exclusive, which is funny because that is what I hated most about elementary school was feeling like an outsider.  We would have dues and figure out one fun thing to do a month.  We would vote on it and then figure out how we would get rides to things such as bowling, roller skating and I think we even went horse back riding.  Each month it was at a different member's house and they would be in charge of refreshments.   In the neighborhood we would put on plays on porches or have pretend wedding ceremonies picking flowers for our bouquets.  Later we would play with the boys such games as dodge ball, last one,  we would climb trees, and even take one of our neighbors row boats out on the lake and fish.  During the summer there was a movie theatre right down the street we could walk to.  Many times I would also walk to the boardwalk and sit on the rail and listen to a string band.  During this time there were  three grand hotels.  I loved to just watch when the hotel guests would be done their dinners and stroll the boardwalk with their formal attire including long dresses for the women and tuxes for the men.  One of the grandest hotels was torn down when I was about twelve and that was sad.  It was really the beginning of  a sad time.  The grand days of Spring Lake were over and it was the residents of the town that wanted it that way.  Something I will never understand.  The zoning for the town is when an hotel is torn down or burns down (which was happening a lot also) only single residential houses could be re built on the space.  This meant less business for the area stores, ice cream parlors and that movie theatre didn't last too much longer after that either.

Friday, March 1, 2013

On the road again....

So, life so far is seeming pretty picture perfect.  This is a picture of my mom and dad.  The sign behind them says Stelle's Stones.  My dad has on a bolo tie and in front of him is some of his creations.  I said before he worked full time as an electrical engineer at Fort Monmouth.  Well, he also had a huge collection of rock and minerals.  He made jewelry and bolo ties.  Our life after I was in school full time was packing the car.  Picking my dad up at work Friday afternoon, driving to a rock show on average about 2 1/2 hours away, setting up the show, working and selling at the show, on Sunday packing up  and driving home Sunday night.  Monday we all went off to school and work and then Friday we did it all over again.  It is rare to see my parents sitting down....they probably were asked to, because my father firmly believed to sell you had to stand.....no sitting while on duty as it was called.  This was our life for about ten years, which was a good chunk of my childhood.  It didn't leave much time for birthday parties and social activities on the weekends or the beach.

Thursday, February 28, 2013

“Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul And sings the tune without the words And never stops at all.” ― Emily Dickinson

I have to find a picture to continue with my posts from growing up.  For now this has been another week of waiting.  Weather has been dreary making my spirit pretty darn gloomy.  Lots of good things on the horizon, but this week came with some challenges.  I had a few days off to recoop some energy, but for now I feel pretty blah.

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Don't forget a walk on the boardwalk in barefeet included a splinter or two

I am trying to come to terms with this waiting game we are in with our business.  Like I have been posting in 2013, I am sharing how I grew up and what my wishes looked like for my future.  I also, really never stopped with my visions of the future including the beauty of the past.  We have lived in towns that were built during Victorian times.  I have always appreciated the architecture and what has survived through all of these years.  But, now I am trying to come to terms with what our future is going to look like.  I came up with the quote as the title of this post.  Because, of the romance of the boardwalks, buildings and businesses that lined the boardwalk will never be the same.  The landscape of the Jersey shore has changed.  Spirits are high.......and people are strong but, sometimes I think the loss is too great to go on thinking.....we can do this.....we will be back stronger and brighter then ever.   A lot of this is so much of what will be done on the Jersey Shore is out of our control.  And, yes a lot will come down to the almighty dollar. We will always have our memories......and we have our experience of living in a little bungalow across from the sea where when the windows were open we could hear the waves of the ocean......or our store where I can't even begin to tell you what that meant.  But, let's face it at 2 am in our bungalow the windows had to be closed because all the rowdies leaving as the bars closed.  I would like to believe in the Romance of the Jersey Shore but, we've been working too hard.  We as a family never have enjoyed a day at the beach together.  We have had wonderful vacations and fun in our pool in the backyard.  And, I think this summer we should all go to the beach for a day.....but, all the reminders will be there.... the shore we knew and loved is gone and it is gone forever.  Alright, this is not my usual  bright and shiny attitude.  But, I am feeling the splinter and I haven't been able to get it out yet.  But, the lesson is there........if you want a nice day at the beach......WEAR your flip flops.  For me that means........get ready.......brace myself.....the emotions are still stinging.  A walk on the beach will never be the same again.....but, I need to forget about the romance and remember the pain will go away eventually....but, for now I still wonder.

Friday, February 22, 2013

Ippolito Globalized Blog #2 - Asbury Park

 Just found this yesterday....it was taken exactly a year ago.  What a difference a year makes.  I can remember this day.  I love it, because it someone else's perspective of Asbury Park and it shows our store of course.  I love how Glen comes in and goes to the back.  Sometimes, I use Disney as an analogy for our life.  I love the story of Wizard of Oz also.   When Glen goes behind the curtain I call him the Wizard.  That is where he makes the clock......He is the ALL Knowing and Powerful Wizard of my life!!!

Thursday, February 21, 2013

There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle. Albert Einstein

I am the optimist.....the glass is half full and everything is a miracle.  Just to meet a goal and write everyday is a miracle to me.  So many distractions make it hard to stay focused.  Today I am going to Weight Watchers where I have been a member for a year and a half.  I will try my best to lose some weight or just maintain where I am before we go on a vacation next month.  I am not motivated or feel the need to concentrate on my weight so much right now.  I would like to keep writing each day, work as much as I am scheduled and not feel so tired, get my finances ready for taxes and reopening the store.  Focus on the store reopening with a more optimistic attitude is a must right now!  Also, my children will graduate in May from college.  I have to work on my schedule in order to make everything run smoothly.  To reopen the store and focus on graduation will take some preparation to be able to do both  gracefully and the least amount of stress on everyone........counting on a miracle, for sure!

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

White Lace and promises........

This picture was taken in 1966 at the school I walked to for eight years.  It was a two block walk.  My parents thought of everything when they moved to the house we were in.  The bench is symbolic of the times too.  The downstairs of the school contained a cafeteria where those benches were.  In the beginning I remember they served hot lunches.  I always walked home for lunch.  But, I am not sure of the year, but we lost the cafeteria to computers. And, to me, it is very symbolic of the year this picture was taken.   Life, how we knew it, was going to change.   
This girl pictured was full of  hopes and dreams of an American Girl.   She was also a girl scout. She, at this time, was waiting to see what her story was going to be.  She didn't know what she wanted to be when she grew up.  But, she definitely wanted the fairy tale ending of living happily ever after!

Monday, February 18, 2013

Living on a Prayer

 Oh Boy, if we could have been the three little angels like the ones pictured, my parents would have been very happy.  This picture shows a lot...my sister is doing exactly what she is supposed to and my brother Randy and I.......well she is not too happy about it as you can see.  We really had a tiny house and to think we had a piano in it for all those years.  My Mom did reach a point when none of us survived more then a year of piano lessons to get rid of it.  But, it was a wedding gift from her brother so it had a lot of meaning.  Reminding me we also had an organ my parents won when they were on the television show "Beat the Clock".  My sister, brother and I really loved to watch television together and it would be quite the challenge to find something we all shared an interest in.  I remember our favorites were Flinstones, Jetsons, the Munsters, the Brady Bunch, Mickey Mouse Club, Flipper, I Love Lucy and Sunday Night Disney and the Ed Sullivan Show.  Later my very favorite memories were of my sister and I watching Tom Jones show together and getting our curling irons out and using them as microphones.  My favorite memory of watching tv with my mom was watching the Elvis Presley in Hawaii concert and she was very vocal about how much he had changed and how talented he was.  My dad's favorite was the Mets and of course they were the Miracle Mets at the time...I will never forget 1969 when so many boys hid transistor radios in their pockets and put ear phones in so not to be seen or heard for the playoffs.....so much for that when the Mets would score they yelled and the nun went around and confiscated  all the radios.....never to be returned.  And, favorite brother memory would be all of them......he could do no wrong in my eyes.  I do remember he loved the 4:30 movies after school and I would be happy if it was Gidget week.

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Just One Dream - Walt Disney in his Early Years

I had to share this video and how the internet keeps my spirit high and joyful.  I write my post......get ready for the day.....think I need some more inspiration......look on you tube for some inspiration from one of the greatest creative minds ever and this is what I see.  When I see the image of him in the pool with his child I think of the picture and what I have posted.  It is so hard and trying to keep our dreams of our childhood when life slaps you in the face.  Watching a video like this makes you realize you may get side tracked or even bamboozled, but you have to follow your heart......no one else's.....your dream......your hope.
This was the huge Salt Water pool that was just down the street.  It had a huge diving board that I would look at and think to myself......someday.  It was where my dad would endlessly teach us how to swim.  It was expensive, we as a family never had a locker.  Through the years the only beach time we had was waiting for my father to come home on a nice day.  We would go to Pier beach which was the beach closest to Sea Girt.  Mostly, it was my brother and I and that is when I learned how to ride the waves and I would dive under the waves like a dolphin.  He would say that a lot and I loved it because my favorite television show at the time was Flipper.  I faced all of my fears back then and eventually jumped off the large diving board before they took it down for safety reasons.  We also would do a lot of shell seeking with my dad.  We  looked for Cape May diamonds and shark's teeth.  Later, when Glen and I lived in Manasquan we loved to look for sea glass or mermaid tears.  When I got older in the fifth grade I told my mom I wanted a locker in the worst way.  She thought we would not get enough use out of it.  Her answer to me was go see if your friends will let you share a locker with them.  Well, they did and my mom paid the thirty five dollars for the badge.  The next year she said for me to pay.  And so I started babysitting and saved my money to buy a badge.  This is when I learned a very important lesson.....anything in life I would ever want I would have to work for.  Some of the best times I had at the beach were with different people.  One friend had a bunch of little brothers and the three littlest would go everywhere with us.  We would make a lunch get to the beach at 8am and drag our butts home at 5pm.  Then there were the high school days where I worked in the local hotels as a chamber maid, and the rest of the day was spent at the beach.  And then my favorites were when I could drive to the beach in Manasquan and finally buy a beach chair.  We would sit until the last possible minute and have it down to a science of when to leave the beach to get to work in time.  

Friday, February 15, 2013

And she was an American Girl

This is a picture of my grandmother and I.   My brother is there encouraging some fun in the waves.  My grandparents, by the time I was born had a big tudor house on the lake facing Devine Park in Spring Lake, NJ and Surfside, Florida.  They would rent the house out in Spring Lake and come up and stay for the month of May and September.   They were my Mom's parents.  My grandmother never drove.  She could sew, cook and could keep a beautiful house.  My grandfather was vice-president of Grand Union after working his way up from being a cart boy.   They did have housekeepers and gardeners.  My dad was an electrical engineer at Ft. Monmouth and retired at the age of 55 working there for 30 years.  He graduated from West Virginia University.  My mom was also a college graduate from the University of Vermont.  They married the September after her graduation and my dad was ten years older then my mom.  They settled in Neptune, NJ.  They first had a son named Randolph Donald (my dad was Donald Randolph) and then my sister Cheryl Ann almost exactly a year later very close to my mother's birthday.  When my mom became pregnant with me she told my dad she would need a bigger house.  While she was pregnant he did all the searching for a home and bought the house without my mom ever seeing it (I couldn't imagine that).  It was a small cape cod house located across from Wreck Pond in Spring Lake.  We could walk six blocks east to the beach, across the street was a pond for fishing, row boating, feeding the ducks and swans, and six blocks north was a foot bridge to cross Spring Lake and arrive in Devine Park with what we called Indian Trails around the lake.  We would then walk on to Main Street with it's stores where you could buy anything you needed.  The variety store (5 & 10) is still there and hasn't changed too much in all these years........thank God!  The church I was baptized in was influenced by St.Peters in Rome and I should really do a whole post on the beauty of Spring Lake with pictures.  It is and was a picture perfect town.  Well, anyway the point of this all is what are the hopes and dreams of parents for their children.   It is that you have a good life, but I really was lead to believe we should have a better life.  That one belief is probably the single most down fall of our generation.  My father was a hero fighting in World War 2......my uncle fought in Korea......my parents both graduated from college.......within two years they had a boy and a girl.......they lived in a picture perfect town, my dad worked for the government  and had insurance for us all and my mom never had to work....I was born an American Girl.....and how do those words go?????
Well, she was an American girl
Raised on promises
She couldn't help thinkin'
That there was a little more to life somewhere else

After all it was a great big world
With lots of places to run to
And if she had to die tryin'
She had one little promise she was gonna keep
Words sung and written by Tom Petty


Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Dream Baby, Dream..

Well, I wasn't going to share this yet.  But, all the signs and affirmations are here.  I was afraid to.  What was the fear about....someone stealing my idea.....yeah, maybe.  Someone judging me and not agreeing with me.  Well, this is my story.  I am ready to tell it.  It is MY life......MY dream.......it is MY story and if I can do that thoughtfully without hurting anyone......that is my plan.  I really need to write as much as I can from MY heart.  This is about the little light inside of you that you are born with.  When I went to Catholic school they told us we (everyone of us had it in us).  I was told this when I was so young the visual picture was a box and everytime you sinned the box would get a black spot and the idea was to go through life with your box as clean as possible.  This box was your soul.  I have been living for 50 years now and thankfully I don't take things so literal anymore.  But, I have a soul and each day I try to forget my sins and go on.  I try to find the inner light and keep it shining.  Not, that is easy to do all the time.  When I find a video like the one above my soul is soothed and spoken to.  Visually I relate to the bench which line the boardwalks of Spring Lake, where I was born and raised.  Belmar, where I worked in a restaurant for nine years and learned the best work ethic anyone could ask for.  Manasquan, where I have spent all of my married years raising my twins until this year.  But, Manasquan also holds a bench dedicated to my father in law and one for Glen who were volunteer firemen for many years.  Glen is still a fireman in Manasquan and Ian is following in their footsteps.  I am writing my story which in the end is our story.  Welcome to my world.

Friday, February 8, 2013

Bruce Springsteen -Can't Help Fallin' In Love

This is truly why I wanted to start this new blog.  I graduated from a college where the Director of Art was a nun and she taught Renaissance Art and I couldn't help fallin' in love with Italy.  I was able to go there with my mother.  I loved what I saw......every inch of it.  The fountains, sculptures, churches, museums, monuments, rivers, paintings, the food.......but, it wasn't home.  Home is where my heart is.  My dream was always to have the European lifestyle I grew up in.  A town called Spring Lake on the Atlantic Ocean in central New Jersey.  But, then I found my dream came true by opening a store in Convention Hall in Asbury Park, NJ.  It is my Europe......my home.  It is full of carved copper, della robia reliefs, copper tall ships, angel reliefs, iron dolphins and history on the ocean by the sea.  It was designed by the same Architects who designed Grand Central Station in NYC which celebrates it's 100th Anniversary this year.  It is not only my Europe.....it is my Disney Castle........it is a dream come true.  My dreams have been tested this year by a storm called Sandy.  But, that is my life.  I have reached and accomplished all of my dreams now.  All of them are reality now.......but, they all came with the test of reality.  But, they ALL came true!!!!  So, grateful for this life of mine......my dreams come true.  My marriage of 30 years.......my son and daughter graduating college and following their dreams and my store located, in my eyes, the MOST romantic place on earth.  It is a place where everyone........and I mean everyone can come and soak in the romance of days gone by and guess what?  You don't need no ticket.........

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Counting on a miracle - Bruce Springsteen [DVD Live in Barcelona 2002] (...

 Found my song.....too!!!!  Just beneath our fear is the hope, faith and love we need to make miracles happen and I am counting on it!!!

This Little Light Of Mine (Live In Dublin)


Well, I have been working more then 30 hours a week and some days at Convention Hall.  While last night I would think I was completely and totally drained, today I am mustering up some energy to make some miracles happen.  One....I got an idea for a card so I am going to go downstairs to start on that.  Second, I am going to go to Barnes and Noble later to buy a book.  It just so happens that Marianne Williamson wrote  a book about making miracles happen.  At this point a month has gone by and I haven't been writing much, but I think this might help.

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Just Around the Corner is The Light of Day


Well it is hard to look forward to something that you are not too sure how it will turn out.....no guarantees....you know..... BUT with all the tools of hope and faith  it should be a night to remember.  I really enjoy Darlene Love and that will be worth the ticket.  I am talking about the Light of Day concert for Parkinson's disease.  As you can see from the video it is a night to remember for sure.  Last year I didn't know I was going until I got my hands on a ticket that day.  This year I was able to get two tickets and we are really looking forward to it, but we have no idea what to expect.  The same goes for the store this year. We will be open for special events, but it is looking more like the boardwalk in front of Convention Hall will NOT be complete until HOPEFULLY Memorial Day making my "just around the corner" philosophy harder to keep a handle on.  I went back to work at Boscov's at Monmouth Mall in the meantime.  Now, I am getting tired and drained, but it is still good to get out with people.  What I really love about Light of Day is January is usually a time for me to hibernate and renew, but Light of Day is something to look forward to and SAVOR and to be thankful for.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

Greetings from Asbury Park

Starting to skip writing already......uhoh.  Busy, starting work at Boscov's on Monday.  Christmas decorations came down early.  Making Springsteen merchandise for the store.  Making some favors for Light of Day to giveaway with a purchase.  Today is the 40th Anniversary of the Album Greetings from Asbury Park.  So, much has changed since then. Yet, so much seems the same.  The Album includes the song Growin' Up.  One of those songs that has different meanings to me now.  First, thought of it as I was growing up.  Now, new meaning with my kids growing up.  Happy to have them both home today.  We watched season three of Parenthood and had a yummy Ham dinner.  Would be a wish to have more days like this together but, I will just have to savor this one for awhile.

Thursday, January 3, 2013

Counting on a miracle - Bruce Springsteen [DVD Live in Barcelona 2002] (...


I started this new blog to actually write every day and hopefully by the end have a book.  I think lately that would be a miracle if that would happen.  I am going to give it a shot.  I don't expect a miracle.  Yesterday, I went back to the store to  where  I worked at that closed four years ago.  Because............I have no income with the store closed.  But, it doesn't mean I don't want the store to do the best it has ever done.  Or it doesn't mean that I am going to be totally spent to enjoy my children's graduation.  Or it doesn't mean I  am not going to have enough time to write this book with it's fairy tale ending.  I am counting on a miracle.......not expecting one.  The big difference is working.  I don't just work for the money....I do it for my sanity.  My inner voice is not to kind to myself if I have all the time in the world.  I put things off and don't spend any money for fear I won't have any money.  I start work next Monday and already I feel a weight off my shoulders.  I was starting to feel very anxious, nervous and sad.  I really need to be around people, too.  So, I will be back with my co-workers that I have spent a lot of time with in the past.  This is a good and comfortable feeling.  I had something to write into the calender and it feels right.  When the store closed I had my goals set out for me.....start a blog and open an Etsy shop.  The fact that I actually opened a brick and mortar shop still amazes me and is somewhat of a miracle.  I am hoping it all works out and I am thankful they were so gracious to rehire me.  Let's see what happens!

1-3-13

I am looking forward to today.  So far, I want to make product for the store.  Take down my Christmas decorations.  Clean some windows.....to let the sunshine in!  And reorganize my studio.  At the end of the day..I would like to take some pictures and see how I did.  Some visual motivation!

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Fleetwood Mac - You make loving fun 1977 LIVE Full version 2013 Miracle


Each year I choose a word and a song to go along with it.  This year my word is miracle.  I chose Fleetwood Mac because of the importance of the Rumours album in 1977 and the miracle of them being reunited in 2013.  The true spirit of creating something great.......having it not work out and then coming back and reuniting.  They have a new audience and devoted fans who will be made happy this year.  2012 Fleetwood Mac suffered the loss of one it's founding members Bob Welch.  So, my big picture analogy is we as people have suffered heartbreak and losses in 2012 and it is not necessarily going to take a miracle to get back into shape.....probably just a lot of hard work.  But, I think miracles are going to appear to make all of the hard work seem worth it!
My little miracle so far.....the last day of 2012 I lost the diamond out of my engagement ring.  I looked....I looked.....I sat down....felt emotional and thought there is no way it will be found.  I lost it in Convention Hall and never felt a snag or anything to make me think where I could have lost it.  I took a chance to tell the workers at the Hall what happened.  They started looking for it right away.  Bob, said don't worry I will find it.  I felt pretty hopeless of it being found.  I went home and a couple of hours later the phone rang.  Bob found the diamond.........what a miracle!!!  I worked on making him a thank you note and forgot it New Year's Day.  Darn.....I wanted to do something nice....took the time and I forgot it.  New Year's Day is the Sons of Ireland polar bear plunge.  They do fundraising for local charities.  They have a 50/50 and about one thousand dollars was the prize.  Guess who won the 50/50????  Bob!!!