Tick, Tock

Tick, Tock... This thing called time. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.  It's this never ending thing that we all have.  Ok, we have this never ending thing, but realistically we only have so much "live" time out of it.  Work, kids, family, friends all take little pieces and use them, and what are we left with?  We are left with precious moments that we need to take full advantage of.

In the end, is it really going to matter if that last load of laundry is done, or if you want that extra hour of sleep.  What are you missing out on?  Who are you missing out on?  Eventually there will come a day that our time will end.  Will you be happy at that moment that you did everything you could and gave everything you could, or will you be sad that you let time get in the way?

I am always hearing people say I don't have time, I'm tired, I have too much to do, I can't... Yes, you do!  Yes, you can!  Grab those moments that you have that are left and use them. Don't let them slip away. Go for what you want.  Do those things that you want to do.  See those people that you want to see.  Don't let the little things get in the way and prevent you from these opportunities that you may be letting slide out from under you.

It's the little things, the little things that are so insignificant to other people, but mean everything to you.  These little things that can be as simple as watching a movie with your kids, looking at lightning bugs in the backyard, going for ice-cream late at night, a quiet dinner with someone special or just having a simple chat.  These things are precious and can never be taken for granted and only take a small piece out of your day, but can mean such a big thing to someone.

Isn't it funny how something so small can really be so big?  It can mean the difference in questioning how someone feels and knowing how they feel.  It can be a happy moment to a rather unhappy day.  It can take a frown and turn it into a smile.  Nothing big, just something little that seems so BIG!

So, what are you waiting for?  Take those moments.  Use them.  Tell someone how you feel.  Ask that person out that you never thought you could.  Watch that movie.  Look at bugs. Eat that ice-cream.  Go to dinner.  Have that chat.  It could mean the world to someone that you took a little time out of your day for them.  That you took advantage of the moment.  That you didn't let time get in the way of what you want.

Tick, Tock.  Tick, Tock.  After all, it's nothing but time...

A Sure Thing...

A sure thing... that's what we all go in search of.  We are so afraid of the unknown that we always stick to what we know and never take a chance.  What wonderful things we could be missing out on if we just took that small leap.  I know that I have missed out on many chances because my fear stood in the way.  But what was I really afraid of?  Something new?  Certainly that can't be it.  We are faced with new things every day.  Things we knew would happen, some that we maybe expected to happen and things that were a complete surprise.  Were they really all that bad, either way?  

Change can be good, if you allow it to be.  So why all the fear?  Sure, change isn't always good, but if we never give opportunity a chance, are we jilting ourselves of defining a future that we are more inclined to love verses rather just accept?  I know that I have missed out on some great opportunities because I've let that fear take over and rule my choices and directions.  Of course, I have also taken some chances and had some pretty darn great outcomes.  


Any sane person knows that there really isn't a "sure thing" out there in any aspect of our lives.  Life is constantly evolving and changing.  It's up to us to define the boundaries and accept the path that we are given.  But how much happier and content would we be if we took a  chance every now and then?  I've always had and held on to certain "ideals" of how things should be.  Realistically, they didn't get me very far.  Sure, they provided me the life I have now, but how much different, better, content could it have been if I had made different choices and stepped outside that comfort zone and those "ideals" of how and what I thought it should be?


As I've grown older I have learned a lot.  I have learned how to put those ideals aside and go for what I want.  I haven't buried them, as they still guide me in specific directions, but they are not the cementing force any longer.  What I want... That's an interesting question.  I want a lot of things.  A lot of things that are selfish.  A lot of things for others.  Just a lot of things...  If I never take that chance, will those things slip away?  And where could those chances really take me?  It's definitely an unknown question.  I have taken some big chances recently.  With that came big changes.  I would definitely change the outcome of some of them, but overall, they were pretty darn amazing.  There were definitely struggles along the way. But I took that leap, that chance.  I went for what I wanted and I love the direction it has taken me.


I know one can never go through life and say that they didn't have regrets.  We are human after all.  It's the chances, choices and directions that we take that make us who we are.  It's not always easy, and we don't always understand, but it is what makes us human and each of us individuals.  We can't always follow the same safe path.  How boring that would be and how boring that would make us.  Take a chance every now and then.  Make a change.  Put yourself out there and don't look back.  Make that move.  If you don't or you wait too long, someone else is going to step in and take it from you.


In the end, we only regret the chances we didn't take, the relationships we were afraid to have, and the decisions we waited to long to make. 


So, take chances.  Go for that relationship.  Make that decision.  Don't wait for tomorrow.  Do it today!  


No regrets...

Love A Plan..

Recently, things definitely haven't gone as planned.  Plan, now that's a word that I love.  I love to plan. I love plans. I love planning things.  I am a planner.  What do you do when you entire existence is revolved around a specific plan, but yet the plan doesn't go even remotely as you thought?  Now I'm faced with the reality that I don't know what is next.  And that next is a scary place for me.  

Order.  Organization.  Structure.  Discipline. All words that define my very being.  Having a plan makes sure that those things stay where they need to.  How do you adjust to something that is so up in the air, knowing that you cannot function that way, nor do you want to function that way.  I need order.  I need organization.  I need structure.  I need discipline.  And yet I feel that I have none of those things right now. 

I feel like I am finally home, where I should be.  Unfortunately, I am still unemployed.  Now that's a scary thing.  When everything in your life follows a specific plan, and now this thing, unemployment, and not part of the plan, is staring at you in the face, what do you do?  How do you handle it?  It is so outside of my comfort zone, I am at a loss.  The need to be self sufficient has been with me since I was small.  I have always worked, taken care of myself, my children, my home.  Everything.  Now I am at this place in my life where that is not the case.  I am not working.  I am not providing for myself or my children.  Nothing!  How do I pick myself up out of this hole?

I'm here and NOTHING!  NOTHING!  NOTHING!  The hole is definitely deep.  Not unclimbable, but pretty slippery right now.  I am strong.  I have climbed out of it before.  I will do it again, but yet it seems so unreachable right now.  But I'm not going to stop.  I'll keep climbing.  One day, hopefully soon, I will reach the top.  Either by myself or with a helping hand.  But I'll get there.  I guess I do have a plan after all.  Not my original plan, by yet a plan regardless.  To keep climbing.  Whew!  I feel a little better.  A plan is only as good as the person making it.  And damn it, I got this!

Overworked. Underpaid. Under-Appreciated.

I'm sitting here, frustrated at my 16 year old, who at 6am finds it necessary to get me all worked up.  I don't think he does it on purpose, he just does.  Or, maybe it's me, and I'm reading more into things that what is really there.  I'm still pondering that one.

Some days I feel like there should be a button that you can press, to go back to when you crawled out of bed, and just start over.  Too many days I get up, all is great, then the reality of being a single parent, trying to survive on one income in this horrible economy hits me.  At that moment I feel completely overworked, underpaid and very much under-appreciated.  Am I the only one who feels like this?

In my set of circumstances, that is my life.  It has not been an easy road.  It surely has been bumpy, with more bad weather along the way than sunshine.  I truly believe that this bad weather is what makes us who we are.  Would I be the person I am today without the bumps?  I can't really say.

Overworked.  Ok-not really.  Yes, I work a full time job, and then come home to being a full time mom.  Is it really that hard?  Work, no.  Mom, sometimes.  Thankfully, my kids are now teenagers and can mostly fend for themselves.  Yes, I am the ATM machine, taxi driver, maid, cook and a million other things.  And, other than the occasional smart mouth, I actually have it pretty darn easy.  At times it would be nice to be able to defer to another adult, but it is what it is.

Underpaid.  YES!  Remember, employee, mom, ATM machine, taxi driver, maid, cook, etc... I don't think you could actually put a salary on all of those things.  Unfortunately, it comes with the job that the pay sucks, and that's not going to change.  Now, if I could just get my 16 year old to get a job... (just kidding...)

Under-Appreciated.  What a touchy one.  Kids- absolutely!  I don't think that there is anything that I can do as a parent to change this situation.  No matter how hard a parent tries, or does, kids will never appreciate what they do.  This will change when they become adults, so patience is my key.  Work- sometimes.  I do feel appreciated at work, most of the time.  Of course, everyone I think feels a little under-appreciated at times, and wishes that they were recognized occasionally (with a fat pay-increase!).  It just comes with the job.  Life in general-???  I think sometimes we all need to step back and look at our friends, family, and co-workers and appreciate them more.  We don't always think about, nor realize, exactly what others do for us.  It's not always helping, or giving.  Sometimes it's just being there.  They should be appreciated if nothing else, for that.  Everyday.

I think everyone, at some point, even every day, feels a little overworked, underpaid and under-appreciated.  It's life.  It's reality.  The key is where you go with it.  So, I am up, no button to press to do-over.  Ready for the sunshine.