Good advice

18 Rules of Living By The Dalai Lama

At the turn of this century, the Dalai Lama issued the following eighteen rules for living. 12 years on, we thought that 2012 was a great time to revisit these timeless points.

1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

2. When you lose, don’t lose the lesson

3. Follow the three Rs: 1. Respect for self 2. Respect for others 3. Responsibility for all your actions.

4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.

6. Don’t let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

7. When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

8. Spend some time alone every day.

9. Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.

10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

11. Live a good, honourable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.

12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.

13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.

14. Share your knowledge. It’s a way to achieve immortality.

15. Be gentle with the earth.

16. Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.

17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

Bagpipes and fiddles and drums, oh my!

About a week ago, my friends Denise and Renee and I went to an awesome show in Grand Prairie (the suburb just to the east of Arlington where I live) - The Killdares.  They are a mix of rock, celtic and who knows what else?

The theater is a restored old movie theater - The Uptown Theater in the old downtown Grand Prairie.  It was AWESOME.

The lobby has the original exposed brick of the building next door - with framed prints of a local Texas photographer.  Awesome new/old concept for the place.  I loved it!

Here's the band getting started - fiddle, drummer and bagpipe!

The bagpiper was awesome - and when April, Lauren and I saw them at the State Fair of Texas in September, he had on a kilt too!

Now here's the dueling guitar and bagpipe.  Who wins??

These musicians were fantastic - incredibly talented.

It was like Riverdance meets rock band.  Look at them work those instruments!

I loved this part - all of them going at it!

And at intermission, we saw a devoted fan......gotta love a man in a kilt.......

The bass player was the only one who didn't get really into it.  The others were pretty animated, which was fun.

The bagpiper was pretty cool - I wish he would've been wearing the kilt, though!

The fiddle girl was beautiful and talented - she played like crazy.

Bagpipes are the weirdest looking instruments!

He occasionally stopped blowing on the bagpipe and sang a little too - what a great show!

Small Town Treasures

Normally people in Dallas/Fort Worth don't really come out to Canton, Texas unless they are going to "Trade Days" - the huge massive flea/gift/cool stuff market that happens one weekend per month......however, on my random road trip with Denise recently, we found ourselves there on an 'off' weekend.  We passed by a random weird store with old window frames that have been re-purposed as wall decorations, wrought iron roosters, all kinds of stuff.  I got several things there and I LOVE LOVE LOVE them and they are very unique (you'll have to come and visit me to see them!  haha).

Anyway, this is a cute little 50's diner we past in Canton called The Soda Jerk.....cute!

And just down the road, we found this old gas station - wow, 17 cent gas!!!

 Super cool gas pumps and everything.  Denise had to explain the "no-nox" sign - before my time.  :)

 And in nearby Edom, Texas, we had lunch at The Shed - voted "Best Cafe" in East Texas.  YES!

 I love love loved the sign for the cafe......

 Here's the front of the restaurant.......

 And the 'counter' where you could eat right where they were cooking/serving the food.....(we ate at a regular table)

 Such an adorable place - I think I might eat there every time I am out that way.  The blueberry/blackberry farm is just down the road from this place, so maybe in the spring........

 And across the street from The Shed was the telegraph office.  WHAT?!  I don't think I even know exactly how a telegraph works - funny to see the sign still is on the old building.  Weird, but cool!

 And in nearby Mineola, Texas, we found this awesome old barber's pole.

 We probably would've eaten at this cute little restaurant, but we weren't hungry after the yummy lunch at The Shed in Canton.  I could've stayed out in east Texas for a few more days, but alas, the dogs needed me to go home and feed them.......sigh......

Banking Gone By

Recently, my friend Denise and I took a 'random road trip' east of Dallas out toward Tyler, Texas.  There wasn't really a specific goal in mind - just out bumming in the cute little towns.....

Going along with my recent obsession with cute little Texas towns, this post is about the old banking buildings in seemingly all of the towns.  It makes sense that there was at least one major bank in the town square, so it shouldn't be surprising that the remnants of that history are still there.

The building above obviously wasn't a bank, but it was too cute not to include it!  It was a drug store and the date on the top of the building was 1891.  We went inside and found that it is now a quilting store on the ground level (who knows what's upstairs?).  VERY CUTE.

I think these first two buildings were in Kaufman, Texas (as well as the quilting store above).  This is the original "First National Bank" building, but is now a tea room!

 I love re-purposed old buildings and it's especially neat when the renovators keep some of the old charm and built-in pieces of the building's past.

 

 Here's another bank building just across the street from First National Bank (above) - a competing bank!  It must have been a booming town if there were 2 banks right next to each other on the square, huh?

 I just absolutely LOVE the detail on these old buildings!!  I think it's just gorgeous - the brick, stone, carving, etc.  The history, charm, character - AMAZING.  This building was re-purposed into an event facility.  We looked in the windows and it was set up for a wedding reception. 

 Even the buildings that aren't all restored have character and a hint at their decadent past.......

 I have seen many old night deposit slots, but this one was super neat - a big round one on the side of the bank!  Very neat - and I LOVE LOVE LOVE that they kept it there, long after the bank was gone.  It's part of the building/town's history!

 Here's another one, but this is in a different town - I believe this was Mineola, Texas.  It's the First National Bank again - circa 1912 (the year that the Titanic sank in the Atlantic).  WOW!

 Here's the bank building, looking up......

 The ornate detail is incredible - such care was taken to make these bank buildings magnificent.  Just gorgeous.  Maybe I should make a coffee table book of old Texas bank buildings.....hmmmmm..........

What Every Woman Needs.......

MAYA ANGELOU'S BEST POEM EVER

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...      

enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own, even if she never wants to or needs to...      

something perfect to wear if the employer, or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour...


A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...

a youth she's content to leave behind....

a past juicy enough that she's looking forward to retelling it in her old age...

a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra...

one friend who always makes her laugh...and one who lets her cry...


A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...      

a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family...

eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal that will make her guests feel honored...      

a feeling of control over her destiny.....


EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...

how to quit a job,

break up with a lover,

and confront a friend without ruining the friendship...


EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW....      

when to try harder...and WHEN TO WALK AWAY...   
  

how to fall in love without losing herself..


EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...

that she can't change the length of her calves,

the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents...

that her childhood may not have been perfect...but it's over...


EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...      

what she would and wouldn't do for love or more...

how to live alone...even if she doesn't like it...      


EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW.. .

whom she can trust,

whom she can't,

and why she shouldn't take it personally...      


EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...

where to go...be it to her best friend's kitchen table or a charming inn in the woods...when her soul needs soothing...


EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...

What she can and can't accomplish in a day...a month...and a year...

List Friday

Top 10 Ways To Spend $1,000 RIGHT NOW

1.  Getting 15 massages!

2.  Paying a landscaper to put a stone border around my backyard fenceline to keep the dogs from digging in the mud

3.  A trip to New England to explore

4.  Paying down my car loan

5.  Shopping spree in Canton

6.  A new TV for the living room and 2nd monitor for my office.

7.  Contribution to my LASIK fund

8.  Trips to Sante Fe, New Mexico or Southern Louisiana

9.  A ton of cute new shoes

10. A new couch - I want the exact same couch that I have now, but brand new.  :)

Thankful Thursday

This week I am thankful for small, quaint little diners in small, quaint little Texas towns.  Recently, my friend Denise and I drove east of Dallas to just explore and escape the city.  Well we ended up in a little town called Edom, Texas around lunchtime.  I had visited once before when Jenks and I went blueberry picking last summer.  This time around, there was no fruit to pick, but there WAS a cute little diner/cafe called The Shed.
Here's what the cafe 'counter' looks like:

 

It was very friendly, slow-paced, laid-back and small-town-like.  Now don't get me wrong, I'm a city girl......however, these retreats into the obscurity of small towns and wide open roads are priceless to me these days.  I'm so thankful for the freedom and means to be able to escape to such wonderful little treasures like The Shed in Edom!

Claim To Fame

I saw this in an email recently and thought I would share - a fun fact about each state.....but not sure about the Texas one!  haha

ALABAMA ................. Was the first place to have 9-1-1, started in 1968.

ALASKA .................... One out of every 64 people has a pilot's license.

ARIZONA ................... Is the only state in the continental U.S. that doesn't follow Daylight Savings Time.

ARKANSAS ................ Has the only active diamond mine in the U.S.

CALIFORNIA ............. Its economy is so large that if it were a country, it would rank seventh in the entire world.

COLORADO .............. In 1976 it became the only state to turn down the Olympics.

CONNECTICUT .......... The Frisbee was invented here at Yale University.

DELAWARE .............. Has more scientists and engineers than any other state.

FLORIDA ................... At 874.3 square miles, Jacksonville is the U.S. 's largest city.

GEORGIA ................... It was here, in 1886, that pharmacist John Pemberton made the first vat of Coca-Cola.

HAWAII .................... Hawaiians live, on average, five years longer than residents in any other state.

IDAHO ....................... TV was invented in Rigby, Idaho, in 1922.

ILLINOIS ...................Has a Governor in jail. one pending jail & the most corrupt state in the union!

INDIANA ................Home to Santa Claus, Indiana, which gets a half million letters to Santa every year.

IOWA .............Winnebago get their name from Winnebago County . Also, it is the only state that begins with two vowels.

KANSAS ..................... Liberal, Kansas , has an exact replica of the house in The Wizard of Oz.

KENTUCKY ................ Has more than $6 billion in gold underneath Fort Knox.

LOUISIANA ............... Has parishes instead of counties because they were originally Spanish church units.

MAINE ...................... It's so big, it covers as many square miles as the other five New England states combined.

MARYLAND .............. The Ouija board was created in Baltimore in 1892.

MASSACHUSETTS ...... The Fig Newton is named after Newton , Massachusetts.

MICHIGAN ................ Fremont , home to Gerber, is the baby food capital of the world.

MINNESOTA ............Bloomington's Mall of America is so big, if you spent 10 minutes in each store, you'd be there nearly four days.

MISSISSIPPI ........... President Teddy Roosevelt refused to shoot a bear here... that's how the teddy bear got its name.

MISSOURI .............. Is the birthplace of the ice cream cone.

MONTANA ................ A sapphire from Montana is in the Crown Jewels of England.

NEBRASKA ............... More triplets are born here than in any other state.

NEW HAMPSHIRE ...... Birthplace of Tupperware, invented in 1938 by Earl Tupper.

NEW JERSEY ........... Has the most shopping malls in one area in the world.

NEW MEXICO ............ Smokey the Bear was rescued from a 1950 forest fire here.

NEW YORK .............. Is home to the nation's oldest cattle ranch, started in 1747 in Montauk.

NORTH CAROLINA .... Home of the first Krispy Kreme doughnut.

NORTH DAKOTA ...... Rigby , North Dakota , is the exact geographic center of North America.

OHIO ......................... The hot dog was invented here in 1900.

OKLAHOMA ............. The grounds of the state capital are covered by operating oil wells.

OREGON ................... Has the most ghost towns in the country.

PENNSYLVANIA ........ The smiley, : ) was first used in 1980 by computer scientists at Carnegie Mellon University.

RHODE ISLAND ......... The nation's oldest bar, the White Horse Tavern, opened here in 1673.

SOUTH CAROLINA ..... Sumter County is home to the world's largest gingko farm.

SOUTH DAKOTA ...... Is the only state that's never had an earthquake.

TENNESSEE ............... Nashville 's Grand Ole Opry is the longest running live radio show in the world.

TEXAS ....................... Home/Birthplace of more pediphiles, murderers, alcoholics and rapists than any other state in the union, but a GREAT place for Winter Texans to have fun!

UTAH ...................... The first Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant opened here in 1952.

VERMONT .................. Montpelier is the only state capital without a McDonald's.

VIRGINIA ............... Home of the world's largest office building... The Pentagon.

WASHINGTON ......... Seattle has twice as many college graduates as any other state.

WASHINGTON D.C. .... Was the first planned capital in the world.

WEST VIRGINIA ........ Had the world's first brick paved street, Summers Street, laid in Charleston in 1870.

WISCONSIN .............. The ice cream sundae was invented here in 1881 to get around Blue Laws prohibiting ice cream from being sold on Sundays.

WYOMING .................Was the first state to allow women to vote.

What Would've Been 73

Today would've been Dad's 73rd birthday - WOW.  When I realized that about a week ago as I saw the birthday note in my planner, I almost fell out of my chair.  When did this happen?  When did my parents go past the age of taking care of ME and go into the realm of being 'older'? 

 

Now I'm not delusional - I know Dad is gone and he will forever be a 63-year-old in my mind.  The thought that has stayed with me is:  is that a blessing or a curse?  On one hand, I will never have to see him grow weaker, have to take the car keys away from him, take him out of his home and put him into an assisted facility, watch him lose control and independence, etc.  I won't have to ever come face-to-face with a Dad that couldn't do it all in my eyes.  Now, I know that at 63 years old (when he died), he had already begun to slow down some, but I know that the 20-30 years after that age would be a much more accelerated scale.

However.................given those "perks", it also means that I won't be able to talk with Dad about current events, football, finances, house issues, etc. ever again.  I won't have the chance to thank him for all that he sacrificed for me or for paying for my braces or for taking us on that trip to Disney World in 3rd grade (which I KNOW he wouldn't have chosen EVER on his own).  I won't have the joy of hearing his laugh, experiencing the hugs only a Dad can give, or hearing that he's proud of me for buying a house all by myself.  I won't get to hear that sarcastic sense of humor, poking fun at things that we both think are funny, albeit irreverent.

So as I reflect on what would've been his 73rd trip around the calendar, I am both grateful and saddened all at the same time.....I guess that's just how it goes sometimes.  At any rate, happy birthday, Dad - I miss you!

Larsen Women

My sister recently posted this picture on Facebook - it's my Grandma Larsen (Dad's Mom) fishing in what appears to be the evening with her Ray Charles-style sunglasses?!  I just LOVE the picture!  If anyone wonders why I'm weird, I'm going to just whip out this picture and tell them that I come from a long line of quirky peeps!

I just love that she was eccentric, quirky, sassy and sweet all at the same time.  She was that crazy old lady in the house on the corner in Hopkins, Minnesota that her neighbors would undoubtedly shake their heads at and just laugh.  She was a night owl (like all of the Larsens - me included) and so, unlike most senior citizens, would do her yard work and house projects at night.  She would trim her own hedges (in her 80s!) at midnight and sweep her driveway of grass clippings in the dark.  Bizarre!  But since I have moved to Texas where the summers are an inferno (to put it lightly), I find myself doing yard work in the near-dark as well.  I just laugh to myself, knowing that I'm merely carrying on the family tradition.  :)

Grandma was a tough lady and persevered through a lot.  She had a very rough childhood (I don't know all the details, but she told me once that it was 'bad' and that she left as a teenager because it 'wasn't a good situation' with her step-dad) and then lost her husband in 1959 when she had two teenage sons to finish raising on her own.  She was a widow, living in that same house by herself from 1959 all the way up to her death in 2004.  She was spunky, strong, determined, eccentric and everything in between.  I hope I inherited a lot from her!

List Friday

Top 5 Qualities of a Good Friend

1.  GOOD LISTENER

2.  Makes you laugh - HARD

3.  Will let you cry and just be there for you

4.  Tells you everything will be OK, no matter what

5.  Will take your call anytime, day or night

Now I feel very convicted - do I possess the very qualities I'm looking for in others???  I think I need to do better!

Thankful Thursday

This week I'm thankful for a Saturday afternoon nap in the sun with your favorite blanket out in the country.  How's that for a long, descriptive sentence?!  Well, that sentence describes paradise, I tell you!  All of that vitamin D from the sun, warmth, fresh air, no city noises, and complete relaxation.  Even if the nap is only 30 minutes - it's pure bliss and TOTALLY worth every second!

8 Years

It's the time of year that I get to reflect on the gift that has been my little girl, Maggie.  Her birthday is tomorrow and she will be 8 years old!  I got her when she was just 10 weeks old in April 2004, right after Paul and I moved to Ohio.

She is now starting to turn grey on her face and paws, but I don't care.  She could be 15 years old and she will always be my little baby peanut.  She still has her spunk, personality, energy, playfulness, naughtiness and enthusiasm for a treat.  She and Owen chase each other around the house daily and I love to watch them!

I couldn't have asked for a better little companion - she dries my tears, makes me laugh, snuggles with me when I'm sad, wags her tail every single time I come home - what a good friend!  She has gone on road trips with me - even rode like a champ from Ohio to Texas when we moved.  For the first 2 weeks in my new house, it was just an air mattress, pillow, blanket and Maggie.  That's all I really needed, though.  :)

Happy Birthday to my little Maggie Girl!!

Barbara

I have been going to get a massage once a month for the past three years and it is my very favorite hour of the entire month.  I go to the same massage therapist each time as well - Barbara.  She knows what I like, what I need and she is such a nice lady.

Barbara believes that your mind, body and spirit truly are all connected, and that emotional issues definitely manifest themselves in your physical body.  I tend to agree!  When I'm under a lot of stress or am depressed, I get tired, achy, and I have a ton of back pain.  Well this past year has been a bad one for back pain, that's for sure!

Anyway, normally I don't like to talk or chit chat during my massage - only before and after.  During the massage is my time to daydream, relax, whatever.  But this last time it just seemed very natural to talk with Barbara throughout the massage.  And we found out that we have a lot in common.  My massage was the day before the anniversary of my Dad's death - turns out it was the day before the anniversary of her Mom's death.  And apparently have a lot of the same family dynamics and history too.  Bizarre!

We got to talking about what our triggers were for emotional upheaval and our issues are.  Something I found interesting was that she said that she had always believed that the right side of the body is "male" and the left side is "female".....that was weird to me - never thought about it!  But I consistently have MAJOR back/neck issues on my right side - WAY more than on my left side.  Maybe she's on to something!

But she said that as long as I have been coming to see her, she could tell that I have been holding on to some things emotionally and that I need to release them and things will improve with my back/neck.  Even as we talked about emotional stuff, some of the tougher knots were loosening up in my back! 

It was a very strange, but rewarding experience....maybe I need to go see a therapist.......I haven't been to one since the year after my divorce, but it might be time........

Complete Life

OK, folks - it's been a while since I ranted about something, so let me get on my soapbox real quick.....

Here's what I need to rant about:  Just because I am single and don't have kids, doesn't mean that I'm not busy or have a life!  OK, I got it out there in the open.  Lately, I feel like (*some*) people who have kids are acting like they are the only ones with busy lives and a lot of stuff to do.   Uhhhhhhhh - no, that's not the case, people!

I don't just sit around looking at the ceiling all day - I have a very stressful full-time job, 2 dogs to take care of, a 25-year-old house to maintain, yard work, grocery shopping, car repairs, errands, volunteering in 4 different ministries at church, and trying to have a semblance of a social life.  That's a LOT to take care of for ONE person, if you ask me!  I don't have hubby or kids to help me do ANY of it, nor do I have parents, siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles or anyone else to stop over and pitch in when I need it.  I'm on my own and doing it all myself.

I chose the life I have - to have dogs, to buy a house by myself, to get involved at church, etc.....so I'm not complaining that I have a very busy and full life - actually, just the opposite.  I did all of that on purpose - I like to be busy and involved, while having my down time and alone time as well.

But I do NOT appreciate when people with kids look at you like you're going skydiving every day just because you didn't birth a bundle of joy and dote on said child every night.  I'm just as busy as the next person and perfectly happy without children in my life.  We all make choices and are doing different things in our lives and that's great - more variety and we all get the freedom to choose how our lives are laid out.  Isn't America great?!  But one way is not the ONLY way, nor is there a BEST way to do life.  So get over it!

OK, I'm done now.  Thanks for listening.