Little Life Tips

My sister-in-law (and great friend) sent this to me yesterday.  She knows I appreciate good advice and this list is full of wisdom.  I thought I’d pass it on.

 

“To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I’ve ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:”

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer,  Cleveland ,  Ohio

1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don’t have to win every argument.  Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.
8. It’s OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.
12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.
24. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ”In five years, will this matter?”.
26. Always choose life.
27. Forgive everyone everything.
28. What other people think of you is none of your business.
29. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
30. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
31. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
32. Believe in miracles.
33. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.
34. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
35. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young.
36. Your children get only one childhood.
37. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
38. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
39. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d
grab ours back.
40. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
41. The best is yet to come.
42. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
43. Yield.
44. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

 

Fins

Yesterday we went fishing – in the Atlantic ocean.  That still sounds strange to me having lived in Texas all of my life before moving to Boca two years ago.  Unfortunately, we didn’t catch many fish; we only caught a remora. 

If you aren’t familiar with remoras, it’s the fish that you see attached to sharks.  

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, if you know Jimmy Buffett’s song, “Fins,” you’ve heard the reference to remoras:

Chorus:

Can’t you feel ‘em closin’ in, honey

Can’t you feel ‘em schoolin’ around

You got fins to the left, fins to the right

And you’re the only girl in town

  

Sailed off to Antigua

It took her three days on a boat

Lookin’ for some peace and quiet

Maybe keep her dreams afloat

But now she feels like a remora

‘Cause the school’s still close at hand

Just behind the reef are the big white teeth

Of the sharks that can swim on the land

  

I have a confession to make about this song.  I only found out recently that the song is about “fins.”  For years, I sang, “…dance to the left, dance to the right…”  It seemed to work at the time.  I also never knew what a remora was until we were saltwater fishing last summer and once again, caught a remora.  I makes me wonder if sharks are nearby when remoras are all that are caught!

It was still a fun day even though the fish weren’t cooperating.

 

Go vote.

You know what I love most about America? 

We are free to make choices about everything – and this includes which presidential candidate we will vote for.  We can disagree with our family, friends, and even the political commercials bombarding us right now.

We get to choose.

Don’t argue with someone because they have a different view than yours…Embrace them.  Our ability to choose is what makes our country great.

Just vote. 

 

An autumn wine tasting party

Even though it doesn’t really feel like autumn here in south Florida yet, the temperatures are dropping from a warm 90 degrees to the upper 80’s.  I also saw one tree changing from green to a pretty gold just yesterday….ahh!  It’s Fall at last. 

A few years ago while living in Fort Worth, Dear and I hosted one of many wine tasting parties.  My favorite one was in October which we set up in the back yard.  My friend Denise came into town to help with all the preparations including cleaning the house and setting up the back yard.  Of course, we hung little white lights in the trees  and all around the deck – right after cleaning up all the lovely dog poop!  That’s what good hosts do… We were very lucky since a cool front blew in the morning of the scheduled party day.  It was perfect outside.  We set up two long tables with white table cloths (which is always a requirement at a wine tasting so you can see the actual color of the wine when held next to the white cloth), lots of white candles, and a table full of sparkling stemware.  For dinner, we grilled freshly made pizzas (think mozzarella, basil, etc) for everyone right on the deck.  What a great party! 

 

If you are interested in having your own wine tasting party, here is a great website to get you started. 

http://celebrations.com/article/sensuous-wine-tasting-party

Cheers and Happy Autumn!

 

Jonas Brothers concert

Last night some friends and I took our daughters to see the Jonas Brothers in concert.  We all had a good time but apparently the younger girls had the most fun given their screams that were just shy of what only dogs can hear.  Our upper-lawn seats didn’t give up the best view but thanks to the big jumbo-tron screens, we could see each of the brothers up close and personal – so much so that we could see them sweating profusely as they pumped up the crowd.   Demi Lovato was one of the opening performers for the Jo Bros.  I couldn’t help thinking, “Can’t somebody give that girl a ponytail holder?” since her hair looked like she had just gotten out of the shower by the end of her first song…it is Florida, after all. 

There was a touching moment when Nick Jonas sang “A Little Bit Longer.”  During the song, he discussed being diagnosed with Type I Diabetes a couple of years ago.  He said he made a commitment to himself while in the hospital to never let it get him down – and it hasn’t.  He has teamed up with Bayer Healthcare in order to share information about Type I Diabetes and to serve as an inspiration to others living with the disease.

A good time was had by all.

(Girls in motion…all night).