And so we come to the end of August Break for 2019. Gonna try for another three-fur today, combining the last two days of August with the Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Let's see how it goes.
August 30 - Smile
We went to the Giants game last night with a bunch of friends for Italian Heritage night. Since my maiden name is Stagnaro, I'm pretty sure I qualify. Of course I have to take the smiling selfie wherever we are:
But this time we were smiling even more because our picture made it to the big screen!
Game #3
When I say "Big screen" I really mean it because at 153.28 FEET wide by 70.87 FEET high it is the largest video screen in any of California's sports arenas. So, I can say that was my/our 15 seconds of fame :)
August 31 - August Was...definitely not a month where I sat on the couch and did nothing! I started the month with a Backstreet Boys concert, went to three Giants games and the ocean, caught the full moon, made some cards, started a new baby album project and read three books. Plus, lost 2 more pounds - which is not a lot but with some less than strict Keto eating during these events is not surprising to me.
Backstreet Boys
Game #1 - "Friends" tribute night. Some of the Giants players and their wives did a recreation of the opening of the television show "Friends." It was pretty good!
Interesting read about Freddie Mercury. Added some details that I didn't know.
Latest book from the Braxton Campus series. Stay tuned for another one in October!
Based on a true story. I cannot imagine.
Hope you enjoyed my August Break entries. How was your August? What's coming up in September? I'm thinking of doing a would you rather this or that series.
Ali has definitely given us something to think about with this prompt, "Spirit." One definition of the word spirit is: "The non-physical part of a person that is the seat of emotions and character; the soul.
It's no secret that I have a positive outlook on life in general. That's not to say that I am always happy or that things never go wrong. It's more of a deep seated feeling that everything happens for a reason and even though I don't always know what the reason is at the time, eventually it makes sense.
Maybe my "Spirit" or soul is at peace with myself. I remember as a child my mom would rock us to sleep and sing a song that was just a simple tune and it started like this: "Mommy loves Janet, Daddy loves Janet, Sister JoAnne loves Janet, Sister Judy loves Janet..." and she would proceed to sing that everyone in our family loved me. What's not to love about this girl?
I sang the song to my kids as well. If I was having a particularly rough time getting them to sleep sometimes the list of people who loved them would extend to cousins and neighbors, the mailman, etc. before they'd fall asleep!
I'm sure part of it has to do with my religious upbringing. I was raised Catholic and went to Catholic grammar school for 8 years. Although I am not a "practicing" Catholic now and I don't always agree with everything the church teaches, still I feel a calmness come over me on the times when I do make it to church (maybe once every 5 or 6 years?) and I believe the basic teachings about God and his love for us.
I try to pass that peaceful feeling on to others too, that's why I am such a proponent of the smile and the power it has. I think everyone should try smiling more often!
That's my take on Spirit. What about you? What's your spirit like? Remember any songs your mom sang to you? Share!
I had to participate in the #SLS Song Lyric Sunday today because the prompt is...SMILE. (On reading the comments, I see that it was supposed to have been "simile" as suggested by Jim Adams but I am much happier with "smile!"
The song I chose is "Just The Way You Are" by Bruno Mars. I love Bruno Mars and he is definitely on my list of people to see if he comes around our way again.
The lyrics:
Just The Way You Are
Oh, her eyes, her eyes make the stars look like they're not shinin' Her hair, her hair falls perfectly without her trying She's so beautiful and I tell her everyday Yeah, I know, I know when I compliment her she won't believe me And it's so, it's so sad to think that she don't see what I see But every time she asks me "Do I look okay?" I say
When I see your face There's not a thing that I would change 'cause you're amazing Just the way you are And when you smile The whole world stops and stares for a while 'Cause girl you're amazing Just the way you are Yeah
Her lips, her lips, I could kiss them all day if she'd let me Her laugh, her laugh she hates but I think it's so sexy She's so beautiful, and I tell her everyday
Oh you know, you know, you know I'd never ask you to change If perfect's what you're searching for then just stay the same So don't even bother asking if you look okay, you know I'll say
When I see your face There's not a thing that I would change 'Cause you're amazing Just the way you are And when you smile The whole world stops and stares for a while 'Cause, girl, you're amazing Just the way you are
The way you are The way you are Girl, you're amazing Just the way you are
When I see your face There's not a thing that I would change 'Cause you're amazing Just the way you are And when you smile The whole world stops and stares for a while 'Cause, girl, you're amazing Just the way you are
Yeah
Songwriters: Khari Cain / Peter Gene Hernandez / Philip Martin II Lawrence / Ari Levine / Khalil Walton
I think this is a wonderful song. Often there are things we don't like about ourselves, the way our hair looks, the way we laugh, etc. It is sometimes hard to accept compliments from people when they tell us we look nice or that they like our smile. I am not happy with my hair, too thin and too fine, but I think I have nice eyes :) Conceit is not a good thing either but we should be able to be proud of ourselves. We are, after all, unique and perfect in our own way.
Here is Bruno singing his song. I love the way they did this video too.
Hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday and remember to share those smiles!
"What is something you wish more people knew or believed?"
The "Butterfly Effect" is real. According to Wiki, the Butterfly Effect is the idea that small causes can have large effects. The scientific premise is that the flapping of a butterfly's wings can, through the movement of air, cause a ripple effect which could make a tornado on the other side of the country. Kind of impossible you may think, but it's been proven.
We had the pleasure of listening to Andy Andrews speak at a convention a few years ago and I absolutely love his work. He has a very unique storytelling style and this is one of my favorites of his. He explains the Butterfly Effect using people and the things they do in their lifetime to illustrate it.
In it he says, "Your life matters and what you do today could affect generations to come." Of course the obvious things are that we could use up all the food and water supply and pollute the air. We know that.
But I believe that it can be a very simple thing, like a smile, that may change the lives of other people. Maybe it is by smiling at a person walking down the street or by making eye contact with the grocery clerk or salesperson, smiling at them and thanking them by name. Maybe it is by writing something in one of my blogs that happens to make the reader smile. I believe that by doing so, perhaps the smile will be passed on from the grocery clerk to the customer behind me and so on and so on. Perhaps the smile will make someone who is feeling discouraged or upset just a little happier.
I have made it my goal to try to make at least one person smile every day. I know I feel better when I smile.
If you have not heard of Andy Andrews before, I would suggest that you read his books or take a listen to some of his other stories on YouTube. Here is another favorite: Amazing Grace:
I'll bet that one brings a smile to your face!
Hope you are following along with the Blog-tember Challenge. 10 days left! Let me know if I made you smile :)
Here we go again with the challenges. Last year I participated in a few of them...the April Love Challenge, the 2015 Reading Challenge, Sparkles, August Break and Blogtember to name a few. I find I like the challenge of a challenge and it really makes my brain search to find different and unusual answers to the prompts since sometimes the questions are the same.
A few years ago I did a 365 picture project where I took a picture a day for the year and then put them in a journal. It was very fun to try to capture something new every day. It was also very difficult at times, if I was busy and didn't remember to take a picture.
I didn't want to do a 365 project again just yet, but I did want to do something that would reflect this year. I decided to take a selfie each month on the 10th of the month (my birthday is on the 10th of March so that's why I picked that day). Here is mine for January, taken on our back porch:
I've marked the date in my calendar for the year to help me remember.
I know I want to do something else, something crafty, but I haven't decided what yet. I still have a few weeks left in the month so I have some time to think about it. Maybe a card a month? Maybe I'll try my hand at a video? A collage? So many thoughts! Any requests?
