go ahead...you know you want to

"Draw a crazy picture,

Write a nutty poem,

Sing a mumble-gumble song,

Whistle through your comb.

Do a loony-goony dance

'Cross the kitchen floor,

Put something silly in the world

That ain't been there before."

-Shel Silverstein

Seriousness and responsibility, introspection and pondering, self-reflection, deep thinking, reevaluating what one is doing in/to the World......all have their place, but there also needs to be some time for simple silliness. It truly is about balance. A life only focusing on the negative leads only to negativity: depression, heart disease, isolation...the list goes on. Who wants to die of seriousness? Who wants to look back during the twilight of life and think, "I am so glad I did not take the time to experience joy?" No me! I'm going to go and do a loony-goony dance now. Care to join me?

run, melissa, run

The workouts are certainly getting easier, the "morning after ouchies", not so ouchie anymore. Now I would like to find some good, safe places to jog. There does not seem to be any tracks within walking distance and the sidewalks/roads are not the best. I suppose I can drive somewhere, but I do love the convenience of stepping out my front door and beginning my workout immediately. I would also like to find a 10k on LI to use as motivation. Back in Colorado I was training myself for the Bolder Boulder, but became really sick a month before it and had to stop running. Prior to that, I was amazed at how my body adapted to training and how much I actually enjoyed running. I have that itch again, to run. There is some sense of accomplishment with increased distances run and a means to clear my and ground myself mind while doing it.

happy birthday, mommola pastramola

She's just like a mom....only smaller!

(Seriously, don't know how I came from her. Good thing I wasn't a big baby!)

And it's her birthday!!!!

Woot Woot! When I was young, every year she told me that she was turning 23.

After, oh say, the fourth year, I caught on.

And I cried and cried.

Not because she wasn't 23,

but because she lied to me!

(I can't believe my mother lied to me!!!! waaaaaa!

I think I may have aged her a lot that year.)

Then I accepted it and happily became older than her

on my 24th birthday.

HAPPY 23RD BIRTHDAY, MOM!

You don't look a day over 22!

no suntan here

us_angle_2
Originally uploaded by misslissa13

It was a beautiful day to be hiking on the beach. We bundled up in many layers, only to find that it was not cold and windy. The sky was blue, the sun was shining and the sound of the waves were relaxing. We hiked for an hour, trudging through the soft sand and finding amusement in the swift legs of the piping plovers. This is how I enjoy the beach, not by slathering myself with oil and cooking myself on a beach towel. Where's the fun in that? I would rather move my body, enjoy the sights and collect some interesting shells, stones and beach glass. Ah, the clean smell of the ocean air on a crisp February day. This is living.

shuffled off this mortal coil

shuffled off this mortal coil
Originally uploaded by misslissa13

Friday night, feeling extremely agitated,
I went to bed at 8:21
Woke up at 7:00 the next morning

Turns out, that same Friday night
My neighbor died of a heart attack

Didn't know her much
Moved in here in November
Polite hellos and nice to meet you
Were the only exchanges

She seemed nice
Was a home health aide
and smoked incessantly
Her nephew had just temporarily moved in after being kicked out by his girlfriend
That is all I knew

Sometimes it is difficult to understand the energy you are feeling, especially agitation, when you are unaware of what it happening right next door. Now that I know, it doesn't necessarily make experiencing the energy any easier, but at least I understand.

The rest of the weekend was positive; Worked out on Saturday, went for a walk on the beach Sunday morning and had dinner with family for a "Happy two days before your birthday, mom" party. (Tuesday, she turns 23 again.)

Now, to start a new week and see what transpires. I hope my neighbor's family heals quickly. I hope to enjoy nature more. I hope to treat my body in ways that makes it happy and healthy. I hope to spend more time with family and friends. I hope to learn some more wisdom from my mother. I hope for calm and joy and feeling grounded, for everyone.

this is good for me???

In my never-ending journey to get and stay healthy and fit, I started lifting weights again. Monday and Wednesday, I hit the gym and did two full-body workouts. I have not done any hardcore weight workouts in a long time, preferring less strenuous, but healthy activities such as yoga, walking and biking. Gauging by the way my body is responding to lifting I NEED the resistance training.

Oh yes, I hurt and will probably be rather sore tomorrow (damn you weak calf muscles!!) however, it is a good kind of hurt. The kind that says, "You did a good job and you are getting strong again". For that, I cannot complain. I feel good in my soreness, and proud of myself for lifting again.

Oh, and by "gym" I don't mean "fitness center". Lucky for me, my parents have a full gym in their basement and even a hot tub to soak sore muscles. My father joked, "The gym is free but the spa will cost ten bucks." To which I responded by showing up last night with a membership card clearly stating that the spa is included with my membership. Silly father, you forget you raised a kid with a snarky sense of humor and an ability to cleverly get around roadblocks. Woot Woot! .......now where's the Icy-Hot?

shhhhhhhh

(This entry is copied from The Writer's Almanac, but I wanted to share it with you all.)

Shhhhhhhh
Originally uploaded by misslissa13

It's the anniversary of the first state literature censorship board in the country. On this day, 55 years ago (1953), the Georgia Assembly unanimously voted to create the Georgia Literature Commission, a censorship board that would keep "obscene" literature out of the state. The commission defined obscenity as "literature offensive to chastity or modesty." Three men made up the commission; one of them, a Baptist minister. If these three men decided something was obscene, they had the power to prevent its sale and could also recommend criminal prosecution.

The commission took offense to J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye and Norman Mailer's The Naked and the Dead, among others, but the commission found its match when it ruled Alan Marshall's Sin Whisper obscene. Its war against the book marked the beginning of the end for the commission, as its decision was reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court. The board faded out of existence after 1973, a victim of budget cuts.

from The Writer's Almanac 2.19.2008

commissioned, well sort of

commissionedV
Originally uploaded by misslissa13

I actually got a request for an original MiSo New York piece of jewelry. Here's the bracelet I came up with using the requestor's guidelines. It was liked. Now if only I charged money for it...... Sigh, no really, Etsy soon to come.

grasping the brass ring

The brass ring

striving for the highest prize

living life to the fullest


What is your brass ring? Perhaps there are many answers to this....what is it you strive for? What are the things you have accomplished and are proud of? You deserve recognition, even if it is only in my blog for today. What are the next steps in your journey? I want to know what you all are doing and thinking. Even all you lurkers, who visit my page and never seem to comment...it's okay to break your silence. I really want you to share, participate, let us know a little about yourself.....connect.

Thanks.

whizzzzzzzz

Some days, doesn't it feel like the World is spinning out of control and about to crash into the Sun?

exciting and new

Nothing says love like Carol Channing and Ethel Merman!

lesbian nympho midget mud wrestlers

You found dr schnookleheimer....she was behind the couch playing Uno with Jesus!

It still amuses me how many people stumble across my blog by Googling "I found Jesus. He was behind the couch the whole time!"

Hmmm, I wonder how many people might find me by searching lesbian nympho midget mud wrestlers? Guess only time will tell.

insert alarm clock buzzing here.

Is it morning already??!?! But, maaaaaa, I don't wanna go to school today (sulk sulk). Sigh. I'm tired. Damn tired. One and a half cups of coffee so far, and, oddly enough, a cheese and mustard sandwich for breakfast (!!!) I just could not do "sweet" this morning. Hopefully, the caffeine will kick in any minute now.......

I am not one who has my day determined by what my horoscope says, but they are fun to read. My favorite daily horoscope is on MyYahoo. It is usually more like a sound bit of daily reminders to start my day off. Here is today's:

"There will be a pause in the action today -- you have a lot of momentum going on in various projects right now, but it's time for patience, not for progress. Slowing down will give you a chance to kick off your shoes, sit down and get comfortable. Work on learning how to accept the fact that you can't always have things happen as quickly as you think you want them to. The universe has a different speed in mind for you, and it's liberating to just go with it.

Don't worry, Universe, my mantra as of late is still "patience pays".

yawn ----stretch----- zzzzzz

Oh, man, I am really quite tired tonight, but it has been a week since I posted so I want to write something. (Read: do not have high expectations of reading any deep thoughts or witty writing.) I started working a temp job last week, and this office rocks! The atmosphere is great: enough work to make the time go quickly, really nice coworkers that are personable and earlier hours (8:15-4:30) so I miss Long Island traffic.....well, except today. Sheets of ice under a slick layer of snow make my 19 mile commute take two hours, forty-five minutes....eeeesh! I arrived home safe to a smiling Greg and some shrimp/quinoa/fresh spinach wraps (holy freakin yum).

I received a confirmation letter (two identical ones actually) about NYS receiving my license/limited permit applications and they will be reviewing my information (a practice in patients).

This weekend I have check out sizing for a bridesmaid dress for my cousin's upcoming nuptials.

Last Wednesday, I got to babysit my two favorite wee ones, which was a blast.

Wow, I am really just rambling and I have no idea if this is coherent one bit, so.....time to get some sleep. Dream time! Woot woot!

happy birthday, daddy-o!

Happy Birthday, Daddy-O!
Originally uploaded by misslissa13

Happy Birthday to the man who taught me how to hit a baseball, change a tire and love unconditionally. My Dad!

kid art

This past week, every night before going to sleep, I have been picking out whatever color Sharpies catch my fancy and simply letting myself play with the colors. No rules, no artistic goals, just the desire to let myself play. It only takes a few minutes each night, but the enjoyment and feeling of calm is hugh. I just wanted to share some of my "kid art" as I am calling it:

I even love how some of the colors from previous night's drawings sometimes bleed through onto the page:


And a scan of my trusted Costco-size box of Sharpies. Oh how I love them so!

Yeah, my previous art teachers would not critique this work highly, but heck I'm having fun with it!

will work for money

blog fodder
Originally uploaded by misslissa13

I have already been offered an amazing job, in the setting I want to work in, with the population I want to work with, and at a great starting salary. The catch is, I cannot start this job without first having my limited permit professional license. Everything has been submitted to the state for review and, provided I took all the classes that this state requires (each state is different), I will have no problem getting approval. Of course, the state being the state, this can take up to two months. My future employer says this is no problem, as soon as I have it I can start working there, even if it takes the full two months.
So now I have up to two months of not having my permanent dream job. What to do for the next bunch of weeks? My wit and charm mean nothing to the landlord, utility complany and banks (can you believe that???) and I do not want to take a full-time permanent job under false pretense. I guess it's back to the temp agencies for the time being, unless something else falls into my lap.
Yes, I will work.....for money.

organizing

I was inspired the other day by Nina's blog to make a one item "to-do list" so I decided to make "finally get the kitchen organized for the first time since moving in to this apartment" my task. I did it. Moved the furniture around to a more functional placement (difficult to do when you have a tiny kitchen), cleaned above the cabinets, decorated a box to hide some "not for daily use" items, cleaned under the refrigerator, emptied and organized the cabinets and I was inspired the other day by Nina's blog to make a one item "to-do list" so I decided to make "finally get the kitchen organized for the first time since moving in to this apartment" my task. I did it. Moved the furniture around to a more functional placement (difficult to do when you have a tiny kitchen), cleaned above the cabinets, decorated a box to hide some "not for daily use" items, cleaned under the refrigerator, emptied and organized the cabinets and reinforced the island that was really wobbling from the move. Whew! Quite n job, but it is done and I feel much better about it. Next tasks: finish sorting through the boxes of papers and random stuff while making an organizational system for the keep stuff.

organizing
Originally uploaded by misslissa13

Also, organize the incredible desk hutch that Greg's father built for us. Since our desk only has a keyboard drawer and small hutch, we desperately needed office storage space. Now we have it.

I will take a full view picture when I have it all organized and pretty-like. Of course, a Buddha was the first thing to adorn this lovely hand-made piece.
The apartment is starting to feel more like home.