Living In The Moment

How many times have you heard how important it is to live in the moment and how many times a day do you really stop and think about it?

If you’re  like most of us, not often enough.

Over the last few weeks I have been living in limbo and I have had my share of angst. As some of you may remember in my post a few weeks back, Opportunity Knocks, we were approached about selling our home. While we went quickly under contract, the buyer’s financing process dragged on. For weeks, we had no idea if the deal would go through. Should we plant our flowers or pack a box? On Thursday we got word that it is a GO. And we are moving and closing this Friday. It’s all happening very quickly.

When my mind started (starts) to race, I tried to catch myself and lovingly say, “When are you?” The past or the future? When I got back myself back to the moment, I realized all was well and I had a choice of what to do next. Sometimes it worked and other times I lost it. So goes the human condition.

Nevertheless, I am finding that being in the moment brings relief and surprise. Many amazing synchronicities have happened in this chapter, and one really blows me away. Last week, I went through boxes of cards and pictures I had saved for over 15 years. I came across letters and cards that friends had written – friends I don’t speak with or see as often as I used to.  I stopped to think of them, kissed their notes and either saved them in a new smaller box or blessed them and let them go. Three of those friends emailed me the next day! What does that say about the power of intention?

I am heading out now to the condo we have rented for a year. I am meeting my friend Colette, who is the Queen of  moving forward with delight,  to smudge and bless the space and to fill it with good intention. I am trying to live in this moment. I’m sure when the packers come to do the heavy lifting on Wednesday, I’ll get stuck in the past. But with any thought, I hope to remember that right here, right now, this opportunity knocked on our door for a reason. And only by being in the moment, will the reason introduce itself.

What ways do you remind yourself to be in this moment and live MindFULLy? Let us know!

The Cultural Concierge

Bored with what you’re reading, listening to or seeing at the movies?  No time to research, no one to ask and plum sick of looking to Oprah for the answers? Well, look no further…Head Butler is the site for you! Think of Head Butler as your own “Cultural Concierge”!

www.headbutler.com

I discovered Head Butler awhile back, quickly subscribed and now eagerly await new recommendations every week. Why wait? Well, as many of you  know, I love a good coincidence. As such, one summer, when we had  just returned from Aspen where we were delighted to hear Josh Ritter, my favorite musician, perform with Grammy-award winning violinist, Hilary Hahn, I was lamenting on how no one knew of Josh.  The following week, Head Butler wrote about him — they loved him as much as I did — and I have trusted HB recommendations ever since.  I was so excited and found more to learn of as I dug deeper and deeper into the site.

Head Butler was created by Jesse Kornbluth. So beyond a coincidence, why trust Jesse’s recommendations? Because…he’s  been tracking down and writing about quality culture for decades. He’s been a contributing editor for Vanity Fair, New York, Architectural Digest, Reader’s Digest, The Los Angeles Times Magazine and Departures, and a contributor to The New Yorker, The New York Times, etc. He’s written several books and co-founded Bookreporter.com, now the hub of the Internet’s most successful non-commercial book network.

And btw my friends,  Josh Ritter is also amazing. In 2006, he was named one of the “100 Greatest Living Songwriters” by Paste magazine. He has been compared to Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and Leonard Cohen. He has a new album out this week, So Runs The World Away. You can take a listen at http://www.joshritter.com/ and link through to NPR. They’ll be streamlining the album for a few days. You can also read Jesse’s interview with Josh on Monday at www.headbutler.com.

Summer is a great time to  stock up on good books, new music and culturally cool stuff. I encourage you to toss Josh’s CD in the car (my personal favorite is Animal Years), try one of Head Butler’s book/movie recommendations and kick back and enjoy the long days of summer. Believe me, there is so much to discover, you’ll wish they never ended.

Let us know which Head Butler recommendations you choose for a MindFULLY creative summer!

Recipe For A MindFULL Life

Recipe For A MindFULL Life

Into each day put equal amounts of faith, patience, courage, work, hope, kindness, rest and  prayer.

Gently mix in one well-selected solution.

Add a teaspoon of good spirits, a dash of fun, a pinch of folly, a sprinkle of play and a cup of humor.

Mix thoroughly.

Pour into your favorite glass, making sure it is  half full.

Garnish with gratitude.

Sit back and ENJOY!

What’s your recipe for MindFULL living? Let us know!

Its Greek To Me

Have you ever stopped to think about why certain conversations stick with you?

The other day, I was reflecting on a conversation that was under my skin. What was really bothering me? I couldn’t put my finger on it. Then, as my mind wandered at a stop light, it hit me.

The person had been sarcastic. And I had taken it personally.

Sarcasm has its roots in Greek and it means “to cut or tear flesh”. Ouch.

I suspect that no one really wants to literally cut or tear anothers  flesh. However, that’s what it feels like when we are sarcastic or someone is sarcastic to us. I try not to do it, but honestly, I have – and I feel lousy afterward. In addition, I have wasted energy by holding on to conversations where I’ve asked a question and received a sarcastic response. The under lying reasons for such nasty behavior is ours/theirs to own. Only we can make the choice to ask ourselves the question, “Of all my responses, which one will put more love in the world?”

Or as my dear friend Jill always says, “Be the behavior you want to be remembered for.”

Perhaps the next time we feel like giving someone a sarcastic response, we’ll remember how it feels to be wounded. After all, if sarcasm can metaphorically cut someone, imagine how kind words can heal their wounds.

How do you become more MindFULLY aware of the way you talk with others?

Let us know!

Vivid Living

Are you living your life in vivid color or do some days feel like different shades of brown?

Lucky for us, my friend Nancy, who is a gifted and talented writer, offers insights and musings about living a vivid life on her blog, Vivid Living (http://nancysharp.net/vividliving/). After I read it, I often realize something that adds color to my world.

Her attitude and her writings are beautiful and stirring because her philosophy is  “what happens to us in life matters, but in my view, how we choose to live matters more.”

Six years ago, Nancy’s husband, Brett, died in her arms at Calvary Hospice in Bronx, New York –  he had a brain tumor that finally felled him nearly seven years after he was diagnosed in 1998. At the time, I think her twins were around two years old.

A few months later, with courage and twins in tow, she moved to Denver.  When I met her, it was as if I had known her before. One falls into easy conversation with Nancy. I’m not sure if it is her warm smile and the way she looks you in the eyes when you’re talking or the life experience she brings to bear on a casual chat by the pool. One thing is certain; she has come to teach us how to live mindFULLY.

Now she has created a new life in Colorado and  is re- married to a darling man she met by reaching out her hand and holding up her heart. How they met is a great story, in and of itself, and you can find it on her blog:  http://nancysharp.net/vividliving/. Her story is like a rose. It has bloomed, thorns and all. And the color is so vivid.

I know you are busy. However, I encourage you to carve out a ½ hour and treat your heart to reading a few of Nancy’s entries. Money-back guarantee – you’ll be the better for it.

What are some ways that help you live MindFULLY and vividly? Let us know!

Opportunity Knocks

Three weeks ago, on a Tuesday, I brought in the mail and noticed a letter from a Realtor tucked into the Ballard Designs catalog. Usually I throw mass mailings away, but this one beckoned me to open it.

Interesting. The Realtor had sent a letter to everyone in our sub-division, asking if anyone was interested in selling their home. He was representing a family with kids who go to the school at the end of  our block. My husband and I had talked about moving on and off over the past few years and decided we had nothing to lose by floating a trial balloon. As it turned out, eight families, including us, said,  “yes, we’re interested.” (Four houses in the division are on the market already and have been for some time).

That Sunday, they looked at all the homes and on Monday, the Realtor said they liked ours, made us an offer and gave us 48 hours to decide. After I pulled my head out of the toilet (be careful what you wish for)  we  decided to counter offer. Thursday night they accepted. Someone in the RE division of  my husband’s office was able to quickly review our end of the deal and by sundown on Friday,  we signed a contract.  The inspection was last week and the work is minimal.  Knock wood, if all goes well, we’ll close sometime in May.

It seems like it is meant to be. We didn’t put our house on the market, engage a Realtor or have to keep the house clean for more than one showing. It came to us. Remembering this has helped as I clench up with fear and wonder, “what have we done?” Things were in order. Did I really need to turn it all upside down?

But the answer is yes. I have never really been comfortable in this house. True, it is beautiful and I appreciate the space that has held the sounds of friends and family over the years.  However, I long for a smaller yard and fewer toilets to clean (OK, I know. I don’t really clean the toilets.)  There are only 3 of us and in a strange sort of way, we have outgrown this house. Like many homes, we have rooms that sit empty. I love Sarah Susanka and the Not So Big House series. Sarah talks of how we make formal living rooms and use them when we have guests. If we really like the people, we invite them  into the kitchen/family room. If we don’t, they stay in the formal room. So in essence, we spend money and space on a room for people we don’t even like! For years I have wanted to have  smaller, creative,  user-friendly space to LIVE in and host folks I love.

So, here we are,  taking a leap of faith and trusting that it might take a while, but we will find a more fitting home. In the meantime, as we ponder how to proceed to “next”, we have turned this into an “adventure” and have decided to live in a new way for a while. Instead of  settling  into a  bland rental house, we are going to sign the lease on a beautiful,  smaller condo in a neighborhood where we can walk to the Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings and ride our bikes to the parks on warm summer eves.  There’s a lot of possibility out there. We simply have to trust we will find it. And some days that is easier said than done.

What a ride! That fateful  Sunday morning I went to the grocery store and here I am, three  weeks later, wondering how we will possibly eat all the food in the freezer before we have to move. At least I don’t have to choose paint colors for the big window wall again!

Has opportunity ever knocked and filled your mind with possibility? Let us know how!

It’s All At the Airport

Every few months I travel for work and one of my favorite parts is actually time spent in an airport. Really. It’s kinda  inevitable, so why fight it? Looking at travel time  as “found time”, I use it to become more MindFULLY Creative.

I always carry a small notebook in my bag to capture ideas that come to me. Then I use the pages as “check lists to create” and gain the added bonus of checking off creative to-dos. Whether it is from a magazine I splurged on, a display in the store window, or an “aha” when I am forced to sit quietly on the plane for two hours, I always find something that I would have never found.

I also carry my handy-dandy travel journal craft kit. It’s a little pouch with my travel journal, a glue stick, a great pen and water color pencils. I plug in my iPod and for two hours, I am in a creative zone. I write about my trip or anything else that comes to mind. Ripping out pics and gluing them in, using the water from my cup to smear the colored pencils across the page and then adding some text, gives me the satisfaction of having done something when there is nothing to do. When we are delayed, it helps me focus on something other than my annoyance.  And when I get home, I am a happier Robin.

I also love to see what other women around the country are wearing and have gotten some great ideas. In Philadelphia, I saw an elegant woman wearing all black and silver. Now my favorite travel wear is to dress in all black and then wrap a colorful pashmina, like turquoise, around my neck. Throw some silver jewelry on and you have a classy and comfortable travel ensemble.  My friend Tracey is repping a line of affordable jewelry that can spiff up travel basics and add a skip to your step! Check out www.sydneyandrews.com/traceyp

Another way I use the time is by catching up on collected magazines and the Sunday NYTs. I don’t always have time during the week to read the whole paper, so I stash the parts I am interested in and pull them out at the gate. If my flight is delayed, I’m still gathering ideas. I also like to buy the paper of the town I’m in. I’m bound to learn something or find some idea that gives me pause.

I hate the phrase, “we have some time to kill”. Why would anyone ever want to kill something so precious?

What have you discovered sitting in the airport that has filled your mind with new ideas and energy? Let us know!

Follow Your Thread

So excited! On Saturday my new stationary arrived.        

I love stationary. There is something about the crisp clean card, the feel of the pen gliding across the paper and the sense of grace as I seal the envelope.

When I was a kid, whenever I received a gift, my parents made me write a thank you note immediately. I hated it. Now, I love it. Moreover, I appreciate it when someone writes to me. So few people use paper these days. It’s an era gone by.

I also learned that in addition to writing personal thank you notes, handwritten professional thank you notes are also treasured. When I was young, I worked at the Illinois Lottery and Desiree Rogers was my boss. Desiree used to write us thank you notes for jobs well done on her personal stationary. I saved mine and learned to do the same as I moved through my own career. I think it is elegant. Maybe that’s why Obama tagged her to be the Social Secretary!

Now I collect stationary and one of my favorite places to buy it is at The Little Monogram Shop www.littlemonogramshop.com

LMS is owned by our friend, Dori Loomis. She is as cute as her store. Creative and light-hearted, Dori’s spirit is only surpassed by her taste in gifts and goodies. Lucky for us, when her girls were in Kindergarten and 2nd grade, she was itching to do something that utilized her creativity. One evening after a glass or two of wine with friends, Dori casually mentioned how perfect some vacant space in town would be for a little monogram shop.

She’d been sewing since she was 7, loved computer graphics and design (which made learning the specialized embroidery software fairly easy), had managed the volunteer non-profit stationery business for The Junior League of Chicago in her 20’s and understood buying and managing inventory. Lastly, she’d handled all the finances for her family’s Funeral Home business.

They loved the idea. So did her husband. So, she set about gathering information about start-up costs and created a business plan.

Dori is a perfect example of when you are thinking about work you’d like to do, “build on what you know.”

Looking back, she found a way for her crazy unrelated jobs to make sense! She’s been around for 8 years, has 5 part-time employees and lots of new ideas still hatching every day. No matter what you may need, LMS is brimming with stationary and gifts that will inspire a thank you.

Check out www.littlemonogramshop.com

Reflect on your own mind full of experiences. What thread weaves through the years?

Birds Of A Feather, Shop Together

This afternoon my 12 year old wanted to go to the mall with a friend. Suffice to say, there were other ways I wanted to spend my day.

I often seem to struggle around what I want to do vs what she wants to do. Today I had a list of “should dos” as long as our driveway.  However,  as she approaches independence, I try to be sensitive to how tethered she still is to us and how much I liked the things she likes when I was her age.

Thus,  I used this afternoon as an opportunity to turn my attitude into gratitude. We had a budget to spend (how lucky to have extra spending money), she still wanted me around and really, my ” should do” list could wait. As such, I grabbed my camera and decided that while they were in Abercrombie and Fitch, I’d sit on the comfy chairs, with all the guys waiting for their ladies, and see what creative pics came to me.

It didn’t take long before I noticed a trend. Teen girls shopping in packs. Everywhere I looked, I saw them. Walking together, talking together, texting together. It was as if once I noticed them, they were everywhere!

I started snapping pictures. From 10 years of age to who knows how old, they crawled the mall. I didn’t notice any boys poking in and out of the stores. Only girls. Any guys I saw were with girls or waiting for them. For 3 hours I sat there, and there was only one lone boy.

What is up with this? Why do so many young girls shop in groups?   Let us know your theory. My mind is full of reasons. What are yours?

p.s. My clothes still smell like store perfume…

What Are You Reading?

I am prone to hormonal insomnia and one of the best ways to lull myself to sleep is with a good book. I am always asking my friends, “What are you reading?”

Such the question also dovetails with my other standard question, “How did you get to be where you are in your work?” And the two fit like hand in glove with my long time pal, Carol Snow.

True confessions. I adore Carol. Haven’t seen her in years, but she and her husband hold a special place in our lives. They were our sidekicks when the guys were in graduate school. We summered at the Cape and came way too close to buying a small home together on the beach, before losing it in a tug of war with another family. We still lament.

Carol is one of those friends who is witty and intelligent, but doesn’t lord it over you. She simply uses it to write contemporary fiction for teens and adults.

How cool is that?

Carol held a variety of jobs post-college and during the early years of raising a family. One constant thread wove itself into Carol’s life – a love of writing. As Carol says, “ Eventually, I decided that I could accept failing as a writer, but I couldn’t live with myself unless I at least gave it a shot. I wrote nonfiction for awhile: articles for Park City Magazine and essays for Salon. One of my essays, about a night spent with my vomiting toddler, was nationally syndicated. If you Google “Carol Snow” and “puke,” you can still find it. Finally, I finished a novel, found an agent, and landed a publishing contract. That was five years and six books ago.”

She lives what I wish for us all to know. If there is something you do well, try and make it yours. If you want to make a living, give it a shot.

Carol’s latest book has just been published. Just Like Me, Only Better Carol Snow. Berkley, $14 paper (320p) ISBN 978-0-425-23248-4. And she was reviewed in Publisher’s Weekly, 2/15/10!

A divorced Orange County suburbanite’s life gets a delicious jolt in Snow’s superb romantic comedy. After Veronica Czaplicki’s husband leaves her for a mega-rich realtor, she scrapes by, substitute teaching at her son Ben’s elementary school and renting a guest house from an overbearing couple. In a fun twist of fate, Veronica’s resemblance to young superstar Haley Rush (think: Miley Cyrus meets Lindsay Lohan) attracts Haley’s manager, who offers Veronica $100 an hour to pretend to be Haley for photo ops. At first Veronica loves getting a makeover and “dating” Brady Ellis, Haley’s hot ex-boyfriend and co-star. The good times, of course, can’t last, and romantic treachery lurks. Snow (Here Today, Gone to Maui) turns what could’ve been just another single mom mope fest into a wonderfully witty reminder that celebrity always carries a price tag. (Apr.)

My daughter is currently reading, Been There, Done That, one of Carol’s earlier books. Last night she asked for an extra 15 minutes before bed to read. Carol’s books are also awesome travel companions, but be prepared- folks shoot quizzical looks when you chuckle out loud.

I am in a book club. We have been meeting for six years. Some months we love the book and others we simply ignore and turn our attention toward the food. Carol is in a book club, too. Can you imagine how fun it is? Check out their picture. While she says they don’t always dress like this, I find their spirit infectious. I’m defiantly going to bring this to my book club on Thursday!

If you choose to read one of Carol’s books with your book club, it comes with discussion questions. If you are interested in having an author chat, Carol would be happy to join your meeting via speakerphone. Just drop her a line at carolsnow@roadrunner.com

This week, check out one of Carol’s books at www.carolsnow.com and settle in for a good read. Use her stories, and her story,  to ponder your own tale. If Carol can turn her love of writing into something she enjoys doing for a living, what would you like to do?

Think mindFULLy and remember, you are the author of your own story.