Encyclopedia of Me Monday: H is for...

I'm a homebody. With each passing year, I become more in love with being in my house, holed up in my cozy office or curled in the corner of my big green chair, puppies snoozing quietly beside me. My home is extremely important to me. It's my safe haven, my protection against the elements, my security blanket against the world. It's the place where I've had my happiest moments, really, where I've spent the most time with the people I love best.

When I moved into this house 31 years ago, I was barely out of high school, newly married, and wildly excited about being independent, free from the smothering atmosphere of my parents home where I was loved just a little bit too much. Finally, I was the master of my own universe, maker of my own meals, keeper of my own hours. I had a home-and a life-of my own.

It's unusual these days for people to live in one house for such a long time. And, even more unusual is the fact that his house was built by Jim's parents - he has spent his entire life in this place. When we bought our second home in Florida a few years ago, it was a thrill to have that brand new home of our own, one no one had ever lived in. For a time, I was captivated by the beauty of that new house, and our old home felt obsolete, like a tired old pair of shoes~comfortable, but no longer fashionable.

Lately, I've developed a newfound appreciation for this faithful abode. It's sturdy and strong, if a little worn around the edges. It's warm and snug in the winter, and the yard fills with breezes and birdsong in the summer. It's chock full of memories - of little boy laughter, and puppy dog barking. Within its walls are harbored all my hopes and dreams, the evidence of my triumphs and failures, the hopes for victories in the future. It's where I've recovered from illness, cried in despair and grief, rejoiced in good fortune.

It's home.

Holiday Heaven

We really enjoy our second home in Florida, but one of the downsides of having a vacation home is that whenever you have vacation time, you feel obligated to use your "vacation home," rather than go somewhere else and spending money on a hotel. Sometimes, though, I like to go somewhere completely different, stay in a nice hotel and have room service, explore a new city, or even country. We've even talked about going abroad for a couple of weeks and renting a villa in France or a cottage in England.

There are so many options for lodging when you travel, and with Hotel ReservationsI can comparison shop for hotels or even cottage or condo rentals, all within a mouse click of one another.

The site is well organized, offers some great travel tips for every city worldwide, and, best of all, offers some great discounts - as much as 70% savings off regular rack rates in some cases. This site navigates well, too, so that it's easy to get back and forth between pages when I'm working on multilpe trips at a time - well, you never know, I might get to fo to Belize for New Years Eve!

I'm thinking with the holidays coming up, this might be a good time to getaway for a weekend trip - maybe Toronto or Chicago. Or perhaps I should look into that dream trip to Cornwall - a little cottage on the seaside would set me up nicely.

I can do lots of travel planning (and dreaming) using this one handy website.

Check it out...if you're not going somewhere now, you should be planning to!

Sunday Scribblings-Power

"By believing passionately in something that still does not exist, we create it. The nonexistent is what we have not sufficiently desired." Nikos Kazantzakis

It's not a secret any longer~the buzz is everywhere. The power of intention, the power of positive affirmation, the "if you can dream it you can do it" philosophy. Believe long and hard enough, visualize yourself where you want to be, and the universe will move in ways to fulfill those dreams.

Undoubtedly, that is one powerful idea.

And yet...

"I know what the great cure is: it is to give up, to relinquish, to surrender, so that our little hearts may beat in unison with the great heart of the world." Henry Miller

While channel surfing on my XM radio the other day, I stumbled across an interview with Denise Jackson, wife of country music singer Alan Jackson, who has written a book about the recent breakdown of their marriage. The couple is back together now, and Ms. Jackson spoke about her desperate attempts to restore their relationship. "It was only when I finally surrendered it all to God that things started to happen, that Alan's heart began to soften toward me, that I learned to give up trying to control him and our marriage."

Two diametrically opposed ideas about power over your life. One suggests we have an almost magical ability to believe things into being, to focus a piercing beam of positive energy toward our goals, igniting sparks of creation deep within ourselves and the universe. And the other advises we give over our desires, our need for control and order, offer it in our cupped and outstretched hands to the Higher Power who can only then initiate Her work in our lives So what is the answer? In my yoga class, the leader tells us our practice is a balance of effort and surrender. Effort to achieve a pose, to bend and stretch stiff, awkward limbs and muscles into positions that may feel unnatural, even painful, and surrender when you've pushed your body far enough and you simply breath deeply and let go, accepting the shape you're in. I imagine that everyone reading this is struggling with something -desires, fears, confusions, heartbreaks. We're all yearning, wondering, hoping to fulfill those dreams we harbor so deep within our hearts we're almost afraid to speak them aloud. We all want the power to make those dreams come true, to find answers to questions that trouble our sleep, to soothe grief and pain. But I also imagine that true "power" lies somewhere between these two dichotomies, somewhere in that amorphous realm midway between effort and surrender, when you've done every practical thing you can do, when you've focused every bit of positive energy you can on that one tight place in your life that simply refuses to bend another inch, and you finally exhale and float, in the clear and certain knowledge that you've done your best and now grace must slip in. The balance of power - saying Yes! and learning when to let go.

for more powerful thoughts, go here

Friday Feast

Appetizer : How are you today?With radiant sunshine, a fresh cool breeze blowing, and endless blue sky, I'm excited about getting outside, hoping the fresh autumn air will blow some of the cobwebs out of my head.

Soup : Name 3 television shows you watch on a regular basis. For a long while, there weren't even three shows I could say I regularly watched. Lately, I've become addicted to Mad Men, a series set in 1960's New York City, and centered around the advertising business. I grew up in the 60's and there haven't been many shows or movies set in that era. This one pays great attention to detail, from costume to language, to social mores and customs. It's fascinating. I also watch Gray's Anatomy and ER ~ I've always liked the "doctor shows."

Salad : What’s the scariest weather situation you’ve experienced? A couple of years ago, a hurricane hit Naples, Florida, where our son lives and where we have a second home. We were all in Michigan at the time, but it was frightening (and rather surreal) to be watching the coverage on television, seeing familiar landmarks being blown and buffeted about. Luckily, neither of our homes were damaged.

Main Course : If you could wake up tomorrow morning in another country, where would you want to be? No question - the UK. When we visited there in 2005, waking up in the morning was my favorite part of the day. The sun on those luscious green hills, the fields dotted with sheep, the peace and quiet of the small villages we passed through - sumblime!

Dessert : What do you usually wear to sleep? I really like nice sleepwear - not super expensive stuff, but things that match and look good. I'm not an old T shirt and boxers kind of girl. I like feminine nighties and pajamas.

for more feasts, go here

Booking Through Thursday

This week Booking Through Thursday asks:

Buy A Friend a Book Week is October 1-7 (as well as the first weeks of January, April, and July). During this week, you’re encouraged to buy a friend a book for no good reason. Not for their birthday, not because it’s a holiday, not to cheer them up–just because it’s a book.What book would you choose to give to a friend and why?

And, if you’re feeling generous enough–head on over to Amazon and actually send one on its way!

I trade books with my friends all the time~sometimes it's hard to keep track of who has what, they get passed around to so many people. But I rather like the idea of buying a friend a book for no particular reason, especially since I know it will return to me eventually!

The Whole World Over, by Julia Glass, was one of my favorite reads last year. Glass has a real flair for description and character development. This is a sumptuous book about relationships, and, yes, friendships~ it makes wonderful "curl up with some chocolate and wine" reading, just the kind of thing I like to encourage my friends to do.

For my writer friends, The Right to Write, by Julia Cameron, provides the perfect combination of inspiration and exercise in short, concise chapters. This book distills all Cameron's highly touted theories about writing into one small volume. It's my favorite of all her books.

For more ideas on book shopping for your friends, check out Booking Through Thursday.