Friends...

So I have some really great friends, I feel I am blessed. I don't have lots of time to do things with them but we still seem to stay in each others lives. Over the next few weeks I have a list of some people that need a bit of attention....via phone calls or Skype. 
I will be calling....

Regina, Linda, myself, Tori

I also work with a group of really great girls, and 1 amazing guy. They all work so hard for their families and though not one of us is rich in money, they are all rich in in more important areas...themselves. I care very deeply for them all and they, just by being themselves have made my life richer. I thank you all for all you do, everyday. 

Jorge with Dottie

You are all so amazing! The work we do is hard, the days/nights are really long, but we do it and then we laugh with each other. I have work in places where backstabbing gossip is nonstop, not with you guys! You are all so special to me. Thank you.


love, peace and hugs
Jennifer

Oh to turn 100 years old

My Friend Dottie

       I have known Dorothy Doyle for about 3 years, though I don’t call her Dorothy, to me she is Dottie. I am her caregiver, but sometimes I don’t really see us in that way. Instead I see her as my friend, someone who makes me smile, laugh, cry and create frustration in my life. The later doesn’t happen very much, only when she is doing something that I feel is not safe for her wellbeing. She will just keep doing it anyways so it doesn’t really matter if I get upset or not.

     She turns 100 this month, which is kind of funny because I am always saying she lies about her age. We have been very excited as birthday approaches, for it is a milestone for her, and me, for I have never known anyone to reach this magic age. We spend many hours together talking and listening to each other. I cherish this time, not because I think Dottie will be going anywhere soon, but because the conversations have depth and substance. I hear about what she has witnessed and been a part of in her life and I am left in awe.  In an age where all is racing forward at the speed of sound, my conversations with Dottie are relaxed and meaningful.

      Take a minute and reflect on some of the things she has witnessed in this world: the party line to the cell phone, the radio to TV, records to DVD’s, she went from books to reading a kindle! She has raised an amazing family, moved from one side of the US to the other, spent time in other countries; so much to see and do and she did it. She taught others how to read, went to college, where the men had to vote to allow her into the lab. She told me once she wanted to be a nurse, and I think she would have been a great one, even better if she was a nursing supervisor. (Oh, the thought pains me!)

       When I look at Dottie I see myself in a bit of her, the independence, the strong will, (which can be good and bad) and the ability to roll with the changes. “Get up and go about your business” she says, don’t sweat the small stuff.  This is great wisdom for all.

       I wish Dottie the happiest of days; I wish her health and good times to continue. She is my dear friend and I love her like a sister. Keep rolling Dottie, tell it like it is and keep moving and stop lying about your age!

Dottie walks twice a day, eat lots of veggies, is very social, reads books and plays a wicked game of scrabble. Yes...and that was her riding a bike on her birthday! Way to go Dottie!

And so the madness ends...

Time to party! I have completed what was surely the hardest class of my life...microbiology! That being said, it was not the material that sent me for a loop, but the professor. She was unreal! I loved learning about the organisms that are all around us, on us and inside us. I loved learning how to grow them and then kill them. It was a really good time and I loved the information that I basically taught myself. But the classroom was stressful, unorganized, and insane, all of which it didn't have to be.....But it is over and now I can relax and enjoy some freedom from school for 10 weeks! I will be taking on another part time job, but the beach does deserve  to have my presence for a few days......
Lastly, I would like to thank everyone who has listened to me complain and dealt with my moodiness this past 16 weeks. I am so sorry for the stress...its over and I am back, as happy and positive as ever!

A really good read.

Here is a list of 15 things which, if you give up on them, will make your life a lot easier and much, much happier. We hold on to so many things that cause us a great deal of pain, stress and suffering – and instead of letting them all go, instead of allowing ourselves to be stress free and happy – we cling on to them. Not anymore. Starting today we will give up on all those things that no longer serve us, and we will embrace change. Ready? Here we go:

1. GIVE UP YOUR NEED TO ALWAYS BE RIGHT

 There are so many of us who can’t stand the idea of being wrong – wanting to always be right – even at the risk of ending great relationships or causing a great deal of stress and pain, for us and for others. It’s just not worth it. Whenever you feel the ‘urgent’ need to jump into a fight over who is right and who is wrong, ask yourself this question: “Would I rather be right, or would I rather be kind?”Wayne Dyer. What difference will that make? Is your ego really that big?

2. GIVE UP YOUR NEED FOR CONTROL

Be willing to give up your need to always control everything that happens to you and around you – situations, events, people, etc. Whether they are loved ones, coworkers, or just strangers you meet on the street – just allow them to be. Allow everything and everyone to be just as they are and you will see how much better will that make you feel.

“By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond winning.” Lao Tzu

3. GIVE UP ON BLAME

 Give up on your need to blame others for what you have or don’t have, for what you feel or don’t feel. Stop giving your powers away and start taking responsibility for your life.

4. GIVE UP YOUR SELF-DEFEATING SELF-TALK

 Oh my. How many people are hurting themselves because of their negative, polluted and repetitive self-defeating mindset? Don’t believe everything that your mind is telling you – especially if it’s negative and self-defeating. You are better than that.

“The mind is a superb instrument if used rightly. Used wrongly, however, it becomes very destructive.” Eckhart Tolle

5. GIVE UP YOUR LIMITING BELIEFS

about what you can or cannot do, about what is possible or impossible. From now on, you are no longer going to allow your limiting beliefs to keep you stuck in the wrong place. Spread your wings and fly!

“A belief is not an idea held by the mind, it is an idea that holds the mind” Elly Roselle

6. GIVE UP COMPLAINING

 Give up your constant need to complain about those many, many, maaany things – people, situations, events that make you unhappy, sad and depressed. Nobody can make you unhappy, no situation can make you sad or miserable unless you allow it to. It’s not the situation that triggers those feelings in you, but how you choose to look at it. Never underestimate the power of positive thinking.

7. GIVE UP THE LUXURY OF CRITICISM

Give up your need to criticize things, events or people that are different than you. We are all different, yet we are all the same. We all want to be happy, we all want to love and be loved and we all want to be understood. We all want something, and something is wished by us all.

8. GIVE UP YOUR NEED TO IMPRESS OTHERS

Stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not just to make others like you. It doesn’t work this way. The moment you stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not, the moment you take off all your masks, the moment you accept and embrace the real you, you will find people will be drawn to you, effortlessly.

9. GIVE UP YOUR RESISTANCE TO CHANGE

 Change is good. Change will help you move from A to B. Change will help you make improvements in your life and also the lives of those around you. Follow your bliss, embrace change – don’t resist it.
“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls” Joseph Campbell

10. GIVE UP LABELS

 Stop labeling those things, people or events that you don’t understand as being weird or different and try opening your mind, little by little. Minds only work when open. “The highest form of ignorance is when you reject something you don’t know anything about.” Wayne Dyer

11. GIVE UP ON YOUR FEARS

Fear is just an illusion, it doesn’t exist – you created it. It’s all in your mind. Correct the inside and the outside will fall into place.
“The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.” Franklin D. Roosevelt

12. GIVE UP YOUR EXCUSES

Send them packing and tell them they’re fired. You no longer need them. A lot of times we limit ourselves because of the many excuses we use. Instead of growing and working on improving ourselves and our lives, we get stuck, lying to ourselves, using all kind of excuses – excuses that 99.9% of the time are not even real.

13. GIVE UP THE PAST

I know, I know. It’s hard. Especially when the past looks so much better than the present and the future looks so frightening, but you have to take into consideration the fact that the present moment is all you have and all you will ever have. The past you are now longing for – the past that you are now dreaming about – was ignored by you when it was present. Stop deluding yourself. Be present in everything you do and enjoy life. After all life is a journey not a destination. Have a clear vision for the future, prepare yourself, but always be present in the now.

14. GIVE UP ATTACHMENT

This is a concept that, for most of us is so hard to grasp and I have to tell you that it was for me too, (it still is) but it’s not something impossible. You get better and better at with time and practice. The moment you detach yourself from all things, (and that doesn’t mean you give up your love for them – because love and attachment have nothing to do with one another,  attachment comes from a place of fear, while love… well, real love is pure, kind, and self less, where there is love there can’t be fear, and because of that, attachment and love cannot coexist) you become so peaceful, so tolerant, so kind, and so serene. You will get to a place where you will be able to understand all things without even trying. A state beyond words.

15. GIVE UP LIVING YOUR LIFE TO OTHER PEOPLE’S EXPECTATIONS

Way too many people are living a life that is not theirs to live. They live their lives according to what others think is best for them, they live their lives according to what their parents think is best for them, to what their friends, their enemies and their teachers, their government and the media think is best for them. They ignore their inner voice, that inner calling. They are so busy with pleasing everybody, with living up to other people’s expectations, that they lose control over their lives. They forget what makes them happy, what they want, what they need….and eventually they forget about themselves.  You have one life – this one right now – you must live it, own it, and especially don’t let other people’s opinions distract you from your path.

http://www.purposefairy.com/3308/15-things-you-should-give-up-in-order-to-be-happy/

Overwhelmed

Ever feel like you have so much to do you don't know where to start?

3 exams to study for
2 micro projects
1 lab practical
and a partridge in a pear tree.....

Oh well, it too shall end.

 And a big applause going out to my niece Micheala for setting her mom, my sister, up with Skype! She is the best, now we can talk live with video chats...I was in tears the first time seeing my beloved family on the wonderful east coast!
Sign up and text me if your interested in chatting and I'll send you my "handle"
It is way better than a phone call! and it is free!

Enough for now.

Not....I or ME

Is it possible to write a post without having the subject center around oneself? Mmmm.....

In this age of over sharing I have begun to wonder if we are now living in an age of the "I/me" generation.
Though I admit, I love hearing and reading about others dreams and accomplishment and I love to talk/write about mine....But it seems to me that we are getting away from the real world even more and more. At times I see things on the Internet that people write and I wonder if they would say the same things face to face without a computer as their shield. Do others see this behavior?

This whole blog posting stems from a review I just read on the Internet....wow, it was harsh. Are we becoming numb to others pain and feelings? I think cyber bulling is real and what we do on the Internet is just a piece of what we can be in the real world, if you can pick on someone anonymously than what stops you in the real world from showing your true colors?

Any thoughts? Do you write things on the Internet that you wouldn't state in the "real" world? Do you use Facebook/twitter to pump yourself up or do you use it as a tool to see what the issue's are in the world? Try  reading your comments on Facebook/or any social site and see how many times you use the words"I/me". Is this the new generation? Narcissistic?

Just "me" thinking.....

Bucket List

My friend Tori gave me this great idea. I think it is so great that I have decided to put it out there on my blog and give it some thought. I'd like to hear what my friends might think are some of their ideas for things they may want to accomplish within a given time period.
The time period would be short: the month of April.
The idea would be 5 items that I would like to do within the month.
They are as follows:
Write a letter to a old friend.
Make time to call an old friend.
Clean out my desk and refinish my new one and get it into working order.
hike Iron Mountain again.
Go to the beach and read something other than microbiology for 3 hours.
Seems to me that I could do these things, but with school going full stream time is so limited. But after viewing my friend Tori's long list, I think this short one may be possible. It all sounds like good food for the soul.
Have a great day and think about your own "Bucket List"

Jennifer