Potato Horror Story and Spider Fruit

Okay, so that might be a little extreme of a title, but have you smelled rotten potatoes recently? A little too much like a horror story, if you ask me. But hey, if that's the worst thing to happen to me this year, I'm doing pretty well, right?

Yesterday was my first day of work (volunteering with the Grateful Bread food pantry. Nice title, huh? 😋), and it was an interesting first day. First off, I don't like being a newbie, as I've discovered, but everyone treated me like family. Mary and Sherri, our managers, were adorable, and they made us (Zach, Brittni, and I) little signs to welcome us. Brittni and Zach have become like my siblings, and I think we're gonna get along well.

Then, we got to meet and shop for a few clients. This is my favorite part of the job (gee, I wonder why, since I love people), and I met some pretty great people yesterday. There was R.G., a three-year-old who came in with his grandparents, who blew us "some shuga" (kisses), and was a great little helper. There was Thelma, a lady in her 80's who couldn't have been more than 4' 11" inches, and gives me a bear hug for no reason whatsoever.

Then this morning, we tried what we dubbed the "spider fruit". It tasted like a pear, looked like a strawberry with spider legs. And, it was delicious! I think I'm gonna like it here. 😉 Here are some photos for your enjoyment.

Peace out (til next time),
Len 😎

Take Me to Church

I just wanted to write something about my church experience this morning. For me church is a comforting experience because, wherever you go, you feel at home. At least I do. You sing familiar songs, you hear familiar passages from the bible, and you're surrounded by people who (hopefully) have similar beliefs as you do, and are good people. I know that some people have not had this experience, and I am truly sorry for that, and I hope to be able to change the view that some hold on religion. But this post is not about that. This post is about my experience, and why I am growing to love Kentucky, at least this part of Kentucky.

It's very much a small-town feel, and I absolutely love that. You walk past people and you say "Good Morning", and they say it back, and maybe even say it before you do. We were at church this morning, and immediately, we are greeted, and the congregation is asked if anyone is new, and if so, where are they from. A few people volunteered (me not being one of them, I am ashamed to say), and we even celebrated a few birthdays! It was wonderful, and pretty relaxed. Considering that I come from a relatively relaxed parish, it was nice to experience that in a different state. That's all for now, keep up the love guys! 

Oh, and if you would like my address, let me know and I'll gladly oblige. I do love receiving mail. 😉

Peace out,

Len 😎

Day One

I never really know what I'm going to write until I write it ( makes sense, huh? 😋), so here goes nothing.

For the past few weeks, as going to CAP became more real and more overwhelming, I've been going into what I call "freak-out mode". Basically, I didn't want to leave my life behind, and start something new. It's like they say, "life begins at the end of your comfort zone." But, who the heck wants to leave something called a comfort zone? So, I started trying to hang out with people like crazy, spending time with my family (love y'all!), and try not to think about doing something that absolutely terrified me. I even contemplated applying to Temple, which sounded really sweet at the time (and still kinda does, to be honest). Anyway, I did it. I'm here. Whoop whoop!

But....now what?

And that my friends, is where I'm at currently. I already unpacked, did that as soon as I could (check out the lovely pics at the end of the post, please and thank you 😎), but now I have all this free time. At least, until dinner, and then tomorrow, when real life starts. It's just weird right now, having all this quiet, all this "me" time. What is a girl to do? I guess I'm just gonna try to keep figuring that out; doing all the stuff that I've been putting off until a later time. 

Welcome to this adventure with me! We'll see where CAP takes me. TTFN, ta ta for now. 

Peace out,

Len

TGIF

Hey y'all,

 Just sayin'. Enjoy your weekend!

A little inspiration on this Tuesday.

Hey y'all,

You know how I said I was going to make this blog a little bit of inspiration for us all? Okay, maybe I didn't say those exact words, but that's what I'm hoping this blog will become.

Anyway, since it is still January, I figure I can still talk about resolutions, right? We haven't become lost causes yet, right? I'm assuming you said right to that, so I'm going to keep going with this. One of my resolutions this year is to be more active, and to stay in shape. Yes, I can hear you all saying, "here we go again, with this staying in shape mumbo jumbo", but I'm trying here.

My two friends and I have recently gotten into the "active craze" as I'm dubbing it, and I just got an email this morning from one of the apps that I installed on my phone a while back, called Charity Miles. This isn't a lecture about staying active, and walking all the time, because let's face it, it's freaking cold outside! This is a post about a saying in the email that got me thinking: Walk with a cause in your heart. Everyday. Corny I know, but think about it, what if we did everything with a cause in our hearts? Might inspire us a little bit, don't you think? Yes, I know, I'm being a bit idealistic here, but hey, that's what I do. So, today, try to do things with a cause or purpose in your heart. And who knows, it might help.

Oh and here's a little motivation for today, in case you need a little extra. Until next time.

Peace out,

Len 😀

The Simple Life.

Hey y'all,

I was at mass the other day (meaning Monday), and the priest spoke to us about John the Baptist living "the simple life". He was perfectly fine with doing his thing, and living in Jesus' shadow a little bit. And this message got me thinking, "how many of us are content with living in someone else's shadow?" Not too many, I wouldn't think. In our society, it's very much stressed that we be the big shots all the time In our society, it's very much stressed that we be the big shots all the time, and be our own person. I know I'm like this quite a bit, I want to be the person that makes things happen, who wants to change the world. But you know, maybe, and I'm learning this slowly, I need to start with right where I am, and go from there. This is a bit of a spiritual post (if you hadn't already figured that out), because my faith puts me at ease, and makes it easier for me to be who I am. And maybe let someone else have the spotlight, every now and then. 

  

So anyway, living simply. How do we go about this? I mean, we could just get rid of everything that we own, and live like hobos, but are we ready for this? Most likely not. But we could start with giving things away that we don't use anymore, and trying to downsize a little bit. I know this has been my goal for quite a while now, and I'm still working on it. I have a little paper on my dresser mirror that says "If it doesn't nourish your soul, then get rid of it." Now that might be a little dramatic, but I'm still trying to abide by it. And I can't help but think of Gilmore Girls, and Emily Gilmore saying, "I should get rid of it if it doesn't bring me joy." Now, the person who advised her turned out to be a kook, but still. doesn't that sound like a good way to live? Within reason, we can't get rid of taxes and bills, but shouldn't everything that surrounds us give us joy? Just something to think about. I'm one of those weird people who wants to have all of her belongings fit in a backpack, but yet doesn't want to stop shopping.  

  

Remember how I was talking about just taking problems one step at a time. Well, there is a prayer that resonates with me, and I'm going to share it here. It's called the Serenity Prayer, and hopefully it'll help y'all like it helps me.  

  

  

  

 Peace out, 

Len 😎 

2017 musings (in other words, my thoughts)

Hey y'all,

When coming up with this blog, I've been thinking about the many (many) things that I want to cover. Basically, as silly and corny as it may sound, I really do want to try to make this community a more positive place, and I want to spotlight that people who are doing that very thing on a day-to-day basis.

But anyway, reflections for 2017. It seems kinda obligatory, but there are some things that I want to do better in the coming year. For one thing, I do want to be more healthy, and more active. For another thing, I want to be more organized, which for me, is no small feat. I'm one of those people who says that they're going to do something, then promptly forgets about it. So, on the topic of reflections and resolutions, I want to bring up a few ideas and organizations out there that have really helped me lately.

Bullet journals: I just found out about bullet journals a few months ago, and I was really interested. I still don't fully know what they are, mine is very bare-boned. Basically, I make myself a calendar in my journal (or notebook, as I call mine), and fill in my day-to-day activities (like volunteering and pet-sitting). Very basic. Then, I do a daily to-do list, and put in more things as they come into my head. I also like to put little boxes next to all of my tasks, and put checkmarks when I've completed things. It makes me feel very accomplished. My favorite part is decorating my "notebook" though. I get cute stickers, or just cut out pictures, and stick 'em in. This journaling has been very helpful for me, so I hope it will be for you as well. I'll include some pictures of mine at the bottom of this posting if any of y'all are interested as well.

Thrift stores: I'm a big fan of thrift stores, if there's anything that you should know about me. I especially like In Full Swing in Doylestown (or dtown, if you're a local), mostly because I volunteer there (hint hint, come visit me!). But yeah, if you're like me, and concerned about where your clothes come from. Plus, they benefit A Woman's Place, a domestic violence prevention organization. But anyway, I'll stop tooting their horn now. But seriously, check out thrift stores. They are great, and you can really find one of a kind things there.

As promised, pictures of my bullet "notebook" in case any of you want to make yourself one.

Daily to-do list

 Monthly calendar

I need to customize everything

Peace out,

Len 😏