Eli

The Book of Eli was the activity of the evening. I went to see it with one of my friends from work. The movie was really good. =) At one point in the movie, main character, Eli, is talking about the world before 'the flash'. He says, "People had so much. We threw away things that people kill for now... People were losing sight of the things that really mattered."

That got me thinking about being more appreciative and really focusing on what matters in my life.

Things like my family and friends. Little experiences like going to the dog park. Or sitting outside in the sun. Having the opportunity to work and earn money. I find that alot of times, I get wrapped up in the hustle of daily living, that I dont take time to really enjoy things.

If happiness is an end result, then being appreciative is a sure fire way to get there.

Viral

Today was my second day of training at West Corp. I must say im enjoying myself =) I had forgotten how much I like learning. I love the challenge of picking up and remembering new tasks and operations. It's definitely a situation like i wrote about on sunday. "stretching yourself mentally" I have really been doing that. Getting up around 5 - 5:30a is kinda lame right now, but i am enjoying having a full day.

I believe i was a viral happiness agent today =) mwahahahaha! Ive decided that Im going to be as positive and friendly as i possibly can. That way, the positivity can spread to the people around me and then around them and on! Im going to make happiness pond ripples! lol.

The chapter in 'The Happiness Makeover' that speaks about this kinda of happiness spreading is one of my favorites in the book. It's called "Be Happy for Everyone Else's Sake." In this chapter, M. J. Ryan notes that we have structures in our brains called mirror neurons and those actually cause us to experience other people's emotions. Like feeling sad while near a sad person, or getting a happiness contact high from a happy person. It's pretty interesting the way our minds allow us to connect with other people emotionally.

"By choosing to be happy day by day, we have the potential to drive emotions in the positive direction of all those around us - our children and mates, our coworkers and friends, even people we casually stand next to on the subway. It turns out that happiness is truly contagious." -M. J. Ryan

Here's to being agents of viral happiness =) I love it.

Simple Pleasures

::sing song voice:: Movies make me happy =)

I watched Inglorious Bastards. [insert huge smile] It was hilarious in that way that only Quentin Tarantino can be funny. I think what made the movie even better, was the fact that my friend Aaron told me the WHOLE story, with acting, after he saw it. So i felt like i'd already seen it, lol.

Hmmm.... color this day a day of simple pleasures =)

Simple pleasure: a cup of peppermint tea in the morning
Simple pleasure: christian music on the radio during my drive to work
Simple pleasure: movie watching
Simple pleasure: ice cream
Simple pleasure: Kiva curling up in my spot in bed after i got up
Simple pleasure: warm morning shower

"Simple pleasures are little ordinary activities that give us energy, peace, or joy." M. J. Ryan

New Job

First of all let me say that i found internet near my house!!!! Woo hoo! Happy for the little things =)

Daylight Savings... Time thief!

Anyway, bright and early tomorrow morning at 6:45 I will be sitting in my first training class at West corp. excitement! Welcome to the world of full time employment! Im a bit worried about getting up tomorrow on account of the hour daylight savings stole from me... But positive thinking says 'i will be on time, attentive, and awesome tomorrow' =) Im excited about starting a new job and giving myself different experiences. In 'The Happiness Makeover,' M. J. Ryan writes about how happiness can be gained by stretching yourself mentally, example- new job. She says, "Happiness comes not only from moment-to-moment enjoyment of life, but also from the sense of satisfaction and flow that arises when we are using our capacities to their fullest. Our bodies, minds, and spirits are made to be worked. Otherwise, we feel stale." So true =)

So here's to a new job and a new chapter in life. =D

"Happiness is neither virtue nor pleasure nor this thing nor that but simply growth. We are happy when we are growing."

Where the Wild Things Are

I finally watched "Where the Wild Things Are" =) It was a bit sad at times, but the overall feeling I got from the movie was this want to run around outside howling. lol. After the movie I definitely had a wild rompus with my dog. It was a ridiculous ton of fun. =)

I really liked how much imagination was in that movie. I mean there was lots in the storybook, but the movie expanded it to a great amount. I found myself thinking about exploring in the woods with my best friends, building fire pits in the back yard, jumping from the trampoline into the swimming pool, and digging caves into the dirt piles left by construction. Good times...

Sometimes i think that getting to be a grown up is messing with my imagination. =/ I dont know the last time I played make-believe. I really should take time to do that more, or at least make time to play. Besides, Im starting a new job on monday. A new grown up job. An eight hour a day job. Im nervous and excited. I hope I do well.

Sunshine... for the health of it.

I wore my $0.99 polka dot skirt today =D JOY!

This week has been rainy... well stormy actually. There was a thunderstorm this morning and one crack of thunder woke me and my dog up. She jumped up with this scared look on and i thought 'aww, pumpkin... this is your first thunderstorm...' She was so not down for all the lightning and thunder. -chuckle-

After the rain cleared, the day was gorgeous! Absolutely beautiful! ::kisses fingertips italian style:: There was sunshine, big puffy clouds, and a nice breeze. The clouds were so awesome, i had to take a couple pictures...

On the way to work

After work

Im so glad that its friday. Tomorrow's Sabbath and im hoping for a bit of sun and a trip to the dog park. Im looking forward to a nice weekend. A relaxing Sabbath, and a Sunday of AE work.

The sun has a strange effect on me. It makes me feel content and at ease. Does that happen to anyone else?? So I did a little research on sunlight and health/mood. I found an article that basically said sunshine is awesome! Well not in those exact words, but here's a snippet.

Sunshine stimulates the production of serotonin which promotes a good mental outlook and fights Seasonal Affective Disorder. It also stimulates the pineal gland which produces melatonin. Melatonin is one of the chemicals that operates our bodies clocks and helps with sleep function. Ninety percent of our vitamin D comes from exposure to the sun. [from The Effects of Sunshine on Health]

The rest of the article was interesting, but this bit was the best to me. I want to go soak up some sun. Its pretty amazing that the simple act of letting the sun shine on you can boost you health and your mood. Further down in the article, the writer noted that since our bodies absorb vitamin D from the sun, and that vitamin can bolster the immune system- sunshine can help us fight colds. Go figure... Oranges, vitamin C, sunshine... I shouldve seen a pattern =) I am going to make it a point to get as much sunshine in my life and my body each day as possible.

Quasimodo

I reintroduced myself to a song that I listened to in high school. Well... i actually internalized this song, lol. It's called 'Quasimodo' by Lifehouse, and it was a cushion in those emotionally-shifty high school moments. I played it this evening and wasnt at all surprised that i still knew all the words. What did kinda surprise me was the feeling that crept up when i played it the first time. It was like i was back in 10th/11th grade and blasting this song in my car. Telling everything that was going on that it wouldnt break me. It was 4 minutes and 32 seconds of bliss. Only because I can really sing the chorus now and look back. Back then, I sang it hoping that one day the world would be off my shoulders. Ive defintately lost the pain. Those old emotional chains are gone. And this song reminded me of that today. I almost cried. Singing at the top of my lungs and driving down Pratt Ave.

there goes my pain/ there goes my chains/ did you see them falling/ there goes this feeling that has no meaning/ there goes the world off of my shoulders/ there goes the world off of my back/ you cant change me/ you cant break me/ there it goes

So here are the lyrics and a link to the song.

~Quasimodo by Lifehouse~

You could be right and i'll be real
honesty won't be a pain you'll have to feel
'cause i don't need your approval to find my worth
i've been trapped inside of my own mind
afraid to open my eyes to what i'd find
i don't want to live like this anymore

there goes my pain
there goes my chains
did you see them falling
because this feeling that has no meaning
there goes the world off of my shoulders
there goes the world off of my back
there it goes

does it scare you that i can be something different than you
would it make you feel more comfortable if i wasn't
you can't control me
you can't take away from me who i am

there goes my pain
there goes my chains
did you see them falling
because this feeling that has no meaning
there goes the world off of my shoulders
there goes the world off of my back

you can't change me
you can't break me

there goes the world off of my shoulders
there goes the world off of my back

have you ever felt that your only comfort was your cage
your not alone ive felt the same as you
have you felt like your secrets give you away
you're not alone ive been there too
everyone is looking and everyone is laughing
but i think everyone feels the same
everybody wants to feel okay
everybody wants to
everybody wants to feel

there goes my pain
there goes my chains
did you see them falling
there goes this feeling that has no meaning
there goes the world off of my shoulders
there goes the world off of my back

'cause i dont want it, i dont want it
'cause you can't change me you can't break me
there goes the world off of my shoulders
there goes the world off of my back
there it goes