It's all about Donna

I’m back! Did you miss me? My mantra this year, is simply, it’s a new year. New beginnings, new days, new life.

I have struggled with a lot of issues these past few years. I won’t go into the details, just trust me on this. It hasn’t been pretty. Now, having said that… it’s a new day, it’s a new year, it’s a new beginning!

This year I resolve to be resolute with my resolutions. The most important resolution and goal, is to get my art studio built. I miss having a creative space, and as art has re-entered my life, I want to nurture it. I have lots of ideas using Zentangle and must have the space in which to create. The couch and kitchen table no longer satisfy my thirst for artistic expression. I am hoping the birthday fairy godfather will wave his magic wand and help my dream come true. In the meantime, I dream and scheme.

As the new year begins, I am determined to blog more, make healthier choices, and above all, be happier. Won’t you?

So much for a weekly, let alone daily, post about life in the day of me. It’s been crazy. I haven’t really had a whole lot to say either.

Here it is a little over three months after my last post. More life has happened. I remained jobless since October 1, 2009. That has totally sucked. I’ve picked up some freelance and barter projects, but nothing significant that I can support myself on. It has totally grated on me to be stuck in this position.

Had to put down the two old horses. That wasn’t fun, but it was necessary. Boukie went down and couldn’t get up. That sucked. Several weeks later, it was clear that Louie was languishing after the loss of his buddy. I love my Vet and his people, and my good friends Lori Allen, Kathy and Jeff Hoffman, who all helped me with this huge task. Thank you all for both your physical and moral support.

OK. It’s not all doom and gloom. There have been a ton of bright and uplifting spots along the way. In March, there was all the preparation for the annual Sunrise Ridge Horse Driving Trial. I’m responsible for the program and sponsors. That alone is nearly a full-time job. The event took place in April this year.

In May, I got to attend the Certified Zentangle Teacher conference in Massachusettes. Had a blast, met some creative people and made some truly wonderful new friends. It was good for networking, too. This was truly a turning point in my life and as one new friend told me, “life changing.” She was not kidding. It has been life changing, and as a result, I vow to be more diligent in posting on a regular basis now.

Because I do have life in my day, I hear it calling my name. Until my next post, HAVE A GREAT DAY!

“Let the sun shine
Let the sunshine in
The sun shine in

Let the sun shine
Let the sunshine in
The sun shine in

Let the sun shine
Let the sunshine in
The sun shine in”

~~HAIR

Winters in North Texas are typically pretty mild with a handful of crappy weather days. Yes. Crappy weather. I said it. When the weather is bad in North Texas, it’s really bad. There is no middle ground. At least not in my opinion. This winter season we have seen more crappy weather than in years past. In fact we had our first white Christmas in over 50 years and we now stand at the second snowiest winter in Texas’ history. While I’ve enjoyed some of these snow days and bad weather (in hopes of freezing out all the bugs), I have really had enough. I am ready for the sun to come back out and shine once again. I need the sun to replenish my happy supply and make me smile again. I shrivel horribly when the weather is crap. Today, the sun is out and life is good.

Let the sun shine in!

This post is long overdue. It’s been a year. It’s been a long year. I’ve had a lot of life in my days. This post deviates somewhat from what I would normally post here. Since I haven’t posted anything in some time (nearly two months), I reckon I’m allowed.

I fell into the ranks of the unemployed nearly a year ago. I really didn’t think twice about it. My skills are highly desirable and very marketable. I was prepared for an up to four-month search as I knew my job sector had taken a direct hit in this ‘new’ economy.  Low and behold, within four months I did indeed find a short-term contract. Cool… this would get me into the fall when things should get better and it would buy me a little time to find a longer-term contract or even a permanent position. As my contract came to completion, several new opportunities presented themselves. Once more I found myself in the candidates chair and in the top three to five choices. While this is all very positive, the negative is that a job offer did not materialize. This is a first for me and I am simply astounded. Not to worry… life goes on.

And life does go on. Life in my day is now let the dog in, let the dog out; let the dog in, let the dog out. You get the picture. I’ve also got four horses to care for, three of which are senior citizens (pasture ornaments due to their age). Additionally, there’s all this work around the house that needs doing everyday. Oh yeah… and I have to conduct daily job searches for that ever elusive job so that I can continue to draw my unemployment.

There are several things I’ve learned this past year:
I can indeed live on way less than my usual upper 5-digit annual salary (of which I was lousy at saving).
I don’t need half the crap I used to buy and now realize that if I don’t ‘need’ it I don’t buy it.
I can do so much more, on so much less. This is almost liberating.
I have true friends who care for me (and for whom I’ll always be extremely grateful).
And the biggest thing I’ve learned is how much I really LOVE my parents and how much they really love me. I don’t say because they give me money, because they don’t. In fact, my mom keeps trying to give me money and I won’t take it. I love them because of the moral support and how they have been enriching my life this past year with our weekly lunch dates. A tradition we extended into yet another blog, 52Tables.com.

This post will definitely fall under babble as that is pretty much all it is. I just felt the need to write, so I did. There’ll be more… lots more.

I wish I could take credit for this nifty little find, but I can’t. A new connection actually found it first. Curiosity got the best of me, so I had see what the Word Cloud was all about. You can enter random words, a URL, whatever you want, and it will create a jumble of words. Pretty neat. This is my Word Cloud.