Movie Monday

I've been wanting to do this for a while...watch all the Academy Award winning movies. With snow and colder days ahead, I'm moving forward with watching my list of movies. First up on my list is the classic, All Quiet on the Western Front.

Way back in college, I read this book for a European history class. I don't really remember much of the details of the book. It has been...hmmmm...20+ years afterall. So needless to say, I watched the movie without remembering what the plot was.

My overall impressions of the movie were...

• The sound was very loud. Explosions going on all around. I can only imagine how loud it actually is on the front lines. There was nothing quiet about the western front, or any other for that matter.
• Even though the movie was made almost 80 years ago, the topic is as relevant to day as it was then. War is hell, especially if you are the one sent to fight the war.
• The most interesting scene was one where Paul and his buddies wind-up in a French house with some women. Since this movie was made in 1929, no "bedroom" scene was actually shown in graphic detail. But what was shown was the silhuette of a bedframe, with Paul explaining to the young French girl that he'll probably never see her again. The implication is clearly that they played "hide the bayontte". What a difference 80 years makes.

The "classic" movies that I see and actually enjoy are "hit and miss". All Quiet on the Western Front" was definately a hit.

Simplicity Challenge

Week #1

Think about what's really important to you and make a list.

I've been touched by Sara's blog http://www.walkslowlylivewildly.com/ and I've been inspired to try to live more simply. I love that it's really about putting the important things in your life front and center. It's not about depravation but enhancement. So for Week #1 of my Simplicity Challenge, it's time for me to decide what my life is now and how I'm going to bring those things into the forefront of my life.



Creating opportunity for my kids to experience the world around them.



Keep an active lifestyle that includes the whole family.



Become a contributing member of my community.



Establish and maintain routines that keep my home an inviting and friendly sanctuary.

I'm going to blog a little about each one this week. Maybe I'll add a few more...maybe I'll decide that one isn't all that important to me right now.

What's important to you?

Smart Habits Saturday Week #1

Well, here I go on yet another challenge to improve my life. Smart Saturday Habits is my attempt at accounting to myself my efforts. There are several areas I want to have in my life and I will add to them as I feel I can.

Health and Wellness
Housekeeping - Scrub one toilet a day
Financial
Spritual
Philanthropic
Intellectual
Creative/Artistic
Family

Why not start out with THE job that I hate the most.

Oh...found a new challenge to help me along down the road...

Smart Habits Saturday...

http://www.laragallagher.com/blog/index.html

Well, it's now eight weeks later. The house is still for sale with NO offers thus far, even after one price reduction. The house is clean and very nice to live in. The only catch is that I have to constantly clean for you never know when a prospective buyer wants to come by and "kick" the tires.

It's' been an exhausting, mind-numbing experience that shows no signs of ending anytime soon. It seems to go on and on. While I do like the nice clean house, people are just not meant to live this way. I yell at the kids, I can't just up and leave the house to run a few errands because someone might want to come by and see the house.

We've had a few people interested in the house but they either couldn't swing the price or got cold feet. I have found it to be educational about the state of the middle class and what I don't want to hold me back in life. While my Cali house is nice, it doesn't have the Bling. It doesn't have granit countertops in the kitchen, the tile in 2 of the 3 bathrooms is as old as the house. It just doesn't have the WOW factor that people seem to have become accustomed to. When we first purchased the house, we looked past the wall to wall to wall wallpaper from the early eighties. We looked past the mural painted on the wall. We looked past the poor landscaping choices and saw the house for what it was. A useful, functional and liveable space that could be changed as needed that is located in an awesome neighborhood. It's taken 9 years but we are now selling the house we've renovated and decorated only to find that it's not enough...it doesn't have the bling.

No wonder people are so far in debt. They would rather emulate kings rather than live a comfortable life filled with excitement and meaning.

How Did I Get Here?

Well, what was originally a little thought has now turned into a potenitally life-changing/challenging event. My little idea was to take a summer vacation in another part of the country...taking a break from the day-to-day routine and venturing out into the unknown. I had suggested a little vacation to Bend, Oregon. My husband and I had been there about 10 years ago for a brief visit and thought that might be a great place to take the kids and get in the mandatory summer mountain bike riding overdose.



Sounds like a grand idea...well...



Now we're in the middle of getting ready to try and list our house for sale. After that, we are now looking to possibly up-root out lives and move to this little vacation spot that we did an overnight stay in 10 years ago. Crazy sounding isn't it. We would have not jobs. We would be uprooting our kids. We'd be leaving the geographic area I've called home for almost 40 years. I've never lived anywhere but Southern California. 40 years. Cali has been good to me, the weather is outstanding and hard to beat but...40 years. Can I make it somewhere else? I've really don't have any other family living here other than my own little family unit. Is it time to throw out the stale bread and start fresh and new?

Time of Change

It's been a while but now that the holidays are past, we are moving into unknown territory at out house. My husband's business of 16 years is ending and now it's time to figure out what to do next. While we are comfortable, it is not enough to sustain us for the long haul. I'm trying to convince myself that this is an exciting time. We have an opportunity to "explore the road less taken". But the question is whether we will embrace that or sit back and "take the easy route". We do have children but do I really want to settle back into a life of comfort or do I want my children to embrace adventure and not be afraid to try. I, myself, want that for myself. I want to try. But will I be able to do that or will fear get the better of me?

Did Somebody Stamp Taxi Driver On My Forehead?

Today was spent shuttling my 3 critters to school, from school, to this activity and that activity. The day was chopped to mince meat so very little was accomplished. So what's new about that? Nothing, just letting off a little steam.

Where I Spend My Time

Often times I find myself shuffling items from one end of my house to another, completely unable to find a home for many things because the shelves are already full of junk. I've been organizing, in small chuncks, one little project at a time. One shelf in the morning, the VHS tapes in the evening (which begs the question, why the hell to I still have VHS tapes anyways...DVD is so much more compact and space is at a premium). Baby steps...baby steps

a road less traveled

One Down, Too Many To Count To Go

Well last week I finished my first project...cleaning and organizing my pantry. It actually looks pretty good and its still somewhat organized a week later. The items are still in the right spots and I haven't shoved a bunch of stuff in there just to get them out of the way. Now onto the garage...am I crazy? The pantry was a relatively small project compared to the garage. I have hope of completing it one day soon.

Making Headway

The list of things that need to be gone through, the piles that need to be sorted, the things that need to be given away, sold on e-bay or trashed grows each given moment. That being said, I am one day closer to being able to spend my time on the things I want without guilt instead of constantly having something in the back of my mind pulling me away. I should do the laundry, I should vacuum the house, I should clean out my car (okay so I haven't done that yet, but you get the picture.) How did I get to aquire so much junk? Most of the junk I don't even like. The extra sets of Tupperware from my mother-in-law that I hardly ever use, the past projects that no longer interest me, the household decorations that no longer match my current scheme. Oh to be free of these things. Its one thing to reflect on the past but its another to be held back by the past. Am I the only one who feels this way? Does anyone else feel weighed down by the past, like they are drowning in a sea of crap?

Rainy Day

Rainy Day

Okay, so today, I decided that to find that ever-illusive extraordianary life begins with bringing order to my house. My house is a mess, by my standards, not anyone elses. With three kids, I constantly am cleaning, picking up toys and food off the floor, etc. Now that March is here, let Spring cleaning begin in earnest. Getting rid of the past so that I can be open for what awaits me in the future is my goal for this month. I've already made headway in the last few weeks with discarding years old clothing that doesn't fit me any longer. Now I'm going through our newly painted spare room to clear my the closet out of old projects, art supplies, craft supplies that no longer hold my interest, etc. I'll comment further later.

A Road Less Traveled

Well, here I am, trying to think of what to write for my first entry. I'm going to hopefully document the change from my mundane existence to something special. An ordinary person living some type of extraordinary live. Think that's possible?