Do You Have a Happy Dance?

I don't know if you have experienced a level of happiness that generates an uncontrollable break out in a happy dance or not, but I have. In fact, it happens to me quite frequently. It doesn't really take much to elicit one of these expressive dances of elation, but damn it sure does feel good.

It could be something as small as one of my favorite songs coming on the radio or making an impressive two point shot at the trash can. I've even broken out in a happy dance when I see someone I like at work. I have to be clear here, when I say, "I break out in a happy dance", it could mean any number of things. I could be greeting you with a high kick or two. I could be running around the room as if I were having the puppy zooms. Sometimes my happy dance manifests as what appears to be a bit of aerobics.

Some people think I'm a little weird because I get excited over a little bit of ribbon or because I see someone I know in an unexpected place. I'll admit that I am easily excitable and honestly, I kinda' love that about me. I love it when I see one of my family member's initials on a random license plate. I love the contrast of fall leaves against the blue sky and the contrast of lush green moss against the dark rich soil. A cloud shaped like a hippopotamus jumping through the air. A bird walking on my back deck to the rhythm of the song playing in my headphones.

It's all the teeny tiny things in life that likely would go unnoticed by most, but just thrill me to pieces when they occur in my daily life. It truly is the little things that make life so wonderfully joyous. I am so grateful to know what I know.

Worthy of Sharing

I posted a meme to my Facebook the other day and I don't post meme's very often. My experience has been when I see a barrage of those well intended messages and read one after another they become less significant.

This one seemed worth reposting. I'll share it with you now.

Welcome Home Baby Boy

I can not believe how big our new puppy is already. I love having a puppy in the house again. He's so adorable and I will never tire of watching him sleep.

We've already started his potty training. We set a timer for 30 minutes and take him out every time the timer dings, unless he's alseep, which he is right this very second and that is why I am able to write this.

My Heart is Full

This is a vey special day. The day that I am writing this very blog is Christmas day. I know some of you already know, but for those of you that don't know, I am spending this Christmas on the Pacific Coast in Yachats, Oregon with my wife, my mother and son.

There really are no words for how full my heart feels this Christmas. The greatest gift of all is the love I feel all around me. I am so grateful to be aware of this love all through the year.

Merry Christmas!!!

From everyone behind the scenes here at Apozitude, we are wishing you and your loved ones, near and far, a blessed and lovely Holiday Season. As Clay Aiken would sing in his song, Don't Save it all for Christmas, "A hug is warmer when you're in it" and that my friends is the philosophy of Apozitude.

WHAT? No beer???

One of my favorite things in the whole wide world is when some one starts talking about a particular challenge in their life and they are totally ready to be inspired. You can totally tell when someone is ready to be inspired because every encouraging thing you say to them makes perfect sense to them and they are nodding in agreement the whole time you're talking to them.

I encountered this delightful situation this last week when one of my friends and co-workers started talking to me about starting a new eating regimen for the purpose of reversing her lactose intolerance. I can not speak to the validity of this cleanse because I've not done any research on the subject, but what I can speak to is this young woman's enthusiasm for making a positive change in her life.

Her name is Courtney and she is the one that has done the research. She is the one that has decided to make a change in her life. She was talking to me about the restrictions she has decided to place on herself in an effort to reverse her intolerance and was sharing some of the details. The next 5 months (starting after Christmas) she will cut out breads, sugars (even natural sugars (so no fruit), no beer or wine, and honestly, I don't remember all the details, because once she said, "No Beer", I kinda went into shock.

I'm kidding about the shock, but serious that I don't remember all the details. Once Courtney mentioned how hard it was going to be, I shifted into inspiration mode. I said, "It will be as hard or as easy as you decide to make it on yourself". She agreed and came back with, "That's right and if I don't ever do it. I'll be lactose intolerant for the rest of my life".

Yes, that's right. As long as we remain unwilling to make a shift, we can only hold ourselves in place of responsibility for the circumstances that exists in our lives.

We talked about situations that are out of our control, such as people bringing treats to the office. I told her about when I had a clarifying moment a few years ago. Some very sweet well intended person brought some yummy goodies to the office and I said to myself, "Who's the son of a bitch that keeps bringing in the goodies?" and then as if divine wisdom was whispering in my ear, this question came to me, "Well, who's the son of a bitch that keeps putting it in your mouth?"

Ahhh HA!!!

It was really a very cool conversation. I am very excited for Courtney and the change that she is planning to make for herself. 5 months really is not that long at all. I believe in you. I am not saying there won't be challenging moments, but with the right mind set it's going to be much easier. It's all about choices and how much you really want the change you are seeking. You have control over yourself, your thoughts and your actions.

I believe with the right attitude and desire any one of us could make any change we desire for our lives. We all have the power to make it as easy as we'd like for it to be.

The First Day of the Rest of My Life

This, my friends, is in fact one of the happiest days of my life. After I wake up next to the love of my life, I'll spend the day at the best job in the whole wide world, working with the best friends a girl could ever ask for, and after an amazing day at work and a lovely evening at home at an hour of the night when I would usually have been asleep for at least an hour, my happy self will bebop down to the Portland International Airport to pick up my mom and son for a Christmas visit from Oklahoma.

It's probably been about a year and a half since I've seen either of them. I am truly one of the luckiest people in the world simply because I have so many loves in my life. I have my wife. My mom and my son. I have the most amazing a new puppy coming home soon. I have the best friends in the whole world. I have Goodnesses in my life. I am surrounded by love and tomorrow I get to see the person that birthed me and the person I birthed.

I am so lucky to have such amazing love for and from these two people in my life. I know a great many people that have very challenging relationships with their parents and/or their children. I am lucky and I know it.

I am not trying to brag or be boastful, I am simply appreciating the gifts I have been given.

Kismet

I was just about to start this blog with an apology and then I decided, "No way". I'm not about to apologize for the excitement I have in my life right now for the little being that is about to bless this house with unconditional unstoppable puppy love energy.

I know I posted quite a few pictures and a video of our new addition on Facebook over the weekend, but we are so excited to have little Marbles in our lives. The litter reached their 8wk mark this past week and most of his litter mates went home, but before we knew we were getting a new little guy in our lives we made plans to go to the beach for Christmas.

We decided it would be much better for Marbles to stay with Golden Grams, our breeder (Judy), while we went to the beach. We want his first place away from his birth home to be his forever home for the ease of transition on him.

He won't be alone. Don't you worry one little bit about him. He will have his puppy Momma, Chatter, there with him along with a sister and a brother. Plus there are plenty of animals at Golden Grams house.

We went to see him this weekend, even though we knew we would be leaving him there with Grams. We sat in the barn with all the families that were there to take their babies home and visited and played with puppies for about three hours. It was so much fun and we are so freakin' excited. We literally keep eking out little squeals of delight. Sunday morning when we were pretending he was already here, Keri said, "We're going to have to calm down when he's actually here. We need to be the calm leaders of the pack that he will need to feel secure". She's so cute and so ready. She placed his crate in it's place in the bedroom, so we can acclimate to it's presence so we don't bump into it and startle the little guy in his sleep.

OMG!!! I just remembered that we were watching, "I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown" on Saturday evening. That was the day we went to see Marbles, and like we had never seen it before this scene comes on,... and I don't know how familiar most of you are with Snoopy and his cast of characters, but Keri has been a huge fan since she was tiny. She had a Snoopy bathing suit when she was little and carried a Snoopy around with her everywhere. She had, what she thought was all of Snoopy's siblings too and used to build houses for them out of record covers. So, we always watch all the Carlie Brown specials.

This time though we saw something we had never seen before. Rerun, Linus and Lucy's younger brother really wanted a dog for Christmas. He went to Charlie Brown's house and asked if he could borrow Snoopy. Snoopy wasn't having it, but the subject of Snoopy's siblings came up as an option and the very first one mentioned was Marbles.

Wha- wha- WHAT????? Yes, that's right. Keri's lifelong love of Snoopy and all the years she has watched Snoopy cartoons she never remembered him having a sibling named Marbles, but there he was clear as day. We quickly jumped on the interwebs and Googled, Snoopy's brother Marbles.

Lo and behold, there he was. So, not only is our Little Marbles a nephew of Waffles, but his namesake, is also a brother to Snoopy. This could not be any more perfect!!!

Captain Apozitude

I had so much fun at the Goodness birthday. There were lots of little princesses and super heroes, but only one adult Super Hero. Thank you for inviting me. I love being a little kid.

Odd Duck? Who Me?

"Angel, you're an odd duck" someone said to me this last week. Let's see what else,... "You never know what she's going to do next", "Oh my gosh!!! I can not believe you just did that" and many more.

All through my life I've done the unexpected, pushed the limits and stepped outside the comfort zone of most. Some might say I do it for the attention, some might say I'm immature, some, I know, really want to join me, but for some reason feel hesitation. Perhaps they fear looking crazy. I don't really know.

What I do know is that when I do things that elicit this type of response, it's usually because I am following my bliss. When I am in the middle of following my bliss, my level of concern about what other people think about me or what I am doing is just about ZERO!

The reason I was perceived as an odd duck this past week is because I was all excited about this new device Keri and I got for ourselves called a vivo fit, perhaps more commonly known as, a fit bit.

What does it do? It tracks the number of steps you take throughout the day. It alerts you with a little red bar creeping across the face of the watch type device when you have been sedentary for too long, creating awareness and encouraging you to get up and move. Just as I had hoped when my little red bar started crawling across my device, I'd get up and move. A goal is set based on a profile you fill out and as you reach the daily goal it adjusts and creates a more challenging goal for the next day.

So, while walking in place at work and cheerfully responding to requests to fetch this or that someone stated with a chuckle, "Angel, you're an odd duck". Yes, this is true of this persons perception of me, but to me, I am just my happy self doing what I do to maintain my good feeling life. I'm too happy to be concerned with what anybody else thinks about me.

Go Hunt for Nuts!!!

When I grow up I wanna be a motivational speaker and that has been my dream for a very long time. Do I really wanna grow up??? No, not really, but I believe that I can attain my dream without having to grow up.

For as long as I can remember I have stood on anything I can find that would elevate me just a bit. I'd jump up on top of that elevated surface and speak from my heart to an imaginary crowd, all fired up and ready to motivate.

Since those days, I have come around to some clarifying experiences that have helped me to realize that I could never be a motivational speaker. Don't get too exasperated. Do you want to know why I have come to that conclusion? Well, I'll tell you.

I can not be a motivational speaker because motivation comes from within yourself. I couldn't motivate a squirrel to hunt for nuts if I tried, and I have. I, honestly, laid out some nuts on my back deck, waited and watched to see if I could convince the squirrel to come get the nuts. No go. Many other circumstances have clarified the fact that I, simply, CAN NOT WANT IT BAD ENOUGH FOR YOU or anyone else.

You know what I can do? I can inspire you. I can be energetic and I can be on fire. I can feel love coursing through me and I can live my life as an example, it makes me feel good anyway. So, I am doing it for myself, but if you want to be inspired? I certainly can inspire, but the motivation piece of this deal, is all on you buddy.

So, my clarifying experiences have created a more specific dream. When I grow up I want to be an inspirational speaker. And do you know what else? I already am. I am all grown up and I am inspiring people all over the place, just by being me and living my passion for life. Loving. Laughing. Hugging and having fabulous days, because that, my friends, is what life is all about.

We came here for the fun. We came here to enjoy. We came here to grow and expand. So, let's do it!!! Anyone can be a member of Team Apozitude. It's all inclusive. So, find something that makes you smile and march to the beat of your own drum.

Spider Man Flipped Me Off

One day this last week Keri sent me a text at work. She was checking in to see if our schedules might mesh up and allow us to meet somewhere for a beer and maybe some dinner out. We are making attempts to take advantage of the opportunity we have to be free of puppy responsibility.

We are very much looking forward to having that responsibility again, but we also know the limits it will put on our evenings for a while. Anyway, I thought it would work on that particular day, so we made arrangements to meet at Lucky Lab Pizza in Multnomah Village.

I used to work in Multnomah Village. On my way to meet Keri, I ended up taking a route I used many times in the past. On my way there I was reminded of something that happened to me on that route to work many years ago.

It was during the school year and I was behind a school bus. The school bus turned on the same street I needed to turn on and we were on a single lane two way road, so I was going to be following this bus for awhile, at least until one of our paths changed.

It was October, the reason I remember this is because that school bus was full of little Spider Men, Princesses, Super Men and anything else you could imagine. Probably a Ninja Turtle or two in the mix as well. The one little guy I remember was probably about 7 years old and decked out in a spiffy Spider Man costume. The reason he made such an impression on me is because he was having such a good time. He was laughing it up and sticking his tongue out at me. Laughing it up, waving good bye with his class mates. Which I was fine with and was not responding at all.

Then he pushed a little further. Laughing with his friends and flipped me off. Yes, that's right. Spider Man flipped me off. I didn't respond to that either, and as the bus was turning into a neighborhood, he waved some more as if to say, "Good bye sucker. I'm getting off Scott free". He clearly thought they were turning off my route. I smiled at him and do you know what I did? I followed that bus until it's next stop. Did I have to turn off my regular route to work? You bet I did, but the next stop that bus made I pulled up right behind it. I got out of my little truck and walked myself right up to that bus.

I stood next to the door until the bus driver opened the door. Then I leaned in and said, "I thought you might like to know you have a little Spider Man on the back of your bus giving people the one finger salute out your back window". She looked up towards the ceiling of the bus where a mirror was located and yelled to the back of the bus, "JIMMY!!! GET UP HERE TO THE FRONT OF THE BUS".

As he was approaching the front, she explained to me that she has had quite a bit of trouble with this little guy. She was grateful I pulled over. She had him remove his mask and apologize to me. Of course I have no way of knowing what became of Jimmy the ornery Spider Man, but my hope is that he realized, whatever life has in store for him, that he never forgets that with great power comes great responsibility.

He might have felt like he was hot stuff getting away with the powerful gesture of flipping me off, but I was not about to let him get away without being held responsible for his actions. I calmly let him know that was not acceptable behavior.

Excitement Overload

Oh my goodness!!! We are knee deep in the excitement over load portion of this year. I just had my birthday and it was one of the best ones so far. Nothing outrageous happened, it was simply perfect. For the first time in the 19 years that Keri and I have been together she decided, for some unknown reason, to let me open one of my birthday gifts the night before.

I was so excited I, literally, ran around the coffee table a couple times. We have always had this little game we play where I try to get her to give me hints as to where she bought the gifts or what the gifts might be, but she never gives in. Well, never say never. Right? She didn't just give me a hint, she let me open one. She's really good at surprises. She always finds a way to make me feel special and loved. Her gifts are always very thoughtful. I'm pretty darn lucky.

More about the excitement over load please!!! You're getting sappy. OK. OK. This weekend we are wrapping presents in anticipation of my mom and Garrison coming to visit for Christmas. For those of you that might be new to Apozitude, Garrison, is my son. He's 24 and one of the sweetest guys you'll ever meet. He's also very edgy and cool. Anyway, I am SUPER EXCITED to see them both.

Also this weekend I am going to a little Goodness's birthday party. I'll reveal what I decided to go as in another blog. In case you missed the, Princess or a Super Hero, post that is what the invitation read, "Come dressed as your favorite,...". I am really excited about that too, because I made my own outfit.

See if you can guess the party theme for a little girl turning 4. C'mon,... think! YES!!! You're right!!! It's, Frozen!!! It's going to be so much fun. I can't wait to show up in my DIY outfit. Cast away all your "Pinterest failed" thoughts floating around in your head, because I NAILED IT!!! You'll see.

See what I mean about excitement over load??? Plus, next weekend we are going to see our new puppy. He'll be 8 weeks old and most of his litter mates will be going home at 8 weeks, but our boy will stay an extra special week with his sister and Grandma Judy, because we'll be at the beach for Christmas with my mom and Garrison!!! Then the weekend after Christmas we'll go back to Grandma Judy's house and pick up our puppy.

My life, right now, is like a freakin' movie. My birthday, Goodness's birthday with dress up, visit the puppy, Mom and Garrison arrive, go to the beach, have Christmas, come back and go get the puppy. If you've watched a bunch of Disney movies, you might be waiting for a clincher plot twist at this point for dramatic affect, but I assure you the creator of this reality doesn't add a twist for dramatic affect. Nope. This gal is all about sunshine, rainbows and smiles.

Unflavored Snow Cones, Not as Yummy as You'd Think

I know I have said this before, but I also know that it takes several times of hearing something to retain it. So here it is again, Words don't teach. You know what does teach? Experience!!! Sometimes, it can be a bitch too. I have a perfect example to share with you.

Granted, I am not sure I ever received a warning about what I am about to share and it may seem a bit unbelievable, but I assure you the details of the upcoming story are in fact true. When a was a youngster, oh I'd guess about 9 yrs old, based on my memory of the event, I got a brilliant idea. Before I reveal my brilliance, let me set up the scene.

Ok, so I was about 9 yrs old and my mom and I lived in a shotgun apartment, which is to say you could stand at the front door with a shot gun and take a shot straight forward and the shot would go straight down the hall and every room in the apartment was off that main hall way. Why is that important? You shall see. (Refer to the diagram of the apartment.)

My mom was down in her bedroom and for some reason I was in the kitchen, perhaps I was getting something to drink and needed some ice because I did have the freezer door open. Upon looking in the freezer I noticed the frost in there. You know what frost looks like inside a freezer, right? Apparently to my 9yr old eyes, it looked like a great big unflavored snow cone.

What does an unflavored snow cone taste like? Hmmm,... perhaps I should test it out. Yes! Exactly what you are imaging. I leaned forward to taste the frost and just like Schwartz in a Christmas Story, I got my tongue stuck to something frozen.

I hollered as loud as could, "MAMA!!!" and she hollered back, "What, Baby girl?".

"Come hera!!!"

"What??? I can't hear you. Come here." I yelled back, "A can't!!! Ma tong ith thuck to tha theetha!!" She replied, "I can not hear you, Baby. You are going to have to come in here."

"I CAN"T!!! MA TONG ITH THUCK TO THA THEETHA!!!"

Exasperated, she came into the kitchen to find her baby girl standing in the kitchen with the tip of her tongue stuck to the frost inside the theetha (freezer). I don't know what came over her, but she grabbed me and yanked me right off that mean'ol freezer. Do you know how much your tongue bleeds when you rip the tip off? I do and it's a lot!!! I seem to remember going through a whole paper towel roll.

I also remember having a scab on my tongue. Not fun, but what is fun, is telling and retelling this story though my life. Oh my god! It can be completely hilarious!!! Not so funny though, I used to have a little scar on my tongue, but I just went and checked and it's gone. I do remember looking in the freezer later that evening and seeing a little pink nubby thing inside the freezer. "Hey, that's the tip of my tongue".

It's funny to think of all the times over the years when I would hear someone say, "I can't think of something (whatever it was), but it's right on the tip of my tongue", I always imagined it was in that freezer.

Princess or Super Hero

Guess what!!! I got invited to a birthday party!!! Yup! The birthday party of one of my favorite little people. Lexi, one of the Goodnesses, is turning four. I have had people tell me they like how I refer to these two little girls as, "The Goodnesses" and I think it's about time I explained how they got their title.

It all started with Lexi, of course, because she's the oldest of the two. Every time her mom would show someone her picture because she is so damn cute, every one would uncontrollably gasp and respond, "Oh my Goodness". I mean everyone!!!

It just became a thing. We started calling her, "My Goodness". So, whenever I would go over to visit her I would announce, "I'm going to see My Goodness". Well, then her adorable baby sister, Taylor, was born and she was just as cute as Lexi, and sharing her picture resulted in the same response, "Oh my Goodness". Hence, The Goodnesses.

Well, I guess I don't have to tell you how much I adore these precious little princesses, but they do mean the world to me. I love holding them, hugging them, kissing their sweet little cheeks, playing with them and telling them stories. I just love it.

So, back to this birthday party, the invitation reads, "Come dressed as your favorite princess or super hero" and I got so excited. I sent my RSVP right away with this slight clarification, "I just can't decide if I should be a princess or a super hero" LOL!!! Their mom, my friend Shanna, replied, "Oh I can't wait to see what you come up with".

I told Keri I was going to dress up and she said, "I think that was intended for the kids". Well who's a bigger kid than me??? I have decided what I am going to do, but I can't reveal it just yet, because I want it to be a surprise. Don't worry, I will share when the time is right.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to ME!!!!

I am such a kid, I still L-O-V-E having my birthday and I guess you don't have to guess when it is, because of the spoiler in the title.

That's just my way, totally open, totally happy, totally diggin' life.

Happy Birthday to me. Check me out at one week old, that's my Daddy's teddy bear on the left. I don't know his name, but for the sake of this blog let's just call him,...oh I don't know. How about Lefty? Why not? He's on the left side of the picture and my dad was a southpaw. Perfect!!!

Look at that hair. Look at those lips. That, right there, is an intense baby. Destined for big things. That look says, "Look out world. Here I come".

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="720"] Me and Lefty[/caption]

Showing Some Skin

Let's try this again. "Wow! Your hair is getting really long. What inspired this?", someone asked me the other day. I thought for a moment and said, "Honestly, it was Shanna" and really it has been a multitude of things over the years. Slightly adjusting my perspective of myself and coming to terms with how I identify myself and how I represent myself.

The reason I say it was Shanna that inspired the change or desire to grow my hair out is because it was her suggestion that I wear a bikini on my vacation to Hawaii a couple years ago. She said to me, "You are one of the hardest working people I know in terms of working out. You should show off your hard work". I quickly dismissed her suggestion because I hadn't worn a two piece bathing suit since WAY before I started having boobs. I mean WAY WAY before and I have photographic proof of my bikini days as a child.

Somehow, I agreed to try on some of Shanna's bikini's, but I was going to do that by myself. I went to her house and she pulled open this drawer of bathing suits and I was a bit in shock at the sheer volume. I have a drawer that has a bathing suit in it. She has a bathing suit drawer. I think I went home with 6 or 8 bikinis to try on, plus some pull over beach dresses and a maxi dress or two.

As I was trying them on, I was a little bit uncomfortable. I was not accustomed to showing so much skin, but I kept trying them on and gradually I became more comfortable. I would try one on and take a picture and text it to her, "Is this how this is supposed to fit", I would ask. She, I am sure, was cracking up. She reassured me and I finally decided I would take a bikini on my vacation. In fact, I took multiple bikinis with me to Hawaii, yes, you read that right, I took more than one. I have never in my life taken more than one bathing suit on vacation before, but I did that time and every time since. LOL

You know what? It really gave my self esteem a boost. It's kinda hard to describe, but I finally got to a point of being comfortable enough with myself and who I really am that I could wear a bikini. I guess it's sort of a process of self acceptance that I never knew before. I missed out on all the exploration of being girlie for my own sake, because all the years that I presented myself as a "normal" girl, which I even hate to use THAT word. Let's change it then. All the years I presented myself as a straight girl I was doing it to disguise myself to hide who I really was on the inside.

Now, when I wear my hair longer, wear a dress or more feminine clothes it's because I like the way it makes me feel. Does that make any sense? I enjoy feeling cute. I like feeling flirty. I like being a girl. I guess by now I should say, I enjoy being a woman. I'm still exploring and finding ways to express my girlie self, but I am enjoying the process.

Long Haired Butterfly

"Wow! Your hair is getting so long. What inspired this?" someone asked me the other day and do you know what happened next? I opened myself up and shared a little bit more of myself than I am guessing this person originally bargained for, which, if you knew me well, you certainly would not be surprised.

I am an open book and as I shared recently in my blog entitled, It's Got to Be Real, I believe most people are starving for real person to person human experiences. However, now that I've written it out again I think I can say it better. I believe, for the most part, people are starving for a real connection.

When I wrote that brief blog the other day, I wanted to elaborate a bit more on that concept, because what I find is when I share my real self with people they seem to find it refreshing and sort of gravitate to that feeling. They get drawn in to the depth of the honesty. I think it's because when I am being my true self I am connected to something larger than myself.

When I am connected to this, larger than myself entity, I share things on a deeper level than most are accustomed to hearing in a casual encounter, but just because they are not accustomed to it does not mean that it makes them uncomfortable. In fact, the majority of the time when this happens the person I am sharing with thanks me for sharing. It usually comes down to that because I realize I am sharing real, personal things and I'll say something like, "Wow, I'll bet that's more than you bargained for when you asked me that question" and then they share their gratitude with me for sharing.

This was not what I intended to write about when I opened with that, "Your hair is getting so long" comment. Often what I intend to write about is lost in the process of writing because there are so many different directions a single thought can take you and I tend to follow the passion.

The passion, in my mind is the juicy stuff, the connected stuff. The stuff that people really want to read. My intention is to be open and honest for the purpose of expanding joy. My intention is to be connected, happy and free.

I am free as a butterfly. Have you ever tried to tether a butterfly? It just doesn't work. My intention is to expand openness for the purpose of broader perspectives. We are better off for all that we let in.

It's Got To Be Real

You know what I think? Well, you know me,... I'm gonna tell ya'.

I think in this hustle and hurry world, people, most people, are STARVING for a real person to person human experience.

It's not that hard to do, just take a moment and be real. Share yourself, your true self with someone and you know what? I bet they'll really dig it.

The Happiness Formula

There are three things you need in life to be happy. In no particular order I present the formula for a happy life. 1- Someone to love. 2- Something to do. and 3- Something to anticipate. It is a very simple formula and even more simple than some may think.

Some may say, "I am all alone. I don't have someone to love", but that is never true because we always have ourselves. It can be easy to forget sometimes when we are focused outwardly, but when we take a moment to slow down, take a deep breath and look within ourselves we can see there is no one better to focus our love upon.

I am reminded of a refrigerator magnet my mom gave me when I was a very young mother. I can't remember everything on it, but what I do remember is the gist, which was; you can't give what you do not have. It was a huge eyeopener for me because like most people I wanted an improved life for my son. I knew I had to get myself out of the destructive relationship I was in, because I did not feel loved, supported or empowered. I was so miserable I often just wanted to disappear. The only thing that kept me here on this earth was the love I had for my son and the improved life I wanted for him. I had to pull myself up by the bootstraps and make a better way for myself, so I could provide a better way for him.

My something to do for many years was putting energy into my son. Creating boundaries for him, teaching him values and creating space for him to choose what he felt was best for him. Guiding him in a positive direction and letting go to allow him to find his own way. As a young man he often would ask my opinion about what he should do and I recall telling him, I could tell you what I would do, but that might affect your choice. Why don't you tell me what you think is best for you and then we can talk about it. I wanted him to have a strong sense of himself.

When he moved out, I had quite a bit of time on my hands, my something to do turned into art. Painting, carving, drawing and trying to get into galleries. Art is very subjective and though I am blessed with the ability to paint, it just wasn't as fulfilling as I wanted it to be. Then my thing to do morphed into writing this blog.

This blog has been very fulfilling. I love the introspection of it, the sharing, the drawing and creating virtual hugs for people who read it. I love expanding love. Apozitude is my bucket and I am filling it with love and each new person who reads it is helping me pour love all over the world.

I am very happy as I look forward to the expansion of Apozitude reaching people who need a little something in their lives to anticipate. Maybe you or someone you love needs a little reminder that often it is the little things that mean the most. One kind thing you express to a loved one or a stranger, may well be the one thing they needed that day to turn their attitude around to the sunnier side of things.

To summarize, not only have I provided the formula for a happy life, I have also provided a way to put the formula to work. Think of someone you love, maybe it's yourself. Now what can you do? You can read Apozitude and share it with your friends. What do you have to look forward to? That's easy. The next Apozitude post and the smile on someone's face when you share love with them. Welcome to an option for happiness.

Enjoy the Shift

Take a deep breath and know that there are no mistakes. Everything happens exactly as it is supposed to with lessons and growth that go beyond our current level of comprehension, so with that knowledge, take a deep breath and trust your "knowing" what is right for you.

What I know right now is that I am worthy. I am brilliant. And it feels so good to be in the realm of knowing. It feels so good to say it aloud. If you don't believe me, try it for yourself. Go ahead. Say it out loud.

I am worthy.

I am brilliant.

Everything is working out for me.

I am worthy of the perfection I am living right here in this crystal clear moment.

I am alive and it feels amazing. I love knowing there is a constant divine source of attention on me and the details of my life.

I know it feels a little weird at first, but with practice you'll begin to feel the shift. The shift you will feel is moving from a realm of doubt and cloudiness into clarity and knowing.

Not Your Typical Black Friday

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving when according to the 2013 statistic approximately 141 million U.S. consumers went shopping. Keri and I had our plans for Black Friday. We were super excited, but our plan didn't include a sale, a mall or a store of any kind.

We did set our alarm, because we wanted to get our work out in, have some breakfast and I intended to go see my favorite little girls do their ballet. It turned out that ballet was cancelled for the day after Thanksgiving. Bummer!!! I did get to see the girls in their cute little ballet outfits anyway.

So, after I visited with the girls, their mom, dad and grandparents for a little bit I headed home. It was time to set out for our adventure for the day. We estimated it would take us about an hour to reach our destination and I was getting hungry. We stopped and got a small cup of soup for me to hold me over and then we made our way to Washougal, WA. where the cutest puppies in the whole wide world are born.

We sent the requested text message when we got to a certain point in our route and anxiously continued to our destination. The rain was coming down pretty good and we wondered where we would visit our puppy. We pulled up to the gate and there was another car there too.

Once the gate was opened we pulled forward and approached the house. As we headed in that direction we passed the horse pasture on the left. We found a gravely place to park near the house and the dude that open the gate let us know the puppies were in the barn.

We made our way towards the barn and Judy, our breeder, greeted us with hugs and a big'ol smile. The barn had other animals in there too, but we really wanted to see those puppies. Judy pointed us in their direction. Oh my goodness!!!! They are so cute!!! She said, "Get in there with them, play with them and love on them. The barn is a fantastic place for them to play with each other and stay out of the weather".

We entered the stall which had a pin around the border. The ground was covered with hay and there was a light clamped inside the stall. The barn had lights inside, but the light in the stall provided a bit more light. The sweet smell of puppy breath mixed with the smell of hay filled the air.

We picked them up and loved on them and they snuggled right into our necks and our jackets. It was the perfect visit. We received puppy kisses, puppy nuzzles and watched as they snuggled with each other and displayed the beginning developments of their personalities.

We visited with Judy as we loved on those adorable little bundles of fur. So sweet and totally mesmerizing. I had no idea I sat on a concrete floor covered with hay for an hour and a half. The time flew by so fast, but my butt was starting to send me little messages that it had had enough. The rest of me could have sat there for months.

There were two boys and seven girls. We will take one of the boys home with us when he is 9 weeks old. The other boy will stay with Judy's son. So, as Judy said, "Both boys will stay in the family". She is just the sweetest woman. We could not have asked for a better person to be raising our boy. We are excited to have you home with us Marbles.

Love at First Sight

One of the most exciting things in my world happened over the Thanksgiving weekend. Keri and I were at our friends house doing our Thanksgiving thing, chatting, eating, laughing and sharing.

As I was sitting at the table eating this delicious meal and thoroughly enjoying the lightness of the conversation I looked out the window. The evening was dark and there were lights on the leaves of the trees. It seemed to me the trees were standing outside giving me a friendly wave hello as the breeze was blowing through.

I looked over to my wife to see her adorable smile as she was enjoying the conversation with our friend and he was smiling his adorable bearded smile. I paused for a moment and smiled back at them and said, "This is the perfect Thanksgiving. The food is delicious, the company is fantastic and the ambiance is so relaxed". It was lovely.

After we finished dinner, our friend invited us to come sit in the kitchen and visit with him while he cleaned. The ease of the evening continued. We offered to help, but he wouldn't have it. So, we continued with conversation as he effortlessly weaved in and out of being busy with cleaning and maintaining the flow of conversation.

During the course of, after dinner, conversation and sipping sweet iced tea, Keri thought to check her e-mail. Why??? You my be wondering when all was going so perfectly. Well,... Let me tell you. We had been waiting for a response from our breeder, Judy. We knew it was Thanksgiving weekend and we weren't sure what plans she might have, but we also knew our puppy was to be 5 weeks old meaning old enough for a visit.

The response came that perfect night. Judy asked Keri in the e-mail if we were available the next day around 11am. We squealed with delight. Oh my goodness!!! We get to go see our puppy!!! The next 16 hours were full of Keri and I letting out little bursts of excitement, followed by either one of us saying, "I'm so excited!!!"