Gayle

It’s Getting Hot in Here

2012/06/22 Gayle 0

Yesterday was the first day of 2012 we reached 90° in Wilmington, NC. I think we’ve had a few brushes with 90 but over all we’ve had a mild spring. Weather is not something I pay much attention to, unless we’re hitting the extremes – drought, flood, hurricane, extreme hot or cold, etc etc. I probably wouldn’t have realized yesterday was our first day of 90° temps EXCEPT, when we came home yesterday around 5:30 it was hotter in our air conditioned house than it was outside! We were running out to another meeting. So, I ran the thermostat down to 70° and left for the evening. When we returned home the house was cooler than it had been but still not as cool as The rest of the story

The Beginning of an Epic Quest

2012/06/20 Gayle 4

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Lao-tzu, The Way of Lao-tzu Chinese philosopher (604 BC – 531 BC) No doubt you have heard the above referenced quote. Possibly you have uttered those words or similar words as you attempt to motivate either yourself or another, I know I have. Today as I was researching this quote for this post I found another translation from the original Chinese – “Even the longest journey must begin where you stand.” I share these words with you as a way of announcing my new Epic Quest! But first let me tell you how I arrived at the idea to follow this path. It all started rather simply. I went to eat wings with my friend The rest of the story

Guns, Dad, Remembering (and making new memories)

2012/06/17 Gayle 1

I remember when I learned to shoot a gun. My dad taught me with a Daisy BB gun. I am relatively sure I had just gotten her for Christmas or my birthday, I honestly can’t remember. I still have her and I actually have her sitting in my lap as I write today. The model 86/70 was first introduced to the market in 1970 and as I recall it was the latest and greatest when I got her. That BB gun spent many hours roaming the woods with me as a kid. It accompanied many ‘hunting trips’ and ‘Army’ games. It was a trusty companion. It fits into many of my childhood memories; like the time I tried to teach Christy Vernon to shoot and The rest of the story

Throwing Down the SMILE Gauntlet

2012/06/15 Gayle 0

It’s FRIDAY! It is a day we all love to celebrate and a day that makes most of us smile. In an article, The Untapped Power Of Smiling, he wrote last year for Forbes, Ron Gutman offers some very interesting statistics regarding smiling. Things like longer life, better marriages, more success and less stress. I think his ending paragraph sums up the varying studies “So now, whenever you want to look great and competent, improve your marriage, or reduce your stress…or whenever you want to feel as good as when you’ve enjoyed a stack of high quality chocolate without incurring the caloric cost, or as if you randomly found 25 grand in the pocket of a jacket you hadn’t worn for ages…or when you want to tap The rest of the story

Be kind. Everyone you meet is carrying a heavy burden.

You Can’t Always See the Monkey on Their Back

2012/06/12 Gayle 0

A man worked in a post office. His job was to process all mail that had illegible addresses. One day a letter came to his desk, addressed in shaky handwriting to God. He thought, “I better open this one and see what it’s all about.” So he opened it and it read: “Dear God, I am a 83 year old widow living on a very small pension. Yesterday someone stole my purse. It had a hundred dollars in it which was all the money I had until my next pension check.” “Next Sunday is Mother’s Day, and I had invited my last two friends over for dinner. Without that money, I have nothing to buy food with.” “I have no family to turn to, and The rest of the story