142. The Weepies
143. making beautiful music
144. SIDE SHOW
145. photos of New York City
Monday, October 31, 2011
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #136-140
136. PRETTY IN PINK
137. pleasant surprises
138. impromptu lunch dates
139. well-crafted plays
140. being liked
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #131-135
131. margaritas
132. the color blue
133. mimosas
134. innovators
135. talent
Friday, October 28, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #126-130
126. GRACE OF MY HEART
127. Erin Sprow
128. mini cheesecakes from The Confectional
129. knowledge
130. good hair
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #121-125
121. a favorite coffee mug
122. doggy snuggles
123. lending support to friends
124. Miles Davis
125. TheSartorialist.com
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Thought For The Day
The little unremembered acts of kindness and love are the best parts of a person's life. [William Wordsworth]
Reasons To Be Happy #116-120
116. being healthy
117. art books
118. Fig Newtons
119. warm blankets
120. Las Vegas
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #111-115
111. Tom Ford
112. tea
113. daydreams
114. Frank Sinatra
115. crossword puzzles
Monday, October 24, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #106-110
106. "period balls"
107. glasses
108. researching songs
109. documentaries
110. flowers
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #101-105
101. Lily Armani
102. "lifted casual" dress codes
103. bookshops
104. men's style blogs on Tumblr
105. Manilow
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #96-100
96. suits
97. movies starring Bette Davis
98. black & white photography
99. hugs
100. making lists
Friday, October 21, 2011
Inspiration
We have so much to be thankful for. Gratitude, praise, and thanksgiving activate the divine laws of abundance. When the Universe can see we are conscious of and grateful for what we have, it is activated to shower us with more. [Iyanla Vanzant]
Reasons To Be Happy #91-95
91. comfy sweatshirts
92. art books
93. casseroles
94. mixtapes
95. scary movies
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Thought For The Day
There is enough love in this world for everybody, if people will just look. [Kurt Vonnegut]
Reasons To Be Happy #86-90
86. positive feedback from your boss
87. having a crush
88. guilty pleasure novels
89. winter jackets
90. the gift of love
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #81-85
81. kind words
82. french bread pizza
83. unsolicited encouragement
84. bubbles
85. Patti Smith
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #76-80
76. pumpkin pie
77. Tom Waits' "Closing Time" album
78. books in bed
79. penguins
80. smart comedy
Monday, October 17, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #61-75
61. sunshine
62. airline snacks
63. Peter Gabriel's music videos
64. weddings
65. true love
66. dressing up
67. cocktail hour with fun people
68. zoos
69. parks
70. the beach
71. Otis Redding
72. meeting new, fun, and interesting people
73. boat rides
74. Christine & Jake Groshong
75. bowties
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #56-60
56. libraries
57. TOMS shoes
58. pumpkin spice lattes
59. Fall
60. giggling for no reason
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Thought For The Day
The habit of being happy enables one to be freed, or largely freed, from the dominance of outward conditions. [Robert Louis Stevenson]
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Thought For The Day
Never allow someone to be your priority while allowing yourself to be their option. [Mark Twain]
Happiness Challenge: Listen To Your Favorite Upbeat Song
The Happiness Project's resolution for this week is Listen To Your Favorite Upbeat Song.
Here is what Gretchen Rubin has to say:
While choosing just one favorite upbeat song can be a challenge (there are so many!), I opted for one that I turn to again and again as a way to pump myself up when I'm feeling low.
And so, I present "Under Pressure" by Queen & David Bowie.
Reasons To Be Happy #46-50
46. chocolate cake
47. the honesty of Kat Ramsburg
48. Playbills
49. new business opportunities
50. fireplaces
Monday, October 10, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #41-45
41. wine dates
42. lazy Sundays
43. online shopping
44. good news
45. revisiting favorite movies
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Thought For The Day
I'm not going to change the way I look or the way I feel to conform to anything. I've always been a freak. So I've been a freak all my life and I have to live with that, you know. I'm one of those people. [John Lennon]
Reasons To Be Happy #36-40
36. spending time with my niece
37. discovering new music
38. tulips
39. clouds
40. Leonard Cohen songs on a Saturday night
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #31-35
31. sleeping in
32. rainboots
33. chocolate milk
34. planning the next travel adventure
35. Lily Armani
Friday, October 7, 2011
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #26-30
26. the smell of freshly laundered clothes
27. Bette Midler
28. saltines and tuna
29. walking to work
30. sweatpants
The Musicals That Make Me Dance
Number 5 on my list of Reasons To Be Happy was musicals.
I love musicals. Even the bad ones. Hardly a day goes by when I don't think about a musical, or listen to a musical, or talk about a musical.
When I think long and hard about it, I'd have to say that my All-Time Top Ten Favorite Musicals are:
1. DREAMGIRLS
2. JERSEY BOYS
3. SIDE SHOW
4. GYPSY
5. MY FAVORITE YEAR
6. LA CAGE AUX FOLLES
7. A CHORUS LINE
8. SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE
9. FUNNY GIRL
10. NEXT TO NORMAL
There are so many more musicals that I love...but to post them all would just be exhausting. So I've chosen to limit myself to ten. Although, maybe twenty is a better number. Or thirty...
Thought For The Day
Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.
[Steve Jobs 1955-2011]
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #21-25
21. informed, intelligent, and enlightening conversations
22. RJ Tancioco
23. laughter
24. sharing experiences
25. Carolee Carmello's belt
Resolution: Better Scheduling
Admittedly, I have a tendency to overbook myself or forget dates. This has, on more than one occasion, caused tension/headaches/irritation/etc... for myself and the parties I may have made plans with.
And I hate to be the one to have to break plans, even if it IS because of my poor schedule keeping.
The solution? Use the Google calendar feature and the calendar app on my iPhone. It's as simple as that. Really. I sit in front of a computer all day and I am rarely without my iPhone. There's no excuse for not being able to input dates/times/plans right when they're being made.
By doing so, I can save myself the embarrassment of overbooking and then having to admit to my failure.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #16-20
16. sleeping
17. long showers
18. dancing in the living room
19. Alexander McQueen scarves
20. magazines
Inspiration
Bergdorf Goodman: Tom Ford, A Singular Man
I'm perfectly happy. I could die tomorrow. I feel like I've experienced so many things, and I've been so fortunate. I've had a great relationship in my life. I've had wonderful dogs. I've had a great career. I've had lots of things that have fulfilled me. I hope that I don't die tomorrow. There are other things that I'd like to do. I hope that I get to be a little bit wiser and smarter, and keep learning things.
Thought For The Day
A person who has good thought cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely. [Roald Dahl]
Monday, October 3, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #11-15
11. ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT
12. firm pillows
13. good books
14. red wine
15. solitude
Thought For The Day
Don't be reckless with other people's hearts, and don't put up with people that are reckless with yours. [Kurt Vonnegut]
Rules of Adulthood
- People don't notice your mistakes as much as you think.
- It's okay to ask for help.
- Most decisions don't require extensive research.
- Do good, feel good.
- It's important to be nice to everyone.
- Bring a sweater.
- By doing a little bit each day, you can get a lot accomplished.
- Soap and water remove most stains.
- Turning the computer on and off a few times often fixes a glitch.
- If you can't find something, clean up.
- You can choose what you do; you can't choose what you like to do.
- Happiness doesn't always make you feel happy.
- What you do every day matters more than what you do once in awhile.
- You don't have to be good at everything.
- If you're not failing, you're not trying hard enough.
-Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
- What's fun for other people may not be fun for you...and vice versa.
- No deposit, no return.
(adapted from THE HAPPINESS PROJECT)
Sunday, October 2, 2011
HAPPYTHANKYOUMOREPLEASE
"Sadness be gone. Let's be people who deserve to be loved, who are worthy. Because we are worthy."
It's a wonderful, uplifting, beautiful little film.
Highly recommended.
Thought For The Day
And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count, but the life in your years. [Abraham Lincoln]
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Reasons To Be Happy #1-5
1. John & Brooke McCabe
2. Ted, Kelly, and Morgan Hansen
3. extended families
4. strong friendships
5. musicals
Why Now?
The real question is "Why not?"
I have a lot in my life that I should be grateful for...but rarely have I acknowledged that. And by not acknowleding what I am grateful for, I have allowed myself to become steeped in negativity, depression, and low self worth.
So, why not make a change for the better? There's too much good in the world to overlook.
My Personal Commandments
Be Ryan.
Let it go.
Act the way I want to feel.
Do it now.
Be polite and be fair.
Enjoy the process.
Stand out.
Identify the problem.
Lighten up.
Do what ought to be done.
No calculation.
There is only love.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)