A Trying Tuesday (Beware this is long!)

I've been in a funk all day, and if I'm really being honest, the last few weeks. Today, for whatever reason, I really hit a breaking point. I just could not, would not go any further and I seriously got in bed and refused to get out for hours. When I finally did get out of bed I went and laid in the hammock in the backyard, which is basically just an outside bed, so I'm not sure it even counts. Being outside helped some. Tonight after a meltdown at dinner and then chewing both my sisters and my mom's ears off I finally put myself back to bed. I'm no one's favorite person right now, I know this for a fact.

Part of me doesn't even think I should be writing this here at all, but it's my blog and I can write about what I want. Maybe, just maybe, I can help someone else. Somehow, I stumbled onto an old Oregon friends myspace page (ya, I know I don't really use my account anymore either). She had this list of things to create a happy life. Coincidence? Ya, I don't believe in coincidence either. I read it and it really encouraged me, I'm not as far off track as I thought, but I definitely have some things to work on.

Here's the list:

1) Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

2) When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.

3) Follow the three R’s:
a) Respect for self
b) Respect for others
c) Responsibility for all your actions

4) Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

5) Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.

6) Don’t let a little dispute injure a great relationship.

7) When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

8) Spend some time alone every day.

9) Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.

10) Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

11) Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.

12) A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.

13) In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.

14) Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.

15) Be gentle with the earth.

16) Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.

17 )Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

18) Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

19) Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.