Life Joys

My favorite time of year has started - the time of year when you can lay outside and a nap. Hopefully intentional. I maybe took an unintentional nap at the park today. 

Then I walked to the coffee shop and got some free shots of espresso. They have posted on their Instagram that they have a special offer to get free coffee if you tell a fact they post. I thought they were all done. Nope. Free coffee and fizzy water for me. 

Yay.

Earlier today, I was checking out my plants that I have in the window. Look at how much they've grown! I got these pots at a 'Buy Nothing' swap, where I was able to grab random items that made my heart joyful. For free. I like free.

And the seeds were from somewhere...I think the swap, too! But look how they're growing. From nothing, it seems, comes something. From baby seeds come mighty trees. Except these aren't trees. Thank goodness.

Lastly, y'all, overalls. When I was in grade school, I wore overalls for three years straight. Not like hyperbole 'three years straight'. This is legit. Every day. I could probably count on my hands the amount of time I wore something besides overalls. 



As a side note, also, there's tons of different styles of overalls. 

But I got a new pair! It's been years. Someone gave them to me...randomly. The amount of joy I have from them is maybe I bit too much. Whatever. Overalls. I'm thankful.

Find joy in the simple things in life. Jesus provides those.

Peace.

Thank You

The radio says some really weird things. Usually, because of this, I zone them out. Or listen to really cool CDs. Like Hamilton. For hours on end. Hours. And hours. 

Here, learn a song from Hamilton. Here, listen to it.

I never thought I would find a use for this.

Anyways, I didn't listen to a CD or zone a couple weeks ago. It went into a segment where someone was talking and they had a REALLY good point. 

Instead of saying sorry, say thank you. 

Examples: 

Instead of saying, "Sorry for being late," say, "Thank you for waiting for me!"

Instead of saying, "Sorry for having to cancel," say, "Thank you for being understanding!"

Instead of saying, "Sorry I didn't explain that clearly," say, "Thank you for taking the time to understand what I was saying."

This does a couple things --> 
1. It takes the emphasis off the negative and turns it to a positive.
2. It takes the emphasis on the thing you did wrong and puts it on what the other person did right.
3. It makes both parties feel a little bit better about the situation.

This change has made life quite lovely the past couple of weeks. I still over-apologize, but I do so less. There are still times that we need to apologize and admit wrong. But, more than that, there are times where we need to thank the people around us for what they do.

Peace.

Produce Bags

I did another thing! So, I've been avoiding buying produce for a bit of time (well, produce that needs to be put in bags) because I didn't want to use a plastic bag. It just made me frustrated often that I would be putting more plastic into the environment. 

First one - handmade. Sewn by hand.

Y'all. I wanted kumquats for a year. I finally got them today. 

Why? How?

I made produce bags!

I have two right now, but I figure I'll make more. How did I do it?

Old pillowcase. Cut into three parts (when the pillowcase if facing horizontally). Then, I sewed up the sides, leaving the top (one of the smaller sides) open. I flipped the top over itself (like to make a place for a shoelace to go through). Literally, this doesn't make sense. Maybe someone has a way to do this online...

Here. Someone else wrote it. I don't feel bad about taking it.

Oh! But I'm also really thrilled because everything I'm using to make these bags is reused. Or repurposed. I didn't buy anything. Old pillowcase. Extra shoelaces. A sewing machine.

Second one - sewn with machine. Dang,
I need practice.

Anyways, I've been really thrilled because now I have produce bags! And, actually, I'm using making them as incentive to grade papers. Cool? I know. 

But that's a really practical change I've been able to make to help the environment and for me to be able to help my body.

Life is good. I hope this made sense.

Probably not. 

But whatever. I got kumquats. Apples. And broccoli. With zero-waste. 

Peace.