Cattitude and Gratitude

I must admit that there are some days that I don't jump out of bed all enthusiastic and in love with life.  Some days I have a grey cloud of worry or negative, guilty thoughts floating over my head.  The best cure for the neggies, I've found is to read positive affirmations like  Queen Of Your Own Life   and practice gratitude. This week I'm grateful for many things. I'm linking up to two Gratitude linkups this week. I'm so grateful to include Laurel and Vidya among my wonderful writer friends.  First is  Laurel Reagan's Gratitude List over at her blog, www.alphabetsalad.com   Laurel's Gratitude List   Second is  Vidya Sury's Gratitude Circle over at her blog www.vidyasury.com   Vidya's Gratitude List .  Feel free to post about gratitude and link up with other grateful bloggers at either one or both of these wonderful blogs.  No matter how bleak or gloomy things may appear, there is always something to be grateful about.  I hope you

This is the third year I’ve signed up for the A-Z Challenge. It’s always such an exciting time as we all create and share our posts. The last two years I haven’t had a theme but this year I thought I’d try doing one for a change. Today is Theme Reveal Day where we all unveil our ideas for the A-Z challenge that begins in less than ten days. I have decided to do the theme of Quotations and will create an inspirational poster combining my photos with a quotation, based on a word starting with a letter of the alphabet. If I feel even further inspired about the quotation, I will write a poem or prose piece to accompany it. Unlike many of you organized types, I have not written any posts ahead of time, but I did make a list of possible ideas so for me that’s planning ahead. I have always been a pantser-type writer which can often be stressful, but also exciting as I’m never quite sure how the writing will come out. I believe there is an element of luck and magic

Nice be back blogging again. Having my laptop cleaned has certainly derailed my blogging routine. Not that it takes much for me to get off track! I'd better get back into the routine pretty quick with the A-Z Blogging Challenge coming up in April. In honour of Happiness Day which was on March 20 th , I have written this little poem in tribute to Mr. C, my cheerful cardinal friend who visits me year round.  He is always happy and upbeat, despite the weather. Even never ending winter doesn’t get him down.  Just the sight of this gorgeous bird in his brilliant red plumage is enough to brighten the dullest day.  I hadn’t seen him for a while so I was delighted when he stopped by last night. Of course I had to take lots of photos and write a poem about him as he is so inspiring.  Here is a collage of some of those photos. I took them around 7pm when the light was beginning to fade but was still able to get some shots of my favourite bird. I'm so grateful for Day

Laurel Reagan at Alphabet Salad inspired me to write about one of my first jobs after I read her post about her first job as a teen working in a bakery which you can read here. MMM, I can smell that fresh bread baking, Laurel. YUM! Laurel's First Job Being a Military Musician The other day as I was driving into Ottawa, I saw two F18s coming in for a landing at the airport. I got so excited when I saw them that it was a good thing I didn't cause an accident.  As an airforce kid, I still get such a thrill out of seeing a jet since my father was a jet pilot. Also I have been in the military myself. One of my first jobs was as a Reservist in the Canadian Armed Forces. I was a musician in an Air Reserve Band in Montreal back in the early 1980's in the Cold War Era.  I still think back fondly on those days as it was not your typical job. Imagine getting to play music and get paid for it. It seemed too good to be true. Of course it wasn't fun every moment, but it wa

I dedicate this poem to our faithful leader of Blog-A-Rhythm,  Shailaja Vishwanath.  Blog-A-Rhythm She keeps us all inspired, makes us laugh and keeps us writing.  (GULP! *sweat pours from brow at the the thought of those pointy-toed boots*) Do you suffer from Writer’s Block? Don’t you wonder why? You sit and watch that ticking clock And feel like you’re going to cry, Sit yourself down and write something small It doesn’t even have to be that wise, Get some words down and try not to stall That’s what Shailaja would advise, If all else fails, Shailaja can help She knows just what you need, Of course it just might make you yelp But she promises you won’t bleed, See those boots she’s wearing The black ones with the pointy toes, So slinky, shiny and daring Guaranteed to cure blank page woes, Just one jab is all it will take Then the writing will flow, So much for your Facebook break On Your Mark, Get Set, Go!