Describe Yourself

Describe yourself.

But don’t use the traditional method; i.e. brown hair, brown eyes, 5’4” Pick a group of nouns such as color, a food, an animal or ……………. and use it to describe yourself.

For instance……

I am like the color green, cheerful and energetic.

If I had to describe myself as a food, I say like a Thanksgiving turkey. I feel all golden, brown and crispy on the outside, lovely moist steamy tender inside with a Cajun stuffing, all spicy at the core.

If I picked an animal to describe myself, I am an ostrich sometimes, I would rather stick my head in the sand than have to confront things that are uncomfortable or ugly.

If I picked an architectural style, I would say I am Greek Revival, classic with a slight bit of flair.

Some Ideas to Inspire you to Journal

There is something daunting about the crisp, first page of a new journal.
I have been journaling for more than 15 years, but I still struggle with moving past that first page. There's a feeling of wanting it to be "just right." Well, relax—there is no right or wrong way to begin a journal, just as there is no right or wrong way to maintain one. Take a deep breath and begin writing. HERE ARE a few ideas to get your pen moving:
1. Blank Page
Skipping the first page may seem like an obvious choice, but I struggled with many journals before the idea occurred to me. No rule says you MUST start with the first page. Give yourself permission to begin randomly anywhere within the pages of your new journal.
2. Greeting
Write a greeting to your journal as a way to open communication and honor the intimate relationship you will be sharing. Welcome your journal into your life, reflect on the place where you are now, and look ahead at the places to which you hope to journey within the sanctuary of its pages.
3. Dedication
Many published books begin with a dedication page. Try this technique to honor someone who has been important in your life or who has brought you inspiration. Explore the ways this person has impacted your life.
4. Acquisition
Begin with the story of how you acquired your journal. Was it a gift? What prompted you to purchase your new journal or notebook? Has a significant event or transition in your life prompted you to begin a journal?
5. Goal Setting
"If you don't know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else," Yogi Berra wisely warned. Outline your short-term and long-term goals. Consider the areas of your life you want to nurture within six months, and those in which you hope to grow within five years. Reviewing your progress and accomplishments is a great way to keep on track. The first page of your journal is a great place to host these goals. Not only will they be easy to locate, but you will be reminded of them each time you open your journal.
6. Table of Contents
Leaving the first couple of pages blank will allow you to make a quick reference table of contents as you fill the pages with entries. Number the pages in your journal so you can more easily reference each topic and page number in your homemade index.
7. Collage
Add a third dimension to the first page of your journal by including some of your favorite items. Photographs, ticket stubs, dried flowers, drawings, comics, horoscope clippings. Add to the collage as you add to your journal.
8. Practical Matters
Record birthdays, anniversaries and other important dates for easy reference on page one. Or consider using this private place to list pin numbers and passwords for personal and computer accounts. Still another practical suggestion is to use these opening pages to create monthly calendars to keep your appointments and priorities organized.
9. Personal Mission
Take a cue from successful businesses, and craft a personal mission statement. This should be a focused statement of purpose in which you identify the most important roles, relationships and other priorities in your life. Who do you want to be? What do you want to do? To whom and to what do you want to give your life? What legacy do you hope to leave? What principles would make sound anchors for your existence?
10. Spirituality
Pen a prayer, verse, meditation, mantra or affirmation. Use this space to examine your progress thus far in your spiritual journey or to define your personal theology. Find a picture from a magazine or postcard that symbolizes your spirituality, and paste it onto the page next to your writing.
11. Lyrics
Write the lyrics to one of your favorite songs. Explore what makes the song so special to you. Try www.lyrics.com for a free directory of thousands of lyrics indexed alphabetically by artist.
12. Current Events
Take some time to capture the events that are shaping history. What is going on in your city, your country, the world? What are your thoughts and opinions about these events?
13. Genealogy
Draw a diagram of your family tree. Reminisce about your family's history, and recall your favorite childhood memories. What funny or sad stories can you remember or have you been told about your relatives?
14. Theme
Choose a theme for your journal, such as Nature, Dreams, Inspiration or Wisdom. Write the theme boldly upon the page and find quotations that relate to this word or phrase. Look up the definition of the word, or write your own. What does the word mean to you? How will it apply to your writing?
15. Letters
Compose a letter to a lost friend or loved one. Write a letter to someone who has inspired you or to someone with whom you have unresolved issues. This therapeutic exercise can often stir some heavy emotions.
16. About You
Paste some snapshots of yourself to the page, and write a synopsis of your vital statistics—height, weight, occupation and current circumstances. You may want to do this again on the last page of your journal to see what (if anything) has changed.
17. Poetry
Grace the first page of your journal with a special poem. I used Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Success" at the beginning of one of my journals to remind me that there are many different measures of being successful. Emerson's words were a comforting reminder when I found myself journaling some of life's disappointments. If you are a natural poet, this is a great place to showcase one of your own favorite poems.
18. Clustering
Draw a circle with the word "journal" in the middle. Write down all of the words that come to mind. Circle each word and draw a connecting line between each circle. Use free-association to build upon each word or short phrase. This exercise will probably generate ideas for writing past the first page of your new journal.
19. Refocusing
Instead of concentrating on the first page, try randomly writing quotations, prompts or drawings at the top of other pages. This technique will give you inspiration down your journaling road.
20. Gratitude
In the words of a French proverb, "Gratitude is the heart's memory." Use your heart's memory to list the people, places and experiences for which you are grateful.

Things Lost, Things Found (Book of Me off month posting)

I am posting a challenge off our cycle of one per month, because I had something neat happen the other day and I plan on doing a scrapbook page about it.

Your challenge is to talk about a tangible lost of goods, what have you lost, how it made you feel, when did it happen, why was it important and who takes part of the loss responsibility.

How often do we lose things?

I’ve lost my keys, misplaced multiple pairs of glasses. Yes, I’ll admit, I have found my glasses on my head and now I always check there first.
I have sent things in the mail of been sent things only to have them disappear in the mail. Once or twice, things have mysteriously ended up in my mailbox weeks or months later.
I’ve lost my company badge, I was positive it was in my purse, only to get back from a trip to find it gone.
I’ve “lost” stuff I was going to use in a scrapbook project and had to buy another.
I’ve lost CD’s/DVD’s don’t ask how that happens, but when I open the case it’s empty. They haven’t popped up yet.


Things tend to disappear from my house, car, purse and etc. I find it terribly annoying. I know that with any luck I’ll find the things in the house that have disappeared, if I am lucky I find the scrapbook stuff tucked away in the wrong place, the same with the CD’s and DVD’s.

The mail is another story. Since it is completely out of my control, no matter how much insurance I put on the package, even if I ask for signature confirmation there is no guarantee it will make it to its destination. Is it the mail swallowing my package, it’s possible, but there’s no way to know?

I’ve been in several circle journal groups. I have one book back completed and it’s a great treasure to me from a local group in Texas. I have one back partially completed, where the instructions to the group got messed up, but I have the book. Two have disappeared, I thought permanently gone. But imagine my delight (partial delight cause I don’t have my book back yet) one book has popped up one year later in New Zealand. The CJ group was shutdown due to people not sending books on, so I figured I had lost both books, even though I have PO confirmation delivery of one book. I was positive the other book was definitely gone, because I couldn’t track in beyond last April 2006.

Cleaning up emails is my least favorite task, but imagine my pleasure at finding a second email address for the lady in New Zealand in my old files. The first address was going undeliverable, so I lost hope of reaching her. I sent an email to the address I just found and happily got an email back from her. She only now received the book, one year later. Does it mean that I may actually see my book again? It’s possible, I have hope again. I’ll let you know what happens. Can I blame the mail for the book going missing for more than a year, I don’t know, but I am certainly hoping it doesn’t take one year to get it back!

Hoping you find things lost,

Book of Me - 1 June 2007

So the vacation is over……… It’s one of my great sorrows that I don’t write enough about a trip while I am on the trip. Usually I am too busy or “tired” to journal while we are on the vacation. I missed any journaling for the one and only major family vacation in December during the trip, but I still remember most of the important stuff. I was still buzzing with happiness and too tired when I got back. Plus there was a billion things to unpack, laundry to do and I had to go back to work in the next day. The last thing on my mind is jotting down all of the things about my vacation.

Only once have I written while I was on a trip. I still have the banged up spiral note book, but I put all of it on the computer when I got home. I was in my computer journaling phase and not one jot of my handwriting made it into a scrapbook. (which is a whole other subject) I am over that now, it’s easier to scrawl something in the book right away and I finally got over my messy handwriting.

But I have been wondering how to improve my journaling about vacations. I am excited about the idea of day or weekend trips, cause I have this aching desire to see as much of the world as I can even if it’s only for a weekend away. So I did some surfing on the web and found a couple of good sites to help me improve my journaling whether it’s a short or long vacation and thought I would share them with you.

I particularly like this site because she talked about day and weekend trips. She also has great tips about keeping your tools close at hand while traveling.

http://www.writingthejourney.com/exercises/traveljournal.htm


This one is more about how to scrapbook, but there is a short section on journaling. She makes me feel guilty because she does all her journaling before cutting one piece of paper. I am all about diving in and filling in the blanks with journaling later.

http://www.scrapbooking101.net/articles/april2005makingavacationminialbum.html

Amazon sells a journal to help you plan and jot down things that happen while you are on your trip. But buying this would mean the height of being organized to journal for me, I probably won’t do this, I feel just as comfortable with leftover old spiral notebooks that Andrew didn’t finish out in school. They are torn and battered, I can use them and not feel guilty if I shove them in the glove box of the car, drop them in the mud or the cat sits on them. I can scribble and doodle in them also. I would feel obligated to stick to writing if I “bought” a journal for vacation.

An idea from one site said think about journaling your vacation as your second vacation, because you get to relive all of the moments of the vacation. What a lovely way to think of it, instead of seeing it as a chore to complete your scrapbook.

The Challenge

So I am setting out a challenge for all of you, the next trip you go on, add that special trip journal from Amazon in your purse, or grab that grocery list pad or the beat up spiral note book. Jot down your thoughts even if it’s only a few words or thoughts or a quote that sums up the day. Make a sketch or doodle on your pages… Keep everyone involved whether they write in the journal or you capture their thoughts on your pages.

Summer is just starting, here’s your opportunity to pack your journal and write in it while on your trip.

The story continues.......

So it's almost been one year, I love my new job, oops, not really new anymore. It great, something new to work on all the time, still lots to learn. And I get to travel. Everyone seems to think that is the down side to my job, but they must be kidding cause thats a big @$$ perk.

Lots of changes happened in the last 11 months.

I became an empty nester, strange feeling, not to have "son" running in and out, friends all over the house. I see him regularly, and we have reached a new stage in the mother son relationship. I enjoy this as much as all that came before. Being a empty nester mom is the best, he isn't always around, just enough to have a good time together and then he is gone.

After 11 years I bought a new old car. I own a gas guzzler. GASP! GG is will always be my favorite car, she is everything a 40 something could want in a car, seats galor, electronic everything, cup holders I would have killed for 8 years ago. Cargo space out the you know what. I LOVE my car.

Finishing my MBA finally. I made up my mind that if I stayed at my current company, I was going to do everything I could to get this done. I have three semesters left, YIPPIIIEEEE. I can't believe it and can promise myself no more school. Although I have already started thinking about what I can do when I retire. There will be a nursing shortage, hmmm, that wouldn't be that much more time in school. Plus good retirement, I can work part time or work and travel. Wouldn't that be great. It's either that or farming.......

I transformed my empty bedroom into my art, craft, scrapbooking, making a mess room. I love this room. I have been buying bits and pieces for a long time, thinking about how I wanted to decorate the room. This would be the first room, where I can afford to do whatever I want. So I am going with a neutral, pink, black and cream scheme, with a Paris "fashion" theme. Why Paris or fashion, I suppose shoes started it. There was a lot of neat stuff with shoes on it in those colors and I do love shoes. Then of course there was the matching decorating stuff at Hobby Lobby which brought in the rest of the fashion element, which had some Paris stuff on it, and that opened up the whole Effiel tower thing. My mom and dad were here earlier this year and they helped me get things hung up on the walls and sorted out. Took me awhile to find everything, cause I had stored things everywhere, but when I would find something, that would remind me about something else and I would have to go digging to find it. I still don't have everything totally neat and tidy but I am getting closer and I love my room, it is a place where I can be totally happy making stuff.

Weekend trips- I have always longed to take off and do what I want to. So now every month, I have something special planned either a day long thing with friends, or a trip away or scrapbook classes. I started the year off right, family vacation at Disney at Christmas time, I will spend the whole year smiling thinking about this trip. Scrapbooks were done ahead of time, (3 sets, Mom, Natalie and me, I must have been crazy) pictures are printed out, I only need to journal. Gainesville is coming up and then the convention in Arlington.



All in all, I have enjoyed these 11 months more than just about any period of my life. Things are definitely great!

SBD