![A little frazzled but still smiling](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3050/5739360212_dc4538e561.jpg "© Copyright Jan Richards All rights reserved
A "stress ball" that laughs when you squeeze it reduced to a bit of a soggy mess by our younger dog, Zoe, when she got hold of it and treated it like a tennis ball.")
Sometimes life tosses us around a bit, but we still come up smiling.
This poor “stress ball” shows the effects of his own stressful experience…having been tossed around by a dog…but has bounced back, still smiling.
The tale the pedometer tells
May 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Data tell you many things.
Here, for example, I switched on the pedometer on my phone on a busy walking day.
Just curious a bit later, I checked the results. They surprised and amused me:
1. It was amazing how quickly the miles added up.
2. The path showed that at one point, I was going in circles over the course of an hour or so.
That’s when three members of my family tried to find each other on a large campus, in a very large crowd of people.
I knew we’d been “going in circles,” seemingly, but not quite how literally that was the case!
What simple data can you track that will tell you a few helpful and, perhaps, amusing things?
Freshly blooming beauty
April 11, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Roses are just starting to bloom in our part of the country.
This often-bountiful bush is just starting to bloom not far away from our home.
Flowers are probably popping up in your world, too.
Where are the places near you that you can count on for freshly blooming beauty now…or soon?
Just a moment’s pause…to window shop
March 31, 2011 By Leave a Comment
I was amused at this quick moment on a trip last fall to New York City.
A couple of policewomen couldn’t help but to glance for a moment at shoes on their rounds of the city.
After all, beautiful shoes are beautiful shoes, no matter who you are, or what job you walk.
Rainy day view
March 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment
We react and adapt when we must.
And when faced with a gray day, a bright, cheerful umbrella can go a long way to chase the blue and gray away.
What’s your best defense against an otherwise dreary day?
A sign of hope
March 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment
A spot of color.
A break in the drab.
A sign of hope that winter is, indeed, about to end.
The way there doesn’t always follow a straight line
February 22, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Each path to a destination gets you there, sometimes in its own way and time.
And most journeys provide a few twists and turns along the way, of some kind.
As you think back over your life, which journeys have been your most interesting ones: the straight paths or the slightly less predictable kind?
And which journeys have been most valuable in your life: the straight-ahead-paths or the slightly meandering kind?
Today I will be happier than…
January 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment
![Today I will be happier than...](http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5282/5363307602_7b40f92715.jpg "© Copyright Jan Richards All rights reserved
A framed print in our daughter's apartment, "Today I will be happier than a bird with a french fry." It made me laugh, and sends one out the door with a smile.")
This thought made me laugh:
“Today I will be happier than a bird with a french fry.”
It’s the idea our daughter sees as she leaves her apartment every day.
And just for a moment – an important moment – it creates a smile that brightens her eyes and lightens her heart as she enters the day, and sometimes the fray.
What will you be happier than today?
On the way
January 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Perhaps this serendipitous picture reminds you of your average work day:
Flying along, the day barely underway.
And since that’s just the beginning, the rest flies along at an even faster pace.
If this looks and sounds familiar, don’t forget to pause now and then to take a deep breath.
Find your calm center.
It’s there, and it can help guide you through the busy-ness of a rapid-cycle day.
Sunset on another year
December 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
One year wraps.
A new one unfolds.
How has 2010 shaped up for you?
How are you different, and wiser than you were a year ago?
Best wishes for 2011.
Hopefully it becomes a year that you look back on with a big smile, a happy sigh, as you recall the great experiences you had and the great memories you made, day by day.
