Monday, January 30, 2012

What...are you EXPECTING?

Life..is like a laboratory, that's laboratory, not lavatory~though at times life can feel like that too. We conduct experiments, in relationships, spirituality, with God, Science, human nature, ourselves.

Recently the subject of expecting has come up. Someone dear, stopped by my office last week, and said that she is expecting good things to happen in a situation she was talking about, because we need to expect the best. This subject spontaneously came up from different sources two other times in the same week. Messages tend to happen in threes in my life.

This is opposite from my belief of many years, the old adage that "expectations are planned disappointments", that if you expect the worst then you will not be disappointed. Wow, what a shitty way to live!

If I think of a situation and expect to get fucked over, to expect it to go wrong, am I in a way, helping to bring that into fruition? And while I am thinking those things, I am feeling pretty shitty to.

Now if I focus on expecting the best, on positive outcomes, solutions, happiness and fulfillment, whether or not I am specifically thinking about how these will come about, or leaving the details in the hands of God, I am in a positive state of mind and experience a sense of relief and happiness while I am thinking these things into being, even before they have happened. Much better way to live, don't you think?

Let's try this in our laboratory as an experiment. I have read that this is like faith in action, what we expect. I expect good results!

~Jenny

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

A Dream Come True


I have been waiting a long time to have a space to do my art journaling, painting etc. I went to IKEA this weekend and got this new desk. It's perfect. Just enough room to write, use my computer and do lots of art without having to fumble around for space or supplies.


I plan to do a lot more organizing of this space, but so far it's great. This is the nicest piece of furniture I have ever bought myself. And, it was only $60.00~thank you IKEA!


Spooky seems to like it too. Once again she is the perfect addition to anything good in my life. There is something so comforting about having a little whiskered cat friend that you love so much lounging around with you as you do things that are comforting. It ups the comfort level. I'm very happy. So far I've achieved one of the things I wanted to do this year, and it's only the second week of January! And I get to be a lot more creative with this space. It will be an ongoing project to look forward to and enjoy.

~Jenny

Saturday, January 7, 2012

What's Cooking?

It's been a while since I've dedicated myself to cooking. As of late I have been practicing again. I made a 15 minute stew last weekend. It didn't turn out great, but I tried. It's a good start, thoughts of how I can improve upon it run through my head. It's kind of like life, I have to get used to the basics before I start screwing with and embellishing on things.

Last night I made some chicken and egg noodle soup (from a can), but added frozen Trader Joes pot stickers. I gave it plenty of time to cook and took care with it even though it was not all homemade. It was delicious, better than the stew.

Tonight, not feeling so well, and needing some comfort and simple food, I pulled out my copy of The Joy of Cooking my sister gave me years ago and looked up how to bake a potato. I threw a few in the oven, and waited patiently. When they came out and I split one open, I was reaching for the cheddar cheese processed popcorn sprinkles as a topping, but at second thought, I opted for just butter, salt and pepper. It was delicious.

Simple is better, natural is better. I find that when I take the time to cook something, I respect food more. The time and effort that goes into growing it, shipping it, the blessing of having something to eat when others don't. I savor each bite more, and know that it is nourishing my body, not just filling my belly. I also find that when I'm cooking, my mind is void of all else, any problems, obsessive thoughts, etc. I am able to stay in the moment and create something good.

~Jenny