Winning

First of all, Hello everybody.  I hope you are having a stupendous day.

First of all, lets clear this up before I explode.  The past couple of weeks I have been thinking a lot about the purpose of life.  I had some difficult things come up in my life and in the lives of friends.  Sometimes things happen and we don't know why and there is no answer good enough for us.  I think that is just part of life, as much as I don't love it.  It is what it is.  This kind of sums up how I feel regarding the whole "everything happens for a reason" theory:

The next time you say "Everything happens for a reason, don't be surprised if I punch you in the face.  It happened for a reason."
 

Anyway...

On to a much more pleasant topic of conversation...Painting.

As I have stated before, my goal this year is to try new things and make pretty things and all that jazz.  Here is the inspiration for my newest project:

Now, please keep in mind that I have only tried free hand painting once before this (and it did NOT turn out well).  Here is my version, which is not as pretty, but its a start:

So...what do you think?  I know its not perfect, but neither am I, so that is alright with me. 

Another creation I have made recently:

Well, there you have it.

Oh...and I am a master of cooking bacon now.  And I made some mini Reeses cup cookies today and they were delicious.

Anyway, I hope you all have a wonderous day!!!  

Janalee

New Stuff

I might have a problem...

Okay.  Might isn't even true.  I have a problem.  I need to read more...not shop.  That has been my downfall lately.  Retail therapy is so my go to when I am missing something or someone.  It always helps.  However, I made a goal to try more new things though, and sometimes that requires buying things...oh please.  I'm totally justifying.  Whatever.  I guess when I have a family, I won't be able to be so selfish.

New things I tried this week:

•  Cooking shrimp.  Man.  So easy!!!  I never knew how simple and fun and delicious that would be.  I made Penne a la Betsy this weekend and again this week...twice...and it is amazing.  I think added some sauteed mushrooms could be epic.  Just saying.  So, if you like shrimp, embrace the easiness of it.  I would rather cook with shrimp than any other meat.  It isn't as gross raw as the others.
• Putting together an exercise bicycle...by myself.  This one is still ongoing, but gosh, I'm doing it!  I might have...there I go again..might have said some mean things to get something to work on it, but it did help!  Haha.  What can I say?  I am my father's daughter.  You sometimes have to tell the inanimate object who is boss.  Tony Danza.
• Bidding on Ebay for the very first time...................................I didn't know some crucial things.  And now I am really regretting buying things instead of reading.  Idiot.  Oh well...lesson totally learned.  I didn't know the difference between your bid and a maximum bid...here's hoping an hour goes really fast today...and I can't feel too bad about learning the hard way, because I Really wanted this....
• Making myself go to bed at a reasonable time.  This one is so hard.  I just can't stay up and feel normal like I used to.  Sorry to friends that I have been disappointing.  I guess I'm just getting older.
• Laundry.  I did it all and put it all away the same day.  Now that is new.  And impressive.

So anyway, I'm still trying new things.  And just to update you, I got outbid on my ridiculous bid, so thank heaven that happened.  Lesson learned.  And hey, I will be able to live this week!

Have a pleasant day and try something new!

Janalee

2013...And the end of 2012

Yo.

So this year is going to be my year to try new things.

New things like...dating?  HAHAHA.  Maybe.  Maybe not.  We'll see if I find someone who actually is drunk enough to want that...  I will be sewing a lot this year.  And I plan to make all kinds of new foods.  So far, three days into 2013, I have gone to my first ever English Tea Party.  So much fun for an old chap like myself.  I also learned how to cook bacon!  So easy!  I ate a cucumber sandwich and an apple sandwich for the first time.  Delicious.  I ate homemade bagels (AMAZING) and today I am going to eat a new soup:  bacon-corn chowder with shrimp.  I just realized everything new I have tried so far has been food.  Don't judge.  I just really love food and if it makes me feel better about things, I'm alright with that.  Sorry if you aren't.  But not really.

SO sewing...I bought fabrics and patterns and I am terrified to start that again.  It might just be the most feared thing this week.  I will do my best to overcome the fear though :)

Another thing, I am going to read one new book each month.  Last year I read a lot more than that, but I figure, start small, and then see where you end up.

Man...so far, 2013 has been better than 2012.  Now, I know we are only 3 days into it, but it is shaping up to be pretty darn exciting.  I am going to make myself do more things to get out of my comfort zone.  That is so super scary because I am not really spontaneous...I'm not really okay with doing something without a plan.  My dad always teased me about having an "itinerary" all the time, but truly, I feel crazy without knowing what to expect.  I sound nuts...but oh well.  So, my friend and I are planning a bff trip to DisneyLand.  I have never been there, or to California for that matter.  And I...Am...Terrified.  Every time I think about it, I get a little bit more nervous.  and excited.  And worried.  HAHA.  I'm so not good at new things.  But maybe by the end of this year, I will be.

2012 was a rough year.  But I made it through.  I had so many great things, and some rather unfortunate times.  In the end, I think I came out stronger and I learned valuable lessons about what matters and what does not.  And I also learned that life is much more enjoyable when you don't care what people think and when you do the things you want instead of always placing yourself last on your list.  I don't think being selfish is a value, but I do think that loving yourself is.  I'm working on it.  I stopped doing my happiness project for a few months because of things in life that came up and needed to be faced.  I plan on starting that again this month.  More on that later...

Anyway, here's to a fun-filled, terrifyingly wonderful year for us all.

Janalee