My emotional and spiritual reserves have been  improved greatly this weekend. I'm so thankful for the life and love of Jesus Christ.  I hope the joy and miracle of Easter has been strengthened in your heart this holiday weekend. As a Latter-day Saint I feel truly blessed to have listened to the voice of a prophet and many others who were directed by God in their messages.

Clarity in the fog

I reminisced with a coworker about walking to school in the California fog. We were explaining it to another coworker who lived in a place that rarely if ever had fog. It's so strange thinking of fog as water and air. Two things we must have; yet in this situation it causes confusion at best and disasterious wrecks at worst. Well, I'm up in the middle of the night because I'm in a bit of a fog.
I want to be able to make black/white choices but all around me I see only various shades of grey.
I know that there is only One who can show me clarity in this fog. He is the source of peace and rest on this sleepless night. I must say that I look forward with great anticipation and joy for the opportunity to sit at the feet of His prophets and apostles this weekend. I have faith that my questions will be answered. I know that there are others like me anxiously waiting for the spiritual feast that awaits. It is
my prayer that I will come to the feast hungry and prepared to try it all. I know that if I exercise my faith the fog will lift and I will be given direction and determination. So many analogies in life can be made of Him who loves us. On this night, He is the lighthouse in the fog of my mind and heart.

A rarity

I found myself wishing for something few desert rats wish for. . .
HEAT!

See where I live swamp coolers and A/C units run from April to November. Because our winters are mild most don't turn on the heat. That being said, our blood is "thinner" and many of us feel cold during the "winter" months. I froze my dear Mr. Website Guy out all winter so we can turn on the air more often this summer.

Well, at work I was feeling chilly and suddenly I found myself longing for the heat of desert summers. I love the feeling of leaving an air conditioned building and getting into my ovenbaked car and feeling the hot air "prickle" my face. I get to thaw out. Seriously I wear warm clothes in the summer to the office because my liitle office is a box. An icebox. I don't get to ask for a temp change because I'm on one of the main duct for my floor. So I take beaks and go bask inthe beautiful sunshine.

Many of my fellow desert dwellers would say I was crazy for feeling this way and would probably be upset if my wish for early heat came true. It makes me a rarity but hey I'm a rose that blossoms in the desert. I love it! Thanks Mr. website Guy for giving up your dream of working in rainy Redmond, WA. I love you and I love where we live. Thanks.

So, my dear Reader, if you hear my neighbors complaining of an unusually early start to the heat, willyou keep my wish come true a secret? Thanks!

Turning Points

We all have those pivotal moments in life where we see a glimpse of ourselves  through the eyes of another. You know when those around you love you enough to tell you "like it is".  We then have a choice. We can evaluate and confirm or we can bristle and deny. I think the moment we do the evaluating we have a moment called a "turning point". It's a moment where we can later pinpoint the time of change. 

Toostie's had two turning points of late and a third one recently popped up. The first two were in regard to my weight and my use of certain words. The third was pointed out to me by my boss. After a staff meeting, we all sat around for rare visit filled with laughter and teasing. As I parted from the jovial meeting, my boss said to my coworker, "she's so pretty when she smiles." I returned to deliver a message and was told of the comment. I replied with a thank you and a question. "Do I not smile enough?" I was told I don't.  

So, I've thought about it and I'm going to take action. It'll be conscious effort for a while but just like exercise and eating, and pausing before speaking, it'll get easier with time and will only do me good. If you want to share with Tootsie things that'll make me smile please do. I'll be sure to share with you, too. I hope there will come a time when others say I smile "all the time". We all know someone like that and it's so refreshing. So, what kind of turning points have you had lately?      

Simply Simplify

I spent the weekend building an addition on to my closet. I did this because Tootsie's duds are out of control everywhere in her house. I also went through the closet and decided there are some contents which simply don't belong anymore. They have no place in my life, so off they go to the thrift store. I got to thinking that feels so good, I need to do this in other areas of my house and in my life. I need to simply simplify. What do I need all this baggage for? It's just extra fuel in the tragic event of a house fire. I'm going to slim down. Physically as well as domestically. I think it will help me bulk up spiritually and mentally. That's where the extra stuff really matters. How about you? What do you want to simply simplify in your life? Good luck getting slimmer!

Just checking in...

Dear Readers,

I've been too busy with things that must be done, but really don't matter in the eternal picture. So, I'm going to carve out some time for myself and for you, tomorrow. I'm taking the day off work and getting some much needed "me" things done. Most of it involves the dentist, doctors, errands, and the like, but hey, I've put it off long enough. So, tomorrow I'm going to be searching for something in my world that I can grow pensive about, and then share with you. I love each of you, my readers! I love knowing that someone besides me is getting a smile out of my work. Hugs to all of you, Tootsie

All that Grey Matter

My mind has been a bit 'foggy' these last few days. I'm having trouble remembering things. I'm maxed out on the 10% of the brain power, I 'averagely' use. For those of you who are slightly confused, don't worry, it'll pass.

They say the average person uses only 10% of their brain's capacity. Wow! Only 10%, what's happening with the other 90%? I have no idea!

Today, my grey matter is getting all mixed up with all the usernames and passwords that I have to store. I have too many!!!! I have several for work and the responsibilities that I have there, then I have my personal emails, of which there are five. Yes, five. I need to purge. Then there's banks and credit cards and other entities in the computer world that I have accounts with that all require username and password. Sometimes, it's just a jumbled mess of numbers, letters and "ideas" that are supposed to help me remember why I chose whatever it was I chose. Do you follow me? If so, great! I'm lost.

What I really want to be remembering are the birthdays I forget;the phone numbers I need because my cellphone is dead and I can't call anyone but the operator; the chores and tasks at home and work that I need to follow up on; the dates of appointments and activities. Nope, these things are like butter slicked ideas flying through my grey matter. Very difficult to keep a hold of without the use of a calendar, alarm, and a phone call from a friendly appointment clerk somewhere.

Then you have the stuff that sticks. Yes, it sticks like that nasty rubbery gum under your 11th grade school desk. You know: the song lyrics to a melody that's annoying; the image of something gross or disturbing; or the wrong name for a person you've known for too long to ask the truth of their name. ARGGGGG! That's not anything worth saving!

Our minds are powerful, wonderful, and mystical things. We get information jumbled, garbled, irretriveable and misplaced. We have memories stored, clouded, jaded, treasured. We can't function without our brain; we take it for granted, and we apparently aren't using enough of it. It's time for me to get back to the crossword puzzles I love, the books that cause me to think and the quizzes of vocabulary words and synonyms.

What's filling up your grey matter and what do you want to be filling it up with? Think about it! Pun intended.