A post full of shameless plugs

You may know that I am a member of The Cornerstone Group - a volunteer group of professionals who plan and execute fundraising events for Girls Inc of the Greater Capital Region.

You may know I am the Marketing & Publicity Chair for 2013 (hence the shamless facebook page plug).

You may also know that I can be woefully disorganized, late for everything, and tend to forget appointments and projects. Keep in mind I'm cute and nice and have many other fine qualities, so people are often willing to overlook these flaws.

Anyway...

I wanted something that I could dedicate to Cornerstone work. A place to keep paperwork, make notes, track dates, etc. all in one place. Oh - and I wanted it to be cute, and small enough to fit in a purse.

I searched...and searched...and searched - nothing. Unless I wanted to pay around $30 (I didn't) I wasn't finding what I wanted.

So I turned to a friend who said...hey, I can help you - and she did.

Court is Crafty took an e-reader case and a boring planner with all the features I needed, did some sort of magic and - bam! I have a cute, functional, budget-friendly tool to keep me organized. Now - if I actually show up on time and remember to do everything, I'm pretty sure this will qualify as a miracle product.

Did I mention it's cute? See for yourself.

Change what you want

Being happy is a choice.

I always thought that was nonsense. I always figured there was a reason I wasn't happy. I didn't have the right job, or enough money. I didn't have the house I wanted, or hadn't reached my goal-weight. If I could just get to that place/weight/salary/whatever, I could finally be happy.

It took a long fall and a hard landing at rock bottom to learn that isn't how happy works.

Happiness isn't defined by my jean size, my address, or my bank account. I define my happiness. That's a good news, bad news sorta thing. Sure, it's great that the choice is mine. But it also means that if I'm not happy, it's up to me to admit why.

Sometimes, the life we wanted - and planned for - isn't available. Even if we followed all the rules, stuck to the plan, kept to the schedule, life can still throw a curve-ball. We may have to face the fact that what we envisioned can't ever happen. The unfortunate reality is that not everything, or everyone, is within our control.

Source

But how do you fix what you don't control? You may not control the circumstances - but you can control how you react. So if you're sure what you want is outside your reach, you need to find a new way to be happy.

You need to change what you want.

That's a hard pill to swallow, especially if you're a stubborn planner who believes she can fix anything. It's actually easier to blame the outside stuff - your jean size or your bank account or your job title. Those are things you can change - and it's much easier to think your happiness is connected to something you control.

It's frightening, that we don't control our own destiny; that we can't force the round peg into the square hole and make it fit the way we want. It's frustrating and depressing and very scary.

You would think that finally accepting certain things are outside of our control would be the scariest thing any of us would have to face. No wonder so many never want to admit that there is anything we can't fix, including the life we wanted.

I have found one thing scarier. Reaching those outside goals, checking them off your list one-by-one, all the while realizing you're not any close to the happiness you thought you'd find.

Friday Fill-in fun - March 8

Borrowed from here....

1. Life goes on!

2. It was warm and then a little snow fell.

I can too love a phone.
From sprint.com

3. I knew it was love when I saw its 4.52" super AMOLED display lit up like a bright summer sky, and I saw the power of its 1.2 GHz Dual Core, 1200 MHz processor.

4. I would prefer sunshine and blue skies.

5. A little nap is wonderful anytime, but especially on a Sunday afternoon.

6. Sushi is one of my favorite things to eat for dinner (and lunch!).

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to a Target shopping trip (and sushi for dinner), tomorrow my plans include the gym and a birthday drink with a fabulous friend, and Sunday I want to do absolutely nothing.

...feel free to leave your own if you like. Happy Friday!