My Word of the Year

I know I'm little late to the game in terms of establishing (and posting) my "Word of the Year."  But, believe it or not, much of my tardiness was by design.

You see, today is the 45th day of 2019.  It's also the day in which I complete my 45th trip around the sun. That's right, today is my 45th birthday and I couldn't think of a better day to reveal my word of the year.

Now, I agree that turning 45 isn't as big of a deal as turning 40 or 50, but it's still significant.  You see, I think it's fair to say that at this point in my life I probably have more years behind me than I do in front of me. Yes, I know that's incredibly morbid, but I'm being real.  Sure, I might be one of those folks like the recently deceased George W. H. Bush who lives well into their 90s, but that's doubtful.  And, unless I'm in really good physical and mental health, I don't want to live that long.  While I'm being completely honest, I must also admit that accepting the fact that I'm on the preverbal "downhill slope" of life is... strange. It has made me stop and take stock of my life and think about what I want the rest of my life to look like. 

When I was in my teens and twenties, I, like so many in my generation, thought I had all the time in the world.  That arrogance of youth even extended somewhat into my thirties.  But, when I turned 40 and officially entered this strange time of life defined as "midlife," the time when Evelyn Couch from the 1980s movie Fried Green Tomatoes said she was "too old to be young and too young to be old," I knew I no longer had the luxury of time.  I viewed turning 40 as the equivalent of resuming a football game after halftime.  I figured, God willing, that the game wasn't over but the amount of time I had to play was limited. I'm now five years older, so I'm well into the third quarter.

So, as funny as this sounds, I've spent a lot of time over the past three months thinking about time.  Maybe it was due to my 45th birthday rapidly approaching; maybe it was because of various time related events that have been happening in my life, I don't know.  None-the-less, time has been on my mind a lot here lately.

One lazy Sunday morning last month, during a broadcast of CBS Sunday Morning, a Viking River Cruises commercial caught my attention.  As I watched, it deeply resonated with me and it conveyed everything about time and living that I had been feeling and contemplating during the previous months, but hadn't been able to fully express in words.  

Amen.  I don't think I could've said it any better.  How very important it is to spend one's time wisely and that is exactly what I intend to do.

I cannot think of a better way to spend the rest of the time I have on this Earth, however long that may be, than by simply enjoying it.  So, my word of the year is: 

I plan to enjoy the little things, enjoy the big things, enjoy the ride, enjoy the process, enjoy the moment, enjoy the people in my life, and enjoy journey.  Most of all, I plan to enjoy myself.

I say "life is too short..." all the time and, you know what, it really is.  This year I vow to do more things that I enjoy, do things I've always said I wanted to do (but haven't for whatever reason), and eliminate the things that I don't enjoy to the best of my ability.  

Although I'm not much of a Valentine's Day person, sharing one's birthday with the second most commercialized holiday of the year can do that to a person, I hope you have a great Valentine's Day. Whatever you do, be sure to enjoy!

Linking up with:

Thanks to Steph @ Life According to Steph for exposing me to the Guy Lombardo quote (which might have originally come from a Chinese proverb) in her 12/6/18 post.

Images of My Youth - Wordless Wednesday (Vol. 42)

Do you remember any of these?

Linking up with Wordless Wednesday

&

bethere2day

Recently Read - Vol. 34 (Jan. '19)

Ladies and Gentlemen, you'd better sit down before I continue.  

Ol' girl here (yeah, I'm talking about myself) read four books since the last Show Us Your Books linkup day back in January!  That's right - FOUR!  I know in the grand scheme of things that reading four books in a month isn't a big deal, but for me, the gal who averaged 1-2 books a month all throughout the fall, it is a BIG deal!  HUGE!  And, here's the icing on the cake - all four were very good or great reads!

Puddin' by Julie Murphy

My Rating: 5/5

Think:  An unlikely friendship between two high school girls and the journey each one takes in finding herself.

Puddin' is the follow-up book to Dumplin' and I was really doubtful that it could hold a candle to its predecessor.  But, you know what?  It did!  In fact, I think I liked Puddin' more!  I enjoyed development of the two main characters and their unlikely friendship.

FINAL VERDICT:  HIGHLY RECOMMEND  

The Sentry by Robert Crais

My Rating 4/5

Think:  When an L.A. shop owner and his niece go missing, Joe Pike will do whatever he has to in order find them before  someone else does.

This is the 14th book in the Elvis Cole/Joe Pike private detective series.  The story was solid and offered some mysterious intrigue.  I also liked that this book offered the reader a deeper look into the quiet, Joe Pike, and it also allowed us to see his vulnerabilities. 

FINAL VERDICT: RECOMMEND 

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Women by Balli Kaur Jaswal

My Rating: 5/5

Think:  Nikki, a young, modern daughter of Indian immigrants takes a job teaching traditional, conservative Punjabi women how to write creatively.  But, despite her modern ways, nothing could prepare Nikki for what these women want to write about.

I have no idea what lead me to acquire this book, perhaps it was just on title alone, but for whatever reason, I'm glad I did.  Erotic Stories for Punjabi Women is not only a story of cultures and generations clashing, but it's also a story of the power of the female friendship.  

FINAL VERDICT:  HIGHLY RECOMMEND

After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid
My Rating: 4/5

Think:  A married couple decides to spend a year away from each other in hopes of saving their marriage.

One of the things I like most about TJR is her ability to craft characters and situations that are so real that you feel as if you know that characters or, at the very least, you can understand the situation they find themselves in because it feels plausible.  The story is told by Lauren and chronicles her experience during the year in which she and her husband, Ryan, are living apart.  Elements of their relationship, going back to when they first met, are also revealed in flashbacks, and are also told from her viewpoint.

FINAL VERDICT:  RECOMMEND  

Have you read any of these?  What are your thoughts?

Linking up with Steph and Jana

Currently... (Vol. 36)

Avoiding...  people like the plague because the flu has hit the metro Louisville area hard this year.  The students and faculty at my school have been hit especially hard the past 2 weeks.  

Mega-dosing...  Vitamin C.  I have no idea if it really works or not, but I'm not taking any chances.

Walking...  at least 12 miles a week.

Rescheduling...  the personal day I had intended to take on my birthday next week.  (I need it for something very important in April!)

Admiring...  the pictures that I've seen online that feature celebrities along side their younger selves.  I don't know who created these, but if I did I would certainly give credit where credit is due.  These are really cool.

Recommending...  this temporary gray coverup stuff by Clairol.  It's just enough "smoke and mirrors" to do the trick and it buys me just a little more time when my roots start to show but I'm not ready for a coloring date.

Dreading...  the speech pathology conference I have to attend later this month.  I dread this thing every year, so this is nothing new.

Reading Listening... to the audiobook After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

Still watching...  The Masked Singer.  So far, I'm batting .000 in guessing any of the unmasked singers. It's still fun to watch, though.

Shopping...  for swimsuits...  Even though I'm in a smaller body, this is still a daunting task.  Dear lord, give me strength.

Laughing...  at this:

Agreeing... with this:

January in a Snapshot:

Top row:  walking in the ice and snow
Middle row:  attending the musical Something's Rotten, my stepdaughter's dog and his
bad case of "bed head"
Bottom row:  scenes from the Polar Vortex

What have you been up to lately?

Linking up with:

Meme Monday (Vol. 19)

Truth!

Amen!

It will, indeed!

In my experience, I would also include some food.  IKEA does have a snack bar, after all!  LOL!

Absolutely!

ALL the time!

Sad, but true...  LOL!

You have no idea!  

Have a wonderful Monday!