Musings

I came across this site, Authentic Living, through an article I read by Melissa at The Inspired Room. I felt like this page was a reflection of my own mind and how I think about life. Have you ever had that happen?

I wrote a while back about how my life changed when I started organizing my home office. I feel strongly that many people go through life living unconsciously, wandering around like zombies…. sleep, wake, eat, work, eat, work, eat …. repeat. What would life be like if we stopped for a moment and asked ourselves, “Am I living the life I want?” It’s a dangerous question! Why? Because what if the answer is “no”? Would we have to do something about it? Would we feel compelled to change something?

Maybe we don’t have to do something drastic to live more authentically. It could be something as simple as looking at things from a new perspective. If the way we live our life isn’t authentically us, what could change - right now, today? Maybe it’s as simple as ordering a coffee that’s new, organizing and purging a bedroom, taking a walk for lunch or writing a note to someone from the past.

To me, living authentically means listening to that soft whispering voice inside. Listening and watching for inspiration will come if we’re tuned into that deepest part of ourself. Then, creating a home or work space that is a reflection of who we truly are. Getting rid of what doesn’t matter and giving honor to what does; isn’t that what life is all about?

I have this love/hate relationship with my Palm Treo. Here’s what I love:

• Everything is centralized
• Dizzying details in the address book
• Contact details galore
• Directions can be put in a Note
• I can keep track of quotes I come across
• My information is backed up (boy has that saved a few times)
• There are hundreds (thousands??) of great little add-in programs (like HandyShopper)
• It’s easy to use

So, here’s what I don’t like:

• Maddening transfer of information when I get a new one (and after 15 years of using Palm I’ve done it once or twice… grrrr…)
• The “looping” which occasionally occurs for no apparent reason, out of the blue (even after getting rid of the newest favorite program)
• It’s not pretty to look at - let’s face it, it’s utilitarian
• It doesn’t always play nice with my Outlook (grrr)
• I’m visual, and seeing one day at a time just doesn’t cut it (I end up looking at my laptop to see the entire month)

Here’s a few ways I’ve combatted the things I don’t like:

• Transferring to a new device: I read the directions, and set aside a couple hours.
• I practice patience when the “looping” happens
• I pair it with a russell+hazel binder to help it look a little prettier
• Outlook: I mostly use my laptop (ah the joys of a home office)
• I look at the month view on my laptop when I need to plan something, or print out my calendar and put in my russell+hazel binder

So, what do you use?

(I’m working on a paper/pda hibrid system, and I may post on that later…..)

I hope you are enjoying the last two weeks of the year. My family and I had a relaxing breakfast at a local french bakery. What a treat! I was filled with joy sitting with my family, and a delicious fresh croissant and gorgeous coffee. The room was bustling with activity and the aroma of the busy brick oven and fresh pastries was just what I needed on this Christmas Eve morning. I hope you that you too are surrounded by people you love during this festive time of year.

Have a safe and happy holiday!

Love hot chocolate? Me too! I’m going off topic a bit today. Why? Because Aby Garvey threw this most excellent question out there, and I just had to respond! I’m a professed chocoholic (and foodie) - and there is nothing better than a frothy, smooth and silky cup of steaming hot chocolate. Personally, milk and I don’t get along, so I’m a soy kinda girl. My trick is to use 3/4 plain or vanilla soy milk (I prefer Silk) and add 1/4 soy creamer. Yum!

So, here’s the list of my faves:

#3: Scharfenberger Cocoa: It’s unsweetened, but follow the directions on the back and add a teaspoon of instant espresso. Yum.

#2: Nigella’s Hot Chocolate: What’s not to love about a chef who is gorgeous and engaging, and looks like she actually consumes what she eats. ( I leave the alcohol out, just a personal preference.)

#1: Tyler Florence’s Ultimate Hot Chocolate (recipe below). Warning: this is for hard core chocolate lovers only. It takes a little effort, but I’m telling you, it is the best hot chocolate you will ever put in your mouth. No, I’m not even kidding.

The Ultimate Hot Chocolate (from “Tyler’s Ultimate” cookbook)

1 quart milk

2 tablespoons whole coffee beans

1 vanilla bean

1 cinnamon stick

3/4 cup sugar (I use about half brown, half organic granulated, or honey)

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped

Marshmallows, for serving

Combine the milk, coffee beans, vanilla bean, cinnamon stick, sugar, chocolate, and cocoa powder in a saucepan. Bring it slowly up to a simmer over medium heat, stirring it frequently so that the chocolate doesn’t scorch on the bottom of the pan. Strain and serve hot, with marshmallows.

Enjoy!

Are you a blogger? Need great tips on building your blog? Darren of Problogger.net gives great information, and this month he is giving out $54,000 in prizes to his subscribers in celebration of the blog’s birthday! A variety of sponsors (including yours truly) are giving away a plethora of things. Some of them are comical and some are pretty darned useful. All you need to do is be a subscriber to his blog, and you can get in on the action. Here’s a sample list of the prizes:

• $100 Gift Certificate to artisanscup.com - Artisan’s Cup (Teas)
• 1 new 8GB iPod Nano - Back in Skinny Jeans
• Photo wallpaper measuring 6 foot x 6 foot - Better Wallpaper
• 2 LG 20-inch FlatronWide L206WU USB-based monitors - DisplayLink
• (3) t-shirts and coaching sessions - Explore Life Blog
• $20 Amazon Gift Certificate - Lulu
• 16 x 24 poster of one of my photos - Mike Cavaroc
• Frescobaldi Laudemio Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 2006 Harvest - Olive Oil Passion
• Home Office Virtual Organization Package - Organize & Simplify
• 30-45 second theme song for use in a blog site or website - Tamra Engle
• two FREE nights at a Bed and Breakfast in Puerto Rico - the Palmetto Guesthouse

How fun is that? And that’s just a part of the list! So check it out and get yourself entered. Good luck!

As I sit watching Dr. Wayne Dyer’s presentation about his experiences with reading the Tao (his book, “Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life”), I am struck by his comment on “when your cup is full, stop pouring”.

Our culture is overrun with having more and more and more stuff.  Advertisements abound that tell us our life isn’t complete without this or that.  What if we could just say, thanks, I’m fine, and I have enough?  Clutter overtaking our homes and offices, extra weight, too many commitments - these are all signs that we haven’t stopped pouring.  More stuff doesn’t always equal more happiness.

Do you have an area in your life where you need to “stop pouring”?

I was just tagged by Beth of My Simpler Life. So, here they are, my 5 favorite sites:

1. Google Reader - After reading a particularly wonderful post by Timothy Ferriss, interviewing blogger Robert Scoble, I switched from email delivery to Google Reader. I must tell you, my email became a much less scary place!
2. russell+hazel - Ok, seriously - could I love RH any more? Personally my robin’s egg mini binder still gives me the shivers.
3. Amazon.com - Ok, so it’s a cliche, but I’m telling you, I’m on that site at least twice per day. (And yes, I have an affiliate store, and I love it - which is NOT the link above just so you know.) But, I like Amazon because when I need to look something up, I can find it there 99.9% of the time - even if it’s just for reference material
4. Storables: Yep, there’s no doubt about it, I’m a huge fan. The live-in-person store makes me swoon. Now that they have a website, I use this quite a lot helping clients.
5. Epicurious.com - I love to cook, and I’m a self-professed foodie. So, when I get stumped and need a recipe, this is where I go.

Now it’s your turn, dear readers! What are your most frequented websites for either work or just for fun?

I’m also tagging:

Melissa Michaels, The Inspired Room

Megan Spears, Disorder2Order

Sharon Sarmiento, Chocolate Chipped

Meredith Mathews, My Lemonade Stand

Last night I heard a wonderful speaker. He was a mix of different perspectives on life including counsellor and what some would call a Cultural Creative. Last night he spoke to a group of organizers about shame and its impact on us as individuals. I was completely fascinated by his talk. One thing that stood out for me was a point he made about the “stories” we tell ourselves, and how those stories can change when we look at the actual data of our lives. For example, “I’m just a disorganized person” could be a story one might tell themselves. If you buy into that story, and that is what you believe (enough to say those words out loud) then it’s true in your experience, and probably in your physical environment. The fact is, accomplishing any goal or changing your life is how you look at it, and what actions you take to make that change a reality.

I was also inspired by Ariane Benefits’ post on Joyful Jubilant Learning’s blog, “Things I Had to Unlearn Before I Could Let go of My Clutter“. Ariane’s story in her mind had to change before she could let go of her clutter. As she states in her post, the change she made had to do with unlearning certain behaviors, and changing her internal dialog and story.

I’ve been there - not organized from birth, and struggling with mountains of paper, keeping pictures of people I didn’t like, unfinished projects and things I kept because I thought I “should”. It’s a bummer to deal with when you have to look at it all, take responsibility and say “I did that”. Then, to take courage by the hand and do something about it. To me, when actions motivate you to move forward, your story will begin to change. You realize that the change you seek has to start somewhere. So, it might as well be now, with a small step in the direction you are looking toward.

So hey, what’s your story, and what are you doing to change it?

Megan Spears tagged me to answer the following questions, so here we go.  Enjoy!

What is your most difficult organization challenge?

I posted on this a while back, but it’s paper for me.  I have to really stay on top of this one, as I am a voracious reader and thoroughly enjoy magazines.

Who inspires you?

People who are true to themselves, make life their own, do good in the world and have fun inspire me.

How did you start organizing?

I started organizing casually about 10 years ago, but more seriously when I was 9 months pregnant with my son.  It was a journey of self-discovery and prompted me to make huge changes in my home and life.  When my son was a toddler, I started my business to help others do the same.

What do you love about organizing?

I love how organizing causes you to look at your stuff on a physical, emotional and spiritual level.  When you have to deal with endless piles of paper, acres of extra possessions, out of control email and stress from an overloaded schedule, you have to take a serious look at why your life got this way.  It takes a lot of courage to get organized, because it’s about WAY more than stuff.  It’s about taking your life back.

What is your guilty pleasure?

I LOVE to cook, eat and especially bake.  More specifically I love dark chocolate, red wine and really good french fries.

How about you?

Monica Ricci, Ariane Benefit and Jessica Duquette