Oops! It's Raining Again!

********

Another rainy day.

I played with some old photos from last year.

A visitor on my back fence.

I love this goose standing on his tiptoes.

A Kingfisher poking around in the muddy river bank.

Two birds together shaped like a love heart :o)

Chaos down in Noosa with the kite surfers en masse.

A croc up near Rockhampton at the croc farm.

I was able to go for a quick ride this morning, but there was nothing of interest to photograph, and then the rain came... again!

I have thought of 70 photographs for my list of '100 things to photograph in 1001 days'.

The list needs to be challenging, but not too difficult and not too easy.  I also want the list complete by the end of the month so that I can start the challenge.

Today has not been the best of days for me.  I shed a few tears for my friend Di, who passed away in November.  I don't know why I'm thinking about her so much lately.

I'm feeling a bit upset with some people in my flickr group at the moment too, so that's playing on my mind.  Sometimes people are difficult to understand.  I'm sure it will all blow over soon and things will go back to normal.

Meanwhile, on these rainy days, I am enjoying both Grey's Anatomy AND the Australian Open Tennis.

My favourite, Lleyton Hewitt won his first round match tonight, and even though Samantha Stosur is out, there are a few Aussies still in with a chance.  I will follow them with interest over the next few days.

I have a birthday luncheon tomorrow, so I need to get some beauty sleep.

Nite all.

Rained Out at Home

Our trip to the Reptile Park was postponed today because of rain.  It was pouring all morning, so we decided to postpone our field trip until we get a dry day.

Adoring Husband also had to postpone his Bundaberg golf trip which he had planned for tomorrow.

So no ride to the Seat of Knowledge.  No lap around town with the camera for photos.

Luckily, Adoring Husband suggested that we drive to the bakery to get our morning coffee.

We spent the day watching our Grey's Anatomy dvds.  We are already halfway through Season Six!  I am loving every second of the show, but will be eternally grateful that I won't ever have to attend this imaginary hospital as a patient!

Also luckily, I had some shots from Sunday morning left over to play with, so I have a couple to share on here today.

This is how our rainy weather started.  Sunday morning storm clouds building in the north.

Rain and storms are forecast for the next three days, so Adoring Husband and I might have to make another movie date.

There are three movies that I'm itching to see.

"The Descendant" with George Clooney.

"We Bought a Zoo" with Matt Damon.

"The Muppets" with the muppets!

There are no new ones in the next couple of weeks that I'm particularly interested in though.

I have morning tea with the girls tomorrow and then a birthday luncheon on Wednesday, so at least those things can't be ruined by the rain.

I do like to hear the sound of rain as I wake in the mornings and I also like to fall asleep to the sound of rain, so perhaps if I go climb into bed right now, that is exactly what will happen.

Nite all.

Australian Open Tennis

It starts tomorrow!

Anybody who reads my blog regularly (I think there are about a dozen of you out there), know that I really really LOVE my tennis.

When I was a working girl, I always took a week off work for the second half of Wimbledon every year so that I could sit up all night watching the tennis.

I especially love the Grand Slams, because that's where you get to see the best of the best competing against each other.

I enjoy seeing the young ones playing in their first tournaments and then watching them improve and work their way up the rankings.

Of course I love to see the Aussies doing well in any sport, but especially in the tennis, because we have such a wonderful and successful history.

So tomorrow is the big day and our highest ranking Aussie male, Bernard Tomic (who was actually born in Germany and moved to Australia at age 3), is playing early tomorrow against a much higher ranked player from Spain, FernandoVerdasco.

On paper, Verdasco should win, but with the home ground advantage, Tomic is set to gain 'favourite' status.

I won't get to see the match tomorrow because Adoring Husband and I are heading to Childers to check out the Reptile Park and take some photos.

They have snakes, crocodiles, lizards and frogs with shows and guided tours throughout the day.  I'm looking forward to it and hoping to get some good shots to share on here.

This morning I got a few bird shots, but it was quite difficult because there were light showers every so often, which meant packing my camera away to keep it safe from dampness.

The baby Pacific Baza growing bigger and stronger every day.

What a Galah!  Very Aussie sitting in the gum tree.

Rainbow Lorikeet checking me out.

Noisy Miner was eating ants off the gum tree trunk.  If you look closely, you can see two ants on the trunk!

I haven't been back for the Wrens yet.  I should probably do it this week while we have the overcast conditions.  It's much easier to take the shots in the even light than when the sun is streaming through in different patches.

Sleep time for me now.  I am yawning uncontrollably!

Nite all.

Photo-free Day

In lieu of photographs ... 

I was going to use the title 'Camera-free Day', but I actually carried my camera with me all day today.  I didn't use it, but I carried it with me.

I didn't take any photos with my camera at all.

There were a couple of sneaky happy snaps taken with my iphone, but they didn't turn out so good and can't really be counted.

I took my first bus ride into The Bay since the dreaded Maryborough incident.

You'll be pleased to know that I reached my desired destination without taking any unnecessary detours!

Of course, my desired destination was Vegan Chickie's 'Island of Calm' with Chicklet on my lap.

We played for a while and then we both had a short nap and then we met Adoring Husband after he finished golf and we got some fish and chips and sat in the shade on the grass near the beach, for lunch.

The weather was mild and we played catchy with the new red ball and she ate sticks and leaves and lemon (one of her favourites!).

She's still as cute as a button and when Vegan Chickie blew bubbles, she said the word 'bubble'!  That was pretty exciting!  She's growing up so fast!

There has been a soft steady rain falling all night and the temperature has dropped considerably, so it's a lovely mild night, and tomorrow should be cool and comfortable.

It'd be great if the rain stopped by tomorrow morning though, because I have some catching up to do with my camera!

I think there may be some Wrens with my name on them, waiting for me in the scrub :D

Nite all.

Goblins and Fairies

What a pleasant surprise to have Adoring Husband turn up at the Seat of Knowledge this morning on his bicycle and wearing his camera backpack on his back!

I took him to the tree where the Pacific Baza chick sits waiting for food from his mother.  Unfortunately, feeding time was over, but Adoring Husband got a couple of photographs, even though the chick was not in the best position for good shots.

Then we pedalled across town to the dirt track that leads to where the Fairy Wrens and other interesting birds frolick.

I stood in the bush for over an hour with my long lens while little Fairy Wrens fluttered back and forth teasing me by not being still for longer than a few seconds at a time.

Too fast and too far away!

Still too fast and too far away.

There was a White Throated Tree Creeper.  A bird that I've never seen before and I am intrigued by his strange looking feet that help him climb vertical tree trunks.

White Throated Tree Creeper.

And then there were these guys.  They are about as big as my thumb.

Red-backed Fairy Wren

These are the ones that I want to capture more than any other bird, at this moment in time.  That may change in the future, but right now, I so want the perfect shot of the Red-backed Fairy Wren.

This will require setting myself up in the bush, on my little folding stool, coated in insect spray,  being very very still and waiting for the birds to come to me.  I am determined!

So the little birds in the bush are almost as elusive as goblins and fairies (Yes!  Of course I believe in goblins and fairies!) but while I will leave goblins and fairies alone to be magical, I will not leave the little birds alone!

I might need a bit of luck ... so ... wish me luck!

Tomorrow, I have decided to NOT set up my stall at the local market, and instead will spend the morning with Vegan Chickie and Chicklet.  I am excited!

Nite all.

Cameras and Accessories

This is how I started my day ...

A glorious Summer morning :D

It started out very warm, developed into bloody hot and then changed mid afternoon to cooler and mild.

Thank goodness!!

I found an interesting article that I wanted to share.  It's only short.

http://www.petapixel.com/2012/01/10/this-photograph-is-not-free/

I've been asked by people if I sell my photographs.  As soon as the question is asked, I withdraw.

I withdraw into my head, pulling the big black curtain across it, and I feel guilt about the thought of charging money for my photographs.  Why?

I've often discussed digital photography and how great it is that the results are instant and we don't have to wait for film to be developed or discover, after paying the high costs of developing, that the photographs are duds.

I've often ended the discussions with the fact that the price of cameras have increased dramatically with the digital age, which makes up for the cost of developing, but I didn't take into consideration all the other accessories like filters, flashes, tripods, editing software, the computer etc etc etc.

So this article not only appealed to me, but helped open that big black curtain in my head and now I can seriously consider the idea of selling my photographs without feeling the guilt.

I created a new album on facebook and posted a dozen or so photos over the last couple of days.  My ego has been suitably massaged by some friends and family, so I'm feeling good.

I'm feeling especially pleased that my little brother has acknowledged my stuff.  It's nice.

Almost midnight again!

Nite all.

Summer is well and truly upon us!

Holy crapoli it's hot!  The temperature in our lounge room at 7.30pm was 30C.  Not long after that I suggested to Adoring Husband that we turn on the air conditioner.

Adoring Husband bought a new column fan today, to replace the pedestal fan that we've been using.

Personally, I prefer a fan to the air conditioning and I was pleasantly surprised by how effective the new fan is.

It looks like a storage unit for CDs, so I was not expecting such a strong airflow and it also feels cooler than the other fan.

I do like the room temperature in our bedroom to be comfortable when I go to bed, or I struggle to go to sleep, so turning on the air conditioner for a couple of hours before bed time works well for me.

I got a couple of nice shots of one of the juvenile Pacific Bazas this morning...

Staring me down!

Airing out the wings.

Feeding on a stick insect.

I missed good shots of the adults feeding them, because people kept stopping to discuss the birds with me, which took my attention away from the job at hand.  I'll try again tomorrow.

It's been an uneventful day ... due to the heat.  Tomorrow will probably be similar.  Luckily the forecast is for cooler weather by the weekend.

I really don't like the heat.  Don't get me wrong.  I adore the sunshine, but not the heat that accompanies it in Summer.  Sunshine gives me positive energy, but too much heat drains it away.

Anyway, now that the house has cooled, I'm off to bed.

Nite all

First off the Mark

I was first off the mark and lodged my entry into the 'Black and White' challenge last night before I went to bed.

A foggy morning on the river

No other entries yet, but I'm sure that there will be some spectacular ones.

I had another movie day today with Kaz and Lady Lynn.  We saw 'Tower Heist'.  It was funny and required no brainwork at all.  It was nice to have some girl time.  It's been a while.

This morning I left bright and early to go looking for my Red-backed Fairy Wren.  I was successful in my mission, but I didn't capture a good shot because while I was sitting in wait, I was attacked by march flies!

I had covered myself in 'Off' to ward off midges and other insects, but apparently, march flies are not deterred by these chemicals!  So I spent the time 'shoo-ing' or 'slapping' march flies, which kept the little Wrens at a distance.  This was the best I could do ...

... it's very noisy, taken from a long distance, and then cropped very tightly but my goal is to get the perfect Wren shot eventually!

A disappointing piece of information that I received today was about the Pacific Baza that I have been observing in and around the caravan park.

I can't believe that I didn't know this, but there are two of them nesting in the caravan park in a tall Melaleuca Tree!  They have two babies in the nest.  Two babies who are already flying out of the nest!  How did I not know this???

Here is one of the babies ...

I will be observing more closely now and I hope to get some good shots over the coming weeks.  This baby is about 10 days out of the nest and is still being fed by the parents.

One of the men who live in a house near the caravan park, showed me some photos that he took of one of the babies, which landed on his front verandah while learning to fly!  How amazing is that?  I am so envious.

Apparently the adults bring frogs, lizards and grasshoppers to the chicks (or are they juveniles now?) and feed them, which has provided good entertainment to the park visitors.

I am disappointed that it took so long for this information to filter through to me because I would have loved photos of the chicks when they first hatched.  It was the busiest time of the year in the caravan park, so I imagine it would have caused quite a bit of excitement at the time.

Bugger!

Ah well.  Everything happens for a reason!

It was hot today.  Very hot.  It will be just as hot, or hotter tomorrow.  Ugh!  So it will be an early start for me, so that I can get some photos before it gets too hot.

So I was first off the mark with my challenge photo and I'll be first off the mark tomorrow morning.  I think I'll be first into bed tonight too!

Nite all.

The Next Challenge is ....

Adoring Husband and I went to the movies today and thankfully,  we remembered our movie passes this time :D

We saw 'Sherlock Holmes:  A Game of Shadows'.  I enjoyed the movie, only because Robert Downey Jnr was in it.  Some of the effects were pretty impressive, but I wouldn't recommend it unless you are a fan.  It was long - 2 hours and 25 mins - and dark.

The best part of today was was having a visit with Chicklet and having coffee with Vegan Chickie before the movie.

I received a Christmas parcel from BGWLBH today.  It was full of blingy jewellery and we all know how I lurve blingy jewellery!!  Lots of fabulous dress rings and a beautiful turquoise cross pendant, bigger than an egg, with silver wrapped around it.  A photo shows it better than I can describe it...

She also sent me the Masterchef recipe book, which I can't wait to try, although, some of the recipes are a bit complicated and time consuming and I think Adoring Husband is better with those types of recipes, so I might mark a couple of them and have him take up the Masterchef position in the kitchen :D

BGWLBH also had a BRILLIANT idea for her birthday this year, which I am very excited about!  Just let me say that it involves photography **insert smiley face here** and my brain is working overtime making plans.

 The new photography group challenge has been set for January.  The theme is 'Black & White'.  I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet for that one.

A couple of random people shots from the beach yesterday afternoon ...

I plan on heading out bright and early tomorrow morning to try to find that little Red-backed Fairy Wren again, so I'd best get to bed .. it's after midnight already!

Nite all.

Rituals

I have many rituals in my life.

Every morning, I have a ritual.

I get out of bed, make myself presentable to the world, let the dogs out to pee, kiss Adoring Husband goodbye and then I pedal off to get my coffee and meet my boys at the Seat of Knowledge.

Every night, I follow a ritual.

The last thing I do is update this blog.  Then I close the windows and doors, pull the blinds closed, let the dogs out for one last pee, fill the water bottles and put them in the fridge, turn off the TV, put the dogs to bed and then turn out the lights before changing into my pyjamas and climbing into bed.

Psychotic dogs know this ritual very well, and when I turn off the TV, they come to the door ready to be ushered into their beds.

When I turn off the TV, after about 5 seconds, it makes this very soft clicking sound.

Tonight, I changed the order of my ritual and I turned off the TV before I started doing everything else.

Immediately after that very soft clicking sound that the 'off' TV makes, I heard the shuffling sound of claws upon tiled floor and looked up to see all three dogs standing at the doorway, wagging their tails, waiting for me to usher them into bed.

So now, they are waiting very impatiently for me to finish my blog post and THEN I will confuse them further by filling the water bottles and THEN taking them outside to pee before bed.

I do have a touch of evil in me :D

When I lived in Griffith, my last partner had two Ridgeback X Bull Mastiff hunting dogs, which I inappropriately named Fatty and Splodge.

Butch (my partner) would always park his ute nose first in the driveway, and for ten years, when he opened the gate to the back yard, Fatty and Splodge would hurtle through the gates, run around to the back of the car, where he had opened the tail gate and they would jump enthusiastically into the back of the ute ready to go hunting.

One morning, Butch, uncharacteristically, backed his ute into the driveway so that it was tail end first.

When he opened the gates to the back yard, Fatty and Splodge came hurtling through them, ran around the car and dived enthusiastically onto the bonnet of the ute!

In their state of panic and confusion, their feet couldn't get a grip on the paintwork of the bonnet and they slid onto the windscreen, their legs flailing about madly until they slid or fell off the ute onto the ground.

It was the funniest thing I'd seen in a long time and I laughed until I had tears!

They jumped up onto their feet and shook their heads looking at the front of the ute with dumbfounded expressions on their faces, when Butch called to them from the back of the ute and they bounded back to where they SHOULD have jumped in the first place.

This is a very good lesson on dog training ... it's how dogs learn ... by doing something over and over and over again until it becomes second nature to them.

In this case, it wasn't necessarily a good training strategy, but the method can be put to use for other training situations.

That was such a funny day!

Anyway, I'm glad that I thought of that story, because I couldn't think of anything to write tonight and now I am done!!

Time for the nightly ritual.

Nite all.

    

January Chicklet Update

It's been a while since I put some up-to-date photos of Chicklet on here.

She's growing up so fast and getting cuter by the day!  I love her so much!

I'm still working on my 101 list - the last 30 are tough going.

These are the things on tomorrow's 'to-do' list ...

1. Pull down the Christmas tree and pack it away (Yes!  It's 7th January and our tree is still up!).
2. Take down the Christmas decorations and pack them away. 
3. Drink coffee.
4. Take photos.
5. Eat food.

It'll be a tough Sunday hey :D

I hope you enjoyed the Chicklet update.

Nite all.

Summer is here.

I headed off earlier than usual this morning, because the weather forecast was for a hot day, and I wanted to get home before the heat  

The lagoon was calling my name and I was hoping to catch the early morning happenings of the local birdlife.

I got a nice shot of a blue faced dove, just before the midges began eating me alive, so I high-tailed it out of there as fast as my legs could pedal!

Blue faced dove (Adoring Husband told me the real name, but I forgot it)

Even the Seat of Knowledge didn't hold my attention for long, but it seems that the hot weather has scared off all the interesting birdlife around town.

Pretty butterflies fluttering and dancing.

This one looked like a mating ritual!

I did find three beautiful butterflies fluttering about.  It was unusual to see three together and their colours were also unusual.

Red dragonfly at the nature reserve.

Finally, as I triked my way around the nature reserve, I came across some dragonflies.   I haven't seen these red ones around here before.

Adoring Husband and I have been working our way through series one - seven of 'Grey's Anatomy' on dvd.  After that, we have the complete boxed set of 'ER' to watch!  Talk about couch potatoes!

I'm still working on my 101 list too.

Now that Summer is well and truly here, I am going to have to change my routine I think.  It's too hot for pedalling after 9am.  Perhaps late afternoon outings will work for a while.

Nite all.

101 Things I Want to Photograph in 1001 Days

Now that my thirty day challenge is complete, Vegan Chickie gave me a suggestion to consider.

There is a challenge called the 'Day Zero Project' where you set yourself 101 tasks to complete in 1001 days.  A bucket list, if you will.  There is a website dedicated to it.

http://dayzeroproject.com/about/

So Vegan Chickie suggested that I set myself a photography challenge of 101 things that I want to photograph in 1001 days.

I think it's a fabulous idea!  The hardest part will be thinking of 101 things to photograph!  I have sixty on a list already, but I really struggled with the last 20 and I might need some help with the final 40 ... so if anybody out there has any ideas ... feel free to toss them my way!

The Canadians left this morning.

Ken (with the beard) and Larry (in blue)

They were headed to Bundaberg to take a tour of the Bundaberg Rum Distillery and then possibly head to Townsville.

Same post, different day ... could be the same bird.

The Bee-eaters were back.

It's going to be a hot day tomorrow, so I hope to leave the house early to get some photos, before I go to the Seat of Knowledge and then pedal home before the heat sets in for the day.

It'll be a good day to do the washing.

Nite all.

Day Thirty - Self Portrait

Day Thirty - Self Portrait

Well, today was a little out of the ordinary.  The story goes a bit like this...

In our photography group, one of the ladies has a brother visiting her from Canada.  He has been in Australia since September and will be here until March.

Two weeks ago, another member of their family, a cousin, arrived for a one month holiday here too.

The two Canadians are now on a slow trip north from Toowoomba, (where our photography friend lives) and they reached our little patch of paradise this afternoon.

We invited them to stay here for the night (possibly more than one night) on their way north.

So we've had a very pleasant afternoon, the boys drinking some cold beers and chatting about stuff.

Larry, the cousin, has worked for the Railway in Canada for almost as long as Adoring Husband worked for the Railway in NSW, so they've had lots in common to chat about.

Ken, the brother, is a 'get me away from the ratrace' kind of guy and middle-aged hippie, so we've had some beliefs in common to chat about too.

They shouted us Chinese take-away for dinner tonight, which was a lovely gesture and they are now tucked in bed getting a good nights sleep.

They have a small-ish tinny boat with them and they plan on going up river tomorrow to do some fishing and crabbing.

Surprisingly, I have enjoyed the afternoon and evening chatting with them.  I say 'surprisingly', because I don't usually like my routine being interrupted.  Especially by strangers.

They have been a real pleasure and I think Adoring Husband has enjoyed entertaining them as well.

We even got the laptop out and looked up Google Earth to see where, in Canada, they live and work, which was amazing!

I have an early date tomorrow with the girls for coffee and then I have indoor bowls, so I'd best get some beauty sleep.

Nite all.    

Day Twenty-nine - Black and White

Day Twenty-nine  -  Black and White

Today, G'Gma sent me a link to this short video, which I played over and over because I loved it so much.

It brought tears to my eyes, firstly, because I have always loved this song and secondly, because I have such a soft spot for all things in nature.

http://www.flixxy.com/wonderful-world-david-attenborough.htm

Also, who doesn't love and respect the great David Attenborough??

Thank you G'Gma for sharing that with me, so that I can share it with everyone else who cares.

I had no luck with the camera today.  Nature seemed to have taken a holiday.

I say that because I did not see one Rainbow Bee-eater bird anywhere today!  Very unusual because there are three spots around town where I have been guaranteed a sighting for the last three months.

The Tawny Frogmouths had disappeared again.   No Honey Eaters fluttering about.  There was a Whistling Kite, but he was so high in the tree that even my 400mm lens couldn't get a clear shot.

I think I will take the 500mm lens tomorrow and see what I can come up with.

It's tennis season in Australia right now.  The Hopman Cup is being played in Perth, Western Australia.  The Brisbane International is in (obviously) Brisbane.  The APIA International starts in Sydney on 8th Janurary.  There is one each in Adelaide and Hobart too I think and then the Australian Open begins in two weeks, on 16th January in Melbourne.

It's my favourite time of the year.  Cricket and Tennis and then when both of those sports finish up, the NRL season begins!!  Yay!!

Enough for now.

Nite all.  

Day Twenty-eight - Flowers

Day Twenty-eight  -  Flowers

A grevillea flower from the Botanical Gardens

It had been more than a week since we saw Vegan Chickie, the Bare-chested Chef and Chicklet, so today, we drove into The Bay to have coffee and catch up.

I think Chicklet thought she was supposed to dance on the table!

Adoring Husband amused Chicklet while I drank my coffee.

We had about an hour enjoying their company.  They are going to Melbourne for a few days, so I had to get my Chicklet 'fix' before they left.

After we parted company with them, Adoring Husband asked where I wanted to go and I told him that I wanted to take photos somewhere.

He drove us to River Heads where we had lunch at a little place with lovely tree-lined water views.

A man walking his dog along the river bank.

A Butcher Bird and it's baby joined us for lunch.

A little piece of prawn cutlet for lunch.

We followed lunch with a drive through the new housing estates with river views.  We looked at the houses and gardens and the view that each enjoyed.

They were quite nice, but none of them made us want to move there!

We drove back to The Bay and did a little shopping before driving home, plonking ourselves on the couch and spending the afternoon watching 'The Big Bang Theory'.   It makes me laugh!!

Tomorrow is morning tea with the girls.  I always look forward to that :D

Only two more days of my photography challenge.  I've enjoyed it so much, I might need to find a new challenge for 2012!

Nite all.

The Theory of Happiness

Day Twenty-seven  -  From a Distance

I mentioned yesterday, that I have a theory about happiness.

Happiness comes in ebbs and flows.  As long as the ebbing and flowing remains even, everything goes smoothly.

If you feel overwhelming happiness for too long, the wave of happiness grows bigger and bigger, until eventually, it has to crash, as all waves do.

When it crashes, you get dumped, big time.

It means that something devastating will happen to cause you untold sadness ... to make up for the overwhelming happiness that you had for too long.

I have many personal examples which I can't share on here and which require detailed explanations, but the two examples that I can share are:

2005 - After a year of riding the wondrous wave of happiness while forming my relationship with Adoring Husband and then moving to Sydney to live with him and feeling like I was the luckiest person on the planet,  my mother died suddenly and unexpectedly.

Absolutely knocked the wind out of me and stole a great big chunk of that happiness right away from me.

2011 - Having ridden the wondrous wave of happiness after moving to my perfect patch of paradise three years ago with Adoring Husband,  meeting a host of wonderful people and forming a fun social circle, and then getting married and experiencing the best wedding ever.  On top of that, the birth of my perfect little Chicklet.

The one person who, above all others,  genuinely shared my happiness, was always excited to hear about my new life, had a twinkle in her eye and a grin from ear to ear knowing how happy I was.  The one person who never questioned my decisions and was never ever critical of my new life ... died suddenly and unexpectedly.

Absolutely knocked the wind out of me and stole a great big chunk of happiness right away from me.

After many experiences like this in my life.  There is now a 'thought' that I know, when it crosses my mind, I need to be very, very wary.

The thought is this "My life is perfect and I can't imagine being happier than I am right now."

With that very thought, my heart skips a beat and I begin to feel anxious.

The same goes for the deep sadnesses in my life.

When I am feeling at my lowest and I am wondering how I am ever going to dig myself out of this pit of despair, a 'thought' hits me.

The thought is this "This has been tough going, but I am now due for some happiness, so the only way from here is up."

With that very thought, my heart skips a beat and I begin looking forward to and planning a positive future.

We humans are a strange bunch aren't we?  We all deal with life's highs and lows in different ways.

Some focus on the bad and sad, spending their lives feeling sorry for themselves and looking for sympathy from their peers.

Some pick themselves up, brush themselves down and just get on with it.

Some want to talk about their problems with anyone who'll listen.

Some withdraw and need to work it all out internally.

There is no right or wrong way.

I think we have to let people deal with their 'situations' however they need to do so, and give them the space to do it.  No pressure.  No demands.  No guilt.

As hard as I try, I will never understand life.

I analyse and I ponder and I contemplate and I reflect.  I never come close to understanding what life is all about.  Why are we here?  What is our purpose?

Yes, I know, the meaning of life is 42.

That makes more sense than anything I can come up with.

The reason I'm telling you about my theory of happiness is because I shared it with my brother after he lost his 'soul mate' and just yesterday he reminded me of it by saying he was going to monitor his happiness so that he didn't get too much of it (I can't remember his exact words).

In case anyone is interested, my entry in the Windows challenge came third (because The Master thought the window sill was too high and made Win look uncomfortable and 'set up').  Ah well, I strive to do better next time.  Thanks Win :D for being an easy and co-operative model.  I may call on you again!

Nite all.  

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Day Twenty-six  -  Close Up

I have a theory about happiness.

Many people have scoffed at my theory, but I am going to share it with you anyway... tomorrow :o)

Nite all.