Je Pense... by Windy City Diva

Musings... Perfectionists... And Living...

2019-02-16T13:05:00.001-06:00

Tue 1/15/19 11:27 AM

Here is what I was thinking the other night… and am truly wondering if there is something to this. People who are striving for perfection, consciously or sub-consciously are bothered by those in their world who are floating through. Yet, I think for some cosmic reason we are not intended to understand. We are drawn to people who also have the talent to fly, but are held back by some other force in their world that is stronger than their desire for perfection, but it is latent within them. Those of us, whom it is closer to the surface for, when we think we are around like minds, but it shows through that they are not, we want to retreat into our safe place. That safe place must have no intrusion, or it is not really safe. Thus, we should live alone. Our “stuff” is not touched. When we want to close the world out, we can. We can reflect as needed, without the incessant input when we do not need nor want it. When I want your opinion, I will ask and then give it to you!!! Okay, not that severely, but alone.

The true rejuvenation comes from being able to reboot the hard drive, put all the files back in the right place, and then face the world with a fresh mind and heart, and try to change the world on the next day, since it didn’t work the day before. (Kind of like Pinky & the Brain.)

~Do forgive the run-on sentences… it is called Musings.~

Renee

NaNoWriMo 2015

2015-11-03T19:44:00.002-06:00

I am participating in the November challenge of writing a 50,000 word novel with the writing group, NaNoWriMo! Cheer me on, send me plot thoughts (even though they may not appear in the story), and check my blog to follow my progress!

Thanks Blog Team!

WCD

New Year, New You, New Me

2014-01-01T18:45:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year!

The 30 Day Blog Challenge begins today. It is not only the beginning of the year, but the beginning of the challenge. I did not participate in NaNoWriMo this year and am saddened by not doing so. I am renewing my dedication to writing, thinking and hopefully sharing thoughts with my peers.

January is my birthday month so it is always a month of reflection and rebirth. Getting my first book published, planning for some travel and writing significantly more are at the top of the list.

As you may know, I have 3 different blogs... well you probably don't, but I would love it if you did. So, how about some recommendations on topics?

The first thirty days are all about thought process, writing and allowing the creative juices to flow.

My first thought is... plan your planning. Get your planning tools together, your technology synced and let's visualize.

Share your great new discoveries with us, and we will share them out.

Windy City Diva

Starting Anew...

2012-10-16T20:34:00.002-05:00

Je pense... major life changes occur in whatever minute or day you decide to change. I believe it must first begin within your thinking process.

Make Way for Emergency Vehicles Please

2012-07-22T14:53:00.000-05:00

The recent accident covered on the news involving a police officer, a BMW and several other cars in Atlanta makes me think… Today, “je pense” about safety on the roads.

It reminds me of many incidences I have seen that could have lead to an accident. I will be praying for those who were injured, as we all should. My mother and I recently witnessed a fire engine in full emergency mode have to maneuver through traffic that did not move out of his way. The fire engine even had to come to a complete stop at an intersection and slow to under 30 mph on the street. The truck had full lights, siren and horn activity going, but drivers still did not pull to the right. My mother commented, "you should blog about this."

So I am... See the Rants page for the full article... http://tinyurl.com/Rants-EmergVehi

~Windy City Diva

Rebirth...Of You

2012-04-06T09:39:00.002-05:00

There are spiritual, religious and esoteric definitions and uses of the word rebirth. Easter for Christians is a time of rebirth acknowledging the sacrifice the bible teaches Jesus Christ made for the sins of those who believe in God.

Rebirth does not only refer to sins and those things spiritual. How about a rebirth of belief in ones abilities, life path and indeed in oneself? How about the rejuvenation or rebirth of a dream for your life? I read a horoscope the other day that said you can start over at anytime in your life. You can begin again, anew at any point in your day, your week, year or life. I wrote earlier in the year about the significance of New Year’s Eve because my son inquired. It occurred to me through subsequent conversations that the reason he didn’t see the point was because I have always taught him that every minute of every day is a new opportunity to change that which you do not want, like or need in your life. He could start in that moment regardless of the moment. Rebirth is that. We decide daily, minute by minute what we do and do not want in our lives by our action and our inaction. You may think and even SAY you have decided to make a change, but until you ACT on that change, in fact you have decided to do exactly what you are doing. Action is the deciding factor and it speaks volumes.

I frequently use New Year’s and the 12 days until my birthday as my measuring time to see how I have done in the last 12 – 24 months. If the desired goals have been not met, not seen or even forgotten, I try to remind myself of them through reviewing journals, reasons for the goals and evaluate were they real then, are they applicable now, and are they still relevant? Adjustments need to be made, goals adjusted, steps lined up and then every day after, I need to be reborn into the new mindset of achieving those goals through the steps. Therein lies the challenge. Action, follow through and consistency need to follow the rebirth.

You can go to your place of worship, meditate and engage in whatever form of support and lessons you have, but if you do not follow through on the decisions with actions, your rebirth stagnates.

Not just because it is Easter for Christians but because it is time, a rebirth in me is coming. I hope you join me.
WCD

Dreams Followed or Deferred

2012-03-09T19:18:00.001-06:00

I keep reading about people following their childhood dreams after being fired, laid off or otherwise redirected by life and events outside of them. I once read “Who Moved My Cheese” by Spencer Johnson at the urging of a good friend. I found it exactly what she said it would be: a quick, easy read with poignant life lessons.

     Je pense… that people need to stop waiting for their cheese to be moved by someone else and start looking in the mirror, into their hearts and souls and find their cheese before they are forced. That is not to say that the search for and even the finding of the cheese is less important because you were sent in that direction out of necessity, but wouldn’t it be better to accomplish these tasks on your own terms?

     Destiny and universal laws are the unseen hands guiding our worlds into the direction it goes. We have free will and can choose to listen to the still, small voices that speak to us through our waking and sleeping dreams. Pick it up and run with it. Life has its’ complications and they will always be there, so why not now? I once heard, “if not now then when?” I ask myself that periodically. You don’t have to blow up your life, or jump off a bridge without a bungee cord, but you do have to at least acknowledge that you want something different in your life, for your life. There may be scary changes and moments of trepidation, but if you listened to the voice and it is for you, then it will be there, just reach.

Always Take a Leap of Faith
Windy City Diva

Why is New Year's Eve so Important to People?

2012-01-01T23:37:00.001-06:00

Welcome to 2012!
I was asked a question, "why are people so excited about New Year's Eve"? I found myself unable to answer with anything more intelligently than, "it is different for each person". The fact that I didn't have any more of an answer than that when I am normally so verbose caused me to think.

I realized I was correct in my short answer, but I wanted to give him more to consider. I told him for the government, citizens in the US and most businesses it means a fiscal year change and tax time is coming. For the general population, many people celebrate NYE because it is a way to close one year of events and begin with a new slate. I was once one of those people until I realized I can make the decision to change an aspect or my entire life at anytime, not just January 1st of the following year. We have the power to make those changes at anytime.

I also thought of what it meant to me when I was too young to think about changing at a particular time of the year, and had nothing to do with filing my taxes. The NYE parties are the best of the year. It is generally a party for everybody to enjoy not featuring any one person.

I do still check in on my goals around the first of the year, but primarily because my birthday is in January and that is my personal fiscal year. I have goals set by my age and this gives me a few days to check in and make adjustments and check more off the list.

Happy New Year and May 2012 take us to the heights only we can take ourselves to.

Windy City Diva

Revelations...

2011-11-19T20:28:00.001-06:00

The kind that move you from one stage in your understanding to the next.

These types of revelations will be the topic of the next series of blog articles. I look forward to the chatter that will hopefully erupt from this topic.

I am studying karma and the chakras. In addition, I am on a search within to find my nature and live a more authentic life. The more I read, meditate and listen, the deeper my understanding and beliefs become. My faith growing up provided me with a solid foundation of spirituality. The relationship between our thoughts and focus, the knowing of who we are, where we are and that our good is right in front of us. There are complications, and life that get in the way of our belief that not only does everything happen for a reason, but that we are exactly where we are supposed to be, when we are there. These hundreds of years of beliefs have become platitudes that people throw around when they are trying to make someone feel well. The reality is that we do not give them the weight they deserve. I am working to remind myself of what they really mean.

The goal of this blog topic line is primarily to share my search, but also to assist anyone if they may be on a path of finding their true nature, calling or way of living while still trying to live daily.

How do you define yourself? I am a writer.

Windy City Diva

Health: Live Daily - Breast Cancer

2011-10-15T16:07:00.000-05:00

Another lost to Breast Cancer… There are some things we get to choose in life and so many others that we don’t. It is our responsibility to ourselves, our spirit and our development to make wise decisions with every second. Time is not to be wasted. Breast Cancer took another beautiful light from our world yesterday. She was a Mom and a friend. Seconds count. Those seconds lead to minutes, to hours, to days, to months and yes to years. Live your life with authenticity and be true to yourself, your values and what is right every second of every day.

Who are you? Who do you want to be?
Where are you in life? Where do you want to be?

If the answers to those two lines of questions do not sync, then begin today to change that.
It has been said so many times but bears repeating, “tomorrow is not promised, so live today to the fullest”.

Note: This article is also posted on my new blog site http://www.windycitydivahealth.blogspot.com/ where all health related articles will be moved to.

Biofeedback - A New Experience

2011-09-28T16:50:00.000-05:00

I attended a BioFeedback session today. When I shared a brief version of the result to a great friend who is knowledgeable in physiology she responded as if was a "good" thing that I was in parasympathetic mode. That was not the way it was described to me by the doctor who had performed the BioFeedback analysis. While I was already planning to research it, this confused me.

This started because last year I experienced an infection of some sort in my colon/stomach area. It remains undiagnosed beyond a belief that I picked up a parasite during my time in Mexico and it resides in my ileo-cecal valve. I call it my stomach critter. I have been managing it with natural supplements. I thought I was better so I laid off the supplements. It seemed to be alright for weeks, but it is currently irritated again. I decided to try this biofeedback analysis since I saw a location where the analysis was free.

It was an interesting experience. She put a band on my head to measure brain waves and a fiber optic electrode which I was to hold in my thumb & forefinger tips. The point was to measure blood flow starting at the base of the brain moving through the various sections of the brain. Next would be organs.

My blood flow was so low throughout my brain that it did not measure, or meet the threshold. She could see it, but it was not strong enough to ring the bell, shall we say. (Needless to say, it is good she was not measuring my blood pressure because it must have skyrocketed.) The doctor said this indicated to her that my body was in repair mode as if I were sleeping, or parasympathetic mode.
The same was the case when it measured blood flow near my major organs. She could see the blood flow but it did not reach the threshold. She said it was suppressed by inflammation that was creating friction which will not allow blood to flow normally. This lowers oxygen to the body,
We covered my lack of sleeping recently, waking still feeling tired, low energy, more than 10 pound weight loss since July 26th or so and the various pains that pop up out of nowhere.
With that in mind, she believes the ileo cecal valve in my colon has a fungus rather than a parasite, virus or bacteria. She believes when I stop with the supplements which keep a flora balance in my colon and keeps down inflammation naturally, that the fungus grows and creates the inflammation.
This lead her to my ask about acidic levels and cancer in my family, which I have quite a bit of.

For now, she gave me (free) some acid strip tests to see what the levels are, some Kosher Baking Soda to try to calm the acid in my gut (which I do not feel), and said my supplements seem to help me, but the goal is to find the fungus and kill it.

The parasympathetic nervous system seems to be the healing one, rather than flight or fight (sympathetic), so I am not finding the correlation to what she described in my research. It makes sense in theory, but I am still looking for the scientific links, which I may have just come across, but I need to qualify it. This parasympathetic part of the nervous system and biofeedback seem to be psychological in nature that manifests physically but I could not manifest fungus in my gut from my brain.

Still looking...
WCD

Epiphany About Self-Awareness

2011-09-20T23:47:00.000-05:00

Repost from June 2010, seemed worth repeating.

I had an epiphany today and I thought I would share it. I, like everyone have made decisions that in retrospect were probably not the best even though they may have seemed so at the time. In the last 2 or 3 years I have reflected on many of my decisions and regretted them. I kept telling myself that I had to reflect and dissect in order to not repeat them. But I really think I have been attracting the same types of activity and decision patterns. Today I realized that regretting these decisions and then focusing on them to dissect them only holds me back. I know this is not new information but it is certainly eye-opening for me because I really thought I was doing the right thing by trying to learn from my choices that I don't in retrospect care for. Learn yes, wallow in, no. That is the epiphany. I can and should learn from them but without staying so focused that I'm living in it.

WCD

Life is Like A Card Game

2011-04-20T16:49:00.004-05:00

Life is like a card game you play on your phone or mobile device. You can’t control the hand you are dealt, you can only play it. Unlike the computer versions of the card games, there is no undo option, so when you choose your next strategic move, you are stuck with it-right or wrong. When you do not complete the game but instead have to start over, again you do not control the hand you are dealt you simply have to play it.

Also like in life, sometimes you are faced with the same choice of moves to make, but the choice is more difficult because you know, or believe you know that the last one was not a success. The key to decision-making is knowing that even though it is the same move, it may not yield the same results because it is a completely different hand. Sometimes a different move or play is necessary, but sometimes the same one, because it is not that the move was wrong, just that the hand you were dealt was not in your favor.

So learn from previous choices, identifying whether or not the choices you made were the best for that situation, if it wasn’t, then why not; and if it was, then why did it not yield the anticipated results?

The other consideration in reviewing your decision-making is whether or not it is a “move” you keep in your arsenal for a different time, or do you just pitch it?

These were just my two cents from a personal revelation.

Self-Confidence

2010-11-13T00:33:00.000-06:00

Confidence in one's self is learned. As we grow, we expand our skills through crawling, walking, falling, jumping, riding, falling, scraped knees, black & blue legs from learning to play on the monkey bars. We find our comfort zone, our place in the world every step of the way. Sometimes we find that we feel we don't belong, but even that is a place in the world.

Some of us find that we naturally excel at many things we try, and even those that do not come naturally we work hard at to excel. It becomes our identification, "we excel at all costs". I find the higher you climb at a young age, the further you have to fall when life takes a swing and connects. Life is always taking swings, but if you're lucky it does not connect very often, however when it does, the affects can be devastating. As adults, we believe we can handle either everything that comes our way, or at the very least most things. We have learned to cope with many things throughout our lives, switching from bottles to sippy cups, the loss of a favorite blanket or toy, stopping sucking our thumb or pacifier, maybe even the loss of a beloved pet or other family member. But those things happen outside of us. What happens when it is our own skill that betrays us? What happens when a typicall excellent student fails a test? What happens when an over-achiever stops achieving? That pedastal you are standing on is high and the fall a harsh one. It can be devastating.

I pose these questions to start a dialogue. I also posit them to suggest that those over-achievers prepare themselves for the fall before it happens. As an extension to that, realize that the things that happen outside of you are just that and out of your control. I heard once you can only control yourself and your reaction to people and events, not the people and events themselves. But what happens when it is you that you are unable to control? What happens when you betray you?

Suggestions? Advice? Input? Of course I have some of my own, you evaluate what happened, you decide how to get better and then you do better. Right?
I look forward to the comments.
Windy City Diva

Green Life

2010-09-08T20:18:00.000-05:00

Through the woods, the trees all looked like perfect Christmas trees, which would be great if that is what we're looking for. There in the clearing was a unique specimen. We smiled in agreement knowing it was the one to climb. Climbing that tree to photograph the view was well worth it. The contrived tree rends a healthy workload.

To my regular readers, no I have not lost what is left of my mind, this is an assignment.
Windy City Diva

Lessons in the Breeze, Novel Excerpt

2010-09-04T15:41:00.001-05:00

"This cool, refreshing breeze sitting on the deck with the glass of red wine is just what the doctor ordered. The beautiful blonde dog is not mine, but she has seen fit to become my companion on this deck. Oddly, I welcome the silent partner. She doesn’t ask much of me, which is perfect since I haven’t much to give.

My dreams lately have been forcing me to confront people and situations of the past with an ominous foreboding of how a next meeting may go. After several consecutive nights of this, I have decided the message my sub-conscious is not so subtly trying to convey is for me to stop looking back. Stop regretting. I know it consciously, but apparently I have more to process.

My second glass of Shiraz by 2:30 in the afternoon may seem a bit excessive, but with the world crashing in on my chest like a baby elephant settling in for a nap, it is quite necessary."

~~ excerpt from "Leap of Faith" my novel in the works

Allergies in Children, per a Parent

2010-08-31T19:57:00.000-05:00

I want to share with my readers an experience about allergies in children and maybe it not only applies to your children, but maybe to you. My son has a history of spring allergies since he was 2 or so and Zyrtec-D was used to manage them for 5 or so years and then they seemed to just go away. Well, they are back but they are no longer spring allergies. Saturday he was suddenly sniffly and whiny as only a teenage boy accustomed to feeling healthy can. I gave him an Allegra which has been our daytime "allergy cure all" as needed. He complained bitterly hours later that nothing worked and was sneezing out a fur ball again. The Allegra is a 12 hour dose so I made him wait the appropriate time and promptly forgot.

A side note about the offending allergen. He had spent the night at a friend's house who has a cat, so I suspected his mild allergy had been violently shoved into a true allergy. But that being the allergen could mean the reaction would subside now that he was away from the cat, ergo the forgetting.

Sunday morning was harsh. He hadn't slept and was CRANKY. I gave him liquid Benadryl thinking this would allow him to clear up and function. The liquid one is supposed to be the non-drowsy formula. Note: IT'S NOT! He did not wake up until almost 2:30 in the afternoon. I administered another Allegra thinking this could easily be just left over from the interaction with the cat. Monday, I treated it with Allegra as needed. Then today, Tuesday he was a gut-wrenching, fur ball hacking, stopped up, runny nose, sneezy mess. In passing, my cousin told me it's ragweed season and it is high right now. I spoke with my mother within five minutes of that conversation and she is or was also allergic to ragweed. Fortunately, my younger cousin is also allergic to many things and takes Zyrtec. That reminded me that my son took Zyrtec when he was little and it worked wonderfully. I practically ran to Walgreens for Zyrtec-D.

I am delighted to report that within an hour of him taking the one 12 hour tablet (with Gatorade, yogurt and chicken broth/noodle soup - homemade, no preservatives), he was wandering the halls again!

My message... know what's in your family, know what works for your kids and be prepared for "childhood" illnesses to rear their ugly heads at random, unspecified times.

11/9/11 Editor's Note: This article is repeated in the health blog.

Entertainment Review: Davenport's Piano Bar, Chicago

2010-08-30T23:22:00.000-05:00

The room was empty at 8:50PM and full by 9:20PM. The music began promptly at 9 PM with the piano/vocalist crooning the standards. He was not offensive and fairly pleasant sounding. My friend commented he sounds like every other piano lounge singer, every song sounds the same, which when you think about it, that could be worse. But then a female vocalist grabbed the mic and belted out a couple of show tunes that were far better than average. Get this! She worked there as a hostess. It was great. Then another female vocalist took the mic and she was our waitress. Again, belting out hit songs & show tunes we all know and love with perfect pitch.

The service was reasonably good, the drink (Vodka/Tonic) was good and the crowd was a pleasant group of friends who all seemed to know each other. The environment was conducive for our private conversation, their party and I'm sure other small groups. It is not a large venue, but certainly fits several small groups wanting to do their own thing. The piano is situated in the middle which easily allows the music to be heard and interacted with from everywhere in the lounge.

Davenport's also has a cabaret show, but we did not venture into there. I will and will give you a review. Please let me know if this helped you select trying this place or if there is other information I should include in the review. The website is http://www.davenportspianobar.com/

Windy City Diva

Abandoned Pets-An Uplifting Story

2010-08-10T09:05:00.000-05:00

I have been hearing on the news of the rash of pets being abandoned or put up for adoption due to inability to feed them or care for them. That may have touched my home this week. My son found a small dog alone in our local dog park. Other dog owners were there but were unable to take him in, so with the choice of calling animal control, my son brought him home.

Our dog doesn’t seem to mind him, but she also doesn’t seem to be sure if he is a puppy or a toy. For certain the little guy can only take so much of her trying to clean him, and who can’t understand that. She had a litter of puppies a little over a year ago and keeps trying to clean him, but alas, he is not receptive. By the end of 24 hours together, they seem to have agreed to steer clear of each other. That works for me, because this little dog would not have much of a chance against ours since she had 8 rather rowdy puppies whom she had to put the “smack down” on often.

Upon finding this little guy at 10:30 PM on Sunday night, we decided to divide and conquer. I followed him around the house making sure he did not decide to mark his territory, while my son set about making a flier. Our thought is that he was abandoned in a dog park hoping a dog owner would take him in. He was freshly groomed, and still had a collar indentation in the little bit of fur that remained. He is house broken, sweet and very well-behaved. I am hopeful that he was just lost and some passerby put him in the dog park thinking that would at least keep him safe and out of traffic. My son and the other dog park visitors say that is wishful thinking, but we are putting up fliers to give a pet family a chance to recover their dog in case he is just lost. If he isn’t, we will find him a good doggie home, even if it is ours.

My son immediately looked on the AKC website to try to determine his breed (or as close as we can get). He decided on an English Toy Spaniel and designed a quick, “Found Dog” flier. Monday morning, he went about printing and distributing the fliers after walking 2 dogs twice, and one he had to carry in and out. He visited our local vet and pet care stores, of which there are five in our immediate area. Also, on Monday I posted on FB to see if anyone was interested in this little guy because I would rather not keep him. I’m fairly certain our dog would rather us not keep him as well, if he isn’t going to play with her. A former classmate of mine recently had her dog get out of the yard and has not returned home, so she would love to have this little guy.

This particular abandoned doggie story has a happy ending. I can only hope there are other big hearts out there like my son’s, and other divine interventions such as bringing this little guy into my classmate’s life just at the right time. I am sharing this story in hopes that others will think just a little beyond themselves and extend a helping hand, just as I’m sure this little guy’s family was hoping someone would do when they made the decision to leave him there. I am not by any means condoning abandoning your dog in a dog park, or any other public place, nor the act itself, by any stretch. But I do believe you have to be desperate to abandon your beloved family member, and I feel badly for this family for their loss. I do wish they had put a string with a note around his neck giving his name and confirmation that he needed a new family. “Little Guy” or “Rhino” or whatever his new family calls him will have a happy ending.

Windy City Diva

Customer Service - A Dying Art?

2010-08-06T18:40:00.000-05:00

As small business owners we have to be extremely focused on providing customer service since every customer is important for cash flow, referrals and repeat business. We understand the necessity of phone calls, following through on promises and remembering the role of the customer in our business.

I think the larger, established companies have forgotten the essential role of customer service and customer satisfaction. In the last several months I have witnessed a myriad of assaults on the entire premise of "customer service".

Remember!
If you promise a contract or proposal by a certain date and time - deliver.
If you promise a call back with status or information, do the research and make the call when promised.
Most importantly, provide the service you are paid to provide and give refunds when you do not. It is called integrity.

On my list of never do business with again because of lack of customer service:

ServiceMaster - added to the growing list today.
HP
Ameriplan
Sprint
ComEd

There's more and I will update it, but it is really a reminder that the larger your enterprise, the more difficult to control quality.

Windy City Diva

Forgiveness of Self

2010-08-05T12:49:00.000-05:00

Forgiveness and Gratitude...

I find myself thinking about choices made in the past and trying to reconsider whether I made the right decisions. I have always believed that a healthy dose of self-reflection was, well, healthy. I am sure on some level it is, but when it becomes debilitating it ceases to serve a positive purpose. This is where forgiveness comes in. If in reflecting on a decision you (or I) decide it was not the best of the choices, though it seemed so at the time, the necessary next steps are to find the lesson, forgive yourself and then be grateful for the new knowledge. That, my friends is the hardest part, forgiving yourself. It is much easier to forgive a partner for cheating, or a sibling for being mean or even a best-friend for betrayal, but to forgive oneself, that is a difficult task. I believe the reason is because we hold ourselves to the highest standard. We expect highly of others on the same level as of ourselves, but at some sub-conscious depth we expect others to falter in some way and disappoint us. But do we give ourselves that same break and that same allowance? I believe not. I know not of myself.

I have always believed if I thought through the entire decision, wrote down the pros and cons, completed the appropriate due diligence on all options apparent to me and my trusted council, and made a decision based on that information, then the decision must be the right one. I have learned a new lesson recently, it is not about right or wrong, it is about the "best decision at the time". Based on all information available and the emotional factors, that makes it the right decision.

Now I am the first to tell someone that they need to remove emotional facets of a decision as much as possible, though I know that is difficult and sometimes impossible. But I am sure everyone can agree that while some decisions are strictly emotional, others should not be.

The point of this thought eruption is to encourage myself and others to stop wallowing in past decisions since they can not be changed. If you can learn a lesson from either the decision-making process or the decision itself or even the result of the decision, fantastic, but the bottom line and ending result really needs to be that you accept the decision you made and move forward. I will continue on this line of thinking in near future blogs. Take the journey within with me.

Windy City Diva

Je Pense... American Made, American Products Please

2010-08-02T12:09:00.000-05:00

Je pense... and everyone has been entitled to my "I think" statements since I was 2.

What brings this particular topic to mind is BP and the plethora of other malfunctions we have seen this year from foreign companies and foreign made products.
The list of recalls is increasing and who really believes Toyota at this point?
Haven't we had enough of the imported goods that are not really "goods"?
Haven't we had enough of the loss of jobs and the loss of quality checks by the US?

People can complain about big government, the oversight and even the cost of the oversight! But what about the cost of job loss because manufacturing has been sent overseas? What about the loss of life because of poor quality measures? What about the cost of treatment for lead poisoning?
I think American companies need to bring American goods manufacturing back into the United States and boycott any companies who insist on selling inferior products made in foreign countries to pad their bottom line. We may need to go back to a simpler time of having less trinkets, because let's face it, how many toy necklaces and Happy Meal toys do our kids really need? I have personally thrown away no less than one hundred of those broken little pieces of junk. There are empty warehouses littered across our country, right next to the empty dinner tables due to the job loss and landfills full of the junk being sent here that we discard because it wasn't worth keeping.
What do you think?

Windy City Diva

"They're the Professionals"

2010-08-01T21:19:00.000-05:00

"They're the professionals" is what my 16 year old son has said a couple of times within the last 7 - 10 days. Both my mother and I have challenged that in the way that we want him to take into consideration everyone who studies something and accomplishes some letters behind their names is technically, "a professional" in their industry. BUT you have to be able to see the wizard behind the screen.

Their conversation was about the FDA and when my mom said something wasn't good for you, he said, but they are the professionals. My mother pointed out to him that they have to recall drugs and other items, so even professionals make mistakes and sometimes you have to do the research yourself. He was receptive, or so I thought.

Just today we were watching something and I commented that the colors selected for the bedroom were not appropriate, not conducive for good sleeping. Again, he said, "they're the professionals". I again, explained to him that all professionals are not created equal. True, the room decor was attractive, but the colors were bright & vibrant and anyone who studies colors and they're affect on the brain, psyche and relaxation. He said, "oh".

I think it is important to make sure children understand that input and opinions are just that, and that professionals can read the same materials but end up with different opinions on the same subject and details. It happens all of the time in politics and they are all professionals.

Windy City Diva

Carb Free Eating

2010-07-17T21:22:00.001-05:00

Hello Readers!

I was recently told to have a no carb diet for at least 30 days to clear my system and then slowly add it back. Now in case that just sounds like "modern health mumbo-jumbo" it is what I thought as well, but it is worth giving it a shot to not land back in l'hotel hospitale for another week.

The big issue with this new plan is, I live on pasta! Live on it from lunch to dinner, and I am sure some of you know that all of the good breakfast foods have carbs. I was told I could keep my oatmeal for breakfast since it is a whole grain, but the rest...waffles, pancakes, french toast, scones, even some yogurt, all of it, gone. I know it is only for 30 days, but it is a challenge. I am quickly empathizing with people who diet regularly and do not succeed for one reason or another. I could always appreciate that it was difficult, but this feels like modern torture. I end up with something in my hand, mouth watering ready to eat it, and then I remember, "does it have carbs"; or my son will say, "Mom, you can't have that.". Sakes alive my entire kitchen has to be replaced.

This is going to take some work, some help and a whole lot of focus. I am accustomed to eating anything I want, when I want and as often as I want. I just found chicken pot pies on sale! They are not good for you, but they aren't that bad either. I will miss them.

There is one other component to this diet that may take even more thought, like not drinking water with food and waiting 2 hours after you eat to drink it. Okay, so when I am well and back out eating and drinking, what does one do to cut the alcohol intake and stave off a hangover, even a mild one? Hmm??? Cosmopolitan PLUS Dinner (that does not include Pasta) PLUS Water PLUS Cosmopolitan MINUS Water EQUALS mild Hangover. I will have to figure this out... any methods known that work??

If you have any great no carb, no seafood or pork recipes, send them my way please. I have very few foods that I just don't or won't eat but those are the three big categories. Encouraging words are always welcomed! I will try to blog my progress and digression with it. As I learn more about my health challenge, I will share on the chance that it may help someone else with a health issue.

Thanks,
Windy City Diva

Weathering Business Storms

2010-06-23T23:04:00.000-05:00

Chicago Weather Similar to Business Storms...

The storms that rolled through the city and surrounding neighborhoods today remind me of the turmoil that can suddenly and randomly hit small companies. As you build and operate your business you may experience some ups and downs much like the storm. You can see them coming but there is nothing you can do about it except weather it and clean up whatever mess it leaves in its wake.

Having “cleaned up” many storm aftermaths I can tell you it starts with one step, assessing the damage. After you have assessed the damage, the next step is to prioritize the clean-up. Third, gather any assistance or professional support you need, and last jump in with both feet. Now obviously if it is your flooded basement, make sure there are no live wires in the basement. Equally, make sure you have cleared any and all live wires in your business storm somewhere in the assessing the damage stage.

Good luck and happy cleaning.

Windy City Diva