Never Put the Key to Happiness In Someone Else's Pocket

As a follow-up to last weekend's post "No Matter What You Decide to Do in Life, Be Sure it Makes You Happy", tell me if you ever said this (or a reasonable facsimile thereof)..."If I could just do this for (fill in how long here), maybe everything will turn out okay for me and then I can (fill in what you really want to do here). If I had a dollar for every time I did said that to myself, I'd be rich by now.

I've spent the better part of my life making sure that other people's dreams came true. Or at the very least made their lives easier. What I forgot along the way is that I should never have put the key to my own happiness in someone else's pocket. This is a very powerful and life affirming statement. What does it mean then?

Well for me, it simply means that the key to my own personal happiness lies within me and not with others. Furthermore, I can't spend the rest of my life making sure others are happy if I am not. I need to own the key so that I can unlock the door to my happiness and ensure that it stays open forever. If I don't then I am going to end up being just like Cinderella, the Scullery Maid (you know...before she met Prince Charming.)  I would venture to say the same thing could happen to anybody if they didn't take ownership of their own personal key to happiness.

I love what I do for a living. Don't get me wrong. I know where my strengths are and that is being in a support roll; helping others shine. But sometimes I get so caught up that I forget about me. I put everything that I have into whatever I am doing, and before I know it another month is gone, another summer is over and another year has ended without doing the things that make me truly happy. It is my own fault. I left my key in someone else's pocket again.

Taking control of your own happiness is a huge undertaking. How many of you have thought about, much less do anything about it? We're so caught up in running the race that we don't know how to get off the juggernaut we created. Before you know it, twenty something years will pass and you'll be sitting here like I am wondering what happened. But no more...it is time to put yourself first and unleash possibilities! I have learned to take ownership of my life, thanks to the support of my husband, family and a few other people who have become a very important part of my life. 

If you're like me, take the key back, open the door and let your happiness shine!

 

Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todayswritingwoman@hotmail.com and let me know how I can help you.

Water Conservation Tips for Californians

For those of you living in California like myself, you all know that we are under severe drought conditions. With a mandatory 25% water reduction placed upon us, I have come up with some unique ways to conserve water:

1.  Everyone has heard of the three minute shower, but what about the cold water that comes out of the taps while you wait for the water to heat up. Use a bucket to capture that cold water and then transfer the water to an outdoor containment system to use in the garden. We have been doing this for the last two years in my house and it works!

2. Eat off of paper plates. This helps to conserve dishes and eliminates the need to run the dishwasher or wash dishes by hand on a daily basis. It is not that much of a hardship and you can then do dishes once a week vs. daily

3. And speaking of washing dishes. How about skipping that dish washer and doing the dishes in the sink. Use a dishpan for washing and a single bucket for the rinse water. When you're done, use the rinse water out in the garden. It is a good water to provide nutrients to the garden.

4. When cooking with water, e.g. boiling water for sweet corn and hot dogs, use any leftover water that hasn't boiled off in the garden too. Let the water cool first!

5. As much as I hate shaving, using an electric razor will actually save a lot of water. Think about it ladies. When you stand in the shower to shave your legs, you let the water run. Using an electric razor will save thousands of gallons of water on a yearly basis.

6. Instead of letting the water run when brushing your teeth, fill a small cup with water and use that to rinse and clean your toothbrush. 

7. Ok...here's one you probably don't want to hear, but it needs to be said. Remember the saying, "When it's yellow, let it mellow. When it's brown, flush it down." Given the extreme nature of the California drought, let's take it a step further and restrict the flushing when necessary. As gross as this sounds, combining flushes, especially overnight uses of the facility, is another way to save on water that you might not necessarily think about. Obviously you can't do this when you have company visiting, but if it is just the family around, or in the case of myself, just a husband, put the toilet cover down and wait to flush when the toilet gets full.

8. Now that I've finished talking about the yucky one above, here is something fun to think about. When given the opportunity, catch any and all rainwater from any area where it runs off. I have several areas in my back yard where the water literally cascades off of and into buckets. I then transfer the buckets to other containers, such as 2-liter soda bottles or a garbage can, and use the buckets again during the next rain storm. I then use this water for my garden.

9. If you are in the mood, perhaps it is time to take on a couple of DIY projects, such as installing that low flow toilet and shower head. Also, check for any drips and leaks at all the water sources in the house. Disconnect the disposal and dishwasher as they both use too much water.  

10. I am not big on doing laundry. I have enough clothes to wear for approximately three to four weeks, and I go to the laundromat where it is more efficient both on water, electricity and time. Think about using a public laundry facility. While it might seem inconvenient, it will be worth it in the long run.

A few final thoughts on this subject reminds me to think about getting back to a time when life was simpler. My advice is to be efficient when using water and just use it wisely. We can't let the water run anymore because there isn't that much left to run. 

Wishing you moments to use water wisely. Thanks for conserving!
    

Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todayswritingwoman@hotmail.com. I am always looking for more books/products to review. I can also provide assistance with blog writing!

Never Give Up, Never Surrender

I can't tell you how many times I've heard the words, "You'll never be able to fill in the blank here." If I had ten bucks for every single time that I heard that sentence or any variation thereof, I'd be rich. It was really tough to have grown up with it constantly thrown in your face every time you asked to do something. There was so many things I wanted to do or try and because I feared everything, I held back.

It wasn't until I married and moved away that I actually started to spread my wings. But only a little. It took many, many years to start living my life the way I want to and stop worrying about what others thought. After hitting a milestone birthday this week, I realize that I may have wasted a bit of time worrying so much. Granted, I missed out on a few things, and some of my dreams went by the wayside. But I made new dreams for myself because I slammed the door on that dreaded sentence. I am still dreaming, and you know what? I made some of those dreams a reality. And no one can take that away from me.

So here's a newsflash! Stop living in fear and go out there and live! Take this advice from someone who is tired of trying to gain approval and living in fear because of what others might think, do or say. For me, it's just not happening anymore, and it shouldn't be for you.

Do yourself a favor...Never Give Up, Never Surrender!

Wishing you moments to stop living in fear and start living!

Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todayswritingwoman@hotmail.com. I am always looking for more books/products to review. I can also provide assistance with blog writing!