I DID IT!!!!!!!

 

Worth Reading

My sister sent me the link to this woman’s EBay post….what a way with words she has! What a great picture she paints of life with children!! Check out this post: Pokemon Cards for Sale   Who knew a post on Ebay could be so entertaining? And that so many would find it and share it?

And then check out her blog, Because I Said So. Obviously a very talented woman. And how cool is it that one post can send your reader list through the roof? Living the dream…she is living the dream. More power to her. Now go add your comments to the hundreds of others she has received.

 

Oprah

Oprah, we need to talk. I know. One of those talks. And let me say from the beginning, it’s not you, it’s me. Well, it is you making it be me be this way…Ummmm, getting on with it…..Oprah, girl, what are you doing to me?? Yes, you definitely have “The Secret” down to a science. You know how to “write it down, make it happen”. You are tuned into your life goals and the world is your oyster. I get it. I really do. You are living the abundant life extraordinaire. The show? Marvelous. The books, the website…bravo! The magazines? Genius. Even a radio show (or a thousand). Standing O for Oprah!

When you were “just” the Oprah we invited into our homes via the big screen in our own living rooms, we had a bond. You knew what I needed to know, what I needed to hear. The topics were dead on…we had a relationship! You knew me! You knew the worries I faced, the decisions I had to make on a daily basis. We laughed at the same things. I found myself quoting you on a regular basis.

The first hint that you were moving out of my neighborhood was when you began doing shows on your “Favorite Things”. And how excited we all were!! Tell it, girl! The way to extravagance and joy in abundant luxuries! A magic skin cream, Hope in a Jar, could be mine for a mere $35. My life would change in a moment– if only I would buy this miraculous cream. This jar held more than a skin cream. It held the promise of a miracle in the making, the first step towards being just like you! You and I would be using the VERY SAME skin treatment every night after we wiped away the Cover Girl makeup of the day.

The world was in my grasp and you were showing me the way. I was right there with you, along for the ride no matter how long the journey.

Oh, there were other hints you were way ahead of me on that road to abundance, I admit. That time you had your own personal chef, Rosie? Yep, that was a definite sign you moved in a different world than my suburban mom world. No amount of any skin cream was going to get me a personal chef. Yet I hung on. I hung on to every word, every pound lost and gained, every new hairstyle, every new pearl of wisdom you offered. I bought the books, the magazines, the Book Club offerings. Any or all of these were going to change my life, I was sure! You and me, O. To the top. Together.

However. You have drifted far out of the realm of my reality. Not just my reality…I think I hear some hearty “amen, sister!” comments being hollered from the gallery.

You have taken a path that is leading far away from the life of abundance…and heading straight into crass commercialism. First there were O t-shirts. OK. I can go with that. Everyone wants a souvenir from the show. Then came the O warm ups. Still cute, I grant you that. Not that I was gonna squeeze my womanly hips into anything that fit quite that closely. (Need I mention these first appeared when you were lookin’ fiiiiine?) But now you have an entire STORE opening with your name brand goodies? Mercy, girl. I know. I shouldn’t begrudge you a thing. Goodness knows you do work hard for what you have! But at what point does the wealth stop being a product of your creative talents and simply the product of crass commercialism?

Now before you get all bent out of shape at me, dear O, please understand I am the consumer queen. I have believed every advertisement ever written. That cream WILL remove all my wrinkles (cellulite, scars, dark circles and approximately 40 lbs.) overnight. Can I get an “I believe!” ? That new blusher/lip gloss/mascara? Unbelievable that I have lived this long without that particular brand, as this is THE ONE that will change my life forever. The Lexus will make me sexier. The Pantene shampoo will give me the glossiest/strongest/most colorful hair ever seen on a woman in this century. Are you getting the idea? I believe! If someone sells it, I am just the woman to be out there buying it.

Which brings me back to you again, Oprah. What is up with “O” magazine? Sarah Jessica Parker recently introduced her new clothing line with not a single item sold for over $20. I must say, I was intrigued. The clothes pictured were cute and young and hip…things I have left behind in a previous life. Nevertheless, I could see possibilities in the jeans, the tailored tops. I flipped to the Shopping Guide for directions to the nearest boutique which would supply this new line guaranteed to make me look cute, young and hip for under $20/piece. The first item to catch my eye in the list was not the trendy jeans or striped tank Sarah J wore. No, it was the listing for the bangle bracelets she sported in the photo shoot. I believe she had three bangles on–each of which sold for a mere $1600! As I read on, I discovered the shoes worn by the models ran in the $400 to $500 range. I do believe many inexpensive outfits could be dressed up a bit with several thousands in jewelry on my wrist, not to mention high dollar shoes on my feet!

What are you saying to us, dear Oprah? I know what we want to say to you. Take a step back and look at who we are—-the women who make up your audience. It is fun to take a peek into your life on occasion and see the extravagances you easily afford. And we are on our own journeys to abundance. I guess what I’m asking, O, is that you remember all the stops you made along your own path to your current life of luxury. Remember that sometimes it is not just about the stuff.

 

I Blog, Therefore I, Uh, Blog…

I did it. I “created” a blog. I am a blogger. The world will beat a path to my door. No need to know how. Set the intent. How to get there is not the issue.

Shall I illustrate? Of course I shall, because I know you are waiting to hear. For months now I have been less than happy at my job. Primarily because there is no work to be done…and doing “busy work” for the sake of having something to do is demoralizing in my book. If I am going to spend my day doing something, I want it to matter what I do! And that wasn’t the case at this job. I have been “thinking” (and oh, how that does get me in trouble…) that I would ask for a leave of absence. Never could get up the nerve. Played out the scenario of talking to the boss in my head. Didn’t follow through. Well, what do you know….on Wed, my boss called to tell me I have been “temporarily” laid off. WHAT??? What do you mean??? How can you do this??? I have college tuition for TWO SONS that must be paid!! I love my job! How….what…..oh….then it hit me. This is exactly what I wanted to happen! I do not want to work. At least not there. Not now. Maybe not later, even when business picks up.

So begins the blog. So begins the next phase of my life. Empty nester. Unemployed. Diva Luxuriousa. The world is mine for the taking. Stay tuned.