Success Defined By Ralph Waldo Emerson

A New Year, New Beginnings, & Balance

2008 only has hours left, and as I sit here pondering over what I have done with the time that was given to me over the last twelve months I have mixed emotions.

I am extremely grateful for the many blessings that I have been given. There are so many wonderful people that have touched my life. I have felt the love of friends and family, and they have helped me tremendously this last year. Our relationships with others are our sweetest gifts. For those of you who may visit here once in a while I hope you know how much you mean to me. :)

I have learned a lot. Some of those lessons I have learned the hard way, and some I am still in the process of learning. I feel I have grown and been stretched and struggled. There are things that I regret and there are always the "wish I had done's" "Would have's" and "Should Have's". However, despite some hard times there has been laughter and warm memories made. This is the simple story in which we live. We Live and Laugh and Cry and Die, and it is all worth it.

Moving Forward, I realized that I have the habit of thinking in an "all or nothing" attitude. If I set a goal for myself I want to achieve in completely in the way my mind expects, and so I have been often disappointed. This year I want to find a genuine balance in my life. I want to Live in a Happy Medium. I have loved that Philosophy with my mind for a long time now (ever since I read "A Wrinkle In Time" by Madeline Le'Engle in grade school). I want to find balance between Good Work and Leisure Time, Family and Friends, and School and the other million things that make up our days and in reality make us who we are. I want to make the most of the time I spend doing a certain thing. If I am working on a project I want to give that project my full attention instead of trying to do three things at once and not give 100% to any of them.

By Finding Balance in my life and focusing that balance I look forward with High Hopes to the New Year, and I wish all those who might stumble across this little ramble of mine a year filled with the best things: Love, Laughter, Light, and Life.

With Love Anything Is Possible

True Gifts

Christmas Is Coming

11 Ways to Cure Someday Syndrome

This article is from Alex Fayle of the Someday Syndrome blog.

• Someday Syndrome: not doing what you want to because you don’t know what it is, because you’re procrastinating about it, or because you have too much stuff getting in your way.

Everyone suffers from Someday Syndrome at some point in their lives, often catching it repeatedly. For me, most recently, I’d been saying that I really should give running a try without doing anything about it.

You probably have something similar going on in your life – a project, a task, a goal - that you just haven’t got around to doing yet. Right?

I could quote Nike and say: Just Do It, but if it were that simple Someday Syndrome wouldn’t exist. In my own case, it wasn’t until my body rebelled and refused to sleep from lack of exercise that I finally got started.

I decided that here had to be an easier way than waiting for pain to push me into getting over myself and getting on with my goals. So I came up with this: 11 ways to cure Someday Syndrome so that others don’t need to suffer through a cure.

1. Be you. This is The Happiness Project’s number one Happiness Commandment. I hate team sports, so there’s no way I’d play football (soccer). Running allows me to exercise when I want and I can do it on my own or with a friend. Perfectly me.

Maybe you’re not doing something because in reality, it doesn’t fit with who you are. If so, dump the idea and the expectations that likely came along with it, and go find something that suits you better.

2. Clear out the junk. If you don’t know what would suit you better, it could be because your mind and emotions are all cluttered up. I mean, seriously, if your mind’s in chaos, how could you possibly make a clear decision on getting rid of your somedays? The clutter I’m talking about includes the negative thoughts (like me thinking that I’d never be able to run more than 30 seconds without dying), or negative attitudes (I’m too lazy to run).

There are some great tools available in the Simplicity category of ZenHabits. Use them.

3. Know what you want. And why you want it. If you are going cure Someday Syndrome, you’ll need to know details about that desire and the reasons behind it.

And if you don’t know what that is, the blogosphere is full of blogs ready to help you figure out your dreams - Someday Syndrome and ZenHabits are two examples, but you can find others on the PluginID website on Glen’s Personal Development page.

4. Make a grand plan. I say “grand” because this is the big picture plan. Don’t get carried away. Planning can feel like action, but really it’s no different than talking. Until you actually do something, you’re still procrastinating.

I have a goal of running 20K next November. That’s enough for now. Starting is more important than getting into detailed plans.

5. Take one step at a time. The only details you need to choose at this point is first steps. I get overwhelmed by details. When I look past the big picture I don’t just see a few details – I see all of them, therefore I focus on just the next two or three things that I’m going to do.

I know what I need to do to get started (the first two months of training). That’s enough.

6. Ignore the rest. That’s right. Ignore everything else in the goal except what you’re working on. We often use comparisons of where we are now to where we want to be as a form of procrastination. While checking in is always a good thing, we can do it when each small task is completed, and not in the middle of a task.

On my running days, when I’m in the middle of my current workout, I don’t think about what’s coming up next week. Why would I want to freak myself out?

7. Get help. Daniel Gilbert in his book Stumbling on Happiness, says that the best route to figuring out if our goals will actually make us happy is to talk to others who have done it.

I also try to be lazy when I can be, so if someone else has done the work (like this Couch-to-5K Running Plan), then there’s no need to waste my time coming up with something new, now is there?

8. Don’t compare. Be careful when you get help, because the dream-shattering tendency to compare lurks nearby. Leo talks about the bad side to comparisons in his post: Life’s Enough. Stop Comparing Yourself to Others.

Enough said. (Yes, I’m taking my own advice about Getting Help and moving on.)

9. Be uncomfortable. Judith Sills in her book The Comfort Trap, or What If You’re Riding a Dead Horse? talks about how we might be terribly unhappy, but we’re comfortable so we don’t do anything about the unhappiness. Happiness is a risk, but the current situation even if it’s painful is safe.

Which would you prefer? Comfortably in pain and unhappy or uncomfortably blissful? I live my life the second way and would recommend that you always choose the uncomfortable option.

10. Celebrate the process as well as the end. I don’t mean celebrations like Dash’s Grade 3 “graduation ceremony” from The Incredibles. I mean acknowledge your progress. I Tweet my runs and mention them on my Facebook status. I also talk with other runners and we talk progress and tips.

And in turn this sharing inspires others and helps them move past their own Somedays and toward achieving their goals.

11. Don’t stop at the easy point. Wait a second. Most lists are only ten points. Why does this one have eleven?

Because it’s important to push yourself just a little bit further than you think you can go. Although my big goal is running 20K within a year, I’ve committed to running 7K on December 31st.

So, while you’re celebrating and taking it one step at a time, come up with one unexpected action you can take that’ll add energy, excitement and a bit of fear to your goal.

Believe me, that bit of fear will probably be the best motivator you’ve ever found.

For more from Alex Fayle, check out his blog, Someday Syndrome (or subscribe to his feed).

Proverbs Answered by Kids

A first grade teacher collected well known proverbs. She gave each child in her class the first half of a proverb and asked them to come up with the remainder of the proverb. Their insight may surprise you.

Better to be safe than....................Punch a 5th grader
Strike while the .........................Bug is close
It's always darkest before............... Daylight Savings Time
Never underestimate the power of..........Termites
You can lead a horse to water but........how?
Don't bite the hand that................. looks dirty
No news is................................impossible
A miss is as good as a...................Mr.
You can't teach an old dog new............math
If you lie down with dogs, you'll.........stink in the morning
Love all, trust..........................me
The pen is mightier than the..............pigs
An idle mind is..........................The best way to relax
Where there's smoke there's...............pollution
Happy the bride who.......................gets all the presents
A penny saved is..........................not much
Two's company, three's....................the Musketeers
Don't put off till tomorrow what..........you put on to go to bed
Laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and.......you have to blow your nose.
None are so blind as......................Stevie Wonder
Children should be seen and not...........spanked or grounded
If at first you don't succeed.............get new batteries
You get out of something what you.........see pictured on the box
When the blind leadeth the blind..........get out of the way
Better late than.........................pregnant.

A Winter Tree In Song

I've Been Cloned!

Dr. Thomas Szasz, Professor of Psychology Emeritus ~ Disease vs Behavior

I thought this video was very thought provoking. I agree with a lot of what this doctor says, but I am nervous about an all or nothing mindset. I think when it comes to mental illness, most people are mis"diagnosed". However, sometimes real physical things can affect us mentally and emotionally. Everything is connected. This clip made me think though, and I appreciated that.

I Believe . . .

I found this image online and really thought it was great. There are a lot of true thoughts found within it.

Think About Attitude

Strange False Head Photo

At first this photo seems to be a couple with a large head floating between them. But look again - things aren’t always what they seem.

Most people who look at this old photograph will probably see a large bearded head between the two figures. It looks like an image of Jesus.

You’ll probably think it’s just a crude hoax from bygone days. But look again, carefully. This is not a hoax at all. What the photo actually shows is a child sitting on the man’s knee.

Block out the head’s “hair.” That’s just a collection of foliage in the background. The “eye” is the face the child, shadowed by a large white bonnet. The “nose” is the sleeve of the child’s shirt. And the “mustache” is the child’s arm, bent at the elbow.

Be patient. It may take you awhile to see this.

Homemade Oreos

Homemade Oreos
Makes 25 to 30 sandwich cookies

For the chocolate wafers:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 to 1 1/2 cups sugar*
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1 large egg

For the filling:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Set two racks in the middle of the oven. Preheat to 375 degrees.
2. In a food processor, or bowl of an electric mixer, thoroughly mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, salt, and sugar. While pulsing, or on low speed, add the butter, and then the egg. Continue processing or mixing until dough comes together in a mass.
3. Take rounded teaspoons of batter and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet approximately 2 inches apart. With moistened hands, slightly flatten the dough. Bake for 9 minutes, rotating once for even baking. Set baking sheets on a rack to cool.
4. To make the cream, place butter and shortening in a mixing bowl, and at low speed, gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla. Turn the mixer on high and beat for 2-3 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.
5. To assemble the cookies, in a pastry bag with a 1/2 inch, round tip, pipe teaspoon-size blobs of cream into the center of one cookie. Place another cookie, equal in size to the first, on top of the cream. Lightly press, to work the filling evenly to the outsides of the cookie. Continue this process until all the cookies have been sandwiched with cream. Dunk generously in a large glass of milk.

* Let’s talk about the sugar for a minute, shall we? This is a sweet cookie. A good, sweet cookie. Yet, if you think of an actual Oreos, the wafers are fairly un-sweet and actually on the slightly salty side, which contrasts with the super-sweetness of the filling bringing harmony, happiness, yada yada. If you want your cookie closer to that original, you can take out a full half-cup of the sugar. I usually do. If you want to make the cookie by itself go ahead and use the full amount.

Please Bury Me In The Library

My Sentiments Exactly!

Only As High, Only as Far, Only as Deep, Only as Much

Love Will Conquer All ~ Emmet Fox

Spanish Harlem ~ Ben E King

Spanish Harlem ~ Ben E King

Elephant Paints An Amazing Self Portrait

This is one of the most amazing things I have ever seen! We really take animals for granted. I love Elephants.

Remember the Sheppard

The Chosen by Chaim Potok

Check out one of my all time favorite books, "The Chosen by Chaim Potok" Here

Those Who Matter Don't Mind ~ Dr Suess

Ten Rules for Being Human by Cherie Carter-Scott

1. You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it's yours to keep for the entire period.

2. You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called, "life."

3. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial, error, and experimentation. The "failed" experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiments that ultimately "work."

4. Lessons are repeated until they are learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can go on to the next lesson.

5. Learning lessons does not end. There's no part of life that doesn't contain its lessons. If you're alive, that means there are still lessons to be learned.

6. "There" is no better a place than "here." When your "there" has become a "here", you will simply obtain another "there" that will again look better than "here."

7. Other people are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself.

8. What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.

9. Your answers lie within you. The answers to life's questions lie within you. All you need to do is look, listen, and trust.

10. You will forget all this.

Doing Good

When You Wish Upon A Star

When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires will come to you

If your heart is in your dreams, no request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star as dreamers do

(Fate is kind, she brings to those who love
The sweet fulfillment of their secret longing)

Like a bolt out of the blue, fate steps in and sees you through
When you wish upon a star, your dreams come true

When You Wish Upon A Star MP3

uıǝʇsɹǝʌlıs lǝɥs ʎq llıq pɹɐʍʞɔɐq

Not sure how to read this mysterious language? Copy the the text and paste it here

uıǝʇsɹǝʌlıs lǝɥs

˙ssoɥ sıɥ ,uıʎɹɹɐɔ-ɐ ,uılıɯs-ɐ ɟɟo sǝpıɹ puɐ
'ssoq sıɥ sʎɐd ǝɥ ʎɐpʎɐd ʎɹǝʌǝ ǝɯoɔ puɐ
˙sǝɥʇolɔ sıɥ ɹǝʌo ɹɐǝʍɹǝpun sıɥ uo sʇnd puɐ
sǝoʇ sıɥ uo ʇɐɥ sıɥ sɹɐǝʍ llıq pɹɐʍʞɔɐq

˙llıq pɹɐʍʞɔɐq sʎɐs "'ǝʇɐɥ ǝnɹʇ uʍo ʎɯ s,ǝɥs"
'lıl pɹɐʍʞɔɐq pǝɯɐu ǝɟıʍ ɐ ʇoƃ s,ǝɥ puɐ
'dn sǝɯoɔ uns ǝɥʇ uǝɥʍ ɹǝddns ɹıǝɥʇ ʇɐǝ ʎǝɥʇ
'dnd pɹɐʍʞɔɐq ɐ ʇoƃ s,llıq pɹɐʍʞɔɐq

"˙ƃuɐq" sǝoƃ ɹǝʌǝu ʇı "'qɐuƃ" sǝoƃ unƃ-xıs sıɥ puɐ
"'ƃuɐlɔ" sǝoƃ ʇı ǝsɹoɥ sıɥ puɐ "ɥƃıǝu" oƃ ʎǝɥʇ sɹnds sıɥ
˙uǝǝq s,ǝɥ ǝɹǝɥʍ sǝǝs ʇnq ƃuıoƃ s,ǝɥ ǝɹǝɥʍ ʍouʞ ʇ,uop
puıʍ ǝɥʇ ǝʞıl sǝpıɹ ǝɥ llıq pɹɐʍʞɔɐq

˙ɹoolɟ doʇ ʎɹǝʌ ǝɥʇ uo dn sı ɹɐllǝɔ ǝɥʇ puɐ
ɹoop ǝɥʇ ʇno ʞool puɐ ʍopuıʍ ǝɥʇ ɥƃnoɹɥʇ ʞlɐʍ noʎ
˙ʞɔɐq ʇno ʇlınq s,ʇɐɥʇ ɥɔɹod ʇuoɹɟ ƃıq ɐ ɥʇıʍ
ʞɔɐɥs pɹɐʍʞɔɐq ɐ ʇoƃ s,llıq pɹɐʍʞɔɐq

˙(uʍop ǝpısdn pǝuɹnʇ llıɥ ɐ s,ʇɐɥʇ ʇnq)
punoɹƃ ʎpuɐs ǝɥʇ uı ǝloɥ ɐ ʎllɐǝɹ sı ɥɔıɥʍ
'llıɥ pɹɐʍʞɔɐq uo dn ʎɐʍ sǝʌıl ǝɥ
'llıq pɹɐʍʞɔɐq 'llıq pɹɐʍʞɔɐq

1950's Cafe Menu

This is a Menu from a 1950's Cafe. I wasn't alive then, so I guess I don't really know, but it seems like life was a lot simpler back then.

Discovering My Personality Type According to Carl Jung

Famous INFJs

I decided to take the "Jung Personality Test" and found out that I am an INFJ (Introverted iNtuitive Feeling Judging) or a Counselor. Here is what I found out about myself:

Idealist Portrait of the Counselor (INFJ)

Counselors have an exceptionally strong desire to contribute to the welfare of others, and find great personal fulfillment interacting with people, nurturing their personal development, guiding them to realize their human potential. Although they are happy working at jobs (such as writing) that require solitude and close attention, Counselors do quite well with individuals or groups of people, provided that the personal interactions are not superficial, and that they find some quiet, private time every now and then to recharge their batteries. Counselors are both kind and positive in their handling of others; they are great listeners and seem naturally interested in helping people with their personal problems. Not usually visible leaders, Counselors prefer to work intensely with those close to them, especially on a one-to-one basis, quietly exerting their influence behind the scenes.

Counselors are scarce, little more than one percent of the population, and can be hard to get to know, since they tend not to share their innermost thoughts or their powerful emotional reactions except with their loved ones. They are highly private people, with an unusually rich, complicated inner life. Friends or colleagues who have known them for years may find sides emerging which come as a surprise. Not that Counselors are flighty or scattered; they value their integrity a great deal, but they have mysterious, intricately woven personalities which sometimes puzzle even them.

Counselors tend to work effectively in organizations. They value staff harmony and make every effort to help an organization run smoothly and pleasantly. They understand and use human systems creatively, and are good at consulting and cooperating with others. As employees or employers, Counselors are concerned with people's feelings and are able to act as a barometer of the feelings within the organization.

Blessed with vivid imaginations, Counselors are often seen as the most poetical of all the types, and in fact they use a lot of poetic imagery in their everyday language. Their great talent for language-both written and spoken-is usually directed toward communicating with people in a personalized way. Counselors are highly intuitive and can recognize another's emotions or intentions - good or evil - even before that person is aware of them. Counselors themselves can seldom tell how they came to read others' feelings so keenly. This extreme sensitivity to others could very well be the basis of the Counselor's remarkable ability to experience a whole array of psychic phenomena.

There Is A Place Only You Can Fill ~ Michael McLean

Beatles Unknown "A Hard Day's Night" Chord Mystery Solved

A Hard Day's Night ~ The Beatles

I thought this article was very interesting, so here's another shout out to the Beatles and the Math that solves the mysteries of music years later :)

(The post below is copied from scientificblogging.com)

It’s the most famous chord in rock 'n' roll, an instantly recognizable twang rolling through the open strings on George Harrison’s 12-string Rickenbacker. It evokes a Pavlovian response from music fans as they sing along to the refrain that follows:

"It’s been a hard day’s night
And I’ve been working like a dog"

The opening chord to "A Hard Day’s Night" is also famous because, for 40 years, no one quite knew exactly what chord Harrison was playing.

There were theories aplenty and musicians, scholars and amateur guitar players all gave it a try, but it took a Dalhousie mathematician to figure out the exact formula.

Four years ago, inspired by reading news coverage about the song’s 40th anniversary, Jason Brown of Dalhousie’s Department of Mathematics decided to try and see if he could apply a mathematical calculation known as Fourier transform to solve the Beatles’ riddle. The process allowed him to decompose the sound into its original frequencies using computer software and parse out which notes were on the record.

It worked, to a point: the frequencies he found didn’t match the known instrumentation on the song. “George played a 12-string Rickenbacker, Lennon had his six string, Paul had his bass…none of them quite fit what I found,” he explains. “Then the solution hit me: it wasn’t just those instruments. There was a piano in there as well, and that accounted for the problematic frequencies.”

Dalhousie University math professor Jason Brown and his Ibanez guitar. Photo: Danny Abriel

“I started playing guitar because I heard a Beatles record—that was it for my piano lessons,” says Brown. “I had tried to play the first chord of the song many takes over the years. It sounds outlandish that someone could create a mystery around a chord from a time where artists used such simple recording techniques. It’s quite remarkable.”

Dr. Brown deduces that another George—George Martin, the Beatles producer—also played on the chord, adding a piano chord that included an F note impossible to play with the other notes on the guitar. The resulting chord was completely different than anything found in the literature about the song to date, which is one reason why Dr. Brown’s findings garnered international attention. He laughs that he may be the only mathematician ever to be published in Guitar Player magazine.

“Music and math are not really that far apart,” he says. “They’ve found that children that listen to music do better at math, because math and music both use the brain in similar ways. The best music is analytical and pattern-filled and mathematics has a lot of aesthetics to it. They complement each other well.”

Successful Not Famous ~ George Harrison

I really like the glimpse of George that flashed in mind as I read this quote by him. It's very enlightening. I was born in the eighties, after the Beatles had their days in the spotlight, but their music has had a huge impact on me. Like The "Quiet Beatle" I too would much rather consider my work a success, and I hope I wouldn't let fame or the want of fame get in the way.

The Cozy Little Book Nook

One of the true joys of my life is to curl up with a good book, a cozy blanket, and (on cold days) a cup of hot chocolate or herbal tea. I love to let the words take me to far of lands in my imagination and escape from the daily grind of life for a little while. It is restful, and it strengthens the dreaming skills of my mind. I love to read all kinds of things including poetry, philosophy, science fiction, self help books, and more. However, I have a special love for Children's literature.

There is a real power of influence in Children's Literature. We are shaped by the thoughts we think, and we think about what we read. Books like The Chronicles of Narnia, Matilda, Anne of Green Gables, Little Women, Lord of the Rings and Treasure Island truly helped me become the kind of person I am. The love of the stories I read as a kid helped me to develop a love of learning, and broadened my horizons of what the world has to offer. It is so important to provide kids with good things to read. Even as an adult I learn new things each time I read these books.

I recently joined a book review blog with one of my friends called The Cozy Little Book Nook. This is a great place to find some of our favorite Children's Books, and share in our love of reading. If you are like us and looking for a great new book to read and share with your family then check it out. You won't be sorry :)

Amelie, Jr. The Fabulous French Fairy Tale Teller

Once upon a time... from Capucha on Vimeo.

I was enchanted by this little girl and her wonderful story. You can see the potential bubbling out of her. Some days I really miss the way the world looked as a kid. Enjoy!

*I found another video of this adorable kid watching the Three Little Pigs. She is so Cute.

Three Little Pigs from Capucha on Vimeo.

Blogger vs Wordpress + Eclectic Emily

I've made the switch. For those of you who were familiar with the old wordpress site, Welcome to the New Eclectic Emily! I was really torn because I like different things about both blogging platforms. I like wordpress because it is really easy to optimize, but the cute designs and more widget options blogger has finally won me over. Blogger also takes a little less time to manage. So Eclectic Emily has had a little face lift, and I am excited to continue my blogging adventures.

However if you like what you have seen so far, please go on to the older version, it has a lot of great quotes, comics, recipes, and more that I really love. Thanks for your visit, and I sincerely hope you are having a happy day!