I’m Lovin’ it?

Do you love your relationships? Let me ask that again, but more specifically. Do you love your career? Do you love your hobbies? Do you love your partner? Your friends? Your family? Do you love where your life is heading? Are you honestly in love with these things and enjoy your time at them and with them? Or…do they frustrate and consume you to the point where you think you’re in love? The opposite of love is not hate. The opposite of love is apathy. Apathy is also the opposite of hate. Hate and love are powerful emotions that can consume you similarly. You may be unable to tell the difference and end up fooling yourself. (Look up “emotional ambivalence.”) […]

Practical Life Advice from the 1600s

Almost every self-help writer or “Motivational Monday” social media poster will tell you to be selfless, give back to others, and live a “life of service.” I’ve written 1000s of words that would lead you to believe that this is a healthy practice and the answer to true happiness. Maybe we’re all wrong? We must look out for each other and give back to the next generation. When it comes to being human, that will be eternally important. People have to learn some things the hard way, but if we can clear the road a bit and point them in the right direction sooner than we found it, we accomplish more as a society. If you purposely withhold knowledge or […]

Forgiveness

I don’t have enemies. I certainly have plenty of reasons to have a laundry list of names (with a line crossing out those names), but I would not consider any of those people “enemies.” Mostly, those I have removed from my life, or they have removed themselves, do not creep into my thoughts. I do not care about them or their actions. Whatever they did to me, for me, or towards me is forgiven. If you are someone who has wronged me, know you are forgiven. If you need to hear or read that, but if you still hold a grudge or think I have some dartboard with your name and picture, think again. You are forgiven. Forgiving people is […]

Buying Groceries and Showing Grace

I’ve forgiven everyone who has ever wronged me and I often pray for those who have cut me the deepest.

The Unsinkable You

Stop piling on.  It doesn’t help and you’re just adding weight to a situation for the sake of self-pity. 

Ed

I am a first generation college student. When filling out the applications and contacting schools for information, I was very much on my own. I had no mentors for this and my mom did the best she could to help. Late at night, we took turns typing away on the old school typewriter and hoping like hell we wouldn’t mess up and have to break out the whiteout to fix a correction on an application. Yes, I went to college before the internet or email was a “thing” and essays and answers were typed out or written by hand. We did get email about two years later though… I applied for quite a few schools and to be honest, I […]

Rules for Holiday Grocery Shopping

As the primary grocery shopper and dinner maker in the Murphy house, it is safe to say that I know my way around the grocery store.  I know where everything is, (except for that one week when they rearranged the store just to piss me off…I am sure of it!). I am dangerous with coupons and I know how to make things from scratch and not pay for convenience.  I actually enjoy picking out the items I will be using in meals and I don’t believe in letting some 17-year-old punk kid pick out my necessities while I wait in the grocery store pickup line.  Nope, sorry Covid-19, I will never embrace that.  I see the value for some, but […]

Happiness

To me, achieving and living in happiness is winning.  Winning arguments does not bring me true happiness.  #Tryharder to seek happiness.

Ignitors and Extinguishers

If you are a glowing beacon of life, there are two kinds of people youattract. Ignitors and extinguishers.  Ignitors—Those who want to help fan your flame and support your ignitionand launch in the world. They want to see you succeed and move barriers just towatch you shine. These people are your mentors, family and they see somethingvery special in you; often when you don’t see it in yourself.  Ignitorswant to follow you into battle and are there to prop you up when you stumbleand fall.  They feed you energy and air when you are exhausted and in yourmoment of doubt, ignitors say what you need to hear. The world needs moreignitors.   Then…. Extinguishers— those who wish to smother your […]

Hunting for Understanding

#Tryharder to accept and understand things that you question