| When Life Stinks, Find Your Joy! |
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Talk to me!
What brings YOU joy?! |
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Kelly Epperson
PO Box 2324
Loves Park, IL 61131
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CLICK HERE to Subscribe to
weekly JOY!
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Blink.
There goes summer. One more week before my guys go back to school. Tyler will be a junior and Andrew a sophomore. Size 14 and size 13 shoes. When they were babies, I played "stinky feet" with them. I held their little toes to my nose, inhaled deeply, and pretended to be bowled over by their stinky feet. We don't play that anymore. :)
Stop and smell the roses.
And the stinky feet.
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(The book When Life Stinks, It's Time to Wash the Gym Clothes by Kelly Epperson is available at www.whenlifestinks.com) |
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| Joy = Take a breather |
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The thoughts that often come unsought, and, as it were, drop into the mind, are commonly the most valuable of any we have.
~John Locke
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| Joy = Music |
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Lyrics to love:
Every move you make is poetry
they all fake what you do naturally
~Robbie Williams, A Place to Crash
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| Joy - More Music |
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...love me like I'm cash
;)
Robbie Williams, A Place to Crash
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Joy = a little alone time |
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One of the greatest necessities in America is to discover creative solitude.
~Carl Sandburg
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| Joy Droppings |
| What brings me joy lately?
* Homemade CDs, and those that gift me with them
* Books full of quotes, and those that gift me with them
* A pretty pink drink, and those that gift me with them
* Sparkling conversations, and those that gift me with them
* Hugs and affection, and those that gift me with them
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| What brings you joy.... |
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Chris W -- I find joy in a child's laughter!
Ann K - My daughter gave me small brass letters J, O, and Y for my birthday! How cool is that?!
Connie H - Some fun (anonymous) quotes:
Laughing is good exercise. It's like jogging on the inside.
Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground.
Don't wear polka-dot underwear under white shorts.
(then again, why not? :)
Michele S - My latest joy is traveling to see my daughter in Slovakia and then getting her home to have her back with us for awhile before she goes off to Loras College on Aug 27th - my first child - only girl - and best friend!
Allen P - Joy = three great days of sailing with best friend Dan.
"Live life to have a memorial service that your survivors have to worry about how big a hall/church they need for the service." Allen Penticoff
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| Life Lessons |
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MANY MANY of you have sent me this so I feel it is due for a rerun here. For sake of space, I am not including all 41 items on her list.
Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio
"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 41 lessons life taught me:
1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
12. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
14. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
15. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
18. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
19. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
20. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
21. The most important sex organ is the brain.
22. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
23. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ''In five years, will this matter?".
24. Forgive everyone everything.
26. What other people think of you is none of your business.
27. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
28. Believe in miracles.
31. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
32. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
35. The best is yet to come.
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| Joy = You |
Happy Incredible Fabulous Joyous Birthday Wishes to:
CHRIS W
LISA B
and all the rest of you !
(JOY seekers/spreaders: Let me know your bday. At the end of each month, I draw a name and one birthday person gets a joy present in the mail.)
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words matter....actions matter |
Love - the feeling - is a fruit of love, the verb.
--Stephen Covey
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| Joy = Books & Movies |
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Book Pick This Week = watch movies...
Flick Pick = Anything (everything) by John Hughes . |
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| Quote Junkie |
Sometimes I go about in pity for myself,
and all the while
a great wind is bearing me across the sky.
~~Ojibwa saying
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| EMail Jokes.... |
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Begin by standing on a comfortable surface, where you have plenty of room at each side.
With a 5-lb potato bag in each hand, extend your arms straight out from your sides.
Hold them there as long as you can. Try to reach a full minute, and then relax.
Each day you'll find that you can hold this position for just a bit longer. After a couple of weeks, move up to 10-lb potato bags. Then try 50-lb potato bags, and then eventually, try to get to where you can lift a 100-lb potato bag in each hand and hold your arms straight for more than a full minute.
After you feel confident at that level, put a potato in each bag.
(Thanks, Sherri M)
DRIVING
An Alabama senior citizen drove his brand new Corvette convertible out of the dealership. Taking off down the road, he pushed it to 80 mph, enjoying the wind blowing through what little hair he had left.
Looking in his rear view mirror, he saw an Alabama State Trooper, blue lights flashing and siren blaring. He floored it to 100 mph, then 110, then 120. Suddenly he thought,
"What am I doing? I'm too old for this!" and pulled over to await the trooper's arrival.
Pulling in behind him, the trooper got out of his vehicle and walked up to the Corvette.
He looked at his watch, then said, "Sir, my shift ends in 30 minutes. Today is Friday. If you can give me a new reason for speeding--a reason I've never before heard--I'll let you go."
The old gentleman paused then said: "Three years ago, my wife ran off with an Alabama State Trooper. I thought you were bringing her back."
"Have a good day, sir," replied the trooper.
(Thanks, Doris)
HEARING
An elderly gentleman had serious hearing problems for a number of years. He went to the doctor and the doctor was able to have him fitted for a set of hearing aids that allowed the gentleman to hear 100%.
The gentleman went back in a month to the doctor and the doctor said, 'Your hearing is perfect. Your family must be really pleased that you can hear again.'
The gentleman replied, 'Oh, I haven't told my family yet.
I just sit around and listen to the conversations. I've changed my will three times!'
(Thanks, Samara)
I can't get the picture to load so please try to visualize the
WORLD'S SCARIEST LICENSE PLATE:
PMS24-7
(Thanks, Dorothee)
What's the difference between an oral thermometer and a rectal thermometer?
The taste.
(Thanks, Allen P)
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Joy = People Who DO Something |
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ATTENTION LOCALS:
A 21-year-old gal is organizing a "Really Really Free Market" on her 22nd birthday.
GIVE AWAY stuff you don't need or want or use so someone who NEEDS it can use it.
No exchange of money.
Help the community.
There will be free food, clothing, miscellaneous items, cooking lessons every top of the hour, free haircuts from 1-6pm, arts and crafts classes, including leather working and polymer clay classes at 12:30(please call to pre-register), music and face painting throughout the day. Also, there will be a spoken word/poetry reading at 3pm.
If you can donate items or help in any way,
call Kelly McKee 779-770-1457 or her email address is
Really Really Free Market.
Tuesday, August 18th 6am-7pm
Haskell Park, 450 North Church Street, Rockford IL
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| Joy = The Archives |
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Need a joy fix?
Head to the archives of past joy droppings.
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| Joy = Teenage Boys |
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pizza, gatorade, orange sherbet... breakfast of champions
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Thank you. You bring me joy.
joyfully,
xx kelly
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| Take your candle, go light your world |
Be a lamp, a ladder, or a life boat. ~ Rumi
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| "I'm ready for my closeup...." |
With hesitancy, I extend this invitation. Maybe because I'm chicken, or maybe I'm just vain. However, I always encourage people to try new things so I did that myself ... and had my acting debut this week. I played with Jesse and Connie Kuntz, the Kuntz Family Film Makers (KFFM) and spread my wings. Literally. [Big thanks to Mavis and Carol for loaning me "stewardess" clothes.] I don't get to see the film before the public debut. Hence, nervousness.
That said, come on out and buy me a drink. :)
KFFM Film Festival
(30 minutes - several short films)
Sunday, Aug 16
8:00 pm
Octane Lounge
Downtown Rockford
FREE
($5 donation suggested)
(Jesse could use a new tripod. "Damn kids." ;)
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| Joy = Play me |
Nothing you confess
could make me love you less
I'll stand by you
~The Pretenders, I'll Stand By You
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