Ego

How easily can we identify the ego?

At what age does it begin to develop?

How closely attached is the ego to our possessions?

Do possessions of equal quality provide the same satisfaction without designer branding?

Do we feel superior with our designer brands?

Does it make us feel inadequate to be generic?

Are we still the same character and person without our social status or circles?

Do our careers, income and belongings define who we are?

How closely attached is our ego to our actions?

If we don't respond to insult or antagonism, is our self worth affected?

If we don't boast, does it make it less important?

Without our ego, can we still succeed?

Does fulfilling the ego effect the happiness of others?

Does fulfilling our ego effect the happiness of ourselves?

Random, Bootys

Elephant Booty

Rhinoceros Booty

Don't Believe Everything You Think

I took these photos a few years ago. It's the La Sagrada Familia, in Barcelona Spain. It's one of the most amazing structures that I've ever had the opportunity to see. It's a privately-funded Roman Catholic church, and it's massive. This building has been under construction in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain since 1882! It’s expected completion date isn't until at least the year 2026. The structure was designed by the renowned and very uniquely talented Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926). Gaudí's architectural style was extremely different than any other architect of his time as well as today. He worked on this project for 40 years of his life, and when approached on the subject of the longevity of the constructing of the church, his response was, "My client is not in a hurry."

It's interesting that Gaudí did not limit himself with the fact that the structure would take over 100 years to finish, and that he himself would never have the opportunity to witness it's completion. He only allowed his creative thoughts and instincts to drive him and effect the reality. If he had indeed allowed the fearful and negative thoughts and believed the limitations, then perhaps he may never had begun the construction of this now historical and top tourist attraction that stands today.

I guess it's human nature that sometimes allows ourselves to be self sabotaging, by believing every single passing thought. Therefore allowing limitations and fears which scare us away from creativity and taking new steps - that could turn out to ultimately be profound and life changing. I often forget that we really don't have to believe everything that we think, but only what we choose to think. So, I'm certainly inspired from a very creative and famous architect from over 100 years ago, who I think mastered this concept beautifully; Don't believe everything you think!

Random Cute

I took this picture of the Fennec Fox at the Woodland Park Zoo. The Fennec's are the smallest fox in the world and live in the Sahara Desert. He's so cute!

Fore!

This was taken a few summers ago on Orcas Island. It was an interesting trip. We had been staying at a nearby hotel and could swear it was haunted, but that's another story for another day. I remember the weather was gorgeous and warm and we practically had the entire golf course to ourselves. Fortunately we were not yelling "fore!" at any time during this particular game.

I've certainly had to use that term on far too many occasions, indicative that my golf skills can be a bit lacking. If you're familiar with golf, you know that "Fore!" is shouted as a warning during a game when it appears that your ball may hit other players or spectators. The term means to "look ahead.” The origin of the word is believed to come from the military "beware before", which was shouted when a battery fired behind friendly troops. There are other probably origins that include the term "fore-caddy", which was a caddy who waited down range to see where golf balls landed.

That all brings me to my original thought; Wouldn't it be great if in our daily lives, when trouble is heading toward us, or when we're on the verge of making a poor decision, we could be forewarned? Just a loud resonating voice shouting down from the sky, "Gretchen, FORE!" Oh all of the compromising situations one could avoid! We could steer clear from bad relationships, dreadful jobs, even horrible former presidents…oh geez the list goes on!

Unfortunately, or even perhaps fortunately, life is not a game. One can only dream! I'll just have to leave it all up to my own intuition, stay my own course, and call it a day.

Ten Ways to Mildly Freak People Out

I enjoy a good laugh once in while, so I've posted Ten Ways to Mildly Freak People Out or perhaps more appropriately titled, Ten Random Ways to Entertain Yourself. I would love to hear some more if you have them.

1. Take off your shoes and socks, then just carry them walking down the street, shoes in one hand and socks in the other. Smile and sing repeatedly, "happy feet!"

2. Casually confront people walking by, ask them if them if they've seen your pen.

3. Walk up to random strangers and hug them, don’t say a word and then walk away.

4. While in conversation, randomly start another one on an entirely different subject. Then interject with, "Okaaaay, what did I tell you about interruptions?!" ...and then resume your initial conversation.

5. While talking with someone, suddenly grab your ears. When they ask what you are doing, just calmly say, "They were trying to take them," and then simply resume back to what you were saying.

6. When going to a restaurant, take along your favorite kitchen ware i.e. blender, coffee maker, and while holding it close, ask for a child's seat and a place setting for it at the table.

7. When sitting in a waiting room, sit next to a stranger and fidget uncomfortably and then repeatedly say, "I need to go to the bathroom," and don't get up. Just continue over and over.

8. While at a public show, instead of clapping, just start snapping both fingers simultaneously.

9. For an entire day, don’t speak to anyone, but instead only communicate with your own made up sign language.

10. Instead of walking everywhere, run...down the hall at work, the grocery store, you get the drift, just run.

Random: The REAL scoop

So a I did a post a few days ago with some old pictures of my mom's friend from the early 1950's. I thought I sort of knew the story behind them but after reading it, my mom wrote me back with more accurate details. So here's there real scoop on these photos, in my mom's words with a tidbit of history too. Thanks mom!

"The cowgirl is my friend Janet at about age 13. That's my shadow as I was taking the pictures. It was taken in Big Bend, North Dakota where we lived when our fathers worked on the Garrison Dam project. The dam was being built by the United States Corps of Engineers. That is when we attended Riverdale school, a military base school. Our fathers were civilian workers on the dam. I believe that Riverdale has long since become a community and is no longer associated with the military."

Sailing On...

I took this picture from The Fire Island Ferry several years ago. If you've never been to Fire Island, I highly recommend it. It's a great getaway that you can only access by water taxi. It's just sand, boardwalks and beach homes and it's the perfect place for rest and relaxation. It's hard to believe that the gorgeous getaway is only a few hours of a drive, and short water taxi ride from the bustling city of New York. When I looked at this photo, I found it to be very symbolic, where from afar; the sailboats appear to sail so effortless and free in the wind. But as you look closer, there's a crew on board each one of those sail boats with strategic responsibilities, focus and hard work. They are all determined to reach the finish line before the rest, but not without a plan and a mapped out course to get there. It's also very similar in the way that we sometimes view the lives of others, that can appear to just always come together so easily. But when you take a closer look, there's a drive and determination that is combined with focus and movement. Those qualities eventually get them to their destination in attaining their dreams. Their reward is that of an elevated happiness, and from that we sometimes forget about the long roads that they have traveled, or the oceans they have sailed.

“There's no thrill in easy sailing when the skies are clear and blue, there's no joy in merely doing things which any one can do. But there is some satisfaction that is mighty sweet to take, when you reach a destination that you never thought you'd make…”

Fun With Birds?

I took this short video while waiting for the ferry from Bainbridge Island in Washington State. There was a huge flock of birds flying in circles and it's cool to watch. It looks like a big dark blob moving through the sky. You can see how huge the flock really is toward the end of the video. Hopefully you won't mind my sound effects, as I was kind of intrigued in the moment.

My Favorites

So every once in awhile I come across a really great product and I have to tell all my girl friends about it. This is one of them. I love, love, love it. It's called Essential 24. http://www.bestskinoil.com/

Inside Château de Beynac

I was asked the question if you can actually go inside the castle. Yes you can, and I did. This first picture is from inside looking out a window over the Dordogne countryside.

Cooking Area

Chapel

Main Hall

Random

Don't even ask...

Château de Beynac

Château de Beynac, located in Beynac, France. It's about 200 miles south of Paris. The 12th century fortress was built by barons over a sheer cliff to discourage assaults. The castle looks down over the winding, gorgeous Dordogne River below. One of the most beautiful places that I've ever seen.

The castle overlooks the original village which is lined by a cobblestone road, and winds all the way down to the river. Residents and vacationers occupy the village homes. One of the buildings serves as the only hotel, which has the coolest pool surrounded by the lush countryside and beautiful views.

This is actually a church, overlooking the river. It sits on top of the cliff adjacent to the Chateau De Beynac, and still holds services to this day.

Me walking along the Dordogne River.