June 2010
2 posts
New Blog
To all my Tumblr followers out there… I’m thinking about switching blog domains. I’ve set up a new blog on Wordpress and I’m trying it out. So for the next little while, I will be posting on Wordpress and not Tumblr. I might be back. I might not. Still undecided. In the meantime, my new blog address is vmatheny.wordpress.com. Come visit me. =)
One of Those Days...
I haven’t actually blogged anything in a while, other than book reviews and quotes. Nothing about the happenings of our life, nothing deep and thoughtful. Well, this isn’t necessarily one of those deep and thoughtful ones, but it’s just about life.
Today was one of those days. Work was crazy. I felt like everyone was out to see how if they could push my buttons and get a...
May 2010
9 posts
1 tag
Mystically Wired
Mystically Wired: Exploring New Realms in Prayer
By: Ken Wilson
Prayer has always been one of my weaknesses. For some reason it has always been difficult for me. I’m not sure why that is. I’ve never done a whole lot of study on it, and I don’t have near as much personal experience with it as I should.
Having said that, I wasn’t sure how much of this book to take...
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
– [Theodore Roosevelt]
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt
The Heart Mender
The Heart Mender
by Andy Andrews
This book was nothing like anything I’ve ever read before. The format is very unique: almost like a fiction and a non-fiction rolled into one, but I’m not going to expound on that anymore, because I don’t want to ruin it for you. =)
The book begins in first person from the author’s point of view, which is a bit unorthodox for the type of...
My Moms
Happy Mother’s Day! Since I can’t be with either my mom or my mother-in-law today, I figured I would post something for both of them. =)
Growing up, I never really thought much about what my mother-in-law would be like. I guess most girls never do. They think more about the husband. Society has such a negative view of in-laws that it’s pretty discouraging to think about when...
“The self is not something ready-made, but something in continuous formation...”
– John Dewey
“Friendship is love with understanding.”
– Ancient Proverb
Pickles
This was our dialogue after I saw that my mother-in-law had been to a restaurant and tried pickled octopus. We agreed that it sounded extremely gross.
Me: Nothing should be pickled except cucumbers.
Casey: And pickles....Oh yeah...Oops!
lol
Classic Wisdom...
Classic Wisdom for the Professional Life
Edited by: Bryan Curtis
For a long time, I have been a collector of quotes. So when I saw a quote book up for review, I was pretty excited. =)
This book is a compilation of a few hundred quotes all centered around the concept of success. Topics included are making money, having integrity, doing what you love, leading, taking advantage of opportunities,...
April 2010
22 posts
“The human spirit needs to accomplish, to achieve, to triumph to be happy.”
– Ben Stein
“Only one thing has to change for us to know happiness in our lives: where we...”
– -Greg Anderson
It’s funny that I should come across this quote today. It’s exactly what I needed to hear.
Prayer Request
Please pray for the Ricketts family. Sarena Ricketts was pregnant and due in August. A couple of weeks ago, she was put on bed rest with complications. Shortly afterwards, they had to do an emergency C-section. Baby Dakota weighed 12 oz and was 10 inches long. He is gaining weight and doing much better as far as I know. Sarena had a massive stroke Monday night. She passed away last night. She left...
“When you rise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be...”
– Marcus Aurelius
“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy,...”
– Dalai Lama
The Joys of Retail...
The other day, I was working outside in the garden center. Now, I know absolutely nothing about flowers. I know you put them in the ground and they’re pretty. And they need water. That’s about it. lol. So when people come up asking me if we have a certain type of flower, I immediately start looking for someone who knows what they’re talking about.
To make this one particular...
“Courage is doing what you’re afraid to do. There can be no courage unless...”
– Eddie Rickenbacher
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but...”
– Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Basketball Shoes
Dick’s Sporting Goods has a replacement plan for their shoes. For less than $9, you can add a year of coverage on top of the one month that the store provides. So if the shoes break or whatever, you can get them replaced for free.
A few years ago, I would have thought this was ridiculous. The only reason I ever bought new tennis shoes is because my feet outgrew my old ones or because the...
“Welcome every morning with a smile. Look on the new day as another special gift...”
– -Og Mandino
Another quote from The Greatest Salesman in the World. Read it. It’s awesome.
1 tag
Everyone Communicates, Few Connect
Everyone Communicates, Few Connect
By John C. Maxwell
I will admit that it took me a while to get through this book. I’ve had it for a month and a half, when most of the other books I’ve reviewed have only taken me a week or two. I’m not sure why, but I just couldn’t get into this one as much as the other ones.
I have heard John Maxwell speak live before, and he is...
Cutest. Babies. Ever. →
This is precious. And it definitely doesn’t help keep the baby fever at bay. lol =)
“Happiness comes of the capacity to feel deeply, to enjoy simply, to think...”
– Thomas Jefferson
1 tag
Rosetta Stone ROCKS!
The people who came up with that software are geniuses. End of story. Geniuses. Freed has offered the Rosetta Stone software to all of their students. I was technically a graduate when they started offering it, but the library guy was cool. When he saw how excited I was about it when Micah told me, he said he would set me up an account too.
For a while though, they didn’t have Portuguese....
Sold!
I sold my first kitchen today! Cabinets AND countertops. I was pretty excited about it. The couple was very easy to work with. They came in with measurements, knew they wanted stock cabinets, and I drew it up for them. Easy sneezy. I was kinda nervous b/c we were out of a few pieces they needed, but they were fine w/it. I went ahead and sold it to them and told them I would let them know as soon...
1 tag
February/March Books
So I know I said that every month I was going to post a list of the books I had read that month. (For those of you who don’t know, my goal for 2010 is to read 25 new books.) And I missed February. And I’m sorry. But that doesn’t mean I wasn’t reading. Actually, the reason I didn’t post is because I only finished one book in the month of February…but at the end...
“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it’s time to pause...”
– Mark Twain
March 2010
30 posts
“There are too many people walking around like Clark Kent because they...”
– I don’t remember who said this, but I really like it.
WatchMy secret sister at church included a new toy for Zeus in my gift that I got today. He wasn’t quite sure how to react to it. It was like he wanted to play with it, but something about it was offensive. I don’t know if it smelled funny of what. But he would pounce at it, not actually touch it, and then jump back. He did this for several minutes. It was quite hilarious. He eventually got...
One day I'll learn...
…not to watch a movie after I have read and liked the book. I’m always disappointed. If I watch the movie first before I read the book, I can like both. But if I read the book first, there is a very slim chance I’ll like the movie.
I’m watching Angels and Demons right now. I’m about 10 minutes into the movie and I am not happy. I’ve read the book...
“The most valuable thing you can make is a mistake—you can’t learn...”
– Adam Osborne
“Everyone has a talent. What is rare is the courage to follow the talent to the...”
– Erica Jong
“You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don’t try.”
– Beverly Sills
Hogging the Bed
I meant to blog this last week, but just forgot about it, so I'm doing it now. Here's the scene. Micah has come to Dyersburg to stay with me for a night while I'm up here training. We were in bed, about to turn the lights off. I was laying the middle of our king-sized bed.
Micah: You planning on scooting over?
Val: Nope.
Micah: Why not?!
Val: Because you still have the exact same amount of room that you normally have in our little queen bed.
Micah: *blank stare*
Val: I win.
(long pause)
Micah: Just scoot over.
Customer Service FAIL
So Micah and I went to Target tonight. I was looking for an Easter dress (which I found, btw). I grabbed several that I wanted to try on and walked to the fitting room. As I’m walking up, the fitting room attendant turns to us and says (with a bit of an attitude):
“We ask that you put the clothes back on the hangers and take them back out to the floor for yourself.”
They...
“You must take action now that will move you towards your goals. Develop a sense...”
– Les Brown
“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your...”
– Henry Ford
“I will greet this day with love in my heart. For this is the greatest secret of...”
– -Og Mandino, The Greatest Salesman in the World
I received this quote on a daily email that I get, and I immediately recognized it. This book is one of my favorites in the genre of self-improvement. It’s a very quick and easy read…I finished it in like, 3 hours or so. (Now the following...
Are you a "Disciple...but..."?
We’ve been going through a Wednesday night series in the month of March to go along with our Gospel Meeting that starts Sunday. (Shameless plug! You should come! More info in another post soon!) Our series is titled “At the Cross” and each Wednesday we have studied the cross from the perspective of a different person who was there. Last week was Joseph of Arimathea. Chuck Morris...
I'm back!
So I’m back after a short hiatus from blogging. And I’m very sorry I left you, but it was with good reason. Here’s what has been going on:
Last week, we had a MASSIVE reset at work. 2 aisles. 38 bays. Old stuff in. New stuff out. Lots of displays. Product moving completely from one aisle to another. MASSIVE. Because of the magnitude of the project, we had to work on it when the...
Gossip is a.....good thing??
I was sitting in the break room today at work. Since I’m in a different store this week for training, I don’t know anyone else who may also be sitting around talking in the break room. I’m not one to just sit and stare at the wall on my break. I usually occupy myself by reading. Ask anyone at my store. That’s just what I do. I read and eat Cheerios (no milk) for breakfast....
“Live in such a way that you would not be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town...”
– -Will Rogers
I thought this was cute. =)
“What we do in life echoes in eternity.”
– -Maximus, from the movie Gladiator.
Awesome quote from an awesome movie. One of my favs. =) 