DINNER FOR TWO -- Blogophilia 14.5

Blogophilia week 14.5 - "In Order to Live with Myself"

Bonus Points:
(Hard, 2pts): use the words "Waiter! Check, please."
(Easy, 1pt): mention the Full Moon
Final date to post BLOG: June 2, 2012 - Saturday, midnight Pacific Time
Final date to post ALL GUESSES: June 1, 2012 - Friday, midnight Pacific Time
Please highlight or otherwise point out your bonus points attempts.

Guess correctly who submitted the topic... and a correct guess at who submitted the picture earns you additional points.

Guess correctly the secret "word or phrase" earns a chance at more points. Including the secret word or phrase within your blog content earns an additional point!!

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DINNER FOR TWO

The years have slipped by,
out of my grasp
and into the past.
Gone are those times,
life's canvas ever-changing
with the dawn of each new day,
each moment treasured,
good or bad,
and safely tucked away.

Those years have fallen away,
one by one,
almost unnoticed,
some as though they never were --
those days when I too often
presumed
and assumed
that everyone else was right,
that what I thought
didn't matter at all,
that I needed
everyone else's approval
for what I did,
for what I thought,
for who I was,
for who I would become.

But now the years have passed
and I finally,
after all this time,
have a new best friend
and know exactly who I am.
It's taken a long time,
but the time has finally come,
that I'm comfortable with myself
and I don't want
or need to be
anyone else
but the me I see.
With all my quirks
and all my faults,
I know I'm just like
everyone else,
just human
and just right.

And when I look into the mirror
and see my own blue eyes,
I know I've finally met
and become my own
very best friend.

So tonight,
as the full moon shines
through the window of my heart,
I set a table for two --
candles
and flowers
and music
just so,
for I dine tonight
at this table for two
in the company of the one
who has finally become
her own best friend.

I dine together
with Myself tonight
as we're finally enjoying
each other's company
and able to look each other
right in the eye
in order to live with
my own best friend,
Myself.

In celebration, My Friend,
dinner tonight is on Me
So Waiter, check please!
I'm more than thrilled
to cover this bill.

(c) barbara kausteklis 5-31-12

Written for Blogophilia 14.5/
"In order to live with myself."

http://www.myspace.com/blogophilia/blog/545791392


GUESSES


TOPIC SUBMITTED BY: Sharonlee

IMAGE SUBMITTED BY: Christopher





PHRASES:

Porta-Potty, hitched, Hitch, parking stall, Johnnie on the Spot, toilet trike, toilet tricycle, toilet seat, pit stop, bathroom stall, one-seater, three-wheeler, road commode, locked up, on the line, crossing the line, all the necessities, porcelain throne, bathroom break, tricycle stand, rest stop, restroom break, taking a break, hitching post, biobreak, office on wheels, tipsy, top-heavy, all the all the comforts of home, Clueless in L.A.

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Thanks always for all visits and comments.

RELEASED AND SET FREE

RELEASED AND SET FREE

Doing the best I can
with what I have today,
I try to look beyond
the very next step
to what lies ahead
through tomorrow’s door
as I leave the rest behind
and get it out of my mind.

I’m tucking away
those memories,
putting them back
where they belong,
in treasured boxes created
especially for them;
tiny remnants
and random bits,
leftover pieces
of another day,
another time,
layers of thought,
some half forgotten
and others almost lost,
faint images and muffled words;
I’m leaving them behind.

And finally,
after all these years,
I’m beginning to see
what has burdened my heart
and unsettled my soul.
And so I’ve begun
to put it all away
and let it all go,
released to no longer
get the better of me
as mixed with the ink
that flows through my pen,
it fills up the pages
and once-empty spaces
in lines woven with care.





(c) barbara kausteklis 4-9-12

Written for "Magic Monday/Magic of Life."

"Life is like photography.
You develop from the negatives."

http://www.friendburst.com/blog/85317/magic-life/

Thanks always for your visits and comments.

~barb~

SECOND CHANCES (with photo)

SECOND CHANCES

Each day as I awaken,
before my feet
even touch the floor,
I’m thankful for the day ahead
and another chance to ride
this crazy merry-go-round.

The first time around
I just didn’t notice,
or, rather,
didn’t really
take the time,
to see what was right
there in front of me,
daily gifts to see.

And then
something happened
that caused me
to stop in my tracks;
and I watched in awe
and amazement
how others handled
almost insurmountable pain
and circumstances
with such amazing grace.
No longer could I sit back
and watch my life go by,
taking each day for granted
when others had paid
such a huge and terrible price
for the second chances
they had at life.

And what they went through
forever changed my life.
The small things
taken for granted
became the big things to me.
Priorities shifted
in my life
as their second chances
became my second chance
to look around
and to really see
and appreciate each day
and what I have,
to focus
on what’s important
and to eliminate
what’s not.
And for that lesson
and for what it did
in my life,
I am forever
grateful.

(c) barbara kausteklis 3-22-12

Written for "Thematic Attic/Second Chances."

http://www.friendburst.com/blog/84867/cpc-thematic-attic-thursdaysecond-chance/

Thanks always for finding my pieces 
and for all visits and precious comments.

~barb~

INTO FOCUS (with photo) -- "Magic Monday"

INTO FOCUS

On a day not so very different
from today or any other day
(though now as I look back,
it was rather different, I'd say),
I woke up unexpectedly
to the silence of the fog.
And on this morning,
just a year ago or so,
I found something magical
in that haze as it hugged
the ocean's edge
and me.

All alone with the morning,
the gentle music of the waves
brushing against the shore
and my heart,
I heard a solitary seabird
whose shriek pierced
the silence as memories
of Long Island summers
and early-morning fog
flooded onto the canvas
of this California morning
as I walked along the beach.

I pondered many things
within the solitude
of that morning
a year or so ago
and thought it quite ironic
that so much came into focus
within the magic of the fog.
And as the sea cliffs tossed aside
their morning blanket of white,
I inhaled the peace
that was left behind
as the gentle waves
still caressed the sand
underneath my feet.

(c) barbara kausteklis 3-19-12

Written for CPC "Magic Monday/
Is There Magic in Your Fog?"

http://www.friendburst.com/blog/82202/magic-fog-3-18-2/

Thanks always for your visits and comments.

~barb~

UPON THE VERGE OF SPRING (A Simple Sunday)

Photographer: Angel Love

UPON THE VERGE OF SPRING

Our hearts danced and sang
on the day you were born,
so tiny and precious,
a true miracle of birth.
And when the time came
for you to test those new wings,
we knew you could fly
and do so many wonderful things.
We all knew you were ready,
you and us as well
because you were
and so were we.

And we were glad
to step back
and watch you
spread those wings
as you took
your very first flight.
We watched
as you began to fly
and as you then
began to soar,
your confidence growing
with every passing day.

And on this day
on the verge of Spring
I witness a new life,
a new journey begins,
miracles each one
whether big or small
as I'm reminded by
the tiny bird that sings
that there's so much beauty
that I miss within the chaos
that life often becomes.

And I'm reminded
on this day just before
the arrival of Spring.

(c) barbara kausteklis 3-18-12

Written for CPC "A Simple Sunday/
Baby Wren Singing Spring"
featuring the photography of Angel Love.

http://www.friendburst.com/blog/84636/84636/

Thanks so much for your visits and comments
and to Angel Love for sharing her precious
and darling photo with us.

~barb~

"WINDS OF CHANGE" (with photo)

WINDS OF CHANGE

I can feel the wind
as it blows
through my hair,
here and there
and everywhere,
as it kicks up the sand
and the leaves in the air;
puffy white clouds
so high in the sky
changing to ominous gray
and back to white again
in a springtime March wink.

Nothing is the same
from day to day
and so very often
(and most of the time)
I really like it that way.
Always something different
something new to try
to figure out,
not necessarily
much fun at first
but certainly guaranteed
to pique my curiosity,
to exercise my brain
and keep my interest high.

But I must say
it's not easy
and frustrations abound
as I try very hard
to navigate around,
to find my way
on these blustery
March days
through the maze
and the puzzle
of this adventure
known as life.

So I keep my eyes open
and look for the clues
that others have found
to help make things work
in a way that reduces
frustration and stress
as I try to make note
of what seems to work
(or not)
on this blustery March Day,
an adventure once more
as I continue to find my way.

(c) barbara kausteklis 3-6-12

For CPC "Wonderful Wednesday
Meet and Greet/A Blustery Day."

http://www.friendburst.com/blog/83514/
blustery-day-wednesday-meet-greet-elfwing-cpc/

Thanks always for all visits and comments.

Always such treasures.

~barb~

THROUGH ROUGH SEAS AND CALM (Blogophilia 2.5)

Blogophilia 2.5 Topic: "...on the rocks"

Bonus Points:
(Hard, 2pts): incorporate the 80/20 principle
(Easy, 1pt): mention an Olympic sport which uses heavy metal

Final date to post BLOG: March 10th, 2012 - Saturday, midnight Pacific Time
Final date to post ALL GUESSES: March 9th, 2012 - Friday, midnight Pacific Time

Please highlight or otherwise point out your bonus points attempts.
Guess correctly who submitted the topic... and a correct guess at who submitted the picture earns you additional points!!

Guess correctly the secret "word or phrase" earns a chance at more points. Including the secret word or phrase within your blog content earns an additional point!!

*****************




THROUGH ROUGH SEAS AND CALM

In so many directions
toward hither and yon,
my little ship sets sail
to places far and wide,
Through rough seas and calm,
And it doesn't matter much
that my ship's rather small,
for I'm glad to be sailing
upon these seas at all.

I know that I'll get there
one of these days,
to wherever I'm going,
to those places beyond
and destinations unknown,
setting sail every day
with the best of intentions
of getting it just right,
and making it safely
back to home port
each night.

But not everything
goes exactly the way
I want and know it should
Sometimes they go awry
and I'm left in the lurch
and not knowing quite
which way to turn.
But I must say though,
considering everything
that actually could go wrong,
the 80-20 principle
does seem to apply.
And I'm relieved that
though 80 percent of
the good things that occur
come from only 20 percent
of what could cause them;
Those odds still seem
quite good.

And at those times
when things might appear
to be so very wrong,
the rudder broken,
the compass askew,
rough waters ahead,
I look for that beacon
of light to guide my way.
And once again
our tiny ship sets sail
as we try to avoid avoid
whatever obstacles
that threaten our trip,
navigating choppy seas
and making sure not
to sail off course
and end up on the rocks.

And when things get
just a bit too much,
I imagine how
the Olympics must feel
as I imagine I'm competing
in the hammer throwas I heave the anchor
over the rail.

And I look forward
to calmer waters
as the storm subsides
and my little ship sails
toward the horizon ,
sails billowing in the wind,
my head resting on her bow
and my imagination
embracing the dream
once again.

(c) barbara kausteklis 3-6-12

Written for Blogophilia 2.5/
". . . on the rocks."

http://www.myspace.com/blogophilia/blog/545397254

GUESSES
Topic submitted by: David II

Picture submitted by :David II




Phrases: Follow the leader, leading the pack, the thrill of the hunt, leader of the pack, on his trail, close behind, red riders, red rover-red rover, hound dog, leading the way, my favorite martian, little red riding hood, riders of the purple sage, shock and awe, fearless leader, nose to nose, following the scent, shoulder to shoulder, in hot pursuit, nosy, outfoxed, foxy, fox hunt, fox and hound, thrill of the chase, hounded, beagling, eager beagles, red coats, pack of dogs, neck-and-neck, closing in, hill and dale, wide-eyed, wide-eyed and bushy tailed, hunting season, catching up, tally ho, leading the field, following your nose, ain't nothing but a hound dog, uphill and down, in hot pursuit, riding the range

The Hammer Throw is an Olympic Sport using heavy metal.
"The hammer is a metal ball that is connected to a strong chain. The hammer thrower swings the hammer around him a few times and then lets go."
(From http://www.english-online.at/sports/athletics/track-and-field.htm)

And the 80/20 Rule (Pareto Principle)

The Pareto principle (also known as the 80–20 rule, the law of the vital few, and the principle of factor sparsity) states that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes.
(From Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle)
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Thanks always for your visits and comments

~barb~