Self Help and Inspiration...................A blog post which will lead to many more blog posts .......................

Hello my little Easter Eggs,

I have been wanting to talk about self help and inspiration. I am always looking for inspiration in life, ways to improve myself, ways to feel more appreciative about life. Especially since I have anxiety and depression. I have decided that only I can help myself get better. Maybe I can help you, or at least point you in a better direction.

For me, the health care system (mental health system) has failed me, and meds have not worked. Trust me, I will get more into that later. Realizing you have a problem is difficult in and of itself, but after a diagnosis, getting the system to care about you and be on your side is an uphill battle and a constant struggle. That deserves posts of its own.

You ever read testimonials about workshops or books where people say that "it changed their lives'? That they were a completely new person after reading that one book or taking that one class ? Or that they prayed to God, and God just answered their prayers ? That God just gave them what they were asking for ? Or that they just practiced the law of attraction and got what they wanted ?? It was that simple !

"I took a Tony Robins workshop and walked on fire" or "I read the book The Power of Now, and am free of all of my negative thoughts" or "I just prayed to God and he provided my dream man" How many times have you heard your friends tell you that ? Or maybe you have read all the testimonials on Facebook or on Amazon ? Where tons of people claim these products/workshops work and why isn't the same happening for me ?

Yes, I have read all these testimonials, but no progress ever came quickly for me. For me to change my thought patterns or habits, I have had to do a lot of work on myself and put in many hours. In fact, things usually got much worse for me before they got better. No one ever told me that until much later, so I spent a lot of time thinking I was marked for extra punishment.

Things have gotten better for me in general, but my progress happened very slowly and the good thing about that is that it can be likened to building a solid foundation. Maybe it takes longer for solid results to be seen, but once the foundation is in place, you can build a house and nothing can knock it down.

I have a lot more to say, I will consider this post an outline for more posts to come...............

Back ! I will be making my blog rounds soon !

What's up my little spring chickens ?

Happy first week of Spring ! Miss me ?

I miss blogging so much, and I intend to get back into it ! A lot has happened since I last blogged here in October 2013. I have given up television, which includes my horrible addiction to reality TV which has consumed hours of my time, which means I will have more time to blog. Giving up my tv addiction was real tough in the beginning, but after the first 3 months, I forgot about it and feel I am better without it.

Since last time I blogged..........

I moved..... again ! My landlady sold her place and I moved into a new neighborhood by downtown San Jose around Thanksgiving time.

I had a birthday in November.

I went to Miami and met a fellow blogger, Illy ! That was so much fun !

My blog turned ten years old ! And I didn't even come her to acknowledge it. I let it quietly pass........

I will be using this blog to of course talk about whatever I want, when I want, but also to reach out to others about anxiety and depression, the lack of resources available to those of us with mental health issues, and what does and doesn't work for me.

Okay, Ciaosies for now !

Besitos !

I'm back to impart wisdom on the masses via my blog...........................

How are you my little gum drops ? Miss me ?

I so miss blogging, I really do, it weighs on my soul when I go extended periods of time without writing, but with working long hours and other obligations it is so easy to get lazy and watch the boob tube instead.

So what have you all been up to lately ? This has been quite a year for me, especially family-wise. My grandfather won an award for his architectural geniusness (if that is even a word) back in February, and my brother got married last month. Pretty much all of our side of the family drove/flew out to send him off into nuptial bliss.

My brother's wedding wedding was very special because I only have one brother, and although we rarely ever talk or hang out, he will always be my little brother and I love him a lot. I was also a bridesmaid and walked my dad down the aisle to his seat. Usually in weddings I rarely know anyone, but this time, I knew almost everyone and my family from both sides met for the first time. My mother's side all lives in Austria and my father's side all lives here in the US, so it took many years and my brother to get married, but it finally happened.

It was special, because what almost everyone was to my brother, they were to me, and I would be seeing the same people again if I get married.

Other than that, I can tell you that I have been in therapy for a year now. I really do want to start writing more about my battle with anxiety and depression and my decision to feel all of my emotions without medication. I can't tell you how difficult it has been, and how slow the progress is (so slow that it's hard to see progress sometimes), but a year later I am starting to feel grateful.

Okay, I must go take on the day now. Besitos :)

Francy Pants

Bonjour my little French Hens..........................

Guess what ? I went to Paris ! I got back a couple of weeks ago. I was only there for a week. Not only that, but I was sick the entire trip, starting from the moment I got off the plane until a week AFTER I got back. The weather was rainy about 95% of the time. Those two factors plus jetlag made getting out of bed and doing things really difficult. However, I managed to still have a nice week because I met a ton of people. I met distant family, friends through my FBFF (French Best Friend Forever) and I couchsurfed. I had high hopes of seeing all the things every tourist wants to see, but I simply couldn't because I was just too sick, tired and jetlagged to trek through rainy weather to stand in line to see art or a statue. But I did stay with French natives in their homes, and met a lot of French people. If you are a tourist, it is difficult to meet locals, so I feel that I was lucky to have met the people that I did.

It has been so long since I have blogged, and I noticed that most of the blogging community on here that used to be so tight is now virtually gone. It really makes me sad. It's so easy to get sucked into social media like Facebook, especially when for me, that is how I stay in contact with my family. But at the same time, blogging makes me feel better, like I have recorded a piece of my life to read later.

Anywhooters, I better go to bed. Besitos !

Tidbits of whatever I feel like writing about...........

Hello There My Little Birdies !

Miss me ? I miss blogging, I really do ! But you know what ? I am a total Facebook whore, and I love trashy television shows. Kinda takes away from the time I could be using to blog. I love watching vapid made-up people fight on TV. I always get a laugh at celebrities/reality stars hiding behind their charities and manipulating people into doing things in the name of charity, a charity that probably doesn't even exist, or the money didn't even go to the cause.

I have missed writing. Writing soothes my soul. I've had this blog for nine years now. I started it while I was in my last year of college, before I lived in Spain, before I went back to school to be a paralegal, it has been with me through tons of shitty retail jobs. When I started writing, I had just started learning bellydance. I am a completely different person than when I started writing here.  And before Facebook came along I was consistent in writing here.

And it felt good. It was never my goal to get a ton of readers, but what I did get was people who could identify with me and relate to me. For the first year, I had no comments in my posts. I didn't care. I just kept writing. Eventually more people would find me and write. And it has been really nice to find others who may live completely different lives than I do, but still identify with me as a person and relate to my feelings and ideas.

That is all for now. I will have to come back later and write more. I will make my bloggy rounds soon and say hello !