Snapshot from Along the Broken Road: January 2009

photo of me
i didn't exist this month, i guess. oops!

1) current candle scents: Silver Bells. Christmas Wreath.

2) what i am currently reading: "Faithful" (Stewart O'Nan and Stephen King). "America Alone" (Mark Steyn).

3) newest music i added my playlist: "Broken," by Lifehouse. "Love Song," by Sara Bareilles. "Next Contestant," by Nickelback.

4) movies i saw: Til There Was You. The Patriot. The Wedding Date. Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Gran Torino. Sex and the City: the Movie. The Outlaw Josey Wales. Waitress. 27 Dresses. Righteous Kill.

5) something yummy i made this month: golden crusted pork chops.

6) the last place i ate out: Golden Corral.

7) something that made me cry: 27 Dresses, the Sex & the City movie, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, January 22nd's Private Practice...in a nutshell: hormones.

8) something that made me laugh: being silly. i made myself laugh by being just plain silly. and a good laugh does wonders for the soul.

9) something i looked forward to this month: cooler weather. Winter usually arrives in mid-January here and stays til the end of February.

10) something i am thankful for: that i have so many old family photos.

11) something i want to remember about this month: i read three very good short essays from September's Good Housekeeping magazine: "My Mother's Cure-All," "The Best of the Worst" and "Open Your Heart" -- all very healthy, positive, hopeful mental approaches to dealing with the stresses of our current economic situation: "Comparing her then to my now helps me to appreciate how relative a sense of economic security is, how our monetary mental health is all based on expectations. And how dramatically ours have changed: Although consumption has soared a whopping 45 percent in the past 20 years, the proportion of American citizens reporting they are "very happy" has remained the same--about one-third--since 1957." (My Mother's Cure-All) ... "And here's the happy thing: It just may be that some of the changes and adjustments and paring down demanded by a reversal in fortunes will be more satisfying and fulfilling than what came before." (The Best of the Worst) ... "If the economy is contracting, a human heart can nonetheless continue to expand, finding new opportunities for gratitude, compassion and generosity." (Open Your Heart)

12) a photo i took this month:
i was a little shocked to realize i didn't use my camera at *all* in January. but then i remembered that i was very busy scanning in & organizing old photos to keep them safe.