Doing things alone is a good thing!

There are several things I have learned over the years in setting expectations for how things turn out. 

1. You can over-plan! You spend so much time planning the event that when it actually happens, it's melodramatic and a let-down. The event occurs in a flash, and there's no time to enjoy it, especially if you're constantly watching to see that everything happens as planned. I suppose part of the event is the planning, but that's not me. I like to wing things! 
2. You can do anything alone! I do not know why doing things alone has such a stigma. It used to be worse, and things like sitting in a restaurant alone were considered very uncool. You had no friends, you were a loser, or whatever. I've since learned that if I didn't bite the bullet and do some things alone, I would never experience many things. So, I have zero issues doing things alone. The first thing DH said when I told him what I was doing was - "and you're going by yourself?" YES, I AM!!!
3. I don't hold high expectations of having the best time of my life. I'm going for an experience, and if it doesn't turn out exactly how I want, I'll go with the flow. It doesn't mean I'll accept shoddy, but I'm OK if I have to be flexible. Being flexible is easier when you're alone.  

Having said that, I had no plans for my birthday until last week. Then I decided that I would go to the mall. I know—big, exciting plans! But one of my favorite "treat" restaurants is at the mall. There is this amazing creperie, and they serve sweet and savory crepes. The place is usually packed at lunchtime, so I went a bit early, and I had a sweet crepe for lunch! As well as a hot chocolate, and it was delicious. 

My apple pie crepe

And my hot chocolate

I sat out in the small seating area in the hallway rather than in the restaurant, and lo and behold, someone I knew stopped by, and we had a grand chat! I rarely meet someone I know at the mall, so I think that was part of the plan!!!

Wait—after I came back from walking the girls, I sat outside on the front patio and drank my tea. I drink the Yogi teas, which are nice. 

Yogi tea

Until several months ago, I did not realize they had a quote attached to each tea bag. Look at my quote from yesterday. 

The quote of the day

I thought that was pretty fitting for me at this moment. I may be one year older, but that doesn't mean I'm still not trying to improve myself. I want to be a better person, learn everything I can about what interests me, and continue my journey. 

Speaking of that, have you ever watched those decluttering shows and then wondered what it looks like a month later, a year later? Did the person learn anything to maintain the neat and tidy in their house? Or was it just a one-time thing, and they returned to their old ways? 

I know this is a very small thing, but every time I open my utensil drawer and see this, I get excited. 

My utensil drawer is still neat and tidy

It didn't take very long to organize, and it cost very little to get the three trays. It keeps the utensils that we use handy, so it's easy to put them away and even easier to find what you want. I know there are things in that drawer that we do not use (like, who needs six spatulas?), but they are neat and tidy, so they can stay. 

The utensils that went into the other drawer are never used or very rarely used, and we don't have to shuffle through a ton of stuff to find what we want. Just a simple task can make a huge difference in how you live your life!

Anyway, once I finished my brunch, I had some shopping to do. I also stopped at the optometrist to get my sunglasses adjusted. They were so stretched and bent out of shape that I'm surprised they stayed on my head. 

I even found some new shirts, and they were all on sale. One shop, so that was good. I have an upcoming filming session, and I really didn't have anything appropriate, but I found three tops, some of which can be embellished with either embroidery or stitching, so I've got to put my thinking cap on. 

And then I went to the movie theatre. Yep—all of this is in the same mall. Rather than me driving around to various places, I'm happy to change. My optometrist moved out of the mall (he was in the Lens Crafters store), but in order to go to his new location, I'd have to drive. I hadn't been with him long, so I have no qualms about switching to the new optometrist. So, I have an appointment for later this week. 

I had a gift card for the theatre, so I got popcorn and a drink and paid for the movie with the card. With enough money left for another movie!

Ready for the movie!

All the seats in this theatre are comfy reclining ones, which I think is changing in most theatres these days. Anyway, it was a great movie, and I was happy. I saw Twisters, in case you wanted to know what I saw!!!

Reclining seats are the best at the theatre!

After that, I walked to the thrift store to pick up a book I'd been eyeing—it was seniors' day, after all. At first, I thought the book was gone, but nope—it was still there. And what's the deal at the thrift store? I'm into the Dowdle brand of puzzles these days, but they charge the SAME price for the 300-piece puzzle as the 1000-piece? That's not right!! 

It was a tad HOT yesterday, but that's OK. You just walk on the shady side of the street. All my purchases fit into my little shopping bag, and I was good. 

Let's say I was NOT hungry for the rest of the day. I didn't eat much, but that bag of popcorn, which I couldn't finish, filled me up!!! 

I sat in the backyard, reading my book, and chatted with my aunt, who also shares my birthday. 

Here's a couple of animal pictures to share. This is Lexi at her grooming station in the forest. Three more brush fulls of hair, and she still looks a mess. And the pile in the forest gets bigger. Where are the squirrels and rabbits? They should be stealing this fur to make their nests, but of course, on a hot day like yesterday, they wouldn't be thinking about winter at all.  

Lexi getting her daily groom

And this picture would freak me out. My future son-in-law took this picture from a window in his house. He has company!! He lives near the Capilano Bridge in North Vancouver. But if you look at the map, there are very heavily treed areas right at the city's border, so it's not surprising. This is the second time he's shared photos of bears in the backyard. I guess when Little Bear goes to visit, he only goes in the backyard with supervision!!! 

Hello friend!

I did no other sewing or quilting, other than the little bit I accomplished in the morning. I didn't even touch the applique!! But I have a few extra days built into that schedule, so I'm not worried. It was nice to take a day off! 

Yesterday was the day I was supposed to fly home from Spain. Although I still have three weeks blocked in my calendar, I must return to serious work! I have deadlines looming for some stuff. September will be brutal regarding things that must be done and events to attend, and then the quilting classes start back up in October. But all is good!!!

I know some people just can't entertain the thought of doing something alone, but seriously -- if you wait for someone to do the things you want, you may never get a chance to do them! I had the most fantastic day celebrating my birthday, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat! Doing things alone is a GOOD THING --- we need to stop the stigma that this is bad!!! Trust me -- it took a while for me to wrap my head around this one - the thought of eating alone in a restaurant terrified me because I thought it made me look like a loser. Today, I look at people eating alone and call them confident and practical!! 

Tomorrow, we're going to revisit the class situation for the fall!!!

On that note, I'm off to spin class this morning. 

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!!