Love Quotes for February – Tzu
27
02, 2019
25
02, 2019
What’s a Happiness Habit?
I recently read a blog about happiness and habits. The blog’s conclusion: happiness is an automatic response based on habits you establish.
That got me thinking. What makes people happy?
This 1970s embroidery sampler that hangs in my hallway offers some ideas.
Thanks to University of California professor Sonja Lyubomirsky there’s a list of things happy people have in common.
1. They devote a great amount of time to their family and friends, nurturing and enjoying those relationships.
2. They are comfortable expressing gratitude for all they have.
3. They are often the first to offer helping hands to coworkers and passersby.
4. They practice optimism when imagining their futures.
5. They savor life’s pleasures and try to live in the present moment.
6. They make physical exercise a weekly and even daily habit.
7. They are deeply committed to lifelong goals and ambitions.
8. The happiest people do have stresses, crises, and even tragedies. Their secret weapon is the poise and strength they show in coping in the face of challenge.
Then I wondered can the things on her list become habits.
In a 2014 TIME article, Eric Barker suggests we schedule most of our life – doctor appointments, hair appointments, Sundays for church. Why not schedule happiness?
Specifically, he proposes we should make happy things part of our routine, part of our schedule and our lives.
I decided to test his theory.
Flowers make me happy. I love when spring blooms burst forth like they are beginning to do in our yard these days.
I decided to establish the habit of keeping a vase of fresh flowers on our kitchen table.
After two months, buying a flower bouquet when I did grocery shopping was habit. My vintage celery server on the kitchen table was always filled with flowers.
And, you know what, making those flowers part of my shopping routine was quite easy.
Now when I come through the backdoor and spot perky blooms or sit down for a meal with cheery flowers, I’m happy. I smile.
Developing a happiness habit worked for me, but then I think Ben Franklin already knew it would.
Franklin proposed the same idea long before Eric Barker wrote his article when he said, “In the beginning, man makes the habit. In the end, habits make the man.”
What makes you happy? Can it become a happiness habit for you?
You can read more of Barker’s article for ideas on happiness habits here.
22
02, 2019
Ducks Take Two
A Blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara
We used to have ducks. We got them when they were ducklings and they all turned out to be male. This was not good for our farm so they went to live in a pond with lots of weeds to eat.
We have ducks again. This time there is a male and a female.
I named them Lucy and Ricky. Lucy has been laying eggs since the day we got her.
We put them in a separate run. They kept escaping which necessitated chasing them around the chicken yard. They get along fine with the chickens so we’ve just let them cohabitate.
I do have to search for the duck eggs among the hen eggs now.
The other problem is they make a mess of the chicken waterers. I’m not sure how they do It but there is now a layer of mud in each chicken waterer every day.
I was really frustrated by this today and then I found a beautiful purple feather. 
Then I found another one.
It turns out Ricky has purple feathers under the black ones.
It makes me smile. I guess we’ll keep these ducks for a while.
20
02, 2019
18
02, 2019
What to do as Winter gives way to Spring
I read in a weather blog recently that “February is not Houston’s prettiest month” and I have to say, how true.
February in Texas is the March of mountain states. Both are the months when Mother Nature is trying to transition to Spring. Skies are gray and the ground is yucky.
In the higher altitudes that means mud and slush as snow melts. You can’t ski, you can’t ATV, you can’t hike without getting dirty. Best thing to do is stay inside and read or do jigsaw puzzles.
Now that we’re back in the Houston area, February is our March. There’s no snow to melt or icy slush on the sidewalks. Nope. We have dreary, overcast days and endless misty, rainy days.
The temperature is like the wildest roller coaster you can imagine. One day will be cold and damp, the next a warm eighty degrees. Or, that can happen all in one day.
It’s not pretty.
What I do when I can’t be outside is the same thing I did in Colorado. I work puzzles.
And, write, of course.
Working on puzzles actually helps me solve stubborn plot problems and characterization issues. A different part of my brain begins to work in the background.
Then, as the pieces of the puzzle come together, that other part of my brain sorts out the plot and characterization issues until everything comes together. By the time the puzzle’s complete, I usually have a solution for my writing dilemma.
On a recent cloudy day that kept spitting rain, which often makes me colder than those sub-zero days in Colorado, I pulled out one of the dozen or so puzzles I’d packed nineteen months ago.
It’s not a new puzzle. I’d worked it before. It’s a winter scene with snow and snowflakes to help me remember how winter was before.
I didn’t get to spread it out on the large puzzle table by a roaring fire like I did in our mountain home. That puzzle table stayed behind because it wouldn’t fit in the smaller space here.
I used a card table and discovered it works just fine for puzzles with a smaller number of pieces, which I really prefer. Those 1,000 piece puzzles, beside being so large, take forever to complete. I get impatient.
How about you? What do you do when the unpretty months between winter and spring arrive in your locale?
13
02, 2019
11
02, 2019
Valentine cards – the legend and origin
As a writer of love stories, February 14th is one of my very favorite holidays. As a history buff, I love the legend and the origin of sending valentine cards. Valentines are the mirror of romance.
The LEGEND
A real priest who lived in 270 A.D., Saint Valentine provided Christians with sacraments outlawed by the Roman Empire such as marriage for soldiers forbidden to marry and baptism.
Around 498 A.D., Pope Gelasius honored Valentinus by declaring February 14th as St. Valentine’s Day. The day now appears in the calendar of saints in the Anglican Communion and the Lutheran Church.
Saint Valentine is said to have cut hearts from parchment, giving them to the soldiers and persecuted Christians to “remind them of God’s love and to encourage them to remain faithful Christians.”
That action, whether fable or real, began the custom of giving cards and reminders to loved ones on February 14.
THE ORIGIN
In spite of technology and ecards retail Valentine card sales continue to grow. It’s estimated that about 145 million Valentine’s Day cards are purchased each year.
Artist Esther Howland (1828–1904) was the first to publish and sell Valentine cards in the United States. Before Esther, the cards were hand made with paper, lace, and ribbons and handwritten poetry. The American Antiquarian Society in Worcester holds a large collection of her valentines.
Most Valentines were mass-produced by machine by the end of the 19th century. Creative people like my friend still send handmade cards.
If you read my blog often, you know I collect vintage holiday post cards. Here are my favorite Valentines. While not as elaborate, I love the way these cards speak of romance.
Valentines express our love to others. Will you send valentines to show someone you love them this Valentine’s Day?
8
02, 2019
A Three Shirt Day
A Blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara
Wednesday was a three-shirt day. It started out fine. I made it through five classes and lunch with a clean shirt.
Then I decided a cold drink from Starbucks sounded great so I mobile ordered, but my card didn’t have enough money. I tried to add money but couldn’t remember my password.
After several attempts I gave up and went home. There was coffee in the fridge so I just added chocolate milk to make my own iced mocha. In the process I splashed coffee down the front of shirt number 1.
I changed shirts and went to the high school to pick up Bill. On the way I dumped coffee down the front of shirt number 2.
Fortunately, the skirt I was wearing had many colors so I was able to find shirt number 3 to match so I could look a little professional as I taught piano lessons.
Today was Happy Hour at Starbucks. I was able to reset my password and reload my card. Bill and I got cherry mochas after school.
I am also happy to report there is no coffee on the front of my shirt today. There may be chicken footprints on the back.
6
02, 2019
4
02, 2019
It’s February and Love is in the Air
Hearts are everywhere. 
Commercials are pushing chocolates, wine, fancy dinners, lingerie, and Hallmark cards. Florists are offering specials on roses. Love songs flow from the airways.
The commercialization bothers me a bit. The statistics stagger me.
The National Retail Federation anticipates $19.6 billion in Valentine expenditures this year, up from $18.2 billion last year. Those 25-34 will be the biggest spenders at an average of $202.76.This year’s survey broke expenditure averages down this way:
$88.98 on their significant other/spouse ($12.1 billion)
$25.29 on other family members such as children or parents ($3.5 billion)
$7.26 on children’s classmates/teachers ($991 million)
$7.19 on friends ($982 million)
$5.50 on pets ($751 million)
$4.79 on co-workers ($654 million)
Cards, flowers, jewelry, and fine dinners are all very romantic gestures to express love on this special day. If you have the funds and want to be extravagant, who am I to stop you? Go for it!
BUT, I’d like to suggest gifts don’t have to involve great expense. Nothing’s better than a homemade Valentine card or a home cooked meal served by candlelight.
Need ideas: Check the February editions of magazines or Pinterest. Most are loaded with DIY ideas for valentine cards and gifts.
More important, remember, it’s the day-to-day things that really show true love.
- A hug
- A back rub after a tiring day
- An affirming text that arrives at the perfect moment
- Holding hands
And, if you’re shy about expressing yourself with words or cards , you can always give a sign for I love you from Signing Savvy.