Quotes

Three trips in one

/ edebock / 8 Comments

As a lover of words and written language, I’ve long been a collector of quotes. Three years ago, when I read Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by cancer survivor, Suleika Jaouad, I jotted this one down: 

“When we travel, we actually take three trips. There’s the first trip of preparation and anticipation, packing and daydreaming. There’s the trip you’re actually on. And then, there’s the trip you remember. The key is to be present wherever you are right now.”

The concept of three trips in one really resonated with me because in my experience it’s so true! We seldom go on organized tours or use a travel agent because I prefer to do all our travel planning myself. For me, that’s part of the fun of travelling. It’s the trip before the trip. Thankfully, hubby is a great travel companion and he’s almost always happy to go along with whatever I plan.

Here’s another quote that definitely describes us:

While our departure is still a little over a month away, I’m definitely into trip one of our next big travel adventure. Our flights are booked and paid for, accommodations arranged, and necessary visas received. Now, that those essentials have been taken care of, I’m into the fun part which is researching our destinations and planning the things we’ll see and do while we’re there. I’m also starting to think about what I’ll pack.

Where are we going, you ask? I’m not ready to reveal that just yet, but I will tell you that this adventure is part mission trip and part tourist travel. When the time for trip two, the real trip, arrives, I’m sure I’ll have lots to share with you!

Favourite fashion quotes

/ edebock / 2 Comments

LogoFor as long as I can remember, I’ve been a collector of words, jotting down quotations that appeal to me whenever I run across them. Most of my favourite fashion quotes were coined by people in the fashion industry, but the first one listed here was spoken by a Greek philosopher in the 1st century AD. It still rings true today.

“Know first who you are, and then adorn yourself accordingly.”  Epictetus

The others are more current.

“To me, clothing is a form of self-expression – there are hints about who you are in what you wear.”  Marc Jacobs

“Style is a way to say who you are without having to speak.”  Rachel Zoe

“Don’t be into trends. Don’t make fashion own you, but you decide what you are, what you want to express by the way you dress and the way you live.”  Gianni Versace

“Fashion is not necessarily about labels. It’s not about brands. It’s about something else that comes from within you.”  Ralph Lauren

“To me, style is all about expressing your individuality freely and courageously.”   Timothy John Byford

“Real style is never right or wrong. It’s a matter of being yourself on purpose.”  G. Bruce Boyer

As I read through these, I realize that they’re all saying the same thing. I like them because they express my philosophy of style. What we wear is, or should be, an expression of who we are and shouldn’t be dictated by the current trends, the world of advertising, or by what everyone else around us is wearing.

My cabi stylist, Linda Kreamer, once put it this way, “Fashion is fashion, but style is your own.” (I’m sure she didn’t realize that I grabbed my notebook and pen and jotted that down when she said it!)

Our style is what makes us unique. While it’s great to take inspiration from what others are wearing, we each need to put our own stamp on a look. I’ve shared where some of my fashion inspiration comes from here.

There is no one more unique in the fashion world than Iris Apfel. I have a whole collection of quotes just from her, but this one fits well with today’s message.

“When you don’t dress like everybody else, you don’t have to think like everybody else.”  Iris Apfel

t-iris-apfel-bruce-weber-cop

Iris Apfel

Another of my favourite fashion quotes comes from a fictional character.

“You’re never fully dressed without a smile.”  Little Orphan Annie

And then, just for laughs, I can’t resist ending with these two somewhat irreverent fashion quotations.

“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.”  Mark Twain

“Girls do not dress for boys. They dress for themselves and, of course, each other. If girls dressed for boys they’d just walk around naked at all times.”  Betsy Johnson

 

Time flies!

/ edebock / 6 Comments
Melaina's watch

The watch we gave our daughter for Christmas!

I recently read an interesting quotation by inspirational speaker, Michael Altshuler.

The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.

It seemed fitting for this time of year.

Every pilot needs two things, a destination and a flight plan. According to a 2007 study conducted by author and psychologist, Richard Wiseman, only 12% of the participants successfully kept their New Year’s resolutions and achieved their goals! The other 88% knew where they wanted to go but they didn’t get there. Perhaps they didn’t have a flight plan.

Did you make any New Year’s resolutions this year?

Whether your destination is a cleaner house, a lower number on the bathroom scale, a college degree or a new job, you need a plan.

Wiseman suggests six ways to actually keep your New Year’s resolutions:

  • Be specific. Make sure your resolution has a tangible, achievable outcome.
  • Write it down. Outline the small manageable steps you’ll need to take to achieve your goal.
  • Make time. Establish a realistic schedule for accomplishing your goal.
  • Move past doubt. Don’t listen to negative self-talk.
  • Find a supportive partner, someone who will keep you accountable.
  • Be still. Spend time every day doing something to relax and let go of stress.

Sounds like an excellent flight plan to me!

I don’t make New Year’s resolutions but we definitely have a destination this year! China, our next big adventure!

The flight plan is a work in progress. Right now we’re working our way through a lot of little steps while we wait for the documents that we need to apply for our visas to arrive. This morning, I made numerous calls figuring out how to suspend telephone, internet and cable TV service while we’re away and notifying our credit card companies that we’ll be out of the country. Next week we have appointments to make sure our immunizations are up-to-date and will have photos taken for the visa applications.

I’m sure the next few weeks will fly by but step-by-step, we’re getting closer to our destination!