One Year Anniversary!

This post may contain affiliate links, by which I may be financially compensated. See Disclosures. 

Hi everyone! It's positively b.e.e.'s birthday today!! Yay!!

Photo by Bambi Corro on Unsplash

I am sooooo thrilled that this site is ONE YEAR OLD!! 

That is one full year of disrupting negativity, one post at a time! 

🎉 🎉 🎉 🎉 🎉 

I want to thank you all for being a part of it! 

To celebrate (and in lieu of a post tomorrow), let me do something that is typical of my mission statement from one year ago: today I am sharing the story of a person who, to me, is inspiring in some way. By focusing on something inspiring, negativity gets to take a back seat for a while. 

You ready? Let's do it!

⭐⭐⭐



I saw this story on YouTube's 60 Second Docs about a guy named Chuck, the People Walker. 

Here, let's let Chuck introduce himself, shall we? 

I love Chuck's story because it's a great example of how one person is using one of his most basic skills—just walking!—in a way that helps others. Now, he seems to be building a entire business out of it! 


Chuck is based in Los Angeles, a place not really known for its walkers. LA is a vehicle-based city, unlike other cities that incorporate a lot of bikes, busses, and trains. I once heard a joke that Angelenos get their walking in by going to and from their car. It seems that many people in LA get their exercise in gyms, with personal trainers, or hiking, surfing, rollerblading, etc. 


But what about those people (such as myself) who, for one reason or another, just want to take a walk? That's not really a city where people do that, as I observed on a trip there, myself, when I went to take a walk around my hotel and was looked at by hotel staff like I was nuts.


Chuck decided to help people get exercise and companionship by offering his services as a People Walker. He posted tear-off sheets on telephone poles to advertise, and wrote on a T-shirt with sharpie: The People Walker. 


Here's the important part, to me, of what Chuck has to offer: COMPANIONSHIP. We all need that in our lives, and you can tell just by watching him interact that he's a good listener and offers so much more than just walking around LA. 


For one thing, there are people who don't want to walk alone, whether due to safety, medical, or fear reasons, or they're just lonely. Others may not want or may not be able to pay for a personal trainer, and at a price-per-mile that is very low (only $7/mile at the time I read about it), this seems like a very accessible and affordable route to personal wellness.


Chuck seems to be taking the roadblocks away from getting exercise, plus, there's nothing like a nice chat with someone to make the miles go faster while we improve our health, right?


I noticed when I visited The People Walker website that I had to dig around a little to find Chuck's profile. It doesn't seem to be about him at all; just the service offered. He's now got quite a few people working in various locations throughout the Los Angeles area. Pretty cool, Chuck! 


I hope this story inspired you today! Perhaps you're thinking about what you have to offer others, or how you can utilize one of your basic skills to start a business? The sky's the limit, guys! This guy literally just gets dressed in his DIY t-shirt and goes walking! 


Have a fantastic week! And thanks for celebrating positively b.e.e.'s birthday with me by reading about The People Walker. 💛🐝

 ~positively b.e.e. is on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. Follow me there!~

Want to go walking right in your own home? I use these DVDs and love them!

Fortune Cookie Friday: Relax

This post may contain affiliate links, by which I may be financially compensated. See Disclosures. 

Greetings Fortune Cookie Lovers! 

Welcome back to Fortune Cookie Friday!

Just a reminder that as mentioned in last week's post, ALL posts are now occurring on Fridays. As such, Fortune Cookie Friday will happen every other week, starting with today's fortune, which is:

Relax and enjoy yourself.

This is great advice, and I don't know about you guys, but it's pretty timely, for me.

I have a tendency to get myself wrapped up in work, sometimes forgetting to take some R&R. In addition, life has been a bit wonky lately, which can lead me to feeling like I'm always on the go.

But life is all about balance, and we should remember to pad our work and errand activities with quality relaxation from time to time.

I hope that if you're feeling stressed and busy, you'll take this fortune to heart and make an effort to put some of that stuff away for awhile and do something fun. I plan on making sure I relax, too.

Here are some of my favorite ways to relax*:

Coloring

I'm so glad it's not just for kids any more. There are so many nice coloring books out there that are appropriate for adults, and it's gaining popularity! I really love this Secret Garden coloring book. I also have the postcards edition of the same so I can take them on the road with me when I travel, then send the postcard out. There are always coloring books to suit many interests, such as this Game of Thrones coloring book gifted to me in a work holiday exchange. There's even a murder mystery with a cover you can color in yourself, if you want!

I like to use either pencils or markers, especially watercolor pencils. They have a nice, soft lead that blends well, and then you can wet it a little bit with a paintbrush to get a watercolor effect.

If you're not into coloring with actual paper and pencils, did you know there are coloring apps for your tablet? I bet you can find some on the app store for your OS.

Diamond Painting

I've also taken up diamond painting. I'd only heard of it a few months ago, and had no idea what it was, but it's pretty neat! It's basically like cross-stitch, but with less stabbing fabric with a needle. 😄 You get a canvas with printed symbols on it (sometimes the canvas even mimics the DMC thread colors that are used in cross-stitch), and you use a "pen" tool and adhesive to place plastic "diamonds" on the canvas according to the symbol chart. When it's done, you get a completed, shiny picture! The "diamonds" are made of plastic, have many facets, and are either round or square in shape. Here's a photo of my first completed diamond painting, which is the first of a set of 4 mandalas and uses round "diamonds":

Knitting

By now, you probably know I'm a knitter. I recently cast on a Doctor Who scarf. Those who are familiar with the old series know that Tom Baker wore this super-long scarf in his tenure as Doctor Who, and many people have recreated it. Here's mine started:

The yarn is Brown Sheep Nature Spun Worsted, which is nice because it's moth-proof wool and economically priced. I'm using ChiaoGoo Red Lace circular needles, and I store my 12 balls of yarn in this really nice project bag that has enough room for a sweater project, slots and pockets for tools, and a nice shoulder strap.

Crochet

Besides knitting, I also like to crochet. The thing I really like about crochet is how easy it is to fix if you mess up, and you can do some really elegant things with it, not just granny square afghans (which I think is everyone's first introduction to the craft). Right now I'm making a shawl with Baby Blossom Chunky yarn, and the pattern is called The Virus Shawl. There is a great series of video tutorials about it on YouTube, too! Here's how mine is working up:

Walking

Finally, there's nothing like a nice walk to let the stress drift away. Light physical activity is a GREAT way to relax!

Photo by Anika Huizinga on Unsplash

🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷

What do you like to do to relax? Leave me a comment below and tell me! 🐝

Hope you have a great—and relaxing—weekend!

 ~positively b.e.e. is on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. Follow me there!~

*By the way, although I provide links to books, art tools and fiber arts supplies, I always support you buying those things from your local brick and mortar shop if possible. Support small business where you can!

Moving Forward (Housekeeping!)

This post may contain affiliate links, by which I may be financially compensated. See Disclosures. 


Hi everyone! 

As the summer winds down and I start looking at projects coming up, I figured this would be a good time to reevaluate my processes. Let's have a basic housekeeping and informational post, as there will be some changes to how positively b.e.e. will be run and published. Keep reading to find out what you can expect from this point forward. 

I have really been enjoying bringing fun, unique content to you every week as a way to disrupt negativity. And I'm going to keep doing that...I'm just going to be doing it BETTER and MORE CONSISTENTLY.

What does that mean? Better and more consistently, how? Well, for one thing, I'm going to standardize the posting schedule. Previously, I'd been posting at least once per week, but sometimes two or three times per week, and not on any regular day of the week, except for definitely on Fridays with fortune cookies.

By standardizing the schedule, you will always know when new posts hit the site, AND it'll allow me to continue providing top-notch content, motivation, positivity, food for thought, and fun.

When will you post?  FRIDAYS! Every single Friday, you will have a new post. Better yet, if you're a mail list subscriber, you'll have that content delivered straight to your virtual door with a custom email message included.

Your virtual door? (Photo by Christian Stahl on Unsplash)

How do I get those emails delivered straight to my virtual door? When you visited this site, you should have seen a pop-up form inviting you to provide an email address. If you missed the pop-up, click here,  enter your info, and you'll be squared away!

How will the new posting schedule affect your content? Instead of posting sometimes on Mondays, sometimes on other days, and always on Fridays, I'm just going to be posting Fridays. Fortune Cookie Friday posts have happened nearly every Friday since February 2018. At the time, I said I didn't know if they'd happen every Friday, but it turned out to be that way because they are a very popular feature of this blog. But if I'm posting on Fridays, what will happen to the other types of posts that I write?

Have no fear! Starting now, I will post Fortune Cookie Friday topics every other Friday. On the in-between Fridays, you'll see a post with a different inspirational, uplifting, motivational or fun message.

So starting NEXT Friday, August 24th, you'll get a fortune, and the Friday after that, you'll get something else.

There is the chance I'll post on other days if there is a special reason to, such as for holidays and special announcements, but for most weeks, it'll just be on Fridays.

Other news: Since leaving my full-time job and working as a free agent these last few months, I really hit the ground running. I've been busy with editing and proofreading work, speaking about what I do, think, and believe (in person, on video, and on podcasts), writing a book (or three), and gearing up for some really cool collaboration projects in the future. I am working on expanding my offerings both professionally and on this site. If there is anything I can help you solve with your writing, come visit my business site and talk to me about what you need.

If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to reach out. I am  looking forward to continuing all the great work that we started. Whether it's using a fortune cookie to kick off a discussion topic or finding stories from around the world to inspire you and give you hope, I'll make sure we have a lot of fun along the way.

Thank you for joining me on this journey. This work, while going on for nearly 1 year, has really only just begun. :)

Be sure to tell your friends and family all about positively b.e.e.! You can share from here or from any of the social media links, below!

Alright, let's kick this weekend off with a dance! I love the choreography in this one! :)

Have a great weekend! 

~positively b.e.e. is on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. Follow me there!~

Fortune Cookie Friday: New Ideas

This post may contain affiliate links, by which I may be financially compensated. See Disclosures. 


Hello everyone! Welcome back to Fortune Cookie Friday, where I share a fortune cookie as the basis of a discussion topic. Sometimes I open a cookie myself, and sometimes I use fortunes sent in by readers. If you would ever like me to read one of your fortune cookies here, send me a message through the Facebook page with a clear photo, okay?

This week's cookie is one of mine, and I really took it to heart:

The difficulty is not on [sic] coming up [with] new ideas, but to undo the old one.

This reminds me of habits. Have you ever tried to change a habit? Were you successful? How long did it take you to do it?

There are many schools of thought about how long it takes to change a habit. Some places say it's 21 days, and others say differently.

Either way, whatever the deal is with kicking a habit, remember this: our thoughts are habits, too. So are our ways of thinking about life.

Think about it: how often does your brain chew on stuff repetitively? How many times do you find yourself thinking negative things? "I'm having a bad hair day." "I hate my curly hair." "This dress makes me look fat." How many times have you wanted to do something and then immediately shot yourself down or talked yourself out of it? "Oh, I could never do that." "I'm too old to learn how to ski." "I'm not smart enough to go back to school."

When we stay married to these old ways of thinking and allow our headspace to be taken up by all this emotional cruft, where is the room for creativity to bloom? How will you open yourself up to new experiences?

We don't have to live like that.

When we allow for our minds to process our thoughts, emotions and life events in a healthy way and then be clear again, we create room for new thoughts, ideas, or dreams to take root. We also allow our intuition or "sixth sense" to operate more cleanly, guiding us with what we know instead of what we think. We can have new experiences and enjoy life more fully.

Food for thought, huh?

Don't let your thoughts get in the way of fulfilling your potential or following your life's dreams. Keep shooting for your goals, and if you find your mindset is holding you back, work to change the habit, just like any other habit. Let new ideas have a chance to take root.

That new idea can be anything from "Gee, I look good in red after all," to "I'm going to go get my degree even though I'm 60," to "I just had a great idea for an invention!" ... and anything in between.

I'd love to hear your thoughts about this. Leave me a comment, below! 👇

Have a great weekend, all! 🐝💛

 ~positively b.e.e. is on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. Follow me there!~

Want more reading about these topics? Check out the following articles:
Science Alert on breaking habits.
Psychology Today on changing distorted thought patterns.
Forbes on overcoming negative thought patterns.

I'll put some book links below, too!

Fortune Cookie Friday: The Value of Mistakes

This post may contain affiliate links, by which I may be financially compensated. See Disclosures. 


Hello everyone, and Happy Friday! I hope your week has been great!

Today's Fortune Cookie was sent in by a reader, and it's so great:

Mistakes show us what we need to learn.

How true is that?

I think a lot of us fear making a mistake, thinking that it shows we are incompetent, unintelligent, or incapable of learning.

But there is no shame in them! Mistakes can have their value, too.

Take, for instance, learning to ride a bike. Did you consider every time you wobbled or fell over to be a mistake? Were you ashamed by that? Why? You're LEARNING! How else are you going to figure out how to ride if you don't keep trying—and failing—until you eventually get it?

Maybe you're a distance cycler now, or compete in races, or perhaps you just enjoy riding to work and back. You wouldn't have learned how to ride that bike without falling off a few times.

Here's another example: I'm a pretty accomplished knitter, but do you know how many times I failed at knitting, making seemingly insurmountable mistakes and feeling like I'd never get there? My husband likes to joke about how many times needles and yarn would sail across the room in my fits of frustration—but I always picked them back up again, learned from my mistakes, and mastered it. I now know what to do when I drop a stitch, how to go back and fix an error, and create beautiful garments without sweating it. I wouldn't have been able to do that without making the errors or dropping the stitches in the first place.

And then there are the many inventions that were actually the result of mistakes. How many people have pacemakers that are saving their lives? How many of you have heated up leftovers in a microwave? Did you know that these items were created due to mistakes made by their inventors? I didn't, until now!

So here's my takeaway from all of this: stop being so hard on yourself. Next time you make a mistake, use the pain point as a learning point. Put aside shame and embarrassment; there's no point in dwelling. Learn from it, instead! You can also ask yourself if the mistake has value in and of itself—you never know,  you could have just invented the next big thing!

I hope this fortune was insightful for you. I'd love to read your thoughts on it! Leave me a comment below and tell me a mistake that had value to you: what you learned from it, or if it led to a new discovery in your life.

Until next time, b.e.e. peeps...  🐝🌹

 ~positively b.e.e. is on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. Follow me there!~

Sources: Medical Daily / Popular Mechanics

Shake It Off

This post may contain affiliate links, by which I may be financially compensated. See Disclosures. 


Got some minor thing bugging you? 
Got those Hump Day blues?
Having a stressful day?
Did Debbie Downer at the coffee machine this morning ruin your good mood? 

You know what I do if I possibly can?

I just shake it off! 💃

Here's a mid-week dance party, thanks to Taylor Swift!

And hey, don't let the minor stuff in life get under your skin. You can let it get you down, or you can get down and dance. I know which one I'm going to choose today!


~ Beth 🌻🐝

 ~positively b.e.e. is on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. Follow me there!~