Thursday Three Archives - Page 3 of 12

Thursday Three

August 27, 2015Samantha Gratton

What a long and interesting week it has been. Hard to sum up, but I’d hate to leave you hanging, so let’s talk about this week’s three.

1. Sometimes you have to say yes and sometimes you have to say no. The more I need to say no, the more I realize I care too much about what people think. Saying yes often looks more adventurous, but saying no (when necessary) looks boring or lame.

2. Writing takes time. Lately, I’ve been really trying to branch out with my writing and have sent off pieces to a few new places. This week a slightly re-worked blog post on Freelancers Union and a guest post about Argentina showed up, while a few other pieces were submitted. I’ve loved the challenge and welcome the opportunity, but have noticed a decline in posts on my own blog. So bear with me as I continue to find the right balance.

3. Change is hard. Some people love change while others say they hate it. In reality, it’s all about context, but regardless of good or bad, change is hard. Transitioning from one thing to another is difficult. You say goodbye to the old and welcome something new. A new job, a new friend, a new routine, a new role, a new home, a new challenge–the new can be exciting and/or terrifying, but it takes a lot of getting used to. Sometimes during that process we either cling too tightly to the old or are too quick to dismiss all that was good about the old in hopes of better embracing the new. Lately, there’s been a lot of change…slow and subtle change, yet simultaneously way too fast and all at once. I’ve felt some resistance, some excitement, and a bit overwhelmed in it all. The best I can do is appreciate the life I’ve had and look forward to what is to come.

Thursday Three

August 20, 2015August 21, 2015Samantha Gratton

Ever want to only talk about happy things? Not to make it sound like I’ve got life figured out or don’t have hard days, because that’s not accurate. Sometimes it’s more fun though to talk about the good and the happy, so today we’re going to do just that. Because really, I’ve had a pretty good week. Nothing crazy or epic, just lots of little enjoyable moments I don’t want to forget.

1. Let’s laugh–a lot. There’s a reason I’m a writer and not a comedian. My timing is terrible. I get so excited or nervous about the punchline that I struggle through the words until the end of the story. But thankfully, there are those people out there who know how to tell a good joke and on Friday we saw one of our favorites, Mr. Jim Gaffigan.

2. Let’s go for a ride. When friends of ours invited us to float down a river for several hours this weekend, there was one clear answer: HECK YES. So I challenge you, go for a ride. Your choice–bicycle, paddleboat, roller coaster, horse or car–but go feel the wind in your hair, breeze on your face…uhh, water on your toes? All I know is that it doesn’t need to be fancy, but it might just be the highlight of your week. (For the record, taking a picture of four tubes all floating in different directions is way harder than it looks.)

3. Let’s live life full of whimsy. I’m borrowing a phrase from Bob Goff, an amazing person and storyteller, who encourages us all to live with whimsy. Well, an opportunity presented itself this week that we just couldn’t pass up. A five-year-old neighbor friend of ours has been on a quest lately to catch a rabbit and even set up a little rabbit incentive by way of carrots and arrows on Sunday. The only reasonable thing to do would be to call every Dollar Store in town in search of what the clerk kept referring to as a “stuffed rabbit” in order to promptly buy it and leave it surrounded by some carrots. Perhaps it’s ridiculous, but I sure had fun with it and I’d like to think the girl and her family did, too (not to mention their friends on Facebook who were getting regular photo updates). We slid under the radar and got to spread a little whimsy, even if just for the day.

This Week’s Three

August 14, 2015Samantha Gratton

Yep, I failed at writing my Thursday Three on Thursday, so this will have to do. It’s been a full week, lots of good and a bit of not-so-good, but by the end of each day, I feel spent and then I realize I can’t do it all.

1. The less you have, the less you lose. There are times we all want more. More feels good and makes us feel like we have more worth and must have accomplished more to acquire more. But living with less means you rely on less, so when something happens it doesn’t carry as great of an impact. This week I got rear-ended so my car is super scratched up (it’s a long story and kind of strange) and our air conditioning went out. The good news is, we don’t have fancy cars, and we don’t own our home. So, the car might just look like that for now. And thankfully, we don’t have to pay for the A/C to get fixed as renters. In the meantime, we were supplied a small window unit to cool our home which might not have cut it, but thankfully we keep our home at a balmy 81 degrees in the summer so we hardly felt a difference.

2. Being active is awesome. I don’t have a gym membership, I don’t have a set fitness routine and I don’t have any shakes to sell. I do try to live an active lifestyle though, so instead of meeting for coffee I might say “let’s go on a walk”, and I’m always up for a bike ride or a game of tennis. This week included all of those things, and I loved every second of it, despite the North Carolina humidity.

3. School supply season is always a little inspirational. I may have spent far too long wandering the aisles of crayons, pencils and erasers this week. I carefully chose a planner and a new notebook and thought of all the days to come. It’s the start of a new season and regardless of how many years it has been since I’ve been a student, I always think of fall as the start of a new year. New pens and planner in hand, I’m ready for it!

Thursday Three

July 30, 2015Samantha Gratton

It’s that time. Time for the weekend to be here and time to look back on the past week. Let’s do it.

1. You are stronger than you think you are. Put that on a cat poster. This week a friend of ours invited us to use his guest pass at a local climbing gym, and it was pretty awesome. I’m short and clumsy, so rock climbing may not be best suited for someone like me, but I went anyway. The majority of the time we were bouldering (read: no ropes), so I was hesitant to get very high or make bold leaps. By the end of the night though I had taken more risks and walked away with pleasantly sore arms and blistered hands as my reward. Worth it.

2. Ask for help anyway. It’s not dumb to ask for help. We all have stressful things happening from time to time and it’s okay (or even good) to ask a friend for help when you need it. Or just to listen. Sometimes listening is more helpful than anything.

3. Reflect a little. Take a quick summary of the things happening in your life. You might be surprised at how much is going your way. There might still be bad and hard and ugly, but it’s important to see life as a whole sometimes and not get bogged down by the details, good or bad. Oh my gosh, and don’t let me tell you how to live your life. These are some of the things I tell myself…and if you want to listen that’s up to you.

Thursday Three

July 23, 2015July 29, 2015Samantha Gratton

This week has been a lot of things. Some weeks you just can’t articulate everything, so here’s three of those things.

1. Writing inspiration. Jon Acuff happened to be in town, and I decided to head on over to the local bookstore to hear what he had to say. A best-selling author of a few books (like Do Over and Quitter), he had a lot of good things to say but was also a pretty normal guy. It’s normal people who often do incredible things…you just have to do it. Sometimes we can get caught up with all of the obstacles, but then we don’t even put the time in to do the work. Start with doing.

2. A celebration of marriage. Weddings such a fun time of celebrating two people who have committed to spend their lives together. The hubby was a groomsman in the wedding this past weekend, so we got all dressed up, enjoyed time with friends and spent some time on the dance floor.

3. A life lesson of sorts. Through a long series of events, my sister lost her keys and therefore left her car unattended for a night over the weekend in a less than safe part of town. It was a bit of a mess to handle, especially when we later found out the car had been broken into. Insurance and AAA came in handy, but it was a long couple of days sorting it all out. I suppose the life lessons being, don’t ever lose your keys, bad things happen and you can’t plan for everything. Then it might start raining. What are you going to do?

Thursday Three

July 16, 2015July 16, 2015Samantha Gratton

It’s been an entire week yet somehow my to-do list is quite long and my to-done list is oh-so short so far. But some weeks you just have to roll with the punches and appreciate what happened, regardless of what was accomplished.

1. Travel adventures. A few months ago, my sister-in-law and I thought it would be fun to take a trip together and this weekend it was finally time. Not only did we go on a bit of a whim, but we went on a serious budget and managed to see Charleston and Savannah for about $150 each (including gas). How? Couchsurfing, lots of snacks and prioritizing. It can be done.

2. Free food. Oh yeah, it was Chick-fil-A Day this week…you know, the day you dress like a cow for some free chicken. While some may refer to it as trading your dignity for a free sandwich, I say it was totally worth it. We even managed to come for both lunch and dinner (which they totally encouraged). Delicious.

3. Quality time. Maybe I’m behind in all sorts of things or my house is far from tidy, but I’ve gotten to spend some great quality time with the people in my life lately. To me, time is invaluable, and I’ve loved every minute of the time well spent with friends this past week. I’ll take it!

Thursday Three

July 10, 2015July 10, 2015Samantha Gratton

This was a week of simply being, so I’ve got three things to be more often.

1. Be willing. Some opportunities are there, you just have to be willing to take them. This is definitely one of those, you-never-know-what-could-happen kind of things…but for real…you never know. I took a chance this week on a few of those opportunities. Not sure how they’ll turn out, but so glad to know that I went for it anyway. Sometimes it’s just a matter of extending the invitation, hitting the submit button or doing that thing you said you were going to do ages ago.

2. Be thoughtful. Who is someone that wants to hear from you right now? Who can you be a good friend to or how can you brighten someone’s day?

3. Be spontaneous. I’m a big planner so spontaneity is something I enjoy but not something that always happens. The highlight of my week by far was this impromptu, dressed up date night. When you realize you have an old Groupon, and you’re pretty hungry at 9 o’clock on a Sunday night, it’s suddenly an adventure.

Thursday Three

July 2, 2015Samantha Gratton

What a week. One of these days I’ll get around to telling all of the crazy ups and downs and twists and turns, but for now, let’s just focus on all my favorite things.

1. Summer fun. That just about sums it up when I say we were spectators at a soapbox derby last weekend. Other words to describe it: ridiculous, crazy, awesome and bizarre.

2. Celebrations with friends. I’ve got some great people in my life, and I was so thrilled that a few of them joined me in celebrating another year at my favorite neighborhood restaurant. This doesn’t even cover everyone who came or everyone who I consider great in my life.

3. Birthday surprises. Yep, I’m slightly older and had a birthday. I did some writing and ate pizza, but otherwise didn’t expect much else after that gathering with friends earlier in the week. Turns out I was wrong, and there was a bit more sweetness in store from this little friend of mine.

Thursday Three

June 25, 2015Samantha Gratton

Oh, what a week it has been. It’s been one of those weeks when it feels like the sky is falling, but then you look around and realize you have a lot of really awesome people in your life to help you through it. This week has been hard and good all at once. Crazy, right?

1. Don’t give up. Don’t give up on your dreams. Don’t give up on your budget (especially not when car shopping). Don’t give up on the people in your life. Don’t give up on yourself.

2. Have fun. Should be a no-brainer, right? Sometimes I forget to have fun and just stress instead. This week’s fun consisted of a nerf gun war, lots of baby monkey sing-alongs and dancing in the rain (literally, because I am that fun–just ask the neighbors).

3. Choose your adventure. While a bit cheesy sounding (and also the name of a book series and at one point the marketing slogan at my alma mater), it carries some truth. The situations and the choices you are presented may not always be what you want, but you probably do have a choice in how to respond and in determining what you value most. Our couchsurfers this weekend were at the beginning of a road trip across the country to discover their next location and occupations. It’s always good to remember that you have more than one option on how to live this life, so choose what you want it to be about.

Thursday Three

June 18, 2015Samantha Gratton

It’s been real hot out there this week. (They say it’s always good to start any piece of writing with ~~a definition from the dictionary~~, ~~a famous quote~~ some small talk about the weather.) But for real, this week has been in the high 90s around here, and I believe it even crossed over into triple digits a few times. Obviously, that means it’s the perfect time to…

1. Attend outdoor concerts. We were the lucky folks who managed to squeeze in two amazing concerts in the same week. Mumford and Sons and Brandi Carlile both played outstanding shows that made us come home feeling inspired and ready to work on music of our own.

2. Help friends move. I mean, I would have picked last week or maybe sometime in October if given the option, but glad to help regardless of the weather. I love having the opportunity to show up and support my friends, even if sadly, I won’t get to see them for awhile now. Transitions like these bring great opportunity for growth though, and I am really excited for whatever is next in their lives.

3. Replace your car. Please, just go now. That way, you can avoid the unfortunate situation that we are in. Our dear, 20-year-old Honda broke down on the highway (you guessed it, in the middle of one of those wicked hot days), so we sold it to the mechanic for a whopping $300. It’s been a bit of a rough week with one car while trying to find another one that fits our criteria (not because we’re fancy people, but because we are incredibly practical people).

On a completely serious (and unrelated) note, I want to say that today, my heart is heavy. There are a lot of terrible things in the world and the shooting in Charleston, SC, is certainly among them. I don’t have all the words to say, other than to please pray for that community and continue to love your neighbors.