THE AMUSED LIFE BLOG

I love bread. Carbs are, in fact, my favorite food group. Beyond that, I believe in body-positivity and health-at-any-size. I don't want anyone in this world to buy into weight loss/exercise obsessions because they feel pressure from any external sources including family, friends, media, society and beyond. So understand that my decision to make some personal changes in my life is in no way because I feel un-loved, under-valued or most of all un-desirable. I love myself most days and the days that I'm angry or sad with myself are built around mental health struggles with depression and anxiety and are actually in no-way related to my feelings about my appearance or my sense of self worth. Alas, I'm 46 as I type this. My mother passed away suddenly at the young age of 58 for reasons I cannot 100% confirm because we didn't have an autopsy (a decision I wish now we had pursued), for multiple reasons.  I'm making some decisions to just focus on reducing my body size a b...

Today I started one of my few artistic/pop-culture challenges for myself of the new year. I'm calling it the Best Picture A-Z Challenge: watch an Academy Award Best Picture Winner for each letter of the alphabet plus a numerical entry. Oh and add in one catch...it has to be a film that I have NOT yet seen. So I build my list and then if there's more than one choice I offer up a vote to suggest which one to watch.  This first challenge is the letter A and so here were my choices: AND after the votes were in, my "A" challenge became to watch: 1960 ‧ Romance/Comedy ‧ 2h 5m Insurance worker C.C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) lends his Upper West Side apartment to company bosses to use for extramarital affairs. When his manager Mr. Sheldrake (Fred MacMurray) begins using Baxter's apartment in exchange for promoting him, Baxter is disappointed to learn that Sheldrake's mistress i s Fran Kubelik (Shirley MacLaine), the elevator girl at work whom Baxter is interested in himsel...

If this 2020 taught me anything, it's that what happens in my four walls are 1001% my responsibility. I've allowed overworking and over-engaging in distractions to keep me from participating in some small way from bringing the holidays into my home. I mean we do the traditional food basics on the high-holy-holidays of Thanksgiving and such; but no decoration. No specific traditions. Something that I realize now was a gift my mother gave me as a child. What I mean by that is, the creation of household traditions and decorating for a holiday gave this growing girl a sense of wonder. Holidays were extra special because the person I loved so much made them special. The traditions were steeped in family and home. The sense of love was so real and now reflecting on everything I and others have survived in this year, it's time for me to forge some beloved traditions of my own.  I think I didn't do this sooner because I've been silently grieving the reality that having a ch...

 AKA Feasting and Firsts...Happy Thanksgiving! FIND For most of you, and I'm assuming mostly those in the South, I have only ever had pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving. Sometimes we'd add in some French Silk pie but always pumpkin pie. However this year my significant other decided to go rogue and instead change things up. Introducing...SWEET POTATO PIE. Now this may not be momentous to any of you, but for me; it would be my first time ever to eat that pie type. I was nervous. Mostly because I'm slow to warm up to sweet potatoes. Mostly I think due to the fact that I'm a savory over sweet person on every level; but I was taking the cooking off for Thanksgiving this year so whatever the cook wants, the cook gets. I requested a sliver. I was so worried I wouldn't like it. I was WRONG. I think now I perhaps love it even more than pumpkin pie and so new tradition has been born for the family. New pie...and it's sweet potato pie with extra creamy thick whipped cream.  Y U ...

I woke up today very early. My significant other and I have a young puppy so that's part of the life at this time. Disturbed sleep. I woke up and just thought well, it's Thanksgiving, let's just be thankful today. I was in a good frame of mind. I had made the decision to just be present today as much as possible. But...in the wee small hours of the morning my always present depression and anxiety had other plans. I went to message a friend of mine. I connect a lot on Facebook so I went into messenger to just let her know I was thinking about her and I couldn't find her. At first I didn't worry, I figured that she and I were both struggling with the election stress and maybe she just went dark for a bit. I get that. I understand taking the mental health break if need be. Alas, she didn't just go dark.  Upon investigation I came to understand that I had a friend in real life that I care about deeply. I would try hard to check on her and send Erik over with various...

This episode of Authentically You we introduce you to the incredible human being, comedian and voice-artist soon to be that is JENN SNYDER, who is actively helping to keep us a little more sane by being exactly who she is and sharing her brand of humor with the world. Let's connect! RATED R FOR LANGUAGE Learn More Here: Jenn Snyder Website www.jennsnydercomedy.com Jenn Snyder Facebook https://www.facebook.com/jenn.snyder.9 Jenn Snyder Instagram https://www.instagram.com/Jesterjenn13/ Jenn Snyder Twitter https://twitter.com/JesterJenn13

Today's Spiritual Sunday presented me with a childhood friend requesting a card pull...of course, I would do anything from people who are important to me and I'm honored to do so. So I meditated on her and the blessings that we've reconnected through the positive aspects of Facebook and this is her card pull.  PLAYFULNESS The playfulness card reminds us of our childhood, when we were more free from worries about any impending doom. We built sandcastles in the sand without worrying when the next wave would come and destroy our creations. We remember a time when we knew and realized that life was more of a game than we realized and we chose to life it unashamed without thinking of what anyone else thought.  When this card shows up in your world, it's a sign. It symbolizes that you are ready for something refreshing to come into your life and your world. Something is on the horizon and you are prepared to face it with innocence, joy and clarity...when you proceed in that m...

Each Sunday, I am going to put to use my Master's in Pastoral Counseling and Divinity to good use and actually open myself up to helping others who just want either one of the things I am good at. Reading Tarot (I'll get to your judgement on this in a second), and Prayer. Now before you get all high and mighty on me. Yes, I have my roots planted firmly in my Lutheran upbringing as the parables and storyline I connect with most as a human in my faith. However to say I'm 100% Lutheran is inaccurate. In every way, I am truly more Unitarian Universalist and that knowledge came from my years of learning in a Catholic-Founded graduate school known as LaSalle University.  In my first class towards my master's degree, I remember stepping outside and calling my mother on break. "Mom, I'm not okay and I don't like this."  What's wrong? "Well they want you to actually really think about your faith in this class, like break it down and understand what...

Plasma. No, not a character from Star Wars. The plasma that exists inside our bodies...or more specifically our blood. For those unfamiliar, let me give you some more details. " What is Plasma  in Blood?  Plasma  is the liquid portion of blood. About 55%  of our  blood is  plasma , and the remaining 45% are red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets that are suspended  in the plasma .  Plasma  is about 92% water." 1 2 It's the part of our bodies that doesn't require a black market to sell, because there are options to sell it legally in plasma centers probably in every major and minor city in America. In fact you can make a decent amount of "not so quick cash" in your first few donations where afterwards the price does go down for what you exchange. Is it blood money? I mean in a roundabout way yes.  You go into a plasma center, you read about all the potential restrictions and the potential risks of donating. You learn why your pl...

  This episode of Authentically You we introduce you to the petite financial powerhouse that is DAVETT JONES, who changed her future by taking the opportunities that were presented to her. You can too. Let's connect! Learn More Here: Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/thevisionvault Website https://www.facebook.com/thevisionvault