Edition 171 Tuesday 29th January 2013
Hi,Happy Birthday Auckland, crikey what a way to celebrate with three outstanding days of glorious weather. I hope those ‘Jafa’s’ amongst you got out and enjoyed some of the great places, spaces and events in the city over the Anniversary weekend. We marked the 150th birthday weekend by mixing in a couple of compulsory picnics at Matua Vineyard with some exciting DIY activity! Not happy with our original paint colour we mixed a couple of colours together to come up with a winner (as yet nameless but hanging in there on the test wall) . If the test colour on the test wall makes it to next weekend she is all on for young and old as the kitchen and lounge will be transformed! Not content with some creative paint mixing we tore up all the old carpet to reveal a wooden pine floor screaming for exposure and recognition….you know the drill you start out just going to have a look and end up sitting in the middle of 400 square metres pile of carpet and underlay J Blooming satisfying though I must say although now I am thinking where to now Mr DIY?? Watch this space !
My ‘Be Better’ goal for 2013 is already biting me in the bottom, of course I told Christine proudly all about it and now I get regular reminders when things are obviously not heading in the ‘better’ direction!!!.......hmmmm action not words …..good though ehh no way I am going to get away with the grumpy old man act in 2013!!
Hey, here is a hot tip in preparation for heading off in the car on a sunny day….the other night I packed my lunch for the next day and placed it in the fridge. I didn’t realise but I had put my sunglasses in the cooler bag as well!!...they were chilled to perfection as I did battle with the sunstrike on the Nor Western motorway……I put them in my lunch bag every night now….you heard it here first !! you can trust the Joneses to set the trends yet again in 2013 !!
I hope you had a good weekend relaxing with family and friends, have a great week. Cheers Jonesey.
Harry and the Hendersons love the new flooring much better for dog sliding & dog hockey!
“Being ‘Upbeat’ is a conscious decision we must make everyday” Green Gorilla Boy!
I have struggled to get back into work rhythm this year . Last week was a classic example I started Monday with all the best intentions however never really got out of first gear. I felt flat and unmotivated in fact anything but ‘Upbeat’. It was tough going but I got there in the end.
Luckily I was scheduled to speak at our our first Toastmasters meeting first thing Tuesday morning.
WOW what a difference that made to the way I started the day in contrast to the day before. I was motivated and energised, I hit the ground running and kept the same pace all day. I was bullet proof and unbeatable all day. It wasn’t tough it was fun and I didn’t want it to end……..What a contrast !!!!!
Certainly reminded me that being enthusiastic and passionate is a daily decision we all have to make no matter who we are. It is easy to slip into a flat patch, a rut that we seemingly cant motiovate ourselves out of. That is why we need things like Toastmasters, network groups, clubs, organisations that allow us to mix with like minded people who motivate and inspire each other to succeed.
It is tough going doing this alone but we must develop a pattern that sees us starting each day the same way to ensure we are programmed to be our own catalyst for success rather than a catalyst for procrastination and failure or mediocrity.
As I have said on numerous occasions, being ‘Upbeat’ doesn’t happen naturally it is a discipline that takes a daily focus and lots of hard work. Yes there will be those flat days but that is when we know we are human and that we must seek the help, guidance and motivation of others to stay on track.I am proud to acknowledge without this help I would definitely struggle.Thanks fellow Toastmasters !!
“Pain is inevitable, but misery is optional.” Tim Hansel
