Letting go

Talk about time warp! Yes, I'm still here. You possibly wondered if I was ever coming back... thanks to those of you that have taken the time to write me and ask if I'm okay.

I've been in a Renovation Time Warp! If you've ever gone through a home renovation, you KNOW exactly what I've been involved in and coping with. Quite honestly, though I can do without the dust and dirt and noise, I have been very hands-on with various aspects of the project and actually feeling alive with the process!

• For days, I painted walls.
• Next, I refinished the doors, mouldings, other woodwork to "like new."
  
• I de-cluttered throughout the entire loft... and now know EVERY single item that's here... only chosen items stayed.
  
  Broken, cracked or non-working items got thrown out.
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• Goodwill was gifted with much excess... how I LOVE letting go.
  
  Being a furniture refinisher by trade, I even rejuvenated all of our antique pieces of furniture.
• I reupholstered a chair and created new pillows.
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• Finally, all the old carpets got replaced, as did the bathroom floor. Luscious, new, light and bright, clean open spaces! I am so happy with the transformation.
  
  The other spill-over project that happened as a result of new carpets coming…
  The big photo gallery wall leading to the loft looked tired, so I quickly painted THAT, too. The best part? I took the 50 or so photos down, bought new frames, printed out a bunch of my recent images and have been assembling that project in the evenings. I can hardly wait to enjoy this dazzling, new photo arrangement as we climb the staircase to the loft from now on.

Here are two of my FAVORITE photos now hang in my home office... they SO inspire me...

(C)2007 Photo by Carolyn Clarke, all rights reserved

(C)2007 Photo by Carolyn Clarke, all rights reserved.

I have been away, but I've been having hands-on fun with my creativity. Renovations are sort of like transformational therapy.

That’s the long and short of my life right now… cleaning, painting, more painting, re-upholstering, refinishing our furniture, getting stuff out of storage, creating and framing photos, more cleaning, fixing dings in the new paint from furniture being moved around, etc. Whew!

I anticipate life will reassume “normality” next week and I'll talk to you much more frequently again.

Warmly, Carolyn

www.life-balance-success.com

Pleasure Time for Health and Happiness

As our Canadian summer nears its final few weeks, many people around us are scrambling to put last-minute vacation plans in place... us included.

One of the greatest drains on people is the continual stressful demand that everyday life and work takes on a person's health and energy. Overload ultimately takes a harmful toll on a person's ability to cope.

One remedy?

Mini time-outs! Even little spaces of time away from the same old routine can put a necessary breathing space back into a person's sense of being. These breaks can help re-establish better balance, improved moods and health recovery... and they can be inexpensive, too. Having had such a busy home renovation summer, all we can afford (in time AND expenses) are two miniature getaways to draw back and replenish before the fall truly arrives.

What Richard and I have learned from our prior experiences is that even 3 or 4 days completely away from the usual hustle and bustle of everyday life can totally rejuvenate the body, mind and spirit again!

So I ask... have you had a break in the last eight weeks? It need not be a full-fledged vacation to feel better... even a few days somewhere close to home can recharge your batteries.

This coming weekend, Richard and I are going to load up our new van and, with our cool travelling cat Diva, we're going to meet several of our friends for a camping adventure in Lund, B.C.! We all met in this same way last year, we had the BEST fun and felt nicely rejuvenated afterwards for it, too.

Take a bit of pleasure time for yourself... you deserve it!

Warmly, Carolyn and Richard, camping

P.S. We'll be putting our BEST YOU eBook on sale for a mere $19.97 beginning August 28th... for six days only... tune into http://www.life-balance-success.com for your copy!