A SpotsBug’s World

30 basic principles

Since turning 30 is considered such a milestone in a person’s life, I thought it appropriate to create a list of 30 basic principles or realizations I’ve learned and acquired over the course of mine. 

Some of them have come from observation, some from my own experiences, some are funny, some are serious… but all very important.  Take from them what you will.

In no particular order:

1. Friends are extremely important.

2. Life is entirely too short.

3. You can never replace your family so appreciate and love them – even if it is difficult sometimes.

4. You can’t change anyone but yourself – so if you don’t like something, look in the mirror and try to improve from there.

5. God is the only true thing that will never let you down.

6. Don’t spend more than you make.

7. Forgiving someone is golden.

8. Everything in your life happens in baby steps so don’t try to rush it, you’ll just be left with frustration.

9. Cats multiply entirely too quickly. (For those of you who know me, you will understand this one).

10. Always stop to take in and appreciate the simple things, those are often the best gifts you’ll ever receive.

11. Listen to people older than you, they often have more wisdom whether you are willing to admit it or not.

12. Hard work is the only way to be truly successful.

13. It is through difficulties that we build our character, however it is through prosperity that we demonstrate our character.

14. You can learn something from everyone you meet if you just pay attention.

15. Life isn’t easy, but it’s so worth it.

16. My mom is the best friend I’ll ever have.

17. Boredom is a symptom of laziness.

18. Always keep toilet paper readily available in the house.

19. While it is exciting to travel and see the world, there’s no place like home.

20. Always listen to your gut – your heart is too emotional and your head overthinks everything. 

21. You can never go wrong by giving something of yourself to another.

22. Despite the best planning, sometimes life’s detours allow you to experience the sweetest moments of your life.

23. Turning the stove on does help your effort to boil a pot of water.

24. Lying only leads to consequences. (You can thank my parents for that realization).

25. Loving someone and allowing them to love you back is one of the hardest but most rewarding adventures you’ll ever go on.

26. New cars can be wrecked and damaged just as easily as old cars.

27. Pick your battles.

28. You must do something productive every day.

29. Doing something that will put a smile on another’s face is never a waste.

30. 30 is just a number.

This doesn’t even begin to scrape the surface of thirty years of lessons but hopefully this gives you a small idea of what I’ve learned along the way.  It’s hard to believe I have three decades of life experiences behind me.  A Spot of Thankfulness for today, my 30th birthday, is that I am grateful for the wonderful life I’ve had so far and I’m now looking toward the next thirty in hopes they’ll be the best years of my life.

all about adam

As many of you have read in previous posts, I am a closeted American Idol fan.  My mother has somehow lured me in to watching this show for the past couple of seasons.

Well, I just have to say that this season’s group is impressing me, but none more than a guy by the name of Adam Lambert.  And while his singing has been impressive on the show, I ventured out to YouTube and found some more samples of his tremendous talent.  One that I absolutely fell in love with is a cover of the song I Just Love You by Five for Fighting -- enjoy…

digging out

As I ventured out to my car on Tuesday morning in the icy, snowy mess left over by the snowstorm we experienced Sunday night, I noticed that my car was blocked in by a gigantic iceburg in my driveway.

Obviously we had a little melting the day before and this was just the frozen slush that had fallen from the trunk of my car and piled up on the ground to refreeze in the bitterly cold temperatures of the night.

So here I was, operating on a delayed work schedule in freezing weather trying to figure out how to get my car out of the driveway and onto the road.

I first started the car and tried to back over the two foot pile but with absolutely no luck.  Of course, I don’t know what I was thinking.  I’m just glad I didn’t scratch the car with that experiment. 

Feeling defeated by the laws of physics and nature, into the house I went.  I live in a townhome where fortunately the lawncare is handled for me, so no need for any yard tools, right?  WRONG!  I have no shovel.  I went tearing through the house trying to find something that would help me dismantle the iceburg that was holding my car captive out front.

What I found was a trowel and a broomstick.  Yes this did look like a mix of episodes from MacGyver and I Love Lucy.  Nevertheless I marched out the door armed with my weapons of attack to take on the mighty iceburg. 

As I hacked away inch by inch at this frozen fortress with my broom handle and trusty trowel I started to think about the entertainment I was surely providing for some of my elderly neighbors (it sure did provide my mother much laughter and enjoyment when I told her later in the day).

After about 30 minutes of broom bashing and trowel chipping I finally had removed most of the ice – at least to a level where my car could successfully back over it and allow me to get on to work.

Lesson learned?  This experience has totally confirmed that I would not want to live in a place where I spent every day six months of the year digging out.  I have found a new appreciation for the simple fact that instead of digging out I can (on most days) just hop in the car and go out.  Oh yeah, and I need to purchase a full-size shovel.