Just Fun – Page 8 – The Misadventures of MHC

Steal My Sunshine

May 17, 2013May 17, 2013 by maryhelenc, posted in Dorkdom, Just Fun, My New Life As Me

This is my ode to my one true love (that isn’t writing): the sun.

I love the sun! It’s so warm & happy & everything is better when it happens on a sunny day. My personal slice of Heaven is listening to my eclectic blend of music while walking in the happy sunny sun. However, I do not tan. My father’s death from melanoma requires me to be more sun conscious (also, the only thing paler than me is a corpse. I burn way too easily. The sun & I have a complex relationship).

But my joy whenever I see the sun reminds me that every day can be made exponentially better through simple pleasures. Mine is molten magma in the sky & the soothing vocals of David Cook & Matt Nathanson (today). I’m sure you have one too, whether its that glass of wine after a long day, watching puppies play, et al. I couldn’t imagine living a life where simple little joys couldn’t make me happy. Maybe I’m just easily amused.

However, everyone should find their small joy & enjoy it today. Revel in life’s smallest pleasures, for they’re so much easier to find & plentiful.

As for me, I’ll be enjoying the sunshine.

Wordless Wednesday: There You Go

April 24, 2013April 26, 2013 by maryhelenc, posted in ASH General, Just Fun, My New Life As Me

In honour of my last day classes, here is an actual page from my last research paper. Enjoy!

Your Heart is a Muscle

April 21, 2013May 30, 2013 by maryhelenc, posted in Celebrity Fluff, Just Fun, Mommydom, My New Life As Me, Relationships, Seriously WTF?, Television

So…apparently I was the only person who watched that train wreck “Ready for Love” as it’s already been cancelled.

Naturally, my mind went to “Oh. Em. Gee. Now how will I know if the annoying matchmakers help the meterosexual douchebags find the ~~person they love for 20 minutes~~ soulmate?!”

Okay, it was more like “If all it took for dating show to be cancelled was for me to watch it, then I’m coming for the Bachelor!”

I have a point, I promise.

I guess people are sick of the phoniness that these shows exhibit. There’s nothing authentic about them, except for maybe the two girls who flew across country to win back the loves of their lives, which was pretty ballsy. Those interactions were genuine, with real conflict and real emotions and the question of whether the decision to leave was the right or wrong thing, and it would have been interesting to see how the one panned out.

It reminded me of something my dad said to me about how people sometimes prefer to be right over being happy. We would rather live in a mess we created than ever admit that it wasn’t the right thing. Sometimes, there is no “right” but more a gray area and wrong. Maybe you’re not sure what the right thing is, but you know your actions are “wrong.” It doesn’t feel right and you’ve messed up but you also can’t swallow that pride or leverage that you have to just admit it to anyone, let alone yourself. Sometimes people say that if it didn’t work the first time, or the second, then why will it work the third? Sometimes people don’t try; they merely escape. Maybe you saw a long term future and it scared you because your last attempt at one of those failed. Maybe you weren’t ready for something, but now that you are, you realize you effed up and you apply to appear on a trainwreck with a bunch of crazy blonde chicks. That’s when you see the failed relationships, the ex creeping (which I’ve already mentioned being creepy HERE) and the general dissatisfaction with your life. But the desire to be “right” and not risk giving your love the power of holding your actions over you outweighs it all and you end up going round in circles…or on a reality show with Bill and Giuliana Rancic.

My foster father always reminded me that being right will never make you happy; being happy does. So, I’m the first one to back down (unless of course I am absolutely certain that I am right, or it is the right thing, or the only solution. Then I’m a freaking pitbull and won’t back down and won’t give up and will endure ridiculous amounts of hurt because I think it’s worth it) because truthfully, the relationship with the friend, partner, etc. brings happiness, which means more than being right. Sometimes, you need to admit you’re dumb, immature, you screwed up, eat that crow because it’s not about being “right” because it’s what’s deterring you from being truly happy. My foster dad always told me that sometimes in life it’s not about winning a battle, it’s about knowing when you need to surrender, something that I remind myself when I pick my battles with my daughters (there isa reason that my 6yo doesn’t own a matching pair of socks), admitting I was wrong in a friendship, or taking a zero on an assignment because I didn’t get it finished. Sometimes, it’s not about who was right, it’s about how everyone was wrong and how to make it right.

So, I guess the burning question now is what I’ll watch after I watch my pretend husband Adam Levine on the Voice. Perhaps there is some kind of Adam Levine network? I should call my provider and find out.

Little Lion Man

April 16, 2013April 16, 2013 by maryhelenc, posted in Just Fun, Quotable Quotes and Potpourri

First of all, I would like to thank everyone for their kind messages as of late. It’s nice to know that everyone has felt dark or low & wondered how to get through. But, I’ve also found that, while popular, my blog has been dark. I am not generally a dark person, so I’m injecting some much needed light…

…with Jesus & cat memes.

Whether its a message board I frequent, or a class that requires computers, I break up tension by telling people they need Jesus & cat memes. Why? I dunno, it’s funny. I’m not one who likes anger or tension, so I will generally try to lighten moods by cracking jokes or through something ridiculous. I’ll talk about something that makes me happy instead of the blah thing. The world is full of horrible things, so sometimes we need a break from those things to enjoy a laugh or a smile.

I guess sometimes we need to remember that life needs to be fun too. It’s not all seriousness all of the time & we can break up the seriousness of life with some much needed silliness (I mentioned this HERE, complete with an adorable photo of me being very mature).

So, while we must tackle the seriousness, we could always use a break. Dr. Seuss always said “Fun is good,” so lets take a moment each day to do something fun, something silly & laugh, because tomorrow may require seriousness again.

Until then, I leave you with this cat meme (Jesus sold separately).

Time Marches On

April 7, 2013April 7, 2013 by maryhelenc, posted in Just Fun, Mommydom, Relationships

One thing I enjoy most about being a Mom is that I get to watch people who are completely innocent of the world’s bull crappery enjoy life.

It also makes me wonder sometimes exactly what moment do we lose that and become cynical?

This week my six year old daughter endured what should be the most horrifying moment of childhood (to this point); she must wear glasses. At first she was upset, because she thought that meant she was going blind. Then, once I convinced her that she wasn’t going blind and all of the cool evil geniuses wear glasses, she was excited.

My mom started asking questions, such as “what if the other kids make fun of her?” to which she replied “I’ll lock them in the dungeon.” When I pointed out we actually have no dungeon, she replied “Then I don’t care. If people don’t like my super cool glasses, then why should I? I like my new glasses. They’re pink.” I remember when I got my first pair of reading glasses. I was older, but I was so afraid that people would make fun of me. In fact, it wasn’t until late last year that I started wearing them on a regular basis because my youngest told me I looked pretty with them on. Most people I know panicked at the idea of their first pair of glasses, but she didn’t care. She also didn’t care when she walked out the door for school in her neon orange skirt, purple shirt, army green leggings, her staple mismatched socks and a side ponytail. She thought she looked awesome, so she looked awesome.

It’s funny how we all claim we don’t care what people think, but we do secretly. We all (as adults) crave approval from our peers, whether it’s at work, amongst our friends, at school, etc. We dress according to what is “in” and we behave the way people tell us and we pretend that we’re comfortable in our own skin. My good friend and fellow blogger @ the Gleason Table & I were discussing how much nicer the world would be if we were like kids, who just picked whatever we wanted out of the drawer to wear, said what we were thinking as we thought it and solved every problem with a hug and a juice box. It would be much nicer than long and drawn out arguments, hurtful passive aggression or the feeling of not fitting in because we own the wrong pants.

Maybe we should all channel our six year old selves and own who we are, dress ridiculously, be honest about our mistakes, and offer hugs and juice boxes when things go badly. In a sense, we should all smile and learn to love the glasses.

Drive By

March 24, 2013March 24, 2013 by maryhelenc, posted in ASH Blog Projects, ASH Photography, Just Fun, My New Life As Me

So…I fed these today. I only cried once. I did scream a lot. But…phobia conquered…sort of.

The 2013 30 Day Blog Challenge: Day 27

March 4, 2013March 12, 2013 by maryhelenc, posted in ASH Blog Projects, Just Fun, My New Life As Me

Day 27: Your favourite body part and why.

I’m a girl, so I’m generally in a love hate relationship with my body.

I do however, love my eyes. I think they stand out. The only make up I wear is on my eyes and my eyeshadow collection is HUGE. My trunk of makeup is actually just all eyeshadow, mascara and eyeliner. That’s it.

I know it doesn't show them off super well, but it's the most recent photo of me. — I know it doesn’t show them off super well, but it’s the most recent photo of me.

I think they’re pretty and expressive. It’s also the first body part I notice on a man too. If you have dark brown or green eyes, chances are I’m already checking out the rest of you. There’s just something about the eyes; you can tell when someone is lying, you can tell how they feel. There is nothing more wonderful than looking @ someone and just feeling the love in their eyes.

I guess my fascination with someone’s eyes makes me love mine so much. I like the colour, I like that they’re big with long lashes and I like that people always compliment them. So, I play them up so they are the focal point of my body.

The 2013 30 Day Blog Challenge: Day 15

February 24, 2013 by maryhelenc, posted in ASH Blog Projects, Dorkdom, Just Fun, Mommydom

Day 15: if you could be any animal, what would you be & why?

Not a goose, that’s for damn sure.

I dunno. I’ve never thought about it.

I guess a penguin, because they are one of the few animals that experience love, raise their babies to adulthood & mate for life. All things that sound lovely.

Everyone

February 19, 2013March 15, 2013 by maryhelenc, posted in ASH Blog Projects, ASH General, ASH Photography, Celebrity Fluff, Dorkdom, Just Fun, My New Life As Me

Look what we did!

I know it might seem super lame to you, but to me this is a big deal.

When I started ASH Multimedia two years ago, it was originally a companion site for my former husband’s photography. He couldn’t generate interest in his photos, so he thought my writing would help. When we split up, I was unsure of what to do with it, so my dearest friend Drew suggested we work on it together…so we did.

For a good long time, I only had one fan. I adored my one fan. They meant everything to me because they were reading what I wrote. Then, more of you came and slowly, this little blog turned into something successful…sort of.

I write a lot of words. It’s all I do. Sometimes I write about my life and how I screw it up almost every second of every day. Sometimes I struggle to be a single mom. Sometimes I look at the latest mess I’ve gotten into. Sometimes, I just have an idea & want to share it with y’all. Maybe you’ve had the same thought and felt like someone got it. Maybe you thought I was an idiot. Regardless, you read this blog. Sometimes, you read it more than once. Some of you are regulars. So, whether you’re that one fan that kept me motivated for two years or someone who just popped in; thank you so much for reading my kooky little words. It may not seem like much to you, but it means everything in the entire world to me. No matter how successful I become as a writer or a person, I’ll always remember the day my little project reached this milestone and smile.

So, thanks for making my project something. Thanks for stopping by. I’ll keep writing if you’ll keep coming. If I’ve ever said anything that helped you, made you think or anything other than I’m an idiot, thanks. The one thing I hope you take into the next 10k is this: If you find that something I say makes you think of yourself, a moment in time or whatever, maybe there’s a reason. Maybe there’s something to it that you need to apply to your own life. We could all use a little guidance, and if in any way made you think, then I did my job as a writer well.

-MHC