Deer/Cat – Watch today’s top amazing videos here

As I was preparing this post, a friend emailed this video to me. Based on the blog I’m showcasing, I found it very fitting

When watching this video, make sure you turn on the sound. Watching it in full screen will give you the best effect (I apologize for the ads – they are part of the embedded code) If you’re unable to watch the video here, it can also be viewed on YouTube – titled Deer and Cat.

Now, on to the blog.

What I enjoy about this author’s writings is the positive message, as well as the beautiful photos.

When she registered her blog in the Blog Registry she wrote,

I have a blog called ********, which I invite you to visit. Each post consists of a beautiful [photo] and a brief observation about some of life’s distractions, and how to see them, not as annoying interruptions, but as beautiful breaks in a busy life….

And each post does just that. As I look at the photos she shares, my thoughts drift to different place and time. Indeed, a wonderful distraction in the middle of harried days.

From her post titled, 14 Unusual Ways To Make Your Own Happy Moments she writes,

Rather than drowning us in a constant state of bliss, happiness comes to us in moments, those sweet commas in the long soliloquy of life. Did you know that happiness lies within you rather than somewhere on the outside?

One of my favorites from her list is:

3. Become a “guerrilla gardener.” This consists of mixing damp soil and wildflower seeds and rolling them into tennis ball size. Whenever you see a vacant spot in your area that could use some beautifying, toss a few “seed bombs” into the area. Nature will do the rest. This is also a great way to prevent soil erosion on sloped areas.

Just think. If everyone did that how beautiful our towns and countrysides could become. Needless to say, I’m partial to wildflowers.

In Learning To Embrace The Uniqueness In Others, she shares,

Can you imagine, though, how little we would grow if we embraced only those who mirrored us? And how boring the world would be.

Imagine a world where only one skill or one way of living existed and all that would be missing because of that, all that would go undone

Yes, indeed. The world would be very boring if were all alike. Embracing our differences and learning from others makes each of us a more rounded individual.

Without further ado, I’d like to introduce Karen Chaffee of A Beautiful Distraction.

Karen, welcome to the Blogging Without A Blog community.

It’s a joy to have you here and an honor to showcase your blog.

Enjoy your reign.

.

P.S. Karen can also be found on her blog titled Building A Positive Life, as well as on Twitter.

When I landed on this blog a few weeks ago, I assumed it was an older blog as the archives has posts dating back to 2006.

But when the author commented the other day and said she was celebrating her third month of blogging.

I was confused, so I made time to dig through her archives. It wasn’t until I read the post, Meet My New Baby Bloggling that I understood.

You see, she had been writing and posting privately, but hadn’t let the world see her work until the end of March (2009).

One of the first things that drew me into this blog was something I found in her header. There is a page titled, “Desiderata”. “Desiderata” has been a favorite poem of mine for many years. To this day, I have a copy of it on my bulletin board as a gentle reminder of how I’d like to live my life.

It starts out,

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others,
even to the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.

To read the rest of it, just click on the link to her page.

The author of this blog weaves stories of her everyday life with lessons from which we all can benefit and identify with. In her post titled, Guest House she starts off by explaining how she was ill and hadn’t been able to post as often as she wanted. She then goes on to share,

Writing helps the soul breathe, but blogging is a different beast. It makes me feel like a madwoman most days, swinging between highs of connection, learning, new friendships and self expression and lows of paranoia, frustration, exhaustion and queasiness at the underlying hypocrisy and unmentioned stalking and plunder that goes on in the shadows.

Isn’t that a great description of how blogging can affect us? We all have our highs and lows, days of frustration and mixed emotions.

When I read her post titled, How to Harness the Power of Authenticity in Your Writing and Your Life, the last part hit home for me. She wrote,

Be brave, be vulnerable.

Be brave enough to explore the depths, to find a way out and shine a light for others to find theirs. Don’t be scared to live, to hold out your heart in both hands like a trembling bird and say “Here I am, love me as I am or leave me.” Be more afraid to die with your song still in you, to cheat your loved ones, your readers and the world of the greatest gift you have to give. You.

What a true statement. As much as us bloggers question what our readers want from us, this is the perfect reminder all they want is US. They want us to be authentic and to share our soul. By doing so, we open our hearts and show others our originality.

On that note, I’ll break the suspense and share the blog I’m showcasing this week.

Please join me in welcoming Janice of Sharing The Journey to the Blogging Without A Blog community.

Welcome Janice. It’s a pleasure to have you here and it is a joy to read your words.

Enjoy your reign!

.

P.S. While there, don’t forget to download Janice’s free ebook, “Coaching Moments”

I never know how or where I’ll find the next blog to showcase on Wednesdays.

Sometimes it’s someone who commented here, a link left in the Blog Registry, a recommendation from another blogger, or someone who has been blogging for awhile and I feel they need more recognition.

The blog I’m showcasing today started from a tweet – on Twitter.

The tweet said,

Chk out my new post “My Top Five Favorite Pranks to Play on People I Love.” http://bit.ly/67zj4

Curiousity got the best of me so I clicked on the link.

As I read this author’s favorite pranks, I laughed out loud. Then I watched the video and even now, as I think about it, I still laugh.

Laughter is the best medicine, isn’t it?

As I was preparing this post, I started to dig deeper into his archives. What a pleasant surprise.

You see, based on his online “handle”, the name of his blog and the post I had read, I assumed most of his blog was humor.

I was wrong.

When he detailed a conversation he had with a young gal on a bus, I found his words to be so captivating, I felt I was on the same bus ride.  Here’s a sampling from the post titled, Time Interrupted: The Girl On The Bus

Neither of us has to say anything about how it feels to wake up to the truth: the agonizing disappointment and emptiness; the heart racing to keep ahead of the fear that stalks it; the aching aloneness that squeezes the chest and grips the throat, threatening to stop the breath.

I won’t ruin it for you and say what the article is about, but it is a fabulous read.

Mixed throughout his blog are samplings of his humor. In his post titled Five Benefits Of Mononucleosis he starts out by saying,

First the Acute Phase, which feels like

1. You just finished drinking battery acid during a hallucinogenic funk
2. Your head is being forced through the birth canal of a tse-tse fly
3. Every muscle fiber has been flattened like a pancake under a Mack truck then loaded up with valium, minus any pain-relieving benefits
4. You have no stomach.

What an imagination and command of descriptions.

Another post worth mentioning is named, My Son, My Hero. In this post he shares a lesson his young son taught him.

Then there’s his Twitter profile where he describes himself as,

Average Joe just trying to enjoy life’s simple moments. Self-therapy thru a nutty blog. Hoping to help raise funds for autism, mental health & cancer research.

I could go on talking about this author, but since we don’t have time for that, without further ado, I would like to introduce you to Chris of Numb Nuggets.

Welcome to the Blogging Without A Blog community, Chris.

Enjoy your reign. Enjoy your blogging journey.

.

As a footnote, I suggest all women as well as guys who have women in their lives, read the series titled, Momma’s Littlest Angel – How A Baby Girl Saved Her Mother’s Life – Part 1, Part II, and Part III.