Category Archives: Family

The day that changed my life forever

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I can vividly remember this day eight years ago when the world lost an amazing soul. I remember exactly where I was, who I spoke to and what was said, and what occurred for days, weeks, months, and years later. My husband and I were gearing up for an anniversary trip to Florida and I had just left the tanning salon when I heard a voicemail from my uncle requesting that I call him. Considering I do not typically hear from him because over the years we grew apart, I was instantly concerned and immediately called him back.

The words that left my uncle’s mouth changed my life forever. My uncle was calling to inform me that my grandfather who I idolized had lost his battle with cancer. This news jarred my mind, heart, and soul because I had a deep connection and love for my grandfather. I guess I could say that in my mind, my grandfather could beat anything and would live forever, but that childish thought was proven to be very incorrect.

I always had an incredible amount of admiration for my late grandfather because he had a heart of goal and was extremely thoughtful, loving, fair, considerate, and much more. Much of the way my late grandfather was has been instilled into me, which I am and always will be forever thankful for. I do not think there will ever be a way to be as wonderful as he was, but I will never give up trying.

Unfortunately, I think it is normal for people to disappoint others, but my grandfather never once disappointed me. I could always count on this man because he loved his family so purely and deeply. His core values were inspiring, encouraging, motivating, honest, generous, optimistic, and so much more, which I hope to carry with me until I see him again.

Although my grandfather passed away eight years ago, his spirit will live on within my heart and soul for the rest of my life. I know that he is watching over me and even though I cannot hear his voice, I can feel his presence when I am going through difficult times. He has always been a voice of reason and logic, where is rare in the world today. At the lowest and most difficult times during my life, my grandfather’s voice would ring in my ears, and everything became much easier to handle. He even made being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis when I was only 19 years old easier to tolerate.

Every year on my grandfather’s birthday and the day he passed away, I have a difficult time. However, please do not mistake this because I will be forever thankful for the times I had with my grandfather and do feel like his life should be celebrated and I know he would not want me to be sad, but there is still an ache and emptiness in my heart from losing him.

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I think I have mentioned this in a previous post, but my grandfather was a writer for his local newspaper and was an amazing pro-golfer. I do not know the first thing about golf but would love to believe I get my love for writing from my grandfather. The only thing that helps me deal with my emotions, positive or negative is to write about them, which is the reason I am writing about my grandfather on the eight-year anniversary of his death. Writing may not always take the sting of the pain away, but it does help me to let everyone reading this post understand how wonderful and amazing my grandfather was. There will never be a day that I am not thankful to have had James Bucky O’Brien for a grandfather because some of my best qualities were derived from him.

Thank you for visiting my site today. I wish there was a way to express even more how much my grandfather meant to me and how much I hope I am making him proud of who I am today because this is extremely important to me. I do not think I will ever be half the person he was, but I will never give up trying to be the best part of myself I can be. I hope your week is going well and you are staying safe. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!

Always, Alyssa

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~Challenges, Memories & Reflection~

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Happy Tuesday y’all! The good news is, we have one day down and only four to go before the weekend is back! With how hectic and chaotic life can get, it can become easy to get overwhelmed and forget the good things life has to offer. I want to remind you that no matter what challenges we might face each week or maybe daily, it is better to view those challenges as an opportunity for growth. Of course, I believe strongly that every opportunity in life makes us stronger and wiser. Everyone around the world is indeed different, but we all need to think about what helps us process the challenges we have faced and what we learned from those challenges.

Memories can sometimes flood our minds, but do we always remember everything exactly the way they happened? Yes, there are some memories I would much rather forget, but then there are some memories I will cherish forever. I think it might be a great idea to take a little time and write our future self a letter that we can reflect on later in life.

I am not going to ask you to share the letter you write to your future self, but I am going to share somethings you might want to write to yourself. What is a lesson you have learned in the past eighteen months and how did it make you stronger? What was something that happened recently that made you smile on the worst of days? Has there been a situation that has taken place recently that made you proud of who you are now? Is there any advice you would want your future self to remember years down the road? What fears do you have and how have you overcome them?

Reflection is something we all need to be able to do. Reflection means serious thought or consideration, and this is something that can help us to persevere in life. If there is anything we have learned during the past eighteen months of the pandemic, it is life is short and tomorrow is not guaranteed. Life is fragile and we might often take it for granted, but we need to try to never take life, loved ones, health, or anything else meaningful for granted. Even if we are not seeing loved ones or friends regularly, we should do our best to reach out as much as possible. It is amazing what a letter, text, or email can mean to someone we care about.

I will be the first to admit that the workweeks can be demanding, and I forget to stop, and take a break. I put so much time and effort into making sure my husband and cats have everything they need and try doing everything I can at work. The simple things in life that brings me the most joy is watching the way my sweet cats interact with one another and finding creative ways to express myself. The crazy thing is, I sometimes find it hard to know what exactly I want to write about, and this might be because I always have so many random ideas on my mind.

Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you enjoyed what I have written about today and I am looking forward to reading your comments. Considering we have accomplished getting through one day already, I hope your week is going well so far and only gets better as the weekend nears. Whatever you do this week, please do what you can to stay as safe as possible. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!

Always, Alyssa

Ways to Spread Positivity

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Happy Friday eve y’all! Life has been incredibly challenging throughout the world for several years, but at the worst during the past year or so. It is not only due to dealing with COVID difficulties, but we are also seeing a massive increase in violence and racism, at least this has been a tragic issue in the United States. Most of the issues do not even begin to make sense to me because I still believe that COVD should not have reached the level of anguish it has. As for the violence and racism taking place in the states, it is 2021 and it is well past the time for people to grow with the times and end the unnecessary hatred-fueled circumstances.

We all know people who shine with positivity and we enjoy being around these people, while also find these individuals captivating. Many find a peaceful outlook to be effortless, while others may take a little extra practice to see things in a positive light. The energy we portray not only determines our interactions with others but also speaks volumes about how we feel about ourselves.

Developing a positive mindset is a skill that is well worth the practice it requires. As you begin to shift the way you are thinking, you will start to see amazing new opportunities come your way. You may start feeling better about yourself and the world we are living in, no matter how difficult things may get.

A few ways to have positive energy from the inside out are the following:

1. Make yourself be a priority:

This does not mean you are neglecting others that are in your life, but when we feel good about ourselves, it is much easier to display inner contentment to the world. Looking after your needs and developing a habit to do simple self-care things that make you feel good can make an enormous difference in how you carry yourself.

2. Understand the difference between a FACT and a THOUGHT:

The truth is, we are all human and tend to have less than flattering thoughts regarding ourselves at times. It is important to understand and separate facts from thoughts. An example of a fact is, I had a less than easy conversation or difference of opinion with a friend the other day. The thought might be that this friend thinks differently OR negatively of me now. When we focus on what the facts are, it will help to keep things in perspective and avoid expressing all those negative thoughts that can feel suffocating.

3. Learn ways to be kind to yourself:

We all have days when we feel down and that is okay because it will pass. When we do feel down, we need to learn to recognize and honor our thoughts. Being kind to ourselves can be as simple as repeating one of your favorite quotes that make you feel good and happy. Or, it could be to make an honest effort to treat ourselves with the same compassion we would treat someone we care about.

4. Use positive words more often:

The way we communicate with others has a direct impact on the energy we display. Using words such as love, willing to, solutions, absolutely, great, excellent, interesting, enjoy, etc. will produce a much more optimistic outlook!

5. Smile more frequently:

A smile is an exceedingly small action, but it can make a HUGE difference. Of course, it is not an issue if a smile is not authentic and sincere initially, but you will start to feel happier and friendly shortly and possibly appear more outgoing to others, which allures the positive energy you desire.

6. Work to achieve a goal or goals:

When we work towards accomplishing a goal or more than one goal, if you are feeling extra determined, it can serve as a confidence boost! The people that are around us will be encouraged by our strength and the belief we have in ourselves to achieve our dreams and goals.

7. Offer compliments to others:

When we show appreciation to others it can serve multiple purposes. One purpose is making that person feel good about themselves. The second purpose is this will make us feel good as well, which we are all deserving of those good vibes. Acknowledging when someone does something we admire can be an immediate boost to what we are feeling.

8. Starting living in the moment:

Try doing simple things such as putting your phone away when having lunch or dinner with another person. OR turn the TV off while cleaning the house. Shockingly enough, these distractions prevent us from living in the moment and enjoying the everyday task in life.

9. Practice good posture:

Our posture is a non-verbal way to show how we feel about ourselves. Standing up or sitting straight, shows we are both confident and approachable, which will be a good feeling.

I hope you have enjoyed this post and it helped you some to help spread positivity. Of course, it is not easy with all we are dealing with now, but we can work together and let our light shine onto those around us. A little positivity can go a long way!

Thank you for visiting my site today and I do look forward to reading your comments. I do promise to respond to all your comments as quickly as I can, but it might be after my not-so fun dentist appointment this afternoon. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!

Always, Alyssa

Random Emotions Building

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~My Random Emotions Coming Together~

Two weeks ago, today our lives were tragically changed when we lost our sweet little girl Chloe. It has not been easy adjusting to life without Chloe because she was a huge part of our family. We had that sweet baby girl for more than 15 years and now the house feels a little empty without her. It does provide some solace knowing that we gave her a wonderful and loving home, but the void in our hearts is deep. Although Chloe is not with us physically, this sweet cat will live on forever in our hearts. Not only are my husband and I feel the loss, but our younger cat misses Chloe as well. Thankfully, Sundance, our younger cat still has a personality that makes us smile.

A few things happened today, that made a mark. My grandmother, on my mother’s side of the family, passed away. Unfortunately, she and I did not have your typical grandmother/granddaughter relationship. The two of us were strong-willed and never backed down, even with each other. I am not sure if I would say we had a lot in common because I do believe we were vastly different, but she was still my grandmother. I will say I remember her as a child and do have a few good memories. I do wish there had been a way we could have made a mend before her passing, but we did not have any ill words with each other. Honestly, it might have been because we did not speak much. I hope her last days were peaceful and she was comfortable when she took her last breath.

Another interesting thing that happened today is, my father and I had a nice talk. I called him to tell him about my grandmother’s passing. They had not spoken in more than 30 years, but I guess I had to talk openly about it. One thing that my father said to me today meant more than I could ever explain was how proud my grandfather had always been of me. He told me that I could make my grandfather smile even if he was having a bad day and that means the world to me. I have told y’all before how much my grandfather meant to me and how much I admired him. Knowing that my grandfather was proud of me will stay with me and help me through challenging times.

During my conversation with my father, I mentioned to him that I was considering entering a writing contest. Of course, I always question my writing abilities, but he told me that he thought I should because he always enjoyed reading what I write about. He assured me that I shared something in common with my grandfather and that was how the way our writing showed deep emotions and our strong personality. It makes me feel good knowing that I have some of my grandfather’s devotion and strength because he was an amazing man that I will always hold close to my heart. Something that has always amazed me is, how one small thing another person says can have an enormous impact on another person life and typically in a good way!

I am taking into consideration everything my father told me when I talked about the writing contest, but now I need to decide what I will write about. I know it is important to take chances, but I also need to learn too not be so hard on myself. Over the past three years, I have had the chance to get to know all of you and it has been a great opportunity. With that said, have any of you entered any writing contests and if so, how did you decide what you would write about? I value your opinions and advice, so I look forward to reading your thoughts!

I am sure y’all have noticed that I have been a little absent from blogging. This week has been strange. Not only have I been dealing with the loss of Chloe, but I have felt very sluggish and had a lack of energy. There have been many times I wanted to sit down and write about something but could not get through it. I guess it might have something to do with the weather changes because it has not only been cold, but we have had an insane amount of rain. The colder weather always have a negative effect on how I feel, but then so does the rain. I guess the combination has been a double threat!

Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you have enjoyed reading what I wrote about today. I also hope you had a nice and safe weekend! Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!

Always, Alyssa

Pick Me Up Thursday

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~It Is Finally Friday Eve~

How has your week been so far? My week has been an emotional roller-coaster. I told you earlier in the week that our older cat, Chloe, had been diagnosed with early-stage kidney failure a few years ago and seemed to not be doing so well in the past few days. Initially, her doctor’s appointment was scheduled for today, but on Tuesday night I noticed what looked to be blood in the litter box, so I called the vet frantic and requested her an earlier appointment. My husband and I took her to the vet yesterday morning to have her checked out. They drew blood, sent the blood for testing, and gave her fluids, and sent her home with us. I am supposed to hear from the doctor today before noon and if I do not, believe me, I will call them! The one thing the doctor said is that Chloe is getting older and with her kidney failure, she might also have a thyroid issue, which is treatable. Waiting for answers is torture, but hopefully, we will not get awful news.

Considering, this week has been difficult for me at least, I think we could use a little pick me up to get us through one final day before the weekend begins! I am hopeful that the quote I am sharing with y’all today, will provide you with the energy and optimism to get you through to the weekend. We all go through challenging and even tragic times in our lives, but I have confidence that we can make it through just about anything. I do believe that the combination of love and peace provides us with strength.

None of you are going to be surprised, but I do not have any plans for the weekend. Do any of you have anything planned? Whatever you decide to do this weekend, please make sure you stay as safe as you possibly can! I am looking forward to a quiet and peaceful weekend giving me the time to give Chloe LOTS of love. I will also plan on trying to help my mother through the difficult news she received on Wednesday. Once we got home from Chloe’s appointment, my mother called to tell me her mother’s doctor gave her a month to live. I feel for my mother, but her mother (yes, my grandmother) and I are not and have never been close.

Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you enjoyed the quote I shared and I look forward to reading your comments. I do promise to respond to all comments as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!!

Always, Alyssa

Pandemic Holidays

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Even though we did just experience a very unusual Christmas holiday due to COVID-19, I hope you were able to enjoy the holiday and remain safe! I have found Christmas different for a while now because growing up in the north, I always had a white Christmas. I have lived in the south for over 20 years now and since then, I have only had one white Christmas. You would think I would have adjusted to this change given it has been SO many years, but it still does not feel like Christmas without the snow covering the ground. In a sense, it is a good thing we do not get snow in the south often because there is not the necessary equipment to handle the snow, which makes basically everything shut down.

This Christmas was abnormal for people for various reasons, but mainly because of the safety issues due to COVID-19. It was recommended from the experts with the CDC to ONLY celebrate with those in your household. This made it so families were not able to have their “normal” Christmas celebrations. We all were forced to miss family members that do not live within our same four walls, which if you think about it is incredibly sad. Even with that said, many others had to get through the holidays either sick with COVID in an empty hospital room alone or after losing someone they care about who had been with them for years around the holidays.

Now that the Christmas of 2020 is in the past, how was your Christmas? I did work on Christmas Eve until 2:00 PM, which was not too bad. My husband works nights and did have to work Christmas Eve as well. The good thing is, we both work from home and even though I work during the day, I was able to spend most of Christmas Eve awake and with my husband! In previous years we spent Christmas Eve with my mother and stepfather, but that was not going to happen this year for other reasons besides COVID.

For the past 16 years, my husband and I would spend Christmas day with his side of the family. I know and understand how hard this Christmas was for my husband because he had spent all holidays for the last 42 years with his family and sadly was not able to see anyone this year. Despite having worked 10 long hours on Christmas Eve, I know without a doubt that my husband would have loved to spend even a few hours with his family, but unfortunately, COVID really put a damper on this as it did for so many others.

I am not trying to be negative, but with the number of cases and deaths that are continuing to escalate in every state and county, this year we needed to make some adjustments for the holidays. I do believe that if everyone followed the sensible and logical advice from the experts, there would be a much better chance the numbers would not increase due to a holiday, as they did after Thanksgiving. In all honesty, I do fear that after Christmas and New Year’s we are going to see a massive increase in both new cases and deaths. We have a few friends that are planning to bring in the New Year in the mountain where we all go snowboarding. This is something we have wanted to do for many years but have not been able to yet and this year we do not think it is safe. Unfortunately, my husband’s birthday is in early January and of course, he wanted to be in the mountains for his birthday.

Regrettably, due to COVID-19, we were not able to do the things we normally do in 2020. We did not get to celebrate my birthday and our anniversary at the beach as we have done for the past 9 years. We were not able to celebrate Thanksgiving with our family. We did not see either of our families at Christmas. We have not ever really gone anywhere for New Year’s because of how unsafe it is with the mass amounts of people driving intoxicated. My husband will not be able to do what he loves on his birthday, which is snowboarding. Y’all know how much I have urged masks and social distancing, but for reasons beyond my understanding, people in the United States will not do what they need to. My initial guess is people are listening to the misinformation they are hearing from the government and ignoring what the CDC is saying about this awful and very deadly virus. I cannot even strictly blame the government for this but can blame the sheer ignorance of many American people.

What country or state do you live in? How is your country or state handling this virus? I do know some countries that have been on lockdown and or have rules in place to keep their citizens safe. Even though the number of new cases and deaths is among the highest in the United States, the government has not and does not seem like they are going to do anything with regards to lockdowns OR mask mandates. Many people want to say that requiring masks is taking away their freedom, but I do not think that is the case at all. In fact, I think that either implementing a mask mandate or a lockdown for a few weeks would save many lives but doing nothing is NOT an option anymore! We need leadership in the United States so this virus will stop killing innocent people!

Thank you for stopping by my site today! I appreciate the time you have taken to read and hopefully leave a common with your thoughts. I always value what you have to say and will respond as quickly as I can! I know some of this post ended up being a little of a rant, but there is a lot of heart, and emotions in the mix as well. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!

Always, Alyssa

Holidays will be different this year

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2020 has been a year that has been full of increased stress and uncertainty for our safety due to COVID-19. Many people have been deeply troubled by this issue and for good reason. Since the pandemic invaded the United States there have been warnings and advisement from experts, but then there has been a ridiculous amount of misinformation as well. The truth is, politicians and people in general lie, but this is not a political situation and numbers, nor science lies. We can all hear with our ears and see with our own eyes the monumental amounts of deaths each day. This profoundly serious matter should have never become this out of control but should have been addressed in a more logical, and efficient way from the start

We have already made it through one holiday, where family and friends congregate in the home. During the next two weeks, we have two more holidays to find a way to enjoy and remain as safe as possible. Next week is Christmas. This used to be a holiday we all look forward to because we can see the joy in a child’s eyes when they wait for Santa and his reindeer to come! There was always so much joy in the air getting together with family and enjoying the Christmas feast created by mothers and grandmothers.

Christmas of 2020 is OR at least should be a lot different this year. COVID-19 has already taken the lives of 319,000 people in the United States where I live, and this number increases steadily daily. This virus has no boundaries and will effortlessly take the life of anyone it encounters. Of course, there are some that are at higher risk, but unfortunately, COVID-19 has even taken the lives of young and healthy people. Sadly, even those that were always careful, wore a mask when out of their home, disinfected everything, washed their hands numerous times a day, and hardly left the house in the first place, were infected with his virus and did not survive it.

Even though everyone around the world knows about this deadly virus, Christmas and New Year’s is still going to happen. There are ways to be able to enjoy the holidays safely. The ways to enjoy the holidays during a pandemic, some will not be happy with because they want to do as they have done every year before now, which really is not an option this year. If we want to be able to enjoy the holidays next year, we need to make some adjustments to our holiday celebrations. Although I do understand how isolating and stressful the pandemic has been, I am going to list a few ways to enjoy Christmas and New Year with the possibility to enjoy them next year the way we want to and reduce the spread of the virus.

Virtual celebration OR celebrating with those in your household is the safest way to enjoy the holidays this year. When I say your household, this means anyone you share common space with. This can be roommates, family, and people unrelated to you and they live under the same roof as you do. Anyone that does share the common spaces of your four walls should be considered as a different household, even if they are family members, but this will increase the risk of spreading COVID-19.

I am not completely naïve, and I do understand that people are going to do what they want to during the holidays because there are things we are just used to doing, especially this time of year. It will not matter what I say about the risks, but I will do is remind and explain what we should be mindful of during the next few weeks.

**Consider the increase in the cases of COVID-19 in the community you live in and the increase in cases where you would be going to celebrate the holidays. The information on the numbers of cases can be found on the local health department website OR on the CDC’s COVID tracker at https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view.

**Exposure to the virus while traveling can increase drastically. The airports, train stations, bus stations, public transport, gas stations, and rest stop areas are all places you might encounter the virus. The exposure to COVID-19 may be in the air and or on surfaces.

**Indoor gatherings create more of a risk to the virus than outdoor gatherings. It is currently winter in many areas in the United States, which means colder temperatures. Bottom line is that most gatherings are going to be indoors, which can spread COVID-19 even more.

**Holiday gatherings, especially those that are indoors, might last longer periods of time and create further risks of spreading COVID-19.

**Anyone that is at the holiday celebration you attend that has NOT consistently followed social distancing (staying 6 feet apart), wearing a mask, hand washing, and other behaviors preventing the spread of the virus cause more risk to those who had been consistently practicing safety precautions.

People that should NOT attend in-person holiday gatherings are as follows:

*Recently diagnosed with COVID-19 and not met the criteria for being safe to be around others

*Currently has symptoms of COVID-19

*Waiting for COVID-19 viral test results

*May have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 in the last 14 days

**Is at risk for the severe risk of illness due to underlying medical conditions or an older adult

In the event you do go to an indoor holiday gathering, PLEASE be sure to wear a mask, wash your hands for at least 20 seconds several times a day, avoid getting too close to others, and just do everything you can to keep yourself as safe as possible! I do know that people want to enjoy the holidays, but we must do what is necessary so we can enjoy the holidays in the years to come!

Thank you for visiting my site today! I hope you enjoyed this post and it will help you during the holidays. I was not able to do my “Motivational Monday” post because I was dealing with a nasty headache that started on Sunday morning and carried over today. I am looking forward to reading your thoughts on this post and promise to respond as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!

Always, Alyssa

~Motivational Monday~

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~A New Week, Gives Us A Fresh Start~

Happy Monday y’all! Did y’all have a nice, safe, and relaxing weekend? Weekends are a great day to recuperate from our long work week. This was the first weekend in a while that I didn’t work overtime, and it was great! Don’t get me wrong, I love the overtime pay, but I was also a little worn out from the long hours I have been working. I have learned that working seven days a week is not the best plan, especially when dealing with a chronic illness. We all need to learn to put our health above things like work!

Now that we are beginning a new week and leaving the restful weekend behind, I think we all need a little motivation to get us started! Weeks are long, and weekends are short which can be exhausting, and a little frustrating. During these difficult and challenging times of COVID, it is important to find at least one positive thing each day. This isn’t always easy, but we must believe there is something great in everyday of our life! This is my goal for the week in front of us and hope you will do that same!

The holidays are coming up on us so fast and I don’t know about you, but I am not ready for them. I guess this is partially due to my intense fears of COVID and the fact that I do not have an immune system, but they are coming whether we are ready or not. I am planning to do a post soon about the safest way to be able to celebrate the holidays and not put ourselves in any harm. There must be a way, right? Of course, there is, but these ways might not keep everyone in our family happy. I do think Christmas and New Year’s will be a lot different than all previous years, but that is where we are all at right now in life and we need to make the most of it.

Thank you for visiting my site today! I always appreciate the time you take to read what I have shared and love reading your comments, which I promise to respond to as quickly as I can. I am also planning to do my typical posts all week and not allow work to intrude on what brings me happiness! Please just remember to stay as safe as you possibly can this week! I hope y’all never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!

Always, Alyssa

Pandemic Crisis

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~The Never Ending Crisis~

I know I have talked about COVID-19 numerous times since the pandemic started, but sadly things are only getting worse every day. The state that I live in surely isn’t the only one, but it has had a HUGE surge in new COVID-19 cases and deaths. I know it isn’t a good thing to live in fear because life is too short to live that way, but I am terrified of this virus and I think for good reason.

Currently, I basically do not even have an immune system and that is due to the medication I take for Multiple Sclerosis. So, I am dealing with a medication that is supposed to be slowing the progression of the MS but also weakens my immune system to a dangerous level with this virus being as uncontrollable as it is. Let me put it like this, from Monday to Friday in a city with about 68, 560 people living in it, there were 1,187 new cases. That is only the reported cases and who knows how many others are a systematic and have no idea they are sick and spreading a deadly virus.

If you pay attention to the news, you will see that thousands of people are dying daily from this virus. I am not able to watch the news without crying and maybe it’s because I am overly sensitive, but I can’t understand how this wouldn’t tug on everyone’s heartstrings. Some of these innocent people that have died with COVID never leave their homes and others were extra careful, and still ended up with the virus that took their life. How sad is it when someone loses someone they love and can’t even have a normal funeral because of a deadly virus? For me this is heart wrenching and unimaginable.

Of course, I do not for even a second believe we were informed in a proper time frame or manner. If only we received the warnings when those in charge knew there was a deadly virus spreading, maybe we would be in a safer and better place today, and maybe those that lost their life would still be with the ones they love. I do not see how it is possible for a President, Prime Minister, Chancellor, or whatever the name of the leader is would not be made aware of something like a deadly virus and not act accordingly for the safety of the citizens, but this did happen this year because our President cared more about reelection and lost anyway.

This year’s holidays are very challenging and unique. Thanksgiving has come and gone, and I feared going anywhere because of COVID. Christmas is only a few weeks away and I honestly do not feel safe leaving my house. There are so many what-ifs and no clear answers. My husband and I always went to my mother and stepfather’s house for Christmas Eve, but that isn’t happening this year for a few reasons and of course, COVID is one of those reasons. We would then go to my in-law’s house on Christmas day and I am not sure that is happening this year, only because of COVID.

Then there is New Year’s Eve. It is definitely a time to celebrate 2020 ending and 2021 starting, but what do you do on New Year’s Eve? That is right, people hug and or kiss. How can you even celebrate the New Year when you have to (or at least should) social distance? I can tell you that my husband and I will do what we have done for the past few years, which is to stay home just the two of us with our two sweet fur babies. Even before COVID, staying home was a safer way to bring in the New Year, or at least I feel like I am too older to celebrate at a bar with way too many people too close together. I have not ever enjoyed crowds because it makes me uncomfortable and nervous.

This is the first time I started writing without overthinking it. I knew what I wanted to write about, but I didn’t know the way it would come together. I typically write my posts out by hand because I feel more connected to what I am writing when it is written by hand. I am trying to change the way I think because I don’t think it make sense to write it out and then type it because it is kind of like doing double the work. Y’all have probably heard this saying before, “Work smarter not harder!” I am going to start doing this.

Thank you so much for visiting my site today. I hope your weekend has started off great and you are safely enjoying your time away from work. I think this is the first weekend in a while that I am not working overtime and it is rather nice. I might have been getting a little burnt out, which does not help the pain I deal with daily. I do look forward to reading your comments and I promise to respond as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!

Always, Alyssa

~Pick Me Up Thursday~

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~Thankfulness Week: Day 4~

Happy Friday Eve and Thanksgiving y’all! I hope your week has gone well and you are ready for the weekend! Holidays this year are much different than what we are used to, but unfortunately, this is where most of us are now. COVID-19 has caused so much heartache and stress for so many of us. Now is a time we all need to be a little more understanding, patient, supportive, and thankful for our lives and our loved ones. The struggles we might be facing right now in our lives, we need to remember that someone else could be going through something much worse than we are.

In the beginning of this week, I told you I would share with y’all two things I am thankful for each day and why, so will continue doing this today! On Thanksgiving, I think about the families out there that are in shambles because they lost someone they love to COVID-19 and I am truly thankful that everyone I know, and love is safe from this evil virus. We hear the stories told on the news from the front-line workers that are in the hospitals taking care of COVID-19 patients and the families that have gone through tragic loses. Each story breaks my heart a little more and I wish there was something I could do for these heartbroken people. All I know to do is anytime I leave my house to wear a mask, gloves, and social distance, and continue hoping others will do the same.

Another thing I am thankful for is the love and support I feel each day from my family. I was raised by a young and single mother, who didn’t have a good role model she could follow the example of to be a mother, but she did the best she could. She raised me to be kind, loving, understanding, tolerant, and compassionate. She and I do not agree on everything and know the topics we have different opinions on which are often avoidable. Overall, leaving hot topics out of the equation, I am thankful for the person she raised me to be. Between the guidance and love from my mother and grandfather, I am a strong, kind, loving, understanding, some-what tolerant person, and I never judge others on anything but the way they treat others.

Whatever you are doing today for Thanksgiving, I hope you are staying safe and enjoying the day. As crazy as this is going to sound, I will be home like always and working for a few hours. I think I might be a little too dedicated to my job or I am a bit of a work alcoholic, but I guess that is easy to do when you work from home. No matter if I am actually working or not, I am home where my home office is and tend to feel like I am always at work, I guess that is because I am.

Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you and your family have a nice, relaxing, and safe day! As always, I look forward to reading your comments and will respond as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am ALWAYS sending you LOVE, compassion, support, and MANY positive vibes!

Always, Alyssa