Whitecaps on the water - and in the marina. It's our 4th winter living aboard and the adventure continues. With this crazy el ninYo weather pattern it's been mostly cold, cloudy or rainy the past 6 weeks since we left land. Yet for all its inconveniences, I still love it. Each day I wake 'dark & early' to greet the morning, watching quietly as the sky changes color until I'm surrounded by a panoramic blue view. Downtown is across the river at new marina location, so the condos, lights and noise are at a distance. Very few vehicles cross the bridge at this hour.
The sounds are just as incredible- a train whistle off in the distance, water lapping at the hull of the boat, ospreys chirping as they search for food and sit atop a favorite mast. It's mating season and there are 2 males and a female...she may have chosen her partner as I see 'building materials' in the talons as one flies overhead.
Walking down the dock on this windy morning, I look up to see a flock of birds in a holding pattern overhead, riding wind currents, almost hovering andlooking like a slow-moving mobile.
Yesterday I saw skimmer birds- they have black wings, black beaks, are sleeker than seagulls - so named because they fly close to the water's surface, beaks open, skimming for tiny fish.
Sunsets are often missed at home on land. Too busy, tired after a long day, and too many trees in the yard. We'd have to go to the beach (which is just over the bridge, less than 2 miles), but we get complacent with paradise in our back yard. However, sunsets are hard to miss where we're at home on board. Sunsets with all the afterglow, silver linings that remind me of mom. It's like watching a color wheel spin ever so slowly across the clouds and sky. Tonight it set behind a cloud, rays streaming from behind it, top and bottom. God's eyelashes.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Sunday, August 9, 2009
the miracle of you
A miracle took place in my life recently and went unnoticed: Two weeks ago I burned my hand with a straightening iron (that I didn’t need in the first place as I was up north and away from the humidity of home). It looked pretty nasty so I applied some ointment and a bandage and went on about my busy, complicated, stressful life, much like yours
Today it’s gone and there’s this beautiful shiny new skin that replaced the ugly burn and scab. Wow…
How did that happen? How did my body know to do that? I love my body for doing that. If my body can do that on the outside, can it do that on the inside, too? Hmmmm.
Did you see The Secret movie? Three years ago I saw the movie, read the book and listened to the CD version several times each. I’d bought the book, but my neighbor had the movie and my friend had the CDs. Coincidence? So I utilized them all.
Now, I’m not a slow person, but it takes me a while (hence, several times) to really get it and while I’m getting it, I build upon all the aha moments that come along the way.
Do you remember Morris Goodman and his wife, Kathy? Their stories were poignant, albeit brief and I had to learn more, so I did some research. I invite you to do the same. Their stories have been part of my life-changing-growing experience. “There’s more to you and I than meets the naked eye,” says Morris. Check it out - www.themiracleman.org
This year my family has had to deal with a loved one who has been hospitalized since March 1.
Everyone agreed her case was very unusual, atypical – yet no one wanted to do anything unusual or atypical to treat her. That would be unconventional, they said.
It’s not policy, they said. But I knew better. In staying with traditional policy, she is finally able to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and we’re hoping she can continue growing along her life’s journey. We’re all either growing or dying, and her last 5+ months have not been a forward motion.
What do you need to keep growing? For me, I need the inspiration of miracles – Morris’, Kathy’s, mine, and yours. They happen all around us. We just need to pay attention. And be grateful, now. Savor, treasure the moment when we are grateful and not ‘stressed’.
That’s when we’re truly living.
A great woman once said, “When I stand before God at the end of my life, I hope I won’t have a single bit of talent left and will say, ‘God, I used everything you gave me.’” Erma Bombeck
Today it’s gone and there’s this beautiful shiny new skin that replaced the ugly burn and scab. Wow…
How did that happen? How did my body know to do that? I love my body for doing that. If my body can do that on the outside, can it do that on the inside, too? Hmmmm.
Did you see The Secret movie? Three years ago I saw the movie, read the book and listened to the CD version several times each. I’d bought the book, but my neighbor had the movie and my friend had the CDs. Coincidence? So I utilized them all.
Now, I’m not a slow person, but it takes me a while (hence, several times) to really get it and while I’m getting it, I build upon all the aha moments that come along the way.
Do you remember Morris Goodman and his wife, Kathy? Their stories were poignant, albeit brief and I had to learn more, so I did some research. I invite you to do the same. Their stories have been part of my life-changing-growing experience. “There’s more to you and I than meets the naked eye,” says Morris. Check it out - www.themiracleman.org
This year my family has had to deal with a loved one who has been hospitalized since March 1.
Everyone agreed her case was very unusual, atypical – yet no one wanted to do anything unusual or atypical to treat her. That would be unconventional, they said.
It’s not policy, they said. But I knew better. In staying with traditional policy, she is finally able to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and we’re hoping she can continue growing along her life’s journey. We’re all either growing or dying, and her last 5+ months have not been a forward motion.
What do you need to keep growing? For me, I need the inspiration of miracles – Morris’, Kathy’s, mine, and yours. They happen all around us. We just need to pay attention. And be grateful, now. Savor, treasure the moment when we are grateful and not ‘stressed’.
That’s when we’re truly living.
A great woman once said, “When I stand before God at the end of my life, I hope I won’t have a single bit of talent left and will say, ‘God, I used everything you gave me.’” Erma Bombeck
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Warm and Fuzzy Winter Special
Warm and Fuzzy Winter Special!!
Now you can buy a ninaclock and your own copy of Marlee’s Moment for only $30.00, a $7.00 savings.
That includes:
• tax,
• free delivey
• battery (for the clock),
• donations to The Literacy Council of Sarasota, helping adults in our community to read and write AND
• The Heart Gallery of Sarasota, helping hard to place foster children find adoptive homes.
Did you ever think you could do so many good things with $30?
PLEASE NOTE: Books and clocks are purchased online via paypal, who notify me via email and I ship them personally.
Technically challenged? email or call me and mail a check. :)
Sunday Morning 2.15.09
Last week’s 4th Annual Sarasota Grouper Marathon is now a memory of triumph for the 1909 competitors who crossed the finish line.
Congratulations, Rich M!
Sixteen people made the cut and brought home a unique memento that was useful and whimsical – a custom-designed ninaclock!
Now you can buy a ninaclock and your own copy of Marlee’s Moment for only $30.00, a $7.00 savings.
That includes:
• tax,
• free delivey
• battery (for the clock),
• donations to The Literacy Council of Sarasota, helping adults in our community to read and write AND
• The Heart Gallery of Sarasota, helping hard to place foster children find adoptive homes.
Did you ever think you could do so many good things with $30?
PLEASE NOTE: Books and clocks are purchased online via paypal, who notify me via email and I ship them personally.
Technically challenged? email or call me and mail a check. :)
Sunday Morning 2.15.09
Last week’s 4th Annual Sarasota Grouper Marathon is now a memory of triumph for the 1909 competitors who crossed the finish line.
Congratulations, Rich M!
Sixteen people made the cut and brought home a unique memento that was useful and whimsical – a custom-designed ninaclock!
Friday, February 13, 2009
Sunday Morning
Early Sunday Morning: Right now – everything is absolutely perfect in my world.
I walk 4 miles in cool, clear, brilliant weather, thrilled at being a part of the ‘morning motion’ on the bayfront.
People are biking, walking, running – it’s all about moving.
It gives me joy to walk, reminding me of the perfect instrument I’ve been given to use for this lifetime.
Upon my return to the marina, the day is becoming more perfect- bad grammar – how can anything be better than perfect?
I am becoming more aware of the perfection of each moment. Jeff meets me as I walk down the dock toward the boat and we are both in awe of the day as we head toward the boat, hand in hand. I take off my shoes and settle into a deck chair in the cockpit. My gaze drifts over the glass surface that is the water, the neighboring boats, and the bridge I just crossed.
I feel an all-over warmth inside from muscles being used, and the sun touching my already moist skin. Overhead I hear the deceptive little chirp of a magnificent osprey with a surprised fish in its talons. Breakfast is ready!
Jeff brings me my coffee. I smile and say, “The only other thing I need now is our dolphin.”
The dolphin is an occasional visitor to our dock - he's got a badly mangled dorsal fin and he's safe in the bay waters. He’s friendly and even visited us on Christmas morning which was a delight to my girls. How many people get a holiday greeting from a dolphin?
Although it’s winter, the air is warm enough to climb up to the flybridge for a better view. Sailboats are moored at a distance, fishing boats gently make their way out of the marina, causing the lines of our boat to groan gently. It’s one of my favorite marina sounds.
Seabirds are plentiful – cormorants, parrots, pelicans, seagulls. My eyes shift from the sky to the water and there’s our dolphin swimming past the bow of our boat, barely breaking the surface with each breath.
It just can’t get any better than this!
Now I’m grinning: everything was there. I just needed a better perspective to see it all. And once more, gratitude strikes and I’m overwhelmed at the awareness and appreciation that has put me in the flow of life.
With such a visual feast, my mind goes to EJ, my friend lost to breast cancer a few years ago. Although she was blind, I know how she would enjoy this day: the warmth, sorting out the different sounds of birds, tiny waves patting the bow as a wake moves underneath, followed by the boat’s subtle rocking, church bells peeling after Sunday service, good strong coffee, and the smell of breakfast cooking...mmmm.. Gotta go!
A perfect day. I wish the same for each and every one of you.
I walk 4 miles in cool, clear, brilliant weather, thrilled at being a part of the ‘morning motion’ on the bayfront.
People are biking, walking, running – it’s all about moving.
It gives me joy to walk, reminding me of the perfect instrument I’ve been given to use for this lifetime.
Upon my return to the marina, the day is becoming more perfect- bad grammar – how can anything be better than perfect?
I am becoming more aware of the perfection of each moment. Jeff meets me as I walk down the dock toward the boat and we are both in awe of the day as we head toward the boat, hand in hand. I take off my shoes and settle into a deck chair in the cockpit. My gaze drifts over the glass surface that is the water, the neighboring boats, and the bridge I just crossed.
I feel an all-over warmth inside from muscles being used, and the sun touching my already moist skin. Overhead I hear the deceptive little chirp of a magnificent osprey with a surprised fish in its talons. Breakfast is ready!
Jeff brings me my coffee. I smile and say, “The only other thing I need now is our dolphin.”
The dolphin is an occasional visitor to our dock - he's got a badly mangled dorsal fin and he's safe in the bay waters. He’s friendly and even visited us on Christmas morning which was a delight to my girls. How many people get a holiday greeting from a dolphin?
Although it’s winter, the air is warm enough to climb up to the flybridge for a better view. Sailboats are moored at a distance, fishing boats gently make their way out of the marina, causing the lines of our boat to groan gently. It’s one of my favorite marina sounds.
Seabirds are plentiful – cormorants, parrots, pelicans, seagulls. My eyes shift from the sky to the water and there’s our dolphin swimming past the bow of our boat, barely breaking the surface with each breath.
It just can’t get any better than this!
Now I’m grinning: everything was there. I just needed a better perspective to see it all. And once more, gratitude strikes and I’m overwhelmed at the awareness and appreciation that has put me in the flow of life.
With such a visual feast, my mind goes to EJ, my friend lost to breast cancer a few years ago. Although she was blind, I know how she would enjoy this day: the warmth, sorting out the different sounds of birds, tiny waves patting the bow as a wake moves underneath, followed by the boat’s subtle rocking, church bells peeling after Sunday service, good strong coffee, and the smell of breakfast cooking...mmmm.. Gotta go!
A perfect day. I wish the same for each and every one of you.
Monday, January 5, 2009
Dear Father Time
An Open Letter to the Past - 2008
Dear Father Time,
Thank you for last year's gift of 525,600 moments. The list of goals I made for you included a business, but the book was more than I expected!
I deeply appreciate those readers of Marlee’s Moment who have shared how she's touched their lives.
Father T, I can’t say I liked all of you- there were things I experienced for the first (and hopefully the last) time. There were circumstances that befell loved ones all around me.
A question for you, Father T – Do I thank you for the helplessness I felt during those times?
Do I thank you for what was taken? Do I thank you for…oops that’s more than one question.
Never mind, I know the answers:
(1.)What did I learn from the helplessness I felt during those times?
(2.) Did I thank you for what was given?
Hmmmm…
As I reflect on each new day, I do so with gratitude for two lessons learned last year:
I learned to push forward
I learned to let go
Funny, I’ve learned these in years past. But now I’m learning that I really can’t do one well without the other. It’s about time. It’s about now.
Your lil’ acorn,
Nina
Dear Father Time,
Thank you for last year's gift of 525,600 moments. The list of goals I made for you included a business, but the book was more than I expected!
I deeply appreciate those readers of Marlee’s Moment who have shared how she's touched their lives.
Father T, I can’t say I liked all of you- there were things I experienced for the first (and hopefully the last) time. There were circumstances that befell loved ones all around me.
A question for you, Father T – Do I thank you for the helplessness I felt during those times?
Do I thank you for what was taken? Do I thank you for…oops that’s more than one question.
Never mind, I know the answers:
(1.)What did I learn from the helplessness I felt during those times?
(2.) Did I thank you for what was given?
Hmmmm…
As I reflect on each new day, I do so with gratitude for two lessons learned last year:
I learned to push forward
I learned to let go
Funny, I’ve learned these in years past. But now I’m learning that I really can’t do one well without the other. It’s about time. It’s about now.
Your lil’ acorn,
Nina
Monday, December 8, 2008
Look for us this weekend at not one, not two, but three events!
So many reasons to come:
• Free cruise - register with $40 purchase for a drawing on Captain Jeff’s 33’ Bertram,
Now and Then – a two hour cruise for up to 4 people. Perfect for you and your northern visitors!
• Start your ‘bucket list’! This was a huge hit at efest. The power of writing something down is amazing. Everyone who came to our booth left smiling! The free organic goodies may have helped.
• Invest in the children and adults of our community. A portion of every purchase goes to The Literacy Council of Sarasota, teaching Sarasota adults to read and write. You will also benefitThe Heart Gallery of Sarasota, which helps to find adoptive homes for special needs children in foster care. http://www.sarasotaliteracy.org/ and http://www.sarasotaheartgallery.org/
When?
Thursday, December 11: Join us from 5-10PM for the 13th Annual Jingle Bell Run in downtown Bradenton, on Old Main Street (12th St.). Jeff and I will have a booth and my daughter Bridget will be participating in the 5K. We’ll be there to cheer her with bells on, of course! We have unique holiday gift ideas for that special person who needs a gentle reminder to stay in the moment- perhaps it’s you? http://www.arthritis.org/
Saturday, December 13- Ybor City - the 11th Annual WMNF Holiday Bazaar. Why shop the malls when you can go to the historic Cuban Club from 10- 5. Look up – we’re on the 2nd floor! It’s going to be a great day for a good cause. http://www.wmnf.org/
Sunday: Last but not least, let’s go to the circus! Sailor Circus Arena will be the home of the Florida Orange Festival. This has something for every member of the family. It’s about health, wellness and fun- a winning combination! http://www.popsextrasorg/
Shop and make a difference- but we can’t do it without you! Don’t forget- we’re all in this together. See you soon.
So many reasons to come:
• Free cruise - register with $40 purchase for a drawing on Captain Jeff’s 33’ Bertram,
Now and Then – a two hour cruise for up to 4 people. Perfect for you and your northern visitors!
• Start your ‘bucket list’! This was a huge hit at efest. The power of writing something down is amazing. Everyone who came to our booth left smiling! The free organic goodies may have helped.
• Invest in the children and adults of our community. A portion of every purchase goes to The Literacy Council of Sarasota, teaching Sarasota adults to read and write. You will also benefitThe Heart Gallery of Sarasota, which helps to find adoptive homes for special needs children in foster care. http://www.sarasotaliteracy.org/ and http://www.sarasotaheartgallery.org/
When?
Thursday, December 11: Join us from 5-10PM for the 13th Annual Jingle Bell Run in downtown Bradenton, on Old Main Street (12th St.). Jeff and I will have a booth and my daughter Bridget will be participating in the 5K. We’ll be there to cheer her with bells on, of course! We have unique holiday gift ideas for that special person who needs a gentle reminder to stay in the moment- perhaps it’s you? http://www.arthritis.org/
Saturday, December 13- Ybor City - the 11th Annual WMNF Holiday Bazaar. Why shop the malls when you can go to the historic Cuban Club from 10- 5. Look up – we’re on the 2nd floor! It’s going to be a great day for a good cause. http://www.wmnf.org/
Sunday: Last but not least, let’s go to the circus! Sailor Circus Arena will be the home of the Florida Orange Festival. This has something for every member of the family. It’s about health, wellness and fun- a winning combination! http://www.popsextrasorg/
Shop and make a difference- but we can’t do it without you! Don’t forget- we’re all in this together. See you soon.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Unexpected ROI (return on investment)
11.20.08 It all starts with thanks – and when you get way more than you ever imagined all I can say is THANK YOU!
November 14, 15 and 16 was the unveiling, birthing, launching of the ninaclocks website and product line.Those of you who came to efest to wish us well – it’s difficult to explain how a familiar face at the crossroads of the unknown can mean so much.
Those who couldn’t be there and offered their good wishes – ditto!
My book finally arrived on the 14th and after some technical difficulty, the website went up that evening while we were frantically preparing for our first show ever. Although I have done many trade shows, there’s never so much on the line as when it’s your baby, your business!Heaps of gratitude to Sarah and Bridget for helping us at the booth, and to Stephanie, sending us lightning bolts of positive energy from Denver.
One woman came, looked and gushed, “This is the best booth in the whole place!”
We sold some items and spread a message: Now is the time. Most people seemed to understand it better when we said, “There’s no time like the present.” (That’s what I heard growing up.)
We invited people to start a ‘bucket list’ and write down one thing they’ve always wanted to do, see or be.
Entries ranged from ‘heal the world with music’ to ‘jump out of a plane and live.
Travel destinations varied, with Italy being the most popular. Having been there in ’05 and planning to go again in ’09, I resonated with that!
But the best part was the unexpected ROI: Everyone who wrote something was having fun. They got a sticker to wear as a reminder and if they wanted, we to
ok their picture and sent it to them as another reminder.
They left the booth with smiles and for just a few minutes, began to dream again instead of fretting about gas, groceries, and unemployment. We filled six pages over the weekend.
Writing things down is the first step to success. It turns dreams into goals.
Watching the faces of all those smiling people brought me more joy than making a profit. That will come, I expect it. But it’s the unexpected that warms your heart. Every time I think of all the happy visitors that left our booth, I smile.
The money will come and go, as it should, but that memory will be with me forever.
November 14, 15 and 16 was the unveiling, birthing, launching of the ninaclocks website and product line.Those of you who came to efest to wish us well – it’s difficult to explain how a familiar face at the crossroads of the unknown can mean so much.
Those who couldn’t be there and offered their good wishes – ditto!
My book finally arrived on the 14th and after some technical difficulty, the website went up that evening while we were frantically preparing for our first show ever. Although I have done many trade shows, there’s never so much on the line as when it’s your baby, your business!Heaps of gratitude to Sarah and Bridget for helping us at the booth, and to Stephanie, sending us lightning bolts of positive energy from Denver.
One woman came, looked and gushed, “This is the best booth in the whole place!”
We sold some items and spread a message: Now is the time. Most people seemed to understand it better when we said, “There’s no time like the present.” (That’s what I heard growing up.)
We invited people to start a ‘bucket list’ and write down one thing they’ve always wanted to do, see or be.
Entries ranged from ‘heal the world with music’ to ‘jump out of a plane and live.
Travel destinations varied, with Italy being the most popular. Having been there in ’05 and planning to go again in ’09, I resonated with that!
But the best part was the unexpected ROI: Everyone who wrote something was having fun. They got a sticker to wear as a reminder and if they wanted, we to
ok their picture and sent it to them as another reminder. They left the booth with smiles and for just a few minutes, began to dream again instead of fretting about gas, groceries, and unemployment. We filled six pages over the weekend.
Writing things down is the first step to success. It turns dreams into goals.
Watching the faces of all those smiling people brought me more joy than making a profit. That will come, I expect it. But it’s the unexpected that warms your heart. Every time I think of all the happy visitors that left our booth, I smile.
The money will come and go, as it should, but that memory will be with me forever.
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