8 Things I'm Loving These Days

 Hi friends! 

How has your week been treating you? Over here, the weather has been cooling down by just a bit and I'm super grateful for that. I'll take any little bit of a breeze in Arizona. Where are you at? Is it fall already for you? 

Below are just some things that I have been up to and loving. It's so great to be alive and happy I can share this with you ☺️

1. What I’m watching —

Dana Carvey: Straight White Male, 60 - - Remember Garth from Wayne's World? Well, he is still crushing it in the comedy world. If you know me, you know I like to laugh and there were some bits that I am still quoting right now. Especially the one about millennials and raising a teenage boy. I won't give it away, you'll just have to check it out! I highly recommend this if you're just looking for something lighthearted and fun to watch before bed to wind down for the night.  

2. What I've been reminding myself —

Ask what YOU need from the day FIRST rather than what the day needs from you. 

I found this statement to be SO freeing! After stumbling upon this wise saying, I gave it a shot by not checking my work email first thing in the morning while still in bed, doing a little something for myself first to set the intentions of the day and REALLY listening to my mind, body and soul. Some days, I needed to simply take one work task at a time and ease into the work day. Some days, I just needed to do my own thing and just daydream a little. 

Life's too short to be hurried along from what others want from you. Prioritize yourself. 

3. What I’m listening to —

This song gives me all the good emotional feels. I found this song PC (pre covid) and I'm still loving it. 

4. What I’m looking forward to —

My birthday this month! I loooooooovvveeee birthdays. I've met some people in my life that don't like it, don't like the fuss around it or see it as aging and getting older. I, on the other hand, see it as a valid excuse to have a damn good time and celebrate being alive. I plan on celebrating by ordering take out from my favorite pizza place, Pizzeria Bianco, and just reading fun books and spending time with people I love. 

5. What I’ve added to my routine —

Collagen powder. While getting my hair trimmed for the first time in 6 months, I noticed my hair stylist had glowing, thick luscious hair so I asked her what I needed to do to have HER hair on MY head - - except not blonde because I look just look like a weirdo with hair any lighter than medium brown. She told me she puts a scoop of collagen powder in her coffee each morning and after using it for a month, she has noticed a drastic improvement in the health of her hair. SOLD! 

P.S. It tasted weird in my green tea as well as fruit punch. 

P.P.S. Orange juice does the trick. Completely masks the powder taste. 

I've only been drinking the collagen powder supplement since 5 days now so I don't have any results to speak of yet. But I am optimistic! We will see!

6. What movie I'm looking forward to seeing —

Dune official trailer - this has that Blade Runner 2049 vibe that I'm loving! I'm a big fan of Timothy Charlemagne especially from the Call Me By Your Name movie that took place in Italy - what a gorgeous film and incredible performances all around. This Dune movie should be a big hit! 

7. What wine I'm digging —

I just opened this one and it's got a subtle and alluring hint of chocolate at the very end. 

8. Words I am pondering —

“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.” - Frank Herbert, Dune

I Don't Think I Liked School Photos

 So I was visiting my parents over the weekend and came across some old family photos. I was so amazed to see this little awkward gem...

Just by looking at the expression of my face, I could just tell how much I hated taking school photos like this one. I'm sure the photographer was just trying to get through as many kids as possible and didn't take the time to really make sure each kid looked their best.

My parents always made me wear those little bracelets. Almost all of my cousins wore it. I think it was made out of boar's teeth or something not normal. They always said it was for good luck.

Pretty stylish, huh? 

8 Things I'm Loving These Days

 Hi everyone!

Here is your weekly dose of the "8 things I'm loving these days".

1. What I’m watching —

Aggretsuko Season 3 on Netflix. Oh yes. Never have I ever related to a red panda so much - - the corporate office culture, the stress, pressure, anxiety and just trying to make it day by day all while going to a karaoke bar some nights to let out some steam. Brilliant. 

2. What I found useful —

Is your computer's desktop crowded with unnecessary and forgotten screenshots? My coworker showed me THIS and I feel like such a sophisticated adult for using it. Even better is that this trick on MAC computers took only 2.5 seconds to clean up my desktop. 

3. What I’m listening to —

Tim Heidecker's Nothing song. He's one of my favorite entertainers and a creative genius of comedy. Ever heard of Tim and Eric's Awesome Show Great Job? It's ridiculous stupid...so stupid that I LOVE it and has become an integral part of my life. He also played a small role, the best friend's husband, in the movie Get Out. He has been dabbling in music and I must say, I am impressed and have listened to his new song many many times already. Check it out!

4. What I’m looking forward to —

Ricky Gervais finished writing the screenplay for the 3rd season of After life and I can hardly contain the excitement that's been bubbling up from the depths of my soul! 

5. What I’ve added to my beauty routine —

My new favorite beauty product I started using and after only using it for just 1 week, I'm already noticing positive results. It's a serum that I use only once a day after washing my face and worn underneath my moisturizer. Full transparency, I've struggled with eczema on and off throughout my life and am very sensitive to most products. Therefore, when I found this serum, tried it, and the fact that it actually IMPROVED my skin made me SO freakin happy. 

6. What I randomly did —

I photoshopped THIS for Clyde the Basset and the #FlyClydeChallenge challenge. I would do it again in a heartbeat. 

7. What I might watch on Hulu —

I came across this movie and I am intrigued. I don't believe I've watched anything with Andy Samberg as the lead but I've always enjoyed his goofy music videos. PLUS, IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes gave Palm Springs decent ratings so I had this bookmarked and ready to go when the night is right.

8. What I've been thinking about —

This quote...

"The most overlooked and under appreciated growth strategy is patience." ~ James Clear, author of Atomic Habits

Lately, I've been feeling quite restless and more often than not, seeing results from the things that I've been doing fairly consistently and for some time. I want to see things grow, flourish and succeed but I forget that I need to continue to invest time into it, always. So when I came across this quote, it calmed me and reminded me that it's okay that things...projects...results or whatever you might be working on may not have growth...yet. And, that's the key word, "yet". Because with time and patience and consistency, that "yet" will one day, transform to a success. 

I'd love to hear your feedback on Twitter or from your comments below. What are some things you might be pondering this week? Did you have a favorite from this list? What do you want to read more about or less about? I'd love to know. Send a tweet to @cathytrails and hope to connect with you soon!

Some Lingering Thoughts About You Cannot Kill David Arquette

Saturday night my husband yelled from downstairs, "CATHY CATHY! I have something to show you, it's IMPORTANT!"

Immediately, my heart dropped and I'm thinking oh gosh I hope he's not hurt, did our bank accounts get hacked or did something bad happen to a family member...all these thoughts were circling in my head while I rushed down my creaky stairs. 

He's on the couch and something is playing on the TV...he plays it and on the screen are two basset hounds roaming around David Arquette's house. It was a trailer of the latest documentary You Cannot Kill David Arquette. And here I was thinking it was something super bad or serious...well, it was actually serious because we both have a serious obsession with basset hounds but thank goodness it wasn't bad haha!  

I didn't know a thing about David Arquette except that he was Deputy Dewey in all the Scream movies. 

I didn't realize he owns not one, not two - - but THREE BASSET HOUNDS...yeah, it's super cool. Him owning basset hounds, by default, make him a super cool dude already. 

I didn't realize he was such a FIGHTER! 

He has definitely had some ups and downs throughout his career. In fact, David says in the documentary, "I've been auditioning for like 10 years without actually getting a role."

Remind me NOT to ever complain about something not working out in a week, a month, or even a year...

I don't want to give too much away and would love it if you checked it out too. All I can say is, this documentary did an excellent job portraying the struggles David Arquette has had finding roles after playing Deputy Dewey but rather than giving up altogether, he revamps himself and his efforts by diving all into a passion that has always permeated his life - - wrestling. 

You Cannot Kill David Arquette is highly recommended in my book! Check it out and let me know what you think :) 

I Think I'm Going to Start Sharing 8 Things I'm Loving These Days

 Why 8? 

According to my mother, the number 8 is a lucky Chinese number. I googled it too and this is what it told me...

Maybe if I blog about my 8 favorite things consistently enough, the universe will deliver a beautiful shetland pony like this one to my front door in Arizona. 

Or maybe not...and that's okay. As long as you find something fun in this blog, something that will brighten your day, make you laugh out loud or even find useful - - I will consider this blog post a success. 

1. So, this song right here, on REPEAT baby. It's been getting me through some cray COVID emotional rollercoasters. It's got this epic, I'm-going-to-get-through-this-mofos type of vibe that I'm really digging these days:

2. A work friend lent me this book and yeah, it fucking rocks my world and whisks me away to the sweet lands of South Carolina and ancient streets of Rome, Italy all at the same time and it's SO AMAZING...I am currently 300 pages in and I never want it to end. 

3. When I'm down, I like to google THIS and go to images...and my smiling and "awwing" begins. You're welcome.

4. Dave Franco's The Rental movie and since Stephen King recommended it, I had to give it a try and I'm glad I did. The Rental is an intriguing, sexy summertime psychological thriller with Alison Brie, one my favorite actresses (She was GREAT in Netflix Glow!) 

5. I added this book to my Amazon cart today. Once I'm done with Beach Music, I'll be sinking my fangs into this gem. 

6. This gal turned every Taylor Swift Folklore song into a poster and I dig every single one of them!  

7. One of my favorite ways to save money without having to google "promo codes 2020" and copy/paste each code hoping that it makes a little bit of difference in my total price is HONEY! Seriously, one of my fave FREE apps. Neato.

8. Quote of the week that I'm pondering...

"Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use." - Earl Nightingale 

What about you? What are some things that you have found this week? I'd love to hear! Drop a comment below.