2 be Bliss, as I dance along the road to Nirvana...

A happy Sunday evening to one and all! It has truly been a much-deserved weekend of bliss for the paramour and I. Despite the fun of last weekend, the past few weeks have been stressful for me. I'm thankful that things seem to be leveling out but there is part of me that is waiting for the other shoe to drop while praying that it doesn't. Yes, a contradiction but my life is full of them. Finding the balance is an ongoing endeavor but I remain thankful for this life regardless of the obstacles that come my way. My paramour... He's a hard-working man who deserves to put his feet up a lot more than he does. We were busy this weekend but we also had some much-needed down time. Thank God for respites. And now folks, we are tired here and it's time for lights out. Sweet dreams to you all.  💤

Happy Sunday y'all! 😀 I hope everyone is healthy and happy today. I certainly am. It's been a really good weekend with the paramour so far and I'm still enjoying it.  😍 More later...

Good morning folks and Happy Thursday. I was up and at 'em early today but not by choice. The paramour had an early call time. Did I mention that he has a job and a business? He's a hard-working man. It's a good character trait but too much of a good thing can be deadly, as I believe was the case with Mr. Bliss's illness and death. The last month he worked, he worked the entire month and many of those days exceeded 12 hours. That on top of all the previous days, weeks, and months that he'd worked excessive hours in any randomly-picked 24-hour period. Add in poor eating habits and there's the cocktail for illness and finally death. The paramour and I discussed the aforementioned and he said he's slowed down a bit since he and I began dating and I'm thankful. Not just because it gives us more time together. It's also about his health, regardless of who he's dating. Lately I've been researching more on sleep patterns as they relate ...

Happy Wednesday folks. I hope everyone is healthy and happy today. I'm taking baby steps, getting back to "normal" after a long and tiring weekend. So much to tell and I'm not really in the mood but I know you all want to know how my dad is doing. The short of it: he's doing well. He's scheduled for two to three weeks in a rehab facility and then home. His going "home" is what concerns me. That's where his stressors are. If you're a regular reader here, you understand why. I won't rehash any of the reasons but I ask that you all continue the prayers, positive thoughts, and healing energy for this situation. Despite his failing health my daddy still has a strong will and I believe it's one reason he's still amongst the living, as he would say. I'm thankful to have him for as long as he wants to be here. My everlasting gratitude to everyone for your continued support during these difficult transitions. Daddy and...

Everyone, My faith is being tested and I feel like I'm making a slow-motion fall into the abyss. I learned late this afternoon that my dad had a stroke Friday and is back in hospital. After his recent heart attack, I am beyond worried. Shortly after I woke up Friday I felt there was something wrong but I was unable to reach my dad. Today his aide returned my frantic call and confirmed my worries. I have been anxious and fretful from the time I found out. I can't get to him until tomorrow morning and the weather forecast is for rain. Once again I am asking you all to please send positive energy, healing thoughts, and prayers. Not only for my father but for me as well. Thank you all in advance.

Good morning and Happy Sunday y'all! 😊 I hope everyone is somewhere safe and hopefully peaceful as well. Today I am tired, tired, tired but for good reason. The past two weeks have been filled with celebration, which I'm always thankful for. The hard work leading up to the fête, not so much. When we hit a milestone of joy, a celebration is a way of showing gratitude. However that gratitude is often preceded by sacrifice or struggle, yes? Persevering through 22 hours of labor to give birth to a long-awaited miracle baby, surviving a natural disaster, living to see another birthday, the first 30 days of sobriety...  💪😌 Whatever the reason, I think celebrations big or small are good reminders that we are alive . There's more but I'll fill in the details later people. I'm off to either snooze for another hour (Did I mention how tired I am? 😂) or I'm getting up to prepare for part two of yesterday's soirée. Either way, I am thankful for it a...

Happy Tuesday y'all! If you're reading this, like me, you woke to see another day. Hallelujah!  🎉🎉🎉 Another fast one because I'm in the middle of several projects and need to finish them before I hit the road tonight. First, let me thank everyone who joined me in ensuring the safe return of Baby Bliss from her weekend excursion into the wild. She gave me an awful scare by not calling on Saturday after saying she would. I called the ranger station and wouldn't you know it, they aren't open on weekends. Sunday morning I dreamed of fighting off a pack of wolves. 😰 Thank God for Facebook. I'm friends with the mom of one of the other kids who went camping and she assured me that even though she hadn't heard from her child, another mom had heard from the children and all was well. 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 Remember how on Friday I was feeling like something was askew in my world? It was daddy. Sunday morning he called to say he was in hospital, having ha...

Happy Sunday everyone and Happy Mother's Day to all who bless us with much-needed nurturing feminine energy. It's been a lovely weekend chez Bliss. My paramour and I are in the tail end of a three-day date. More on that later. Good night everyone.

Happy Friday and all that good stuff folks! This is gonna be a fast one because I'm ducking the Sandman and I'm running out of crevices to hide in. I didn't sleep last night. When I finally passed out it was after 3 a.m. Wake up was 8 and I don't know why. My tummy has been upset most of the day and my nerves have been on edge. Likely from not enough sleep, possibly other things as well. Before I forget, the paramour and I had another two-day date earlier this week. We also met for lunch today. Both dates were good, each in its own way. Lots of touching and smooching, private jokes and laughter, all around good vibrations. Traffic was awful going and coming. Not wanting to linger in other people's exhaust fumes for too long, I made two pit stops. One at Mr. Paramour's insistence, to check my blood pressure. He thought me not feeling well might have been an indicator of a bit of hypertension so at his urging, I stopped to slide my arm into a pharma...

Howdy folks. I hope y'all are healthy and happy today. My paramour woke me with a phone call shortly before 9 a.m.  We chatted as he drove to his first stop of the day. He called me again en route to his second stop and we talked for the better part of an hour. Lovely. Except I had only turned in shortly before 5 a.m.  😭 Now it's almost 8:30 p.m. and I'm beat. Mid-afternoon, I picked up Baby Bliss between her work shifts. We ran errands that ran later than we intended and were forced to grab lunch on the run. After I returned the daughter to her sushi and saké, I picked up a few items on a grocery store run. One of my neighbors caught me in the supermarket parking lot and detained me for a round of conversation. Throughout the day, I talked to my momma, one of my sisters, and there were a few more calls with the paramour. I also learned some information about obtaining a duplicate of an important document. Something else to add to my to-do list... Now...

Baby Bliss and I had a pleasant excursion to the Big City. We hit the mall, not to browse or shop extensively, only to go to Dillard's so that I might try the two makeup brands I was interested in. Well wouldn't ya know it, I purchased neither brand. The lady working the counter(s) turned me on to a totally different line of cosmetics. It's a brand that's been around for decades but I'd never tried it. She was able to match a foundation to my skin almost perfectly. After my mini makeover, I was sold on the shade. The lipstick, I had to say no to. Although the saleslady liked it, it was an orange-ish shade of red that does not agree with my undertones. Thankfully I already own a tube of lipstick that's the perfect shade of red for me. It's inexpensive too. (Just saying. For when I run out.) After my transformation, Baby Bliss and I ate lunch in the food court then returned to the other side of the mall in search of my car. (Having had a lot of trou...

Mercury, Mercury, Mercury...  😁😂😶 This is the post-shadow phase of the retrograde. (See here for explanation: 2017 Mercury Retrograde Calendar .) Maybe it's because this retrograde is in Taurus but it seems like the most stubborn retrograde I can recall. This morning, when I checked my call log, there were four (4!) calls from the most persistent ex I've ever dated. I say "persistent" because he's the one who I haven't (voluntarily) talked to in the longest amount of time and he's the one who continues to call despite that fact. I've mentioned this ex more than any other ex so my frequent readers probably know who I'm referring to. But I'm not linking to any more posts about him. I feel like I'm drawing him to me. Only he and God know why he never leaves a voicemail. It's obvious he wants to talk to me because he's literally been calling me for years and other than a few accidental incidents of me answering, his call...

There was no trip to the Big City yesterday. I decided to wait until Monday so that Baby Bliss, makeup artist extraordinaire, might accompany me. I want to try new foundation for the party. Estée Lauder is what the daughter recommends and I've read great reviews about Fashion Fair. Dillard's has both so that's where we will go. We'll probably have lunch while we're out. And I might make a side trip to the mega beauty supply store, to buy more hair accessories. I'm really excited about going home for the party. It's been a while since I've been to a party at my sister B's and she gives really good parties. 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 In other news of the day, Mr. Paramour and I had a date earlier.  😍 A lot of discussion about something we didn't quite agree on and other topics.  What we did agree on, tentatively: the wedding will be in Vegas. 😉 Stay tuned folks.

Speaking of Mr. Paramour (briefly mentioned in post 756), he and I had our third date of the week Thursday/Friday. It was a good date.  👩🏾‍🤝‍👨🏽 The more we talk, the more shared interests we find. The more time we spend together, the more I like him; and so says he, the feelings are mutual. If we had met some other way, like at work or through a social group and we were just friends, I would probably have a crush on him. Let me be clear: this man just does it for me. I've already outlined the qualities that make him good dating material in at least one other post, I'm sure. In addition to why I like him, what makes me lust after him is that he is so effing sexy to me.  😜 I also know that the reasons I like him are, too, what makes him sexy to me. The adjective "sexy" encompasses more than a person's appearance or mannerisms, though those things can be thought of as sexy. For me a sexy man is the total package of how I perceive him: his e...

Good morning and Happy Saturday everyone! I hope you are all healthy, happy, and safe. Today's weather at my location is extremely windy and cool for this time of year. It's also beautifully sunny. Aside from the wind knocking over one of my porch decorations necessitating me picking up broken glass, the weather suits me. While I was on the porch, I looked at my siding and decided it needed washing. Lots of dirt and debris had settled into the small crevices. Since I don't have a power washer, I loaded up my giant spray bottle with shampoo and water and got to work. Didn't have to scrub anything but there were a few spots that need wiping down. Today I need to travel down to the Big City but I'm reluctant because of the wind. The highway that connects me to the big city is currently under construction which is causing major headaches for drivers. In addition to the added congestion, there are also the issues of construction debris and people driving to...

It was a dark and stormy night... Just kidding folks. Regarding my most recent date(s) with my Paramour: It was a warm and dreamy night. And a wild and wonderful day. Lots of interesting conversation (more reveals), lots of laughter, talk of marriage (including what I'm calling an "invitation to a proposal"), food, lots of kisses, some snuggling... Most interesting: the "invitation to a proposal". During our meal, we talked about our lives and he mentioned how much we had in common including the number of times we've both been married. I laughed and asked him if he truly wanted to get married again. He in turn asked me if I wanted to get married again. I said I wasn't sure. His response (as he gazed longingly into my eyes across the table -- seriously), "Yes, I do want to get married again and I want to marry you ." (Well, okay... Yes, I have had several husbands as well as a number of broken engagements and a number of prop...

So there were no sweet potato fries in the freezer.  😮 My heart is broken.  💔 But there were regular fries which are now in the oven. I'm gonna eat them with scrambled eggs and mashed sweet potatoes. Maybe some steamed kale. Yum! Healthy-ish, right?  👍🏾

The last few days have been interesting, to put it mildly. My Paramour has managed to surprise me in a quite surprising manner. Frankly, I'm surprised that I can still be surprised by life. Grateful too.  😊 Today we had an hour-long conversation that spanned a wide range of topics, as has become our custom. This is one of the aspects of our interaction that I really enjoy. I love listening to his voice and how calm he always sounds. When he leaves work, we have plans to meet. I'm sure we'll continue the open dialogue we've established, among other things... Good stuff. So why are my nerves shot?  😳 Partly due to lack of sleep. I intended to go to bed early-ish last night (meaning closer to 1 a.m. instead of 3 or 4) but it didn't happen. When I finally made it to bed I was exhausted.  😔 After rolling around for a few minutes, I jumped up to find my friend Lavender Essential Oil. While it helped me fall asleep, I couldn't stay asleep. I lite...