Take the leap

quote of the day:

"Sometimes you just have to take the leap, and build your wings on the way down."

Kobi Yamada

image courtesy of http://christainnewyork.com

I'm following Kobi's advice, and taking the leap.  Don't worry, it's not off a literal cliff, although I wouldn't be surprised to find out that the emotions I'm feeling may be quite similar to what a cliff-leaper might feel.  Yesterday, I made it official.  I signed my life away--at least for the next month, and became a 2012 participant in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo).  This is something that I wanted to take on for several years now, but was never able to take the plunge. In past years, I had the whole, "should I?  I think I could pull it off . . . uhhh no, I'll just do it next year" conversation with myself.  The me who voted for the latter always won, but not this year!  Since I'm now at the age where I'm a little too old to be young, and a little too young to be old, I figured it's the best time to thrust myself into a world of complete chaos and literary abandon.  It's just 50,ooo words in 1 month, no biggie.  I plan to chronicle this journey on my newest Squidoo lens.  (link below)  

A lot of you may think that I'm losing it--crazy for attempting such a feat.  However, I want to assure you that I'm not losing ALL of it (whatever "it" is), just some.  Participating in NaNaWriMo will hopefully help me to achieve the goal of writing my debut novel.  I know that it will be far from a masterpiece, but a first draft, even if it is mediocre, is definitely a big first step. Also, it's fabulous to know that I'm writing to raise money for a great cause.  (If you want to learn more about the well deserving nonprofit organization behind NaNoWriMo, I'll leave a link to my fundraising page below.)  

Although my tummy is writhing from the mutant butterflies fluttering around in there, I'm super excited to take on this new adventure.  I challenge you to find something that you're terrifyingly passionate about, and just take the leap!  You can worry about the injuries later :o)

Newest lens on Squidoo

NaNoWriMo Fundraising Page

Disclaimer: I, Wendy Omuro, am in no way responsible for any injuries that may ensue due to the application of the meant-to-be-inspiring advice issued in this blog post.  Choose your "leap" wisely, and proceed with extreme caution.

    

Color me green

quote of the day:

Kermit the Frog

photo courtesy of http://www.iecforum.org

Kermit is a wise, wise frog.  I definitely agree that it's not easy being green, but I'm trying my best to be a little greener every day.  To further my efforts, I started writing a "Color me Green" series of lenses on Squidoo.  I'll showcase some creative ways that will help you darken your shade of green, and hope you have fun along the way.  I chose to do my first lens in the series on being plastic bag free, which I'm very proud to be!  Here's a bit of the intro:

I consider myself to be a light shade of green, sage perhaps, but am diligently working my way up to forest green.  I truly care about the status of our often under-appreciated environment, and have my Dad to thank for instilling some "green" in me from a young age.  He's the closest person to forest green I know, and I admire him for respecting Mother Earth the way he does.  My Dad is in his seventies, and his choice of transportation is still his bicycle.  He washes and reuses not only plastic and Styrofoam containers, but even those Dixie brand paper plates that already have oil stains on them--no joke!  On occasion, I've witnessed him rinsing and hanging paper towels on the dishrack . . . he's even the type to reuse a trash bag until it starts to deteriorate from grody liquid spillage, and/or emits an odor that rivals rotten eggs, stinky feet, and morning breath combined--God bless him!  He's the shade of green I'm working towards, and I look forward to getting there someday.  

Click on the link below if you'd like to read more of this lens.

http://www.squidoo.com/proud-to-be-plastic-bag-free

Thanks for making me a part of your day!  Happy Monday :o)

Happy Hero/She-roe Celebration Day!

quote of the day:

"How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!"

Maya Angelou

photo courtesy of www.funnycutestuff.com

Heroes come in all shapes and sizes, from all walks of life, and apparently, don't even need to be human.  As we get older (and hopefully wiser), our childhood visions of grandeur fade away.  We begin to realize that being a hero or she-roe doesn't require a cape, mask, and having your own catchy theme song.  Rather, it's defined as being the kind of person (or animal) that sparks greatness in others.  I have many personal heroes and she-roes, but none quite like my parents.  They deservingly earned the top spots on my list, and continue to amaze me with their extraordinary actions of selflessness, every single day.  They truly inspire me to be the best person I can be, and to live life with a forgiving and grateful heart.  I can't thank them enough for all they've given me, and continue to give.  Being around such eminence my entire life has been an incredible blessing.  I'm beginning to feel that "spark", and am working on discovering the she-roe inside of me.  I believe that we all have a hero and she-roe inside of us just waiting to emerge (if it hasn't already).  So, let's take the time to celebrate not only the heroes and she-roes we look up to, but the heroes and she-roes inside ourselves!  Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a happy hero/she-roe celebration day  :o)  hero hi-five!  Sorry she-roes, she-roe shi-five just sounds weird 

Here's a link to my newest lens about some superheroes within our community:  http://www.squidoo.com/hawaiian-fire-heroes-on-surfboards 

Hope you enjoy learning more about the exceptional men and women of Hawaiian Fire.