May 5th, 2026 @ 8:29AM
Driving to Headquarters for a training, I spotted a couple Bald Eagle circling Smith Tower west of I-5 North. I am so blessed and in the “FLOW”.🦅
Eagle Sighting 5-5-26
Author: Heather Houston
Absinthe aficionado. Empathetic thinker-feeler. Verbose writer. Avidly authentic. Hydrangea fanatic. Snow leopard lover. Joy huntress. Promising my devotees a honest glimpse into my life as I live with freedom, power and full self-expression in an unfiltered and sometimes distilled way. CHEERS!
Daily Gratitude 5-4-26
May 4th, 2026
- I am thankful for a really good meme when I needed a laugh.
- I appreciate finishing a task I was dreading.
- I am appreciate the smell of rain.
- I am thankful for hot showers on a cold day.
- I am thankful for walks with no destination.
My Musical Life 5-4-26
May 4th, 2026
#18 Suspicious Minds (Elvis Presley) 👍🏼
We’re caught in a trap
I can’t walk out
Because I love you too much, baby
Why can’t you see
What you’re doing to me
When you don’t believe a word I say?
We can’t go on together
With suspicious minds (with suspicious minds)
And we can’t build our dreams
On suspicious minds
So, if an old friend I know
Stops by to say hello
Would I still see suspicion in your eyes?
Here we go again
Asking where I’ve been
You can’t see the tears are real, I’m crying
(Yes, I’m crying)
We can’t go on together
With suspicious minds (suspicious minds)
And we can’t build our dreams
On suspicious minds
Oh, let our love survive
I’ll dry the tears from your eyes
Let’s don’t let a good thing die
When, honey, you know I have never lied to you, mm
(Yeah, yeah)
We’re caught in a trap
I can’t walk out
Because I love you too much, baby
Why can’t you see
What you’re doing to me
When you don’t believe a word I say?
Don’t you know I’m caught in a trap?
I can’t walk out
Because I love you too much, baby
Well, don’t you know I’m caught in a trap?
I can’t walk out
Because I love you too much, baby
My Abundant Life 5-4-26
May 4th, 2026
The Personality of Your Home
“A house is who you are, not who you ought to be.”
Jill Robinson (American Novelist, Essayist, and Teacher; May 30th, 1936 to July 20th, 2024)
“You will express yourself in your house whether you want to or not.”
Elsie de Wolfe (American Actress; December 20th, 1865 to July 12th, 1950)
“When we do, the principles of gratitude, simplicity, and order will begin to transform the places where we live into hallowed havens of comfort and contentment—with or without the new slipcovers.”
“Today, no matter where or how you live, look upon your home through the eyes of Love. Walk around the rooms and offer thanks for the walls and roof that safely enclose you and yours. Pause for a moment to consider all the women who have lost their homes through death, divorce, debt, or disaster. Be grateful for the home you have, knowing that, at this moment, all you have is all you truly need.”
“My home is my husband, so where ever we hang our hats is home. I prefer to live in a way where all the spaces are lived in an used. Having a formal dining room, etc. does not interest me as most of us know that room is rarely used and we often find our selves eating in the kitchen or at the daily dining table.”
–Ban Breathnach, Sarah. “Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy”. Grand Central Publishing. (1976). Kindle Page 145 to 146 of 501.
I challenge each of you on this blog series to post comments so we all can grow together.
Daily Gratitude 5-3-26
May 3rd, 2026
- I am thankful for a stranger holding the door open.
- I appreciate deep breaths that actually help.
- I am appreciate the way animals stretch in the sun.
- I am thankful for libraries and free knowledge.
- I am thankful for finding something I thought was lost.
My Musical Life 5-3-26
May 3rd, 2026
#17 Grazing In The Grass (The Friends Of Distinction) 👍🏼
It sure is mellow grazin’ in the grass
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
What a trip just watchin’ as the world goes past
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
There are so many good things to see
While grazin’ in the grass
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
Flowers with colours for takin’
Everything outta sight in the grass
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
The sun beaming down between the leaves
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
And the bir-ir-ir-irds dartin’ in and out of the trees
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
Everything here is so clear, you can see it
And everything here is so real, you can feel it
And it’s real, so real, so real, so real, so real, so real
Can you dig it
Whooo-oooh
I can dig it, he can dig it
She can dig it, we can dig it
They can dig it, you can dig it
Oh, let’s dig it
Can you dig it, baby
I can dig it, he can dig it
She can dig it, we can dig it
They can dig it, you can dig it
Oh, let’s dig it
Can you dig it, baby
The sun beaming down between the leaves
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
And the bir-ir-ir-irds dartin’ in and out of the trees
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
Everything here is so clear, you can see it
And everything here is so real, you can feel it
And it’s real, so real, so real, so real, so real, so real
Can you dig it
Whooo-oooh, yeah
I can dig it, he can dig it
She can dig it, we can dig it
They can dig it, you can dig it
Oh, let’s dig it
Can you dig it, baby
I can dig it, he can dig it
She can dig it, we can dig it
They can dig it, you can dig it
Oh, let’s dig it
Can you dig it, baby
I can dig it, he can dig it
She can dig it, we can dig it
They can dig it, you can dig it
Oh, let’s dig it
Can you dig it, baby
I can dig it, he can dig it
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
She can dig it, we can dig it
They can dig it, you can dig it
(Grazin’ in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it)
Oh, let’s dig it
My Abundant Life 5-3-26
May 3rd, 2026
A Welcome Retreat: Home as a Haven in a Hectic World
“Every spirit builds itself a house, and beyond its house a world, and beyond its world a heaven. Know then that world exists for you.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Essayist; May 25th, 1803 to April 27th, 1882)
“…heaven on earth…not only from injury, but from all terror, doubt and division.”
John Ruskin (English Polymath and Writer; December 10th, 1907 to November 8th, 1998)
“Home is where we start from.”
T. S. Eliot (Poet & Essayist; September 26th, 1888 to January 4th, 1965)
“Begin believing that the time, energy, and emotion you invest daily in the soulcraft of homecaring—carving out a haven for yourself and those dear to you—is a sacred endeavor.”
“I have always cherished the early morning hours when I get up and clean-up the kitchen from the previous nights activities. To set-up the coffee for my love and feel that my start to the day is complete. A clean and orderly home clears my mind of the unnecessary dialogue. Each day I live into my life with enthusiasm and energy knowing my home is my haven and I treat her with respect and keep maintained as my families sanctuary.”
–Ban Breathnach, Sarah. “Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy”. Grand Central Publishing. (1976). Kindle Page 144 to 145 of 501.
I challenge each of you on this blog series to post comments so we all can grow together.
Eagle Sighting 5-3-26
May 3rd, 2026 @ ~10:00AM
Driving to Costco, I spotted an Bald Eagle flying West over I-405 just north of the Northeast 85th Street exit. I am so blessed and in the “FLOW”.🦅
Daily Gratitude 5-2-26
May 2nd, 2026
- I am thankful for my learning to sit with discomfort.
- I appreciate my strength it takes to rest.
- I am grateful for learning to let go of perfectionism.
- I am thankful for moments when I feel like “myself” again.
- I am thankful for the clarity that comes after a hard decision.
My Musical Life 5-2-26
May 2nd, 2026
#16 Get Together (The Youngbloods) 👍🏼
Love is but a song we sing
Fear’s the way we die
You can make the mountains ring
Or make the angels cry
Though the bird is on the wing
And you may not know why
Come on, people now
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Try to love one another right now
Some may come and some may go
He will surely pass
When the one that left us here
Returns for us at last
We are but a moment’s sunlight
Fading in the grass
Come on, people now
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Try to love one another right now
Come on, people now
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Try to love one another right now
Come on, people now
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Try to love one another right now
If you hear the song I sing
You will understand, listen
You hold the key to love and fear
All in your trembling hand
Just one key unlocks them both
It’s there at your command
Come on, people now
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Try to love one another right now
Come on, people now
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Try to love one another right now
I said come on, people now
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Try to love one another right now
Right now
Right now
My Distilled Life 