Do you remember life before the internet?

Was once a device you had to carry. My favorite device before the interwebs was my Walkman. What’s a Walkman you ask? It either had a tape or cd in it. What is a tape, a very old method of recording music from your boombox. Tapes had a thread that would very often get tangled in your Walkman or boombox. You’d use a pencil to gently wind the thread with music on it back or inside the tape. Sometimes this would work, other times not.

I had a collection of tapes that would sometimes last a few months other times years. If you had a favorite track you’d have to forward or rewind your tape to the song. If you heard a song on the radio you’d have to be quick & press record on your boombox.

This would mean you recorded the song off the radio. If you had a crush you’d have to record from your tape/cassette that was blank from one with songs on it. This was a tedious, long way of showing someone you liked them.

Ear buds where on a string connected to your Walkman. They were cheap & the sound was grainy & you’d barely make out the lyrics or the instruments. Always on a string that’d get tangled in absolutely everything. It was archaic & hard to enjoy music.

Your phone was connected to the wall, & it didn’t display who was calling you so you had to answer when it rang.

Life before the interwebs involved paper & notes & you could not instantly get the news unless your parents were rich & you had CNN. I miss that simpler time just not tapes I had but how fun it was to get mail in the mailbox not on my phone.

What does “having it all” mean to you? Is it attainable?

I used to think that was what I was supposed to do but have since learned something entirely different. I don’t believe in “having it all” I believe in being content in the present & not striving for what in many ways is unreachable.

I believe in the basic contentment about being in the present & being happy with that. When you strive for what is unreachable you end up being sad & depressed. By focusing on what you have in the present. You see what you already have & be grateful for that.

By focusing on the unattainable & unreachable you lose focus on the Very Important present. The present is a gift that is very important to be in. By constantly focusing on tomorrow or the next week you don’t focus on Right Now.

By being grateful for the present you see all you have in the present & not tomorrow or the next week. I’m looking for the present to be a gift no matter how hard or easy it may be. It’s the present & that’s what matters most.

I’m grateful for the present & for all it gives me, no matter how hard it may be. Be here now.

What personal belongings do you hold most dear?

I’m not really into jewelry but one of my favorite pieces is Rachel the Pig from Pike’s Place Market. I know a jeweler that made Rachel 5 years ago as a fundraiser for the famous market. It reminds me of the good times I had in Seattle. I also have a charm that hangs in the market.

I will always hold Seattle in a special place in my heart. Rachel the pig just reminds me of how many good times I had there. I know the city has gone through quite a shift since we moved.

I think I hold my grandmother’s sweaters that she knitted & that I hold dear. I have quite a few of them but it makes me proud. I feel that’s her heritage & I’m proud that I knew her so well.

I’m not into being flashy but I adore my engagement ring, although that’s hidden & tucked away. I just like that it’s so one of a kind & very much like me.