Wonderful Whimsy

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WHIMSY - extravagant, fanciful, or excessively playful expression; an odd or fanciful notion.






























Friedensreich Hundertwasser, the 30-day fax picture (1994)

I've been looking forward to this virtue of bliss. The expression of whimsy is quirky and fun and can be a part of almost anything else. When I think of the word I most often think of fancy flourishes on craft work or fancy gift packages and gifts for no reason. I think of my favorite Artist Hundertwasser's art work and wonderful architecture. I think of my Aunt Ann and her fondness for pop-up books, dragons, fairies and anything sparkly.  I think of the blog WhiMSy Love which I only recently found and enjoy regularly now. I think of my friend Katherine, her parenting style and delightful activities for kids.

Whimsy has the quality "I know when I see it" which defies standard means of study or even observation. It is so subjective that anything I find whimsical may be considered a completely different thing by you.

This week's  "Bliss Initiatives" are color coded in purple for quick identification. They are specific things that you too can try, if you want to play along with me.  However, because as Earl Nightingale says, "you become what you think about,"  even if you only follow along,  and never take on any of the bliss initiatives,  I expect some positive results. I will be exploring and encouraging WHIMSY this way:

• Getting in the mood for Whimsy - Each day I will be doing a little "flash inspiration". I am going to type the word Whimsical  (fill in blank) into Google and see what shows up. I did it today with Whimsical Cakes, Whimsical Drinks, and Whimsical Tree Houses.  Try it and see what you find -- share it here in the comments for others to enjoy. Whimsy is definitely best when shared!
  

 Check out this beauty by Daniels Wood Land

•  Field work - Based on your own "flash inspiration" for the day plan to execute something whimsical. Do something unexpected for your family,  friends.or co-workers. Tonight I've decided to see if I can find this bubble gum flavored vodka and make this drink for Rob and I tonight:

 The drink by the Intoxicologist is called Blowing Bubbles -- find the recipe and review for the vodka at the Intoxicologist website or become a fan on facebook and get quirky drink recipes every day!

• Whimsy Study - I'm buying the book "Sing loudly in your car! A book of whimsy for grown-ups." by Lynn Rosenbaum. Unfortunately, it is not available on Kindle so I have to wait until my Amazon order arrives... look for a review later in the week.

• Whimsy Craft - I'm going to do several whimsical crafts with Jessie this week. We had a blast making those purple fairy wands during Creativity Week and I'm ready to up our game a bit. I am not quite up to these fabulous Halloween Candy Balls Katherine is making but we'll do something fabulous I am sure! I'll take photos of the results here!
  

 I also fully expect a whole host of surprises as I explore this topic. The fun is just beginning...

Next Post: Whimsical surprises

My 13 bliss virtues: joy, order, creativity, passion, whimsy, serenity, inquiry, community, romance, gratitude, moxie, humility, surprise

Passion Week comes to a close

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PASSION - a fervent or extravagant fondness, enthusiasm, or desire for anything; experience of strong love or sexual desire. [Click here for this week's Bliss Initiatives]

Be still when you have nothing to say; when genuine passion moves you, 
say what you've got to say, and say it hot. 
D. H. Lawrence (1885 - 1930)

This week started out a little slow for me. I was doing some of the Bliss Initiatives and I was thinking a lot about PASSION but I just wasn't getting the experience of pumping up the volume on the passion in my life. Usually just the act of writing my Bliss Initiatives gets me moving in the direction of my virtue, this just wasn't the case this week.

I never did read a passionate novel. I got recommendations from a couple of my better read friends but the books they offered were not available on my Kindle and a trip to the Library or Bookstore just wasn't in the cards this week. I actually don't see it happening this week so I may actually place an amazon order instead... there are a couple of things I need for the house too! (Ah multitasking! I am passionate about you!)

Writing my Kathy Sprinkle Story was a passionate and creative experience and I would recommend you write your story. It is very freeing. Somehow, now that I encapsulated my history in one short essay the rest of my life feels like a very open book. In writing my story I closed a chapter in my life and I am ready to write the next one. This week I also wrote about creating my Back Story and I feel I am in a really great place to create one. (From my week on ORDER) Karen Ehman, author of  "The Complete Guide to Getting and Staying Organized", writes that one should have a mission statement for their role in the family -- sounds like a back story! Once again synergy between the weeks abounds, and a compelling mission statement/back story is just what I am going to develop next. I'm not going to rush it, and plan to stay in the inquiry for a bit longer but as soon as it is ready I'll share it here.

Yesterday, when I finally dove into the "experience of strong love or sexual desire" part of my Passion definition, was the turning point in my passion experience. I enrolled Rob in the idea of the 30 second kiss and that one little action has reverberated passion throughout my psyche. I feel more passionate towards him, I feel more energy and excitement regarding my projects. Before adding the kiss, I would have rated myself a 3 or a 4 for this week on my arbitrary rating scale. After the kiss I think I can give myself a 6! Sure there is further to go but what a difference one little thing can make! If you haven't considered adding a passionate kiss to your daily ritual I highly recommend it and refer you to the eHow tutorial on How to Kiss Passionately. The HOT picture might just be enough to encourage you!

Next Post: Whimsy week begins

My 13 bliss virtues: joy, order, creativity, passion, whimsy, serenity, inquiry, community, romance, gratitude, moxie, humility, surprise