Sometimes we need to be reminded about simple and inspiring ways to live a more meaningful life, that what the following ideas do for me.

Health:

1. Drink plenty of water.

2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.

3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants..

4. Live with the 3 E’s — Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy

5. Make time to pray.

6. Play more games

7. Read more books than you did in 2009 .

8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day

9. Sleep for 7 hours..

10. Take a 10-30 minute walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:

11. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

12. Don’t have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

13. Don’t over do. Keep your limits.

14. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

15. Don’t waste your precious energy on gossip.

16. Dream more while you are awake

17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need..

18. Forget issues of the past. Don’t remind your partner with His/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.

19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don’t hate others.

20. Make peace with your past so it won’t spoil the present.

21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

23. Smile and laugh more.

24. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree…

Society:

25. Call your family often.

26. Each day give something good to others.

27. Forgive everyone for everything..

28. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.

29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

30. What other people think of you is none of your business.

31. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:

32. Do the right thing!

33. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.

34. GOD heals everything.

35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change..

36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

37. The best is yet to come..

38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.

39. Your Inner most is always happy. So, be happy.

Happy New Year one and all, remember Happiness Matters!

Check out the popular Happiness Matter T-Shirt from the on-line store!  CLICK HERE

I want to share some things that inspired me from the 2009 California Women’s Conference held in Long Beach CA October 27th.  Many of my readers in California are familiar with this largest of women’s conference with attendance of 14,000 women from all walks of life, hosted by California First Lady Maria Shriver and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, the nation’s premier forum for women was  held again this year at the Long Beach Convention Center.
“The goal of The Women’s Conference is to transform women inside and out – and then empower
them to help transform our world as Architects of Change,” said Shriver. “We encourage women to
pass on the wisdom, life-lessons and the practical tools they have learned to empower other women
to see themselves as capable of making a difference in the world.”

In case you are a new reader you know what a passionate advocate I am for women and I believe the strength and empowerment women gain from this conference is life changing.  The bond of women gathered together in empowerment on one another is truly remarkable.

I thought it would be really fun to share some of the “tweets” that tell the story of this great event.

Maria Schriver

Madeleine Albright, David Gregory, Amy Holmes, Claire Shipman, Valerie B. Jarrett

Paula deen: there is nothing worse than the emotion of hopelessness. #wc09

thegirlblogger Sitting down to attend Women Who Use Their Voices to Change the World: Geena Davis, Somaly Man, Lisa Ling and Nicholas Kristof #wc09

IconWrap #wc09 Madeleine Albright “there’s a special place in hell for women who don’t help each other”

Geena Davis

SFWomensJournal Geena Davis is sharing amazing stories about her work in changing media sterotyping via her non-profit. Thxs Geena You rock! #wc09

@redrockette Overheard; kate gosselin mobbed while caroline kennedy walking around by herself. #wc09

MintCool Meghan McCain on panel speaking abt being raised by John & Cindy. #wc09 #tcot #hhrs

LAKarenLoftus Amazing day on Twitter-Sharing #wc09 w/ women around the world – What a gift!

FashionweekNYC Check the live feed for a conversation about how women’s voices are changing the world! http://bit.ly/4unCEV #wc09

ivillage Dr Christiane Northrup @ #wc09: don’t ask yourself what the world needs, ask yourself what makes you come alive and go do that

@lifebeginsat30 Intense panel about grief: Elizabeth Edwards, M. Shriver, Susan St James and Lisa Niemi (so soon after P. Swayze’s death). #wc09

@mariaschriver Ok…conf is over- best one ever – thanks 4 following & watching. Off to the staff wrap party. Could not have pulled this off w/out them!

“promote and cultivate good fellowship, higher social, intellectual and economic standards and a true spirit of brotherly love; promote American patriotism and better citizenship by upholding the Constitution and the laws of the United States; promote goodwill and esteem towards all nations, the ethnicity of its members; promote folk art, music, sports and generally carry on as a social organization; support all that is just and lawful for the benefit of all its members and the community, and finally to provide and maintain a Home for social activities and a meeting place for its members.”

Now, you might not find this history lesson very interesting at this point, but what really moved me more than anything during this lunch was how they ended it. A speaker closed the lunch at the podium by saying “let’s all stand a sing God Bless America”, I’m wondering did I hear him correctly? Well sure enough everyone stood and started singing lead by a man singing in broken English every single word of God Bless America! I had tears in my eyes because this man – these Croatian immigrants were so proud to be Americans! Well, I felt at that moment what it must have meant for my grandparents who came to this country and believed anything was possible and how proud they must have been to have opportunity and hope from what America offered. I left that lunch overjoyed at what I had just experienced with my heart filled with pride about what it means to be an American.

Here is a link for State By State Voter registration deadline information: Declare Yourself

Only in America…. do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries and a diet coke.

Only in America…. do banks have both doors open and then chain the pens to the counters.

Only in America…. do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway because our garages are full of junk.

Only in America…. do they have drive-up ATMs with Braille lettering.

Ever wonder…. why the sun darkens our skin but lightens our hair?

…. why women can’t put on mascara with their mouths closed?

…. why you don’t ever see the headline: ‘Psychic Wins Lottery’ ?

…. why is ‘abbreviated’ such a long word?

…. why is it that doctors call what they do ‘practice’ ?

…. why lemon juice is made with artificial flavor and dishwashing liquid is made with real lemons?

…. why is the man who invests all your money called a ‘broker’?

…. why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called ‘rush hour’?

…. why isn’t there mouse flavored cat food?

…. why didn’t Noah swat those two mosquitoes?

…. why do they sterilize the needle for lethal injections?

You know that indestructible black box on airplanes? …. why don’t they make the whole plane out of that stuff?

…. why don’t sheep shrink when it rains?

…. why are they called ‘apartments’ when they’re all stuck together?

If flying is so safe…. why do they call the airport the ‘terminal’?

and my final thought…why can’t we find things “right” about people rather than always pointing out something wrong?

I found out Croatian Immigrants settled in the San Pedro area which is a fishing village at the end of the 19th century. Come to find out there is a Croatian Cultural Center of Los Angeles which is dedicated to educating the general public on the diverse cultural heritage of Croatia. The City of Los Angeles even named a stretch of 9th Street “Croatian Place” in honor of the city’s old Croatian community. There are reportedly more than 35,000 Croats in San Pedro, making it the biggest Croatian community on the Pacific.

When I have time, I plan to explore this community of my heritage….stay tuned!