Like Nina Simone sang...

"Its a new dawn, its a new day, its a new life...And I'm feelin' good!"

Riddle me this: Why, all of a sudden, is everyone else singing this song (by everyone I mean Michael Buble and Jennifer Hudson). It turns me off a bit that Jennifer Hudson is singing it on a Weight Watchers commercial but I guess that's a different topic, so I digress.

What I always loved about the new year is that it feels like a new opportunity, but the truth is that new opportunities are always around the corner anytime of the year. What makes the Julian Calendar so special that I follow it so precisely in everything I do or plan? I think planning this way is limited and has limited my thinking for a good 20 years of my life.

Moreover henceforth therewithto (that's some of that fancy old English for you), I will no longer be a slave to standard calendar practices. I will make resolutions all year round and celebrate the only REAL holiday...my birthday, with gusto and a jovial attitude every year no matter how old my government ID tells me I am. I will play tennis in the Winter and drink hot cocoa in the Summer. I will wear hot pink in the Fall and eat pumpkin pie in the Spring. I will punctuate my slang properly and I will write in complete sentences (I don't know that this last one has anything to do with the calendar).

All I'm saying is every day is a playground. Enjoy what you do, how you live and who you are around as much as possible; and if you don't like it, don't wait until January 1 or the next Monday or the first of the month to change what you don't like. Maybe one day you can be as happy as this guy:

A Love Lost!

I just gave up the love of my life. Never have I been around anything that is sooo much like me. In the morning all you can see is that he was happy to be alive, wears his heart on his sleeve, loves unconditionally and needed to 'go potty', very much like his momma. Granted this lil' pup has not much else to do with his life, but he reminded me that every morning is a great morning to give it everything you have.

Barkley, like myself, enjoyed the simple things in life; rolling in grass, cheese, I mean really how can it get much better than that. I knew it was going to be hard to give him back, but I didn't realize how hard. Every inch of me tells me to call his foster mom and tell her that I change my mind, but there's just too much on it. I wish I could ignore all the reasons that I can't have Barkley in my life, ten minutes of his cuddling and Eskimo kisses is worth it.

I guess this is just my declaration of love for my little pup Barkley. I don't know that I will be able to let go completely or if I will be able to ever have another that makes me as happy. The truth of the matter is he was the right pup for me at the wrong time. This couldn't feel worse inside. Barkley stole a piece of my heart that will always stay with him, even if he forgets about me and gets a new mom.
Bye, bye Barkley. I miss you already.