inspire

I used to hope you’d bring me flowers…

~ Fridgesays ~ 2 Comments

Quote by the outrageous ‘Anon’
*sorry for the terrible photo quality…reflection / tone, it’s all just wrong.

But the quote speaks volumes to me.

On a personal level my Dad is my first hero. I guess I’ve waited my entire life to find the ‘one’, then when I found my prince he was a miserable git and not exactly the ‘charming’ that my Disney childhood had foreseen…but then Prince C didn’t have a good bicep, an impressive tricep and the banter only a doorman could have. Let’s be honest prince C was a bit of a Ken Barbie doll (and I prefer Action man). Early in our relationship I told him something that was so true in my twenties. Don’t ever buy me cut flowers…they look fabulous and then you sit them in a vase and watch them die – seriously depressing. Then I grew older, used my femine powers and changed my mind. He still stands by my original request and now I’m literally forced to buy myself flowers.

*note to him or anyone: I love being bought flowers.

I guess however this quote goes a little deeper, it’s not about flowers but making your own happiness. Under fridge philosophy (yeah that’s a thing now) I have to agree. Happiness is like a contagious snotty cold, but with less snot and a more powerful energy source than Dyson could invent. When I’m happy the world moves with me and even in darkness only knocks me slightly from my path. Along this path I attract positive energy and this only increased my super power. The choice to be happy.

If I could tell my teenage self one thing, it would be ‘that you choose to be happy’, my friends, family or the lastest NAF NAF tshirt can’t help you either, however in a positive moment family and friends can enhance your flight, and its a precious journey that is sacred.

Growing your own flowers to me is also about sowing the seeds of dreams and goals and seeing them to fruition. I don’t need a charming prince to ‘get me’ a castle, nor do i need him to make me happy. I do need my own goals (the soil), some action and motivation from within (the seeds) and then the positive motion to fuel my growth (water and sun), sure every now and then a slug will come and take a bite out of my dreams, redirect me or even reduce me to a sluggish mess…but it is also me that will get back up and rock my new snail trail sparkle.

So this week no matter what life throws at you. Choose happiness and for god sake buy yourself some flowers and don’t ever feel guilty.

To have great poets…

~ Fridgesays ~ 4 Comments

Quote by Walt Whitman

Now not that you aren’t a fab audience but I love to write poetry and keep it to myself. It’s a stress reliever – I’ve also not matured in the poet sense of appreciation and so all my poems HAVE to rhymn, a bit like a seven year old…goat, bloat and float, you get the level of my pen and paper ability?

Maybe in time I will post some, I write it in the most sparkly note book known to pen kind..with sparkly water melon pieces all over it. Amazing 🙂


Poetry allows me to regress in to a magical world (enhanced by sparkly watermelon pieces) and together they also bring me closer to my Grandad who passed away too long ago. He was amazing at so many things, creative, fixing things, making me smile, and he also was a kind soul…he sucked at cooking, and his driving was ‘unique’, he was also horrified when my little cousins named there Guinea Pig after him (hehe)  but after he passed away the family found a book of pencilled poetry / lymrics that he had created. Sadly the pencil had faded but through the pages I found a love and a passion that I wasn’t aware of, a new aspect of my Grandads’ personality. This blog is obviously a public creative outlet for me, unlike my poems which are a little closer to my heart.

Wellbeing and balance are so essential, I hope I never stop writing about them. I completely see why colouring for adults has taken the world by storm and also why so many are drawn to it (drawn hehe), I plan to give it ago later this year (for some reason I think I need to be snuggled by a fire with a hot drink for me to colour in?)

Do you have a creative outlet or have you tried colouring in for a sense of calm / wellbeing? If so I’d love to hear from you.

Before I finish this piece however, I feel it necessary to also agree with the quote above. Walt makes a very important point and since the current UK education system seems to be slashing the arts in our schools I feel its essential that our children are able to experience and share art (in whatever form it resonates with them) and also to say that Drama in particularly was key to my growth, my wellbeing and my education. Seeing audiences relate to my characters has given me a sense of worth that allowed me to flourish, to take on more diverse roles and those skills are ingrained in my soul and make me who I am. So to all the audiences (paid, bribed or in rehearsal) who ever watched and reflected; thank you.

It’s easy to be brave from a distance

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Proverb by Aesop 

This reminds me of the playground as a fight breaks out. Not the actual fight, but the pathetic individuals that are choosing to stand by and watch. Lapping up the atmosphere of negativity, encouraging the fight with chants that will haunt the victim scrabbling on the floor well into their forties.

Am I against fighting? Not at all – Marshall arts has done more for resilience building that any leadership training course I’ve ever been part of, Boxing and MMA needs spectators and is an awesome all round fitness sport…but when questioning the children standing around the edge they aren’t the confident individuals they were during the chant, nor are they brave.

Brave is the kid that stands between them, stupid is the teacher at 4ft11 (over 5ft in my heels) who’s adrenaline places them in between and who’s voice booms a clear instruction to stop, that desperses the crowd…

How often have I left a conversation with a parent or manager and wishes i’d said something else, how many hours have I reinacted conversations in my head about ‘what I should of said’…these to are not brave. 

Brave is standing by what you know is right. I’d be hypocritical to say I always do this – it’s something you have to be aware of, to engage in the moment. Sometimes no matter how transparent we are, curbing our thoughts and preventing them forming into words is just as brave. In 2006 I found a motto to life that has stuck with me (I nearly got the Latin translation tattooed on me; don’t panic Mum it never happened) and that is…

‘If you do something with good intentions, only good can come from it’

Even if you’ve seriously made an error in judgement, with good intentions comes good vibes and ultimately a less severe consequence for everyone involved. 

So while I get back to the playground, be brave and always say what you think is best in the moment, act in the moment and never judge from a distance – because that’s easy and you’re better than that.

Go the extra mile

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Quote by the wonderful and talents (all be it slightly bashful) Anon.

Don’t panic this post doesn’t mention the swear word ‘exercise’.

The quote doesn’t require me to delve into a huge ramble of meaning and metaphor, instead it says it all. I adore a quote that hits you with motivation and love and then walks away, I imagine it’s must like David Beckham walking over to you for a peck on the cheek (okay, that would be way better right?) you think at the time you’ll be cool, sassy and looking totes hot – instead you are blushing like a strawberry and wearing stretchy pants (Victoria wouldn’t approve of either the peck or the stretchy trousers)… I digress 

I guess simply many people settle. They plan small and within the reality of now, they settle and make adjustments where necessary, they live day to day and then one day…they die

Not sounding like the usual ‘fridge vibes’ because I spend my life (in my head) screaming at people to want more, to go bigger to enjoy the enjoyment, to actually feel ‘life’ before its gone and sure we all get caught up in the supermarket shop and the kids homework…but we can all dream and live a bit bigger right? Otherwise what’s the point and how come ‘other’ people achieve the things we desire? Because they dare to.

I have a good friend who is currently talking about marriage to a man who, when she got with originally thought was ‘too nice’. 

My Mum has ‘best China’

Other friends are happy settled in finances stretching to a holiday every other year and all the bills paid.

Now I’m hoping that if you’re reading and following the fridge and all its lovely positive contents – maybe your are ready or have  already gone the extra mile.

Settle only with the best of partners, eat off the fancy plates and dream big…because that’s life and what’s the point in life if your goals are around painting fences and a week in Majorca…and if your are the Majorca / fence person then go with the top brand stainer and upgrade to all inclusive. 

*im sure Majorca is lovely, sorry for picking on you. 

Be kind; everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle

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Quote and wisdom from Plato. 

I collect something invisible – it’s sad but true. They are free and it stems from a game I use to play with myself when I was a little lady (yup I’m an only child with an imagination as big as the wardrobe door in Narnia) and it’s called Karma points. I collect them all of the time and a bonus is there is no storage involved: In my car I let people out of junctions, I buzz off of a busy one way street, I let people out of shops and all the while I’m collecting karma points for later in the day when my toddler is having a tantrum and the possibilities of me needing to claim in some tokens is high…it’s silly but in this whirling swirling crazy world – it helps me to be nice. In my humble opinion the twenty first century is losing this quality and kindness is essential. 

As parents we encourage it ‘use kind hands’ ‘make sure you share…Ahhh that’s kind’ and then as the biggest hypocrites going we often forget ourselves. 

Life beyond the fridge is pretty good for me most of the time and it’s worth remembering that most people do have it much tougher, be that health wise, financially or just because their partner acts like a part of the male anatomy usually found below the waiste line. 

So as you go about your daily duties, picking children up from various childcare facilities, groups and team activities, make time to let the single mum in the Ford estate out of the car park or the Dad on the edge of sanity in Tesco with twins on a Saturday morning pass with his trolley…because it might be you that needs those karma / kind tokens cashed in one day.

Thanks for reading and please continue to share the fridges positive vibes with friends and loved ones. Have an awesome week 🙂 

Life is always in motion so I cannot be stuck

~ Fridgesays ~ 10 Comments

 Quote by Esther Hicks, the princess of Law of Attraction.

I often feel stuck. Please don’t misinterpret this as I’m grateful  for all I have, for I know it’s much more than most…but stuck is how I often feel.

Stuck with 9am-5pm, which is actually more 7am to silly o’clock, and in seasons gone by the dark nights make feeling stuck a little more like I’m being suffocated.

The bit that I dislike the most is ‘adulting’ between you and me I’m really not a fan. I don’t mind the responsibility or the chores, for me personally it’s the reality of it all. One of my favourite birthday gifts was my 27th. My other half bought me a huge trampoline and I realised (probably whilst jumping up and down) that that is the secret to life…no not trampolines although they are pretty awesome in the fun department, let me explain.

When I was growing up our back garden was a little narrow and had a good gradient to it. So it’s no surprise that giant trampolines (14ft) weren’t practical.

As an adult with a much flatter and wider garden – it was achievable. I think adults often limit the ‘fun’ they have, I also think that we don’t stop to look around. We rush and go from supermarket shop to meetings with friends and family and the motion of life gets distorted. We decide what behaviour is appropriate or immature – in short, we limit ourselves.

I have a solution. I’ve been doing it for a while (within reason) I watch my son and do my best to observe the sights and sounds he sees, I try never to say no when he asks me to read and yes to when he asks me to play. I say within reason as sometimes the adult in me needs to get to work (that sucks).

If you’re reading this then you are blessed – life is still in motion for you, as I’ve written before you are the writer, author and most importantly the creator of your journey. You can live it 9am-5pm like a robotic clock that is consumed by bills and getting by…or you can buy a trampoline and laugh from your toes, smell the daisies or snuggle up with your loved ones and read a good book.

Enjoy the motion of life and make it work at a pace that suits your dreams and aspirations.

Life is a BIG canvas

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 Quote by Danny Kaye.

I usually write while J sleeps be that in the day when he naps or at night but this blog is written by the side of a swimming pool whilst Daddy ‘swims’, he brought a Daddy friend (hehe) and J’s friend. It’s boiling on the sidelines and they are blaring out loud tunes whilst kids leaps on giant inflatables…think of it like a tropical paradise if you will (the reality is a little more mid Sussex at 4pm on a Saturday afternoon)…what’s that got to do with a canvas? Well twenty minutes a go we were snuggled on the sofa with no plans – then a friend calls and says ‘wanna go swimming’ and we’re here. Like I said the reality isn’t exactly the tropics but I don’t think canvas’s need to be…a good life painting should be varied, involve as many new experiences as possible and as many cultures, new foods and as close to natures as possible…for myself I’ll also add a wardrobe full of high heels and a book collection to turn heads.

There is a challenge where people say ‘yes’ for a year and although I’ve never done it myself the results seem to be impressive and the reflections are often how one opportunity leads to another or that the person realises how often they use to say no.

Saying ‘yes’ surely has to lead to bigger things and a better canvas as you exit this crazy Earth of ours? Worst case scenario you may end up an your local swimming pool with an hour  to yourself 🙂

It’s never too late…

~ Fridgesays ~ 2 Comments

 Quote from George Eliot. Now a quick Google and I found out that this Victorian author was in fact female and was actually called Mary. Her pen name was masculine so that readers took her seriously…I love this quote even more now. I may even give one of her books a go, plus she felt her work was to enrich and enlighten – over a hundred years later and she is still doing this for me.

Alas, in true Lucy style I am going to lower the tone. When I was about five I fell in love with a Goldie Hawn film…this is the kind of love where you are able to watch  the film so many times you can warp the video tape but know all of the words. The Film was called ‘Over board’ (1987) and to this day I know every word, so much so I don’t find it enjoyable without receiting each word…which means no one will watch it with me.

This quickly led to the love of the film ‘Mannequin’ 1987 with Kim Cattral which I wasn’t so obsessed with but definetly secured my love of blonde chicks and also in my thirties, still secretly desire an actual mannequin for my home, I think I even asked for one for my eighth birthday? So practical…

The third film that I would note had another blonde…Daryl Hannah and Tom Hanks (don’t even start me on sleepless and Seattle or you’ve got mail) in Splash (1984) this sealed my dream – to be a Mermaid and my passion for crimped hair.

Now when Areil hit the big screen (1989) this only enhanced my love for both Disney and Mermaids, she was my ultimate heroine (if only she’d been blonde), amazing vocals, a fish as a best bud, perfect hair even in the worst of storms and let’s be honest how can anyone who takes guidance from a seagull not be loved? Areil was fiesty and independent; of course she would walk and I’d gladly have swapped my legs to be her.

So, at around four years old I also decided to be a teacher, which as you guys know worked out great as I love my job…but I wouldn’t hesitate it in a second to dive ‘under the sea’ to be ‘part of that world’ because ‘Darling it’s better down where’s it’s wetter, take it from me’…fine I’ll stop the lyrical inserts and I’ll even admit that it would have to be ‘Disney sea’ that I lived in with talking fish and bright blue / warm waters rather than the south coast murky, absolutely freezing can’t see bugger all real sea…but the dream is still present.

The dream makes me smile from my belly button, it makes me wonder how a 2016 Splash would adapt to 4g and surround sound, to mobile phones, tablets and ‘gizmos of plenty’? I will demand until the moment that I fly from this planet that dreams are possible, no matter how extreme or how unlikely. I will always live in my world where dreams can be achieved no matter how old, fat or thin you are, whether you’re rich or have little, loved or are allergic to nuts because what’s the point otherwise?

Maybe your dream isn’t reliant on growing a fin, maybe it’s stemmed in a new venture or way of life…maybe the dream for you begins tomorrow – however close or far it is, dream big and never let anyone tell you any different, perhaps they have lived a sheltered life without Disney or Goldie Hawn for entertainment and moral structuring, meanwhile I will move a step closer by asking my Mum to knit me a Mermaid blanket.

(Seriously look it up on Pinterest)

We have tomorrow for a reason 

~ Fridgesays ~ 30 Comments

Quote Anon.

The concept of tomorrow gives me a little hope, so I think this post will mainly be about that four letter word that is way more powerful than most seven lettered words (small things and all that).

When the day isnt flowing how I’d like or I feel suffocated by the world around me as people demand, take, grab and ask…I often think that ‘tomorrow will be better’, without defending into melancoholy it’s true that we don’t know when our tomorrow’s  will run out, but I hope for tomorrow and to an extent I expect it. Tomorrow gives me hope, for better, less demanding, more enjoying moments.

Having just swerved (but acknowledged) the subject or death rather neatly I also feel the need to do the same for ‘living like everyday is your last’ that’s great if you’re backpacking around the world and seizing the day…but seriously who would have just hoovered their lounge, spent a week of there life potty training a 2yr old ( also know as a prisoner in my own home), who would bother to run the washing machine today if ‘seizing’ was a long term achievement? In reality I’ve just done all those things and I blooming hope for a tomorrow that will be a little more fun…hey at least if it’s not we will all have clean undies 🙂

The indulgence of ‘tomorrow’ gives us hope for long term goals to be fulfilled, to not eat all the biscuits (that’s why I’ve eaten them today, to help tomorrow out), for things to ease and change to occur.

Change is often like a leaky tap, when really we would all prefer a fountain of change at times, particularly a positive financial gain or when we face a long term illness.

I’m not sure what tomorrow will bring? We have plans so I’m hoping it will be lovely, I’m hoping it will come and I’m hoping yours will to…but before we rest our heads and wait for it to arrive make sure that once the chores are out the way there’s a little time today to indulge, to make small changes or just to smile.