Last night

As you all know yesterday was Chinese New Years Day- I mentioned that I wanted to follow all of the traditions to ensure maximum luck my way for 2012. I went as far as googling it and calling my mom to discuss it yesterday. I found out that on New Years Eve all cleaning should be done prior to 10 pm ( which Thank Goodness I did !! ). I managed to wipe, mop, vacuum, scrub - basically any type of cleaning - you name it - I did it!!! My mom reminded me to make sure that I had mandarin oranges at home ( " gum " ) as it represent gold, so I did that. I fully stocked my fridge with meats, fruits and veggies. The following day I wore red for good luck, and made sure not to wipe anything in my house in the morning. On the day of New Years it's very important to be positive, and not say anything ill mannered or with " bad mojo " so I made sure to avoid all conflict and made sure to keep any negative comments to myself. I was looking for a really good excuse not to cook dinner, so I called my mom to ask her if it was bad luck. She called me ridiculous - and said I was just looking for excuses....however I did find something out - Apparently it's bad luck to use knifes!!!!!! LOL

In any case I did end up making food - I made Congee!! And I didn't use a knife!!

My mom taught me a trick - apparently if you add a little bit of oil to the congee it blends it better and looks like restaurant congee....and guess what - it actually worked!!! ( But this picture is a bad picture haha )

Then unfortunately I boiled the congee too much and it splashed and burned my knuckle.... I would have been way more upset if it was a serious burn ( esp if you do it on the date that supposedly forecasts your year ) - but the burn was okay - and today I don't have any scarring which is good :)

I also received this phone case in the mail last night...okay honestly - it's really cute...but I don't know if I have courage to use it!!! I brought it to work to get a second opinion and everyone thought it was super cute and suited me...but I dunno man....seems extremely fobby and I can totally hear ppl mocking me like my friend Rinda - she would totally laugh her a$$ off at me.

Overall I'm really excited for the New Year...somehow I am more excited for CNY than the Jan 1st NY LOL. I think it's basically because my frame of mind has just been so down this last month given all of the changes that my company has been going through. Work has sometimes been dreadful to come to because everybody is so negative.... But within the last week I've been really trying hard to "pep" up my staff and I think it's finally starting to pay off and make a difference. I noticed that because of my work and also my sprained ankle the last few months I've been very up and down and am really trying to make an effort to change all of that. I've been stressing over the little things and really it hasn't done myself any good. Sometimes things are just the way they are - and they will be the way they want to be. I have to learn to roll with the punches, or else get up and move on / figure out a new plan of action. Ppl have been so negative around me especially at work...and you know what? It's just work. It truly does make a difference how you take things. Even just yesterday - trying to stay positive - I was very amazed with what a difference it made.

I know that we are all humans and it's easier " said than done " and more often than not we sometimes slip back to our old ways - but I am really really determined. And not because it's New Years. But because I want to be happier - not just at home, but at work - at LIFE - just in general.

Have a great week!! Sorry for the babble today. LOL

C