Anacortes Center for Happiness

I think I heard (and said) the words “Oh, this is SOOO CUTE on you!” about a thousand times. A little embarrassing but hey, this is what happens when you put a bunch of women together in a big beautiful room full of clothes.

Saturday’s Happy S.W.A.P.  was Stephanie’s (our Happiness Adventure Facilitator) baby and it felt like an ongoing catered event with new arrivals of yummies pouring in by the hour.

Women came in with stuff they were tired of and left with new treasures. They helped each other try clothes on (by the end, the little dressing room had become quasi obsolete as many of us walked around in our undies – no time to waste) and made suggestions such as “I used to wear it this way” – and “it looks really good with boots.”

Everything was tidied up by 5 so we could get ready for the movie but somehow, around 10, an impromptu “S.W.A.P. after hours” party took place as some people who hadn’t been there in the afternoon decided to go through all the bags while we cleaned up the room! And thus we had more “this is SO cute on you!” and more women in their undies.

Great fun.

And now, for the other exciting part of this program, we have TONS of great clothes to bring to the Friendship House, this week.

All in all, a success. To be repeated.

Wow… feeling so lucky.

Recently, and since she returned from a trip all over the world, my friend Carol Miner has become our Happiness Support Specialist – which includes all kinds of ways in which she supports… me. And that is an amazing feeling.  Carol is full of joy and she loves to explore possibilities. She is a YES person and just kooky enough that she is currently at work getting Harry Manx to come do a concert for us in November (and I bet she is going to pull it off, too). When I realize that it is not going to be dark enough to show a movie at 7 pm, she whips up curtains for all seven windows in a couple of hours. She brings flowers to the Center… she comes up with the idea of having our calendar in the Clamdigger (how in the world did I miss that???) and she just makes things easy. Plus, she’s so much fun to be around. So come meet her, or if you already know her, just come give her a hug, at Saturday’s Cinco de Mayo Potluck, which is her baby.

And now, Julie comes on board as our Happiness Awareness Sprinkler. Julie Bell has been hanging out at the Center pretty much since its first month. She and I have danced together – and occasionally actually collided with each other while dancing – and cut pieces of paper for collage together, made awesome prints … and been threatened of having to sit apart from one another by the instructor. All this to say: she knows the Center and its essence really well. And because of this, she is going to kick butt at getting the word out to the Mt Vernon area about all the cool stuff we do. She may even been seen wearing fairy wings as she does it. When she is not at the Center or working as a pre-school teacher, Julie sprinkles happiness  – and occasionally an expletive or two -  all over her two boys and her hubby. Next time you see Julie (most likely dancing Nia), make sure she sprinkles a little something all over you.

So yeah. Feeling pretty lucky…

This is definitely a work of love and there is a lot of love going around.

I think she has owned this building for 50 years – and for 20 of these years, I have been in love with it. The smell, the feel, the staircase, the fact that it doesn’t have hot water, that some of the sinks need to be handled a certain way. I love the plants that she lovingly waters and grooms … and her.

I am not sure how old she is but she moves like a schoolgirl and dances like a ballerina.

From the day I moved onto the island, I had been dreaming of finding a reason to have a space in here. I even considered starting my bakery in that tiny (tiny) kitchen, on the 3d floor.

Of course, it reminds me of Paris. And of Spain. And her accent only adds to the European cocoon-ness.

A few years ago, I finally rented a small office in this haven. When I left, a year later, my heart cracked a little just as she assured me that “I’d be back.”

She was right. Last June, she handed me the key to The Ballroom – the ultimate essence of this amazing building. And with it she said “I knew you’d be back. You belong here.”

And darn it, I do. Whether it is at 2:00 when the sound of guitar students is in the air or at midnight when I am all alone in the darkness, I know I belong here.

And I realize today that a lot of that sense of belonging has to do with her. With her quiet, smiling and kind presence.

This morning, as I walked up the sweet 55 steps, something in the air was different. I could hear her talk a little bit loudly to someone and when she saw me she said: “Hi Laura. I have exciting news.”

I waited as she seemed to take a good long while to wipe down one of the lower leaves of a plant before slowly straightening up, turning to me and telling me that … she had sold the building.

The next few minutes were strange as she and I let our mouths do what mouths do in times like these. Our eyes joined the party too, and started to do what eyes do when the heart is too full to hold it all in.

She walked back downstairs and I walked into the Ballroom.

A little while later, I spoke with the new owners and was assured that our lease was safe and that all would remain the same. And that Maria would still be here on most days, playing her jazz music and tending her bookstore.

Which is nice. Really, really nice.

So why have I been crying most of the afternoon?

Last Saturday, we watched the movie “I AM.” A room full of people focused on the idea that “we are one” and that “tiny acts of kindness” are what it takes (this from the Dalai Lama). I was feeling pretty good. In fact, I was feeling damn good because aside from the occasional times when I act … unpleasant (it happens – ask my kids), I really do feel that we are all one, that if I hurt you, I hurt me. That if something really awesome happens to you, it happens to me, too. Or that it’s about to – like in a preview. It’s not a thinking thing or even a belief, it’s a … I dunno…  a part of me. And I’m also a big fan of tiny acts of kindness so really, the day after the screening, the choir having been artistically preached to, my cup was pretty full.

But my gas tank wasn’t and so Chris and I headed to the popular casino gas station to fill up the tiny Mazda’s tiny little tummy before going to Seattle.

All repleted, we were making our way towards the highway when I noticed that someone was parked at the very top of the hill, right on the curvy part of the road. Thinking that if they had stopped there, they must be in trouble, I accelerated right towards them. Pretty fast, just in case. Chris turned to me and said something like “What the heck are you doing, babe?” Before I could answer him, I had reached the stranded car and noticing that one of the occupants was outside of the vehicle, looking at me, I slowed to a crawl and started to look for a safe place to pull over and help him. At which point, Chris’ eyes were boring holes onto the side of my face as he shouted “No, no, no, don’t stop!!!”

I was annoyed. Had he not seen the same movie I had seen?? Was he going to let that poor police officer stand there all by himself? Wait. That poor  … what???  That’s when I realized what Chris had been trying to tell me all along. No one was stranded on the side of the road. Instead, a police car was hiding, trying to catch people who were coming out the gas station, happy to have a full tank and ready to use it – fast. My guess is that the officer also may  have been wondering what the heck I was doing when, after having taken one look at him, I accelerated drastically. Towards him. Again, he may have been wondering why I was trying to park my car as close as I could to his, even though he had not (yet) instructed me to do so.

This is the kind of thing that cracks me up so much that a week later, I can still startle my cat by laughing out loud just thinking about it at random moments (it’s also the kind of thing that makes people ask me if I smoke a lot of weed and if I’d like to go with them to Burning Man. Which in turn, really cracks me up.)

Here’s to little acts of kindness, good laughs  – and possibly to paying a little closer attention.

Dancing by yourself is fun.

Dancing with a partner is more fun.

Dancing with a partner who’s a strong lead, fun, kind, patient and makes you look good- oh boy.

Piece #1:
Sheila Goldsmith of ImprovPlayworks  is coming on April 21 to lead an afternoon Improv Playshop! We dont have a webpage for it yet (working on it) but I just got off the phone with her and wanted to let you know right away because there will only be 20 spots. If you want one, email us.  $20.

Piece #2:
My friend Carol has just returned from a loooooong trip all over the world and we have decided to create regular “International Potlucks.” She’ll pick a country, we’ll all bring food to share, maybe some music and have ourselves a great time. I believe she is planning the first one for Saturday May 5 – Cinco de Mayo – and yes, it will be MEXICAN yumminess

Ok, that’s it for now. Have a wonderful weekend!

I swear I am high.

I am high on the joy of what I do “for a living.”

Between the thrill of working with my coaching clients and the thrill of creating cool, cool, cool events for all of us to partake in, sometimes I wonder if I am dreaming.

Yesterday was a coaching day. I got to share in the lives of people I care for and watch them navigate their days more and more smoothly, with more and more confidence and ENJOYMENT.

This morning, I have been in touch with a whole bunch of creative, passionate, excited people as we concoct our next time together. Heather and I are “working” on her upcoming Nia debut, April and I are creating a “Printmaking Sandbox Day,” Joan, Lynn and are inventing a whole fall day of learning about essential oils in healing (and cooking!), Jean Mann and I are planning a concert. Wendylee and I talked about a silk scarf painting class. Jennifer Bowman and I are buttoning up her upcoming class. And then, some man in New Brunswick (of all places) is going to fly our way in a few weeks for a whole weekend of meditation. Then there are movies, and the ongoing gift of dancing with Lisa and …. my head is swirling and once again, I am awed by the gift. The gift that says that I get to have so much fun … creating so much fun.

So there it is. And I still can hardly believe it.

Thank you to all of you who make this work. To all of you who show up with your eyes sparkling, ready to play, to think up new ways to share and to BE.

This morning, as a friend and I discussed a short video explaining the principle of the Nia technique, the word “pleasure” kept coming up.

Pleasure. Pleasure.

Pleasure.

If you say it enough time, you will start to … feel it. Try it: pleasure…

And yet, we say it so rarely, in English.

Sure, we use it in regard to sex and I think that’s a good place for it. But certainly not the only one. And really, by associating Pleasure only with sex, I feel that we miss out on so much.

Not so in French (for a fun experiment, Google images for both “Pleasure” and “Plaisir”)

In French, we often use, say and hear the following words:

“Would you please pleasure me a little?”

“I am going pleasure myself” (… and eat a croissant, buy a new dress)

And if I close my eyes, I can hear my grandmother ask me with a smile “What would give you pleasure right now, darling?”

Ahh… giving – and receiving – pleasure. A little bit every day.

Pleasure of our eyes (simply dimming the lights do it for me – or seeing a really vibrant color), pleasure of our taste buds (a good French cheese can actually make me cry) of our minds, of our spirit. For years, I kept my laundry powder in a nice, round fish bowl because looking at the sparkly stuff gave me so much more pleasure than seeing that big orange cardboard box.

Or pleasure of our body, as in the case of Nia, where the instructors remind us over and over again to “find our own pleasure spot” – which is a long way from the no pain-no gain workouts of the 80s (come to think of it, French women rarely “work out.”)

So … go pleasure yourself. Try on that cashmere sweater. Sip that cup of tea. Take that deep breath, dim those lights, get that new pen that feels so good in your hand, put on that Etta James CD and close your eyes for a second … whatever that pleasure spot is for you.

Chances are it will cost you so very little. And one little shot of pleasure at a time, your life will take on a new flavor… a very pleasurable flavor.

Warning:  you may start to talk with a French accent.

We have been going through paper cups like crazy.

And lately, we have been saving them and they have accumulated in funny rows, looking a bit disheveled with our names in red marker, all lined up on a shelf … I wanted something else.

So… voila!

We are getting a little stock of them next on Monday!

$10. Not bad, huh?

AND if you turn in two filled out punch cards… guess what? You get your very own mug with your very own name on it. Yup.

“Everything ends and begins with her”

“Don’t give him more than he is asking for”

“It’s been 36 years and this is the first time we’ve done it”

… very much looking forward to next week : )