"To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don't need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself."

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Easier said than done, no?  I can't tell you the number of times I've said negative things to myself that I would never think of saying to someone else.  I wonder why we can't be as good to ourselves as we are to other people? 

Things around here have been quiet (this is not a complaint!).  Our mornings are darker and we are leaving the house just as the sun comes up.  This is painful but it allows us to see some beautiful sunrises.  There are bits of yellow and orange appearing on the tips of the trees and bushes. 

Fall is well and truly here but today and tomorrow our temperatures are supposed to top out at 85 F (29C).  The mornings start out around 55 F (12C) so the difference is around 30 degrees.  I was going to make the clothing exchange last weekend and put the summer clothes away but it suddenly got too nice to spend the day inside.  We didn't spend nearly as much time outdoors this summer as we have in the past. 

Work has been busy.  We have a new crop of interns just come in and they are settling in all around us.  They are easy to recognize due to their tattoos, facial piercings and brightly colored hair.  MSWs!  They will soon graduate, take their licensing exam and go out into the world as newly minted counselors.  I like to think of the impression they'll make on potential clients.

I had my annual gyn appointment last week.  Last year she was telling me "hormones keep you young" and not to fret about still getting a regular period.  This year she is telling me the sooner the hormones stop, the better due to the increased risk of breast cancer.  "I want you to come back next year and tell me you are done with all this".  yeah, I'll work on that.  I have to schedule the mammogram.  I hate doing this because more times than not, it leads to a follow up set of images due to "an area of concern" which turns out to be nothing.  I've been having periodic bouts of insomnia and some days I feel like a zombie walking around and not paying as much attention as I'd like.  It's probably a good thing I don't operate heavy machinery for a living.

And speaking of stressfull?  Kate has to get her wisdom teeth pulled tomorrow.  I'm taking the afternoon off to drive her there and take her home.  And then Monday, Pk is having a wisdom tooth pulled and I am his designated driver as well.  At least it's not me getting the teeth pulled.  I don't mind being the driver.

Pk has been truly enjoying watching soccer games.  We went to watch my nephew play.  He's 8.  The ball rolls down the field and there are all these legs kicking at it and nobody actually makes contact with it.  It's so much fun to watch the youngsters and see who has come into their coordination and who has not.  My nephew was in the goal and was sitting on his butt watching the game at the other end of the field.  We were trying not to laugh so we alerted the coach (who was watching the action at the other end of the field, too) and she verbally encouraged my nephew to stand up.  They won 3-2.  The teams don't have names, just colors.  I love that the colors are hot pink, aqua and lime green. 

We are heading to Allaire State Park this weekend to have a picnic and walk around the flea market.  Last year, there was a woman selling spinning wheels and I bought the old Singer sewing machine.  At least it's a state park and not a federal one, 'cause the federal parks are closed.  It's terrible to see the Liberty Bell's pavilion shuttered and Independence hall closed.  Lots of folks come to Philadelphis specifically to see these things and they can't this week.  Who allows the govt to close down?  How lame is that?  These folks need to get their act together. 

Happy Hump Day.  I hope things in your world are moving forward.  Say something nice to yourself today.