happy spring, friendly neighbor style

Happy first full day of spring, friendly neighbors! The vernal equinox occurred early yesterday morning, and I wanted to write this post yesterday while I was in full-on first day of spring celebration mode. But my 2017 Year on Fire was en fuego with activity yesterday. I will be writing other posts specifically on my 2017 Year on Fire as incredible news unfolds to illustrate the power of positive energy in manifesting big dreams. For now, this is all about the positive energy of spring.

Let’s go back to yesterday for a minute. Not only was March 20 the first day of spring, it was International Day of Happiness and Fred Rogers’ birthday. ALL ON THE SAME DAY.

Mind. Blown.

That’s like one of the biggest non-coincidences I’ve ever seen.

I was freaking the eff out. First of all, I could feel the power of spring energy in the air the second I woke up before I even remembered it was the first day of spring. You know that groggy feeling you have when your alarm goes off and you want to sleep for two more hours? That’s me pretty much every morning. But yesterday? I did something I’d never done before. My alarm went off and I actually raised the roof in bed. Raised the roof a second after I woke up because I was wide awake and so happy. And then I remembered it was the first day of spring and I could just feel the positive energy spring brings and I visualized everything this season will manifest. It was the ultimate TGIM wake-up call.

All day I was busting out happy dances and throwing confetti around, as I do. How fitting that it was International Day of Happiness – oh snap! I just realized that connection to feeling so happy when I woke up! – on Fred Rogers’ birthday. As you know, I worship Mister Rogers in a godlike way. Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood was the inspiration for my whole friendly neighbors thing. Fred Rogers was the OFN (original friendly neighbor) and I love how he taught so many kids about the importance of kindness, compassion, and being exactly who you are.

I’ll leave you with this quote by Fred Rogers when he was testifying on the importance of educational programming for kids in front of the US Senate to encourage funding for the National Endowment for the Arts:

If we can only make it clear that feelings are mentionable and manageable, we will have done a great service for mental health. I think that it’s much more dramatic that two men could be working out their feelings of anger than showing something of gunfire.

Wishing you much love and light this spring ❤

forever in love – wave two

TGIM! Here’s wave two of select quotes from Forever in Love, the final book of my City Love trilogy, coming out on July 11. Stay tuned to my Insta for daily additions!

Much love ❤

 

 

 

2017

Yay yay freaking YAY 2017!!!

I am psyched out of my head that 2017 is finally here. 2016 was one bummer after another…and now things are looking WAY up.

I am really looking forward to embracing change, having courage in the face of fear, and taking things up a bunch of notches this year. And that includes sharing shiny new creative developments with you! The author life is a wild ride. 2017 is bringing lots of exciting things. Can’t wait to do more dream chasing and work harder than ever to make more big dreams reality. I hope you are with me, friendly neighbors!

This is our year. Make it shine. xoxo

help wanted 5 – fear

TGIM! Here’s some Monday Motivation from me to you.

Is there a big dream you want to make reality, but fear is stopping you from following your heart? Do you want to break out of a bad situation you’re stuck in, a negative group of friends, a job you don’t like, or habits that make you feel worse about yourself? My Help Wanted 5 video is all about overcoming fear to create your dream life.

Fear is like an indicator pointing you toward a better life. Breaking out of your comfort zone will allow you to make the big changes necessary to improve your life immensely. Here’s how you can start turning your dreams into reality right now!

Stay gold, friendly neighbors ❤

legally blonde non-coincidence

TGIM! To keep this Monday Motivation train zipping along on a gray day, I thought I would share a non-coincidence with you that, at least to me, speaks to the power of positive energy.

You might be wondering what a non-coincidence is. Excellent question. A non-coincidence is an example of awesomeness in the universe I wrote about in Something Like Fate. I was writing about the concept of fate and to what degree we are the architects of our own destiny. And about other fascinating things we can’t explain. Like this one time when I had a dream about two people I had not spoken to in years, and the next day they both called me. Or how I was taking a subway line I never take at a time of day I never ride the subway and looked up from my book at this one stop for some reason…and a friend I hadn’t seen in forever got on who didn’t even live here. These are non-coincidences. Why do I call them that? One of the quotes I included in Something Like Fate is by David Life: If you believe in coincidence, you aren’t paying attention.

Do I think everything happens for a reason? I do. Do I think that if you live your life in positive energy and work toward your goals with determination and dedication, everything will unfold as it should? No doubt. And do I think that non-coincidences can enrich our lives if we are paying attention? Absolutely.

Here’s a recent example of a fun non-coincidence. I have this DVD of Legally Blonde. When I first got it over ten years ago, it played like a DVD should. No problems at all. Then one day, it stopped playing. Just gave up and called it quits. Given how much I enjoy that movie, I was understandably a bit devastated. I thought about mailing it to the manufacturer to request an exchange. Or just going out and buying a new one. But something kept stopping me. Every time I was like, “I am going to send Legally Blonde back today!” I never did. Which is really unlike me. When I say I am going to do something, I freaking do it. I can’t explain why I held onto this busted DVD.

So my Legally Blonde DVD would not play for years. Years, people. At least five, probably more like seven. I tried to get it to play so many times, hoping each time would be different and it would magically play despite the ever increasing evidence to the contrary.

Of course it never played.

Then it was May 11, 2016. I had recently turned Fabulous at 43. And I woke up that morning determined to make some changes. Things I had been working on for years suddenly were DONE. I was done entertaining negative energy in my life. All negative energy had to go, as I was a positive energy only zone. I decided in that moment that my word for Fab at 43 would be STRONG. I called my crazy busy doctor who I could never get on the phone and insisted on speaking to her directly after several attempted distractions by her intimidating staff, who usually wore me down so much I gave up trying. I spoke to her, then found a new doctor because no patient should be treated like that. I threw down a schedule that would protect my workout time. I shimmered in my Knowing that the new book I was working on chose me to write it. Positive energy was abundant…and powerful.

It was the perfect time to try playing Legally Blonde again.

But this time, I made an executive decision. If it didn’t play (as it hadn’t for the past 32 times I tried over 5+ years), I would toss it and order a new one. That was it. I was DONE.

Guess what happened?

The DVD played.

To me, this non-coincidence reinforced the power of positive energy. I believe that our energy not only affects other people, but also affects every living thing. And even, in mysterious ways, inanimate objects. I know how wild that sounds. But I’ve seen enough evidence in my lifetime to know that the energy we radiate can change the entire world. Including everything in it.

Whatever you want to achieve, whomever you want to become, whichever path you choose to follow, remember this: Positive energy is the key to creating your dream life. This was just a fun non-coincidence I shared, but positive energy is a catalyst for epic non-coincidences on a much larger scale that can change your entire life.

Embrace the power of positive energy. Then go out there and get your DVD to play.

book nerd beach problems

TGIM! Finally it feels like summer! Here in New York, this has been such a hot and humid summer that I haven’t really enjoyed the great outdoors. I have, however, very much enjoyed my central air, which I am celebrating as part of my 20th New Yorkiversary year. The ridiculous bootleg, garage sale, 99-cents store, low budge air conditioners I dealt with over the years before becoming a homeowner were scary at best. But that’s all part of the New York experience. Like one of my Pamela Barsky pouches says, New York is not for sissies.

In related be strong news, I am on deadline reviewing copyedits of the final City Love trilogy book, Forever in Love,  which will be out next year. I am having a really hard time saying goodbye to my girls. To the point where reading through this manuscript  one more time is kind of breaking my heart. So yeah. I am in the midst of all that. But I just had to take a minute to post this Epic Reads reading at the beach book nerd problem video.

It is classic. And it features City Love.

Enjoy the gorgeous summer breeze, friendly neighbors. Because despite what you might have heard, it’s still summer for one more month. ❤

help wanted – positive energy

TGIM, friendly neighbors! Happy shiny new summer week. I have a very good feeling that fabulous things will be happening for us this week. And I will be eating a ridiculous amount of berries and melons in celebration of the fact that I can. So lots to anticipate.

I have made an executive decision to move my Help Wanted advice videos to Facebook Mentions Live, then post them on YouTube after. I love the energy of a live stream, getting to interact with your comments, reaching out to you in real time. Help Wanted 4 was live on my Facebook yesterday. Now you can watch it on my YouTube.

Help Wanted 4 is all about positive energy. Specifically, how positive energy can protect you from haters. I know how hard it is to not care what other people think. To ignore nasty comments. To block out insults. And to survive being bullied. The thing is, haters hate because of their unresolved issues, not because of you. Happy people don’t feel the need to be hateful. Happy people are happy for others. They enjoy spreading the love.

Haters gonna hate, but you can choose not to react.

Positive energy brings so much goodness into your life and the lives of those around you. When you radiate positive energy, you attract positive energy, which is how you find your people. Your people are your team. Choose to surround yourself with positive people to build a strong team. Because love is a battlefield, but so is all of life.

Avoiding negative people as much as possible will reduce stress and increase happiness. Negative energy is toxic. It can actually make you sick. Positive people are the ones you feel good around. When you are with positive people, it feels like you can be exactly who you are, like you say anything and you know they will support you. Those are the people you want to be around as much as you can.

Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could choose who to interact with at school or work? Like we could just say, “Yeah, no, I’m not feeling anyone negative, so don’t even try interacting with me,” and they would leave us alone? What do you do when you are stuck with haters throwing shade at you? Keep in mind that it’s not about you. Your success or good news or achievements, or even if you’re working towards turning your big dreams into reality, shines a spotlight on their insecurities. It’s like your achievement is a trigger reminding them of the things they haven’t achieved but want to. Which makes them angry. Then they take that anger out on you. Don’t let them bring you down. Don’t let them make you cynical or bitter. Keep generating positive energy. Positive energy is the key to healthy relationships, achieving your goals, and finding true inner happiness.

No matter what, remember that you are important. You are loved. You have a purpose. You have the power to make this world a better place every single day.

Shine on, everyone. Shine on.

top five, deadline edition

TGIM! Today’s Top Five is going to be cat quick, as I am on deadline with line edits and have snuck over here like a ninja. So here are some super fast things…

1. New York City! I will be at the Barnes & Noble B-Fest this Friday, June 10 from 5:00 to 7:00pm at the Citigroup Center B&N. There will be games and prizes, including a raffle of those ginormous canvas book covers hanging all over the store! Hope to see you there.

2. I am loving this Booklist review of Lost in Love: “Teens who are drawn to new-adult titles and dream of romantic, parent-free summer escapades will be well rewarded.” Like all of my previous books, the City Love trilogy is YA, but I was hoping it would have crossover appeal. Good to see Booklist agrees! You can explore Lost in Love things here, and City Love here.

3. So there’s this sculpture called Looking Up by Tom Friedman that is on temporary display on Park Avenue. The second I read about it, I knew I had to go see. I mean, Look up is one of my main mottos, even right on the cover of City Love. It’s also a theme in So Much Closer. My whole thing is that we miss so much when we don’t look up. When we look up, not only do we discover beauty and history that we probably passed without noticing a hundred times before, but we invite positive energy into our day that can make magic happen. Anyway, I bookmarked an article about the sculpture and made a note to go see it before July.

The other day I was walking down the street when I looked up and noticed a cool sculpture. It was of a guy looking up. I was like, “Sweet! Look up!” But I totally forgot about the sculpture I had bookmarked. The next day I found it and realized I was on Park Avenue when I saw the guy looking up. I saw Looking Up without even realizing it at the time…all because I looked up. Full-circle meta, yo.

Then last night I looked up from my computer to look out my window and saw this.

There were lots of rainbow pics on social after the storms we had. But how many of those rainbows were radiating from a water tower? And dude, I have a thing for water towers. Always look up…

4. Taking a fangirl moment, I just have to say that this diagram perfectly quantifies my eternal love for the soul mate magic of How I Met Your Mother and Jason Segel as Marshall.

I have been a huge Paul Simon fan since forever, so this dorktastic intersection of a fave musician and a fave show in science/math form blows my mind. Well played, HIMYM.

5. I will leave you with a warm fuzzy for the week about your time. Make the days count.

Much love ❤

may 23

TGIM! Today is May 23.

May 23 is the day Tom meets Autumn in 500 Days of Summer.

Let us take a moment to appreciate the energy of the Universe.

Sometimes the hardest changes lead you right where you belong.

choose must

Today’s TGIM warm fuzzy is all about your must. Must is your passion. Must is what you were meant to do.

Must is who you truly are without fear.

Live your must.

This beautiful inspiration comes to us from The Crossroads of Should and Must by Elle Luna. Thank you for your glorious book, Elle!