"Random Positive Thoughts"

 

This is a photograph of the beautiful Southern Appalachian Mountains.

Today in this blog post, I'd like to give you a few random positive thoughts, which I'm sure most people would enjoy since we need to "accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative" (From a song by Johnny Mercer and Harold Arlen), especially right now.

Here are some wonderful thoughts from some famous people that might be helpful as affirmations, to put somewhere to view often, or as part of a treasure map.*- 

~"Life does not have to be perfect to be wonderful." -Annette Funicello

~"We don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents." -Bob Ross

~"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times if one remembers to turn on the light." Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Agkaban."

~"It isn't what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it." -Dale Carnegie

~"I have chosen to be happy because it is good for my health." -Voltaire

~Be grateful-a grateful heart is a magnet for miracles

~"Life is short, do what makes you happy." -From Amazon

~"Believe you can, and you're halfway there." -Theodore Roosevelt

~"Small steps every day create the life you want to live." -Unknown

~"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." ~Eleanor Roosevelt

~Every day in every way, I'm getting better and better.

~I am happy, healthy, and positive.

~I deserve love and respect.

You might even think up some affirmations, positive thoughts of your own.

I'm happy to announce that my new book about Southern Appalachia is finally published! Here it is-

The complete title of the book is "Life in the Southern Appalachians, The Mountain Culture, Sayings, Traditions, People." The book has almost 300 pages, and there are 26 chapters. It's about a wide variety of things. The titles are in alphabetical order. The first chapter is "Animals" and the last chapter is entitled "Weather." A few of the other chapters are "Appalachian Mountain Words and Sayings," "Haunted Appalachia," "The Performing Arts in Appalachia," "Quilts," and "Vittles." There are some guest authors and other contributors in the book, as well.

Here's what people have said about "Life in the Southern Appalachians"- "Very interesting!" "An easy read." "Great!" "Loved it!"

If you'd like to see it for yourself, it's now for sale on Amazon.

 

A Great Idea from Pal's in Abingdon, Virginia!

Positive Thought: ~ "There is always music in the forest, but our hearts must be very still to hear it." ~Unknown

Thanks for visiting! Until around Saturday, September 5, 2026, Becky

*A treasure map is a board with positive thoughts and pictures of things you would like to have or be or do. I have one that I made a few years ago, and it's amazing the things that have come true in my life because of the map that I made. I study it regularly, so I guess that's why it's been successful.

Positive Memories

Spring is almost here, and it officially begins on Monday, March 20, but this year, it looks like it got an early start! 

My cousin Bruce and I recently celebrated our birthdays together, and his gifts to me were two pieces of art that my grandmother had done, and old handmade quilts that were the handiwork of other family members.

 These pretty quilts are in a nice quilt display case.

These gifts mean so much to me since I enjoy collecting memorabilia.

One of our gifts to Bruce was my newly revised book, "Down Memory Lane,"* which now contains old (and a few new) photographs from our personal photo albums.

In my book, I tell about the positive memories that I had living in the beautiful Southern Appalachian Mountains of Virginia and East Tennessee. In the book, I also briefly mention memorabilia, and how I display it.

Small Business Feature:

The Antique Barn

Abingdon, Virginia

abingdonantiquebarn.com

If you love old things, vintage pieces, glassware, jewelry, art, memorabilia, etc., you'll love this antique mall in Abingdon.

Here is a beautiful piece that Greg and I bought for a bargain price at The Antique Barn-

Every few weeks, I enjoy visiting this antique mall to see what all is new. Their inventory is always changing.

So, for really nice pieces at reasonable prices, be sure and check out this wonderful place.

 *For more information about my book, and to purchase on Amazon, please see and click on the widget above.

Positive thought: "If you focus completely on the things you love, then you are on your way to a beautiful life." "May the joy be with you," Rhonda Byrne

Thanks for visiting! Until Sunday, March 26, 2023, Becky

Celebrating in Southwest Virginia and East Tennessee

(At Cootie Brown's)

Greg and I are really enjoying being back home in the Southern Appalachians, near places that are familiar to us since we've lived in this general region most of our lives. I'm originally from Southwest Virginia and Greg, from East Tennessee. Right now we're living in Virginia, but we're just a stone's throw away from East Tennessee. We love where we live now. It's a nice central location for nearby Abingdon, Bristol, Kingsport, and Johnson City, as well as several small towns, some of which we've yet to explore.

February is usually a month of celebration for us, not only because of Valentine's Day, but because it's also my birth month.

We started celebrating early this year, when the "Tri-Cities Storm Tracker 5" weather team came to the new Food City in Abingdon, Virginia the first of the month. It was food and fun.

Getting Autographs from the Storm Tracker 5 Weather Team

(Greg Arnott Photo)

Then, came Valentine's Day-

We decided to celebrate by going to a new (to us) restaurant in Abingdon.

 We loved the arty look on the outside of "Luke's Cafe."

The inside was just as interesting-

It had a retro decor featuring celebrities from the past such as James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, and even Al Capone!

And, the food was very tasty!

Since we were so full from lunch, we decided to wait and have dessert somewhere else later...

like Anthony's Desserts.

We're so glad we decided to stop by. The place was all dressed up for Valentine's Day, and the shelves were full of goodies.

We decided to divide a piece of this luscious-looking berry cream cake, and we weren't disappointed. 

It was absolutely delicious!

After being out all day, celebrating, we later celebrated at home with valentines and flowers.

A couple of days later, came the birthday celebration...

at Cootie Brown's in Bristol, Tennessee.

We met with some family members to celebrate my cousin's and my February birthdays.

Cootie Brown's is a fun place to go, and the food is great!

They even let us bring in our own birthday cake!

Before leaving, we had to get some of  Cootie's famous key lime pie to take home with us.

And, a big wish of mine came true the last day of February when we finally got a big snow. I really enjoyed taking pictures of the beautiful snow-covered landscape around us.

One of Our Cats, Mitzi, Looking Out the Window at the Snow

Winter has come.

 "...can spring be far behind?"

-Percy Bysshe Shelley

Spring has already sprung at "Evergreen" in Kingsport, Tennessee!

Spring begins March 20 this year. Happy spring, everybody!

Positive thought: "Make each new day a celebration of life."-Pinterest
Thanks for visiting! Until Sunday, April 5, 2020, Becky