Creator's Playbook Podcast: Love, Don't Hurt Me

The Creator's Playbook

Episode 43: Love, Don't Hurt Me

Hosts: Sarah and Robbie

The Valentines Day episode!!  And it's all about Love potions and problems caused by love.  

This is the first episode where I'm the lead host, and it's also the first episode I edited.  It was so much fun.  Steven inserted the music, because I still haven't learned how to do that.  The prep story is silly and corny, but fun.  Really, I spend a lot of time theorizing love stuff, all coming from a single gal, so you know the knowledge is legit. ;0)

So I hope you enjoy listening to it!! :D

Sarah

Creator's Playbook is on all platforms that have podcasts.

 

Wishing for Love "Letters to Juliet" Style in Verona Italy, Juliet's house, Casa di Giulietta

Last weekend I visited Juliet's home in Verona Italy, from Romeo and Juliet fame, popularized by the movie "Letters to Juliet," a cute romantic movie perfect for Valentines Day, which this is.  Valentines Day!  Honestly, my least favorite holiday of the year, simply because it's kinda depressing being single on this day.  Okay, I know I need a better attitude and viewpoint, and as strong as I try to be each year, this day affects me regardless.

But last weekend I was in Verona.  Verona!  The city of love.  A place representing the love story of two teenagers so in love they die by the end of their own story.  Which is really sad.  And Juliet is obviously the person you should go to for love advice because, you know, a 14 year old girl who doesn't make it to 15, because, you know, love, is the perfect person to turn to when you're needing love advice.

But, Love!

Amore!

And I really wanted to see what this place was like in person.

Not quite what I was expecting.

 I visited Italy with my Mom, Dad, and Aunt with a tour, and the local guide only gave us 5 minutes at Juliet's House.  Not enough time to explore.

The first thing that struck me was the hallway, archway, leading into Juliet's court.  In the Letters to Juliet movie it's romantic, letters stuck between bricks as the Secretaries to Juliet pull them out.  In real life the letters litter the walls, stuck on with tape, gum, band-aids, etc.

 On the other wall is a canvas you can write on, placed there by www.julietlovesignatures.com.

 In the courtyard is a balcony, placed there in the early 1900's for tourist purposes, which has honestly worked.  And under the balcony is Juliet's statue where a waiting line forms for people who want to touch, being polite here, Juliet's breast for luck.  Our tour guide said she touched Juliet's breast and shortly after she met her husband.

You know, I can use all the luck I can get!!

Heh, so I touched her breast, felt absolutely ridiculous, and then smiled for a photo, making me feel even more ridiculous.

But I did it for love luck.

And as I left the courtyard I wrote on the wall, "This year I'll find Love!!!"

Not quite sure what I'm supposed to write to Juliet, but a confident declaration seemed like the best bet.

Now, does Juliet have secretaries as shown in the movie?  She does!  Members of the Juliet Club actually accept letters via snail mail, email, and left in a post box at Juliet's home, and they do write back!  So you don't have to actually visit Juliet's home to seek her love advice.

Happy Valentines Day, for those with love, and those of us still seeking.

Don't lose hope.

I haven't

The Power of Love

"Love is the only force that can erase the differences between people, that can bridge chasms of bitterness."

~ Gordon B. Hinckley, from And the Greatest of These is Love.

This is a nice Valentines quote.  Not all of us has a "true love" in our lives.  Whether you have a special someone or not, we can still all love.  :0)

Love Them or Hate Them, There's Not a Black Hole Conversation Hearts Vortex

 Okay, honestly, a black hole conversation hearts vortex would be pretty cool.  That aside, a couple weeks ago news hit that Necco, the brand behind SweetHearts, went out of business.  The brand that picked up SweatHearts wasn't able to make a batch for 2019 Valentines, saying we'll have to wait till 2020.

 

Lamentation hit!  There was probably crying.  I don't know, I'm personally not into this kind of candy, opting for chocolate whenever it's offered.  But last week while perusing aisles at the store, I found Brach's Conversation Hearts.  Sure, they're not SweetHearts, but this candy has been around since the 1960's.

So, if you're into these heart shaped candies, do not fret.

There's plenty of options still available.

A Valentine's Guide for the Single Among Us

(Picture I took from an Apple Farm, San Luis Obispo, bumper sticker.)

Here is a list of things I've learned while being single on Valentine's Day.

1. Valentine's to some is considered "Single Awareness Day."  I've fallen into this trap many times, bemoaning and crying woe.  Some years are easier then others, but singleness is a state of mind.  Is being in a relationship nice?  Sure.  Is being single bad?  Only if you want to think it is.  We are each on a journey.  We are each walking different paths that are meant specifically for each of us.  My path expects me to wait.  My path is teaching me patience.  But I would rather wait and find the right special someone, then rush into love for the sake of love, only to be miserable.  Singlehood isn't bad.  In many ways it can be a blessing.

2.  As what I stated in my first point, not all relationships are good.  There are happy couples.  There are unhappy couples.  It would be nice to be in a happy relationship, but I would rather be happy single then be in a bad marriage or a bad relationship.  No marriage is perfect.  No marriage is really great.  Marriage is a whole lot of work.  I would love to be married and have children.  At 32 my maternal years are ticking by, and time isn't worth squandering.  But if I can't be happy single, I'll never be happy married.  Happiness is a choice.  Being happy in situations you can't control will prepare you for all situations, that which is in your control and that which is not.

3.  Choose to be happy.  This is a day for love!  Not all "love" has to be romantic.  There are so many varying degrees.  Don't focus on the love you don't have, focus on the love you do have.  Family and friendship.  Great siblings.  Wonderful parents and grandparents.  I have two adorable nieces and a nephew.  I definitely love them.  Celebrate love today in all its wonderful, beautiful shades and colors.

4.  You don't have to have a romantic partner to eat chocolate on Valentine's Day.  No sign, anywhere, states that on February 14th only those in a relationship are allowed to eat yummy chocolate morsels of goodness.  Go buy chocolate and devour it whole!  Go buy chocolate for the person you thought of while reading point #4.  Or wait until February 15th to buy chocolate, which brings me to point #5.

5. On February 15th all the sad, forlorn Valentine trinkets and chocolate boxes of goodness which was not purchased beforehand will now be on sale!  Fantastic deals abound!  Which means all that money you saved by not spending it on a significant other can all go towards discounted chocolate.  Awesome, right?  Enjoy!

6.  Remember, as sad and lonely as you may feel, the World is filled with many sad and lonely people.  Meaning, there's a lot of single people out there, young and old.  Those who have never been afforded love, or those who have lost love through time.  When feeling pain it's easy to forget that others are feeling pain as well.  Some feel their pain silently, some are vocal, but it's all the same.

7. The greatest joy in life is found through giving, not receiving.  You may not receive a Valentine's Day card or flowers today.  You may start to feel forgotten, but today you can be the person who brings joy to someone else.  You can be the one who will reach out to a sad brother or sister, friend, widowed Grandmother, lonely Mom, etc, and bring them happiness.  Through giving love you receive it.  That's the wonderful thing about love.  It grows and multiplies.  Love is beautiful like that.

Happy Valentines Day from one "lonely" person to another.  But we're not so lonely anymore, are we?  I refuse to feel lonely today.  I'm loved.  Sure, there won't be loads of kissing and so forth, but I'm loved just the same, and I'm thankful for all of it.  Find someone today you can give love.

"The best thing to hold onto in life is each other."

~ Audrey Hepburn 

The Most Romantic Sonnet Ever Written

Shakespeare's Sonnet 130

"My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun,
Coral is far more red, than her lips red,
If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun:
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head:
I have seen roses damasked, red and white,
But no such roses see I in her cheeks,
And in some perfumes is there more delight,
Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.
I love to hear her speak, yet well I know,
That music hath a far more pleasing sound:
I grant I never saw a goddess go,
My mistress when she walks treads on the ground.
And yet by heaven I think my love as rare,
As any she belied with false compare."

This gets me every time!

And though this may seem like a joke, and some critics have taken this sonnet to be a parody of the time, Shakespeare simply mocking other poets from his era, I side with others that claim Sonnet 130, though seemingly filled with insults, is overwhelmingly a compliment of the highest degree.

The key is found in the final couplet.

Don't we all deserve to be loved for who we truly are?  Don't we deserve to be truly seen?  No false pretenses.  Nothing erroneous.

True Love.

True Passion.

Fully in reality, aware of faults, but fully loved regardless.

That's what I want :0)

 

The Saddest Love Story Ever Told

This Valentines I present!

The Saddest Love Story Ever Told.

Snape X Lilly

 

Because unrequited love is the most painful.

"'I've found almost everything ever written about love to be true. Shakespeare said 'Journeys end in lovers meeting.' What an extraordinary thought. Personally, I have not experienced anything remotely close to that, but I am more than willing to believe Shakespeare had. I suppose I think about love more than anyone really should. I am constantly amazed by its sheer power to alter and define our lives. It was Shakespeare who also said 'love is blind'. Now that is something I know to be true. For some quite inexplicably, love fades; for others love is simply lost. But then of course love can also be found, even if just for the night. And then, there's another kind of love: the cruelest kind. The one that almost kills its victims. Its called unrequited love. Of that I am an expert. Most love stories are about people who fall in love with each other. But what about the rest of us? What about our stories, those of us who fall in love alone? We are the victims of the one sided affair. We are the cursed of the loved ones. We are the unloved ones, the walking wounded. The handicapped without the advantage of a great parking space!" 

~ Iris from "The Holiday"

I full of all sorts of cheer this Valentines! :P

The Lull before the Valentine Storm

I always seem to go into a comatose state during Valentines and Mother's Day.

At least during Mother's Day week there's a bounteous amount of birthday festivities in my family to keep me distracted.  Lots of presents are handed out during that time.  3 birthdays in a 6 day period.  All that cake.  Cake and ice-cream.  Yum :0)

And then there's Valentines.

Back in Elementary I loved Valentines: Make a shoebox mailbox, paint it red and pink with hearts all over, slap my name on it, set it under the window with all the other boxes, make sure I bring enough Valentines for everyone, and everyone, in turn, must bring one for me.

As a kid Valentines was awesome.

As an Adult you must actually be loved to receive a Valentine.

This day is either wonderful or a painful reminder of your day-to-day loneliness.

Unless you like being lonely and single, and thus find this day filled with empowerment, first pump in the air, celebrating singlehood in a sea of kissing couples and hand holding.

As for me?

I feel like Charlie Brown, opening the mailbox only to find a beagle sticking his nose out at me.

(Actually, I would really like to see that.  It would be pretty amusing.)

This is the week New Years resolutions truly go down the drain, if they haven't already.  Stores put Valentine candy out right after Christmas, a month + reminder of upcoming festivities of the red/pink/cupid variety.

Loneliness and Chocolate seem to go hand and hand, so shelves filled with heart shaped boxes, row after row of chocolate morsels, mocking the unloved, serve as constant taunting.

I haven't bought myself a box of chocolate, mainly because there's a bag of sea-salt chocolate covered almonds sitting on the counter and they're amazing, but on Monday,

Monday!

All those unloved boxes of Chocolate will be on sale, 50% off, and I shell claim one.

"Forget love — I'd rather fall in chocolate!"

~Sandra J. Dykes

Yuzen Spring 2014 Box Review and Spoilers

I got the Yuzen Spring 2014 box last weekend!  It actually arrived on Valentines Day, which is perfect :0)  Well timed!

Yuzen, which delivers 4 times a year, corresponding with the 4 seasons: Spring (February), Summer (May), Autumn (August), and Winter (November).  It's $33 a box, and the theme is all about bringing a little Zen to your life.  The site states, "Each box has the very best Eco-conscious products to nourish the body and soul."  

 

"Each box includes high-quality natural and organic personal care products, healthy snacks, and lifestyle items carefully chosen from about 6 companies."  It's mainly filled with deluxe sample sizes, which are smaller then the original size, but big enough to try and use.  Sometimes there's full size items, too!!

This is my pamper box. We all need a little zen :0)

 The wrapping is always perfect and beautiful.  It just doesn't look beautiful, Yuzen smells nice, too.  Before I even unwrapped the tissue paper with the Japanese print, I could smell the candle waiting within.  This box is an experience.

Each box comes with a fold out paper that talks about each company and product selected, why it was chosen, and then a coupon code fore a nice discount if you want to buy more.  (FYI, you'll fall in love with at least a couple items.)

 What greets you under the paper.

This month we received eight products from six different companies.

 Acure Radical Resurfacing Facial Treatment: size received is 1 oz., valued at $14.  Full size is 1.4 oz., which is $19.99.

I've never heard of Acure, but now that I have, with some research, I'm super excited to try this product!  I've read nothing but good things about it.  This Radical Resurfacing product is a Lemon Probiotic (probiotic for the skin!) with 1% Chlorella Growth Factor.  From the website:

• Restores balance and surface tone to skin
• Feeds and restores cells
• Protects against free radical damage
• Improves skin texture and tone without photosensitivity
• Great for all skin types
• Paraben free, Vegan, Gluten free, Synthetic fragrance free, Silicone free, Phthalate free
• Fair trade certified ingredients

 Sumbody Bathmelt,valued at $5.50, and Sumbody Sum Fizzer, valued $5.95.

We received two Sumbody products to try out!  Besides the bubble baths I had as a kid, I've never tried bath fizzes or melts of any kind.  Heh, I'm starting to feel a little sheltered.  Both of these items smell really good, and they're generous sizes.  Good for a little R&R.

 Balanced Guru Body Balm: size received 1 oz, valued at $12.  Full version is 4 oz, priced at $45.

I've already started using this body balm on my elbows, and it's working nicely.  I need to use it on my feet as well.  From the website:

"Treat your whole body with a smooth and buttery body balm. Enriched with healthy butters and an invigorating blend of essential oils that will wake up your senses and moisturize your skin without leaving it greasy or tacky. Make sure you work it well into elbows, knees and even your feet. They'll thank you later."

 Lotus Wei Infinite Love Mist Mini: size received 10 ml, valued at $8.  Full size is 50 ml at $40.

I love the smell of this mist, and have already started using it.  I'm a true believer in aromatherapy, getting into it when I started collecting DoTerra essential oils.

This mist is called "Infinite Love," and uses flower oils that encourages self wellness, forgiveness, clarity in relationships, etc.  The website has the full list.  Perfect for Valentines and Spring.

Sranrom Compassion Candle with Lemongrass, Lemon, and Spearmint and Sranrom Urban Wellness Calm Down Hand Cream.  Two items from Sranrom.

Sranrom hasn't officially launched yet, so I don't know the value of these products, but it's cool that this is a new company!  Already I'm impressed.

The candle smells nice in uplifting scents, and was the first thing I noticed in the box.  I love candles, and this is a nice one.  The Calm Down lotion is a fun idea.  It's scented with Lemongrass and Kaffir lime, which "helps you tackle stressful situations with calm confidence."

Chocolate!!!!

Chocolove Cherries & Almonds in Dark Chocolate.  On the site you buy a case of 12 bars for $17.

I'm a sucker for Dark Chocolate.  Love it.  This bar has a wonderful cocoa taste with cherries and almonds.  Honestly, I went to Sees Chocolate the day after Valentines, and I preferred this chocolate.

I love this box!  Love the theme and the way Yuzen is curated.

And I love discovering new favorites.