AWESOME!

Awesome.

It's one of my favourite words. I probably use it way too much.

How did your lasagna turn out last night? Awesome.

How are the Flyers doing in the playoffs? Awesome.

Did you hear that new Eminem song? Yeah, it's awesome.

How are your fish doing? Awesome.

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about the word and how awesome it is. Just say it. Makes you feel good, right?

After the two tragic deaths in my family this past summer, my friend Sarah got me a "cheer up" present - The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha. On the way to Midland, Amanda and I passed the book back and forth and read some of the chapters out loud to help pass the time (and oh, how long the time was on that trip...) It was amazing how many times one of us would exclaim, "Oh I've done that!" or "I know exactly what he means!"

Basically, it's things like wearing underwear straight out of the dryer, finding money you didn't even know you'd lost, the fantastic assortment of drinks left in your fridge after hosting a party, getting high fives from a baby, hitting a bunch of green lights in a row, or my personal favourite (and the entry Sarah had marked for me)- hearing a stranger fart in public.

You know. The little things that happen during your day that aren't all that major, but just make you smile and say...AWESOME!

The Book of Awesome actually has stemmed from Pasricha's very popular Blog, 1000 Awesome Things, which I now check every day. And you know what's really awesome? When you hit an entry that you completely relate to.

Like today's. "Trying on your new clothes as soon as you get home from the store." I totally do that!! And it is absolutely AWESOME! Nothing more fun that coming home from a day at the mall, totally exhausted and jittery from the buyer's remorse, then going into my room, putting on everything I just bought and relaxing because, yes, it does look as good as I thought it did in the store. Yes, it still fits. Yes, my mom's going to freak when she finds out I bought jeans that came with holes in them, but I don't care. Because they're awesome.

Both the blog and book have given me reasons to smile at times when I didn't think it was possible. So if you ever need a pick-me-up or just a great way to start the day, check it out!

It's ...AWESOME!