Daily Archives: December 29, 2014

Reverb 14: Day 29

6 Replies

gentlemorning
Project Reverb prompt: “Describe a typical day-in-the-life. Give us details! Give us pictures! Sometimes our days can seem boring. Is that okay? What do you do to make your days feel a bit special?”

I wake up at 5 am. Doesn’t matter what day of the week or season of the year, it’s always 5 am. It used to be 4:30, but that felt too early. Eric tells the dogs “go outside and go potty” and feeds them when they come back in. I make a half cup of coffee and say “good morning” to everyone before going back to my office. I sit at my writing desk and meditate for about 10 minutes. I either use the Insight Meditation Timer app on my phone, or I watch an Open Heart Project video, listen to Susan Piver give a short talk and then sit with her. After that, I write for at least half an hour.

When I’m done writing, I either go on a walk with the dogs or to a yoga class, where sometimes I’m a student and sometimes the teacher. One morning a week, I work out with my trainer after yoga, but usually after a walk or a class, I shower and eat, get ready to go to work.

Sometimes work is CSU, sometimes it’s a blog post. Either way, I’m writing, and listening to music while I do. I have a subscription with Rhapsody, so I can listen to just about anything I’m currently in the mood for, and have a few playlists I’ve made for myself with some of my favorites. I check in with Facebook and my email, send some messages, consider what absolutely has to get done “today” and make a short list, a plan of sorts, but I also remain open to whatever might arise. In my life and my work, things are always happening, surprising me. I never know exactly what to expect so I don’t have a rigid agenda. I’m okay with being interrupted, redirected. If I have scheduled commitments, I show up, but beyond that I allow things to happen as they happen, let the day unfold as it will.

If I’m at home for lunch, I fix something. I might make extra that we can have for dinner too, like a big bunch of kale and brussel sprout salad. If it’s going to take some time, I like to listen to a podcast while I chop and measure and mix ingredients. If I’m at work, I either run out for something or eat whatever I brought with me, and usually eat it in front of my computer while checking Facebook and such.

comfortfoodWhat happens after lunch depends on my energy level. As I mentioned the other day, I’ve been struggling with fatigue for the past few years, and sometimes in the afternoon I hit a wall. I might read or take a nap or do some more writing, but whatever it is usually happens more slowly, with more ease. I answer more emails and address anything else that’s come up that needs my immediate attention. Some days, I get to go on the afternoon walk with the dogs too. We go for about an hour, walk to City Park and around and back, in that part of the day that is sometimes super quiet and sometimes super crowded, usually depending on the weather. If I’m doing CSU work however, I’m in my office until 5 pm and miss the walk.

cozyWhen I get home, I immediately change into something more comfortable. I don’t want to offend you, kind and gentle reader, but one of the best moments of my day is when I get to finally take my bra off. I hang out with Eric and the dogs in the kitchen, or maybe watch a bit of TV or read. Eric usually fixes dinner for us, and I am either keeping him or the dogs company. We eat and then I check in one last time with my email and such. Then Eric and I watch TV together, which really is just an excuse so that we can “trade some” — what we call it when we massage each other, something we do every night. I highly recommend it.

By about 8 pm, we are in bed. I confess I have a bad habit of playing on my phone for about 10-15 minutes before going to sleep. I got a Kindle for Christmas, so I can start reading for those few minutes instead. There are all sorts of studies out saying how bad that is for your sleep and overall health, but it’s a habit I’m not willing to give up just yet.

I’m sure my life seems boring to other people. I am an introvert and a homebody who finds great comfort in quiet, simple routine. I know who I am, what I want and how I want to feel, and my days honor all those things.

Something Good

4 Replies

1. Pausing for Peace from Rachel Cole.

2. To The Fit Woman At Marketplace Foods on Huffington Post.

3. Illustrator Turns People’s Deepest And Darkest Fears Into Comics and Incredibly Detailed Hand-Cut Paper Art By Maude White and Creative Dad Turns His 3-Year-Old Daughter’s Sayings Into Hilarious Illustrations on Bored Panda.

4. The Pets in My Practice, an opinion piece on The New York Times.

5. Problems Only Book Lovers Understand from BuzzFeed.

6. How Does A Homeless Man Spend $100?

7. A Photo Essay: Succulent Magic on Rowdy Kittens.

8. The First Christmas… from Erica Staab. I know Christmas is over, but this is such a beautiful, important reminder, at any time of the year.

9. The Gift of Generosity from Phillip Moffitt on Dharma Wisdom.

10. 30 Days of Yoga from Yoga with Adriene. FREE! You could also check out her YouTube channel.

11. 25 of The Cutest Parenting Moments In The Animal Kingdom.

12. Building a Mindful New Year with Susan Piver and Lodro Rinzler. We are almost half way through the six days, but there is still so much wisdom available if you want to catch the end of the series.

13. Wisdom from the Dalai Lama, “Once you develop confidence in your own ability, you’ll be able to make a real contribution to creating a better world. Self-confidence is very important. Not in the sense of blind pride, but as a realistic awareness of what you can do.”

14. Wisdom from Elizabeth Kubler-Ross,

The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.

15. A fun project for people who can’t draw from Elizabeth Gilbert on Facebook.

16. Wisdom from Anne Lamott on Facebook.

17. Limbo: an Immigration Story by Brit Hanson.

18. A year in photos: the second half from Susannah Conway. My favorite is still the one of Noah in a pink tutu and boots dancing in front of the circus truck.

19. Your Year in Review: 50 Questions to Help You Reflect, Appreciate and Get Excited for 2015, shared on Positively Present Picks.

20. The Best Part Of Life Is Realizing Why It’s Better That Things Didn’t Work Out.

21. Wisdom from Geneen Roth:

Wanting is different from having. Wanting is in the future. It is based on an idea of what might make you happy in five minutes, tomorrow, next week. But having is here, now. Most of us don’t let ourselves have what’s in front of us, so we’re always wanting more. When you don’t let yourself have what you already have, you are always hungry, always searching, always restless.

So, here’s my suggestion: Let yourself have what you love. One piece of it, one little bit of it, each day. You need to start small so that you don’t overwhelm yourself. If you like chips, take one and sit down by yourself for three minutes. Smell it. Hold it up to the light. Rub it on your lips. Then take a small bite of the chip and notice how it tastes. You might discover that it’s the salt you want and not the rest of it. Or the crunch and not the salt. After you swallow, ask yourself if you want another bite. Be truthful with yourself. Notice if, when you ate that one bite, you were already thinking about the next one… and the next. Notice if, even as you read these words, you are saying to yourself, “I can’t be satisfied with just one little bite.” How do you know until you try?

22. Why I don’t care if you like me — According to Trish on Medium.

23. Goodbye :: Hello from Sue Ann Gleason. So beautiful.

24. The Success Indicator an infographic by MaryEllen Tribby.