Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Monday, June 6, 2011
Item 1: Orchids
Probably a month ago I read about the 365 Grateful idea. It seemed like a way to get out of my photography rut (it's more of a sand dune, in that I haven't taken a decent picture in a good six months, but anyway...) but I really think it might have to be a multi-media project. I need to write. There can be pictures too. It's all good, really. This seems like a much more positive thing to focus on than cancer, or self-portraits, or even literally navel-gazing.
Item 1 of 365: I am grateful for orchids. I am reminded of this today because as I was shopping for the plants for the last planter on the deck, when I found a sale bench of $5 orchids at the greenhouse. At first I only took one. Then, the saleswoman, who seemed a little earnest and lovely, came over and told me her story of how she grew one and it didn't seem that hard after all, so she bought a couple herself. And I thought of my phaelenopsis orchid at home and how it is blooming right now, and it's true, it's not that hard. You just water them and feed them and once a year a stalk shoots out and amazing tropical flowers appear. So I bought two. I have no idea what the flowers, or even the types are. Somewhere I have a book. I bought some matching pots. I will repot them. I will water them and feed them. And maybe next fall or next spring, they will shoot out a stalk and surprise me.
Item 1 of 365: I am grateful for orchids. I am reminded of this today because as I was shopping for the plants for the last planter on the deck, when I found a sale bench of $5 orchids at the greenhouse. At first I only took one. Then, the saleswoman, who seemed a little earnest and lovely, came over and told me her story of how she grew one and it didn't seem that hard after all, so she bought a couple herself. And I thought of my phaelenopsis orchid at home and how it is blooming right now, and it's true, it's not that hard. You just water them and feed them and once a year a stalk shoots out and amazing tropical flowers appear. So I bought two. I have no idea what the flowers, or even the types are. Somewhere I have a book. I bought some matching pots. I will repot them. I will water them and feed them. And maybe next fall or next spring, they will shoot out a stalk and surprise me.
Monday, May 16, 2011
365 projects
No, really, I think I might have 365 projects going at once. Which is how I ADD roll, I supposed.
1. Job contains 365 projects within itself.
2. Running
3. Belly dancing
4. Gardening. Another 365 different projects
5. Knitting a sweater.
6. But would like to crochet something quick and fun in between...
7. Watching Treme, behind 2 episodes
8. Eating food, but less of it
9. Need to make belly dance costume decisions. Belly out? Or covered?
10. Movies must be seen.
11. Bikes need riding too.
12. Oh, speaking of belly dance costumes, I need new sandals. Flat, black sandals that won't slide around when dancing. Where are those kept?
13. I have to unpack my sandals and put away boots.
14. Fridge needs cleaning.
15. Devising an archival storage system for flyers and posters we have saved over time.
16. Also, would like to get back into photography. Scavenger hunt on flickr.
17. And photo journal of 365 grateful. Yep.
18. Must seed lawn. But should mow it first.
19. I would like to read a book. Any book. That one right there looks good.
20. Also, new magazines came in the mail.
21. Put away laundry.
22. Drop off bag at Goodwill. Do not bring home new things from Goodwill.
23. I need to stretch my IT band a little.
24. I would really like to make some cookies for co-workers soon.
25. Mmm pasta. Need to go to grocery store.
26. And buy laundry soap. Laundry is never done.
27. Dammit, I should have had children 5 years ago.
28. I should be writing a novel.
29. Or a poem.
30. I never wished my brother a happy birthday last week. I can only make up for it by baking now.
31. Oh, and I need to email the CSA guy.
32. I did sort of get my brother a present. I need to email that guy too.
33. I need to back-up my blackberry, now that I think about it.
34. Pay bills.
35. Face is dry. Moisturize.
36. I wanted to paint my nails, but that makes 33 of the above impossible to do at the same time.
37. Gah! Birthday presents, how could I forget? I need to map out Lindsey's plan-your-own-adventure girl's night.
38. Moisturize hands, too.
39. And file that square middle finger nail.
40. Why are my nails suddenly peeling? I need to make a dentist appointment.
41. And an endocrinologist appointment. They sent a reminder.
42. At least I have a hair appointment tomorrow. It's driving me crazy.
43. I should take some before and after photos. Is it on the scavenger hunt? No.
44. Orchid needs droopy flower removed.
45. I should probably water and feed and re pot all houseplants now.
46. Cat needs feeding.
47. And cat box cleaning.
48. And snuggling.
49. And a new filter for his fountain.
50. Moisturize hands.
51. Take out contacts and go to bed.
52. I need to buy new glasses though, so that makes it hard to read.
53. I quit.
1. Job contains 365 projects within itself.
2. Running
3. Belly dancing
4. Gardening. Another 365 different projects
5. Knitting a sweater.
6. But would like to crochet something quick and fun in between...
7. Watching Treme, behind 2 episodes
8. Eating food, but less of it
9. Need to make belly dance costume decisions. Belly out? Or covered?
10. Movies must be seen.
11. Bikes need riding too.
12. Oh, speaking of belly dance costumes, I need new sandals. Flat, black sandals that won't slide around when dancing. Where are those kept?
13. I have to unpack my sandals and put away boots.
14. Fridge needs cleaning.
15. Devising an archival storage system for flyers and posters we have saved over time.
16. Also, would like to get back into photography. Scavenger hunt on flickr.
17. And photo journal of 365 grateful. Yep.
18. Must seed lawn. But should mow it first.
19. I would like to read a book. Any book. That one right there looks good.
20. Also, new magazines came in the mail.
21. Put away laundry.
22. Drop off bag at Goodwill. Do not bring home new things from Goodwill.
23. I need to stretch my IT band a little.
24. I would really like to make some cookies for co-workers soon.
25. Mmm pasta. Need to go to grocery store.
26. And buy laundry soap. Laundry is never done.
27. Dammit, I should have had children 5 years ago.
28. I should be writing a novel.
29. Or a poem.
30. I never wished my brother a happy birthday last week. I can only make up for it by baking now.
31. Oh, and I need to email the CSA guy.
32. I did sort of get my brother a present. I need to email that guy too.
33. I need to back-up my blackberry, now that I think about it.
34. Pay bills.
35. Face is dry. Moisturize.
36. I wanted to paint my nails, but that makes 33 of the above impossible to do at the same time.
37. Gah! Birthday presents, how could I forget? I need to map out Lindsey's plan-your-own-adventure girl's night.
38. Moisturize hands, too.
39. And file that square middle finger nail.
40. Why are my nails suddenly peeling? I need to make a dentist appointment.
41. And an endocrinologist appointment. They sent a reminder.
42. At least I have a hair appointment tomorrow. It's driving me crazy.
43. I should take some before and after photos. Is it on the scavenger hunt? No.
44. Orchid needs droopy flower removed.
45. I should probably water and feed and re pot all houseplants now.
46. Cat needs feeding.
47. And cat box cleaning.
48. And snuggling.
49. And a new filter for his fountain.
50. Moisturize hands.
51. Take out contacts and go to bed.
52. I need to buy new glasses though, so that makes it hard to read.
53. I quit.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
I hate running. I love running.
Ah, the power of attitude and expectation. It's so exciting for an optimist like me, but it also makes a lot of things your responsibility. It is a little terrifying that there's a voice inside of your conscious that says all these horrible things. (You're not going to make it. You're never going to be good at this. You look like an idiot. The weather is against you. That dog want to eat your shoes. Your belly is hanging out. They didn't wave back because they think you're stupid. You're going to injure yourself permanently and end up fatter than ever.) I could go on, but it's probably not a good idea.
I think that if I could get a happy thought generator opposite the other one, I could run a lot happier. I'm assuming happier is faster and longer, but maybe I shouldn't make that assumption. That is a nice thing about the Run Camp concept. It's kind of awkward, but I do think telling the person you're passing "Nice job!" really helps everyone. I forget that not every runner in town is familiar with this concept, and get some blank looks from, say, the WMU cross-country team every now and then, but every Saturday when I run with the group, it's a nice time. (Wait, not that I ever pass a cross-country team going the same direction. It's much more likely to meet them head-on because I didn't have time to turn down a side street to avoid them.)
The goal really is to do better than last year. The goal is to keep running when camp is over, hopefully about 10 miles per week. The goal is to be happy and not struggle against it. I think these are do-able goals. I will be good at trying to set some goals. I will look like an idiot sometimes, but that's even when I'm not running. The weather is just there. That dog would like to eat my shoes, but he has to catch me first. They didn't wave back because they were texting. You won't let yourself get injured.
I think that if I could get a happy thought generator opposite the other one, I could run a lot happier. I'm assuming happier is faster and longer, but maybe I shouldn't make that assumption. That is a nice thing about the Run Camp concept. It's kind of awkward, but I do think telling the person you're passing "Nice job!" really helps everyone. I forget that not every runner in town is familiar with this concept, and get some blank looks from, say, the WMU cross-country team every now and then, but every Saturday when I run with the group, it's a nice time. (Wait, not that I ever pass a cross-country team going the same direction. It's much more likely to meet them head-on because I didn't have time to turn down a side street to avoid them.)
The goal really is to do better than last year. The goal is to keep running when camp is over, hopefully about 10 miles per week. The goal is to be happy and not struggle against it. I think these are do-able goals. I will be good at trying to set some goals. I will look like an idiot sometimes, but that's even when I'm not running. The weather is just there. That dog would like to eat my shoes, but he has to catch me first. They didn't wave back because they were texting. You won't let yourself get injured.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Slacking, looking backwards
What could be more fascinating than a blog about how I forgot to blog? Oh, nevermind. I know better.
I would now like to point out the anniversaries of some crappy things, and optimistically note how much has changed.
Two years ago, I lost my fancy high-paying corporate healthcare job. I would have never pictured, or known how or where to apply for, my current job. Sure, it's not fancy, I don't have a health club membership, and it's pretty hard to describe what I do. But it's also perfect for me in that I pretty much do whatever they need to get done. It's a small company, they're not evil and I like truly everyone that works there. Happy ending? Works for me.
One year ago, I was going through the diagnosis part of the thyroid cancer experience. I still don't see a lesson learned or a horrible up or down side. It was just an experience. Perhaps this will reassure the people of Japan that their children will be fine after the radiation exposures. We can watch each other and smile and say, see, it was okay?
Maybe there was something learned - my hair is crazy curly now, instead of the nice wavy it used to be.
I would now like to point out the anniversaries of some crappy things, and optimistically note how much has changed.
Two years ago, I lost my fancy high-paying corporate healthcare job. I would have never pictured, or known how or where to apply for, my current job. Sure, it's not fancy, I don't have a health club membership, and it's pretty hard to describe what I do. But it's also perfect for me in that I pretty much do whatever they need to get done. It's a small company, they're not evil and I like truly everyone that works there. Happy ending? Works for me.
One year ago, I was going through the diagnosis part of the thyroid cancer experience. I still don't see a lesson learned or a horrible up or down side. It was just an experience. Perhaps this will reassure the people of Japan that their children will be fine after the radiation exposures. We can watch each other and smile and say, see, it was okay?
Maybe there was something learned - my hair is crazy curly now, instead of the nice wavy it used to be.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
One sentence was harder than the others.
But was it the first one, or the last one? I think it's actually the middle one. This is true in haiku as well.
Monday, January 10, 2011
List of things I could do this weekend while Richard is out of town:
Feel free to vote.
1. Eat the remainder of the chocolate covered peanut butter pretzels that I wish I had never discovered.
2. Knit. And buy more yarn to knit.
3. Make a nice lunch on Saturday, then eat it.
4. Abstain or binge. May involve pretzels, beer, or other substances.
5. Wear pajamas everywhere to every event. Or, formalwear to casual events, pajamas for formal events.
6. Mom and kitty beauty day with brushing and manicures!!! Yay!
7. Brooding.
8. Blast stupid girly music, finish choreography for S1W audition.
9. Mohawk. Oh, who am I kidding? Fauxhawk of pony tails.
10. A nap on both Saturday and Sunday, which will effectively create a sort of 4-day weekend.
11. Sleep in the guest room, just for fun.
12. Buy a new house and move into it while he's gone as a practical joke.
13. The usual things with an unusual amount of giggling.
14. Milk bath.
15. Then, Cleopatra eyeliner goes to the bar.
16. Take a picture of myself once every 8 minutes to create a 365 portrait project in approximately 48 hours. Post to flickr, bask in praise.
Not that I'm looking forward to it....
1. Eat the remainder of the chocolate covered peanut butter pretzels that I wish I had never discovered.
2. Knit. And buy more yarn to knit.
3. Make a nice lunch on Saturday, then eat it.
4. Abstain or binge. May involve pretzels, beer, or other substances.
5. Wear pajamas everywhere to every event. Or, formalwear to casual events, pajamas for formal events.
6. Mom and kitty beauty day with brushing and manicures!!! Yay!
7. Brooding.
8. Blast stupid girly music, finish choreography for S1W audition.
9. Mohawk. Oh, who am I kidding? Fauxhawk of pony tails.
10. A nap on both Saturday and Sunday, which will effectively create a sort of 4-day weekend.
11. Sleep in the guest room, just for fun.
12. Buy a new house and move into it while he's gone as a practical joke.
13. The usual things with an unusual amount of giggling.
14. Milk bath.
15. Then, Cleopatra eyeliner goes to the bar.
16. Take a picture of myself once every 8 minutes to create a 365 portrait project in approximately 48 hours. Post to flickr, bask in praise.
Not that I'm looking forward to it....
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