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 |   Theses are my thoughts and ramblings as I forge my way through this thing they call life. |
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These are my thoughts and ramblings as I forge my way through this thing they call Life. I blog with these groups:     "Blogging Circle of Friends "  [E] 
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30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 24th Start your blog with these words: “Five years from now...” Five years from now this will all be a memory. Yes, it is freaking me out right now, but all things are temporary. This too shall pass. We will get through this and we, hopefully, will be wiser for having the experience. As it is I am trying to look for the good in it... the silver lining is in there somewhere. I;m getting more time to write. I am still connected to my writing friends through social media and virtual meetups. I am learning about Discord, Google Hangouts, GoToMeeting and Zoom. I may not be an expert, but I can muddle through. I like that I can chat with other writing friends by just typing something into Discord and someone will respond. I am not so alone. I am also glad I have online places like WDC to return to for prompts and contests and connection. My mother is also here and our two cats. We have our spaces and our places where we can hang together and apart. Our neighbours are all good. The social distancing is weird. Social distancing does not mean don't smile or say hello. Some people have closed off that way. I try to be friendly. We're all in this together. It's not me against the world, just me practicing healthful ways to keep healthy and keep others virus free. We do what we can. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 23rd What is the best way to spend a rainy afternoon? This blog is easier to consider when we haven't been confined to our homes with few avenues to explore. Right now I would love to say writing in a cafe, watching people and drinking fabulous coffee and treats. But if I chose to stay home, wrapped in my cozy track pants and over-sized sweater, I would still write, and read, and nap. A good book is always welcome. I can't seem to get into any right now. My mind is too frazzled with tinges of anxiety. It hangs at the borders of my life right now. I would also catch up on TV shows I have missed. Project Runway. Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist. Hudson and Rex. The Masked Singer. And a number of lovey dovey movies from the W network. If its summer and the weather is warm, I would write out in the carport and dance in the pouring rain. I would dance across the wet grass or just sit in the carport and watch the rain fall. But it's March and there has been snow and back to rain... welcome to Canada! I am hanging out in my basement doing a virtual write in with friends I would usually be hanging out with at a cafe. But tonight I have the fire place on instead. Still, we are healthy here and comfortable. I also have chocolate stashed away... that I might have to get into soon. Hope everyone one else is doing fine. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 22nd Write a letter to your younger self. Tell them about something or someone they should be wary of as they move through life and about a specific event they should look forward to. Oh, there is so much I could tell you, but to do so would warn you off the things that make you who you are today. Instead, I will tell you to follow your dreams and take risks. Find you writing friends sooner and learn with them. Maybe finding them sooner, would have you challenging yourself earlier. Maybe it would have guided me off into a different way from where I have come. Wasting less time in a marriage or maybe standing up for myself longer and earlier than I actually did. Who knows, but I think in finding like-minded friends, I would have gained a level of confidence that writing alone in that time did not give me. Everyone needs a tribe. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 21st Write about good things that can come out of a bad situation. If you have an example from personal experience, please share! Always remember - this too shall pass. Everything is temporary. I have been reading The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer and today's chapter talked about death and how it is a great teacher of life. Yes, that sounds odd, but think about it. If you only had a week left to live, think how present and alive you would make those last moments on earth be... they would be precious. The thing is death can come at any moment. We should be living our lives as if that were the case because we all die. It is inevitable. How we experience life is up to us. Do we want to waste it on petty concerns or dive in and experience it fully. That said, I would say, how we perceive a situation as good or bad is all relative. A situation is not one or the other, not really, it is our perception of it that pulls it one way or the other. How we react is determined by that perception. Learning that concept is a huge thing. What if we didn't react. What if we just experienced it as it occurred, staying in the present moment and breathing through it. Letting it pass through us. Not clinging to it or adding the melodrama we often do to that experience. What would happen then? I think we would experience a sense of peace. Through all the chaos, there would be a sense of peace. As for good things coming from bad situations... I feel that if my parents had not separated, I would still be living in Northern Ontario without the benefits of living in Southern Ontario. Would I have still gone on to University? Would I still have the great friends I have now? Part of me doubts it. Don't get me wrong. I love Northern Ontario, but I find it small. Small in the sense of small minded or narrow thinking patterns. I love the natural aspects of it, but I found as a child I was not well received and I would have hated to grow up in that any more than I already had. Southern Ontario is more liberal minded and open. It fits with my general outlook. I always felt like I was on the outside looking in, when I lived up north. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 20th Share a time when your mouth hung open in shock/awe/surprise/wonder etc. What was it that made you feel that way? I feel awestruck at seeing the wonders around me; I look for the unusual and the unique; I look for the funny within the ordinary - bringing a smile; even a small thing can make my day brighter and lighter regardless of the stresses or chaos of the world I have recently opened an instagram account. May of my pictures are snapshots of funny things. Looking back at those pictures, I remember the moment and smile. Life is good. Life is those small moments. Care to see what creates wonder and smiles, take a peek: www.instagram.com/carly1967henderson/ |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 19th COVID-19. It’s affecting all of us in one way or another. Never in our lifetimes have we seen something of this magnitude and severity. So today, check in with yourself and your fellow competitors - how are you? Where is your head at? What’s worrying you? Let’s gather our WDC community around us and hunker down together. I hope everyone is okay. I'm doing fine. I am trying to stay socially distanced. I live with my 82 year old mother, so I want to take care for her and not carry anything home. The only thing I have been doing out of the house in the last few days has been going for walks. Although I did get pizza tonight. The sign on the Domino's door asked for no more than 4 customers in the store at a time and also requested that we wait the 10 - 12 minutes in our car while we waited for the order to be filled. Yesterday two of my writing groups have gone into virtual mode. I have learned a great deal about Google Hangouts and Discord in the last 24 hours. I still have things to work out. On Discord I am two different people - one on my phone and one on my computer. I could carry on a conversation with myself. I have been trying to do the edits on a short story I have going into an anthology, but I have also been procrastinating and doing a lot of cleaning. My desk area is finally tidy. My biggest concern has been financially. I am lucky to have gotten a long term teaching position this year. That means I will still get paid while the school's are out after March Break. I worry what this pandemic is going to do with our economy. I am trying to remain calm and not let the concerns and closures get to me. Stay safe and healthy out there people. I am glad I have this community to help me keep my sanity. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 18th Does your communication style tend to be straightforward or subtle? Are you more likely to speak your mind or beat around the bush? Have you ever gotten into trouble because of your communication style? My communication style. I'd like to say I am a straight shooter, but I know from past experience that I tend to hold back when I am afraid to say what I think or am not sure what I think. This happens more in romantic, long term relationships. Abandonment issues arise whenever there is a disagreement and I don't want to have the person take offence and drop my ass, so I keep quiet. This inability to communicate was an issue that caused the breakdown in my marriage. I find I get stuck and cannot express myself when I am under a great deal of stress. I know that saying nothing only makes things worse, but I can't get anything out. It is like I know I need to communicate, but I fear what I have to say will upset the other person so I can't get it out, but in not saying anything I make the situation worse. I fear that he will leave or kick my ass to the curb, but what I fear, I created and I did get kicked to the curb. I tend not to be like that with any other relationships. In fact, with family I say what I think because I know they can't kick me to the curb. They are stuck with me. With friends, I can say what I think because they have my back and get me. With co-workers I try to be open and address issues that come up so that our team works like a cohesive unit. We work with a small class of primary age Autistic students. I do work with one lady that tends to overshare. Not sure what to do about that. I try to listen to a point, then redirect back to our students. I don't want her to think I don't care, but I need to somehow convey the importance of time and place. The students need to come first. She tends to be sensitive and can take things the wrong way, so I need to be careful how I deal with this issue. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 17th Is success a result of luck, or hard work? Neither? Both? Read this article and share your thoughts. https://jamesclear.com/luck-vs-hard-work I only read part of the article. That seems to be the way of things these days - I got lots of open time, but I still manage to not get everything done. I figure I have plenty of time and then.... I don't. I did like what I had read. I tend to agree with the idea that being born lucky to a white middle - working class family. Lucky and blessed. I try to remember that when I venture out into the world. I have had good parents, who loved me and tried to do the best for me given their own situation. I was blessed to have grandparents who loved me unconditionally and encouraged my efforts. I am also lucky to have great people in my life... many of whom are making wonderful efforts to include me into virtual writing sessions so that I am not so isolated during this time of Covid-19. I also have a friend who I am going hiking with tomorrow. I have work I love and co-workers who I enjoy working with. It is a temporary position, but I am enjoying it and making the most of the opportunities that present themselves. All those things are luck, more than hard work. Don't get me wrong, I do work hard at what I have attained, but I have been lucky in getting the opportunities. I work hard to make sure I don't take the opportunities for granted. I want the best for my students and to give them that, I work to make sure that happens. I also write. I work hard. with the talent I have been gifted to make sure I do the best that I can with what I write and put out there. I want to make my little part of the world as uplifting and positive as I can. That takes work. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 16th If you had the opportunity to compete on a television game show, which would you pick? If you won, what would you do with your winnings? I used to watch a lot of game shows as a child, but not so much anymore. I used to really like The New Liars Club. Celebrities would make up stories about an object and the contestant had to chose who was telling the truth. The only thing was, I believe it was Canadian, so the prize money was no big deal. Still it would be fun. Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and You Are The Weakest Link would also be shows to be on.... but then so would Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader. All of these would be great. Still if I won a fabulous amount of money I would invest it, but since that is a boring response and this money is speculative and fun... I would spend it all. I would love to travel. Go to Europe and Britain. Travel England, Scotland and Ireland then settle in to a spot to take in some writing retreats. Then I would go to Paris for the month long writing workshops there. I would live like an ex-patriot. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT March 15th What are some ways you reduce stress and create happiness in your everyday life? I have started the practice of meditation; doing Sahaja Yoga. I find it calming and I feel more centered in my life. This makes it easier to weather the more challenging aspects of my day and stayed buoyed above the chaos of what is happening. I am not consistent in my practice. I should be aiming for 10 minutes in the morning and another 10 minutes in the evening complete with a foot soaking to rid my body of excessive negative energies that have lingered over the day. My low goal for the week is two 10 minute sessions, but I have been getting about 3 10 minute sessions and one longer community session on Zoom each week for the last several weeks. I find my heart rate is lower and I feel calmer. It works for me. I also try to do the things I love - my calendar quote for last month was - Do More Of What Makes You Happy. Writing is my go to. That is why it has been an integral part of my life, especially during times of trial and strife. I try to write 750 words a day. These words are a bit like Julia Cameron's Morning Pages, but they are done on the computer and not long hand on three sheets of paper. I gripe, I consider, I plan, but I also create poetry, prose and work on my current Work In Progress. I also blog. Essentially, I write whatever needs to come out at the time. I find it clears the way for the more creative aspects of my writing. I also love to read. I have many books on the go and chose the one that I feel drawn to at the time. I read poetry, non fiction and fiction. I enjoy romance, mystery.... anything really. Getting out for walks helps to clear my head. I find it hard to stay cooped up in the house for more than 24 to 36 hours. A walk around the neighbourhood will help, but getting out where there are other people is better. I enjoy people watching. A perfect day would include a walk and a chance to write in a public place, like a cafe. Coffee and a treat are just the cherry on top. With all the Covid-19 virus protocols in place, I am finding that I will have to modify my plans. Less cafe visits. No wandering around the malls. No library visits - KPL just announced a three week closure. WPL is still open, but I doubt they will stay that way. I have a feeling this March Break is going to be rather quiet. I may have to incorporate some yoga to get my body moving without having to leave the house. If the weather is nice, I may venture out to some smaller towns to walk and explore, but we will see. I need to take precautions, but I also have to have a life. Stressing out about it only makes things worse. I also live with an older adult and want to make sure I keep her protected and not exposed to anything. |
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