thrihyrne: (asian text)
(posted originally to LJ)

I don't post very often here anymore, nor do I check as often, but this morning as I was doing so, I realized just how much I miss it. So, hello!! I did get in about a half hour or so of writing this past week, which just isn't very much. I keep thinking I'll take time and I nearly always decide to knit instead, or call someone, or just sit quietly play Candy Crush. This week is The Week Before I Have To Return to SF For Another Work-Required Visit. Last November was an absolute clusterfuck. This visit won't be, but I still have enough churning negative feelings about it to be savvy enough to have scheduled sessions with my therapist both before and after the trip. The days themselves for this summit will be absolutely packed from morning until night, so no hope of creative pursuits next week. It will be an endurance test, while trying not to see it as an endurance test, while trying to respect all of my emotions about being there, away from my support system, and not getting too snarky with colleagues or openly negative about many of my thoughts about upcoming changes I'm really very unhappy about. So this week is the week before that, and I'll try very hard to stay in the moment and not project forward. Easier said than done.

I did buy some gorgeous ombre patterned taffeta over the weekend and moved my altar so that it's no longer under a shelf. It looks and feels so right now; the space is open and the energies can breathe and disperse. That's how it seems to me, anyway. I've also consulted a pagan prayer book and selected and modified a few general prayers to memorize as ways to center myself. I'm learning that it's really obvious when my behaviors are in accordance with dharma. It feels right and flows organically and there's usually a lot of emotions that manifest themselves and then they pass. This is a far, far cry from hiding out in the relative safety of my head, and drinking down the feelings I didn't know how to deal with. I'm incredibly grateful to be on this side of those incredibly challenging years. Finally knowing that anger has been the source of so much of my self-sabotage has been empowering in a way I've never experienced before. It also helps that I've had plenty of therapy in recent years, and I've done a LOT of self-analysis, so I was in a place to accept this knowledge without judgment.

Huh. This really was just going to be about how I'm not writing yet, and still really intend to, but instead you get rather a thinky post about my journey. :)
thrihyrne: Portland, OR (Default)
[livejournal.com profile] evannichols had an overarching Word for the Year last year which was 'celebrate.' He hasn't been doing that kind of representational statement for many years, but we were discussing it this morning, it being a new calendar year and all. He's focusing on finishing things, so I suggested 'closure.' And since, of course, I wanted to think about me equally, I thought about my own goals and what word would be my go-to for the year. It came pretty quickly: tenacity. I'm very, very skilled at starting over. But it's been since the first half-decade of the 00s since I've worked on my staying power. This is the year that I want to hold on to what I have: the integral presence of Evan in my life; engaging employment; staying in this residence for a year; and, most importantly, keeping thoughts of 'this is all too good to be true, the universe loves bleak irony and some horrible tragedy is right around the corner to show me how too good to be true this is' at bay, whatever that takes in as healthy an approach as I can muster.

So. TENACITY


Jury duty was nearly as uneventful yesterday as Monday, though at 3:15 or so I was finally called to go to a courtroom! We were interviewed for a while to decide which of us would be unbiased and the appropriate jurors for the case, which was going to go on for the next day, perhaps two. Now, if this had happened on Monday I would have been stoked, but Wednesday is my day off and if I had been selected, it would have meant (I think) that I'd just be in jury duty and not paid or if I was paid, that would all be fine and good, but that day off would not necessarily be rescheduled. To my immense relief I was not chosen, and was able to go and leave the courtroom. The judge thanked us and I spontaneously replied, "Thank you for inviting us to be a part of the process," which she really seemed to appreciate. Fun fact I learned from this process and the juror movie we watched yesterday morning: there are more women judges than men in the state of Oregon.

My left pinkie toe still hurts a lot. I've been icing and elevating it each day when I come home. I realize this may resemble a rib injury in that it just hurts for a long while as it heals. Ah, well. I did buy an exercise ball yesterday, something I'd been intending to do for months, so I can add in that element to my toning, but I think jogging again is still a little ways off. My sister sent me some birthday money so I can try out hot yoga, which I'm very excited about. :)

Today after doing laundry I'll head out to the jeweler who has resized my rings and pay for them and wear them, then go to visit [personal profile] sanguinity until lunchtime or so and then have quiet time at home. Yay!!

Oh, and I would be remiss if I didn't note the splendid evening we had with [livejournal.com profile] oh_that_jocelyn on Monday. There was yummy food and delightful conversation and gifts! I am grateful that Evan and his wife emerita are still close and that I, too, enjoy her company, very much. As Evan noted, she and I do have a lot in common: we both love cats, we love decorative stationery arts… ;)
thrihyrne: Portland, OR (Default)
These posts probably wouldn't be so long if I posted a bit more often. Hmmmm.
To do and body issues )
self care! )

I'm feeling much better this morning than I did yesterday evening. My enthusiasm and joy and gratitude hasn't diminished or anything, but I was running myself ragged unnecessarily. Sleep is important. If I'm going to get up at 5:30 each morning, I really have to go to bed before 11:30. I was going through my affirmations when I feel sound asleep! I did have another really interesting and long dream this morning to do with a prior boyfriend and now long-time friend from college. My alma mater has been showing up a lot in my dream life. I wonder what it signifies! Maybe it's my subconscious being a bit miffed that I've opted not to go to my 20th reunion, especially now that I've found out it's a choir reunion as well. Not sure.

While I'm basking in all kinds of amazing positivity (which yes, has been a long time coming!!), there are a couple of friends on my flist going through very challenging times. You are held in light and in my thoughts.
thrihyrne: (meditation rocks)
short summary of last week )

the talisman )

other stuff )

I'll leave this rambling post with a quote from a book I finished yesterday: "True nobility isn't about being better than anyone else; it's about being better than you used to be."
~Wayne Dyer
thrihyrne: (kells illumination)
a little bit of vomiting rainbows )

To my delight I've discovered that there's a SMART Recovery meeting here in the suburb where [livejournal.com profile] evannichols lives, even within walking distance, were it not raining. He kindly drove me to it yesterday morning, for which I was very grateful. Both as part of our commitment to each other, and my desire for him to have more of an understanding of what struggles I've had, I asked the group about resources for him. It turns out that he can attend the meeting if he wants! No problem. So he'll probably accompany me from time to time, which means so much to me. As part of the agenda at the end of their meetings, each person states a concrete goal for the week. I had three: jog at least three times, spend seven consecutive days really without drinking anything, and spend 15 hours job hunting. I won't be talking about this topic much at all in this medium as it really is between Evan and myself, but at this initial jumping-off point, I thought I would.

And now, back to the absolute joy of coffee, an unexpectedly non-rainy morning, and my beloved.

January 2023

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