days of grace - four

1. "well i should probably go catch the metro cause there's going to be a strike soon and i don't want them to shut it down before i get there" - monica's excuse to get off facebook chat with me

2. reading in today's Dear Abby that 30 years ago when a woman first saw a thong in the lingerie department she thought it was a jock strap for transvestites.

3. Oklahoma City looking like Colorado - brilliant white and snow covered

4. Gym dates with Tim

5. Beating Halo 3 in one week

365 Days of Grace - Day 1 of 365

With realization of one's own potential and self-confidence in one's ability, one can build a better world.
- Dalai Lama

So lately I've been feeling empowered. No particular reason really but I'm just "in a really good place right now". (*Sorry for the use of an annoying cliche phrase*) I was in cycle/circuit class on Wed night and had an epiphany of sorts. I just couldn't believe that I was enjoying being tortured for one solid hour by getting on and off a spin bike to lift weights. I couldn't believe that I am excited to study for the LSAT and go back to school, or that I couldn't wait to go to work the next day and close the lease negotiation that I was working on. It is just weird! I am so grateful for every day and every moment! (I know this is getting ridiculous...I promise I'm almost done...)

Along with my fitness schedule, my reading schedule, my singing schedule, my dates with Tim schedule and my TV watching schedule...I decided that although I enjoy running around with my iPhone filled with lists and schedules I want to s-l-o-w d-o-w-n and savor the flavor (to use another cliche) of my life. Live in the moment (last one I promise) if you will. But often when we start listing what we are grateful for it usually ends up being a monologue about how great we are individually...see paragraph above ;). This time will be different.

***
I stumbled upon some bloggers I read posting Day whatever of 365 Days of Grace and looked in to what it was. As you know I have an affinity for list making, so what better way to fulfill #32 and be a little more optimistic about life in general. I will strive to NOT make a list about myself. So join in or not... a little optimism and gracious perspective never hurt anyone...

1. Oscar nominations

2. Netflix on xBox to watch Oscar nominated movies

3. coffee and peanut butter power bars

4. productive department meetings

5. friends that you can be honest with

Amen!

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99311912 ~listen to me!

I don't know if anyone heard this interview on NPR on Tuesday with Gene Robinson, the Episcopal bishop that will give the invocation at the opening events of Obama's inauguration on Sunday, but it had me talking to the radio and nodding my head in agreement. I'm sure there are alot of "angry" religious types out there reacting to this interview and Bishop Robinson's selection. But to them I channel Yomama and say ~ GET OVER YOURSELF!

All public prayers should address "the God of our many understandings". I'm glad that Obama & his team are setting this precedent early. I will certainly make an effort to hear the invocation on Sunday.

And now a reflection from Mr. Lama~

Now, there are many, many people in the world, but relatively few with whom we interact, and even fewer who cause us problems. So, when you come across such a chance for practicing patience and tolerance, you should treat it with gratitude. It is rare. Just as having unexpectedly found a treasure in your own house, you should be happy and grateful to your enemy for providing that precious opportunity.-His Holiness the Dalai Lama

why i love him...

in efforts to "keep the spark alive" this romantic this exchange happened today:

Me: "Say something romantic..."

Tim: "I'll buy you new shoes."


This man is a genius!

NaBloPoMo Day 5

"No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path"
Buddha

So much has happened in the last 24 hours and I don't really want to talk about it. I'm tired of talking and listening to politics and what everyone thinks and accuses. It is over...or rather it has just begun. As proud as I am about the major decision that has been made I am sad and deeply offended by others. But I can only control my own actions, thoughts, and words. All I can do is rally the troops and provide love, support, and a non-judgemental ear for my loved ones. Because no matter what you believe, what you do, what "happens" to you I will not judge...I will only love.

All day today I have been praying for some guidance for my feelings. All I want to do is go work out. Get on the tread mill and turn into my thoughts and meditate. I have never wanted to do this in the past. I always wanted to talk it out and pass on my stress to others. I would get so worked up over things that I would get sick. But now I almost feel calmer in the face of these issues instead of anxious. It is amazing what a little enlightenment can do for a girl.

So here are some meditations from Buddha that have come to mind for the day:

"You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection"

"Three things can not be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth."

"There is nothing more dreadful than the habit of doubt. Doubt separates people. It is a poison that disintegrates friendships and breaks up pleasant relations. It is a thorn that irritates and hurts; it is a sword that kills."

Because ME told me to...

Overcome your uncertainties and free yourself from dwelling on sorrow. If you delight in existence, you will become a guide to those who need you, revealing the path to many.
-Sutta Nipata

The phase of life that comes after undergrad is really hard. People deal with it in different ways. Some go straight into graduate programs, some get married, some bum around with non-career oriented jobs, some move back home, some start a career that they have wanted to do for their whole lives and it turns out to be nothing like they expected. No matter what, people in this age group are usually just a clueless about what they want to do as they were when they were choosing which college to go to when they were seniors in high school. I still think it is ridiculous that we are forced to choose a degree/career plan when we are a mere 19 or 20 years old. I find that a lot of people work or have made careers in field unrelated to their degrees. I chose to get a business degree because it was so broad…but that’s a problem too now isn’t it. I’m 25 and I still change my mind every month. Although now I’m down to the same one or two options instead of the idea that I can do anything I want. Why can’t someone just tell me what to do?!?!

And then yesterday someone did tell me what to do. That person was ME! I’ve decided that I will not be afraid and I will just go for it. I’m just going to pick one and go. I love my accidental job that I’m doing now. It is wonderful how it has all just happened with little to no effort on my part to control everything around me. I am so grateful that I am where I am because if I hadn’t ended up here, working with the people I’m working with, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to realize that I am much smarter and capable that I ever gave myself credit for. If I hadn’t taken these 2 ½ years to work I might have rushed into something that would have led me in circles. SO, big change ahead people! I’m sure you are wondering “what big change?! Tell me, tell me!” But Me told me something else yesterday, don’t tell anyone (except Tim) what the plan is. I tend to talk and talk and talk about what I want to do. Often leading to unrealistic expectations about my plans and doubt cast on me from others that think I’m just talking again. So I’m sorry I won’t be revealing anything just yet. Although I will be keeping track of my progress here so maybe in a couple of months you will be able to guess. And no we are not having a baby.

Thanks for all your love and support, all 3 of you that read this blog.

I couldn’t have stood up to myself with out you!

so true...

No matter how bad a state of mind you may get into, if you keep strong and hold out, eventually the floating clouds must vanish and the withering wind must cease.
-Dogen

The glory of funny women...

I heart Tina Fey and Amy Poehler...



"They mis-underestimated me" - President George W. Bush

I hope we don't get the opportunity to mis-underestimate Sarah Palin.

Save the drama for yo mama!

"However, in flight school in Pensacola, he did drive a Corvette and date a girl who worked in a bar as an exotic dancer under the name of Marie, the Flame of Florida." -Fred Thompson speaking about John McCain at the RNC last night.

As hyped up about politics as I am, I'm also getting a little tired. All Labor Day weekend between refinishing furniture, beating Tim at cards, putting furniture together, and rewiring our entertainment system the topic of conversation always landed back on the politics of the moment. News of Sarah Palin's pregnant daughter. Did Cindy McCain meet Mother Teresa or not? Obama's mother was 17 when she had him. Drama Drama Drama!

But, just like the Olympics, big elections only come around every 4 years. And just like the Olympics, America has the opportunity to make history. Hopefully the persons elected to make that history won't repeat the "history" that we've made in the last 8 years.

Can I Get an AMEN?!?

Some of the buttons sold on the 16th street mall in Denver

Text from Obama's DNC speech last night...all though I was not alive when JFK ran for office all the video and stories and things I've learned about him through out the years...Obama seems to resemble him for my generation.

"But what I will not do is suggest that the Senator takes his positions for political purposes. Because one of the things that we have to change in our politics is the idea that people cannot disagree without challenging each other's character and patriotism.

The times are too serious, the stakes are too high for this same partisan playbook. So let us agree that patriotism has no party. I love this country, and so do you, and so does John McCain. The men and women who serve in our battlefields may be Democrats and Republicans and Independents, but they have fought together and bled together and some died together under the same proud flag. They have not served a Red America or a Blue America - they have served the United States of America.

So I've got news for you, John McCain. We all put our country first.

America, our work will not be easy. The challenges we face require tough choices, and Democrats as well as Republicans will need to cast off the worn-out ideas and politics of the past. For part of what has been lost these past eight years can't just be measured by lost wages or bigger trade deficits. What has also been lost is our sense of common purpose - our sense of higher purpose. And that's what we have to restore.

We may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country. The reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than for those plagued by gang-violence in Cleveland, but don't tell me we can't uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals. I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in the hospital and to live lives free of discrimination. Passions fly on immigration, but I don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts American wages by hiring illegal workers. This too is part of America's promise - the promise of a democracy where we can find the strength and grace to bridge divides and unite in common effort.

I know there are those who dismiss such beliefs as happy talk. They claim that our insistence on something larger, something firmer and more honest in our public life is just a Trojan Horse for higher taxes and the abandonment of traditional values. And that's to be expected. Because if you don't have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare the voters. If you don't have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from.

You make a big election about small things.

And you know what - it's worked before. Because it feeds into the cynicism we all have about government. When Washington doesn't work, all its promises seem empty. If your hopes have been dashed again and again, then it's best to stop hoping, and settle for what you already know.
I get it. I realize that I am not the likeliest candidate for this office. I don't fit the typical pedigree, and I haven't spent my career in the halls of Washington.

But I stand before you tonight because all across America something is stirring. What the nay-sayers don't understand is that this election has never been about me. It's been about you.
For eighteen long months, you have stood up, one by one, and said enough to the politics of the past. You understand that in this election, the greatest risk we can take is to try the same old politics with the same old players and expect a different result. You have shown what history teaches us - that at defining moments like this one, the change we need doesn't come from Washington. Change comes to Washington. Change happens because the American people demand it - because they rise up and insist on new ideas and new leadership, a new politics for a new time.

America, this is one of those moments."

I don't care what what people's politics are I just encourage them to be knowledgeable about both sides. I watched all the key note speeches from the DNC and I intend to watch all the key notes next week at the Republican Convention. The nomination of Sarah Palin is very interesting and I'm looking forward to seeing the match up of Palin vs Biden.

All I'm saying is educate yourself and make your vote mean something.

if you're not hot at least you're funny...

Last night I went to see Blue Mountain play at the Blue Door in OKC with S and L and some other friends. The opening act was so incredible it made me feel inadequate. The Blue Mountain was awesome too. The guitarist/lead singer was immensely talented. He LOVED to play. He loved it so much that he made satisfied/tortured sex faces when he was doing his guitar solos. The bassist/back up singer/guitarist's ex-wife was equally good at her craft even though the guitarist was way to into himself to let her have a solo. And then onto my favorite person in the band...the funny looking but also talented drummer. He had the BEST faces while playing and while not playing. But he was cute just because he played drums even though he wasn't "good looking".

Highlight of the night: When a comment was made between songs about the bassist and guitarist being more comfortable barefoot the drummer stood up and said "well then I'm going to take off my pants!"

Awesome.