rest

Sometimes all you need is rest. And a trip to the countryside.

Tip of the Day: Go to bed earlier and spend more time outside.

Ladder

There is a Ladder. It can be found in every instution and every garage. Some find themselves upon it only once every few months to do a bit of maintenance. But there are others, the ambitious among us, that find themselves on it's rungs more often than the former.

Thought of the Day: I stay away from ladders.

unknown preparations

Sometimes the most useless experiences are what provide us with what we need to move forward in life.

Thought of the Day: Mostly today serves to prepare us for tomorrow, except when it can't.

Moments in the day

Trying out rhythms, you and I
One to live by
Allocating pennies, showing up
Wasting time
Loving one another
Not seeing or listening
The day has gone away

An Ode to Garlic

Oh, garlic, how I love thee.
You keep me satisfied; you keep me well;
Your smell keeps them all away.

Over the last 6 months I have developed a 4 bulb a week garlic habit.
Yes, that's right, a bulb habit. Garlic cloves are for sissies.
My initial garlic crush began about 5 years ago when one of my best girls served a dish of roasted garlic, warm Brie cheese and capers on stone wheat crackers at a dinner party.

I have re-created the dish over the years, but since becoming a fairweather vegan*(I know, I know the worst kind) and after learning about the pop-culture health benefits of eating garlic, have resorted to a simple no-nonsense version of the dish.

Basically, I cut a bulb in half, wrap it in foil and bake it in the oven for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. I then spread the warmed delight on a slice of bread, crackers or a pita. Since starting this habit about six months ago, I have not been ill once.

The purported benefits of garlic are as follows:

-Protects against certain cancers
-Protects the heart
-Increases blood flow and relaxes the blood vessels
-Has antibacterial and antiviral properties
-Allows only the ones that love you the most to get close enough to kiss you

Tip of the Day: Eat garlic daily!

*a word about fairweather veganism- I would love the be a die hard vegan because I believe eating mostly fruit, vegetables and whole grains is one the best things you can do for your health. However, given my Midwestern-slavic roots, genuine love for all culinary delights, and occasional "food swings," I find it necessary to sometimes break away from my usual daily vegan eating routine.

Have you ever felt like this?

As soon as I have something really important to do, there are immediately at least 20 other things I feel like I must do first. My mind is wired  to tell me this. Suddenly, washing the dishes sounds awesome! I get excited to clean the house! Or... I get manic and feel like I must do the laundry, check twitter, get a glass of water, etc.

Take tonight for instance. I had one priority: to get some paperwork together. I was only able to start my "gathering process" after I had a glass of water and checked my e-mail. Why? I have NO idea.

Then, I justified waiting until my bus ride tomorrow morning to write the e-mail that will accompany the paperwork. What the? Wheh? For what reason?  For NO reason at all, other than I decided it was more important to clean out my fridge, tidy the kitchen and bedroom and write this blog post first. Ha! 

SoOo RiDiCuLous.

For some great tips on how to fight procrastination, a.k.a. the resistance, check out Maria Forleo here

Thought of the Day: What do you really want/ need to be doing?
Tip of the Day: Do it!

Lemons

Sometimes I just want to punch someone. Today was one of those days. There was nothing particularily wrong with today, it was just... well.. Filled with a series of annoying mini events that culminated in an end of the day funky funk, i.e., the dreaded kat "dill pickle."

Most annoying, was a bus ride home that was jam packed, making each stop seem like a frickin' 30 minute television episode. The horizontally endowed man next to me, who with each breath expanded and plunged his body further into my personal space, so much so that there was skin to "forceful" skin contact, forcing me into the crevice between the seat and the window. This, coupled with a continuous blast of AC across my face despite the ever descending evening temperature, almost forced me to jump ship early and walk the rest of the way home. Luckily there is a brew pub at the end of my daily bus trek.

And here is where this story should end: me happily sipping on an adult beverage, with a sunset in the background and a nice relaxing evening to follow. But the thing about conventional living, is that there is always something more to do- tend the garden, pay a bill, deal with something or other that comes up, pack for a trip, figure out a gift for a friend, respond to a social request, etc., etc. And if you are not careful, this mundane routine can cause even the best - intentioned individual to stray from what is really important. What is that? You tell me.

Thought of the Day: Stay focused, especially during lemon attacks.

getting out of the comparison trap

I sometimes find myself comparing myself to others. Whether I'm at work, or working on my own creative endeavors, I can get stuck thinking I need to be more like others. I start thinking that I should work on my writing more before I start blogging, try to build my own website, or be more agressive about networking, posting pictures, etc., etc. The problem is, this is not me, and these are not my strengths, at least right now. And, I'm a lazy motha f'er

This may sound crazy, but I am still figuring out and defining my own likes and dislikes. While these will undoubtedly change over time, for most of my adolescent and adult life I have been more concerned about the lives of others, rather than my own life. The problem with this is that I end up helping no one and feel miserable.

As I begin the process of defining my own damn personality, and learning how to be authentic and true to myself while still growing and finding authentic points of intersection with others, I am curious to see how my journey will progress and who I will meet along the way.

For much of our lives, we compare ourselves and aspire to become people that we are not. We cannot be everything to everyone. 

Thought of the Day: Be yourself, and see where that leads.

Is it appropriate to share how much you make?

From what I have experienced in life, the answer to this question is...no!

Good friends and family are hesitant to share how much they make, which has often boggled me, especially when you are close to your friends and family.

Also, many bloggers that claim to earn and generate massive of amounts of $$$ via their online business/income stream are hesitant to share hard numbers. Sure they speak in generalities and rounded numbers...but that is not satisfying. I want to know the cold, hard numbers!

What are your thoughts? Is it appropriate for individuals and/ or businesses to share how much they make?

Thought of the Day: Transparency is an unattainable virtue.

people with power

There are people that have power, and there are people who are put in a position of power/ claw their way towards a position of power.

The difference is huge.

People with natural power, exude confidence, compassion and are most often visionary. They lead, they continue on, even when life hands them a shit sandwich. Side note!: I love this term. I heard it on a segment of Marie Forleo's YouTube Channel. The definition of a shit sandwich, as stated on urbandictionary.com is: an unfavorable situation or dilemma. 

People who are put in a position of power, or who grasp for it, are those that lack an internal sense of power and therefore feel the need to control those around them intentionally or unintentionally. This power is controlling, domineering, and fear-based. When faced with adversity, they respond with anger and hostility.

Lately, I have been noticing people that radiate a natural sense of power. When channeled properly, life, projects, & people flourish.

I think we all have the capacity within to develop and nurture our innate, natural power, or higher selves. But the path of least resistance is often to succumb to our lower selves and a fear-based power, that thrives on, and breeds hostility, fear and resentment.


Tip of the Day: Nurture love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, forgiveness and patience in your life.These form the platform for developing true power.

What I Know

I am constantly learning.
There is so much I dont know.

Thought of the Day: are you afraid to admit what you don't know?

Blazing Your Path

When I was in college my best friend and I organized a huge celebration for Cinco de Mayo as part of our involvement with Alverno College's Hispanic Women's Club. As we negotiated contracts, worked across departments within the college, designed fliers, organized a silent auction and advertised our event, I remember thinking that I was learning more about the real world through my involvement in extracurricular activities than I was sitting in my college courses.

As our event neared  it's launch date, we got word from administrative staff at the university that there was concern we had "gotten ahead of ourselves." There was a fear that our event would not generate enough interest, and that there would not be enough attendees to fill the auditorium.

I'll never forget Sister Joel Read's speech at a campus event a week prior to our event. The theme of her speech was that sometimes it's best to follow the road already traveled rather than blaze a new one.

I remember listening to her words in disbelief. Could this really be the progressive leader I had grown to admire; the one who innovated and implemented an entire new way of teaching and learning in higher education?

In the end, our event was touted as not only a success, but we were able to raise $5,000 for the Latina Resource Center.

Thought of the Day: Always create your own path; that's where things get interesting.

3 things

1. Do what you absolutely love, not what you think you would like to do; the rest will fall into place

2. Have courage

3. Be resiliant

truth-telling time

This post will be a short one, as I just spent a bunch of time re-arranging this blog, making it reflect where I am in my writing process. I am discontinuing "mindful monday" and "food friday" posts in order to make this blog something more honest; a reflection of where I am right now. I was having a hard time coming up with ideas for posts on Mondays and Fridays and some of my posts felt constrained.

A little over a month off of blogging and I am determined not to mold this blog into a cookie cutter version of all the other blogs out there -i.e., themed posting schedules and short, concise, neatly packaged success stories.

Instead I promise to deliver my writing in it's raw form. A poem one day, a journal entry another, a letter, a story, a quote, an anecdote.. who knows, really.

After my break, vacationing and attending the Writer's Workshop sponsored by Hay House Publishing, I have come to realize that writing is a process; a damn long one at that - one that never ends nor promises success. I also realized that I am deeply committed to this process, whatever that means.

Writing is perhaps the only consistent element in my life thus far. So rather than dress it up, fluff it up and try to make an immediate buck off of it, I think I will take the long, messy road ahead and give you the voice I am currently blessed with: an untalented, raw, unintelligent and frivolous one. Any beauty, grace and intelligence that comes from my words is a blessing, and accomplished through me, not by me.

 If I am to be resilient, and continue writing via a public platform, this is the only way I know how. And with that, I again affirm my promise and commitment to give of my truth through writing.

This is not to say that my earlier writings were inauthentic, they were not. However, I was writing under the pretext of trying to "get somewhere" with my writing. This is no longer the case. If I arrive anywhere, it will be a pleasant surprise, if I write for myself, and myself only, it is one of the greatest gifts I will give myself.

Tip of the Day: Continue to uncover your truths

Journeyer

I follow in silence- you wouldn't notice me.
I lead, yet take no followers.
A lonely journeyer, with no destination in mind.
I have no path, no purpose, only a wandering mind with nowhere to go.
For this, I write.

Tip of the Day: keep writing.

The Return

After a brief hiatus and a long, wonderful vacation, I am making a return. And while I could apologize or feel bad about my break, I don't. Instead, I feel renewed, with a rejuvenated voice.

Settling back into a Portland routine, after a long vacation has been comforting and annoying. Portland is so very beautiful when you are leaving, and only livable if you leave often, for extended periods of time.

While away, I raved about Portland, the beauty, the people, the DIY culture, the capacity one finds to create here. I told this to a good friend while walking around my old neighborhood in Spanish Harlem. As we walked along the cracked sidewalks, projects and the sad state of the manhattan greenery, she said, "yea, but at least here you can be an asshole. Sometimes I just need to be an asshole."

I guess I'm not an asshole. I don't think I ever was.

Thought of the Day: Some things don't change.