Union?
Blah blahzzzblah. Clap clap. Holla! Clap. Definitely not clapping and smug smiles. Poor commentary pre-SOU via newspundits.
All in all, at least I was inspired…
To purge my closet and put away clothes. Now I am working on my shelf/dresser. Throw away all the crap. Simplify.
I would have rather been inspired by our President though. Sigh.
Bring on February.
And Bring on the cute Anderson Cooper, the reason why I am tuning into the aftershow 
Although I am in Week 4 along with the rest of you…I have fallen behind in one of the most essential tasks, the morning pages. Today was the first time I completed them. There, I said it. I used to journal all the time, and in the last, oh 6 months or so, it has fallen to the wayside and I miss it immensely. I also know there are issues and thoughts that I do not wish to work through, correction, am avoiding working through from earlier this year that I KNOW will come to the surface if I am writing…Avoidance. Block. Protect thyself and never get hurt. PLUS I am in a really GOOD place, relationshipy-wise right now. I have been seeing someone for a few months and quite happy and content, in the present, for the first time ever. And when I am HAPPY about men? I tend to stay quiet…hence no journaling and morning pages. But for some reason I got up at 5:30 this morning, just like the good sleep specialist said I am supposed to (that was also 3-4 weeks!!! I have been avoiding my treatment!!!) And I did my morning pages. And it felt good. I know I am far behind everyone else right now, but I am working on the UNcovering of my inner artist (as Azure Ateler posted about here!) I read Chapter Four last night after seeing hints about the reading deprivation task all over the AW blogroll. YIKES! Even if I was caught up to speed, I would feel that this was impossible for me to do. Perhaps not while at HOME. I could work on that…but while at work? My job is so painfully monotonous and boring (switchboard operator) that I am not certain what I would do if I couldn’t read. I suppose I could write. But I couldn’t paint, or scrapbook, or rearrange my room, or meditate or or or bake or create much of anything but a blank stare! YIKES! I thought I would jump in feet first tomorrow and try to only do 5 days of no reading, but I am still ambivalent. Chapter 4 had a lot of notes about the morning pages and how they are beginning to work and since I just started them, obviously…I am making excuses for not reading this week! I am torn. I want to do this in order and with the group. BUT at the same time. I announced this project. (Silly, but it will keep me busy AND I just started my morning pages…I want to experience the unblocking at the right time. My other idea in my head right now is to cut DOWN on my reading at home for the next few weeks. And going for a day here and there without reading at work. And then after a month of the morning pages…try the real deprivation. I dunno, am I making excuses? (Good time to post this by the way since NONE OF YOU ARE READING!!!
The funeral for the Bluths…how sad. How very sad.
Perhaps I should have the invitees dress in character? (Get that BLUE PAINT READY!)
Musical Soundtrack to include:
The Final Countdown
Afternoon Delight
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Taking Care of Business
Christmas Time is Here
Everything I Do (I Do It For You)
Who Am I? (from Les Miserables)
And as Dayna suggested, we will have to make sure to include Arrested Development Favorite Foods for our menu. However…this seems limited and sugary.
Frozen Chocolate Covered Bananas?
Peanut Brittle? (Damn that Lucille 2)
Perhaps MEXICAN food in honor of Mi Hermano and Marta?
Perhaps Korean food in honor of Annyong?
And as Chris reminded me Hard Boiled Eggs in honor of Ann?
Bangers? (Sausage) in the mouth?
Um, and for the after-party? Body Chocolate?
And to drink, cause we all know if there’s a party the Bluth’s are drinking!
Martinis
Coffee
What else?
I can still remember when I learned I was dating a W.A.S.P. of my very own. Hence in and of itself, it not working out. Princeton men can’t relate to work-study Allegheny women. As well as stuffy WASP types can’t even begin to keep up with over-affectionate and sexually charged Non-WASPs.
Anyhow, point?
Love this! Kudos to Gawker.
WaspDate Blog
WASPdate chronicles the drama, melodrama and tragicomedy of the dating scene among NYC’s young elite and their wannabes. These days, being a WASP is a state of mind. So, if you believe that your rightful place is on top, whether earned or inherited, that you will get there because you are who you are, and you’re looking for that special someone, or–gasp–have found him or her, we want your stories.
Do you think that have an over-educated but still dirt poor borderline white trash blog too? For those who will be paying off student loans for the rest of their reincarnated lives, BUT have the intelligence to communicate with other earthly W.A.S.P. like people?
Maybe I should start one.
30% of men and 22% of women between 30-34 have never tied the knot, which is more than 3 times the rate in 1970. Part of the reason for the growing single population is the high rate at which men and women are delaying marriage. According to the Census Bureau, the average age of first marriage for women is now twenty-five, and for men twenty-seven. This is the first time in U.S. history both sexes are choosing to marry so late.
Huh? SO LATE? REALLY? I was shocked when I read this statistic that only 22% of my peers have never ties the knot, but then again when I consider my friends from high school and college…a quick count shows that 15 are married and 8 are not. Of course, we are not all yet 34. And I did a quick overview of my gmail address book (people in that age groupish) and I found these statistics.
25-I Do (still…)
3- I Do (really soon)
2- I Did (and regret it)
*30* Marrieds vs. *20* Not Yets
So in my world 1/3 of my friends/acquaintances my age(ish) are not married. A wee bit higher than the statistic above shows.
Is 25 considered LATE to get married in this day and age? In my experience I would think that the article would say 35. Or maybe it is just me.
CNN Breaking News? E! perhaps. But when I see CNN I expect NEWS. Ya know? Does this bother anypne besides me? (And him?)
“Brokeback Mountain” leads Academy Awards field with eight nominations, including best picture”
It might be time to do this…
To unsubscribe from CNN.com’s Breaking News E-Mail Alert, log on to: http://CNN.com/EMAIL/breakingnews.html
Take these tests 
Authentic Happiness Index:
(Present level of happiness) 67
Test Range from 24 to 120
Values In Action: Signature Strengths Survey
(This one is LONG…warning!)
1. You love learning new things, whether in a class or on your own. You have always loved school, reading, and museums-anywhere and everywhere there is an opportunity to learn.
2. You are aware of the motives and feelings of other people. You know what to do to fit in to different social situations, and you know what to do to put others at ease.
3. You notice and appreciate beauty, excellence, and/or skilled performance in all domains of life, from nature to art to mathematics to science to everyday experience.
4. You are kind and generous to others, and you are never too busy to do a favor. You enjoy doing good deeds for others, even if you do not know them well.
5. You are curious about everything. You are always asking questions, and you find all subjects and topics fascinating. You like exploration and discovery.
Check this out!
BALANCE BAR offers Health/Wellness Grants!
BALANCE BAR Grants are available to sport enthusiasts and/or amateur athletes who participate in a wide variety of sports and activities. Any activity that enables a person to enhance their physical health while pursuing a passion that enriches their lives is appropriate for the BALANCE BAR Grant. Past grant recipient activities have included (but not limited to): adventure racing, archery, unicycling, orienteering, skysurfing, rock climbing, hiking, martial arts, paddling, cycling and snowboarding, running and yoga.
Of course FOX really fucked this one up. Damn station. How can you take away my Arrested Development?
Arrested Development
Final 4 episodes are going to be aired on Friday, February 10th from 8:00 pm to 10:00 PM
But the network has decided to air the season’s final four episodes in one two-hour block Friday, Feb. 10. That night also happens to feature the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics on NBC, an event that is likely to dominate the ratings that night.The final four episodes of the season will feature guest appearances by Justine Bateman, Jason’s sister, and Judge Reinhold, also seen in the “SOBs” episode (indicating that it may have aired out of sequence). Justine Bateman will play a woman who Michael believes may be his long-lost sister Nellie, while Reinhold plays himself, hired by the family’s new lawyer to act as a judge in a mock trial to help the Bluths prepare for a real court case.
The episodes will also feature Gob (Will Arnett) traveling to Iraq to perform a Christian magic act, which lands him in prison; Buster (Tony Hale) faking a coma to avoid testifying in the family’s court case; and George Michael (Michael Cera) and Maeby (Alia Shawkat) taking part in a mock wedding to entertain hospital patients. The whole thing ends up at a yacht party, which is where the series started.
Thanks Chris for the link! I know where I WILL BE ON FEB 10th
QUOTES
“Eliminate something superfluous from your life. Break a habit. Do something that makes you feel insecure.” -Piero Ferrucci
“Stop thinking and talking about it and there is nothing you will not be able to know. -Zen Paradigm
“It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do one dare that they are difficult.” -Seneca
PASSAGES
Working with the morning pages, we begin to sort through the differences between our real feelings, which are often secret, and our official feelings, those on record for the public display. Official feeling are often indicated by the phrase (I feel okay about that (the job loss, her dating someone else, my dad’s death…) Okay is a blanket word for most of us. It covers all sorts of squirmy feeling; and it frequently signals a loss. We officially feel okay, but do we?
Ah, my word is FINE.
In short, extreme emotions of any kind- the very thing that morning pages are superb for processing- are the usual triggers for avoiding the pages themselves.
Ugh. That’s me. All or nothing. Extreme emotions.
Over any considerable period of time, the morning pages perform spiritual chiropractic. They realign our values. If we are to the left or the right of our personal truth, the pages will point out the need for a course adjustment. We will be aware of our drift and correct it- if only to hush the pages up.”If you want to work on your art, work on your life.” That’s another way of saying that in order to have self-expression, we must first have a self to express. That is the business of the morning pages.
I am sooo out of alignment right now. AND I WANT TO BE DOING THIS? Or do I? I can’t get myself through the morning pages/waking up early part of this course at all. Sigh.
The process of identifying a self inevitably involves loss as well as gain. We discover our boundaries by definition separate is from our fellows. As we clarify our perceptions, we lose our misconceptions. As we eliminate ambiguity, we lose illusion as well. We arrive at clarity, and clarity creates change.
I guess I am not seeking clarity right now?
People frequently believe the creative life is grounded in fantasy. The more difficult truth is that creativity is grounded in reality, in the particular, the focused, the well-observed or specifically imagined. As we lose our vagueness about our self, our values, our life situation, we become available to the moment. It is there, in the particular, that we contact the creative self. Until we experience the freedom of solitude, we cannot connect authentically. We may be enmeshed, but we are not encountered.
Enmeshed but not encountered. Interesting. And true.
Art lies in the moment of encounter; we meet our truth and we meet ourselves; we meet ourselves and we meet our self-expression. We become original because we become something specific: an origin from which work flows. Shifts in taste and perception frequently accompany a shift in identity. One of the clearest signals that something healthy is a foot is the impulse to weed out, sort through, and discard old clothes, papers and belongings.
And I have been shifting like nobody’s business! Getting rid of everything. Carpets. Old furniture. Law school books. Selling more books online. Cassette tapes, clothes. You name it. I have been purging it if possible.
There will be a change in energy patterns. Your dreams will become stronger and clearer, both by night and by day. You will find yourself remembering your nighttime dreams, and by day, daydreams will catch your attention. Fantasy, of a benign and unexpected sort, will begin to crop up. Many areas of your life that previously seemed to fit will stop fitting. Half your wardrobe might start to look funny. You may decide to reupholster a couch or just toss it out. Musical bents may alter. There may even be spontaneous bursts of singing, dancing, running.
Nothing too spontaneous yet, except the rearranging of the inspiration room and living room and my bedroom for the first time in 2 years.
What you have been doing is wiping the mirror. Each day’s morning pages take a swipe at the blur you have kept between you and your real self. As your image becomes clearer, it may surprise you. You may discover very particular likes and dislikes that you had not acknowledged. A fondness for cactuses. So why do I have these pots of ivy? A dislike of brown. So why do I keep wearing that sweater if I never feel right in it?
I am somehow wiping the mirror without doing the pages.
The snowflake pattern of your soul is emerging. Each of us are unique, creative individual. But we often blur that uniqueness with sugar, alcohol, drugs, overwork, underplay, bad relations, toxic sex, underexercise, over-TV, undersleep- many and varied forms of junk food for the soul. The pages help us to see these smears on our consciousness.
Oh, those days… I actually, really, really, really hated myself last year during that time. And received my just desserts as well.
If you feel stuck in your life or in your art, few jump starts are more effective than a week of reading deprivation…It is a paradox that by emptying our lives of distractions we are actually filling the well. Without distractions, we are once again thrust into the sensory world. With no newspaper to shield us, a train becomes a viewing gallery. With no novel to sink into (and no television to numb us out) an evening becomes a vast savannah in which furniture- and other assumptions- get rearranged. Reading deprivations casts us unto our inner silence…Our own art, our own thoughts and feelings, will being to nudge aside the sludge of blockage, to loosen it and move it upward and outward until once again our well is running freely…Reading deprivation is a very powerful tool- and a very frightening one. Even thinking about it can bring up enormous rage. For most blocked creatives, reading is an addiction. We gobble up what words of others rather than digest our own thoughts and feelings, rather than cook up something of our own.
I agree and disagree. I need to spend more time with myself writing. But I do not think that excluding everything of word will help that? I need to stop the reading of the blogs. And endless playing on internet sites. And perhaps a week without magazine tidbits here and there. But I need to know what is going on in the world with the news. I feel more energized after reading through the papers in the morning. And I feel relaxed and accomplished with myself after reading in the evening. reading a book instead of napping, or wasting time on the computer over email. Hmmmm. Of course, I haven’t been doing my morning pages either…
TASKS
Buried Dreams—An Exercise
List 5 hobbies that sound fun:
Painting
Dancing
Horseback Riding
Jogging
Swimming
List 5 classes that sound fun:
Spanish
Pottery
Cooking
Cake Decorating
Grant Writing
List 5 things you personally would never do that sound fun:
Skydive
Blue Heron Festival
Sing a Solo
Morning Yoga
Run a Marathon
List 5 skills that would be fun to have:
Multilingual
Know how to knit/crochet
More musical
Perfect grammar
Public speaking
List 5 things that you used to enjoy doing (do not do much of anymore?)
Singing
Volunteering
Organizing/Planning Events
Gardening
Drawing
List 5 silly things you would like to try once
Karaoke solo
Trip to Antarctica to see the PENGUINS
Road Trip with no destination
Run for political office
(Cannot be mentioned here!
Describe your ideal environment?
Town? Country? Swank? Cozy? Yikes. I like em all. I guess it depends on my mood! I love the urban city living feel…walking to the market, bookstores etc. And I also love the country. The cozy bed and breakfasts. Animals and gardens. BBQs and picnics with family/friends. I guess I am not fond of the strip mall surburby places of the world.
What’s your favorite season?
Winter winter winter winter. And I have been utterly depressed because this has been the worse winter I have ever lived through in WNY! Almost as bad as when I lived in Raleigh,. NC for that one year! WHERE IS THE SNOW!
Describe yourself at 80. What did you do after 50 that you enjoyed?
At 80 I hope to be rested yet still active in the community/politics. Up with current events. Playing with my grandchildren. And traveling. I want to do traveling after I am 50. After my children are grown and I have saved up (somehow) SOME money. See the world.All four corners. SOONER than later.
Remember yourself at 8. What did you like to do? What were your favorite things?
I pretty much loved playing ANYTHING pretend. House, college, rich kids, making musicals…anything that involved me making up a different (future) life. I think I most enjoyed my lil brother and auntie Carroll and cousin Brian and my grandparents. Being outside and running around the farm all day. Taking walks in the woods. Baking bread/cookies/candies. Listening to records.
Look at your house. Is there any room that you could make into a secret, private space for yourself?
Interesting…I did this without knowing it was a task! I love love love watching it snow and rain out my big picture window in the front of the house, so I moved the legless couch into the living room and put it in front of the window so I have a cozy place to snuggle up and watch the weather.
Open your closet. Throw out- or hand on or donate, one low self worth outfit. Make space for the new.
I also did this without knowing. I took all the shirts that are *too tight* but I still want *someday* and put them into a box and put them on the shelf in the closet instead of seeing them hanging everyday.
