Month: June 2015

List of ten things that I have saved in my email

- Mel

Inbox Zero is the name of the game in my gmail world. I have to mark everything as read, even if I didn’t read it, with intention of returning to the email at a later date if it’s a) important or b) interesting. Anything else is filed away into specific folders or deleted immediately.

If you thought my blog post drafts were random, check this list out:

1. “Unwrap your NARS birthday gift” from Sephora: Need to order something stat.
2. Tweet by PBSAmerMasters, emailed to myself: A reminder to watch the American Ballet Theater film that is available online.
3. “Beginner’s Yoga for Relaxation #4” from a YouTube “latest videos” email from JANUARY: Still haven’t watched it; I’m sure I can bookmark this in a better manner.
4. Oh, and a “Relaxation or Bedtime Yoga Routine” from February.
5. “Notification of Federal Loan Servicer Agreement” from you-know-who. *sigh*
6. “Your Fabletics return label” for a package to return (for Matthew in LA) that I received. My printer at home is broken right now, so…
7. “Music Performance Anxiety Assessments” from my Div47 listserv: Thought it might be useful for a later class, given our use of assessments and my interest in performance psychology. Filed to the right folder now.
8. Oh, yay! My POPSUGAR MustHave box is on its way!
9. Also, so are my replacement running shoes, per this email from Zappos.com Customer Service.
10. Private Coaching/Weekly Program email response that I’m sitting on, regarding my marathon training plan.

Vino & Vinyasa: Yoga Retreat on the Lake

- Mel

Last weekend I went to my first yoga retreat with South Hills Power Yoga. It was hosted at Lakehouse Inn & Winery in Geneva-on-the-Lake with teachers from the SHPY studio. SHPY was my first yoga “home” in the Burgh, before a studio finally opened up on the north side this year (although I still keep a few sessions loaded up in my account and travel back for special classes). I traveled with a fellow yoga-loving friend, who was also attending her first retreat AND also celebrating her birthday in May. Geneva is an easy 2.5 hour drive from Pittsburgh.

lake erie hotel ohio b&B
The B&B grounds were gorgeous and RIGHT on the lake.

Check-in was late Friday afternoon, and the yoga studio provided each of us with a bag full of goodies upon arrival. Our first two-hour session was soon after check-in with LA Finfinger, former instructor from SHPY who sadly moved away to Baltimore. She embodies a lot of what I love about yoga, and I’ve probably felt more connected to her style because she was my first regular teacher. She oozes warmth and authenticity and has that spiritual connection to the practice that I long to, well, practice. Her practices make me think about much more than just yoga and much more than getting a workout. I feel truly self-aware and present when she teaches. Seriously, her classes are transformative.

The restaurant did a fantastic job in tailoring meals for my (and my friend’s) dietary restrictions, given that food was included in the cost of the retreat. I got to eat gluten-free manicotti for dinner #1 — topped with a pesto sauce and filled with asparagus, spring onions and mushrooms. It was fantastic. And yes, naturally since we were at a winery, we had some wine.

We skipped the “optional” thai massage yoga in the evening, since we planned to wake up early for the lakefront sitting meditation in the morning. Which was incredible. Man, I miss the lake so much.

sunset lake erie ohio beach
Seriously. The BEST sunsets ever.

Saturday we started with the meditation and the day included two additional two-hour sessions on the schedule, with a nice break in the afternoon to explore The Strip. Our morning class was led by LA again, and she’s just so inspirational. She left us each a card at our mats to take with us to continue our practice.

yoga card responsibility
Preach.

GOTL is a weird place if you’ve never been; it’s nostalgic for me, but I’m always disheartened that it couldn’t be so much more because the setting on the lake is just beautiful and makes you feel as if you’re a hundred miles away from home.

tattoo studio geneva ohio
This is where I got my first tattoo at age 16. Yeah, my mom was mad. (I think she still might be.)
GOTL outdoor patios
Outdoor bar on The Strip.

The afternoon class started outside, but as the thunderstorms rolled in, we rolled up our mats and went indoors. This was my first class led by Darcy Lyle and she is adorable — I would definitely attend more of her classes. She has a more playful style and encouraged us to take some chances with advancing our practice. It was in that class that I FINALLY was able to balance for a few breaths in Crow.

big waves lake erie ohio
The lake was angry Sunday morning.

Our Sunday morning class was only an hour-and-a-half, but man was I tired and sweaty. Stacey really focused on powering us through that last session — and I even attempted a float out of crow (I belly-flopped and it was hilarious). Like Darcy, Stacey empowers us through advancing our movements and supports the learning and practicing (and failing) side of yoga with encouragement and laughter. She brings out the fun in yoga, which we all need to balance (pun intended) our practice.

After breakfast, it was time to check out and head back home to Pittsburgh. I totally sold my friend on Madsen donuts, and she grabbed a box to take home with her (just as a line was growing outside). I was fine with a contact high from the delicious smells.

I’m excited to hear about a fall retreat in Cook’s Forest… I might have to add that to my agenda for this year as a graduation present to myself.

10 Things That Make Me Happy

- Mel

30-something list list happy

1. Wine
2. A good run
3. My hammock
4. Comfortable shoes
5. Time to spend on guilty pleasures (e.g.: watching The Bachelorette, reading People Style Watch, days wrapped up in a snuggie)
6. Water: a pool, a river, but especially the lake
7. Teachers that make me work hard for an A (then actually getting an A).
8. Vacuuming, organizing, dusting (seriously, cleaning is my zen)
9. Cats snuggling in the bed
10. Boyfriend

Runners-up:
A good hair day
A good quote

List of Ten Intentions for June

- Mel

1. It only took four months at my new job before I was dipping into our joint account again. I need to get my (new) budget under control, especially to be prepared financially for that six months after graduation when my student loans come due.

2. Starting training for my first full marathon this weekend, and just the thought of it right now is giving me a lot of anxiety and analysis paralysis. I need to explore those feelings. I haven’t yet figured out what plan I’m using either, so that’s likely part of the problem.

3. Enjoying a more relaxed state: being more relaxed about stuff happening/needing fixed in the house, not stressing about homework deadlines every week, not putting more pressure on the boyfriend, and generally more time in the hammock reading books. And wine.

4. Cross 5 books off my list for my 52 books in 52 weeks goal. I’m really eager to cross two items off my 30s Life List with this goal too — I have The Lion in the Bedroom, well, in my bedroom just begging to be read.

5. Random intention, but I plan to wear a dress or skirt at least once a week to work every week this summer — especially since recently tailoring a few skirts and dresses to fit.

6. Keep a blog schedule! That Blogger, May I? format really helped stoke the blogging fire again, and I’ve already bought a planner to help me. I won’t be posting every day, but it is definitely my intention to write more consistently.

7. So I have this bad habit of overwhelming myself with activities and fun things. Last month, I didn’t attend two events that I paid for in advance (one of the events was $50). So, I’ll either pay at the door on the day of interesting events or risk not RSVP’ing and getting sold out. No FOMO here.

8. My main goal is getting through this last semester, and with that intent comes a lot more pressure until August when I’m done with classes. A bad case of senioritis aside, and keeping in mind #3 on this list, I need to focus on a strong finish. By the end of this month, I’ll be changing over to my last two classes and ZOMG SO CLOSE. I promise, I’ll be more fun when it’s over.

9. Yoga. Kthxbai.

10. Now post-yard sale and basement/attic clean-out, I have an almost-empty, open-lofted, air-conditioned room to start setting up my office and yoga space. First up, find someone to replace drywall from when we purchased the house. I’ve decided to wait to paint until those things are complete because why do it twice? My intent here is to find someone to do the work, since unfortunately, this is out of my skill level.

Weekly Therapy: Breaking shit and taking names (and calling contractors)

- Mel

the week:
What do you do with transformative thoughts and experiences? Allow them to ruminate for a while until you see what resides — what sticks? Or use them impulsively as a catalyst for changing everything in your life that no longer resonates?

I don’t know if this is the rumblings of a mid-life crisis or the emergence and clarity from one.

weekend:
Our neighborhood’s yard sale is this weekend, and I’m so excited to chuck a bunch of shit that’s been cluttering my life and home. This process is step one for creating an office slash relaxation space for me in the attic. Don’t put it past me to paint everything by Sunday. Side note: we now have air conditioning up on the third floor, which makes it more a loft than an attic now. Even if said new air-conditioning unit sounds like a helicopter landing on the roof.

I’m also excited to have my sister and niece out for the weekend. I’ll be running a quickie 5K Stride for Pride on Sunday morning (hopefully, PR’ing too) and will find a place to lay my yoga mat outside in the park soon after. My sister is a yoga instructor, so maybe she can show me some other fun inversions to practice.

52 books in 52 weeks:
#18: Mistakes Were Made (But Not By Me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Harmful Acts by Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson

I really enjoyed this book — even more as I got further into it. If you’re a social psych junkie and interested in things like confirmation bias and self-justification, this is the book for you!

#19: Gluten is My Bitch: Rants, Recipes, and Ridiculousness for the Gluten-Free by April Peveteaux

I wanted to like this book more than I did, but it was thankfully a quick read so it didn’t waste too much of my time (especially skipping through all the recipes). Nothing new or mind-blowing here, if you’re already gluten-free, except for maybe an enhanced fear of cross-contamination.

seven things, seven days:
1. Ugh, student loans, amirite?
2. The main air conditioning unit won’t turn on. Looking forward to these 90-degree temps this weekend, for sure! (I’ll be hanging out in the attic with the new wall unit.)
3. Remember how much fun I had coloring at the Happiness Conspiracy sessions? Well, Skyhorse Publishing sent me a new coloring book: Paisleys: Coloring for Everyone. I’m going to enjoy this immensely.
4. I broke a door knob off in my house this week too because, you know, you fix a few things in the house and more shit breaks in their place. It’s a never-ending cycle of WTF, house?
5. There’s an Evereve store opening in Pittsburgh next week! It’s dubbed “clothing for moms,” but I think it’s 30-something-appropriate and fun even if you’re child-free. And I’m all about easy, functional, comfortable clothing.
6. I’m out of coffee right now, and have no microwave, so I just heated up yesterday’s leftovers in a pot on the stove. This life is glamorous, I tell you.
7. The benefits of boredom {via Greatist}

10 Things: List of ten posts that I have saved in drafts

- Mel

This post idea came from a Blogger, May I? prompt for List of Ten Things (of 10 Things). Guys, I have three PAGES of drafts in my wordpress dashboard — 51 total unfinished or unpublishable posts.

Some notable randoms as I scroll through — with comments about each added (without even reading the drafts themselves):

Where did I put my glasses? — well isn’t this just the epitome of random. Is this an actual post or should it have been a google search? Either really perplexes me. Perhaps it’s a metaphorical reference to memory complications that start as you get older? Hilariously, this scenario played out in a HomeGoods store just a couple weeks ago when I left my sunglasses somewhere in the store. If you know HomeGoods, you know what a crap-shoot it is to find anything in that place, let alone personal belongings left behind. I found my glasses on a stack of towels in the linens section, by the way.

About Vitamin D — a few years ago, before a diet elimination proved an intolerance or sensitivity to gluten, my Vitamin D levels continued to drop, despite prescription supplements. Because of my previous skin cancer diagnosis, my sun worshipping days were numbered, but I continued in an every-six-months cycle of high dosages of D3 and more blood work to increase by numbers. When both of my D levels fell into single digits, I found myself at the office of a naturopath, trying to find answers to a myriad of troubles. That morning, over a year-and-a-half ago, I hadn’t yet eaten breakfast and have been gluten-free ever since. And six months later, my Vitamin D levels were FINALLY measured in healthy levels.

Have you ever read the symptoms and risks for Vitamin D deficiency? Scary.

Loss of self and reliance on other people — Oof. That’s heavy, right? Before I found this job a few months ago, I was really struggling with feelings of self-worth and the various dependencies that I had on the boyfriend (I mean, he’s basically the reason why I eat a balanced dinner every night and not nachos and cereal). I’m actually really interested in reading this one, given my distance from those feelings and the return of my self-esteem.

Holiday Hate: A lesson in loving Christmas — As a child of divorce, I hate Christmas. In recent years, and with much warmth and thankfulness to my boyfriend and his family, my black heart has grown to love the season. I mean, I already LOVE winter, how can I hate Christmas? Well, that feeling was so deep-seated, and it’s taken me some soul-searching (and some couples therapy) to get past some of my anger and disappointment. I’m sure this post was about why I hated the holidays so much, and how this past Christmas was something really special.

A plan to reduce stress and increase relaxation — I remember exactly what this post was about, and I really need to finish to publish. What started out as a project in one of my Psych courses, actually was a powerful tool for my personal development.

An interview with yourself — What’s ironic is that I’m working on a behavioral 360 assessment/group project in another Psych course… but that’s present tense, so this can’t be it. I have issues with interviewing, specifically with behavioral interviews, and this class has been an eye-opening experience. Hey, maybe it will help me to interview better! Still though, this post… I’m not really sure I like its tone.

My first APA Convention — Oh man, I’m so mad that I didn’t post this, especially as I’ll be soon attending my second APA Convention this summer — and there was SO MUCH good info gleaned from attending. Also, I was selected for a second time to the APA Twitter Team. Randomly, I’ll be connecting with a former high school classmate who is studying in my same field of interest while I’m in Toronto.

Finding Therapy: A Weekend in Nemacolin — This draft is from my birthday LAST YEAR. Again, really disappointed in myself that I didn’t capture and post how amazing (and how necessary) this weekend was. If I could buy a timeshare at Falling Rock, I would basically live there.

Word of the year: Identity — Yep, I have some resolutions for the year, and identity was the word that I pulled out of a lot of goals and intentions. It’s been something on my mind a lot recently, so I’ve got a post (yes, another draft) for next week that talks about this very thing.

Pittsburgh Half Marathon Training: By the Numbers — #weaksauce I didn’t even do a half marathon training wrap-up? Embarrassing mileage or not, I need to get this posted so that I can better assess my plan for my second half and my first full (training starts this weekend… ACK!).