Health, Writing

Tea Stains – (Day 11)

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http://austinkleon.com/tag/tea-drawings/

I found this interesting artistic blog by Austin Kleon that shows drawings made from tea stains.  People create such interesting things.

tea bag

My assignment today was to attempt just such an artistic endeavor, though that is not my forte.

Instead, I’ll write about the cup of tea I actually drank earlier, without making any art from the tea bag.

One of the most comforting moments in my day is the brewing of a cup of tea.  I usually boil a pot of water in an electric kettle, place a P.G. Tips triangle shaped tea bag imported from England into a cup, pour the water over the teabag and only let it brew for a minute.  I don’t like it too strong.  The final touch to my tea is Coffeemate’s Italian Sweet Cream creamer.  It is the quick equivalent of cream and sugar and just makes it creamy delicious.

I grew up drinking sweet creamy tea thanks to my grandmother – Mema.  She also shared that gift with my children because she babysat them prior to their school years.  I am assuming she will continue to pass forward the gift to my grandchild since they spend so much time together.

Once I have a perfect cup of tea ready to sip on, I usually write, read, or engage in something creative.  So I guess I have come to connect hot tea with both comfort and productivity/creativity.  Maybe it’s the little boost of caffeine that gets me motivated.  Whatever the case, hot tea is a staple for me and a lovely part of my day.

Essays, Writing

Fears…(Day 9)

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Today’s assignment is to write down everything I’m afraid of:

my children or grandchildren dying, being able to support myself financially, having to move in with family if I lose my home, not existing after death, my husband leaving me, never making it as a writer, becoming debilitated by pain, getting fatter, losing the ability to orgasm, never being able to Salsa again, going to jail, spiraling into alcoholism, moving away from my family, losing my Mema, depression, my ex-husband, not being able to pay my taxes, being taken to court, house fires, dental work, giant machinery, traveling to dangerous countries, being alone in the dark in an unfamiliar place

Then I am supposed to strike through  each phrase with a pen as though slaying a dragon.  I’m not sure how to do that on this program, so I’m picturing it in my mind.

dragon slayer

Health, Writing

Win Some, Lose Some – (Day 8)

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Today’s exercise is to list some recent victories and some recent losses.

Victories:  Signed up for James Patterson’s Master Class that teaches writing; made my second to last payment on my college school loan – I graduated 20 years ago; found a fabulous candle that I love the smell of – Febreeze willow blossom; have lost 7 pounds on Weight Watchers so far; snagged a hottie husband four months ago; got my grades turned in on time (I’m a high school teacher); found an awesome favorite pen (thanks to my husband buying one for me); shared modern-day heroes for Black History Month with my high school students

Losses:  lost partial control of my high school girls’ neurologically impaired class…while being observed by my principal…kids suck sometimes…; let my ex-husband get my goat from afar; ate food just because I was craving it this week instead of making better choices; got a ticket for not stopping correctly at a stop sign

I think the Victories outweigh the Losses.

 

Health, Writing

Map My Week – (Day 7)

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For today’s assignment, I’m supposed to map out my week to see where most of my time is spent.  Um…I think I already know that my time goes to work and sleep for the most part…not very exciting.

Monday – 9 hours work, 9 hours sleep, 1 hour hygiene, 1 hour food prep, 3.5 hours David time (husband), .5 cleaning

Tuesday – 9 hours work, 9 hours sleep, 1 hour hygiene, 1 hour food prep, 4 hours Charlotte time (granddaughter)

Wednesday – 9 hours work, 9 hours sleep, 1 hour hygiene, 1 hour food prep, 3.5 hours David time (husband)/ writing some, .5 cleaning

Thursday – 9 hours work, 9 hours sleep, 1 hour hygiene, 1 hour food prep, 1 hour driving, 1 hour Weight Watchers, 2 hours WriteHers’ Group

Friday – 9 hours work, 9 hours sleep, 1 hour hygiene, 1 hour food prep, 3.5 hours David time (husband), .5 cleaning

Saturday – 8.5 hours work, 9 hours sleep, 1 hour hygiene, 1 hour food prep, 4 hours friends and family time, .5 cleaning

Sunday – 8.5 hours work, 9 hours sleep, 1 hour hygiene, 1 hour food prep, 4 hours David time (husband)/ writing some, .5 cleaning

Totals – 62 hours work, 63 hours sleep, 7 hours hygiene, 7 hours food prep, 2.5 hours cleaning, 18.5 hours David time/writing some, 2 hours WriteHers’ Group, 4 hours friend and family time, 1 hour Weight Watchers, 1 hour driving

Yep…just as I thought.  I work too much and have no alone time.

 

Fiction, Writing

Random Googling – (Day 6)

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I am thinking about doing a mystery/thriller course with James Patterson even though I’ve never written anything mysterious or thrilling in my life.  My next assignment is to randomly search stuff in Google and write down the auto suggestions.  I thought it might be interesting to see what happens if I search some of my ideas or terms related to this topic.

Mysterious:  skin, universe, serum, stranger, challenger

Thrilling:  adventure, intent

Missing:  you, plane, money, at 17

Fearful:  symmetry, avoidant attachment

Confusion:  hill, matrix, poem

Mystery:  room, men, movie, science theater 3000

Thriller:  lyrics, Netflix, Michael Jackson

Shadow:  doubt, Colossus, hunter, dancer, run

Dark:  side, horse, place, moom

the:  usual suspects, wall

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Health, Writing

Receipt Memories – (Day 5)

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IMG_2040

For today’s assignment, I was supposed to find a receipt and say what I can remember about the day I made the purchase.

My husband and I got in around 1 in the morning after driving home from his martial arts class 3 /12 hours away in Houston.  We were exhausted and probably fell asleep by 1:30 or 2:00am.  Suddenly, I was awakened by David fiddling with my phone around 3:45am.  Because my ringer was silenced, I didn’t know my daughter had been calling and texting for 30 minutes straight.  David woke up somehow and alerted me.

She was at the emergency room with heart palpitations brought on by unknown causes.  A friend of hers got her to the hospital and my grandmother kept the baby.  I sat in the room with her and her friend for a few hours talking, reassuring, and asking the doctors questions they couldn’t answer.

When it became apparent that it was going to be a few more hours before she would be released, the doctors were declaring all the major systems working fine, and her friend was planning to stay with her, I headed home to sleep some more.  I was exhausted and running on fumes.

My alarm was set for 9:30am because I had a 10:00am appointment to get my Depo shot.  From there I headed to my grandmother’s to check on my daughter and granddaughter.  On the way, my Mema asked if I could stop by Walgreens and pick up Lydia’s prescription for an anxiety med.  The doctors ruled her episode a panic attack brought on by anxiety.  Who knows if that is the real diagnosis.  My grandbaby Charlotte was in a great mood, running all over and entertaining everyone.   My sister and brother-in-law were there, too.  It was good fun.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing with my husband watching episodes of Community and Friends.  We made salmon for dinner and enjoyed a day off on a weekday.  It was President’s Day and my school was closed.  David’s company was shut down, too.  We had a lovely relaxing evening.  He painted.  I wrote.  Life was good.  It started scary and rough, but ended well.

I think one of my favorite moments was at 3 something am when my sweet husband offered to accompany me to the hospital.  He was even more tired than me after hours of martial arts, but offered to come with me.  I am a lucky, lucky woman.

 

 

Essays, Writing

Mix Tape – Day 4

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mix tape

Today’s assignment is to create a mix tape for someone who doesn’t know me.

Side A – Honesty (Billy Joel), West End Girls (The Petshop Boys), Hungry Eyes (Eric Carmen), Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ (Michael Jackson), Footloose (Kenny Loggins), Sussudio (Phil Collins), Everybody Wants to Rule the World (Tears for Fears), Little Red Corvette (Prince)

Side B – Book of Love (Book of Love), Vogue (Madonna), Bitter Sweet Symphony (The Verve), Stand By Me (Prince Royce), Nature Boy (Nat King Cole), Fortress Around Your Heart (Sting), Save the Last Dance for me (Michael Buble), All You Need is Love (Beatles)

Poetry, Writing

Book Spine Poetry (Day 3)

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Today’s assignment is to stack books, then make a poem out of the spine.  I just randomly chose 9 books lying around.

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Etiquette, the Fast Diet, The Traveller’s Daybook -A Tour of the World in 366 Quotations, Medical Medium, The Dark Tide, Patient Heal Thyself, Pocket Cash, Jubilee, Don Quixote

Don Quixote 

could have saved himself some trouble with

The Traveller’s Daybook – A Tour of the World in 366 Quotations.

Yet, I still envy

something about the idea

of the adventure,

the Etiquette of climbing on a horse,

grabbing some Pocket Cash,

and heading off to The Dark Tide.

This is the year of Jubilee,

yet all I can think of is the Fast Diet

and how many calories are in corn chips.

Finding a Medical Medium

for spiritual bravery

is harder than it sounds.

Patient Heal Thyself

and sally forth.

Health, Writing

Thanks to… (Day 2)

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Today’s assignment is to appreciate things people have taught me in life.

Thanks to Charlotte who taught me what it feels like to be a grandmother.

Thanks to Boaz who taught me how to let go.

Thanks to Lydia who taught me to love unconditionally.

Thanks to Tony who taught me to endure difficulty and remain compassionate.

Thanks to David who taught me how to relax and love again.