3 awesome things from this week
because the rest was flaming sh*t?
My heart goes out to the people of Afghanistan, the US troops, and everyone affected by the horror and chaos.
Also on my mind and in my heart are the people struggling to breathe in the western United States, where most of my friends remain.
And Covid/Delta. Nuff said.
This week has been so heavy and intense, I can’t even find a quote to suit it.
I’m writing this right after coming home from a hike. Getting off the farm is a rare treat this time of year, and you better believe I savored every minute of it. I’ve never seen the trailhead so full of cars, nearly all of them Massholes. Tempted as I was to get angry and yell at them to go back home, I focused my thoughts on gratitude for the clean air, the blue sky, and even the puddles of muddy water.
When I’m trudging through the shit (literally or metaphorically), my mind tends to go to dark places. It can pull my whole mood into a storm cloud right quick. One of the ways I’ve learned to combat this is to focus on gratitude.
There’s no such thing as too much gratitude, IMHO. One way I implement it in my life is to include it in my weekly reviews. Every Monday, I spend about 30 minutes planning my goals for the week ahead. I make lists for things to get done in my career and personal life, as well as nice things to do for myself (aka Artist Dates) and time to set aside for passion projects.
Before I do any of that, I review the previous week. I start with at least three things that made me feel good. Then, I ask myself what I can do to make this week even better.
Because the past few weeks (maybe even longer) have been difficult, I’m going to share three things that made it awesome. I hope at least one of them sparks inspo on how to make next week feel a little less like hell?
Business call with Delanie Fischer
I won a 30-min Zoom call with Business Simplicity Coach Delanie Fischer (a $997 value!!!). In addition to hosting the E-Ficionado podcast for entrepreneurs, Delanie co-hosts one of my favorite self-help comedy podcasts, Self-Helpless.
But getting to talk face-to-face with one of my favorite comedians for half an hour was just the icing on the cake. Delanie ensured I got my imaginary money’s worth, though I forgot to ask her how I can get people to pay a thousand bucks for 30 minutes of MY time!
As we chatted about my creative vision, I kept waiting for her to swict focus and try to sell me something. Isn’t that how these “free” things always go? But that moment never came. Far from a cold call, this was genuine, high-quality business advice from an enthusiastic and supportive coach. She totally showed up FOR ME. It felt like running into an aid station at mile 27 of an ultramarathon, having all my needs anticipated and met without any effort on my part.
Check out her podcast! I love it.
Finding a therapist
I finally found a therapist I’m excited to work with! I’ve been looking off and on for a couple of years now and had to back away from some who weren’t the right fit. If you’ve been considering therapy, that’s probably a sign you should seek out a counselor that suits your needs.
Remember that therapists are like running shoes (exactly like running shoes). You may have to try a few before you find the pair that’ll get you across the finish line. Any good therapist will support your decision to move on if it’s not working out, and some may even recommend a different counselor.
Organizing my creative space
After my dear, sweet, amazing goddess friend Hayley recommended this video multiple times, I finally watched it. Then, I watched it again.
It’s soothing for the brain, but it also inspired me to organize my shit. When you don’t know what to do, organize.
I’ve been feeling a little creatively stuck, so I got to work on my writing room. I re-organized my bookshelves, cleared out boxes of stuff to donate, and bought a cute new houseplant to inhabit the hanging pot Jason bought me.
Now, I feel excited and inspired when I walk into the room, even though it’s not quite ready for Pinterest, yet.
BONUS TRACK!
Netflix is airing a documentary about one of Jason’s kayaking mentors and idols, Scott Lindgren. It’s called The River Runner, and it features a bunch of his river buddies, some of whom I’ve had the pleasure of meeting. It’s a great story about Scott’s life goal of being the first person to paddle the four great rivers in Tibet and the many obstacles that got in his way. There’s also some hot footage of the Western States course.
Highly recommend.
I hope these ideas are helpful. Let me know if you try any of them! Also, please reply to this email with three things that made YOUR last week awesome. Sometimes writing about your happy times and sharing with a friend makes the goodness way juicier.
One more thing before I let you go!
I consistently donate 5% of my income to charity, but I’m bumping that up to 50% for all profits from my email tarot readings this week. If you buy a Wheel of Life tarot reading this week, half of the money will go to Women for Women International to provide emergency support for Afghan women.
Please note, you can book a reading months in advance, so if you’ve already gotten a yearly forecast from me this year, you can schedule a reading this week for your next birthday/end of the year/etc. and still have your money go to help the women of Afghanistan.
If tarot’s not your thing, no offense taken!
You can still donate directly to Women for Women International. This New York Times article is also full of ways to help: How to Help Afghan Refugees and the Relief Effort.
Take care of yourselves and each other, dear friends