Boom Chakra Chakra

I know I've been venting a bit on this blog about feeling off balance and feeling like I can't juggle all of my goals while surviving and being a decent human being. Well, this time, I'm not here to vent. I'm here to tell you I'm doing something about all of that. 

Also, I owe you guys a Super Bowl and Super Bowl Parade post. I think I'll do that later in the week for a February wrap up or something. 

Anyway, I decided to explore some ways to instill balance in my life. One of those things was the purchase of essential oils. I only have a six pack and they're blended for very specific things: stress, head relief, muscle relief, sleep, breathing, health. But I also bought mini inhalers, like these lipstick tube-like things that let you put some oils on a cotton wick to smell throughout the day. AND I bought an essential oil diffuser. I know a lot of people who swear by these oils and believe me, I though it sounded stupid. Oh, right...smelling random crap can make you feel better? 

Yes it can. The sleep one? Yeah, that thing knocks me out and I have the most restful sleep. I had a massive wine hangover on Saturday. I plugged it in and diffused my "head relief" oil and took a nap. I felt so much better. 

I am also trying to learn more about the chakras. You know, those seven energy centers within the body? I think if I learn more about them I might be able to figure out how to hack meditation. I can't meditate. If I sit still with myself I start worrying about all the things I should be doing instead of sitting still. So maybe focusing on certain energy centers might help me.

But that's not all. I'm so excited to announce that I have booked a trip to Arizona and Utah for April! Lately I've been feeling called to the red rocks of Arizona. I just have a strong desire to go out there and hike and be warm and breathe in the clean air. Something is out there that I need, I just don't know what it is. So I'm going on a solo trip to Scottsdale, Sedona, Kanab, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park and Flagstaff. I haven't been on a "Mary Anna vacation" in years. Typically when I have time off I go to Virginia for the holiday or break or go camping with my parents. 

I'm also excited that I get to go alone. I'm going to do a lot of hiking. There is a remote Yurt stay at some point as well. I just need to clear my head. In addition to all of this, I'm exploring purpose and passion books/webinars and various things. I have a pretty good idea what I want to do with the rest of my life, I just don't have a tangible way to turn my life into just that. 

Until next time...

Making the Most of It

It being....life. 

We're almost halfway through February 2018. Where does the time go? What do we spend our time doing? 

This morning, like nearly every Monday morning, I was greeted with social media posts of memes and cartoons. Each of these entertaining tidbits had a common theme: Mondays suck...don't want to go back to work. 

They're cute, bite-sized and damn well relatable. "Case of the Mondays?" Who does't have that? If we're lucky we get two precious days to ourselves. We spend those two precious days doing all of the things we don't have time to do on the days we spend at work. Those tasks include but are not limited to: laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping, errands, housework, organizing, more work and if you have a family...well...doing things for your partner/kids..etc. 

We go to bed on Sunday and wake up Monday morning. Another week. 

I really struggle with that feeling of dreading Mondays. I struggle with the paralyzing anxiety that comes Sunday night, wondering if I got everything done, hoping I did everything I could to prepare for the week ahead. While I chuckle and raise my coffee above my head to toast the Monday Sucks Meme Posters, I also feel a bit of sadness. Why do we have to hate Mondays? Why do we have to dread work? Why do we have to roll our eyes at the endless torrent of meetings and e-mails? Why do we need to zone out with Netflix or grab a drink at the bar to ease the stress and tensions caused by things that don't really matter?

I know, I'm offering a plethora of questions with little to no answers. It is just, I spent my entire weekend working to feel okay about the week. I was searching for balance. I was searching for a sense of control over my life. I fell off the exercise train, no surprise there. I've been celebrating the Eagles Super Bowl win hard (post on that to come later). (Somehow did NOT gain weight despite the amount of beer/wings I consumed). But I put all this effort into preparation and now we're here. It is Monday. I want to be back home, with my dog, listening to music or writing or daydreaming while watching the wind blow the trees outside my window. 

You don't have to live a life where you dread Mondays. No job is perfect, but people need to really work hard to develop a plan that allows them to be financially stable AND happy. I'm not saying every single day is sunshine and rainbows, but dammit...create a life you can't wait to wake up to each morning.

That is what I'm trying to do. It is hard. There are so many detours. But that is the life I want. The kind of life where when you see the Monday Sucks memes you just shake your head and say, "Not my Monday. My Monday is awesome."

Until next time...