Sunday, January 15, 2012

Opportunity

Because so much of my musical inclination is stuck in 1992 (and how nice is it that this sound is considered 'new' again). I've found my new favorite band - Yuck. Yep, that's their name, Yuck.

Due to my year-long sabbatical from purchasing music on iTunes my dear friend Chris sent me a flash drive filled with records, old and new, for my birthday. This is where I found a folder titled Yuck. I thought it was music he didn't like but that he thought maybe I would. I looked it up, Yuck is an actual band! They sound like a British Soul Asylum with Sonic Youth overtones. Nice. There is so much music on this drive I don't think I'll even want to look at iTunes for a couple of months. Thanks, Chris!

A little bit of serendipity occurred on Thursday last week. To spare you all the silly details suffice it to say I need to quit doing something that I've been doing for over 20 years in order to get my health in order. As I was resigning myself to this fact I got a call from my friend, Mary. I've known Mary for going on 20 years and a couple of months ago I asked her if she could possibly get me an entry into the Colorado Half Marathon. She helps organize the kid race for the event. I rarely, if ever, ask for free entries into things but I thought it was worth a try since the $90 entry free was not part of my austerity plan for the year and I knew Mary wouldn't be offended by my asking. Long story short, I got one!

Getting this entry requires quite a bit of training, training that I can't do while doing the thing I need to stop doing. So there ya go - I need to stop doing something bad for me but I now have a goal of something I want to do so the quitting will be easier. I'm looking at it not as I can't do this thing anymore but instead as I get to run the half marathon again!

And training starts today.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Down With Complaining

I've long been a glass-half-full type of gal. I truly believe in the power of our thoughts and that our lives can be a manifestation of said thoughts. (Not like if I just think of owning a totally refurbished Karmann Ghia it will magically appear. More like, 'what you focus on expands' type of thinking.)
Lately, it seems there's a lot of complaining going on. Not like there's a shortage of things to complain about but it does seem like there's been a proliferation of negative thought of late. What with unemployment, insurance reform, the holidays, Katy Perry's divorce, the 2012 election getting under way, and my neighbors insistence on parking in front of my house, there's a lot of shit to be pissed off about.
New Year's resolutions always seem to be about what we're going to quit doing,s as I was reminded of in church today. I've had plenty of resolutions of things to quit doing over the years and sort of have more this year by cutting out concerts, traveling, 5K races and buying anything new. When I first thought of my 'year of austerity' I spent a lot of time focused on what I wasn't going to be doing - I made a list so I would remember everything. At first, I was a little sad thinking about what this year was going to be like without all of my normal activity. At first.
Soon after I made this list of things I wasn't going to indulge in during 2012, I found myself getting a little excited about the possibilities ahead. How I was going to have to be more creative in my thinking in order to keep myself entertained and fulfilled, how there are so many free things to do in the town, how I could spend more time being crafty and making things for friends, how I could run more, how I could read some of the books I've been putting off, and so much more.
I am choosing to focus on cutting my debt in half - that's it. Nothing Earth-shattering but still important to me. By focusing on the positive fulfillment of cutting my debt I can look at saying no to an event or concert or whatever as a good thing and not look at it from a point of lack.
It's all how you look at it, or think about it.
I still can't stand it when my neighbors park in front of my house but that's another story.

Sidenote: Cadence needs his teeth cleaned. The quotes I got from a variety of vets in town ranged from $287 to $850 not including blood work, extractions, etc (why do they even give you a low number when it doesn't include everything?). Let's just say that Cadence and I will be taking a road trip to Cheyenne for a complete dental cleaning including all the incidentals for $250 - $350. In an effort to focus on the positive, I will spare you my diatribe on the ridiculousness of spending $850 to get my sweet Cadence's teeth cleaned. Now I just need to find something to do in Cheyenne for the day while I wait.