July 10, 2014

Well, so far today, I have worked my butt off.  And went out for Thai food for lunch.  And made the decision that I was going to stop complaining about my co-worker as it's doing more damage to me than to them. And I'm feeling pretty good about that decision.

Wow! I just got a promotion and a raise.  I had been talking to my boss about how I needed to be more involved in aspects of the department that I haven't really had time to learn.

July 9, 2014

Okay, well, I guess I decided to take a few days off from here.  I didn't even think about writing. Here are some of the things I did while away:

Laundry (a never-ending chore).
Dishes (another never-ending chore).
I read a lot.
I played video games.
I re-potted my 20+ year old philodendron. Seriously, I bought that sucker when I lived in my first apartment after I moved here and I had it for a few years before I moved to where I'm currently living. I lived in the first place from November 1989 to November 1995. I cannot believe that plant is still alive, although I think it may be on it's last leaves.
I put all those re-organized cameras and cords away (finally).
I had a bunch of fruit I'd bought days earlier at the farmer's market, too much for me to able to eat before it went bad, so I juiced it all.  It was interesting that after two days of adding a couple of glasses of fresh made juice to my daily food how much more energy I had and how good I felt. Even having a glass of juice before leaving for work has altered my coffee habit.  Granted, I usually only drink two cups of coffee per day but in the last couple of days, I now just have one cup.  It wasn't deliberate on my part because I love coffee, I just never went for the second cup. Now I have a bunch more fruits and veggies to juice in the frig when I get home tonight.
I went to see Ghost the musical. It's based on the movie starring Patrick Swayze, Whoopi Goldberg and Demi Moore. It was an interesting experience because this musical is a West End production and the lyrics and music were written by Dave Stewart of Eurythmics fame. That means it doesn't have that 'Broadway' musical sound, which I liked because I'm not a fan of Broadway musicals or the Broadway style of singing. Just not my thing. This production, at the Pantages, suffered a great deal from the vocals.  Harsh words for a musical but here's the issue. There are four lead roles: Molly, Sam, Carl and Oda Mae Brown. Three of the four vocalists did not have the vocal power required for these roles. At certain points, I literally could not hear them over either the chorus or the orchestra or both.  It could also be the audio isn't balanced right. I've had this issue with a number of musicals I've seen at various theaters. Anyway, I thought there was a decent musical there, just not the production I saw.

July 3, 2014

Once more into the breach, as they say.  I'm feeling better about the situation with my co-worker. I realized that this person has a habit of non-communication about work flow changes and then likes to throw people under the bus. The thing is, they are often wrong about what they are stating as fact.  I have been corrected by them in meetings in front of a lot of people and since I'm not sure if they are correct or not, I double check my info after the meetings.  Turns out I'm right in a lot of cases.  Since this makes me realize that I'm not stupid or ill-informed, and this person is simply doing what they do, I can now move on.  A lesson I keep needing to learn over and over again.  Onward!

I was just looking at my notebook and realized that I have forgotten to focus. Since I came back from vacation, I have found that my old patterns of just sitting in front of the TV or computer randomly watching anything as a distraction wasn't working anymore. Believe me, I tried to slip back into that but it really wasn't working.  So what I tried and what has been missing from these last few days is focus.  I couldn't veg in front of the TV but in order to create other things to do, I needed to focus on that particular thing.  I was doing that and it worked.  I've been forgetting to focus on what I want to do. Focus on one thing until I'm satisfied with the outcome.  Then move on to the next thing and focus on that.  A good reminder.

So here's some things to focus on tonight, one at a time:

1. Put away odds and ends that go with the cords and cameras, etc.
2. Do my workout - cardio & kettle bell.
3. Cook dinner.
4. Vacuum.
5. Get replacement value for Mom's sterling silverware.
6. Find receipts for expenses to be reimbursed.
7. Pay rent and utility bills.
Update: long, long meeting at work, took up way too much of the afternoon. I worked late then came home and basically passed out. 

July 2, 2014

This morning I woke up without the knot in my stomach that's been there for the past couple of days due to the issue with my co-worker.  I realized that what she's doing is her way of doing things and whether it's unconscious or deliberate, it's not my problem.  In fact, this morning during my meditation, I became grateful because it made me realize that once again, I was giving up my power to someone else.  It is a habit that I have and I realize that these situations happen to remind me that I am in control of my path alone. This doesn't mean that I need to be belligerent, or passive/aggressive.  It's more of a state of being: being in the moment; being on my path; being aware.  I'm not trying to be perfect, just more aware of who I am.  I'm still going to have emotions and conflicts, the key for me is to be conscious to what's happening, not paranoid. Always trust my gut if something doesn't feel right.  When I've ignored gut feelings in the past, the outcome has usually been some form of disaster.  Now that I've addressed that, onward with my day.  I have a meeting today that runs until 5:00, which is about 30 minutes past my usual end of work day.  I work 7:30 - 4:30 usually but have been leaving work later, which means the traffic is heavier and it takes longer to get home.  My list of things to do doesn't seem all that daunting and I don't think I have anything happening at home tonight that will stop me from accomplishing the list.  Nothing except my own inertia.

1. Put away odds and ends that go with the cords and cameras, etc.
4. Do my workout - cardio & kettle bell.
5. Cook dinner - if I don't cook, then I need to freeze the chicken.  I do have leftover Korean BBQ from lunch. Yum!
6. Vacuum.
7. Get replacement value for Mom's sterling silverware.
8. Put dishes away.
9. Find receipts for expenses to be reimbursed.

I have been walking around the office a lot today.  Anytime I need to go to the other side (our office is split with a central lobby) I walk all the way around the perimeter of both sides of the office to get a little extra movement. I will be back with an update tonight.

One other thing: my birthday is one month from today.  When that milestone happens, I would like to have 30 days of something (besides sitting on my butt) under my belt.  Okay, later.

Update: I feel like I'm failing at this experiment.  Another late night at work, still a lot of things left undone. I crossed out the things I actually managed to do. The good thing is today I have no meetings to keep me here late and like a lot of people, I have the 4th of July off from working which gives me a 3-day week-end.  Woo-hoo! If I can create a pattern over the week-end of accomplishing things, then I think I have a better chance of carrying through the work week.  Fingers crossed!

July 1, 2014

Today is not a good day.  I'm having issues with a co-worker that just makes me want to spit acid.  So. Things I want to accomplish today:

1. Put away cords, cameras, etc.
4. Do my workout - cardio & kettle bell
5. Cook dinner
6. Vacuum
7. Get replacement value for Mom's sterling silverware
8. Do more dishes

I will not be able to walk today at work, it's just too nuts.  Hopefully, I can work out when I get home.  

Update: another late night at work. I had leftovers for dinner and have put the cords and cameras away. Not my best day.