Ideas

Black Friday sucks

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If you are reading this at home, it means you have not left home to brave Black Friday crowds. If you are reading this on your phone while trying to pass the time in line at a big box store in order to get some crazy deals, then you are brave. Maybe you are home and online waiting for that right moment to click “place order” for that bargain Black Friday deal. Hopefully if you are out shopping, it is at your local boutique because you like supporting your neighborhood business.

If you are like me, you are hiding from it all. A colleague from Japan was asking about Black Friday last week. We told her about crazy Americans who trample each other for discounts on TVs, electronics, you name it. A new bra, toilet paper, a trash can? We are crazy!

A week ago Chris was in Hong Kong and happened to be near an Apple store when the new iPad Air was launching. CRAZY. Take a look at the picture taken from outside, and to think that he actually went inside to check it out from the inside. Look at all those people. It is similar to Black Friday craziness in the US.

In all seriousness though, you have to read this Huffington Post article about Black Friday, capitalism, and consumerism. It is so well written, and a good reminder that we really need to get control of the consumerism that is eating into Thanksgiving. Let’s leave gratitude and family for Turkey Day, and let’s leave shopping to Black Friday. We saw that an outlet mall in Washington opened at 10 am on Thanksgiving and would not close again until 11 pm on Friday night. Why? Why? Why? I agree with the author, if we do not shop for that deal for socks on Thanksgiving, they will stop opening on Thanksgiving. Let their employees be with their families.

#SeriouslyAnnoyedAboutBlackFriday

Turkey Day Gratitude

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Turkey. Mashed potatoes (with herbs and goat cheese). Cornbread stuffing. Yeast rolls (maybe pretzel yeast rolls). Veggies. Canned cranberry sauce (yes I said it, I eat it straight from the can, bumpy can imprints and all). Pie. Don’t touch my pie.

We all have our favorite foods, traditions, and things to do over holidays, and sometimes specifically for Thanksgiving. Yet, do we have traditions for Thanksgiving that actually carry into each day of our year? I have been thinking about that recently. Chris and I have a jar for 2013 where we put a note in it for when we have things we are grateful for. We will open and read them all on New Years Eve and then start again for 2014. I feel a bit like wanting to go and shake the presents under the tree, because I want to see all that we have put into the jar for the year, but I will wait and not peek.

So what are your Thanksgiving traditions? What will you be doing with your family and friends? I will be with my better half. I will miss being with my family, especially my mother-to-be sister, but I know that she is starting the beginnings of traditions for her new family. Her life is about to change in big ways and she has so much to be grateful for — each day is a blessing. Sometimes I am not sure we have the grace to see and feel the awe and wonder of all the moments around us that teach us to be more patient and kind.

Take a slower day on Thursday. Give thanks to all those that have taught you wonderful lessons this year. Hold those that have struggled dear in your heart as they need your love too.

Much gratitude to you today and every day.

 

My pants were on backwards

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Yes, that is what I said. My pants were on backwards. Chris and I were heading home from a little vacation up north in Vancouver, British Columbia. On the way home we stopped at some outlets, as I wanted to start some Christmas shopping BEFORE Black Friday, and all the crazy world is out getting the deal of their life. We just happened to be driving by some outlets on our way home. Not usually the destination I pine for, but we saw, we shopped, we conquered.

Well, maybe not conquered. We left with a t-shirt and another top, and some baby gifts, so not a crazy shopping spree, but for me just going is enough. Before we left, I kept thinking my pants felt funny. I kept having to pull them up in the back, again and again. It was not until I went to the bathroom that I realized my pants were on backwards. Of course, I had tried on pants at a few places, but who knows how long I was walking around with my pants on backwards. Now, let me tell you I was wearing black Nike Pro tights, so it was not like it was as obvious as it would have been if I was wearing a pair of jeans backwards. But still, my pants were on wrong. Maybe I am getting old, or maybe I just need a vacation, some turkey, and some sleep.

Has that ever happened to you? It reminds me of those days when you get to work and you think, did I put on deodorant and brush my teeth? Or when you wake up from the dream where you went to work without a bra and if you are at all endowed like me that would be quite a nightmare. Sometimes I think when we have those dream/nightmares it is our body and mind telling us that it is time for a break and some rest/relaxation.

When was the last time you had your pants on backwards?

Ever wanted to jump into a bin of balls?

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I have alway had this childlike zest for kid things. Maybe it was because I had to grow up fast, but I love skeeball, bowling, batting cages, whack a mole, bumper cars, roller coasters. I love them all. There are times where I can just stop in the middle of the day and just want to go and play, kick ass in a batting cage until my hands hurt from gripping the bat. Call me crazy.

I just want to add to the list. I have always wanted to jump into a bin of balls. Since I am a simple Indiana girl, and the only place I can ever remember that had a bin of balls was McDonalds, and well for one reason or another I never partook in such adventures of bins and balls. So when I saw this video, I had a grin on my face and a feeling of zeal, or maybe it was a twinge of jealousy.

I would have no problem jumping into the bin of balls, and I think I might have a mighty time connecting with another individual in said bin of balls. It is funny and endearing. I laughed at 1:45 (because the teeth comment is odd and made me laugh.) I had tears when the mom said: “My daughter is everything I ever wanted to be.” It made me wonder what it would be like to have a mom think and say that. I want to know what it feels like. I think you will enjoy this video.

The world is amazing when we open our eyes, reach out to others and take adventure into our world. Let me know if you know of a bin of balls in Portland!

Tired, but puzzle pieces galore.

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Yes, it is Friday. It has been a long week. Last night, well actually 3 nights this week I came home from work, skipped my run, slipped into my pajamas, and curled up on the couch to work for the rest of the night. There are some crucial deadlines happening in the next few weeks that require my attention. I have had back-to-back meetings all week, which means that my true focus time on emails, writing, and strategy is at night in my sweatpants, glasses, and The Voice on DVR. It is my life this week. What is funny is I do not really mind. I love the variety of projects I have to think through and execute on. What I miss is my daily run and book.

It is funny to me that the hardest part of my week is the lack of movement. It has become an addiction for me. Sometimes life throws us a curveball and we have to make different choices. Even if I did not need to come home to write and strategize, I am not sure I have the energy this week to strap on my LunarGlide 5’s. If I had a window for this week, I think I would either slide into a steaming hot bath, or crawl into bed. Why? Well, I am tired.

You might think, wow. You need to find a balance, and yes, I do. What is great though is that right now I love what I am doing. I like the vast variety of projects I am working on, that I constantly have to think of how it is all going to come together. It is like a puzzle that you have to put together, but you do not have the picture on the top of the box. Instead you have to figure out what the puzzle is going to look like without a guide or a map. Funny right? Isn’t that what life is all about? We do not have a map, and if we did the world would rip it up, smash it into a wad, soak it, burn it until we can handle that blank puzzle, and design the pieces new everyday.

Sometimes we have days where we are able to connect all the dots, and finish the puzzle and other days where we can barely find all the edge pieces amongst the 4000+ other pieces. Isn’t that what makes life interesting? If we kept putting together the same damn puzzle (that only had 10 pieces) wouldn’t you be so so so bored? I would. I love the adventure of putting together what I know, meeting new people in the process, learning about their life, finding out how they fit in my puzzle, or I in their puzzle, and finding out what glorious picture ends up in front of me. Then I smile and start all over again with a new puzzle.

For now though, I look forward to some sleep, and time with my better half. I have earned it.