Scalyfreak multi-classes for the first time ever

[Scaly Freak]

Scalyfreak cautiously opens the door to her bunker and peeks outside. The sun is shining bright, the mild breeze is warm and the meadow just outside the bunker door is wide open and welcoming, filled with tall grass and colorful spring flowers.

 

It is also empty. Where there used to be crowds, there is open sky. Where there used to be loud voices and laughter, there is bird song and the rushing of a waterfall.

 

The world outside the bunker is silent and empty, and it is beautiful. Scalyfreak smiles to herself, and walks out into the field, wading into grass tall enough to reach her waist. After a few minutes of walking she lays her shield on the ground, then her helmet next to it, and takes a few moments rolling her shoulders and swinging her arms around before going still.

 

After a couple of deep breaths, Scalyfreak turns to face the sun that is slowly climbing the sky, and puts her hands together in front of her. She then slowly pulls her hands apart and turns them until her palms face upwards and begins raising them up and up and up above her head until she’s reaching for the sky in a full body stretch. It feels good to take deep breaths again.

 

 

 

I normally challenge with the Warriors (just in case the guild insignia by my name over on the left wasn’t enough of a hint for you), and I have been doing little story segments for my challenge for as long as I’ve been active here. I re-frame my mental health issues into video game terms, and see big challenges in my life as boss fights. Constant unwanted companions on my life-long journey are the personal demons Procrastination, Self-Sabotage, and Stress Hydra. Self-Indulgence has agreed that she is more likely to get what she wants if she works with me instead of with the Demon Team, but she is fickle and will quickly switch sides when she doesn’t believe she gets what she needs from me.

 

My anxiety is my inner flame of pyromancy, that serves the pyromancer well when embraced (translation: acknowledge and validated), but quickly burns that same pyromancer to ashes from within if they fear it and try to suppress it. Expect to see multiple references to The Flame of Anxiety as the challenge goes on.

 

This is the first time I have deliberately posted a challenge outside the Warriors, since I joined that guild on December 31 in 2017. There are many reasons for this uncharacteristic guild change, but first and foremost is that I need to change my focus in order to stay sane during this world-wide pandemic that is going on right now.

 

With the above in mind, and the lessons from my last challenge in mind, we are going to focus on caring for mental health, and we are gong to focus on addressing and reducing the effects of what henceforth will be known as the Anti-Ergonomics Desk Setup of Torture. Because apparently I am really good at building an ergonomically optimized work station only when someone else does it for me.

 

Because of the aforementioned Anti-Ergonomics Desk Setup Of Torture, my neck and shoulders are so stiff that they ache non-stop. I have lost a part of my range of motion in my shoulders, and when I attempt to stretch, the muscles are so tight that I can hear and feel the bones in my joints grind and crunch against each other in their efforts to move. Since I am smart enough to realize this is bad, I’ve decided to make stretching a regular and frequent thing. In addition, I need to rebuild the desk setup. I also need to continue to lift things, even if they are very light compared to what I used to lift, because lifting is my anxiety medication, and not lifting ends badly.

 

Lastly, I need to step up the anxiety prevention, because, well, I’m quarantining and working from home. This means I need to meditate more, and I also need to focus hard on maintaining a separation between work and not-work.

 

After pondering all of the above, I have settled on the following goals:

 

Happy Body

Do yoga every day, with a focus on the upper body, specifically the shoulders and neck. The yoga will be an important part of the end-of day routine that signals the end of the work day. On weekends, it will need to happen in the mornings as a part of the morning routine.

Yoga will be done on Sunday,  Tuesday, Thursday evenings

 

I will also continue my habit of going for a walk with Happy Sidekick in the middle of the work day, because that makes both me and the dog happy.

 

Happy Mind

Meditate more! Squeezing in 5-10 minutes per morning was fine back when the world was not in chaos, and The Flame of Anxiety didn’t find new fuel in every single thing outside my home. That is no longer the case, and if I need to get up earlier in the morning to make sure I have time to meditate for a minimum of 15 minutes every morning, I will simply have to do so.

 

To the meditation goal, I am adding German lessons in Duolingo every day. The brain likes learning and challenges, and this helps with mental health as well.

 

Happy Soul

This goal has two components: Socializing while quarantined, and maintaining the separation of work and not-work. I have routines in place for both from my previous challenge, but I need to continue with them.

 

Do the following routines every work day:

• Morning routine
  • Get out of bed when alarm goes off - no snoozing or second alarm allowed!
  • Feed the Sidekicks and make coffee
  • Do the skincare morning routine, including sunscreen
  • Coffee and meditation
  • Dress for work, including makeup and hair
  • Take phone charger and drink refills, and go to work

• End-of-Day routine
  • Close out all work on computer, and reboot
  • Relax and color at least one page before leaving work
  • Change out of work clothes into sweat pants and comfy top
  • Spend ca 30 minutes on my own in the Dragon Cave. Play phones games, color, read in Kindle app... anything that is not work and not socializing with anyone.

Every day: Socialize just enough but not too much. Only one of these three needs to be done in order to meet this goal. 

• Check in with The Rebellions
• Check in with the Discords: The NF D&D and the Old Friends one
• Check in with the family

 

And that is it.

 

Hello, Druid guild. Nice to meet you.  

[WhiteGhost]

So, you finally decided to get a challenge up  

 

Following along for the different kind of fight 

[Red1263]

Here for the Happy meditation!

 

[Renate]

5 hours ago, Scalyfreak said:

Anti-Ergonomics Desk Setup of Torture.

 

Come back with your shield or ON it! (In forward fold, or something...)

 

Looking forward to seeing how you give your meditation habit a more prominent place in your routine as well.

 

(And to admire your low weights routines as my future goals 😍 haha)

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

Following along!

[Scaly Freak]

9 hours ago, WhiteGhost said:

 

Following along for the different kind of fight 

 

We have officially progressed from this battle:

 

 

To this battle:

 

 

Or something.

 

 

[Scaly Freak]

9 hours ago, Red1263 said:

Here for the Happy meditation!

 

 

Okay, that is horrifying. I'm going to have to add an extra meditation session just to recover.

[starsapart]

I am here for this!

[JustCallMeAmber]

Following!

 

[Mistr]

Following!

[Jupiter]

Following.  

[Harriet]

22 hours ago, Scalyfreak said:

This is the first time I have deliberately posted a challenge outside the Warriors, since I joined that guild on December 31 in 2017. There are many reasons for this uncharacteristic guild change, but first and foremost is that I need to change my focus in order to stay sane during this world-wide pandemic that is going on right now.

 

Oh cool. Now there are two warrior's guilds. Warrior-on and warrior-off. Warrior-lift and warrior-chill. 
 

22 hours ago, Scalyfreak said:

Happy Body

Do yoga every day, with a focus on the upper body, specifically the shoulders and neck. The yoga will be an important part of the end-of day routine that signals the end of the work day. On weekends, it will need to happen in the mornings as a part of the morning routine.

 

Happy Mind

Meditate more! Squeezing in 5-10 minutes per morning was fine back when the world was not in chaos, and The Flame of Anxiety didn’t find new fuel in every single thing outside my home. That is no longer the case, and if I need to get up earlier in the morning to make sure I have time to meditate for a minimum of 15 minutes every morning, I will simply have to do so.

 

Happy Soul

This goal has two components: Socializing while quarantined, and maintaining the separation of work and not-work. I have routines in place for both from my previous challenge, but I need to continue with them.

Sorry about the ruinous desk/chair, but the goals are lookin good.

[Jupiter]

36 minutes ago, Harriet said:

Oh cool. Now there are two warrior's guilds. Warrior-on and warrior-off. Warrior-lift and warrior-chill. 

 

Love this.  

[darkfoxx]

/waves 

 

Hello and Welcome! Good to see you in these parts! 

[Scaly Freak]

11 hours ago, Harriet said:

Oh cool. Now there are two warrior's guilds. Warrior-on and warrior-off. Warrior-lift and warrior-chill. 

 

I think you meant to say Warrior-lift and Warrior-lift-support, though, right?  

 

[KB Girl]

I was going to protest fiercely, but i guess it does make sense.. okay okay i support your guild change

Happy is good. 

 

[Tobbe]

So this is where you are now, eh?  It'll be interesting to see how a Warrior fares with the Druids. Please check your mighty sword at the door and put on light and flowy clothes before enjoying a nice cup of 

[Scaly Freak]

42 minutes ago, Tobbe said:

So this is where you are now, eh?  It'll be interesting to see how a Warrior fares with the Druids. Please check your mighty sword at the door and put on light and flowy clothes before enjoying a nice cup of 

 

Okay.

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

[Renate]

Spoiler

 

The wolf is flowy?

 

Haha, I admire your courage @Tobbe  

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

2 hours ago, Tobbe said:

So this is where you are now, eh?  It'll be interesting to see how a Warrior fares with the Druids. Please check your mighty sword at the door and put on light and flowy clothes before enjoying a nice cup of 

Since when are swords not allowed?

[Red1263]

It's good to see warriors finding ways to connect with nature

 

[Harriet]

4 hours ago, Tobbe said:

 Please check your mighty sword at the door and put on light and flowy clothes 

 

3 hours ago, Scalyfreak said:

Okay.

 

I think it just means slipping out of the plate mail in favour of chain mail. 
 

Spoiler

 

[Tobbe]

🤣

 

The reactions! I can't even! 

 

Thanks for giving me a laugh this morning. I love you all! 💜

[darkfoxx]

You can definitely yoga in chain mail! 

 

And, along the lines of our illustrious beer yoga mini challenge (take a picture of the pose of the day while drinking a beer - or your beverage of choice), one could totally sub a battle axe for a beer - I subbed a Dachshund for my typical smoothie the last time that mini ran 🤣

[Mad Hatter]

On 5/9/2020 at 12:11 PM, darkfoxx said:

one could totally sub a battle axe for a beer

I feel like this needs to happen. In case people don't have battle axes at home it could just be weird random objects.

 

Also hi! I like your choice of flowy skirt, the red color will be good for wiping blood off the axe.