Elsfaire prepares for the Top Secret Mission

[Eirlys]

Yay for snapping up cheap tickets to a fun event!

 

And filing should count for double points surely, it's one of those things!!

 

Well done on your flying start!

[elsfaire]

Week 1, Day  3 Agent Report

 

1) Physical Fitness:     BWW: 1/2          Aerobic: 1/2            Long Yoga: 0/2

Wednesday - did intervals on the stationary bike for 30 min (incl. warm-up and cool-down)

 

2) Mental Strength:    Positve Questions: 3/7        >3-min Meditation: 3/7      Positivity Challenge: 0/7

Did the questions fine, and did a longer meditation (it counts even though I fell asleep ) Got too caught up in negativity a few times to count for the positivity challenge. It was one of those days in which I felt like I needed to clean up everyone else's issues (though many of them had no fault at all), and it was frustrating. Starting over tomorrow.

 

3) Unstoppable Action 3/6

Today I reviewed my kids' grades with them, which I have been putting off for about 10 days now. It is usually a tortuous conversation, but it needs to happen anyway.

 

Life Quest: The Top Secret Mission   20%

Nothing new completed today - this will probably happen in spurts.

 

Progressing ok. This is on track, so all is well.

[lolavictrola]

Your challenges are always so fun! Good luck!!!

[Leothil]

3) Unstoppable Action 3/6

Today I reviewed my kids' grades with them, which I have been putting off for about 10 days now. It is usually a tortuous conversation, but it needs to happen anyway.

Oof, sounds like it can be painful. :S I hope it went well!

Tapatalk has no idea what I'm doing.

[Strickland5]

3) Unstoppable Action 3/6

Today I reviewed my kids' grades with them, which I have been putting off for about 10 days now. It is usually a tortuous conversation, but it needs to happen anyway.

 

Wait this is a thing parents do? /sarcasm

[karinajean]

aaaah the grades talk.

we are having a rough back to school.

Fifteen has totally forgotten that he is on parenting academic probation because he did so poorly last year, and Eleven is starting 6th grade and can not seem to get his head around doing his homework as soon as he gets back to school.

it's torture!

you're a good parent for doing it.

[annyshay]

Elsfaire, your challenge is so mysterious and full of win. Very excited to keep following.

[elsfaire]

Quick update from my phone while waiting to get off the plane (I am visiting family in NYC).

Thursday:

-Did a 25 minute walk instead of yoga. Counts for aerobic

-positive questions - yes.

-Positivity challenge: 1/7

- Meditation- oops

-No new progress on TSM- had to pack and prep for this trip.

-conquering Procrastinista: ordered grass seed and did a bulk personal care product and supplement order.

Still going well!

[KB Girl]

Good going! Have fun in NYC

[elsfaire]

Week 1, Day 5 Agent Report

1) Physical Fitness: BWW: 2/2 Aerobic: 3/2 Long Yoga: 1/2

Friday I did 2 BW circuits in the am before the kids went to school

AND yoga for over 20 min at the airport gate

AND walked a ton (for me, probably only a bit over an hour total) with my sister and Dad

2) Mental Strength: Positve Questions: 5/7 >3-min Meditation: 4/7 Positivity Challenge: 0/7

Questions yes, meditation yes.

I think not really on the positivity challenge. I started doing some negative self-comparisons tonight after everyone went to bed. :/

3) Unstoppable Action 4/6

I am counting visiting my family, because it has been too long since I have been up here.

Life Quest: The Top Secret Mission 20%

Nothing new completed today, for obvious reasons.

[Lara]

Oooooh, not the negative comparisons. They are so hurtful. I do them sometimes. If you are like myself, you are probably comparing your whole person with all your lights and shades with only the external shiny appearance of the others. Or you are comparing their really good qualities with things you don't like too much in yourself. Right? So not only harmful, but completely unrealistic and unfair. Feel better, darling, you are full of good things lots of people appreciate.

[Waanie]

You're doing really well on your challenge! You have almost done all your workouts, you have done most of your meditations AND you're doing tons of things you looked up to. You're really great .

 

I totally agree with skinnyLara, I'm the same myself. If you compare yourself with someone else, you should realize that everyone tries to show the best sides of themselves. You know your own weaknesses, but you don't know all weaknesses of someone else.

 

Have fun with your family and travel safely .

[elsfaire]

Oooooh, not the negative comparisons. They are so hurtful. I do them sometimes. If you are like myself, you are probably comparing your whole person with all your lights and shades with only the external shiny appearance of the others. Or you are comparing their really good qualities with things you don't like too much in yourself. Right? So not only harmful, but completely unrealistic and unfair. Feel better, darling, you are full of good things lots of people appreciate.

Yeah, that is pretty much it. I was fine when I was with everyone, but once people went to bed and I was alone I started thinking. I know it is not realistic to compare the lifestyles and accomplishments of people without kids to my life. But part of me keeps trying to. The real contributing factor is the fact that I have been discontent with parts of my life for years. But that is what I am already trying to change, right?

[elsfaire]

You're doing really well on your challenge! You have almost done all your workouts, you have done most of your meditations AND you're doing tons of things you looked up to. You're really great .

I totally agree with skinnyLara, I'm the same myself. If you compare yourself with someone else, you should realize that everyone tries to show the best sides of themselves. You know your own weaknesses, but you don't know all weaknesses of someone else.

Have fun with your family and travel safely .

Thank you for the encouragement. We always think it is different with family - that we do know them- but it is really not as different as we think.

The biggest disparity I am struggling with is how positive, upbeat, and socially well-groomed they all are. You all know how much I struggle with positivity, and I am not very comfortable with a lot if the social niceities, though I know what many of them are. (And I forget them a lot) I just feel lonely and obligated, and I HATE needing to rely on anyone.

I guess this trip will have the side benefit of teaching me a few things.

[Waanie]

...and they probably cannot imagine how you manage to live your live whith all the stress and time your family takes. From what I've read from you, you seem like a great mother and wife. Maybe you could have been that socially well-groomed as they are, but you would have had to drop other things, like your or your husbands business, or not have had children. I don't think that choice would have fit you.

 

As for being positive: a lot of it is probably a part of the socially well-groomed as well. The rest of the world doesn't want to deal with problems of others, so society wants you to hide everything that's not perfect. That does not mean they don't feel insecure as well though.

 

And yeah, we'd hope that family is different. But if you think about it, why would it be different? It is a social interaction between adults, and people usually rather stay a little too distant than that they come too close. Distant and positive is safe, while emotions make other people talk about you.

 

Never forget that you're a great person, and that the standards of society are usually not perfect.

[Lara]

...and they probably cannot imagine how you manage to live your live whith all the stress and time your family takes. From what I've read from you, you seem like a great mother and wife. Maybe you could have been that socially well-groomed as they are, but you would have had to drop other things, like your or your husbands business, or not have had children. I don't think that choice would have fit you.

 

As for being positive: a lot of it is probably a part of the socially well-groomed as well. The rest of the world doesn't want to deal with problems of others, so society wants you to hide everything that's not perfect. That does not mean they don't feel insecure as well though.

 

And yeah, we'd hope that family is different. But if you think about it, why would it be different? It is a social interaction between adults, and people usually rather stay a little too distant than that they come too close. Distant and positive is safe, while emotions make other people talk about you.

 

Never forget that you're a great person, and that the standards of society are usually not perfect.

 

You explained it perfectly.

[elsfaire]

Week 1, Day 6 Agent Report

1) Physical Fitness: BWW: 2/2 Aerobic: 4/2 Long Yoga: 2/2

Saturday- did a long (30 min) yoga session before my Dad woke up

AND walked a ton (for me, probably only a bit over an hour total) with my sister and around NYC

2) Mental Strength: Positve Questions: 6/7 >3-min Meditation: 5/7 Positivity Challenge: 0/7

Questions yes, meditation yes.

I am saying no for the positivity challenge, but I was not really feeling negative. I am just having so many beliefs challenged on this trip, and it is causing me to take a good look at myself. (In a good way, really). I may post more details when I can get online with a computer instead of my phone. We will see...

3) Unstoppable Action 5/6

I am counting reconnecting with old friends at the reunion, because I tend to be bad about maintaining friend contact.

Life Quest: The Top Secret Mission 20%

Nothing new completed today, for obvious reasons.

[elsfaire]

Waanie & Lara (hard to multi-quote on my phone. It is old and seems to dislike Tapatalk):

Thank you for your support and input. You echo the quiet voice of the Dragon (from 2 challenges ago), and adding strength to that to make it louder is a wonderful thing.

I do think there are many things to learn from this weekend. One of the biggest is that what I believe other people are thinking about me is rarely completely accurate. What a shift... 😳

[bluecarfuffle]

Here's an NPR article from a few months ago.

As I read #1, my jaw dropped. I try to go back to that article every now and again, to have this sink in.

[Lara]

One of the biggest is that what I believe other people are thinking about me is rarely completely accurate.

 

We find hard to accept we can't read other's minds

[KB Girl]

It's also important not to just look at what you've accomplished, but what you're setting out to accomplish and what you're aspiring too... If that makes sense? I haven't followed you much yet, but this challenge being centered around you doing something great for a loved one says a lot about you. Thumbs up!

[Leothil]

One of the biggest is that what I believe other people are thinking about me is rarely completely accurate.

 

This is so true, and something I still find very hard to remember. But we do tend to judge ourselves much harsher than we would judge anyone else in the same situation.

[elsfaire]

Here's an NPR article from a few months ago.

As I read #1, my jaw dropped. I try to go back to that article every now and again, to have this sink in.

That is a great article! Thanks for posting it. I definitely wish I had understood that 20+ years ago.

[elsfaire]

Week 1, Day 7 Agent Report

1) Physical Fitness: BWW: 2/2 Aerobic: 5/2 Long Yoga: 2/2

Sunday- walked a ton (really- it was like over 4 hours) with my sister and brother around NYC

2) Mental Strength: Positve Questions: 7/7 >3-min Meditation: 6/7 Positivity Challenge: ?/7

Questions yes, meditation yes (during a 10 minute chair massage at the street festival we visited-ahhhhhhh)

Not sure how to categorize the positivity challenge. I am confused about whether many of my thought tracks are positive or negative right now. Maybe they are on a different continuum.

3) Unstoppable Action 6/6

It was not planned, intentional, or even something I was conscious of having put off, but I am counting really connecting with my sister. We had deeper, more authentic conversations today than we ever have. Ever. That alone was worth the trip.

Life Quest: The Top Secret Mission 20%

Nothing new completed today, for obvious reasons.

[Elastigirl]

Your time with family sounds amazing. Glad you had time to really connect with your sister.