Seabright's 2016 Battle Log of Awesomeness

[Seabright]

Sun Apr 3

 

Yoga:

25 mins trying to stretch out and strengthen my weak-ass side torso muscles.

 

Food:

1/2 cup of coffee. No alcohol, no sugar, and all other foods of a reasonable nature. Bacon in the morning! Yay!

 

Alone time:

Drove out to Prunedale to ride CD. My little boy horse. Actually, my friend's little boy horse, but he is firmly lodged in my heart, now. It was chilly, and he was a little bouncy starting off, but settled in nicely. He seemed a little stiff on the right, so we worked on softening up that side for a bit. Then, we worked on me getting comfortable going fast. He would prefer not to work particularly hard, so the speed thing is entirely in my control, making me feel safer (he'll only go as fast as I ask him to). I imagined us chasing after a cow, and turned on a bit of speed, called to him that he was a good boy, and asked for more. I feel like I'm finally breaking down that mental barrier. Yay!

 

Gratitude:

Leading CD to the arena to let him run around a bit...and was just thinking what a good boy he was being, when all at once he saw a horse blanket that someone left on the ground. SCARY! He jumped and reared and bucked while I tried to settle him down. VERY grateful that I've had it drilled in to me to NEVER hold the lead rope coiled in my hand, only hold it folded, no matter how placid or reliable the horse might be. Otherwise, I would have been up in the air with a broken hand, no doubt. Whew!

[Seabright]

Mon Apr 4

 

Yoga:

45 minutes. Gotta get those arms strong enough to be able to lift the heavy cutting saddle when cattle work starts up again this summer.

 

Food:

1/2 cup of coffee. No sugar, no alcohol. Bueno.

 

Alone time:

Had a meeting end early, so jetted over to the mall for another round in the bathing suit humilitron. No joy. The search continues!

 

Gratitude:

Wow! Saw a great blue heron on my way to work. Flying over the highway - how cool is that? Grateful to live in a place where even though it's all built up, the stream and riparian corridor have been preserved, so we can all still see stuff like that. 

[Seabright]

Tue Apr 5

 

Yoga:

35 minutes of remembering that in addition to a front and a back, my body also has 2 sides. Feeling challenged and comfortably stretched.

 

Food:

1 full cup of coffee for reasons I won't go in to. Felt like a freakin' jittery mess all morning. Had a decaf americano just before leaving work that I'm pretty sure was regular. Really wanted a soda at the gig, but just had water. No sugar, no alcohol. Mid-bueno - not as bueno as it could have been, but could have been less bueno.

 

Alone time:

GORGEOUS drive down to Moss Landing. Beeeeyuuuutiful weather, green rolling hills, traffic not too bad, all the bells and whistles.

 

Gratitude:

I keep flashing on my last glimpse of CD last Sunday. I was heading back up the hill, and looked back to his stall. He was looking at me, ears pricked, head over the stall, watching me walk away, the idea-bubble-shaped white mark on his forehead shining against his dark bay face. I feel so lucky to have gotten to know him, and so grateful to my friend for letting me ride this funny little fellow. Sometimes we act up a bit, but then we're good again. We all have them kinds of days.

[Seabright]

Wed Apr 6

 

Yoga:

15 mins. Overslept a bit.

 

Food:

3/4 cup of coffee. But - fail. Had a super-stressful few minutes at work this morning, and feel prey to the coffee cake sitting on the table in the hallway. My hand just snaked out of it's own accord and that darn thing was in my gaping maw in a flash. Felt grossed-out afterwards, too. Followed it up with a Diet Coke later in the morning and then a shot of whiskey when I got home. 

 

Merle passed away, yesterday, hence the whiskey in his honor. Also, 'Sing Me Back Home' 'Swinging Doors' and 'Working Man Blues.'

 

Alone time:

On-my-owning it in the evening. Had a lovely time singing Merle songs while watering in all the baby plantings. That's the way love goes.

 

Gratitude:

Grateful for Merle Haggard, to know and love his music, to be able to sing some if it now and then with friends, for the fact that he loved California and lived here, rather than moving to Nashville. Those whiskey-soaked angels, the ones with one wing in the fire, are singing him back home today. 

[Seabright]

Thur Apr 7

 

Yoga:

45 mins. Worked out all the kinks.

 

Food:

 1 cup of coffee. Throwing off the excesses of yesterday and starting anew. No sugar, no alcohol.

 

Alone time:

Spent an hour after work in the garden, fertilizing all of my older roses. A bit of rain in the forecast for Friday afternoon and would like to get it done in time to take advantage of the free water. :-)

 

Gratitude:

Saw a V of geese flying over the shopping center next to where I work. Sunrise on shining wings. Took a second to think about where they were going. Thank you, riparian corridor!

 

[Seabright]

Fri Apr 8

 

Yoga:

20 mins of twists and such as that. 

 

Food:

 1/2 cup of coffee, mixed in with a bunch of decaf. 

 

Alone time:

 

 

Gratitude:

 

[Seabright]

Too weird. The board gremlins wouldn't let me edit my Friday post. Starting over with a new one.

 

Fri Apr 8

 

Yoga:

20 mins of twists and such as that. 

 

Food:

 1/2 cup of coffee, mixed in with a bunch of decaf. No sugar. Shot of Friday whiskey at the end of the day while doing the dishes.

 

Alone time:

WFH and ducked out to pop some lupins in the ground before the rain started. 

 

Gratitude:

I complain about my job a lot (you know, privately, sotto voce), but I'm really very grateful to have a job where I can work from home now and then. Keeps me human. Oh yeah.

[Copper Rabbit]

CD sounds like an excellent animal! Not sure if you're into animation at all but I watched a cute movie called Mustang on Netflix that you might like if you are - has a bit of of Western history tied in. Missing Merle this week for sure...

 

 

Gratitude:

I complain about my job a lot (you know, privately, sotto voce), and I'm really very grateful to have a job where I can work from home now and then. Keeps me human. Oh yeah.

 

Hee hee, I just made a goal about turning my attitude around - I can be a bit of a grumbler too but really do enjoy my clients and team at work, they're clever and most are quite wonderful people.

 

Keep the goodness coming and I bet those roses will be lovely when they bloom!! (:

[Seabright]

Thanks for the kind words, my Copper Rabbit! Let's rock the upbeat attitude together! Woo hoo!

 

Sat Apr 9

 

Yoga:

Nothing dedicated on the mat, but did poses and stretches throughout the day. I'm going to call this 10 minutes-worth.

 

Food:

 1 cup of coffee. All the rest was good.

 

Alone time:

Cabin fever! Raining! Jetted over to the garden center during a little rain-break to see if they happened to have a Just Joey to replace the one I foolishly destroyed while building the new rose bed. 

 

Gratitude:

Hey! The garden center had exactly ONE Just Joey! Lookin' good, too, all potted up nice and pretty with a few buds on him. Grateful that I thought to go over there, and that I happened to be able to grab it, and that even though it was a little heavy my dedicated yoga-ing made it so I could carry it to my car all by myself. Feeling like a bad-ass. 

[Seabright]

Sun Apr 10

 

Yoga:

One full fun-filled hour doing a side-stretch sequence. Felt taller.

 

Food:

1 cup of coffee. Blew the rest of the day by having a massive chicken mole lunch at a Mexican restaurant with a Negro Modelo. Skipped dinner and did not miss it. 

 

Alone time:

A bit harder to find some today, since it basically rained all day, and the spousal unit and I had a gig together in the am. I did some work on the ol' personal computing device while he took a nap, but I don't know that I can really count that. I'm going to call this one a fail for today. A good reminder that sometimes I really need to seek out the alone time proactively.

 

Gratitude:

GRATEFUL FOR THE RAIN! Soft and warm and gentle, a lovely spring shower. All the little plantings smiling happily. Most of the new roses and other plantings are showing signs of new growth! 

[Seabright]

Mon Apr 11

 

Yoga:

20 minutes of tension reducing twists.

 

Food:

1 cup of coffee. No sugar, no alcohol

 

Alone time:

Dang. Another day went by and I didn't really pay any attention this. Can't count stopping the bank on the way home, neither. Will do better on Tuesday.

 

Gratitude:

Hey! I think I found a bathing suit! Did you know that now they make these things called 'tankinis'? Plus, skirts! Skirts, FTW! I'm grateful for online shopping and free return shipping. I ordered swim attire from several online companies, tried everything on, and found a combination from three (count 'em, 3) different companies that worked! Plus, slimming black? I say, 'Phooey!' Yes, you heard me right. Phooey! FUCHSIA! Fuchsia and orange and purple! 

 

Hear me roar, people!

[Seabright]

Tues Apr 12

 

Yoga:

10 minutes of just being able to get my back to move.

 

Food:

1 cup of coffee. No sugar, 1/2 shot whiskey at the end of the day.

 

Alone time:

Stopped at the garden center on the way home to do some Clematis research. Used my phone to hold up a picture of Polka (growing on the entry way arch) to see what colors looked best with it's divine peachy-ness. Ramona, a wonderful violet blue was the winner. This will be a swoon-worthy combination in a few years. 

 

Gratitude:

Rain this winter, finally, means my little neighborhood is bursting at the seams with roses right now. You see Cecile Brunner everywhere. It's a house-eater -- soft, delicate pink, but engulfs everything in it's path. Hard to miss. Grateful for the rain, for the flowers, and for my gardening-centric little neighborhood.

[Seabright]

In other news:

 

Boy, do I miss the ability to edit my posts. Does anyone know when this will be fixed?

[Seabright]

Wed Apr 13

 

Yoga:

10 minutes of bare-minimum-ness.

 

Food:

1 1/2 cups of coffee, which is 1 cup of coffee too much. Really felt jittery. One bite of coffee cake. Got an upsetting email in the middle of the third hour of a workshop, and fell victim to the cookies that I had been successfully ignoring all afternoon. Shared a shot with the spousal unit at the end of the day.

 

Just re-read the above, along with other posts, and I'm seeing the trend of letting things get to me, and then responding with something self-destructive, usually sugar-related. Boo! 

 

From now on, will channel those feelings into something AWESOME instead. Like jumping jacks! Or shopping! 

 

Alone time:

Nice bit of alone time planting the Just Joey in the back yard, just in time for a little late-night rain shower. Good luck, little feller! 

 

Gratitude:

Currently walking a tightrope, while juggling 6 barbed cactuses. Grateful that I still know how to breathe, grateful that my battle log accountability has  kept me from going too crazy, and grateful that I'm remembering each day to look around for something to be grateful about. Sometimes I get a little off kilter, but then I regain my balance again. We all have them kind of days.

[Seabright]

Thur Apr 14

 

Yoga:

Nada. Had to leave the house by 6am and spent every spare available second in bed. ;-)

 

Food:

Disaster! Danger! Danger, Will Robinson! 2 Diet Cokes, a cookie, and a frappaccino (<- how do you spell that word, anyway?) Feel the wheels coming off the cart! No alcohol, though.

 

Alone time:

Oh, tons and tons of it. 2.5-hour drive to and fro for a work thingie, 5 hours of driving in all. Up one route, back on another. The central valley is absolutely beautiful right now. Saw hawks, farm land, green fields, and some really beautiful big, fluffy trees.  Lots of time to get my head on straight, and maybe pull the thorns out of one of those cactuses. 

 

Gratitude:

Looooong day. So grateful that I'm a drivin' fool! I just love a road trip, and that attitude really came in handy today! To my workmates I looked like a hero, but I felt like I was on vacation. ;-)

[Seabright]

Fri Apr 15

 

Yoga:

10 minutes of remembering how to breathe. Felt better.

 

Food:

1/2 decaf, 1/2 regular with my scrambled eggs and bacon at The Buttery. Beer with dinner. Bleh.

 

Alone time:

Sat in the backyard after work. Stopped and smelled the roses.

 

Gratitude:

Don't remember right now. It's been a pretty stressful week.

[Seabright]

Bit of a stumble over the weekend. Didn't do anything yoga-riffic, eating-right-arrific, or gratitudinal. Lots of alone time working in yard (sweeping is a very meditative activity), but not really with, you know, intention. 

 

Today's the start of a brand new week, though, and chock full of opportunities to be awesome! Here we go!

 

Mon Apr 18

 

Yoga:

25 minutes of getting moving again. Able to turn my neck by the end of it. Yay!

 

Food:

1 cup. New plan: get back on track with eating paleo, with no sugar and no alcohol, neither, until Friday. On Friday, will cut the caffeine out. This feels more sustainable, and less pressure-filled.  Let's go!

 

Alone time:

Took a walk over to the Jamba Juice (during work hours!) and had a meditative 40 minutes (!!) waiting in line for a Pomegranate Paradise (fruit only, no sugar/dairy).

 

Gratitude:

Trotted up the stairs at work this morning, carrying my computer bag in one hand and my gear bag in the other. 2 years ago that would have been unthinkable. I would not have been able to get up the stairs, much less carry anything at all. 2 years ago I would not have been able to carry a bag of groceries up the front steps. Now, look at me killing it! So grateful for a good doc who gave me hope, and got me through it all without surgery. So grateful for the attitude of slow-and-steady-does-it that I've gotten from the boards. Grateful for finding yoga, too, as well. 

 

Plus, it's a gorgeous day here! Yay!

[Seabright]

Tue Apr 19

 

Yoga:

15 minutes designed to make me taller. In charge of breakfast this morning, so cut a bit short.

 

Food:

1 cup coffee. Then it hit me. Gig day. Falling asleep by 2pm, so had a Diet Coke. Then had a beer at gig 'cause it was hot. Then at a couple of the banjo player's french fries at the end of the night 'cause I was hungry.

 

I need an actual game plan for these things. Think I'll start bringing my own snacks to eat during breaks between sets, so I don't end up at the end of the night starving to death. The DC in the afternoon helped keep me awake for the drive over the hill, but then I ended up wanting to tone it down with the beer. When I'm tired, I'm afraid that the show won't be any good, so I drink something caffeinated. I need to get over this. End of day: good ol' water is always the best way to go.

 

Alone time:

Ended up outside in the back garden at dawn for reasons I won't go in to. So pretty, and smells so good back there right now! Also, WFH today, so will take multiple garden breaks throughout the day. :-)

 

Gratitude:

Deeply deeply grateful that the city planner said that we don't have to widen our driveway by 2 feet, after all. Yay! Oh, yay! Doing so would have meant taking down 2 beautiful trees, removing our driveway gate and a bunch of fencing, and removing the rose garden that I JUST planted. Oh, thank you! Thank you!

[Seabright]

Wed Apr 20

 

Yoga:

Snuck in the minimum 10 minutes.

 

Food:

Disaster, top to bottom. Cookie, alcohol, too much caffeine. It was an ugly, emotional reaction to troubled times. Boo! How lame is that?

 

Alone time:

Loads and loads of it, all day long. Took many kitten breaks during the day out in the garden. 

 

Gratitude:

Grateful there is only a week and a half or so before we take our little vacation. Something to look forward to! 

[Seabright]

Thur Apr 21

 

Okay. This one is hard to do.

 

Nothing. Nothing good here. 

 

There. Done.

 

It feels good to be honest. :-)

 

 

[Copper Rabbit]

Sounds like some tough days for you lately, hang in there! It's good to see you posting through them.

 

*** Quiet rustling sound of a small rabbit caring and watchful. ***

[Seabright]

Copper Rabbit! I thought I felt your kind and steady gaze upon me!

 

Well, I blew out my thumb, and I let it get me down a little bit. After last Tuesday's gig, it wanted to flop backwards on itself, at every joint, in a way God never intended.

 

Ouch.

 

It's even got a couple of names: Skier's Thumb and Joint Laxity. When you name it, you control it. 

 

And now...snapping out of it! I've got a groovy new thumb brace, probably won't have to have surgery if I don't do anything stupid, and reworked my yoga mornings to avoid hand-related poses. Now all I have to do is come up with a series of cute work outfits that go with a black splint. 

 

Cower before me, Skier's Thumb, and fear my mighty ice-pack powers!

 

Done and done!

[Seabright]

Sat Apr 23

 

 

Let's just skip Friday entirely. See above.

 

Yoga:

One full fun-filled hour! Yay! Can still get in a nice non-thumb-related yoga session. 

 

Food:

Pretty sensible, considering. Had a beer in the evening with the spousal unit, mostly because he walked into the dining room holding one out to me at dinnertime.

 

Alone time:

Some very pleasant moments in the garden, making plans. A couple of the babies bloomed their little starter blooms, and are holding big promises of lovely years ahead. When thumb is better, there's work to be done!

 

Gratitude:

I say it a lot, but it's worth saying again: so grateful for the boards. You guys keep me honest, and moving forward, and you give me perspective. Thumb injury, Schmum injury, I say!

 

[Seabright]

Sun Apr 24

 

Yoga:

45 minutes of stretchy goodness. 

 

Food:

1 cup coffee, 1 chocodamia cookie. No alcohol.

 

Alone time:

Even though I can't get my hand into a gardening glove right now, it turns out that the splint thingie is excellent protection against rose thorns. Had a very pleasant couple of hours snipping and pruning and tying things up in the garden. 

 

Gratitude:

A friend dropped by to sing a few, basically because he had an ear worm and needed to get a certain song out of his head. Also, his wife was watching bad basketball and he wanted to get out of the house. Totally spur of the moment. How cool was that? So grateful that he felt like coming over to hang out, grateful to learn a new song, grateful for a little break from stabbing myself with rose thorns. 

[Seabright]

Mon Apr 25

 

Yoga:

30 minutes of a little bit of everything. Had to get up early to allow extra time for thumb-icing action.

 

Food:

1 cup coffee so far.

 

Alone time:

The long way home.

 

Gratitude:

The long way home.