Levity + Chat Takeover

I've been absent a bit from blogging.  Mostly because I'm focusing more and more on being present in my life and sometimes blogging feels like an interruption of that.  Couple that with last week's election in the US and all the dismay swirling; a girl could use some levity.

Tonight, I found it.  Here's the skinny.

I recently ordered these pants from Patagonia and these pants - both of which I love.  I also ordered these pants that I didn't love as much.  I started an online chat with a rep from Patagonia to figure out how to return the pants I didn't want.  You can see our chat screenshots below, but I'll type in the conversation next.

Me:  Yes, I would like to keep the Happy Hiker pants and the small/short Serenity tights.  I'd like to return the rest.

Will (rep from Patagonia): Okay, cool.  Could you please just confirm your shipping address and email.

Mr. UpCyclist does a chat takeover:  Please do the macarena to proceed!

Me:  ...that was my husband on the "chat takeover." Evidently, engineers do like to have fun :)

Will:  Haha!  Macarena done! Now do the boogie woogie.

Me watching Mr. UpCyclist dance:  Ha!  He (Mr. UpCyclist) needs to work on that, but I am laughing hard here in Maryland.

(Then, Will helps me by generating a shipping label for my return.)

Me:  Fantastic, Will.  Shall we close this very short exchange with a dance move?  I am inspired.

Will: Haha, the wave was just sent your way!

Me:  Back at you.  Very creative choice, Will!  Have a lovely evening!

Will:  You as well Jen!  Thanks for the fun and laughter!!!


That, my friends, is just what was needed.  Ease in returning products from one of my favorite companies on the planet, Patagonia.  A husband who went against the norm and turned up the silliness.  And a stranger - Will - who took the playfulness and ran with it.

Thanks, Will, I'm still smiling that you didn't miss a beat and embraced the macarena-infused chat while GSDing (getting stuff done).  I am grateful.  Thanks, Mr. UpCyclist - you never cease to amaze me.  Just when I have you figured out, you surprise me.  Thanks, Patagonia for hiring a culture of awesome, openminded rockstars like Will.  And thanks, Universe.  Levity is exactly what I needed.

Peace, my dear friends -

Jen

What a Gift

Today my sabbatical ends.  Oh man, was it a gift.  Hardly ever in my professional life do I get to uni-task.  My professional days are usually like a multi-task dance recital of teaching classes, attending meetings, doing committee work, developing my courses, grading assignments, leading workshops, and emailing.  Not that I don't like all of those responsibilities, but it was a fantastic change to concentrate on just one thing:  writing a book.

That's it.

One task.

Just write a darn book.

Of course, that is easier said than done.  Uni-tasking, though, totally helped.  My goal for myself was to write half of the book before my sabbatical ended.  With eight chapters in the outline, I wrote four of them.  Four!  Half of the book.  Hurray!  Up to this point, I have written roughly 27,000 words.   I probably wrote a few thousand more words than that, but those words were deleted.  Some days, my writing was a total disaster.  My voice was unclear.  My comma usage was out-of-control.

But, I wrote.  "A goal without a plan is just a wish."  My wish became a goal.  I am incredibly grateful.

I knew from this blog post here, I had something to say.   I knew it wasn't just a wish anymore, it was something burning inside of me.  Do you ever have those burning inside of you feelings?  They are like caged wild animals; they must be freed.

Though I'm certain I have many more people to thank, my sabbatical was successful due in part to following people and groups:

• My college, Anne Arundel Community College - who granted me a sabbatical and thought my goal to write a book wasn't insane
• My department chair, director, dean, and vice president  - Thank you for going to bat for me!
• My amazing colleagues who have reached out and cheered me on during this journey.  Jax and Karen, you led the way!
• My coach, Sue, our deadlines kept me focused
• My lovely friends and family members who helped me edit my work:  Sue, Jesse, Susan, Jenn, Mom and Hilary.  One day we will celebrate at a book signing together!
• My sister, brother-in-law and their amazing staff - They welcomed me in their office all sabbatical long to write and just be
• My parents - who consistently checked on me to hear the progress I was making
• My extended family and friends, your interest in the book was incredible

To Mr. UpCyclist and Lil O - I don't think it is even possible to say thank you to you both in words. You picked up my slack around the house when I was writing.  You gave me so much time to think, be, and just write. You took care of me on long writing days.  You provided space when I needed it most. You put up with me when I turned into crabby pants at night.  I am so not a night person.  You believed in me - and still do - and know how important this project is to me.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.  

The rest of January, I will be back in the teaching-college groove and writing much less.  I do plan to pick up where I left off in February and find either a literary agent or publisher for the book in late spring.  Have a shared the working title with you, yet?

Grow:  Championing the Growth of Others (and Yourself)

It feels so good to share that with you.   Thank you, amazing blog reader.  You keep coming back to this space and sharing in the journey.

With immense gratitude,

Jen

Profound Gratitude

This weekend I am celebrating my birthday and also completing another {life} coaching class.  The focus of this class is being in the present moment.  Last night's surprise, intimate gathering for my birthday gave me a fantastic opportunity to practice being in the moment.  I didn't waste the opportunity.

When I woke up this morning, I thought, why not continue to be in the moment?  Here it goes.

At this moment, I feel a profound sense of gratitude.  The image that comes to mind is the Grand Canyon.  Every time I've seen the Grand Canyon in person I am in total awe.  Could it really be that vast?  Expansive?  Magnificent?  Radiant?  Astonishing?  And quiet?

The gratitude I also feel is related to abundance.  It goes on and on and deep and far reaching.  I'm standing right now and I feel all my emotions shooting through my feet like roots of a tree in a time-elapse video. This profound sense of gratitude is literally anchoring me to the earth.

From this vantage point, I am seeing possibility.  And, holy moly, my eyes cannot believe what they see.   If you were here with me (in my kitchen), I would call you over and say, do you see that?  Do you see?

.....I just released a gigantic sigh......

It's like what you want.  What anyone wants.   And what the world needs is right there.   Feeling this evokes calmness, delight, and awe.

....Is this a dream?.....

Oh, there it is.  The ugly side.  The this-really-is-a-dream-side-and-doesn't-exist side.  The side that likes to sabotage moments or thoughts like these.  Gosh forbid there is this beautiful land of possibility and gratitude and abundance.  What if there isn't enough?  Or I fail?  Or get hurt?  Or go unliked?  What then?  I'm shaking my head.  Again?

....That stupid story again?  Ugh.

This is my birthday.  I am over four decades old.  I didn't invite the saboteurs and their stupid story to this party.  They are not welcomed at the Grand Canyon in my mind.  This is my land (and yours?) of possibility.  I am grateful they remind me how fragile life is.  I'm grateful those saboteurs show me how high the stakes are. But, they don't serve me anymore.  In fact, they box me in.

So, right now.  In this moment.  I am noticing a take-back sense.  A "this is my life" feeling.  A "do you see this?" feeling.   A profound wave of gratitude that is as exuberant and as expansive as the Grand Canyon, indeed.

...If you could see me in person right now, you'd see this inquisitive and mischievous look on my face with a gigantic splash of awe.....

I like the mischievous part best,

Jen

So Grateful

I feel like abundance has found me.  I am sooooo grateful for....

• The outpouring of support for the Rainbow Loom Project.  The comments, emails, texts, and energy is incredible.  When the world can be so tricky at times, projects like these show how life should be - connected and lovely.
• Surpassing my coffee date goal.  Thanks, Carey (coffee), Courtney (coffee), Shannon (dinner) and Erin (hiking)!  You four are good for my soul.
• Small, quiet projects at home and work.  I told my friend, Laura, I am putting my energy in a "low wake" zone right now.  Have you ever been to a low wake zone on a boat?  That's me.  I need a bit of low energy to balance all the high energy of the past few days & weeks.
• My parenting class is slated to run tonight.  I'm looking forward to meeting all the open-minded parents who signed up to take the class.
• Mr. UpCyclist and Lil O are cracking me up with their game play of Star Wars on the Wii.  They make a great daddy-daughter Jedi team.

Speaking of Jedi, he keeps asking for more snow :)

Grateful,

Jen