Welcome to Dealing with Anxiety

 My anxiety spiked this week (for reasons that will not be detailed in this blog). Though I’ve been dealing with anxiety for sometime now, it can still be very difficult to get out of the spiral of negativity and worse case scenarios. And it’s not just the mental side that can be difficult to deal with, there can also be a physical side. 

Here are something’s I do when my anxiety meter is off the charts:

This photo I took in Iceland of some street art is a good representation of my anxiety.

• Go hiking and be out in nature - getting outside and physically active helps to slow down my racing thoughts rather than speed them up. Being around nature is grounding. My worries seem further away when I’m in on a forest or mountain path. Note: it might be difficult or impossible for some people to go out for a hike or out into nature. Going to a local park or just around the block of your neighborhood can be beneficial.
• Cleaning - you might be surprised how much better a person can feel after tidying up. I spent much of the weekend finally putting away Christmas decorations, vacuuming, and getting rid of things that no longer "brought me joy" (to quote Marie Kondo - who has admitted to throwing in the towel for some of her advice after kid number three - it's still good advice for decluttering though).
• Take a hot bubble bath - I don't know about the rest of you guys, but anxiety tends to take a physical toll along with the mental. When my muscles are tense, my shoulders extremely tense, and I can't relax the best thing for my body is a soak in the tub. Finding the right products to add to the bath can also be helpful. Some lavender essential oil or a soothing bath bomb can really add to the relaxing atmosphere or just some good old fashion bubbles. Note: once again, not everyone may have access to a bath tub or be physically able to use one. In these cases a hot shower will work too.
• Watch a comfort movie or TV show - make sure it's something you don't have to pay attention to, but have positive feelings for. It doesn't matter if it's a guilty pleasure or something really silly. I personally love watching "Alvin and the Chipmunk Meet the Wolfman" or an older Disney Channel Original Halloween Movie like "Phantom of the Megaplex".
• Use a calming breathing technique - Using a meditative breathing technique or simply counting my breaths are known to help my nerves settle. I'm currently working on a walking meditation tutorial and have found that the method used (breathing from the heart and out with a focus on the forehead) is very relaxing - and lets me go into a deeper meditation.

Though my troubles aren't going away anytime soon, the things listed above can help me reset my nervous system. Once that happens, I can tackle the problem and come up with solutions.

Do you guys ever struggle with anxiety. Do you have techniques you use to settle down. Share your experiences. 

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope y'all like hearing from me.

Until next week.

Welcome to the Last Post in 2021

 I know a lot of people are thinking it, but when did 2020 become 2021...and how did 2021 pass by so quickly?

This will be my last post in 2021. I spent part of the year without a job, started traveling again, and have continued to worry about COVID (despite the vaccine).

This holiday season is a little different than last year. Though COVID is always at the back of my mind, being vaccinated has given me a little freedom. 

Last weekend I went to a local production of the Nutcracker with a friend. Most of the audience was made of the dancers' family and friends. I (being determined to see any production of the ballet live) really enjoyed myself. Some of the dancers were absolutely tiny and positively adorable. All of the dancers were fantastic. 

I am happy to encourage anyone who has a local theater group or community center to check out any productions they may be putting on. Not only are they fun, but they support your area's artists, dancers, actors, and talent. I'm actually kind of sad I missed a local production of the Dracula ballet (there are actually several versions of the Dracula ballet which can be found on YouTube). 

This weekend, I had a couple of friends over for my first holiday bunch! 

It was so much fun and I may have gone a little overboard while cooking (there are tons of leftovers). The Wassail I made was a particularly big hit, as was the pumpkin cake and mocktail I came up with on the spot (a scoop of cranberry relish, some pomegranates, and pomegranate bubbly water in Champaign glasses - the full thing will be in my food blog). Christmas music played in the background (okay it was the Nutcracker) and I had a roaring fire in the fireplace. Lights are strung up all over and my tiny tree is fully trimmed. 

Yesterday, I spent the whole day cooking and cleaning my apartment. I found the cleaning therapeutic and helped me feel like I was sweeping out the old year. I even took time to wrap up all the presents. It's hard to believe Christmas is in less than a week and New Years is in less than two. 

Over the next couple weeks, things will be quiet. The only major event I'll be attending is a driver through light display. I went last year with my dad and it was the only request he had this year to do during the season. Maybe I'll also take a day trip into DC to see the train display at the outdoor botanical gardens and the Congressional ("People's") tree.

2021 was a long year that somehow felt very short. It was eventful and at the same time very boring. My hope is for some peace and stability. Though I hope to travel again soon, I'd much rather know that people are safe and my cat can curl up on my head whenever she feels like it.

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season. May you all have a nice rest, a little peace, and lots of fun memories. 

Good bye 2021.

Welcome 2022. 

If you enjoyed this post (or if really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope y'all like hearing from me.

Welcome To Party Time

Summer is in full swing and what's the best way to celebrate than with a party. Yesterday my roommate and I threw a party to celebrate all things summer. It was my first major party that I was hosting (or at least helping with the hosting) since college. It was a lot of fun and I look forward to next one.

Throwing parties now is very similar to parties I threw in College. Major differences include more food, better drinks and the number of people to help clean up (there were seven people in a house on campus as oppose to an apartment with just me and my roommate).

For anyone wanting to throw a party and need a little advice, below are some pieces I picked up from my roommate and lodgemates.

1) Pick a simple theme and is seasonally appropriate (also that isn't offensive to another culture). This is helpful because decorations will likely be easy to find and might be on sale. If you decide to not have a theme that's okay too.

2) Make your apartment / house look clean. I don't mean do a full scrub down before the party, just a quick rub down so that people aren't questioning the green stuff growing in your sink (just kidding). Parties tend to be messy and you have to clean up after them anyway. Why put in all of the effort to make you apartment spotless before hand only to have to clean up all over again the next day?

3) Recruit people to help out with set up and clean up. You will need the help. I don't know how many times I've woken up after a party, looked around and wished I wasn't the one who needed to clean up. It's a little less daunting with a few extra hands.

4) The type of food to have. This is tricky because I feel it depends on the type of part. If you are throwing a dinner party or back yard BBQ it's kind of a given that there will be a lot of food and enough to cover at least one meal. If it's neither of those than I would suggest some finger foods. Things that are easy to put together and clean up after. Chips and dip are good bases for these parties, but not usually enough. Small sandwiches, meats and cheeses with crackers, and plenty of desserts keep people filled up.

5) Have people bring something (drinks are the best recommendation). When I was in college, my lodgemates and I threw a party within the first few days of moving in. We had a supply of drinks and some chips when we started the party. The next morning we didn't have any more chips, but about three times as many drinks as we had started with. Yesterday we asked everyone to ether bring a drink or a snack. We currently have a cooler full of drinks and no more tuna sliders.

Of course these are suggestions. All parties are different. Heck there have been many parties where it's just a group of friends who order pizza. Clean up, though, still sucks.

Until next week.

If you enjoyed this post or it really pissed you off, please like, share or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope you guys like hearing from me. Now I just need to be ready for work tomorrow. Joys.

Welcome To Long Weekends

Tomorrow is Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the US? That means I have an extra day free to do whatever I want. I think I'm going to spend it relaxing and pretending the outside world doesn't exist. These days don't come very often, so it's nice when they do.

However, if I stay at my place and don't do anything for the three days, I can occasionally get a little bored and restless. There are a lot of things you can do on a long weekend. Here is a list of my top five things to do on a long weekend.

5) Do nothing but sleep for an entire day. It might not be the most productive thing to do, but it can be very rewarding.

4) Go on a cleaning spree. It's hard to clean during the week because once I get home that's it I'm done. I'm making dinner and relaxing. That's it.

3) Go into the city. I get to explore the area and see some of the sights. Also food!

2) Have a mini vacation. It's fun to get away and go exploring. Having an extra day to not rush back to real life is what makes it the best time to go over a long weekend.

1) Having friends and/or family come visit. They can go exploring with you or help you with a video game binge.

Long weekends are fun, yet rare. I try to enjoy them when I can and hopefully you guys do to. Some of my friends have the option to trade the day off for a different day later. I sometimes wishi had this option, but I dont.

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. day everyone. Maybe we can all celebrate by seeing Selma. U til next week.

If you enjoyed this post, or it pissed you off, please like, share or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope you guys like hearing from me.

Welcome To Dust Bunnies

Well the New Year has come and gone along with Christmas. We have a few weeks until the next big holiday that I get an extra day off. Hopefully everyone is well rested (and sober) to start working again. I guess this means I can't sleep for 10 hours a day anymore. Though I do look forward to not having to go anywhere for the foreseeable future.

It was a busy holiday. I saw "Into The Woods". It's really good if you like fairy tales and musicals. I was very surprised by some of the things that happen.

So now I have to take down all my holiday decorations and clean some of my presents (I got kitchen stuff this year, I'm excited to test them out). I get a little sad when I do because I love the decorations and now I have to wait a whole year to see them again. I could always leave them up, but then anyone who visits might think I'm lazy (that might not be too far from the truth).

Well since I have to clean anyway, I might as well just clean the rest of the apartment. It's sort of like a New Years cleaning spree. I've been at it since I got home today.

How do I motivate myself to "winter clean"?

Step 1: Clean in small doses, but don't just shove one pile of stuff to a different corner of the room and then shove it back into the original spot a few hours later.

Step 2: Make sure I have all the cleaning supplies that I need. It tends to ruin the flow if I have to run out for stuff.

Step 3: Make a list. It helps to remember what you have already done and still need to do.

Of course, this is me I'm writing about.

In this case, ignore all of the steps listed, find a spot in the closet, shove everything there and hope no one notices when they come to visit. Sure I still have to vacuum and dust, but at least the floor is clear.

I hope you guys have fun taking down your decorations. Maybe instead of cleaning your entire apartment (or dorm or house) you could throw a de-decorating party. At least someone is there to help you finish the Christmas cookies.

Until next week.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share and/or leave a comment. Thank you again for reading and let's start 2015 off to a good start. Good luck everyone!

Welcome To Thinking Out Loud

Yesterday my mom visited to help me clean out some stuff from one of my closets. I cannot deny the fact that I am a bit of a pack rat. I have old notebooks from middle and highschool, not to mention all my college stuff. I admit, as a personal flaw, that I am sentimental about really stupid things and just won't throw them out because of how much I loved it when I was six.

However, my inability to get rid of junk is not the topic this week. While my mom was here, we went out to lunch for drinks (interpret that sentence how you will) and we bonded as we tend to do when out on the town. I started going off about one of the novels I'm writing. (Fine I admit it, I'm trying to be a writer, it won't be a reality until I actually finish a draft.)  Mom was asking me questions and as we talked I was further developing the plot(s). In essence this weeks post was her idea.

She is right, of course. I tend to do my best thinking when a) I'm pacing around my apartment, b) I am listening to music and/ or c) I'm talking out loud with someone about whatever I'm stuck on. This last method happens more often than not, when I'm angsting about something. I tend to just go off about my problems until there is a resolution or a new problem emergese. I'm sure many of you remember my cable rant(s).

The fact is, writing and talking almost go hand for me. I write to express my problems and come up with improbable, yet hilarious scenarios to solve them. I talk to express my problems and come up with practicle ways to solve my problems. It's also sometimes nice to just have someone as a so sympathetic sound board.

It's just another weird aspect of my personality.

If you enjoyed this post, please like, share or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope you guys are enjoying my crazy life. It is certainly entertaining for me, once I stop freaking out. Until next week.

Welcome to the New Version of Dorm Life

 You've Upgraded to Carpeting and a Walk in Closet

First off I would like to start this post with a quick rant about how it is October and yet I have been experiencing 90 degree weather in the mid-Atlantic state I live in. I do not approve and want my fall. I want to be able to eat my pumpkin bread and lattes in sweaters and jackets. I even had to turn my air conditioning on for the first time in a month this week! Luckily the weather report says that it will cool down considerably this week and I will be happy again. Also Tree House of Horror tonight was pretty awesome. Anyway the real reason I am writing today it to compare living in an apartment to a college dorm room. 

I lived all four years of my college life in a dorm (or at least a school sponsored room of some sort). My first dorm was very loud and stereotypical for freshmen entering college. Everyone knew what everyone was doing at every moment of the day and there was always puke in the bathroom on Monday morning (it was a hall style bathroom). My second and third dorms were a lot quieter, except the weekends that the triple would have parties in their rooms and we’d have to throw the boys out of the girl’s hall bathroom. It was annoying when they would walk in while one of us was taking a shower.  It was also annoying when people would set off the fire alarm at all times of the night because they were drunk baking (I feel I have mentioned this before in this blog). 

My final dorm was possibly my favorite. I lived in a house on campus with six other people. It was pretty sweet and even parties in the surrounding lodges (that’s what we called them) were not super disruptive. We had to clean it ourselves and make sure everyone was up to speed on everyone else’s TV schedule, but it worked out well. 

Apartment life is not that different from dorm life. Though I no longer have to make a dorm agreement, there are still rules that I follow. Everyone minds their own business, but I can still hear the guy above me flush his toilet, among other activities. I have a phone number that I can call at anytime to have things fixed and they still take their sweet time to do it (unless you burst into tears on the phone because your toilet decided to “roar” at you, then they get their butts to your place right away to fix it). Instead of RAs, I have a land lady/lord.

The only time I really notice people are when they slam their doors on the way out of the building. I also notice the person who lives above me. The first guy I called mysterious footstep guy because he would wake me up at 6am every morning with his stomping around. Now I have “squeak squeak guy.” His name is an inside joke between me and my roommate. For those of you, who do not get it, do not worry. I am a little embarrassed to write any more about it.

I do miss the friendlier atmosphere of dorm life. People just seem to “busy” as adults to really care when people move in and out of this place. I also have a lot more cleaning to do. I had to clean my own room and the lodge at school, but cleaning staff was available to do the hall bathrooms. At least I picked up on a good cleaning rotation from living with six other girls. I also still have posters everywhere, though I have managed to upgrade to a few really pictures, that also look like posters.

So I have come to the conclusion that dorm life has the sole purpose of getting young adults ready for apartment life. If a college student does not manage to accidentally burn the place down or start a biology experiment under their bed, they should have no problem adjusting. I have actually discovered that I am much more likely to clean now that I live in a much bigger space (with more places for me to shove thing out of the way).

 Now if only it could be October all the time...