fidilkid

[fidilkid]

Five Things I Hate...

About my broken ankle:

hopping around on one leg

trying to balance on one leg while putting clean clothes on

finally being able to take a shower, but having to do so on one leg, because I can't put my foot down so I have sit but the shower has these little tiny benches which means I have to balance on one ass cheek to clean myself

I can't go downstairs to get stuff

All my stuff is downstairs

[fidilkid]

30 Days

I wanted, really wanted, to do the #100DaysofArt this year. But I felt overwhelmed by the idea of pulling my art supplies out and making something, anything. It just felt like too much. So I'm making new very small daily promises to myself. Let's see if I can keep this up.

[fidilkid]

Supermercado!

You know what I love most about traveling? Checking out grocery stores. I know I'm not the only one in my comparably not-so-big group of friends IRL and virtual. But I'm annoyingly into it. So much so that when the guys I was traveling with that were driving us around Ireland wanted to leave Cork City, get in the car and boogie on down the road to our next destination, I made them walk through M&S anyway because I wanted to see what the food selection was. I get excited about going into a gas station even. I want to see what the locals are buying, and what the buyers are getting.

See above: This picture was taken in the Aldi in Ennis, Co. Clare. My friend Gary and I found it hilarious. This is the kind of gem you can find in a grocery store. (Zoom in to read the sign on the shelf.)

On my way to Rochester a couple of months ago, I stopped into a gas station in Canandaigua. No pay at the pump, so I had to go inside. When I went in, I couldn't resist looking at the pastry rack. There were brands I'd never seen before. The drinks cooler was full of beer. (I'm old and bougie I guess.) It surprised me because I'm used to seeing soft drinks in the cooler in the front and then some sort of beer cave. This place was too small for that though. Cigarettes were on full display like it wasn't 2025. I know I bought my friend an iced tea. I think I got myself a water and a York Peppermint Patty. God, I wish they made those things the size of my head. They are SO good.

But I digress. Maybe it's a function of always being hungry, but I LOVE looking at all the goodies anyplace I go. So cool. If you're into that kind of thing, I applaud you. Meet me in the produce aisle and we will gaze fondly at all the colorful fruits and veggies!

[fidilkid]

2022: WTF Just Happened to Me?

It's kind of mind boggling. I'll say more later.

[fidilkid]

70 Days Until Spring! #fridayfunday 

[fidilkid]

I know, I know. They're all men. But these were my go-to guys in high school. I love them to this day. Are there women or POC writers that you love? Share them here because I'd love to know!

[fidilkid]

Happy 2021! Phew. We made it. The dumpster fire is behind us. Well, maybe... I’m finding it hard to let go of 2020 because I know for a fact that the problems haven’t left just because the year on the calendar changed. I’m determined to be optimistic though! Here’s my hopeful bucket list for 2021. What’s on your list?

1. Figure out how to live stream and DO IT!

2. Let go of old clothes - donate or sell on Rakuten

3. Start my day right with self care

4. Create a before bed routine

5. Play and study music daily

6. Promote our business to gain exposure and customers

7. Get and use web skills (coding here I come!) 

8. Get professional head shots

9. Learn Bookkeeping 

10. Get a new mattress (ours is DEAD)

11. Make and keep Friend Dates (phone, zoom, in person)

12. Get new kitchen appliances

13. Create and use a cleaning plan

14. Eat breakfast every day (I usually don’t eat until noon)

15. Find a new lower carb meal weekly (breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner) & create a pinterest board to track them 

16. Keep a food journal

17. Walk every day for at least 21 minutes 

18. Read 12 books this year

19. start a doodle journal

20. play my left-handed guitar

21. Take myself on a play date every week

OK, that’s me! What about you? 

[fidilkid]

BUNCHAF*&!IN’BULLSH*T

One of my favorite riffs from Dana Carvey’s recent special is where he channels an inner teenager who swagger/struts around, arms flailing backwards, snarling “That’s a bunch-a-f**kin’-b*llsh*t”. Knocks me off the couch every time! (Yeah. There were multiple screenings...)

Anyway, I’m a bit of a travel nerd. I can’t really afford to go anywhere but once a year or so, but I’ve been slurping up “Spirit Airlines Sucks” and “How to Hack Budget Airlines” you-tubers for a couple of months now, and this most recent re-post from Tortuga Packs (awesome and comprehensive, btw) about all the hidden charges that budget airlines hit you with just makes me say...

WHAT A  BUNCH-A-F*&!IN’-BULLSH*T!!!!!

That’s Monday, folks.

Image Credit: ETTTO, Unsplash , Tortuga Backpacks

[fidilkid]

Your Monday Inspiration: “Strain and fatigue are often caused by rigidity. The more you allow your body to move and breathe, the greater your stamina.” -- You Are Your Instrument, Julie Lyonn Lieberman

How many times have you finished up a practice session or rehearsal and struggled to get up out of the chair or had to stretch or massage your jaw/hands/shoulders? Chances are that when you are practicing, you are tensing up as you focus on intonation, technical mastery, or just memorizing a tune. 

Make breathing, gentle movement, and mindfulness a part of your practicing and you soon train yourself into a more dynamic yet relaxed way of playing. 

[Read More at the StoneyStepsITM Blog]  

[fidilkid]

Earlier in January, a couple of friends and I went to Ireland. There’s no arguing that the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare are gorgeous. I’m just glad we went in the winter because if I thought there were a lot of people there (and I hate crowds), I can’t imagine what it is like on a lovely summer day jam packed with tourists. Am I missing something about Ireland because I only go over in winter? Probably, but I’m willing to sacrifice that for the more relaxed vibe and lack of tourists. #thermalsseason

[fidilkid]

Crafty TBT: Sometimes it’s just fun to do a little crafty thing by hand. I made these cute little envelopes using a template I found online.

[fidilkid]

Curious that we spend more time congratulating people who have succeeded than encouraging people who have not.

Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) January 23, 2012

[fidilkid]

Sometimes you just have to say “Thank You for Sharing.”

As I was writing in my morning pages today, I had an “A-Ha” moment. I’ve been spending quite a bit of time lately feeling unhappy and trying to push it down and “just be happy.” Don’t get me wrong - I love my life and my work. I have awesome family and friends. I have great clients. I really enjoy what I do. Even when the rest of the world isn’t supportive or, as one friend says, “I don’t get that stuff and I don’t even want to hear about.” Yeah. For real. That one is tough. Because I enjoy my work and I like to share and talk about it. Don’t you? So, mostly he talks about his work and I listen.

...But I digress. I was talking about unhappy. Here’s how it manifests: Here I am just minding my own business, dorking along doing whatever, and suddenly a memory of an old stupid thing I’ve done or said or felt - a moment of bad behavior, an unprofessional outburst, a time when I’ve acted out inappropriately - will just pop into my head unbidden. Up until now, I haven’t been able to resist wrestling with it and trying to get it to leave me alone. I’ll fight it. I’ll rationalize it. I’ll let it take me back there and make it totally real again. And honestly - I don’t even recognize that I’m doing it. I’ve even started telling my husband about the situation as if it is happening right now.

And in my head, it is actually happening right now. This is the thing about the human brain. A memory is a story. It lights up your brain - it makes the experience real again for you. (Marketers and advertisers have mastered this - that’s how they influence us to buy things. By telling a story. Check out this blog post from the Buffer App blog about the power and the science of storytelling.)

I was discussing this “hijacked by a memory” problem with a friend of mine this past weekend. She asked me some fairly pointed questions. She wanted to know if when I experienced these memories, did I realize I was well past the time that the incident happened? Didn’t I know that I was beyond it? Didn’t I believe that I had actually healed from it and it was long gone, never to happen again? And I couldn’t really answer those questions. Because when I’m in it, it feels real again, as if I am living it all over again. Of course the person or people who were there at the time have most likely forgotten about my transgression. Or they might laugh about it periodically. But for me it feels like it can never be healed, never be fixed, it is still there being a perpetual reminder of my stupidity, inability to function as a human being, failure in life/business/friendship/etc. Even though that conversation with my friend was great and really helpful, it left me with a nagging question: “How can I stop giving these memories so much power?”   

Flash forward to this morning. I was sitting at my desk writing my morning pages, listening to a meditation music channel on Pandora, when I had a sit-up-straight, smack-your-head-with-your-hand, “A-Ha” moment. And it was this: That when those memories bubble up, they bubble up because I am already feeling a little down. And when they burst through, I need to identify that they are there and that “I’m doing it again.”

 A-ha! Wow! Is it really that simple? 

The Buddhist mindfulness meditation I’ve been using says to focus on the breath, and when you notice your mind has wandered, simply return and begin again. As you advance in your practice, you learn to note when feelings, energies or emotions come up (in an internal voice, gently say, “anxiety, sadness, pain” or whatever the sensation or emotion is). 

So, I suddenly realized that if I notice that I have this memory and a corresponding emotional response, I can give it name! I can touch it with my mind and then refocus on the state I want to be in, which is a state of peace. I can really use mindfulness - my awareness - to identify that the loop is happening again. The mere act of simply noticing that I was heading off into the feedback loop of hell took some of the power away from the memory. It significantly improved my ability to recover from the unpleasant experience quickly and to feel more hopeful and move more quickly back into my day. 

One of my favorite books is The Riddle Master of Hed by Patricia A. McKillip, a story about a young man in a magical world of wizards and magic, and the peaceful land-bound people that depend on them to hold back the dark forces that are hidden all around them. The main character faces many challenges as he travels various lands seeking wisdom from the most powerful person in the world: “The High One.” He seeks answers to increasingly difficult riddles and faces darker and darker magic. Nearly all of the threats he faced could be overcome simply by knowing the name of the threat that faced him. This young man was born with three red stars on his forehead. Throughout the course of the story, he goes to great lengths to avoid asking the question to which those stars are the answer. You’ll have to read the book to find out what happens, but for me, the moral is that sometimes our toughest challenge lies within ourselves.

Interested in meditation? Try ABC News Anchor Dan Harris’ 10% Happier app on iTunes or listen to his amazing podcast 10% Happier - interviews with interesting people who use meditation as part of their daily lives (I recommend the great interview with chef Eric Ripert!). 10percenthappier.com 

*NOTE: I am not sponsored by the podcast or app. I just love it!

[fidilkid]

Pretzel Day is every day in our house! #NationalPretzelDay

Pretzel’s don’t need to be chocolate covered to be bad: Happy belated #NationalPretzelDay 

[fidilkid]

Now What? Producing and Distributing Your Book Independently

As part of our “Now What?” Months, we’re shifting our focus to publishing in all its myriad forms. Today, Orna Ross of the Alliance of Independent Authors continues a series on independent publishing, focusing today on production and distribution:

This the third in a series of four blog posts that will lead authors through the design and formatting phases of the writing and self-publishing journey. You’ve completed the self-editing and editorial phase, and the design and formatting stages. Now what?

Production and distribution refers to the process and logistics of actually getting your book to the consumer. There’s a myriad of services and platforms from Amazon to Ingram to iBooks that help you put your work in the hands of readers. Each one has pros and cons, depending on your needs.

Keep reading

[fidilkid]

Christmas in New Baltimore "Wrapped in Song"

Christmas in New Baltimore “Wrapped in Song”

On Sunday afternoon, December 13, 2015, the New Baltimore Reformed Church sanctuary will ring out with beautiful choral music – sacred and secular – of the Christmas season. The Hudson Mohawk Chorale will be 35 voices strong, and will feature acclaimed accompanist/composer Alfred V. Fedak on the church’s pipe organ. Mr. Fedak played the inaugural performance on this organ, installed in 2003, and…

[fidilkid]

Great episode - Congratulations Matt! And Chris - def do @Kidnight! Awesome!

From episode 743: Two Weeks.