Happy Monday, and Happy First Day of February! We made it through the first month of 2021 and so far, so good. I’m anticipating that the remaining months will go smoothly and will be absolutely AMAZING!
So as you know from my 2021 goals post, I had a goal to read 100+ books this year. Of course, I don’t anticipate that I will read exactly 9-10 books every single month, though that would be nice. But, if I can get close to that amount, I count it as a win.
For me, acknowledging the progress I’m making is important to keeping me accountable. So, in an attempt to continue with my accountability, here are the books that I read in January:
As you can see, I only read 4 books this month. But, compared to last year, this is fantastic! I finally have the energy and time to read through books, and eventually, I’ll read even more books throughout this year. I’m already working on my February books, and I think I’ll get closer to reading 9/10 books, even though there are fewer days in this month.
I think that noting progress is crucial for all of us. Any improvement puts us closer to our goals. It’s so easy to focus on what’s wrong instead of focusing on the ways that you’re getting better every day. Why not choose to look at what’s going right?
That’s my brief book update. I’m looking forward to listing more books for February!
That’s it for today. I’ll talk to you all tomorrow!
Happy Fibro Friday, friends! I sincerely hope that you’ve had a great week, and I hope that your weekend is amazing!
Recently, I shared with one of my favorite vloggers, Deena from Adventures with Fibro, that I make a body balm that helps with both muscular and neurological pain. I also promised her that I would make a video. And yes, I kept my word.
If you have fibromyalgia, you are already intimately aware of the pain that occurs due to the condition. But if you don’t have the condition, I’ll try my best to explain it to you. The pain that comes from fibromyalgia is often diffuse: it’s not usually concentrated into just one spot. And the pain goes beyond just soreness (as if you overused a particular muscle group): the pain can include stinging, burning, prickly, tingly, or throbbing sensations.
Many of the products available for pain address the muscle component exclusively. So the neurological pain (or neuropathy) remains unaddressed. You usually have to use medication prescribed by a neurologist or a rheumatologist to alleviate the nerve pain. Sadly, these medicines do a poor job of offering relief, and can have a range of awful side effects.*
So I opted to create a product that could give me relief for both body systems (musculoskeletal and nervous). In this video, I give a nice, customizable recipe that can offer you some relief and hopefully make your flare days a little more tolerable. I’m writing out the recipe and instructions on this post, to be followed by a link to the video.
Magic Body Balm (makes 4 ounces (120 ml) of product)
2.5 oz (75 ml) cocoa butter (shea, avocado or any other nut butter can be used)
A few weeks prior to making this balm, purchase dried arnica and place 1 or 2 ounces of the dried plant into 2-3 ounces of avocado oil. Let it sit for several weeks in a dark, cool spot, gently shaking the oil every couple of days.
Start by placing the nut butter into the glass bowl.
Fill the bottom of the shallow bowl with less than 1 inch of boiling hot water. You only need enough hot water to cover the bottom of the shallow bowl.
Place the glass bowl with the nut butter into the shallow bowl, allowing the hot water to heat the bottom of the glass ramekin and start melting the butter.
THIS IS CRUCIAL – Avoid getting any water into the liquefying nut butter, the oil additives, or any other ingredients. This will prevent bacteria from growing in the balm.
While the nut butter is melting, strain your arnica infused oil. (Skip this step if you’re using pure arnica oil that you purchased).
Once the nut butter is liquefied, combine it with the arnica infused oil (or the pure avocado oil and arnica oil drops), copaiba oil, davana oil, and fragrant oil of your choice (I prefer tangerine, lavender or peppermint oil). Stir well.
Pour the mixture into the container of choice. Place in a refrigerator to let it cool and set (roughly 1-2 hours). Remove and use on achy, sore body parts.
This recipe is mostly relying on eyeballing the measurements, so if it isn’t exact, try adjusting individual ingredients until you get the consistency you prefer. I’m linking the ingredients and tools above, so you can easily get what you need. I hope this helps you! Take care, and enjoy your weekend.
* Disclaimer: I use two medications for neurological symptoms. I weighed the efficacy versus the side effects, and I determined that it was worth the risk. Discuss the options with your doctor to see what is recommended for your condition.
I’ve started this post multiple times (and even accidentally posted it once or twice) but I struggled with putting this into words.
Until now.
A couple of years ago, I went to Virginia Museum of Fine Art (VMFA), my favorite local museum. I always try to spend a little more time in the permanent collection, so that I can be really familiar with the contents of the museum. On this particular visit, I focused more of my time on the Egyptian collection. I was struck by one particular piece.
Statue of Seated Scribe, Sema-tawy-tefnakht is more than 2500 years old, and appears just as wise and intuitive today as it probably did when it was first sculpted. The scribe looks toward the horizon, with a soft smile on his face and hands resting comfortably on his thighs as he holds a roll of papyrus. He appears to know a lot but, instead of it filling him with arrogance and an unapproachable energy, his face seems to invite you to ask questions that he will gladly answer. The piece is sculpted from alabaster, and still features the original text at the base, no doubt describing who he is and his role in the kingdom.
I loved, too, the plaque posted next to the Statue of Seated Scribe. The museum notes that being a scribe was often a hereditary role, with fathers preparing their sons for positions as bureaucrats for future pharoahs. It also touches on the significance of Thoth, the patron deity of scribes. Thoth himself was a scribe within Egyptian mythology, recording the judgments of human souls who had entered the afterlife.
What’s significant about this piece to me is the power held by a scribe. In the spiritual realm, it was believed that all information about whether a person would live in peace or eternal torment was captured by the scribe. It’s true, in a sense, that the “scribes” of today – journalists, novelists, memoirists, and the like – function much the same. We as writers keep the records of the actions of others, whether they be good, bad or neutral.
Another thing that really impacted me was the fact that this role was more than a job: it was an inheritance. Being the male child of a scribe meant that you were born into a legacy of being a gatekeeper of the empire’s history and secrets. This made me think of the children being born to us today: how many parents are preparing their children for their legacy? As a mom, I understand how overwhelmed we all are right now, with many schools being closed due to COVID. But what little things are we doing daily to prepare our children for the heavy roles they will have in the future, as responsible citizens, future artists and patrons, the builders and organizers of society, and possibly parents themselves?
It’s a lot to consider. I’ve been toying around with these ideas for years, which is why I knew I had to write this post. I’m just glad I finally got the words for it.
Anyways, that’s it for today. I’m looking forward to tomorrow, when I share with you all my amazing body balm recipe that is great for muscle and nerve pain. Take care, and I’ll talk to you soon.
Happy Writers Wednesday! Can you believe it’s the last Wednesday of the month? I can hardly believe it myself!
I’ve been hard at work trying to hit my January 31 deadline. I’ve been managing my time more carefully, doing my daily word requirement, and getting hits of inspiration here and there. My deadline is quickly approaching. And guess what?
It’s not gonna happen.
I need a solid rough draft before I even try to start editing. I’m only about 70% done with my draft. Unless I hype myself up on caffeine and power through the next few nights, I won’t be finishing this draft by January 31st.
And I’m okay with that.
A few years ago, I would have been so hard on myself, kicking myself for what I *could* have done differently. But I’m in such a different space now: I realize I live a busy life. I care for myself, my grandmother and her sister, my daughter, and my dog. I have a job, a part time tutoring gig, and several small businesses. I have a chronic illness.
Basically, my cup runneth over, even before I throw book writing into the mix.
So yes, I’m racing to the finish, but I’m not breaking my neck or any other body part to do it. I’m giving myself an additional week, which should be enough time to get this done. And if not … I’ll give myself another small extension (I’m pretty sure one more week will be enough). Then I’ll move onto the next step.
On this path, I recognize that my biggest ally is to give myself lots of grace and treat myself as kindly as I treat others. I had to literally sit and think about the time when I would ask colleagues for information colleagues that I need, and when they asked for a little more time, I gladly confirmed that extensions are okay. Of course, that isn’t always possible, but for this writing project that I have, it’s fine. Not only am I okay with giving myself an extension, but I’m always looking forward to the fact that this extra time will really help me get a great first draft.
Editing is hard enough: writing while editing is torture. I’d rather get this done well than to try to rush it and have to end up rewriting almost all of my manuscript.
That’s it for my Writers Wednesday for this week. I hope you’re having a fun and productive day. Take care!
Hi friends! I’m really excited to discuss today’s book with you all. As you all may know, I’m still a new(ish) homeowner, and I love flowers and gardening. So instead of waiting until March or April to start thinking about my garden, I decided to begin my garden planning now, so that I can hit the ground running after the first frost.
The book I’m reviewing is Lunar and Biodynamic Gardening by Matt Jackson. The book focuses on gardening in a way that allows you to create an optimum environment that supports the plants organically. This focus on healthy soil, working with nature’s natural rhythms, and disturbing the environment as little as possible makes it so that both the plants and all wildlife thrive.
This book is broken down into six, easy-to-read chapters. The first chapter teaches the basics, explaining what lunar gardening and biodynamics are, and how these two differ from one another. The next chapter outlines what you need to start, depending on the size of your intended garden. The next chapters focus on soil and compost, growing food, growing flowers, and container gardening.
The author resides in the UK, so he is located in the Northern Hemisphere like me. But, he has generously provided resources for readers that may be in the Southern Hemisphere. He also shares resources to help readers get further clarification on certain principles.
I love how accessible lunar and biodynamic gardening approaches can be for novices. Jackson does a great job explaining how to work with various yard/garden sizes. My yard is medium sized, but my garden will be planned as if I have a small yard, and if I’m inspired, I will expand in future years. It’ll be great to start small so I can really master the concepts before I dive deeper.
In this world of law of attraction/conscious creation, it’s really easy to focus on the spiritual or esoteric sides of things to the point where we may not see the practical side of tuning into nature. But this book is a great reminder of how energy works, and how everything works together. I’m fascinated by the moon cycles, and I’m eager to see how these principles influence my garden’s success. I’ll be writing about this in upcoming posts, so look out for updates!
That’s it for today. I hope you all are staying safe and having a great day. Take care!
Happy Monday, friends! I hope you all had an enjoyable and restful weekend. Let’s step into this week with confidence and joy!
A few weeks ago, after starting my YouTube channel, I took some time to think about my Law of Attraction (LOA) journey. I often look to one of my favorite books, Write It Down, Make It Happen (I did a review on this book on my old blog, so I’ll repost that in the near future), as the “beginning” of my journey.
However, after further consideration, I realized that this is inaccurate. I actually started on the conscious creation path long before I became familiar with the work of Dr. Henriette Anne Klauser (author of Write It Down, Make It Happen). My journey actually started in 2007, in a small IRS office in Richmond, VA. That’s where I had the great fortune of meeting Mr. Arthur Childs, who first told me about Dr. Wayne Dyer. When Mr. Childs retired, he gave me his composition notebooks, full of quotes and tidbits of wisdom.
I was excited to find one of the notebooks recently (I have the other one in storage). Finding that notebook made so many good memories flood back into my mind, and it’s the inspiration behind the video that I’m sharing below. I hope you enjoy the video!
Happy Friday, friends! I’m looking forward to this weekend: I will be getting lots of sleep and doing some additional writing. Here’s hoping I can get a good chunk of writing done!
Since I’ve never shared many details about the medication, vitamins and supplements I take, I thought that would be a good think to discuss on Fibro Friday. I believe wholeheartedly that filling in nutritional gaps can improve fibromyalgia symptoms. It doesn’t mean that fibro is a nutritional condition, but having a properly nourished body can do wonders for us and our pain levels.
Let’s start with medication first. Though these aren’t particularly nourishing, these help with pain management and other symptoms. I currently take 900 mg of gapapentin daily: 300 mg in the morning, and 600 mg in the evening. I also take 10 mg of escitalopram in the morning, and 10 mg of amitriptyline at night. These help with my serotonin levels and the nerve pain and discomfort I feel. When my pain is too intense, I may reach for 10 mg of cyclobenzaprine (a muscle relaxer).
Now, onto vitamins! I take organic prenatal gummies from Smarty Pants. These taste really good and cover a lot of my nutritional needs. I also take a vitamin D3 supplement (I purchase one through Melaleuca’a Vitality brand). I also take chelated magnesium from Country Life, calcium with vitamin D3 from Nature’s Measure, as well as the Super B Complex by Nature’s Measure.
Lastly, I also take supplements. I use the Koala Pals protein shake by Melaleuca company. I also like taking Good Zymes (a digestive enzyme supplement) available through Melaleuca. Also, I really enjoy Pacifica’s beauty powders. After sharing information about my two favorite powders, I realized that Pacifica no longer sells them. However, I did find a seller on Amazon for the Slay All Day powder. I also really like Sambucol Elderberry gummies for immune support.
Step 1 – Research the stories of people that were able to reverse their fibromyalgia diagnosis
Step 2 – Relisten to herbalism/naturopath podcasts that have recommendations for treating fibro
Step 3 – Make a list of local naturopaths that may be able to help me on my journey
I’m keeping my target simple: I’ll only take one or two steps a day. That sets me up to finish my three steps for each goal within 21 days at most. So, in 21 days, I’ll share whether I did all of the steps above (I’m pretty sure I can do it all LOL), as well as my next three steps for each goal. Of course, at some point, outlining the next three steps of a goal may not be applicable, but I’ll do it as long as it is logical and helpful to accomplishing my goals.
Have you tried writing out the next three steps for any of your goals? If so, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!
Welcome back to Writers Wednesdays! How is your writing coming along? Probably a little (or a lot) better than mine! I made up for slacking over the past week by knocking out a whopping 100 words in a weekend.
No, you did not misread that. I completed one hundred words in a weekend. And that’s ALL I could manage to write. I had family visiting (not too many members: gotta stay safe!) so I didn’t have a lot of time to devote to my writing. I’ve since made up for it over the past couple of days, clocking about 1,000 words per day. However, this still puts me behind schedule.
With that being said, I know a little about self sabotage. I often find myself throwing monkey wrenches into my own plans. Sometimes, the delays are due to health issues, but other times, it’s that mental “block” that exists when you have a big goal that feels gargantuan.
You know the ‘block’: it looks a lot like writer’s block, or procrastination, or an overloaded schedule. Whatever form the block takes, it can ruin your grand plans if you let it.
So the important question to ask is, HOW can you stop self sabotage?
For me, getting to the root of my self sabotage always starts with examining my emotions. Asking myself, “How am I feeling?” usually reveals the biggest clues behind the “block”. When I feel depressed, I usually experience writer’s block, or lack of inspiration. When I’m feeling anxious, I generally procrastinate. And when I feel fear, I overload my schedule with activities so that I don’t have the time to write.
Taking inventory of how your emotions manifest into particular behaviors will probably reveal some patterns for you, too.
After examining the emotion, I address it. For depression, more sunlight, upping my self care, and immersing myself in creative and artistic media (old Hollywood movies, art museums, music from around the world) usually does the trick. Not to mention, I have a great book by Ginie Sayles, titled, “Writer’s Block is a Crock”. I often use that to help me through those tough times. Anxiety is remedied by slowing down and being more intentional, (again) upping my self care, getting back into my yoga practice, and breathing deeply. For fear, I’ll admit: I don’t have a remedy that I can self-administer. I usually rely on a kick-in-the-pants from a well-meaning friend.
One of my favorite books for overcoming writer’s block
Fear is always the toughest one for me to manage. It isn’t fear of criticism, so much as it is fear of not being able to create a work that I’m proud of. I fear that I will write a mediocre text. And if there’s one thing I detest, it’s mediocrity.
Fortunately, I have great friends that encourage me to make my work better. They give specific examples of how it can be better. Then they trust me to make up my own mind, either to accept or reject their advice. I’ve done both, and I’ve been pleased with the outcome each time. They don’t take it personal if I choose a different strategy. But because they have great perspectives, I rarely discard their advice.
So fear is one that I’m still working on, to be honest with you. That’s what I’m experiencing right now. That’s why I made meals from scratch, two days in a row, during the time that I should have been writing. But recognizing the emotion is the first step. And I’m relying on my friends to help me through it. If you don’t have a trusted counsel to help you with things like this, I advise you build that group NOW. I promise you won’t regret it.
That’s it for today. I hope you all are well. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.
Happy Monday friends! Another week full of potential lays before us. I’m so excited to embrace every day of this new year. I hope you all feel the same energy that I’ve been feeling; it’s a feeling of excitement and possibility. I love this time of year!
Recently, I’ve been really enjoying podcasts and Clubhouse. I love listening to different topics as I cook, clean, write, and do other things around the house. One of my favorite podcasts is Law of Attraction Changed My Life, hosted by Francesca Amber. I used to faithfully watch Francesca’s videos when she was on YouTube, but she stopped making new content a while ago. By chance, I visited her YT channel and saw that she’d made a video, announcing her change from vlogging to podcasting.
I promptly found her podcast, and spent the next two days binge listening to her content. (Disclaimer: her podcast does contain profanity. It isn’t an issue for me, but I want to at least put that out there so that there aren’t any surprises) Her January 1st episode had some great tips for actualizing your goals for 2021. I recommend that you listen to that episode for details, but in the next few days, I’ll share how I applied her advice as respects my own goals for the year.
One of the greatest takeaways from her podcast was to outline the first three steps required for each of my goals. I love practical, easy-to-implement advice like this. So, as I stated before, later this week I will share my first three steps for each of the goals that I mentioned last week.
Do you have any tips for reaching your 2021 goals? Let me know in the comments below!
Bronze Butterfly 