Poetry is tricky. It’s more of an art form of painting words together in such a profound way it becomes someone else’s quote when they post something.
Post something. Not say it. Do you ever wonder if how you tell a story stays best consumed in the platform from which it was created? What if stories you type tend to always stay typed…and copied and pasted.
Is that why the movie is rarely ever if at all better than the book it was inspired from. Perhaps its why there’s such a cross-cultural appreciation of rap music because it takes a poem and is able to transcend over to being sung by people of all ages and demographics. Even pop country raps now and I’m not complain’ I’m just saying. If you like it, great. Some is catchy. Good job Billy Ray and Nas.
Anyway.
Movies don’t become books. At least I don’t think so. I would love to have a Jamie like Joe Rogan does.
I love writing because it’s a quiet, therapeutic time for me to allow thoughts inside of my crowded mind to get out and become documented so I can check the box on it leaving my mind as a tab and becoming a bookmark instead.
It also saves a dear soul from having to listen to me ramble on and on if they show interest in my lucid thought chain.
I took today off.
Within 36 hours notice I told myself and those it effects that I am because it works out that I can and you know where to find me.
I could, so I did. I appreciate anyone who does. Go for it. Undisrupted pockets of self time are crucial to the mental health of everyone – pre media life suck pandemic division world of upside down even.
They call it self care but I think that sounds cheesy and society already has this invisible shun bumble for people who say they need that.
I rename it clean up day.
Everyone should and deserves a clean up day when it’s possible and not infringing or disrupting anything to others who need them too. ‘Cause you know. You see.
I get excited when someone I see figures out one. Or even half ones here and there.
I am ‘off’ today. Sure the phone could ring, but all and all my obligations of livelihood and honor are offline and it’s me time. What does me want to do? Kids sleep til noon. Highschool has officially become a second shift job that they do in between their second shift work days.
Hubs is at work.
So what to do when your off?
Clean up day.
I started by getting up on usual time and having the morning routine while getting him to open that bottle of champagne before he leaves.
Orange juice expired 12 days ago. Hmmm…. Sniff. Nah… a little too sour sketch for me.
I had ‘get milk, extension cord and dog food’ already written in my brain of my off day activities.
So I decided to go to Kroger when I’d normally leave for work and since I was going that way and it’s freezing tonight and for a while, I’d go to the car wash place near it that I’m approved to use. The cool one apparently scuffs my newer badass mom van. It really is. Roadtrip dream actually. No bragging.
That threw off my plan.
I figured, there’s a long to-do wishlist of personal and professional goals that I can act upon today yet only a mere 9 hours to do so before the pocket of me time slips away.
Although it does happen to slip away into our multi-years standing Wednesday night get together with our BFFs for a date night.
Always a great time and break so we don’t usually break them unless family stuff happens or work stuff.
Anyway. It’s going to be a great day regardless because I clean up a lot of to-dos in my head but I feel like to be absolutely effective I should only pick two and give half of each daypart to it.
Sidestory – when I was at Kroger, it was 8:10 because I spent more than 15 minutes spray washing my bad ass van in the car wash bay and the closed indoor bar that is now a display shelf (sadface) had guys wrapped around it on tape sixer floors waiting for the liquor store to open.
By the way – Ohio – talk to Iowa. Anyone can sell liquor there. Gas stations, HyVees, Fareways, COSTCO….etc. And it’s like a scavenger hunt when we go home to visit family. And stock up on the Kirkland grey goose version of Vodka. I hear the tequila is good too.
You stop at a Caseys and you never know… you could find a honey hole of Crown Peach. Hell, I found Buffalo Trace on the top shelf of a Rite-Aid in West Virginia.
Talk about supporting the regional economy.
Anyway. Back to my day off.
So I ask the nice looks-like-my-dad-would-like-him guy with a nice veteran mask and Vietnam hat who’s front and center of the lingering 10 guys and a nice wife or two line what they’re waiting for.
The shop opens at 9, so they’ve clearly been there a while. I’m guessing he got the pole position at 7:30.
Food for thought gentlemen and kind wives.
Although I’d do it for myself. I have acquired a taste for it and replace it here and there on my red wine evenings or rational moderation.
I made my way to the frozen pizza section or nearly half away from the corner end event happening amongst the beer and wine public area next to those glass locked doors in the built in high end wood shelving of wines.
It felt like I was a young doe eyed reporter asking the celebrity at the end of my microphone what the whole hub bub is about right now.
“There’s a bourbon release today.”
Gentlemen clearly younger than me in the bandana two X’s back leans out of the line to add in, “The shipments arrive on Wednesday.”
Bless their hearts. These silly masks hide so much. Like the clear fact that this ain’t my first rodeo and when I pulled in to the parking lot and realized it was Wednesday morning I got excited and thought, oooh! I might be able to get Wellers green or Buffalo or dare I say…. “Blanton’s?” out of pure curiosity at this point. We only hear tales.
I let them know I realize that, I was just curious what bottles. Yes. It was Blanton’s and Buffalo trace and their cheap version, Weller’s.
Funny story, in a late-night challenge of shot glass/ice cube challenge of blacked out identity – Weller’s beat Buffalo Trace. They asked me again and again if I was really sure I had remembered which glass I put which one in… yep. Weller’s in the GOT dragon glasses and Buffalo Trace in the Gatlinburg TN name ones we bought on our last family mountain trip with bald eagles in the picture for ‘Merica and Buffaloes.
Yep.
Weller’s won.
So I clarify my masked projected question now that I’m talking to two dues more than twelve feet apart by X levels.
By the way, while I type this…my Mark texted that his nephew’s friend was 6th in line and he got there at 7 am. So my projection was off however if I decided to try that would be a safe time as they receive 2 cases. The odds are in your favor.
By the time I was at that frozen pizza section, I remembered Mark was out of simple syrup to make our own old fashioneds thanks to our daughter sending him a Mixology wooden set and it’s cool to stop getting the pre mix. Yes, I admitted it.
I muddle now.
Top class.
I would’ve waited… but it’s my day off. If I go get that syrup and there’s no growth in line…I’ll join. But it’s not how I planned the first half of my day off.
I need to get home. So at 8:32 to go back the half of more than ten aisles to get to that side of this jauggernaut store that you can now only exit or enter on one half of the entry/exit points. So dangerous in the parking lot. Whoa.
Google how many people have been run over in parking lots. Funny not funny.
The line has now grown more than triple and is almost out of the beer wine area just off the deli bar section and is now tickling up against the dishtowels and bakeware aisles that transition you into the grocery part of the experience.
I had to ‘excuse me to myself in the mask X world that has far bypassed the Xs yet somehow the trained brains know what six feet is and don’t need to play twister to figure out where to land.
I had to break through three lanes of the chain knot line to get to the syrup and no…I ain’t cutting in line.
So I get home and carry in the groceries that started out milk and orange juice and turned in to $210 of everything else so I don’t need to come back until after Christmas I hope.
And they had that game Blokus. I bought it. Been looking for that since playing it with my grandson, daughter and mom in Iowa last year. Making Mark and the boys play with me for Christmas. Haha. I get one shot to tie them in to like it or not.
We could play it every now and then or add it to the cupboard of graveyard games you may ask for some day.
So my day off or clean up day is now 8 hours. And counting.
I have things I want to do personally and professionally for my own satisfaction of completion and optimism of success and worth my time.
I have goals I want/need/should do that will help calm my brain of constant, constant reeling of thoughts tied together and some is good. Some isn’t and needs to just stop running.
It’s a chore I want to solve so I can get to the pockets of calm I know I can have to get my rhythms in sync on mental, physical, emotional, financial and spiritual areas of existence.
So we add stuff up in our heads of wishlists to accomplish without necessarily managing all of the areas effected and project priority.
I have half day bites at:
My personal business, marketing/strategy/social ownership of it
Ideas for more personal business, I think they would work
Laundry
Hobbies
Nice dinner, I am home afterall and have everything for a roast – sidestory to Pampered Chef. I love the Rock Crock concept but I bur my fingers every time.
Writing and sharing stories
Watching Sunday’s homily, I’ve started Catholism classes and need to watch it before Thursday
Put all these groceries away
Cleaning out unused furniture for new story wall ideas to share later
Wrapping gifts
I’ve decided my two hunks of the day with the rest of the day being on the personal business that was launched this summer.
Have you ever thought something was a great idea and would be successful but you didn’t have the two means – time or money – to pursue it?
I want to eliminate that excuse and try things for myself. I’ve had a nice, long journey story into the industry of influence for sales world and I do not have any pintpointed reasons as to why just that I listen, work hard, think harder and try to stay who I am at all costs and not buy in to the corporate world.
Why can’t you do well for yourself and your family and the community and not sell out for the bottom line? It’s possible.
So I want to prove it to myself, too. I can only get so far and wonder if I’m crazy or this really does trickle down from the top 5% that do what they do to influence us all to go along if we want financial freedom without buying the book or training session.
I gotta prioritize and find out for ourselves if what I’ve been saying to myself in my mind can translate to externally where other people can see it.
So I came home.
Turned on the Alexa mike so she could hear me. We leave it off now that it sounds like it’s all connected to the bigger research lab project to know us better that we know ourselves to construct that next sales piece through the media that engages with you and your pocketbook or voter station.
I had her play 80’s love songs for me. As I listen and sway to the tender song by Billy Ocean called Suddenly, I realize it’s 10:55 and you can only guess what I chose my first half to be?
I hope you enjoyed my morning story.
I’m going to get the laundry started. Put the rest of the groceries away that weren’t needing to be cold, put some desk chairs to the curb and then dig in and push myself to get this venture off the ground for a little more freedom.
What is freedom in a paycheck world, anyway?
Running your own business takes even more discipline than just showing up every day or doing what your told. You don’t eliminate obligation.
Is it the gold mine search of today where if you just get enough followers, likes, shares that you can get ad play funds or if you can get online sales and five star reviews you can be set, too?
Yes. And No.
I’m wanting a company to be successful to 1. Solve a problem for people that they appreciate 2. Creating a sustainable income for my family on my own 3. See if I can stay HR compliant and have an awesome, happy team that likes the partnership agreements to grow it 4. Make enough income to help more great people start companies they dream about because they’re great ideas.
You may wonder how I spent the first half.
Feeling a lot better and already successful with the clean up I much needed.
My self is thankful and grateful for days like this and for the days that aren’t and you add value to where you must go.
Thanks for reading.
Heather
Excuse me while I block dance some Chaka Khan I feel for you jam
