Rae Roy's Blog, page 34

Symphonic Saturday – A Musical Experience

[image error]A man went on Georgia’s Got Talent and gave the entire room an experience they’re not likely to soon forget.

Watch it here.

Happy Labour Day Weekend!

R~

 

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Frisky Friday – What Goes Around…

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*Someone* likes sending naughty messages and making it difficult for me to concentrate on work. Every. Damn. Day.

I suppose I’ve suggested people do this to their significant others on numerous occasions, so I’m simply getting a taste of my own medicine, right?

T.G.I.F.

I’m not sure what’s in store this weekend, but looking forward to it. Maybe a concert or several movies and cuddling. Hopefully some writing

Make-It Monday – Simply Being

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Lately, I’m going with the flow. It takes a little extra work to achieve goals while doing so, but I think it may be good for me. Instead of making everything I do into a big deal, I simplify it.

As far as decluttering goes, this means that I gradually gather a few items and leave them by the door. When I’m ready to go out somewhere, I put them in the car and just slot the drop off into the rest of my plans. This way it’s not a giant all day event and I get to feel a little less burdened by excess. Some may prefer getting it all done in one day, but I find it exhausting and a system shock.

In writing terms, I mostly let rejection roll off of me. I acknowledge it enough to think about whether or not I need to improve a specific skill, but I don’t get upset that I didn’t make it into an anthology. In fact, I may think about creating my own anthology instead. If so, it will likely be electronic only since they typically don’t sell as well as other books do.

Of course, it’s a little harder to go with the flow if you know there is a critical reason to exercise patience. There can be good reasons to apply brakes.

There is also a lot of good going on in my life right now that I cannot see the steps ahead for as few have walked such a path.

Simply being, to me, doesn’t mean bopping along mindlessly without employing caution and reason. This is where my planning background can come in handy. I can think about several possible scenarios in preparation for what might come next, but I must realize that being too attached to any particular outcome would be harmful in some way.

Simply being allows one the flexibility to be fully present. This is mindfulness and it is a great way to manage stress levels. One can get the most out of each moment of every day.

All that said, I do have some exciting things going on. I have made it to the next round in the 2018 Screencraft Horror contest, which makes me a quarterfinalist!

I’m also starting my third week of a new job that I’m enjoying. My coworkers are friendly and helpful.

And I’m feeling extra blessed because I have a new friend who just wants me to be more me. As a result, I’ll be uploading my full South Park episode script soon instead of just an excerpt. Why didn’t I before? Well, I suppose I thought an employer may read it and pass on me because it’s pretty out there…

And I’ve been making progress on my living room. Some parts aren’t turning out nearly as well as I’d like, but they seem to be the best I can currently do and I’m choosing to accept them and move on.

Anyway, with all the excitement and a reno plodding along, I’ve been pretty absent the last couple of weeks. I’m finding the new groove though, so expect to hear from me more often again.

R~

Frisky Friday – Summer Heat

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I haven’t dropped off the planet. I’ve been quite busy between a new job and trying to get my place fixed up.

I also have a new man in my life who’s weird in all the right ways. He’s romantic and treats me really well. I’m sure I’ll eventually post about it in more detail, but for right now I’m savouring the time we spend together and wanting to keep him to myself a bit

Warrior Wednesday – Teaching

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There is a lot of change going on in my life recently. Not only have I started a new job, but I’ve started teaching my first student with the blessing of my sensei. I didn’t go searching for it; it found me.

Teaching is interesting. Right now, I feel like I’m just trying to figure out what works best for this student. But it challenges me in a way that other training doesn’t. I have to try to remember what it was like when everything was new for me.

I don’t believe in a one-size fits all approach. Each student has different challenges. I have trouble with my posture from playing roller derby and problems with my ankles too. I also need more frequent water breaks than most people.

Some are dealing with different injuries. Others have trouble focusing. Vision, hearing, spatial, and many more things can make the journey different for someone else. Some want to do as much as possible quickly. Others are more than happy to do one kata for a long time.

But beyond challenging me to try different ways to get the information through, interacting with him is enriching my life in other ways as he is also a writer and musician though in different ways from me. His worldview is different enough that it makes me check my own, but similar enough that I can jive with it.

We’re taking it pretty slow. I pull some ideas out from my karate days and from the other senseis I’ve had along the way.

It’s pretty hard at times. I’ll look at how he’s doing something, know it’s off, but have difficulty figuring out exactly how it is wrong. I guess that’s part of the whole point though. It’s forcing me to learn it all at a higher level.

R~

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Make-It Monday – My First Day

[image error]Today I rejoined the office worker lifestyle. It has been two years since I last worked for someone else, so it was quite a big day for me. First days are often a mixed bag emotionally.

Things I felt today:

1. Anxiety: No matter how much I tried to prepare yesterday, there was always something this morning of that didn’t go the way it should.

2. Eagerness: I was ready and raring to jump in and get things done.

3. Frustration: Some things weren’t quite set up for me yet, so I couldn’t do all the things that are part of my role. That’s a typical first day thing.

4. Tiredness: I tried taking a brief nap after work, but no go. It’s always a challenge to switch from the #writer schedule to a regular one…

5. Happy: The people were really nice and I’m grateful to be part of a wonderful group of people.

6. Sore: I have a little blister on my one heel, but thankfully I was smart enough to pack large bandaids, so it’s not nearly as bad as it could be.

7. Relief: It’s been awhile since I had a full work day, so I’m happy I was able to survive it.

8. Hope: I’m looking forward to this new chapter and whatever else it brings.

9. Overwhelmed: I learned a lot of things today, but some I couldn’t apply or fully understand yet. I bet in a couple of weeks or months it’ll be second nature.

10. Hungry: I must go eat all the things.

11. Stressed: I must do laundry and make my lunches for the rest of the week instead of just relaxing tonight. But I can probably do laundry while watching a movie…

12. Unburdened: There is a part of me that feels like everything is going to improve from here on.

Goals Update

Many of my goals are on pause this week while I get used to my new routine. It’s just too much otherwise. I’ll probably still plug away at some things, but not as intensely as I usually would.

R~

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Frisky Friday – Dating Challenges

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So I didn’t know what to write about today. I’ve been a little busy to think about sex at all. Then I came across this article about a man who tricked women into having sex with him. The catch? He doesn’t have a penis.

You might be wondering how they didn’t notice. Well, he never let them see him naked. They always did in in the dark and otherwise they could only touch him with his clothes on. And he used objects to penetrate them. The objects weren’t comfortable for the women most times. They said it hurt to have sex with them and just figured he didn’t know what he was doing.

As you might expect, he’s now on the Sex Offender Registry. Why? Because they consented to having sex, not penetration with an object.

Anyway, I’m thinking things could’ve gone so differently. Instead of outright lying like that, he could’ve given them oral. He could’ve done a damn good job of it. Then he could come clean about his issue and see if they were willing to try things out with a strap on.

Sure, some would’ve rejected it, but he wouldn’t likely be on the SOR.

Here’s the article if you want to read about the strange case.

Dating is scary these days.

Bottom line is that we all have emotional baggage and other life challenges. It doesn’t have to be a deal breaker. Just communicate and see how that goes? There’s undoubtedly someone out there who wouldn’t care he doesn’t have a penis.

R~

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Warrior Wednesday – Updates

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Natsu Matsuri 2018

It was a soggy day, so the event was moved inside this year. Though it was a little more cozy in the smaller space, it was a success.

My dojo was the opening group of performers and I was leading my portion, which was scary. I can’t recall if I ever heard my sword, or if my heart was simply beating too loud to hear it.

Because we were first up, I got to relax and enjoy most of the day. The booming drums of Oto-wa Taiko were even more amazing than usual. The dancing was more difficult to participate in as it became very challenging to figure out who actually knew the dance you were supposed to follow along with. I didn’t buy much for food as most items had ingredients I couldn’t have or all Japanese labels where I couldn’t tell what I might be eating.

Training in July

I always struggle with martial arts in July. It gets too warm for me in the dojo. I dehydrate easily during this month. I always look forward to the fall when it cools down, so I can train more. I wish they’d get an air conditioner, but the people who own our practice space love the over 40 Celsius days it seems.

Taekwondo

I’m looking forward to joining taekwondo. I haven’t set a time for it yet. I was originally thinking half way through August, but that might not be financially reasonable and perhaps I should wait until half way through September. Why half way through? They have a 2-week deal where starting is discounted and comes with an outfit.

It makes sense to me to have my payment schedule close to the beginning of the month, though if I think about it more, I may think it better to have it in the other half of the month. I’ll be combing through the finances soon to see what is best. Many of my current payments are twice a month, so it might not matter.

Yes, I just said I’m struggling with the training I have now and it probably seems silly to be adding more on top, but I believe the cardio aspects of tkd and the different muscle groups used will help me handle more.

Battle on the Home Front

I’m still decluttering and expect I will be fore quite some time yet, but it’s getting better. I now have a pretty nice space in my bedroom for all things music. It looks so slick. I’ll post pictures soon

Make-It Monday – Marketing

[image error]I missed Shark Week

Warrior Wednesday – Aims

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I’m taking a self-directed literary course to improve a certain aspect of my writing. It brings up the continual battle between writers who want to portray the world realistically as it currently is versus writers who want to portray the world as they would like it to be. This has been going on for more than a century actually.

It’s an idea that I think bleeds into everything else. It may even be one of the reasons why so many are quick to believe fake news over scary truths.

In terms of martial arts, the battle is often between those who practice more theoretical arts versus those who practice more sport style with competitions that regularly test your mettle, though not as they would have hundreds of years ago. In the old days, death was a common outcome for the weaker party.

Many of the writers I know hope to change the world by writing it as it could be. A problem I can see is that it can be hard for people to read something that is a blatant lie. For others, they love the chance to retreat from the horrors in their everyday. Many of the realistic works are more pessimistic than my own experience of the world, which can be helpful in promoting a feeling of gratefulness about where things are at versus how bad they could be.

I know a lot of people who wonder the point of learning a martial art that won’t prepare you for a street fight. The thing is, most people I know doing the main art I do, didn’t start there and many of us do other arts as well. I went to blue belt in karate and did some jiu-jitsu long before I found iaido. I’m planning to try taekwondo when I have the funds for that, because I think you need both hand-to-hand and some more theoretical arts to get everything you should from ‘the way’ today. It’s a mistake to think that all people who do an art like iaido can’t defend themselves.

Does focusing on how you would like something to be make it more likely for it to become reality? Sometimes. One of the often touted keys to success is visualizing where you want to be. The thing is, you can’t just live in a dream world. You must take actions that will get you there. If I keep seeing how lovely my living room is going to look in my head and do nothing to move it from where it is to where I want it, it won’t ever become that nice place I see in my head.

At the same time, changes take time for people to get used to. One can’t just force things. Part of me would love someone to do one of those home makeovers in my condo. The rest would be wondering where all the paper and stuff I need to go through went because I know probably half of it needs to be digitized and kept rather than thrown out. Sometimes doing it yourself and going slowly is the way to get something done properly.

And many goals take a lot of time to achieve them. Some novels take a decade to write. Others a few months. Fitness goals can take a long time too. The body doesn’t magically become fit overnight. I know my glutes suck right now. My quads are stronger than my glutes. This is causing an imbalance, which when combined with tight hip flexors means my posture is in trouble. Both of those things are because I sit a lot as a writer and office worker. I have a plan involving my soon to arrive space gym I backed on Kickstarter two years ago, taekwondo, and maybe a small piece of equipment like a stepper to reduce my seated time while watching the things I need to for my career and not taking up tons of space I don’t have in my small condo.

All of that takes money I don’t have to spare right now except the space gym, but I know what I will be working toward when I do have the funds. Having a direction is important.

I think that in everything one must decide who they want to be. For me, I prefer the balanced centrist path. I don’t think it benefits me to create works which ignore reality, but I also don’t think my place is to write stories so out of touch that they ignore important issues. I know only practicing a predominantly theory based martial art is never going to help me achieve the level of fitness I want and I know it won’t help me pursue my other goals. How do I know? Years of karate followed by around a year of roller derby have put me in tune with my body. Hell, iaido was my cool-down exercise when I was doing roller derby. I’d work hard skating and using every muscle in my body for three hours, then do all the lunges and such that are inherent in iai right after.

Back to learning more about writing.

R~

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