Day 1677: Moving On

Last night, several people who were moving on to important issues in my therapy group decided to focus on the topic of “Moving On.”

Moving on to words  I shared in that group about “Moving On” …

As I mentioned there, my friend Jan is moving on to a new place. Yesterday, I was moved to witness people’s reactions to Jan’s moving on.

While I said “Hip Hip Hooray” to Jan’s happiness about moving on, I and several other people were moved to tears when we said goodbye to Jan.

Moving on to other photos I took yesterday …

That last photo shows how somebody was moving on to charging people for unsolicited opinions and advice.

Moving on to some music about “Moving On” …

 

Thanks to all those whose moving on inspired today’s post and — of course! — to you, for moving on, here and now.

Day 308: Transitional Images (and Idioms)

Dear readers,

I’m working on some transitions here, including:

1. the transition from October to November and, therefore,
2. the transition to colder weather.

Also, we set the clocks back over the weekend, and that always seems to have an effect on me.

So, to celebrate transitions, I am going to post some photos I’ve take recently, that I haven’t used yet!

This reminds me of the idiom

Killing two birds with one stone

… but I’m not crazy about idioms that involve harming animals, these days.  For example, I’ve also stopped saying

There’s more than one way to skin a cat

…. even though I think that’s a helpful concept, too.

Anyway, where was I?

Oh, yes!  Here are some transitional images, for my blog post today:

Two weeks ago, my son and I visited a wonderful costume company, in Arlington Center:

My son was planning his Halloween costume (he dressed up as Walter White, from “Breaking Bad”) and he was looking for ways  he could look more like this:

While we didn’t buy anything that day, we found some amazing stuff at The Costume Company:

Toni, whom I hope you can see (on the right in the last photo), said that many of the items at the Costume Company are one-of-a-kind.  She told us a story about that beautiful Marie-Antoinette-type costume, shown above in their promotional postcard:  A copy of that original costume, which was shared on the internet, showed up in a music video, without attribution.  We all agreed that once you put something excellent out there, it’s difficult to prevent people from copying it.

Let’s see if I have any other Halloween-related images to show you ….

Not really, I guess I was too caught up in other things, last month.

Although here is an image of Captain Kirk, from Star Trek, dressed up as an umpire, which was posted in a window:

Okay!  It’s time to leave October behind, pictorially.

Here are some photos I took last night, to help me transition into what’s ahead:

Oooops!  I guess that’s still a throw-back to October.

Let me try again:

That’s more like it!  That tells us that Thanksgiving is coming, soon, to these parts.

Here’s the last photo I took last night:

Arrrghhh!!  Too much of a transition, too soon,  for me  right now.

Although, I will end with this: Michael (my bf) pointed out, last night, how much I enjoy all the colorful lights, as winter takes hold.

Those DO help, for sure.

Okay!

Thanks to thefreedictionary,com, The Costume Company, “Breaking Bad,” Star Trek,” my son, Michael,  masqueraders everywhere, people going through transitions of any kind, and to you — of course! — for visiting today.

Day 213: Transitions, Part 2

I am about to go out on a two-week vacation from work.

This is the first time, in perhaps decades, where I have taken that much time away from a current job. (I’ve taken two weeks between jobs, but that’s different.)

I have two more days to get things at work in “good enough” shape before I leave for two whole weeks.

My urge, when I woke up this morning, was to write about transitions.

Based on what I’ve been learning about myself this year (and, also, because of my good -enough memory), I was pretty sure that I had written about the topic of transitions before I went out on my most recent, one-week vacation three months ago (in May).

I checked The Blog Archives here and, sure enough, I wrote a post called, “Transitions,” the day before I left for vacation.

Coincidence?  I think not.

Maybe, this time around, I’m writing about the same topic a day earlier because (1) my vacation, this time, will be twice as long, (2) I’m wiser about how important transitions are, and/or (3) I’m wiser about how naming any source of anxiety can help relieve it, so why wait another day?

And, by the way, it helped me, today, to read that previous post about transitions, especially these resolutions, at the end:

1. I will do the best I can today,

2. I will not be perfect in doing all the things I am supposed to do to prepare for this transition, and

3. I will be doing well for myself  (and for other people), if I can remember # 1 and #2.

So what else do I want to say, right now, that would be helpful for (1) me, definitely and (2) readers, perhaps?

These things:

1. Transitions — and change, in general — can cause anxiety.
2. Anxiety isn’t always a problem.  There is such a thing as “healthy anxiety,” which reflects excitement and hope.
3. We can learn to let go of unhelpful thoughts (including cognitive distortions) which can increase anxiety, in painful way.
4. The main unhelpful thought I would like to let go of today is: “I HAVE to take care of (fill in task) before I leave on vacation, or else people will feel (disappointed, disconnected, or otherwise dissed). (This seems to be an automatic combo-plate-of-mind-reading-and-fortune-telling thought of mine.)
5. There is no fifth thing. Four things are enough, for now.

As is my wont whilst creating these blog posts, I would like to include an audio/visual aid (for the benefit of me, definitely, and my audience, perhaps).

Today’s presentation is ….two communities of creatures (observed last night, at a local pet store):

And while those chinchillas and finches are stuck, for now, in less than ideal — and perhaps painful — ways of being, I’ve got to hope that (1) better days are ahead for them and (2) they appreciate having each other.

Thanks to creatures who are doing their best, everywhere (and you, for reading).

Day 123: Transitions

Some people find it more challenging than others to change, to transition from one state to another. I know that’s true. I’ve also observed, in my many years on this planet, that change is challenging for all of us.

Here’s some proof that I’ve been here for a while:

 

(Photo taken on Groundhog Day, 2/2/13).

The above is also proof that (1) I’m too busy and (2) I haven’t gotten used to switching from Windows to the World of Apple, since it took me so friggin’ long to get the pictures of my birthday party (taken by the wonderful Carol)  onto my computer.

I’m looking at that picture now, and realizing that it’s also proof that (1) I like chocolate, (2) the word “like” doesn’t even come close to approximating my feelings about chocolate, and (3) I like using exclamation points (to express joy).  I’m also remembering that I was soooo tired during that party (because — surprise! — I had trouble sleeping the night before) and so worried that I would lose track of those two candles I’d bought (I mean, I didn’t want to destroy that beautiful frosting with 61 candles, people!), that I made sure to put them in a safe place, so that I could easily retrieve them when I needed them, and then — of course! — I couldn’t find them when it was Cake Time.

But since the candles ARE in the picture, the picture is also proof of this:  I may get anxious from fear of making mistakes (especially when I’m tired) and I may lose things temporarily, but I usually find them in time (even if people have to wait a few minutes, which they probably don’t mind doing).

Wow!  I’m learning a lot, even now, just looking at that picture.

Of course, when I first started writing this post, I had another point in mind. (I pretty much always have another point in mind when I start writing a post.) The picture — which I’ve now riffed about for several paragraphs — was just some data for a claim I was making:  that I’ve lived long enough on this planet to have some wisdom and experience. (Using the photograph is also an illustration that I respect my son’s opinion, since he told me, after I published this pictorial essay, that I had finally reached my stride as a blogger.)  (That post my son likes?  I like it, too.)

Question to self:  So, Ann, what WAS your point, when you first starting writing this post, on this fine morning?

Answer: I am about to go on vacation for a week. And even a “good” transition like that — which I certainly am welcoming right now — is causing me some anxiety.

It helped me to name that anxiety, right now, dear reader.

So now, I can gather my wits, my breakfast, my other morning necessities, my headphones, my lunch, and my son and leave for work,  knowing that:

1. I will do the best I can today,
2. I will not be perfect in doing all the things I am supposed to do to prepare for this transition, and
3. I will be doing well for myself  (and for other people), if I can remember # 1 and #2.

I mean, I may lose track of those truths — just like I lost track of the candles for my birthday cake — but I know now that I’ll find them again.

Thanks for reading, everybody.