July 1, 2009 @ 10:26 am | by spxds

7 Tried-and-True Ways to Block Your Creativity
by Christine Kane

“I’m totally blocked.”

“I’m not creative.”

“I can’t even begin to work on all these ideas I get.”

These statements have one thing in common.

They’re all totally false.

Like it or not. You ARE creative. You have no choice but to be creative. It’s your nature!

Yea yea yea. I know. It’s WAY uncool of me to point that out.

After all, if you’re really truly creative, then [gasp!] you might actually have to do something about it! Who wants that?

Some people spend years perfecting the art of stuffing down their creative impulses, convincing themselves of their lack of talent and ideas.

How do they do it?

Well, let me show you the way! I’ve been there a time or two. And here are seven of my Tried-and-True Ways to Block Your Creativity…

(more…)

June 23, 2009 @ 3:50 pm | by spxds

I’m still around, but have been doing a lot lately. Just this past week it had was two years since the “wreck” So instead of staying home T and I traveled to visit some of my dad’s family, since that’s the only closest family I have now. Most of my mom’s family is scattered throughout the US. It’s hard to take short trips to go visit them, since most now are living on or near the west coast or the middle of the US.

Ok enough backlog lol….I got to visit with some family I have not seen in about a year, which was good. While visiting with my family, T and I was able to get out and do a little shopping too.

Both of us picked up a new pair of Crocs at the Crocs’ outlet store, I got some chocolate goodies from Harry and David and even on the way home we stopped by Streets of SouthPoint to check out the Kid Robot Toys that Urban Outfitters had and of course the Apple Store too.

Then after getting home Thursday we decided to head up to the camper for the weekend. We left friday after T’s Dr. Appt.  to head to the camper. I had a great time disconnecting since there was no cell, landline or Internet service around the campground.  Then on saturday after breakfast we headed out to Mount Mitchell to walk/hike to the top to see the new tower. Once we got parked the weather changed from almost 90 to 60 with overcast skies. Plus the wind was blowing about 30MPH. A little chilly by the time we got to the top.

Despite it being  the two year anniversary and Fathers day weekend, I was able to have fun and get my mind off of things.

June 10, 2009 @ 11:09 pm | by spxds

So I just upgraded the blog to 2.8 of Wordpress, which was simple enough to do. I hope I can finally finish and launch the new long awaited design for the blog. It’s been a long time coming.

May 24, 2009 @ 9:38 am | by spxds

Has been a long weekend since Memorial Day on Monday and most of the US has that day off. Tomorrow (despite the rain here), will be filled with cookouts and family outings. I always enjoy Memorial Day as kid, because I knew school would be out soon for summer.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Memorial Day.

(via Wikipedia)”Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May (May 25 in 2009). Formerly known as Decoration Day, it commemorates U.S. men and women who died while in the military service. First enacted to honor Union soldiers of the American Civil War (it is celebrated near the day of reunification after the civil war), it was expanded after World War I to include American casualties of any war or military action.”

May 23, 2009 @ 3:18 am | by spxds

Lately, for me I’ve been on a weird sleeping schedule. I’m either on GMT or PST time zone. Which if I were to fly to either to the West Coast or to London I would not have much jet lag at all, which is good I guess. I have always been a night owl anyhow, and feel more “alive & focused” at night. Plus lately I have been working on a couple of time sensitive projects, which I worked on a lot during the early morning hours. I have found working “3rd shift” helps when working on projects with tight deadlines, since during that time of the day it’s less distraction for me.

May 20, 2009 @ 12:22 am | by spxds

Top 10 Bodacious Ways to Be Nice to Yourself
by Christine Kane

Just as there was a time when “google” was not a verb, there was also a time when “bodacious” was not a word. Bodacious is a blend of “bold” and “audacious” created in British English dialect late in the nineteenth century.

Still, I’m glad it was created! Some days we need to be bodacious! And some days, we need to remember to apply it to how kindly we treat ourselves. Trust me: You’ll thrive tomorrow because of today’s kindness.

Here are my top 10 bodacious ways to be nice to yourself:

1- Flowers!

This is so simple – and yet so powerful! Fresh flowers beautify any space. I always have an orchid on my coffee table. I see it the minute I walk in the door, and it reminds me to take a deep breath and cherish the beauty of my life. Have a Sunday practice of getting fresh flowers to get your week off to a bodacious start!

2 – Take a nap

Favorite thing: I climb into bed for a nap in the middle of the day. Within minutes comes the soft ploop of cat paws on the cover. I can hear the cat thoughts: Hmm. The human has decided to lie quietly. I’d like to take part. Then the paws walk all around me until they find the very best spot for settling.

Cats know the truth: Naps are bodacious!

3 – Pay full price

The amount of energy we waste on trying to get “deals” is often not worth it. If you see something you love, then get it. I’m convinced that we’d all be so much happier and wealthier if we just got exactly what we loved without looking at price tags and wasting time looking for sales. (We’d probably have much less stuff too!)

4 – Trampolines and swings.

I was at a cocktail party last year. The adults were up on the deck watching the kids jump on the trampoline. At one point, all the kids ran inside. I kicked off my shoes and ran for the trampoline. Three other women joined me. We laughed and jumped for about 15 minutes. It was the most fun I’d had that week.

Swings are fun, too. And they’re easy to find! Who cares if you look or feel stupid? Being an adult doesn’t have to mean being boring!

5 – Truncate your To-Do’s.

How many items are on your to-do list today?

32?

20?

67?

A day should have no more than two or three mission-critical priorities for completion. The rest are extra credit! Giving yourself the gift of completion is the ultimate self-kindness.

6 – Order out.

I love preparing meals. But some nights, it’s just necessary to let someone else do the cooking. We have a great delivery service in our town. I don’t mind the extra expense if it allows me a night of no clean up, and a little extra time to write or just be with my husband.

7 – Take a long walk with your dog.

Are you one of those people who gets home from work and marches your dog around the block with a grim look on your face? (Another to-do item checked off the list!)

Try this: Take your dog for a long happy walk. Revel in the delight and presence of your dog. It will absolutely lift your spirits.

8 – Go on a retreat.

Many of the women who come to my Unstoppable Power of Intention Retreats show up frazzled and nervous. They’ve never done something so bodacious in their lives! They leave refreshed and renewed. One woman hugged me as she was about to drive away from the March retreat and she said, “This was the best money I’ve ever spent on myself.”

It doesn’t have to be one of my retreats, of course. (Though they are pretty great! And the October retreat is already half-full!) You can search google for all kinds of bodacious retreat getaways in your area.

9 – Read for fun.

Do you relish your days on the beach because it’s the only time you’ll allow yourself the joy of a trashy novel or some “light” reading?

Why not get a little bodacious and bring the beach to your work-week? Curl up at night and get lost in some fun fiction.

10 – Step AWAY from the computer. (And the phone.)

Everyone needs a break from social media and blogs and email. (Yes, even this e-Zine!) Don’t include your computer in any of the above activities. And turn off your phone, too! I promise, your computer and phone won’t take it personally! (Neither will this e-Zine!)

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE?

Please do! Just be sure to include this complete blurb with it:

Performer, songwriter, and creativity consultant Christine Kane publishes her ‘LiveCreative’ weekly ezine with more than 4,000 subscribers. If you want to be the artist of your life and create authentic and lasting success, you can sign up for a FRE*E subscription to LiveCreative at www.christinekane.com.

WANT TO SEE HUNDREDS MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS ONE?
See Christine’s blog – Be Creative. Be Conscious. Be Courageous – at ChristineKane.com/blog.

May 14, 2009 @ 2:57 pm | by spxds

This week is flying past. Sunday was Mother’s day and this was the 2nd year without my Mom. All holidays are hard to get through, but I’m finding that I focus on having fun on Holidays helps me get through the day. This Mother’s day was like no other Adventure Sunday for us. We stopped by my parents grave then went onward to have a fun filled evening in Charlotte. We went to a few places around Pineville and Charlotte and ended up in Uptown Charlotte at Trader Joe’s picking up a few things and then heading off to our new favorite French Bakery Amelies’s in NoDa for another late night snack. T had the Portabella Mushroom & leek Tartines and I had a buttered croissant. I also got one of their gourmet cherry sodas. The food and soda was excellent. Before that night I had never heard of Sprecher sodas, but after doing some research they are a local brewery in WI and they also make a wide selection of sodas and beers. Just wish they had a local retailer that sold their sodas in NC. Love to ditch “regular” sodas for those. A lot better than traditional sodas as well them not having any caffeine either.

All and all we had a great time and can’t wait till this Sunday’s adventure night.

April 29, 2009 @ 5:03 am | by spxds

On Saturday we got back from a week long trip to Gatlinburg and It was great getting away.
Since staying downtown we were able to walk to all the shops and restaurants, which was nice and too the last time we were there in Dec. it was too cold to do a lot of walking.

I just wished we lived in a city that we could walk to everything all the time. It would definitely save on how much we use our cars and help out the environment too. One place I always enjoy going to is the “the village”. The village is a small group of shops, that were designed to look like an “old world village”. They remind me of something you would see in Europe. One of my now favorite shops there is Celtic Heritage. Pretty cool shop with a lot of Irish and Scottish gifts from jewelry to artwork to food & music.

All and all had a great time and can’t wait to visit Gatlinburg again soon.