Archive for January, 2003

Today’s “Found” Journaling word is:

Wellness

At work, we have what is called a Wellness Program. This program is designed to be proactive in health issues. For instance, we are currently taking part in the Winter Aerobic Challenge. This program is supposed to keep us active during those months that we really want to veg and hibernate. Heh.

We are planning a Skin Cancer screening day to bring more awareness to this disease that affects more Arizonans than any other disease. We have the highest rate of skin cancer in the WORLD except for the entire country of Australia…and it took an entire country to beat us out.

I think Arizonans are sun-lovers. I know that I am. When you have 350+ days of sunshine a year, it’s hard not to love it. It’s funny. Most people from other areas of the country are used to clouds and overcast days. Here, when it becomes overcast for more than a day at a time, you can really notice it in people’s attitudes. People either get really grumpy or really depressed. We need our sun.

So, this wellness program…it only works if people participate, of course. HR (which I’m a part of) tries really hard to do things that will interest the employees. It’s hard, though. People are cynical. People think they are too busy. People want something for free. And when I say free, I mean that they want to lose weight without working at it…they want to feel better without taking the steps to do so.

Honey…ain’t nothin’ for free when it comes to your health. It’s an investment, though. You take care of you and you get to live longer. That’s the benefit.

It’s worth it, don’t you think?

Today’s “Found” Journaling word is:

Upgrade

I opened my e-mail this morning and found that the product that I manage is getting a new upgrade. This is not an uncommon occurrence. I get upgrades on the Human Resources module for this product at least once every 2-3 months. What is odd is that it is coming less than a month before the yearly convention that we all meet at (yes, dear readers, I will be in New Orleans for 5 glorious days in March to celebrate my participation in this fun world of databases and will not, thusly, be writing during that week…but I digress). It got me to thinking that we, in the west, seem to be all about upgrades.

Nothing is ever good enough. We want the newest version, the most up-to-date, the most technilogically advanced product that we can get our hands on. Now, I wouldn’t normally think this is a bad thing (being the geek girl that I am) but I’m questioning our need to get further and further ahead.

What is it that we’re running from? Why do you need that brand new SUV with the built-in DVD player and heated leather seats? Was your compact economy car not getting you from point A to point B?

Why do you, really, need that 2+ Ghz processor? Are you doing amazing digital media that requires the speed or is it simply to say that you have it?

I think we buy into the notion that bigger is better, newer is the best. We’ve lost the ideal that sometimes oldies are goodies.

I think this is brought to the forefront for me because I do a lot of crafts. I’ve been quilting and doing scrapbooking lately (which really seems to get you into a nostalgic mood) but my first love is bead work. I’ve been buying a lot of my beads on E-bay and recently found people who only deal with vintage beads. These are hand-crafted, phenomenal glass beads. They are incredibly beautiful and a joy to view.

I’m no different than anyone else. I want to trade my Sentra in on a SUV (so I can get in and out of my dirt parking lot and road during the winter months). I like having a fast computer (and I do, occasionally, do multi-media work that requires the speed).

I like to think that I appreciate the past, too, and what it has to offer.

Upgrade now…to something vintage. You might just find a treasure.

“Found” journaling is finding a word, like placing your finger on a word in a magazine, and writing about it. I write for 10-15 minutes about whatever comes to mind from that word, continuously writing even if it wanders, and post immediately. It’s not about grammar or syntax. It’s about writing and practicing writing.

Light

Funny how this word came up for me today. I was watching Edward Norton on Inside the Actor’s Studio the other day and he said his favorite word is “light.” He said that it’s all-encompassing. It’s energy, tangible and yet not. It surrounds us and is us.

I’ve always thought that I would like to be known for who I am rather than what I am. I think that we humans put far too much emphasis on our physical beings. Having chatted and written in cyberspace for so long, I actually started to feel like I was becoming known for who I am. I like to think of me as energy…light…that goes out to others and seeps in to their consciousness. That I’m in their lives but not obtrusively. I would like to think that I add positiveness to others.

When I think in those terms, I see rays of light (like in Contact or other science fiction genre movies) where we are reaching out to one another through energy.

It’s funny that I think in those terms, I think. I tend to be a creature of darkness. People often walk by my office and comment on the lack of lighting. I’m more comfortable in my “cave” sans lighting. I like working in the dark (well, physical darkness, not literal darkness). During the holidays, you’ll see colorful lights blinking around my whiteboard but otherwise, it’s fairly dark in here. It’s amazing that I have so many plants living given the utter darkness. I think the skylight helps with that, though.

I also saw something on feng shui the other day that said an office with a skylight (and this entire complex has them) is not good because positive thoughts and good energies flow out through the skylight. I wonder if that means I’m doomed. For me, it’s the only natural lighting I get most days. I come in when it’s dark and I often leave when it’s dark.

I’m like a mole…I only come out in the dark. And that’s strange, too, because I absolutely LOVE the sun.

Ahhhh…the sun. It’s turning into a love/hate relationship. I’m in love with the sun. I love the way it feels on my skin. I love the way the air smells on a sunny day, the ways it makes things glow. And now I’m told that I really need to stay out of the sun as much as possible. I live in Arizona, for crying outloud. Granted, I live in the pine-forested mountains but the sun still shines over 350 days of the year here. How in the heck am I supposed to stay out of it? Everything I love to do is in the sun: boating, hiking, biking, hanging out on the lake, gardening. Ok…not everything…I can still read, write, and play on my computer inside. But there is something about sitting in the light of the sun and writing about what I see.

Light…it can be a powerful thing.

Wouldn’t you know it? I say I’m going to write more often and I end up getting sick. I didn’t even feel like being on my computer.

Ok…tomorrow…I will begin with my “found journaling.”

Found journaling is choosing a word…like putting my finger on a word in a magazine…and writing about it. Tomorrow I will begin with a word “found” somewhere.