Wandering Thoughts of a Writer: #life

Showing posts with label #life. Show all posts

Dude, I haven’t posted a blog post in almost a year. 😮

Omg, where has the time gone?

I know.

I know. 🙄

Most of us always say: where has the time gone?

But, seriously. I should post more here or get rid of my Blogger account.

The truth is, I don’t want to close Blogger.

I love it. 🥰

I’m attached to it, like a spider monkey.

I try not to have attachments.

But I am attached to my Blogger account and my stuffy Coonie.

We won’t talk about Coonie though . . .

. . . Hell, I’m a minimalist.

I basically have no attachments.

My life is simple. No drama, not a lot of superfluous stuff, and for the most part peaceful.

I live in one of the most beautiful places on earth – the Southern Coast of Oregon.

I’m not braggin’ because the cost of living is insane here, BUT . . .

BUT! It’s the first place that I’ve felt at home.

A connection.

A peace.

I think it’s because I’m surrounded by nature (the Pacific Ocean, the mountains, the deep, plush forest, the river, and the creeks).

I work for the State of Oregon in human services, which has been a blessing because it aligns with the path that I’m on. So, during the day Monday through Friday, a lot of times, I deal with the dark part of humanity (domestic violence, drug addiction, child abuse, homelessness, etc.). In my off time, I work on myself, my mental health, exploring that endless rabbit hole, and writing that next book or figuring shit out so I CAN create a world that you and I can escape and have fun in . . .

. . . But yeah, since I flipped my life in 2017, seven years ago, it’s been a hard road at times, however, coming out the end of it now, or maybe close to it, I’m not the same person as I was, and it was all worth giving up basically everything to be where me and my life partner are now.

So focusing on OUR mental health has been a HUGE priority in our lives, and it still is and always will be.

On the book front, my next book (The Last O’Clery Witch) is in developmental edits. It was going to be published this year, but due to unforeseen family emergencies, production was placed on hold, which is no big deal. I’m not concerned with exactly when my book will be published. I’m just grateful The Last O’Clery Witch found a home with a publisher that ticks all the boxes in what I wanted as my first publisher.

I will post about The Last O’Clery Witch as I get information on it because I love this blog.

I’m going to do what makes me happy, have fun, and go with inspired action. 😁

In the future, my publisher is supposed to set up a website for me, which rocks. You’ll be able to go there to find The Last O’Clery Witch and fun stuff to participate in, contests, and swag related to the series.

Till next time my loves! ✌️

#booknews, #fun, #humanservices, #life, #mentalhealth, #minimalist, #paranormal, #simplelife, #swag, #witch, #writing #author #website #goals #edits #waiting, 0 Comments

Wow, is 2021 really over with?

Just when we thought we were almost home free, news about Betty White passing on punched me right in the gut. 😭

What about you?

Did you feel the same crushing blow?

I think a lot of people did.

I know she’s with her beloved husband now and she’s happy, but damn, I wasn’t expecting that.

Also, my great aunt Pat crossed over on Christmas Eve . . .

. . . So, 2021 was a sucky ass year full of loss, anxiety, stress, tears, and fear, but it was also full of growth, beauty, and amazing manifestations. ✨

BUT, I do not want to ever repeat that year or anything remotely close to it (do you hear that my higher self and Universe?).

Yesterday morning, the sun was out, so we went to the beach and got some ocean vibes, which was nice.

In the afternoon, I cleaned the whole house, Kevin washed the bedsheets and saged and Palo Santo every room in our house.

Yeah, we weren’t fucking around here folks. 😂

We wanted to make sure whatever negative and/or stagnant energy was in the house would leave the house. We even opened the kitchen window so the energy had a way to escape our wonderful home.

And let me tell ya . . .

. . . After everything was done, it felt so much cleaner, fresher, and better in every room.

I also performed a simple burning ritual last night, which was writing down everything I wanted to release that didn't serve me. I burned it, and then on a separate piece of paper, I wrote down what my heart desires for 2022 and burned that as well. I then released the ashes outside, allowing the breeze to carry out my intentions to the Universe, God, Source, or however you want to define it.

If anything, it felt good to do and was fun.

Today the sun is out again, and we were able to get outside in nature to enjoy it and the sunshine.

Life is good.

I did notice a bit of anxiety inside me, but I’m learning how to embrace it and not push it away because when you push the anxiety away, it locks inside your body. Just allow it but don’t attach yourself to the feeling. Instead, observe it because that feeling is not you. Your true self is always happy, relaxed, and is love. Feelings that are the opposite of what you truly are come from the human mind, the ego-mind. Recognize it, but don’t identify with it. So that’s what I’ve been doing.

Anyway, there’s one thing I need to take care of in my life and once I do, everything else will fall into place, and that can happen any minute now.

I'm excited! 😂

May 2022 be an amazing year for me and YOU!

Cheers, my friends! 🥂

#2022, #anxiety, #bettywhite, #energy, #health, #healthandwellness, #life, #newyear, #ritual, #self, 2 Comments

We made a lot of progress today on our RV renovation. I’ll write a post on it soon.

Right now, it’s late, and I don’t have time to write the post.

-So, I thought I’d share my own personal quotes that I live by.

Feel free to share them.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

#happiness, #happy, #life, #lifestyle, #post, #quotes, #RV, #RVrenovation, #society, #write, #writing, 0 Comments

If you had the chance, would you backpack around the world?

I was telling Kevin I want to backpack across Southeast Asia, and I’ve done some research on it. It’s totally doable, and the cost would be relatively low.

To my delight, he was open to my suggestion, and then we talked about doing the same thing across Europe. I would continue with my freelance writing and writing books as well as creating a documentary of our journey and sharing it with the world.

. . . But, I will not leave this guy behind. So those plans are on hold for now.

I’m cool with that because currently we’re in the process of becoming minimalist and preparing ourselves to travel the US as digital nomads.

That’s a huge undertaking that one shouldn’t do on a whim.

Don’tcha agree?

-So we’re taking our time and going with the flow.

I have to be honest here . . . since we’ve decided we want to live an alternative lifestyle as minimalist to where we’ll be living in the now, discovering self and no longer just existing, I've had a strong feeling of liberation and a happiness I’ve never experienced before.

-However, my happiness is not wrapped up in the RV (Aesop) or the idea of all the adventures Kevin and I are going to have or us backpacking across Southeast Asia.

My happiness derives from answering this simple question last August 2017:

Who was I before society told me who I should be?

After honestly answering that question and realizing I don’t need all the stuff I have, I got busy changing my life and returning back to who I truly am. I’m still working on it, btw. Fortunately, Kevin is on the same page as me, and he’s doing his own work beside me.

I’ve learned, though from past experiences that I’m the only one that’s going to make me happy, not another person, and not material objects.

Happiness is a choice.

. . . But this post isn’t about happiness. I already wrote an article about that topic. Hereà https://medium.com/@authorrebekkahford/fifteen-things-you-can-do-to-make-yourself-happy-27612f0f9027

Anyway, I know this path we’re going to embark on will be a challenging one and there will be sacrifices, but I also know for me personally, if I were to continue on with the life I have now, I'd be just existing instead of living. Ten years from now, I’d be living the same life.

I don’t want that.

Yes, I’ll be totally stepping out of my comfort zone, but that’s okay. Growth happens when you step out of your comfort zone and you open yourself up for new opportunities that would normally not happen if you didn’t step out of your protective bubble.

Backpacking across a country or even your own, would be an experience of a lifetime and totally stepping out of your comfort zone.

-However, it’s not for everyone, which is fine.

I have no judgment here.

Do what makes YOU happy and live your life the way you want to.

. . . But, if I ever have the opportunity to backpack across Southeast Asia or Europe, I will, and I’ll share the experience with you. For sure. :)

#alternative, #backpacking, #change, #comfortzone #opportunities, #countries, #documentary, #happiness, #life, #minimalist, #nomads, #risk, #society, #world, 0 Comments

On step forward, two steps back.

Yesterday wasn’t a good RV renovation day for us.

At first it started out great.

We hired someone to help Kevin with some things on the RV that needed to be done.

Wiring up everything went great.

-Well, Kevin built this box to put our batteries in and just as an added safety precaution, he wanted to screw it to the bottom of the RV compartment it would be housed in. The reason being, if he had to suddenly break or if we ended up in an accident, the box wouldn’t slide.

Good idea, right?

Kevin and the guy (I’ll call him Sam), got busy drilling the holes to the bottom of the wooden box he made, while it was in the RV basement compartment, with the batteries in it.

Kevin went inside to cool off because it was horribly hot and humid out, not to mention the mosquitoes were everywhere.

-So, imagine being miserably hot, your clothes were sticking to you, your energy was quickly getting depleted, AND you were constantly getting bit by mosquitoes.

Yeah, note to self: don’t work on the RV when it’s hot and humid out.

Kevin went back outside and Sam said, “I accidentally drilled a hole into one of the batteries, and I have battery acid all over my pants.”

Kevin thought he was kidding because Sam liked to joke a lot.

It wasn’t a joke.

Seriously.

There was battery acid everywhere!

All the hard work of wiring everything up had to be undone.

They had to take all of the batteries out of the basement compartment and the wooden box Kevin made for it.

Sam was okay, but he felt bad and wouldn’t let us pay him for his labor because the battery he drilled a hole into was going to cost us $130.00 to get a new one.

*sigh*

What a bleeping mess!!!

We all make mistakes, but this RV renovation is kicking our ass.

-But, we’re not giving up.

We realize it’s actually the heat and humidity that’s kicking our ass, not the RV itself.

Plan B:

· Breathe.
· Don’t be in a hurry.
· Don’t work on the RV when it’s miserably hot and humid outside.
· Focus on one project at a time.
· Remember, everything is how it should be.
· Go with the flow.

Today is Sunday. On Sundays we prepare food for the week, do laundry, I set my personal goals, work on my writing, and future plans.

It’s time to regroup and reenergize for the coming week.

Life comes with struggles and frustrations.

That’s how we grow.

I told Kevin what happened was now a memory we could revisit: “Remember, back in the summer of 2018, when Sam accidentally drilled a hole into one of our batteries, and you had to undo all of the work you'd done. Omg, that fucking sucked! But we got through it.” We also have this memory to share with other people, like what I’m doing now with you guys.

-So, everything is how it should be.

It’s all good.

#breathe, #focus, #frustration, #future, #goals, #growth, #horrible, #hot, #humid, #learning, #life, #memories, #mess, #mistake, #RV #renovation #installation, #struggles, 0 Comments

Hey, guys. I wrote a powerful article about verbal abuse.

I really put myself out there because it’s a true story about my own experiences with being verbally bullied, and the three things I did to gain the self-confidence I didn’t have.

I feel so strongly about this growing problem in our society that I had to get personal and real.

Kids and adults have committed suicide because of this.

I attempted suicide several times throughout my childhood because of what the verbal abuse had done to me.

Anyway, my article was published in Thought Catalog which is a popular online magazine.

Help me bring more awareness to verbal bullying by sharing the article.

Who knows. You might save a life if you do.

Clink on this link to read the article and share ità https://thoughtcatalog.com/rebekkah-ford/2018/06/verbal-bullying-the-damage-it-causes-and-three-things-i-did-to-gain-self-confidence/?utm_campaign=share&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=desktop

#amwriting, #article, #bullying, #life, #personal, #problem, #society, #suicide, #verbalabuse, 0 Comments

If you don’t have a plan, you’re going to be part of someone else’s plan.

Are you happy with your job?

Are you happy living the same routine every day (wash-rinse-repeat)?

Are you happy with the relationships you have in your life?

. . . If you answered yes to all three of these questions, I’m happy for you, and there’s no need for you to read this post.

But I invite you to stay because you might learn something new about yourself.

Are you happy with your job?

If you’re not happy with your job, make a plan to change it. Otherwise you’re giving a big part of your life away being miserable at something you don’t like to do.

No brainer, right?

Go get your dream job.

If you don’t have the skills, then make a plan to get them.

Go back to school, take an online course, volunteer.

Say you’ve always wanted to be a veterinarian. Volunteer at a vet clinic. You’ll get hands on experience to go along with your schooling.

Who knows, maybe the veterinarian there will hire you and end up mentoring you.

Opportunity happens when you step out of your comfort zone.

A lot of people will suck it up and remain at their shitty jobs until they either die or retire. The same applies with their unsatisfactory lives because they allow the fear of stepping out of their comfort zone take hold of them.

. . . Or they’re just too damn lazy to try.

Brutal.

I know.

It’s a lot easier to bitch about our lives than to do something about it, right?

But new opportunities and growth happens when we step out of our comfort zone and put ourselves out there.

It doesn’t happen if we live our lives on wash-rinse-repeat.

Are the relationships you have genuine?

If you stopped being of use to people in your life, will they still want to be part of it?

. . . Here’s another way to put it: If you have nothing to offer except for your friendship, who will still be in your life?

To illustrate it even further, a gal I knew was on the brink of losing her business. One day she broke down in front of me and cried, “What will my friends think if I lose everything?”

“If they’re your true friends it won’t matter to them.They’ll still be your friends,” I said.

She didn’t like my reply.

She ignored me.

You know why?

Because she cared more about being part of the herd—even though it wasn’t genuine—than having a few true friends.

. . . So, think about it.

If her so called friends bailed on her after she lost everything—because she was no longer of use to them—this gal would either be crushed or would finally realize her relationship with them was artificial.

She’d be much happier if she didn’t care what others thought and got rid of the plastic people in her life.

How to own your life.

It’s YOUR life.

When you take your last breath on this earth, YOU are the one who will be looking back on your life.

Not your relatives.

Not your friends.

Not your employer.

YOU.

You're the one who is responsible on how you live it.

Not them.

It's up to you to either piss it away or live a happy one for you.

. . . Ask yourself these questions and then answer them honestly:

-Do you enjoy the job you have?

-Are there toxic people in your life?

-Do you seek people’s approval?

-Do you cater to people's needs more than you should?

-Do you take some time out for you?

-Do you make up excuses on why you can't do something?

-Are you doing something that you're passionate about that brings you great joy?

-Do you ever step out of your comfort zone?

Your answers will tell you the areas you need to work on so you can take those steps toward owning your life.

Wrapping it up.

Do what makes you happy, but it'll probably involve stepping out of your comfort zone.

But that's okay.

Learning and growing is a huge part of our life experience.

If you don’t have a plan you’ll be part of someone else’s plan.

If you want to support someone else’s dream by working for them and being miserable because you don’t have the drive to change your life, so be it.

But, if you want to OWN your life, you need to grab it by the balls and change your job situation.

There are people in your life because you’re USEFUL to them.

Stop being a doormat.

Once you firmly say no to them and stick to your guns, they’ll find another sap to take advantage of.

This also goes for the toxic and artificial people as well.

Do you really want disingenuous people in your life?

Drama?

Get rid of them.

You're going to be much happier, and your loved ones will probably be inspired by your newfound energy and tenacity to view each day as another opportunity to set and reach your goals . . . to own your life instead of investing it on poor returns.

#drama, #dream, #friends, #happy, #job, #life, #misery, #plan, #relationships, #responsibility, #toxic, #work, 0 Comments

Being a minimalist can mean many things:

You only own the things you can carry in a backpack, suitcase, or car.

You downsize your life, intentionally living with fewer possessions.

Minimalism is basically owning less stuff so you can have more freedom to do what’s most important to you.

It’s living simply.

It’s discarding the things that doesn’t serve you and keeping the things that do.

It comes down to this . . .

What do you value most in life?

A minimalist lives her life deliberately, simply, and is selective with what she keeps in her life and how she spends her time. She does what matters to her.

Now just because someone is a minimalist, doesn’t mean he gave up all the comforts and convenience of life.

Hell, no.

If he uses something often, he keeps it.

However, there’s the extreme minimalist who only owns the stuff in his backpack.

The cool thing about being a minimalist, besides the whole concept, is it’s not about depriving yourself, it’s about removing the excess in your life—all the crap that’s been weighing you down, AND you’re in charge of how you want to be a minimalist.

…There are no set rules.

Last summer I was feeling low.

I had no idea why.

One evening, I was alone, standing in our dining room, looking at all of our stuff.

STUFF.

Why in the hell do we have all of this crap?

It doesn’t serve us.

And I'm living the same life . . .

Every. Frickin'. Day.

If I continue living like this, my life will be the same until I die.

Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

I'm existing.

Not living!

Then it hit me.

I’ve been feeling weighed down and enslaved by all the things we have and don’t need.

Bingo!

I found my problem.

My thoughts took it further.

Kevin and I own a small 2-story house. It has 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a basement. We spend most of our time in 2 rooms.

The rest is wasted space.

Hmmmm.

When Kevin got home that night, I told him how I felt and what I discovered.

He was all for becoming a minimalist, and somehow the whole RV idea came into fruition.

So next weekend we’re having a huge yard sale.

HUGE!

I know we’ll still have a bunch of things to get rid of before we become full-timers (digital nomad), but we’ll be putting a nice size dent into getting rid of the stuff that doesn’t serve us.

Once we get to the point to where everything we own fits into our RV (Aesop), I’ll be able to say we’re minimalist and proud of it.