Saturday Share: waiting — A Meditative Journey with Saldage

March 7, 2020March 6, 2020 ~ meximinnesotana ~ Leave a comment

via waiting — A Meditative Journey with Saldage

Brenda’s photography captures moments in such a fascinating way. Love her art.

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cristy@meximinnesotana.com

Sunday haiku – 2 verses

March 10, 2019March 10, 2019 ~ meximinnesotana ~ 1 Comment

Sacred Feminine

whispers: what do you want, Love?

Ease, flow and beauty

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And so: she dances.

Showing: Ease, Flow and Beauty.

So much gratitude.

Dedicated gratefully to Beth Giles for her lovely Playshop of dance and art. Okay, this was made by my inner 5-year old, not the divine feminine. But I treasured the play and dance, and getting to connect with other fabulous beautiful souls.

How does Art help us live creatively?

November 9, 2018November 9, 2018 ~ meximinnesotana ~ 1 Comment

It’s Friday, and Fridays are for fun, says my realtor friend Teresa. She has a beautiful photography blog at http://stpaulphotos.com/ in addition to her St. Paul Real Estate blog, also lovely with great advice.

I was reflecting on the past year and a piece of art which I acquired (~about a year ago, I think). I still need to frame it. It was in one of my favorite coffee shops in Bemidji and it caught my attention. I told my husband I needed to have it. The price was only 2-figures and I bought it as an early Christmas present for myself.

It reminded me of the creativity explosion that I had set loose in my life, once I decided that I could write every day for a short time, even if I had a full time job. Though I only gave myself 30-45 minutes a day to write (more on weekends), I found myself looking forward to it daily. I give Chris Guillebeau a lot of credit for this, since I learned about how easy it is to start a blog from his Side Hustle School podcast.

Explosion art — Art from Dunn Brothers Coffee (Bemidji) exhibit – I wish I had the artist’s name!

This art piece also evoked for me a feeling of that “spark” we get when a new idea comes tumbling out of our fingers onto a page. There’s juice to that feeling. It lights us up and allows for greater energy to attend to every other thing in our lives.

Today I celebrate my first project contract after leaving my corporate job – yay! Even though it is a small project, I trust it will lead to more work. I had such enjoyment working on it today. I felt profoundly grateful for the opportunity. I never really imagined I would be putting my science writing and research skills to good use (that voice in the back of my head said: do people really make money that way outside of big companies?)

So happy right now for all the little choices and decisions that led me to this place. What are you grateful for this weekend?

cristy@meximinnesotana.com

Wellness Wednesday – plan time for fun

October 24, 2018October 24, 2018 ~ meximinnesotana ~ Leave a comment

I mean it, schedule fun into each week, each day, maybe even in every hour if that is possible.

It is not optional. Fun feeds your creativity.

I used to take breaks to play and rest only when I had “earned” them through doing enough work. Probably that daughter-of-an-immigrant work ethic that many of us inherited. Work all day and then you can earn your fun.

But what it we turned that on its head?

Play at intervals, rest at intervals. Work deeply, but do so in a focused and paced way.

Those of us with focus issues might prefer the “sprint/break” approach: work in 45 minute blocks with no interruptions (including email, social media or other distractions) and then get up and move, dance or walk for 15 minutes.

whimsical cat print — Whimsical cat print on Etsy

Others who like to work for longer stretches might work for 90 minutes take a 30 minute break. Most research says that the maximum focus for most humans sitting at one time without moving is about 70-80 minutes. Honor that. In the era of social media, it is likely substantially less, according to Cal Newport.

Knowledge work often requires sitting at a desk for long stretches, or enduring endless teleconferences that sometimes make you want to stab your eye out with a pencil (not speaking personally, of course).

What if you took a playful attitude toward work? You can inject a little creativity and some cartoons or funny videos into your (dreadful) required Powerpoint presentations. (I feel your pain. I have been there.)

One of my favorite wise teachers, Brene Brown says that “Creativity not expressed is not benign. It metastasizes.” Heed that wisdom. Plan some fun and some whimsy into your day. Your work will be re-energized and you will deliver at a higher level.

I dare you.

cristy@meximinnesotana.com

Saturday Share – meditative journey with saldage

August 25, 2018August 25, 2018 ~ meximinnesotana ~ 1 Comment

Happy weekend, friends!

One of my favorite new discoveries for blogs is a site with beautiful imagery and photography called “meditative journey with saldage” by Brenda. I do not know much about her, because there is no “about” page that I can find on her blog. But the photos and images are evocative and beautiful. Sometimes she adds poetry or a lovely quote with the photos as well.

Since we are all bombarded daily by words (and many of us love words, don’t get me wrong here) it can be soothing and wonderful to take in some beauty in the form of great photography. Take a look at this site and let me know if you agree.

Cheers,

cristy@meximinnesotana.com

Saturday Share – Eclipsed Words

July 21, 2018July 21, 2018 ~ meximinnesotana ~ Leave a comment

Hi All,

Happy weekend! Hope you are enjoying some quality time doing what you love most.

This week I want to share a blog that has some lovely wisdom and also lovely art. It is by Aishwayra Shah, called Eclipsed Words. She is on a similar wavelength, writing about health, wellness, science and spirituality. Check it out when you have a chance.