the swash zone

The secret of surviving housework is simply to do it. Pull the plug on the part of your brain that always wants to negotiate everything...   Not postponing chores -- and not spending any mental energy equivocating, temporizing, or stalling -- is actually a lot more restful than worrying about what needs to be done.   ~ Veronique Vienne 'Tis true, you know. Procrastinating, especially when it comes to housework, brings more stress to my life than actually doing the work. I've been busy cleaning house this morning, doing things I've put off since last week. It feels so good to have it done. This is one of those early sober days in which I have a ton of energy, and it's best to get things done while I can. I know from past experience that the next few days might bring a drastic dip in my vim and verve, as the early days are wont to do. I will be traveling over the weekend. I'm not sure I'll have time to post after today due to preparations and some yar

I'm thinking that I'm going to spend a lot of time writing here over the next 100 days. I'm thinking that 100 days seems like a long time, but that it is better if I don't think too hard about time, especially future time. I'm thinking I don't want to be hungover again. And I'm thinking that I've thought that last thought far too many times in my life. It would be easy to sit here and beat myself up. I've done enough of that. I am going to try to be kind to myself. As Monty Python said, "And now for something completely different." I'm thinking I want to be healthy and happy and free from harm as they say in metta meditations. I'm thinking that I cannot be any of those things while consuming mass quantities of beer and bourbon and other forms of alcohol.  I'm thinking that Day One with a hangover is always an easy Day One. I am trying not to think about Days Two, Three, Four, or Five, or any possible struggles ahead. Le

Let go of the battle. Breathe quietly and let it be. Let your body relax and your heart soften. Open to whatever you experience without fighting.   ~ Jack Kornfield, A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life I'm tired today. I'm not sure why. I slept really well last night. Whatever the reason, and I'm not sure it matters at this point, I will need to keep that in mind later when the happy hours cometh.  I love that Jack Kornfield quote. It's a sage piece of advice. I know from past experience that it is when I'm battling with myself that I am most likely to give in to the cravings to drink (or eat, or when I was smoking, smoke). The key, I think, is not to engage with the Addicted Self. Acknowledge the thoughts, but don't get wrapped up in them. I recently took the free week of Recovery 2.0 coaching offered by Tommy Rosen. I wish I could afford to join his eight week program. Ah well, it's beyond my means at thi

Growth and transformation occur not by changing who we are, but as we summon the courage to be who we are.   ~ Katrina Kenison, Magical Journey: An Apprenticeship in Contentment I've been cleaning house today. I'd like to simplify my life, but realize that if I start piling projects on top of early sobriety, it will topple. I will do what I can, what I feel up to doing, and leave it at that for now. Every little bit helps. One reason I am trying to stay aware of taking on too much is that there are a lot of upcoming travels and events, most of which I cannot cancel for a variety of reasons. The holidays, for instance, will happen with or without me and I don't plan to miss the opportunities I will have to spend time with my children and grandchildren and other family members. Although I realize that thinking of the future will also cause problems with my present sobriety, I must remember and plan to take time out for myself when I can. For now, I can take things

We remember it by feel. We experience it as a murmur in the night, a longing and restlessness that we can't name, a yearning that tugs at us. Something in our human blood is still searching for it, still listening, still remembering. Nicaraguan poet-priest Ernest Cardenal wrote, "We have always wanted something beyond what we wanted." I have loved those words, how they speak to the longing place inside us that seeks to be whole and connected to the earth.   ~ Linda Hogan Is that what addiction is about? The longing and yearning? Some folks seem to think so. Whether it is or isn't, one of the things I'd like to work on is my connection to earth by spending more time outdoors. I've been wondering about addiction. At what point can one say they are addicted to something? If you are not at the point where a physical withdrawal requires medical attention, are you addicted? Tommy Rosen, in his book Recovery 2.0 , defines addiction as: "any behavior y

swash On the fretted seam between water and land, ocean breakers send a rushing sheet of seawater -- a swash -- up the beach. The swash receding, pulling seaward with a drag force that takes the sand right out from under your bare feet, every particle felt, is backwash. In The Edge of the Sea , Rachel Carson called the swash zone "a world of force and change and constant motion, where even the sand acquires some of the fluidity of water."   ~ Ellen Meloy, Home Ground: Language for an American Landscape I've always been fascinated by the sea, something many people have and could say or write. I have many photos of waves, and even more photos of swash. I love the white foamy appearance of the water as it washes to shore, especially the phosphorescence at night. In one swoop, the water changes everything by moving the sand, and whatever else might be there, to and fro. Sometimes the swoop is gentle, sometimes it's harsh and turbulent. The swash brings treasu