Help ! We need ADVENTURE ~

General
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Hi everyone. I'm sitting here feeling the crunch of winter as so many are. I got out by myself yesterday so I should be feeling more fullfilled today, right? Well, I still feel like I need a break.

One of the small handful of things I have done since the first of 2014 was a vision board project with a friend and a few of her friends. I'm not very good at groups, so this was really a stretch for me, especially with the fog and the pain. There was one person there who I found abrasive and I needed to get over that. (There are always so many more hurdles for us.) Anyway, when I got home I hung the vision board I made in my bathroom and I see it every day. Along the bottom of the board is the huge word ADVENTURE. It makes me think "what can I do in this body that is a new thing and not a financial strain on our budget?"

What do you do? I'm really interested! Most of us can't work and are home and bored and feeling boxed in. Some of us work very physically hard at home and are so drained. Soon the weather will clear. What then will we do in our own lives that is an adventure for us? We need to fill ourselves back up. I'm not talking about a trip to Tahiti or Hawaii. I'm just talking about the norm.

I think the spring catalog from my local community college just came. I may look at taking an art class of some sort. Or, better yet, the local craft stores have short classes. Maybe that would be the kind of adventure I need. Maybe getting involved in some political platforms would help. Short term would be best though. I think it would be important to pick something I know I won't fail to complete as the uncompleted projects around my house drive me nuts. How do we find something we can explore and fill ourselves back up?

Small things can be adventures. What do you do? What ideas do you have for things that help us break out of the box?

Warm hugs,

Kitty

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I made myself ask my niece if I could use some space in her garden this year. I am planning on what I can easily & cheaply plant. Then every other day I can go to her place to visit & tend to the garden. Now, here, in the winter, enh..... I am trying to convince myself that I can walk the dog in the empty lot next to this house when the weather (at or above 32*) allows us to. When I am not down w/the blues I do try to clean 1 room in the house, or I will sit on the floor (adapting) & vacuum the whole house. I do a lot of online games or comp games. I also babysit for my niece whenever she needs a break. M

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Kitty:

I find my adventure to be whatever sound's good for the day. I get too disappointed with myself if I try to plan or start something that takes a lot of time because I get fatigued too quickly and I am less patient than I used to be. Thankfully I had my children young lol!!! I find puzzle and internet games to be a great distraction for me. l also like to read which is distracting as well. I have many artsie type projects that I have started and never finished because of my fatigue and this saddens me because before Fibro (2009) I did all types of projects and had finished them! I just need to embrace the new me and realize the old me is gone forever and to come to terms with what I am able to do.

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Kitty, love this post.

Like you, the weather and my body limit me. The "vision board" sounds like something to try. You have to start somewhere and one idea can give birth to another. Before you know it you will have the building blocks for a life you can feel happy and fulfilled with. We are not our health challenges, but they are part of what we deal with. It's so important to not let them consume us!

Right now I'm s-l-o-w-l-y learning Qigong through DVDs, and discovering how to live with better mindfulness. I also have a simple primitive picture drawn, a tool to help manifest the life I crave. It looks a bit barren for now, but that will change. Each time I recognize a new person, activity, or accomplishment in life, it will be added to the picture.

I'll be watching this thread. I'm at near zero for now as far as capabilities, but hope it will morph into something more productive and positive. I hope you get a lot of ideas.

loving hugs,

OM


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Hey Kitty,

I hear you girlfriend! I've been shut in for about 3 months now, since my mom came home after a fall which broke her hip. I think I've been out 3 times! Besides all of this, the weather here has not been great for getting out. Yesterday it was predicted that we were getting 2 to 4 inches of snow, ha! We have at least 18 inches. I know that's nothing by Canadian standards, but it's too much when even after plowing everything there is still ice. SK doesn't do ice!

We kept the great grandson the other night, and he loves to color, draw, and paint, I always make sure I am stocked up on art supplies and work books for him. I struggle to draw a stick man, so I'm not an artist, but it was fun to be creative with him!

I've always loved to go to the flea market, but until I get rid of some things in the packed attic, I don't think it's a good idea! Ha! I worry the floor will give way now!

I am in the process of slowly, a little at a time, doing the deep house-cleaning. When doing the bedroom I came across all of the clip earrings I have accumulated before I successfully had my ears pierced a few years ago, I am gathering up mine and possibly Mom's, plan to clean them up and sell them on Ebay!

But these things are not really an adventure! I have't been to Tahiti, but loved Hawaii, the plane ride there is brutal though, I promised myself that if I went there again, it would be a one way ticket! Yes, I could live there, I think, but it's been 35 years since my visit!

My version of the vision board is watching the History or the Travel channel, and seeing all of the ancient civilizations that I had planned to visit. I also have the library full of these wonderful places, and I plan to do a deep dust on the books, so I'll be revisiting those again soon.

Many times a LWF or even a BF convention or meeting up has been suggested, which would be fantastic, and it really would, but it's the traveling problem again that we all have such a difficult time with! Now THAT would be an adventure!

This is a great post, I'll tell you an adventure would do me nothing but good right now! My soul says "YES", but not sure that the body or the wallet would agree right now, so I look forward to reading the rest of the contributions to this great discussion!

Be well and be happy!

Love,

SK

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My daughter got a jewelry making kit for Christmas. We both have had great fun making jewelry. Its relaxing to me to make something. I tried knitting but that didn't work for me. I think an art class would be a lot of fun or even a pottery class. Something else that's cheap and easy and relaxing is coloring. I think you can find some adult coloring books on Amazon. The vision board is a great idea. There used to be a website that allowed you to make a vision board for free. I hope the weather warms up soon and you can get out and feel a bit refreshed.

Stay warm,

Stacey

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I have a large garden that I gave up on (except for the blueberries) a couple of years ago. But now I have one raised bed near the house. I loved it last summer because it was not discouraging because I could keep up with it and each time we had kale for dinner it was fulfilling in many ways. It's nice that you can use your nieces place for gardening, Luna. I think the things that we do that bring us close to the earth are very good for us.

Nurse, I am so glad to hear someone else say it. I am so much less patient than I used to be too. I had my kids young too. God knew what he was doing because I would not have made a very good older parent. So nurse, what do you do with the unfinished projects? I'm thinking of tossing some nice stuff that I have spent hours on because I can't finish them. Wouldn't it be nice to be rid of that stuff? Maybe that could become an adventure of sorts.

SK, you are special. You get to have your Mama with you. You do so good taking care of her. I can't imagine not leaving my house for such long periods of time. You are super-daughter-wife-grandma. I've never been to Hawaii or Tahiti. Don't plan on any trips in the near future.

I have some coloring books for adults. Some with cool aztec designs. What a good idea. I think I'll get my colored pencils out. Stacey, I've also seen some cool doodling on Pinterest.

You're right OM, we can't let them consume us. I won't become my illness. Not now anyway.

I don't know if any of you deal with this, but here is a big hurdle that I just can't seem to make it all the way over yet. I've been married for a long time, we raised 4 kids. Very busy household. We always had extra kids. We loved it. I also had a career that I loved. I was always doing something that was helping someone else to grow to get proper medical care or whatever. I know we with fibro tend to be over doers. Maybe I was, but I was happy. I think some of what I'm going through along with the rest of you is loneliness. We haven't had the opportunity to age slowly. This happened to most of us like a big gong was rung and now we have all these health problems. Our old, normal lives came to a screeching stop in most cases. Well, I need NEED to feel like I'm accomplishing, creating, doing something other than just the maintenence of life inside the walls of my home. An adventure to me, right now, is so small. I'm thinking if we look at some of the small things we have a chance to do as adventures, it may add some extra joy to our days or our lives.

I love all you ladies. You are all an encouragement to me.

Kitty

"I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble.". Helen Keller

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I did it, Kit, I finally got out of here for a couple of hours, it was snowing like hell when I got up and even when I left, but I was determined to escape for a few hours!!! I had called my best friend last night, she was taking her car to the dealer for work, I told her I'd pick her up and we'd go to lunch, so it worked out! Mom sprayed my back to numb it, I got dressed up, wore make-up, and snow boots, and we went for Thai food, her sister came along so it was like a hen fest! It was fabulous!

Then we went across the street to the new Big Lots and dug around a while, it was more adventure than I've had in ages and it was good for my soul!

I brought my Mom home her favorite Thai dish, so she was pleased.

Thanks for your kind words, I am not sure that I'm as super as you think, but I appreciate the praise!

Be good to yourself, you deserve it!

Love ya,

SK

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Kitty, one adventure I seem to often forget about is letting my imagination rum amuck, and then jot down ides like a list or goals that I wish to accomplish. It helps to have the list when boredom sets in.

Isolation isn't good for us but sometimes life throws us a curve ball for a good reason - we are meant to become more introspective, thoughtful, quiet and still. I like to use those times for prayer, meditation, and doing things to pamper and recharge myself. It's an inner adventure we each can enjoy.

I wanted you to know that I hear what you are saying, and understand. The adjustment to chronic pain and illness can be difficult. One acceptance sets in, you can then be open to what is possible, right here, right now without looking at how things once were or feeling let down by your expectations not being met.

loving hugs, OM (who is going to copy and past this onto my desktop - to remind myself!)

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Kitty, do you have away to take a picture of your vision board and post it? I would love to see how yours is done. I not would you be able to post materials used and instructions?

loving hugs, OM

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1. Get a piece of poster board. Doesn't have to be huge, mine is smallish.

2. Gather up a pile of old magazines, glue, scissors, stickers, markers, crayons...whatever you want.

3. Start looking through the magazines. Things will pop out at you. I did mine around the issues that were most pressing that particular season/week of my life. I tuned into my gut and pulled out things I really desired or knew I needed to work on. Setting goals for yourself are really important for us.

4. I put the larger pictures on the board first, glueing smaller words or stickers on top I really filled it in. I put words like "LIFE" or "THRIVE" and "ADVENTURE" (which is a huge printed word). Go ahead and put things that you think are a huge long shot. Why not? I have a large elephant representing travel. I realize I may never go to Africa, but the bigness of this guy remind me of how large this desire to travel is within me.

5. I hung mine on my bathroom mirror where I could see it every day. I'm going to make another one and pick a particular theme. Garden season is coming up and I want to do more with the yard than I did last year. Even if it hurts, I'm going to add encouragment to this one. Lots of loving encouragement.

I was invited to a friends house to do this. She has about 5 or 6 women there. I only knew she and her sister. It was fun and a little weird. If you do it this way, with other people, make sure you keep on your own track and keep yourself from going off on your friends trail. It can be easy to be swayed. Put your own goals on there. A good new year project.

I will take a picture for you, but it just hasn't happened yet.

Loves,

Kitty