Everyday Inspiration; Day 3: One-Word Inspiration

Posted on by Gertie

Choice

Choice is the word I chose to be my inspiration to write about. Choice is a loaded word. For me choice is the reason why I am here today. I made the choice to be in active recovery. I made the choice to continue living in Seattle where I have an awesome job helping others with their recovery journey and an amazing volunteer job where I help cats get their furrever homes.

To me being able to make my own choices helps me keep hope alive in my own self. It helps me keep the hope alive in myself because helps make the decisions or choices to stay in recovery. Staying in recovery is what is important to me. It’s important to me because I want to help others with their recovery. It’s important to me because I want to be here for my cat, Billie. It’s important to me because I want to make sure other cats get their furrever home. So the choice to stay in recovery is what keeps me alive. That’s why I chose the work choice. Life is nothing but choices.

Weekly Plans

Posted on by Gertie

Sunday

  • Enjoy vacation
  • Mindfulness meditation practice
  • Walk around Capital Lake (in Olympia, Washington) while listening to music
  • Do art work while listening to a philosophy podcast
  • Read a book I got for Christmas

Monday

  • Enjoy vacation
  • Mindfulness meditation practice
  • Walk around Capital Lake (in Olympia, Washington) while listening to music
  • Do art work while listening to a philosophy podcast
  • Read a book I got for Christmas
  • Pack to go back home to Seattle on Tuesday

Tuesday

  • Enjoy vacation
  • Mindfulness meditation practice
  • Travel by train back home to Seattle, Washington while listening to music
  • Arrive home and unpack
  • Get meds from pharmacy
  • Watch a movie

Wednesday

  • Enjoy vacation
  • Mindfulness meditation practice
  • Get Covid-19 vaccine booster
  • Billie, my cat arrives home from my grandpa’s as grandpa watched him when I was in Olympia
  • Cuddle with my cat Billie while watching a movie

Thursday

  • Enjoy vacation
  • Mindfulness meditation practice
  • Do art work while listening to philosophy podcast
  • Read a book I got for Christmas

Friday

  • Enjoy vacation
  • Mindfulness meditation practice
  • Go for a walk around Greenlake (in Seattle, Washington) while listening to music
  • Read book I got for Christmas
  • Do art work while listening to a philosophy podcast
  • Bring in the New Year cuddling with my cat Billie while watching a movie

Saturday

  • Happy New Year’s (2022)
  • Enjoy vacation
  • Mindfulness meditation practice
  • Walk around Greenlake (in Seattle, Washington) while listening to music
  • Watch movies all day while cuddling with my cat, Billie

It’s Been a Great Christmas

Posted on by Gertie

Merry Christmas, World!!! It is still Christmas in my corner of the world known as Olympia, Washington. I am currently in Olympia as I spent part of today, Christmas, visiting with my mom and two uncles. My brother sadly was not present as he is visiting his dad today. I missed having my brother around but I’m grateful he is having a fun time with his dad.

Speaking of dads, my dad is visiting my grandpa and my two uncles who live about twenty miles north of Seattle. I spent Christmas Eve with my dad’s side of the family because that when we celebrate Christmas as one of my uncles was born on Christmas. When my uncle was born on Christmas Day, my grandparents made the decision to celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve and keep Christmas Day a special day for my uncle and just celebrate him as it is his birthday. In fact my uncles and grandpa are taking care of my cat Billie as I am in Olympia.

Going back to today, I had a great time with my mom’s side of the family. We had an awesome dinner and Denny’s. I was also able to walk around Capital Lake this evening with a friend who lives here in Olympia. In fact it started snowing here in Olympia as my friend and I were walking.

Going back to yesterday, Christmas Eve, I had a great time with my dad’s side of the family celebrating Christmas. We had an awesome dinner of lasagna. I know it’s not the “typical” Christmas dinner but it doesn’t matter just as long as I am spending it with my loved ones.

I do not have much more to say in this particular post except that miss my cat and can’t wait to see him when I get home in a couple of days. I would also like to thank you for reading my blog. It is really appreciated from my end of things that you the reader, read my blog. If it was not for you the reader, reading my blog I would not be writing my blog. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my blog. Merry Christmas and Peace Out, World!!!

Intro to Poetry: Day 2: Faces

Posted on by Gertie

Priceless Memory

by Gertie

Watching the faces of

loved ones open their

Christmas gifts

is a

priceless memory.

A priceless memory 

that will last forever.

Everyday Inspiration; Day 2: Write a List

Posted on by Gertie

Things I’ve Learned

  • I learned coping skills to deal with the symptoms of my mental health diagnoses
  • I learned Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) skill which helped save my life
  • I learned the meaning of recovery and how to be in recovery with the help of others
  • I learned how to be resilient
  • I learned how to hope for better things in my life
  • I learned how to play the flute
  • I am learning to play the harmonica
  • I am learning about philosophy by listening to a podcast about philosophy

Intro to Poetry, Day 1: Water

Posted on by Gertie

The Peace of a Brook

by Gertie

Listening to a

peaceful stream known as a brook,

brings peace to one’s soul

Everyday Inspiration; Day 1: I Write Because…

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, World!!! It is Christmas Eve in my corner of the world and am spending with my dad’s side of the family at the moment. I am doing some WordPress courses to help keep you the readers interested in continuing to follow and/or read my blog.

I started writing my blog for a couple of things. The first reason is to educate people who don’t struggle with a mental health challenge that those of us who do struggle with one that we can be productive members of society. It may not look the same to those who don’t struggle. So, I hope I am able to educate those without a mental health challenge that people like me can prove you that we are productive members of society and hope to lessen the stigma that goes with having a mental health challenge. I also write to give hope to those who struggle with mental health challenges that there is hope and recovery is possible.

Thank you for reading my blog and hope you all continue to ready my blog. I will blog again tomorrow so I will see you tomorrow. Peace out, world!!!

No, Going Back to Sleep for Me

Posted on by Gertie

Happy Holidays, World!!! It is 6:03am in the blasted morning and I was finally getting back to sleep after Billie Dean, my cat woke me up. I was almost a sleep and Billie was asleep snoring when the building fire alarm went of. One of my neighbors decided to put the fire alarm pull station again because another neighbor wasn’t not wearing mask. This isn’t the first time this neighbor has pulled the fire alarm pull station when neighbors haven’t been wearing mask. The neighbor who does this pulls it because he wants the fire department to talk with the neighbors who don’t wear mask because of Covid-19. The only thing it is doing is making all the neighbors and the firefighters angry at this particular neighbor. I understand wanting others to wear mask due to the global pandemic but it’s common sense that you don’t pull the fire alarm for someone is not wearing a mask.

The thing is the fire alarm causes my anxiety and my PTSD symptoms to increase. It causes my anxiety to increase because I have to make sure I get my cat, Billie in his carrier and put on my shoes and jacket as well as remembering my keys and wallet as a blaring fire alarm with a strobe light going off. The alarm going off increases my PTSD because, I have been in three fires in my life; two as a child and one as an adult. It’s no fun dealing with PTSD of any kind but it takes me a while to finally get back to an okay place after the building fire alarm goes off.

Well, I do not have much more to say in this particular blog post. I do want to thank you for reading blog. It is greatly appreciated from my end of things that you the reader, read my blog. If it wasn’t for you the reader, reading my blog, I would not be writing my blog. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my blog. I appreciate all of you. Happy Holidays and Peace Out, World!!!

Second Day of Vacation

Posted on by Gertie

Happy Holidays, World!!! It 5:04am in the blessed morning here in Seattle. Billie Dean decided he needed to wake me up at 4:14am in the morning. He woke me up by howling which is unusual. Turns out he was constipated. Thankfully he was able to poop. Then he got his after pooping zoomies for what felt like an eternity. Then Billie decided he wanted to play so I obliged him and played with him. Now he is being extra cuddly so lets hope that I can get a few more hours of sleep so I am not a cranky bucket when I celebrate Christmas today with my dads side of the family. Despite Billie waking me up before the butt crack of dawn I am grateful for the love I have for him and am even more grateful for his unconditional love to me. Now, I am going back to be to see if I can get few more hours of sleep.

I do not have much more to discuss in this particular blog post. I do want to thank you for reading my blog. It greatly appreciated from my end of things that you the reader, read my blog. If it wasn’t for you the reader, reading my blog, I would not be writing my blog. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my blog. Happy Holidays and Peace Out World!!!

Doing Self Care to Prepare Myself for Holidays with Family

Posted on by Gertie

Happy Holidays, World!!! It is still December 23rd in my corner of the world know as Seattle. I will be spending Christmas Eve with my dads side of the family about an hour north of where I live. After spending time with my dad’s side of the family on Christmas Eve, I will travel to Olympia, Washington later in the evening on Christmas Eve. I will be spending time with mom’s of the family on Christmas Day.

My self care regarding dealing with self care with family is making sure I have a self care in plan. One of the ways, I will deal is by reading two volumes of Christmas with Superhero’s as well as doing art work by color holiday coloring sheets. Another way I will be doing self care is listening to music. Specifically, Christmas music.

As far as my cat, Billie Dean, he will be taken care of by my grandpa at my grandpa’s place when I go visit my mom in Olympia, Washington which is the state capitol. I’m happy that I have family willing to take care of my cat when I a out of town.

I do not have much more to say in this particular post. I do want to thank you for reading my blog as if you the reader weren’t reading my blog, I wouldn’t be writing my blog. It is very appreciative that you the reading my blog because if it was not for you reading, I would not be writing my blog. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my blog. Happy Holidays and Peace Out, World!!!