Are you "Drama Free"?

I can't wait till Sam Davidson's new book comes out entitled "50 Things Your Life Doesn't Need". I'm hoping to get an advanced copy soon, but I happen to know the first thing on the list is "Drama".

Life comes with plenty of drama all by itself, sure. But the trick is keeping it to a dull roar. If you think things are happening TO you, think again. You have a choice here, you either allow things to happen to you, or you don't. Sure, there are the unexpected bumps in the road, but seriously, how much drama do you bring on yourself? Here's a few things that might work if you're sick and tired of daily upheavals in your life:

1) Don't take on other people's stuff! Sure, it's okay to be a shoulder and care, but it's THEIR stuff. Don't own it like it's your own.

2) Set boundaries! My favorite hot topic right now. Be clear about what's okay and not okay for you. If it's not okay, then stay away! If you don't get "boundaries", read the book: http://www.amazon.com/Boundaries-When-Take-Control-Your/dp/0310247454

3) Be as clear as possible in your communication. This is hard if you're not used to it. Tell people what you need or don't need. No one I know is a mind reader. If you're not getting what you need, you may only have yourself to blame.

4) Take care of business now. Procrastination is a petri dish for drama. Deal with what's on your plate, and let it go.

5) Gossip and TMI breed drama too. Not only does it make you perhaps a not so great confidant, you are doing nothing but putting junk on your plate.

6) And speaking of your plate.....Keep a "clean spot" on your plate. As a painter, I make it a practice of leaving a spot on my palette that's clean. I may need that spot and working to keep space open, allows for those little surprise moments when I need it. Chefs do this too. A plate with a "clean spot" is much more appetizing than a plate piled high.

Drama is a drag. It's an energy drain. It's simply weight you are carrying that you don't need. Why carry around a 50 lb bag if a 10 lb bag will do just fine? Final thought on this: What are you GETTING from the drama in your life? If you're hanging on to it, or can't seem to release it, you ARE getting something from it. This is just a fact!

I'll let you know when Sam's book is available. Might be the best present you ever bought yourself. http://samdavidson.net/books/

Digging In

It’s just an old shovel, orangey red paint barely clinging to it's neck, and worn smooth wooden handle. As I dropped it into the trunk of my car a few weeks ago, and headed over to the Meridian Street Habitat House, I wondered have many times Pepaw’s shovel had been plunged into the ground. How many gardens had it dug through? How many hollow brown homes had it prepared for new roots and life?

I’ve hauled this shovel all over middle Tennessee. Its first dig with me was at “Windham Farms”, my little house on the corner in Antioch. It was the first tool I went hunting for when I moved to East Nashville. And that steamy morning a few weeks ago, as I ransacked the tool shed to find it, there was this brief moment I worried that it had gotten lost in transition. When I my hands found its familiar feel, I felt relieved that my old friend was still right there, waiting for the next dirty assignment.

I watched as Glen easily nosed the shovel into the ground where we had planned for the landscaping down the walk at the home on Meridian Street. My Grandfather, "Pepaw", would be proud to know that one of my favorite family heirlooms, his shovel, was again digging into the dirt. Particles of soil from the previous furrow of dirt being shared into the new one......just another location that its sharp blade and worn handle were doing their job.

What’s your favorite family heirloom? What memories are tied to it?

Why Blog Why?

As I contemplated starting a blog, I pondered my reason for wanting to blog. Sounds rational to have a reason doesn't it?

Do I "need" to be heard? No.

Do I have anything riveting to say? Maybe I do. I'll let you decide that. It's your computer, and your screen afterall.

What's the difference in blogging and a diary? Good question.

For me, really don't want to spill the dear diary stuff (this is where you say "thank you"!!) But I realized in recent months that through this medium, I can share ideas, thoughts, maybe bits of wisdom that might help somebody else, or simply stir your brain to think about something beyond what time the game starts, what you packed for lunch, or what your calendar looks like tomorrow. My disclaimer is this........these thoughts and words are mine, just random things that keep me up at crazy hours, or stuff I find my fingers typing while sitting in seat H3 flying to or from some adventure.

So, as the late Johnny Fishbone might've summed it up, "Ladies and Gentlemen, shall we blog??!!"