The Introspective Salon
Last month, two of my favorites were Pinterest and the mobile game My Singing Monsters. About mid-month, I went crazy from the amount of time I spent on those apps. I wasn’t enjoying myself, and time felt truly wasted. I had about a two week period this past month, where I felt I couldn’t find enjoyment or fulfillment from anything. I kept doing things just to do them, but nothing seemed fun or worthwhile. Pinterest and My Singing Monsters were the biggest culprit for this, so I eliminated them from my life. I eliminated Pinterest from my phone, anyway. I still have an account and browse it from my desktop sometimes (mostly in an attempt to keep all my social media accounts fairly active), but the accessibility of having it on my phone allowed me to use it way too much, to the extent that I didn’t even like it anymore! Although I’m slightly unnerved by how much time I let pass, doing things I really didn’t like, I’m also glad to the extent that I learned to be more weary of what I consider a “favorite” each month. Do I really enjoy the thing, or do I just need one more thing to share, to fill space in my head and in the post? All that said now, let's move into what I did enjoy this month. (I have linked everything only for your convenience. #notspon #butpleasespon #lolz) Last month I mentioned that I was loving the orange flavored shortbread cookies known as Polvorones. This month, real citrus has reigned supreme in my life. I've been consuming citrus in some way nearly every day all month. I usually try to remember lemon in my water every day (because I hear it's very healthy for you and it makes my skin look stellar), but I've also been mixing it up with lime. I've been eating lots of oranges, and I tried out some Tangelos. I can't say those were my favorite fruit; a tangy and tart hybrid of tangerine and grapefruit. Also, I wonder what could be a better name for them? Tangelo just doesn't translate to "tangerine and grapefruit" to me. Regardless, I probably won't get Tangelos on the regular, but I enjoyed the experience of trying a new type of citrus fruit. Like citrus, ginger hosts many health benefits. And, for about a year, I've been trying out ginger flavored foods and drinks more often, but lately I've been gravitating toward it. I want the spicy sweet herb in my life! And, I love ginger and citrus together! A few Favorites ago, I mentioned Noosa Yoghurt. I can't get this brand too often because it's pretty pricey, but I treated myself this month to an Orange and Ginger flavor, and obviously, what with my citrus love, it was AMAZING. I also ordered a ginger beer when getting drinks with a friend, and I'm so glad to have tried it because now I know what beer to order when I go out. I'm usually not a beer drinker, so I'm always asking the server for recommendations, but now I've got a go-to. The last food favorite this month is a cereal by the name of Bear Naked. I'm not going to lie, I was suckered in by the cute bear on the package, but it was well worth it. I got the Chocolate Almond Clusters variety this month, and it's lasted me all of March because I've just sprinkled little handfuls onto yogurt every morning. The brand has some other delicious sounding flavors too, though. I got some coupons from the box, so I might have to try out a few other flavors for April! This check mark icon is meant to be like my "everyday" items. Now, I don't do laundry every day, but it is a weekly need at least, and when my husband and I lived in our old apartment we used to use dryer balls instead of sheets to save money. The ones we had were cheap plastic, and after about a year they started to get holes and become useless. Now that we have our own place again, I invested in some new ones, only this time around I got better quality and CUTER ones. Dryer balls are great because they also make our laundry softer. I'd honestly say they do about as good a job as fabric softener, they just don't have that smell, which could be good or bad depending on your preference. The other bonus is I've been wanting to begin the process of living a less wasteful lifestyle, and this is one easy and inexpensive way to get started. (Not to mention, if you get these friendly guys, it’s CUTE!) I wanted to save this next Favorite for last, but I think it makes the most sense in the "every-day" category. For the last two months, I've been setting "Be, Do, Have" goals. Just one for each (I'm not quite as detailed or task-focused as Laura with HowToGYST, I just heard about this goal setting strategy from her and adjusted it for my life). So far, these goals have been mostly abstract and related to self-improvement. This month, my "Be" goal was to be compassionate to myself. In order to keep this going all month, I started repeating this mantra: I am worthy of self-love and compassion. I am capable. Sometimes I feel a little silly repeating mantras to myself, but the more I've done it, the more the mantra has just kind-of lived in my brain without me having to put much work into it. My mind will wander, and still this mantra will be circling in the back of my thoughts. Since I started doing this, I've noticed a pretty big difference in how I conduct myself through daily challenges. I've been more assertive at work, stepped up to tasks that would normally frighten me away, and been able to recover quicker from bouts of sadness or feelings of inadequacy. Did you ever watch the Cartoon Network show "Samurai Jack" as a kid? I never did, I was probably not interested in it because it seemed like it was something for boys, but my husband watched it and he loved it. Recently, Adult Swim has picked up the show from where the old one left off, and they're making one more season to conclude the story-line. My husband convinced me to watch an episode with him, and I was hooked. The world of this new season is dark, yet it's balanced with humor. The art style is breathtakingly beautiful, and the issues Jack is now struggling with are absolutely believable. Even though I never watched the old cartoon, I'm totally into this one. I got caught up on the story from the old series just so I knew more about the world, but I don't think watching this reboot requires binge watching the old episodes. Although, I'm sure there are die-hard fans who would love to argue otherwise. Go forth, will you, combine citrus and ginger. Eat crunchy granola. Keep your laundry company with eco-friendly hedgehogs. Love yourself. Read good books and watch good shows.
3 Comments
Jeremiah
4/16/2017 10:58:06 am
Ooh, a new season of Samurai Jack? I hadn't heard about that. Definitely going to check that out. I always appreciated that it was a show with patience. They let moments take as long as they needed to, even if it seemed "slow" compared to other cartoons/shows.
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4/17/2017 06:17:55 am
Thanks Jeremiah! I will have to look into those, I do love the style of the art. It's so beautiful, and you're right, it does have patience. In this new season, I don't think Jack even talked more than one word until the third episode. But they had a lot of his emotional life to build up, so it was really cool when he finally did talk.
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Jeremiah
4/21/2017 05:49:10 pm
Having now made it through the first five episodes, I'd say it's pretty interesting how different this is, despite ostensibly being the same show. It's obviously because they are telling a single long-form story here, as opposed to vignettes that were the staple of the original show. So far I find it a bit less satisfying, but that's mainly because it's not finished yet, and so I can't be as satisfied with it until it wraps up. It's got me on the hook, and I'm curious how much of the hints of the ending of Jack's arc from the original made it into the writing here.
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