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Dry Humor:
“…deliberate display of emotional neutrality or no emotion, commonly as a form of comedic delivery to contrast with the ridiculousness or absurdity of the subject matter. The delivery is meant to be blunt, ironic, laconic, or apparently unintentional…”… WIkipedia
In a moment I will focus on dry humor specifically. But this note is really about hurting humor.
Read MoreMore often than not, I realize I'm comfortable with “a lot,” and I'm comfortable with “nothing.”
It’s easy to make a big push for something when I'm feeling inspired: a New Year’s resolution; after reading a great article on the benefits (or drawbacks) of coffee; while on vacation.
Often, that big push either overshoots (I overdo it and get tired), or inspiration wanes.
Which is why “a little bit every day” is tougher, and more valuable, than it appears.
Read MoreTo laugh everyday.
To ride big-wheels at 70 years old.
To not "give a s$*t" about what others think.
To take walks into town. To hold hands at any age.
Read MoreI've learned that the pursuit of happiness actually leads to unhappiness.
Why? Because it's an unrealistic expectation. Happiness is a fleeting emotion. And therefore it's actually impossible to live in a state of perpetual happiness. Yet sometimes it feels there is pressure to. But I know I can't constantly be smiling, laughing, or always thinking positive thoughts.
Read MoreAs many probably already know, I Iove to reach out to a few community members at the start of every season and ask if they would like to contribute an anti pet peeve about it - something small that brings them joy during that particular time of year. So the spring responses are compiled below, and they are all wonderfully different. I also discovered that Reed loves the anti pet peeve ask so much that he was compelled to write an entire little list, as you'll also see at the bottom!
Read MoreToday is a landmark for the CFC Writing Circle which started about five years ago.
I would like to express that with each passing year, I've felt it become a more prominent part of my life - It has truly brought me so much joy and inspiration reading others' writing pieces throughout the years. And it has also given me this creative platform to share my own words in an intimate and safe space where I can also commit to deeper reflection on the events that take place in my life, both big and small.
Read MoreHe could have just said I’d be away. But he didn’t and I guess this is why it stuck with me:
I was sitting at a picnic table at Soul, the local brewery we go to sometimes after pickup soccer on Sundays. A group of eight or so of us lingered around the table, salty elbows and hands between cold glasses of beer, kissed-warm by the sun. We were discussing the idea of a team barbecue, and as I mentally ran through my calendar to check dates that were being tossed around, one of the guys said:
“We can’t that weekend, Christina will be in Utah.”
Read MoreI was fortunate to spend the month of March in the beautiful island country of Sri Lanka. As I finished up packing and closed out work for the week, I kept hearing similar things from those I shared my travel plans with.
“Always carry either a pocket knife or mace.” "Pack a flashlight and shine it in their eyes if someone tries to approach you.” “Make sure your money is always stored in different areas.”
Read MoreAt bedtime the other night, my son Teddy told me, “Dad, I love you… even though you’re boring.”
I kissed him on the forehead, and couldn’t disagree. I kept thinking about how I can find a better balance between being the coach and the referee; in my relationships with my kids, and in my life. And then it leapt out at me, all of a sudden. A position I’d totally missed thinking about. I’d forgotten how to be the player.
When did I stop playing pretend?
Read More“What do you do to preserve your sense of wellness?”
I was recently asked this question as the prompt to a breakout I was a part of, and I gave an answer that I found surprising:
“Ignore my short-term brain.”
Read MoreI had a great anti-pet peeve happen today! It was Monday (never a good start in my opinion) and it promised to be a long day with an aggressively overpacked schedule. It was sure to end in missed meetings or a missed flight or at the very least — total, frazzled exhaustion. As I looked at my calendar before bed last night, I chastised myself a bit — “What happened to saying 'no' Lisa?! It’s not possible to do all that in a day!”
Read MoreWe have an invisible fence set up around our yard for our dog. To mark it, we’ve put up little white flags and taught her not to cross them. Since we live on a busy street, it’s doubly important that my dog understands and respects these boundaries.
Of course, she needs to get out of the yard a few times a day for her walks. Any time I walk her, the first thing I do is take off her Invisible Fence collar. This means she could easily cross the line without our help.
Read MoreIt’s been hard to write recently. I think it may be as simple as having gotten into a routine and omitting dedicated time to write. Getting to this point — fingers on the keys, mind directed to one singular focus and thread of thought — involved quite an elaborate dance: getting fully dressed, finding my keyboard, ignoring the half-done household chore I abandoned last night for sleep, and turning on the kettle for coffee. I bet it’ll be ready halfway through one of these upcoming sentences. But wait — come back, mind! — I’m now HERE to write. It’s happening. And it almost feels like I’ve been in this moment for hours and couldn’t be asked to do anything else, ever again. I’ve gone from doing a puttering polka into an aimed adagio.
Read MoreThe last time I spoke with my dad he was leaving for a trip to Nevada. Two days later, while driving on a winding road back from the Hoover Dam, he crashed his motorcycle and was gone.
Clara, the main character in a book I'm reading, experienced the unexpected death of a parent too. She revealed that as close as she was with her father, she had forgotten many memories of him and what it felt like to be in his presence. So later on in the book, when her boyfriend tells her that his grandfather is battling cancer and has only a few months to live, she recommends he start writing down the things he loves about him, the sayings he had, the things he’d do, and anything he'd want to remember and cherish forever. She wished she had done so before her loss.
Read MoreI’m a certified yoga teacher.
I feel so blessed to have taught in so many settings.
I have taught children. I have taught strangers in a community garden. I have taught kids in low-income communities without mats. I have taught fellow friends and activists committed to community change.
And, maybe my favorite of all, I taught teen aged boys when I lived in Costa Rica. I never intended to teach teenage boys. It was never a job I specifically applied for and it was never something I would have signed up for if you asked me. But…
Read MoreI think about a month into winter I start counting down the days til spring. But there's definitely some things I appreciate about this season specifically, and I decided to write a few of them down in my gratitude journal. And then I reached out to a handful of community members asking if they may have a winter-themed anti pet peeve to share too. I wanted to hear the moments of gratitude they experience too. I compiled the responses into a list below.
Read MoreA friend once told me he noticed how I was careful with opening and closing doors — treating them with care, and aiming for quietness. It’s a thought I hold dear, because it was one of the first times I remember feeling truly seen in my adult life. He went on to wax philosophic, talking about it as “a good way to see who is practicing everyday mindfulness”. I think about this a lot.
Read MoreDo you ever wish you could just start over?
Right before Thanksgiving I was on my last (and only my third of the year) business trip. The woman next to me on the plane noticed I was working on a presentation, and we struck up a conversation about our respective jobs. She wasn’t happy in hers.
She said to me “I wish I could just start my job over. I’ve been the head of marketing at this tech company for 3 years now, and now that I know what I know, I would do so many things differently.”
Read MoreA few thoughts came to mind, including that perhaps I might make way such that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Day sits next to Thanksgiving as my favorite holiday. Currently, I have no rituals or traditions on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Day to celebrate. Maybe this writing is a start.
Read MoreI had a last minute cancellation in a work agenda a few months back on a sunny Monday afternoon. Naturally, my next thought was: "Okay, now how can I fill that time? What should I get a head start on?"
I reluctantly pulled out my laptop and stared at my screen. I felt drained on this particular summer afternoon. But it was only 2pm, so I knew I needed to move past that feeling and not waste time. I had so much that still needed doing, and this was an opportunity to get it done.
But then I took a breath and sat still with my thoughts for a few seconds.
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