Something to Think About...

Sunday?  Already?

Well, here is something to get your noggin ready for this week!

“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” 
― Neil Gaiman

So why fairy tales this week?  Well, my new found obsession for Once Upon a Time for one and secondly...I'm a sucker for a good fairy tale!

Just Cause!

I think it is important for each of us to have a cause.  It doesn't matter what it is as long as it helps someone.  My cause (or should I say one of them) is Relay for Life or the fight against cancer.  

Cancer is the disease caused by abnormal and unchecked division of cells within the body.  When most people think of cancer they think of chemotherapy and radiation.  Hair falling out or the children on television for St. Jude's.

I've held someone's hand as they gave their last breath to the fight against cancer.  I hugged a family member who watched as their loved ones passed away, ravaged by its malignancy.  And though I'm not a survivor of cancer (having never had it) I know survivors and I know those who didn't win the battle.  I think when you're on the front lines of something it changes a part of you.  So, why cancer?  Haven't I held the hands of a stroke victim whose brain injury was so bad they didn't make it?  Haven't I sighed in defeat when a heart attack took yet another person from this world?  I've done both and much more, but the slow and insidious death cancer caused those I've been privileged to give End of Life care to was heartbreaking.  

So, do you have to choose cancer or the Relay for Life as your cause?  Nope!  There are so many causes out there to have, and you don't have to pick just one.  Another cause of mine is literacy.  Reading for me is more than just pleasure.  It's knowledge.  It's thought provoking.  And I don't want you to just be able to read, but to understand what you've read.  To be able to write-maybe not a novel-but a letter or a paragraph.  Words have so much power if we only use it...

So, what cause are you going to choose, or which cause do you already have?

And the rut has begun...

Something we've all faced is a rut...With me it's been getting my butt to the gym!  It's a given that I work twelve hour shifts and afterwards the last thing I wanna do after walking up and down halls, running into rooms, bagging that last patient....the list goes on...is walk/run (running in my dreams) on a treadmill.  So, what's a overworked nurse to do?  

Change it up, of course.  

I walk plenty on a daily basis during a shift.  Don't believe me ask my tennis shoes.  So, the last thing I want to do is walk another couple of miles on the treadmill.

I think this week I'm going to try the cycle.  It looks pretty fun.  And then I'm going to do some dancing.  Dancing is fun and gets your whole body moving.  Phew!  I almost allowed myself to fall into a rut!

Here's the thing about ruts, it doesn't have to be exercise, though that is what Fridays are now about.  You can have a rut in your diet.  Variety is how we stay healthy, unless you have the perfect diet, that is.  We crave different foods to get the nutrients that we need from day to day.  I don't want string cheese every day just like last night I wanted tomato soup and not broccoli and cheese!  So don't be afraid to spice up your workout, your dinner, and dare I say it...your love life!

Something to Think About

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage." - Lao Tzu

"Only in the darkness, you are able to see the stars." - Martin Luther King

"Women are made to be loved not understood." - Oscar Wilde

Just a little something to think about this week!  So many good ones that I just couldn't choose only one!

Having a Voice...

I've read many times that each person has a unique voice when they write.  This is sometimes referred to as their style.  I am a firm believer that people are unique and being an avid reader I see it with each book that I read.  So it is safe to say that I've got my own style!

I write a lot in a days time...as a writer I am always jotting ideas on a scrap of paper or finishing up my latest chapter.  But I also write as a nurse...we call it charting but it is writing.  I'm telling a unique story about the IV that I started or the medicine that I'm giving.  I'm documenting how I changed a dressing or taught a patient about their medications.  I am amazed when I read other nurses charting because their voice/style is so unique from nurse to nurse! 

Charting or doxumenting requires quick and to the point writing...no flourishing and no emotion...well, no personal emotions anyways.  I often find that when I edit I am always finding instances where I am charting when I write instead of writing!

One of my favorite mistakes I'd when I am dead set on a name or made up location when I remember why that's not a good word to use...it is a medication!!! I laugh and change it!

A great example of a time I didn't change it was Salin.  So, where did this mysterious name of a planet come from?  We use normal saline a lot...soooo after a shift of saying saline all night it was only too easy to name a planet...Salin!

Something to Think About

Tis Sunday again and this is a little something to get your noggin cranking for the week!

"What is necessary to change a person is to change his awareness of himself." - Abraham H. Maslow

Everyone's Got a Past...

I've said it before, but it's worth saying again, so I believe I will!
Characters are people-they have names, likes and dislikes, and most importantly (and complex) a history.

We've all been through things that make us who we are today, and for each of my characters that is no different.  They've lived and loved, cried and laughed, and fought and made-up.  Each of us is a complex, three-dimensional (or more) human being, and so are the characters in a book.

So, how does one make a well-rounded character?

I'm sure there are many ways, but I've only got my way which is to interview them as though they are sitting right in front of me.  I answer questions ranging from physical appearance to favorite colors and home life to make my characters as believeable as possible.

Here are some great interview forms I've found:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&sqi=2&ved=0CDAQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftalktoyouniverse.blogspot.com%2F2012%2F12%2Fdesigning-character-interviews-that.html&ei=VhFpUdmaE42e8QSstIGQDA&usg=AFQjCNEhsmGHp6U3IWXZewThAHpfTyv-oQ&sig2=xhiarT4LwhyUpvI7SwS7cA&bvm=bv.45175338,d.eWU

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&sqi=2&ved=0CEYQFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.writingclasses.com%2FInformationPages%2Findex.php%2FPageID%2F106&ei=VhFpUdmaE42e8QSstIGQDA&usg=AFQjCNF1w7mV82iahV2jCFclZZqrCqrrcQ&sig2=8KqdWCAIc_Q1KDkjsn-ffw&bvm=bv.45175338,d.eWU

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&cad=rja&sqi=2&ved=0CE4QFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fbookblogs.ning.com%2Fforum%2Ftopics%2Fcharacter-interview-questions&ei=VhFpUdmaE42e8QSstIGQDA&usg=AFQjCNGEFh_4FZO8lRtmfaMc2Dewa2ihdA&sig2=YQydvk2B1NRuKqUI8FWFFA&bvm=bv.45175338,d.eWU

So happy character making...

Water! Water! Water!

I know you're supposed to drink six to eight glasses of water per day...but water tastes so...watery!  I struggle with this and can't seem to break it.  I'd like to be able to drink just water, but I find myself mixing packets of flavor with it or choosing a juice or diet soda instead.

So, why do I not drink water?  I thought about this for a bit and I must say it is a complex issue.  Firstly, I crave flavor.  So, taste is an issue.  Secondly, even though it is accessible-it's not.   (HUH?)  Yeah, confusing!

When I say it is accessible but not I mean that I can turn on just any faucet and life giving liquid pours freely...but I still reach for the soda/juice.  

So, here is my action plan...

Drink a 16 ounce bottle of water with each meal!  That'll take care of six glasses of water.  Then I'll keep a cup of water nearby to sip on throughout the day.  It doesn't solve the taste issue, but I can learn to love it..Right?

Something to Think About...

It's Monday already?  My how time flies...

"Climbing to the top demands strength, whether it is to the top of Mount Everest or to the top of your career." - Abdul Kalam

Just a little bit of something to think about this week!

(Sorry it's late...been a little crazy!)

When Cravings take you over!

Cravings...we've all had them and they've ruined many a diet-thank goodness I'm not dieting but making better choices.  So does that mean I'll never eat another Reese's cup?  Heck to the no!!
Chocolate, sodas, and cake...oh my!
The thing is I've spent my whole life eating terribly, so I can't expect myself to just be perfect!  So, I eat a piece of candy instead of the whole candy bar!!  Probably the biggest hurdle of any craving is stopping when you've fulfilled that craving.
I am glutinous when it comes to food.  I love the smells, textures and tastes of a variety of food.  Add to that my need to eat every bit of something is a bad choice.
We live in a world of enormous portion sizes and I've not learned to say no!  But I am working on it!
New aspect of my lifestyle...Don't fret that you ate the cookie, instead celebrate that there is still most of the package left!  
So, don't dismiss your cravings, because if you're like me then you'll end up overeating that little craving when you finally just can't take it anymore!

So, this week I've learned:

• Listen to your cravings, and listen hard.  Did I really want that piece of chocolate bar?  Yes, I did, but I didn't want the entire bar and it is perfectly okay to put it in a ziploc bag for later!
• Portions aren't meant to be bigger than one's stomach!  When you're full you can quit eating and I'll donate some money to a hunger-relief charity so I won't feel so bad about feeding the leftovers to the dogs.
• Am I hungry or am I thirsty?  I am notorious for not drinking...pretty much not much at all!  I need to increase the fluids in my diet and maybe just maybe...I'm thirsty and not hungry!
• And last but not least...that damn chocolate bar was way more delicious when it is eaten sparingly instead of whenever I see the blasted thing!

So, what are you craving???