The CragBaby

Sweet! Shaft just helped me figure out how to put music on my blog!
Here is Pants Up by Sam Bailey.

*disclaimer.. this might not work in IE on Windows yet. Still working out the kinks, so if you want to listen you might have to switch to Firefox. =)

Today was a great day, perhaps because it started out with gratitude. I want to keep the positive energy pulsing as lately the negative air has been suffocating. So here are ten more things to keep up the positive vibe, plus another pretty picture, this time from China. =)

1. The day with the entire EPIC team was real productive, with many great take aways and exciting goals.
2. As soon as I got home from work, I went for a fantastic jog. It felt great just to run around and my ankle barely hurt because I remembered to tape it.
3. I took the CbGbers for a walk. She is getting so smart and heeled the entire time. I am lucky to have the little rat around, even if she makes finding a new place a little tricky.
4. Once again I realized today that I have full discretion over who and what is in my life. I am grateful for this choice and grateful that I am independent enough to utilize it.
5. I am grateful for an upcoming long weekend and the new people I will meet and the sites I will see. Plus I am happy that I will be able to once again see old friends.
6. I am pretty sure I get to pick up my girl scout cookies today. w00t!
7. I’ve noticed that new friends of mine are tracking and commenting on my blog. Welcome friends and thank you for reading!
8. I saw the prettiest sunset while walking the CbGbers. It was a sunset resembling summer time and the melting away of dreariness and cold. It was spectacular and warmed my sad heart.
9. I am an honest person. I think this is a rare characteristic in today’s society and I can hold my head up high and proudly proclaim it.
10. I am jazzed on who I am and where I am going. My life has already been and will continue to be an interesting road. I look forward to every new adventure.

What a great day! I bet tomorrow will be even better as the future is always bright.

Whew… emotionally charged weekend. Need to combat negativity with a list of ten things for which I am grateful. And of course, add in a nice picture, again from Ireland.

1. I have some stellar friends. Thank you, all, for being in my life.
2. I think I have found a new home, living with a good friend of mine.
3. I like who I am… I need to remember that.
4. I am glad it is spring break at school and so I can just focus on work this week.
5. I am grateful that I was able to see Mark and his family last night. It is always a pleasure to see the Campbell family.
6. I am happy this morn, real happy and enjoying the morn with some delicious coffee.
7. I am excited that work today will be with the whole team (even our New Mexico office will be there). It is great to have everyone together and usually very productive.
8. I am grateful that I will have more time to climb this week.
9. I am excited for the 2008 year and the new opportunities it will bring.
10. I am grateful for each new day. Everyday seems to usually be better than the last.

I am originally from Helper (also referred to as Price), Utah, a smaller town off of Highway 6 on the road to Moab. The Bailey boys, who I have referenced on this blog a number of times, are from Price as well. I don’t miss my hometown as the further I drive into Carbon County, it seems the more opportunity vanishes. Yet even though I couldn’t live there now, I am proud that I am from that quirky town filled with coal mines.

Ben wrote this song about Price that I really enjoy and thought I would post.

The CbGbers and I are looking for a new home, but for some reason very few places allow pets, even the cute little CbGbers. Perhaps it would help if I simply explained her good quatlities…

1) She is as small as a rat

2) Her advanced ears can hear anything moving in the house

3) Her lil’ poops can hardly be seen, looking very similar to an aerated lawn

4) She keeps her paws very clean, licking constantly

5) She can be fierce when provoked

6) She allows you to put your fingers in her mouth when she yawns, acting like it is a perfectly normal event

7) She constantly sits on a heat pad in front of a heater

8 ) She came WITH a sweater, similar to a Barbie coming with an outfit

9) She only chews up chapstick lids and occasional pencils (well… and she occasionally stretches out my bras)

10) She doesn’t drive angry

Can she plz has a home? Kthxbye!

My friend Sam created a new cd, Communist B-Sides, containing old and new renditions of his music, new compositions and covers of some classics such as Grapevine, Here Comes the Sun and Let It Be. The cd quality is fantastic and Sam has augmented his personal compositions with other instruments, for instance creating a blue grass sound with a banjo to the song Pants Up. I have 6 copies left of the Communist B-Sides and would love to hand them out to any readers or friends. If you want a copy, give me a shout-out.

His previous cd, A Prelude to a Bus Ride, can be found at the Salt Lake downtown library.

I love vindication on my decisions. Today is going to be a great day! w00t!

I got some funny looks and inquiries at the airport the other day as I carried my bouldering pad slung on my shoulder. I guess TSA was also concerned as I had this notice of inspection inside the pad upon arriving home. Ha ha ha! I bet they had no idea what it was used for and were probably sorely disappointed to open it up and just see a picture of a hand drawn phoenix on a foam pad.

My good friend Sam recently moved to Guam to practice law. I can’t express how excited I am for his move and envy his opportunity to live abroad.

As a going away gift, Sam, who is a guitarist and composer, put on a house show. I absolutely love his folk-like music, with lyrics including:

“Bobbing with the potatoes
Trying to stay afloat.
So I grabbin’ me a carrot,
and trying to carve a boat.
And I’ll set sail
straight for your heart.
And if I get there
will you give me a part?
Cuz you are the girl I can’t resist,
though you persist.
Though you persist.”
Great Expectations

“If I turn the temperature down
and I’m the only heat around
Would you come on darlin’ and sit a little closer to me?”
Proposal #2

“I carry my phone
wherever I roam.
Feels like a big long leash.
A fish when it’s hooked
well, tastes better cooked.
She’s fishing catch and release.”
Bachelor’s Lament

Listening to Sam play that night made me realize (again) how lucky I have been to have him in my life. His friendship has been invaluable. He seems to understand me well and regardless of how little or much I see him throughout the year, he is always there for support. Mostly though, Sam is perhaps the only friend who I can openly talk to about any of my emotions, no matter how raw they might be that day, and he is always willing to listen.. just listen. He has gotten me through many rough patches in my life and I am lucky to have him has a friend. I hope he finds much happiness in Guam.

My friend Carolynn sent me this link about family relationships. I don’t want to talk about my family on here any more as they are no longer a part of my life and I choose to now only focus on healthy relationships going forward. Yet, I just wanted to note a few interesting pieces from the post that I believe are applicable to all relationships.

For example, consider a problematic relationship between yourself and another family member. Suppose you hold the belief that you must be close to every family member simply because they’re related to you. Perhaps you’d never tolerate this person’s behavior if it came from a stranger, but if the person is a relative, then you tolerate it out of a sense of duty, obligation, or your personal concept of family. To push a family member out of your life might cause you to feel guilty, or it could lead to a backlash from other family members. But genuinely ask yourself, “Would I tolerate this behavior from a total stranger? Why do I tolerate it from a family member then?” Exactly why have you chosen to continue the relationship instead of simply kicking the person out of your life? What are the beliefs that perpetuate the problematic relationship? And are those beliefs really true for you?

I couldn’t agree with this more! If someone is unable to control his/her emotions and words, I do not have to continue to allow him/her in my life, even if we are related. This is my life… and I live for happiness and honesty.

On the other hand, if you find yourself with family relationships that are incompatible with your becoming your highest and best self, then excessive loyalty to your family is likely to be extremely disempowering. You’ll only be holding yourself back from growing, from achieving your own happiness and fulfillment, and from potentially doing a lot of good for others. If I retained a very close relationship with my birth family, it would be like putting a lampshade over my spirit. I wouldn’t be the person I am today.

It seems so easy to find people who discourage and try to disempower. Yet I agree that we can completely choose with whom we surround ourselves.

You see… when you say goodbye to a problematic relationship issue, you’re really saying goodbye to an old part of yourself that you’ve outgrown. As I became less compatible with my birth family, I also gradually dropped parts of myself that no longer served me. I drifted away from rigid religious dogma, from fear of risk-taking, from eating animals, from negativity, and from being unable to say, “I love you.” As I let all of those things pass from my consciousness, my external-world relationships changed to reflect my new internal relationships.

Excellent nuggets of wisdom. Carolynn, thank you for sharing.