A little bit here, a little bit there

I finally decided to come to the library and update my blog. It is a beautiful day out there! The sun is shining, it is warm and there is very little wind. I am on call for work until Wednesday but forgot, briefly this morning. It is the perfect day for a walk in Ridgeway, but that is too far to go in case I get a call to visit someplace like Paonia. Oh well, there will be plenty of days like this coming up! I am getting used to being on call. I hated it when I started. I felt like a prisoner to my work phone. But this time I decided to take a different perspective. I have been staying pretty busy, going about town to run errands and such. I bring my phone with me, but I don't have the anxiety around it like I used to. I am also on the home stretch of it now because it will end Wednesday morning. So far, so good!

Work has been really busy. The end of the month seems to be that way. I find myself running around quite a bit to make my quota of visits for Medicare compliance each month. And I have this really nice co-worker who I share an office with...really nice and really talkative! He won't stop somedays, and he expects me to pay attention. So this week I have been avoiding the office and coming home early, letting the boys out, and finishing my charting at various restaurants in town. It has been a good way to get my work done and continue to explore the restaurant scene!

I am itching for my spring vacation to Arizona! I can't wait for a whole week away in sunny Scottsdale with the family. With all my failed attempts to come to Denver these past weekends, it will be good to spend some solid quality time with the fam. Though, I will try to get to Denver before the vacation. I find I need a change of scenery every once in a while. Montrose is a cute little place, but after doing the same things over and over again it is nice to do something different. So, if the weather won't cooperate for a Denver trip, I will probably look to doing something else, like Glenwood, or try a day trip to Ouray and go to those hot springs or something. I am really looking forward to better weather so I can plan on some time with friends and family coming to Montrose. There is so much good hiking, and I really want to visit the wineries that I drive by all the time-there are three in Olathe, a couple outside of Delta, and of course a bunch in The Grand Valley. Festival season is huge out here, too. In Montrose in the summer onThursday nights we have something called "Main in Motion" where Main Street is closed and there is a festival like atmosphere. So, if you come to visit you will have to plan on coming one Thursday afternoon so we can go to that!

All in all things are feeling pretty steady. Is this the place where I am going to settle for the rest of my life? Probably not. But so far the adventure has been interesting. I learn new things about myself every day, and face incredible challenges at work where I come out okay on the other end. The boys are my rock and they promised me they will live forever. So I have nothing but time to figure out future adventures of my own!

A little piece of poetry

I just got back to the hotel from this really great mariachi band/symphony concert with a soloist named Monica Abrego. It was like New Mexico/Mexico City meets New York City. Really cool. The conductor had put poetry of the poet Alberto Blanco to the symphony and mariachi music with Abrego singing the lines of the poetry. The conductor told a story that he tried to take refuge in a small town in Mexico to put the music altogether. He reflected on the lines of a poem by Blanco, "The quietest places are the noisiest." This quote really resonated with me, as I often feel that I should feel more peaceful living out in the country than I do. Sometimes the quietest places lead to the most inner chatter and more opportunities to think!

Recharge the batteries

Once again my plans to come to Denver were thwarted by bad weather...bad enough that I didn't want to drive. The thought of not doing something, though, over the weekend was getting me down. So I decided to spend the night in Grand Junction and then go to Glenwood Saturday night. I love the Marriott downtown and I got here around 4:30 last night. I met two gals who I had worked with in the Grand Junction office for dinner at a sushi restaurant. We met at 5:30 and my goodness! I didn't get back to the hotel until 9! I slept in this morning...usually I like to get early and use the fitness center but this time I decided I would just sleep. Once I got up I decided to cancel my trip to Glenwood and stay one more night here due to bad weather in Glenwood. So, today I went shopping! I bought a few new things at Old Navy, meandered through Barnes and Noble, and then walked the mall. I got lunch at Main Street Bagels and brought it back to the hotel. I am now going to lay in bed, read the most recent People magazine and then take a nap. Dad called to say there is a Latin music concert at the Convention Center he had heard about, so I am planning on getting a ticket for tonight. Tomorrow I will head home, and I am going to take Monday off from work. Tuesday is my birthday so I am going to take an Aromatherapy class at the technical school with Robin. Meg sent me a little gift in the mail, and the family are sending theirs, so I will be able to have something to open when I wake up Tuesday morning! This little weekend getaway was exactly what I needed to recharge my batteries and put things back into perspective.

Super Bowl Sunday

I am excited to watch the Broncos play today! I bought some avocados for guacamole and also am going to make chorizo and potato tacos for dinner. I thought a friend would be coming over-Mike's friend Kirk is a pilot for a small airline and was supposed to fly in for a layover. He wrote me a text this morning saying that he is re-routed and won't be coming after all. Which is okay...because we wouldn't have been able to watch much of the game if we chat the entire time catching up! I was then going to ask a new friend, Sandy, to come over, but she called this morning saying that her throat is swollen and she can't swallow. It would be hard to eat tacos and chips/guac!! So it will be me and the boys, which is fine...I have some catch up at work to do and some other miscellaneous items that can be done while watching the game.

Speaking of work, I hit burn out mode this week. I was hoping to come to Denver to see friends and watch the Super Bowl with the family, but because of the snow that didn't work out. I realized I so very much need some connection with my "tribe" so I am hoping next weekend I will be able to come to Denver. My birthday is the 11th so I can combine it with a little celebrating! Pray the weather gods will be in my favor...Work is so busy right now. We are getting a lot of new patients and of course aren't hiring another social worker, so I am trying to keep my head above water and stay compliant with my Medicare requirements for social work visits. But, I have to keep reminding myself that I can only do what I can do and that has to be good enough. Especially because we can't put in overtime...not that I would WANT to put in overtime...but sometimes I think it may help a little so that I would get everything done I need to in a week. Oh well, it will all work out one way or another! Right now, let's just focus on the Broncos winning the Super Bowl!

Go Orange and Blue!

Finally!

It isn't a secret that I complain that sometimes there isn't much to do around Montrose. But, I recently discovered that YES! There is!

Today in the paper is a list of all organizations in Montrose. I came across two-the Montrose Botanical Society and Ucompaghre Valley Associates. The first supports our botanical gardens, which I didn't even know we had. We do, and I found it. It is a small little spot by our Pavillion but it is very pretty and well cared for. The second supports human rights/environmental issues in the region through Western Colorado Congress. So guess what? I will be filling out membership applications this weekend! The Botanical Society especially looks super fun, smaller than what is at DBG of course so more hands on for members. Looks like I am finally finding my place!

On another note, I was introduced through watching the Oprah channel to SoulPancake. Here is one of their installments. Enjoy and have a beautiful day! And Go Broncos!

Soul Space

I woke up at 4am to both Chester and Stanley pacing around the bed and pawing it. The wind was whipping around the house up on Spring Creek Mesa. At 4am it is pitch black outside; couple that with the wind and my recent Twin Peaks DVD marathon I must say it can feel a bit creepy. I let the boys out putting the front porch light on and I stood on the front porch to make sure they didn't wander into the dark.

The sun rose and the wind continued to whip. I sat on my couch with coffee watching the sky. The clouds moved fast this morning bringing all sorts of weather. Bits of sun, some snow, some low clouds. All within a matter of an hour.

I watched Oprah's "Super Soul Sunday" and she is incorporating this segment of "Soul Spaces." Today showcased a woman who is a yoga instructor. She travels 255 days a year to teach yoga nationally and internationally. She recently bought a yurt in Southern California on a mountainside and can see all of LA, the coastline, and mountain peaks. Indeed it is a beautiful space, but it occurred to me that I have my own "Soul Space." I step outside my front door and the view of the Cimarron's is clear on many days. The sun rises and sets in the most beautiful fashion and on a clear night stars abound. Neighbors are in sight but not intrusive. Deer wander most days on the property, as do cows on the pastures and horses are not too far away. I was reminded today that I have a space that many people may covet and it is up to me to not take advantage of that.

Things have been good. Work has been busy since the holidays are over and we are all back to our normal routines. This weekend I have had a nice balance of being out and about and also spending some time with myself. I had dinner with a new friend last night and lunch with Robin today. I went to see the most recent theater group production this afternoon and tonight plan to watch intermittently the Golden Globes and my Food Network Shows.

All in all, 2014 has proven to be good.

There's a fish in the percolator

As much as the holiday season brings time off from work, festivities, family, friends and a lot of good cheer, I always feel a sense of relief when it is behind me. I view it as this growing ball of energy leading up to an explosion, only to start quiet, small and new come January 1st. I did have a really nice Christmas as Mom, Dad, and Robert made the trek to visit me. Though the weather reported some storms over the mountains, it wasn't so bad as to keep the family away. They came on Christmas Eve around 2pm and the boys were delighted to see their Grandma, Grandpa and Uncle Bob. We had tea and snacks. We went to Christmas Eve mass at St. Mary's Church and then came home to a simple dinner of sandwiches and soup. Dad and Robert were tired so they called it an early evening-Robert got my bedroom with the TV in it so no doubt he chilled and watched my newly ordered Satellite TV. Mom and I watched a cheesy Lifetime Christmas movie. Sunday we woke up and opened gifts. I made brunch filled with ham and cheese quiche, bagels, muffins, toast, and turkey bacon. I took a nap; Robert and Dad went on a drive; mom and the boys relaxed in the living room. We had dinner reservations at The Red Barn, a local restaurant that serves down home food in a comfortable atmosphere. We had dessert at home-a warm fruit compote over toasted angel food cake; played the game Operation; crawled into bed at 9pm. The family left on Thursday and I headed to work. I got many wonderful presents, including car seat covers, Starbucks gift cards, books, and such...but my favorite gift is the Twin Peaks series on DVD! Mike and I spent our first Christmas Break together after we met in college watching the series that we borrowed from Jason and Jessica. I had been really itching to see it again, and so I just finished the Pilot and the first three episodes. As Agent Cooper and Sheriff Truman were about to drink coffee served by Pete Martel, Pete suddenly says "Don't drink that! I just discovered there was a fish in the percolator!" It was too late, and Agent Cooper's perfect cup of coffee had already touched his lips. They just don't make dark humor like that anymore.

I found myself recently struggling with a bit of the doldrums. Not sure if it was due to holiday stress, the cold, the snow, the darkness, working in hospice, being far from friends and family...but I lived in a "poor me" state for a few weeks blaming everyone and everything for not being "happy." But then I had a pretty big realization. I realized that I had made everything that I had wanted and intended happen. I wanted to become a hospice social worker and now I am! I wanted to move away from Denver and explore new places, live in a smaller community and now I am doing it! I wanted to live in a house with lots of space and beautiful views and I achieved that! It is a really powerful realization to have, as it reminds me that all of this is what I have wanted to move forward with my life. As I began coming out of my melancholy state, I realized maybe my melancholy is attributed to lacking "a little color" in my life. One of the dangers of living out in the country is once I come home, going back out again takes mental and physical energy. This is a sentiment held by many people I have met who live in the country. They say, "Do whatever you want to do before you get home, because when you get home that is it for ya"! And then I find myself sitting at home, at night, in the dark, feeling lonely. Well, all that will change as I was inspired by Oprah's January O Magazine to add color in different ways. To me, adding color isn't just wearing a pink t-shirt or bright socks or eating off of red plates-adding color is doing something new and different everyday to keep myself engaged and feeling challenged by what there is to discover.

Yesterday I decided that I would do just that...engage and discover. The past few weekends I have spent at home, so yesterday I decided I needed to get out. I drove to one of my favorite destinations: Ridgeway. The drive is so very pretty along HWY 550.

 I stopped at the Dennis Weaver Memorial Park off the highway on the way toward the turn off to town. Dennis Weaver had a family home in Ridgeway and died there in 2006. This park is a little piece of heaven!

It sits along the Uncompaghre River and it has a very spiritual feeling to it. At the beginning of the park, there is a beautiful poem written by Dennis Weaver:

As you walk into the park, there are a bunch of stones and a beautiful Eagle statue soaring in the sky. The stones are spiritual objects as described on this plaque that is located in the park:

Then another little plaque with a "Prayer Stone Stack" poem on it...

The park itself has this huge stone stack and an Eagle statue in the center. Around it, people have placed stones to represent prayer, solidarity and empowerment. It is a really beautiful sight and I could just feel the energy coming off of the various stone stacks.

So, thanks to adding "a little color" to my life I have now found a gem of a destination where I can find peace and inspiration. There are other things happening in the area which will add a little color, too. Laff In Comedy Night will be starting a 2 Rascals Brewpub in January, which I have heard is a must to attend. January is Montrose Writing Month sponsored by the library. You commit to a certain amount of time per week to writing, and then February 3rd there will be an open mic night and party celebrating our writing milestones. February 11th (my birthday!) I am going to take an Aromatherapy Class at the Delta Montrose Technical College. And March 1st I am going to take a class on how to paint with alcohol inks at the college. In between, I plan to usher in 2014 as a fresh beginning, a new start, and hope for good luck as I eat up my black eyed peas and collard greens on New Years' Day!

May 2014 have color in store for your life!

XO Mel