Life's Cardinal Rule #2

Yes, I am skipping #1 for now.

In my office, I have a print out of the 7 Cardinal Rules in Life.  This list is a reminder for me to live "my" life and not the life others want me to live.

Cardinal Rule #2:  What others think of me in none of my business - What is important is how much I value myself and how important I think I am.

Hmmm- this is not a rule I follow.  I always feel people are judging me.  I cannot take a compliment.  I have low self-worth.  I don't think I am important at all.

My challenge to myself in May is to work on following this rule and rejecting the negative self-talk (I know it is just April 30th but I am starting early).

My Motto for May - 

"Be Inspired, Be Inspiring"

I saw this on the internet and liked it.  I am going to inspire myself to be the best I can be for myself everyday.  Those words can focus me on me - the positive me.  They will keep judgement out of my life.  All I have to do is look for inspiration from others and strive to inspire others.

Here is an inspiration for all the snake people out there.  Be inspired by my recent success and inspire someone else to do the same.

A Good Day

This short video clip says a lot about my day - a longer and more educational video to come soon.

Big Dog Play

I have always loved dogs.  In particular I am very fond of big dogs (65lbs and bigger).  I tease anyone with a small dog by telling them they have a rat instead of a dog.  In secret though, I still like their little rat - I just prefer the big dogs.

We adopted Bailey from a friend last August.  She was almost 2 years old when we got her so there is still a lot of puppy left in her.  Regardless, Bailey is one of the most loving, playful, and snuggling dog I have ever had.  She loves us with everything she has.

I took her out last Friday for a walk in some openspace where I could look for snakes and she could run free and sniff out mice and voles.  I only had my iPhone with me but the video opportunities were excellent so I took video anyway.

Here is the result of our short walk:

Speak Greatness Into a Player - CSA President Jon DeStefano

I cannot take credit for this blog but the information and message is worth sharing over and over.

I recently was reading Goal Post Scripts, the bi-monthly publication produced by the Colorado Soccer Association, and was extremely pleased with the "President's Report".  In this issue, the CSA President, Jon DeStefano, simply lists 101 ways to "Speak Greatness Into a Player".  Here they are and they are applicable to ANYONE you meet or interact with.  Use these words daily!

My New Toy

I got a new toy yesterday.

The Garmin ForeTrex 401 is a GPS unit that you wear on your wrist.  I have had GPS units in the past but they get put away in a backpack and forgotten - never to be used again.  This wrist-worn GPS unit is front and center, records tracks (where I walk), and can record waypoints with the click of one button.  No bells, no whistles, just tracks and waypoints.  Perfect for me.

You are probably wondering how I paid for it.  Work contributed $100, REI dividend contributed $46, and I contributed $32.  Yes, work contributed $100 to a personal GPS unit for me.  Each year during March Madness (NCAA basketball tournament), work sponsors a bracket challenge.  The whole company breaks into teams (typically 10-12 teams) and each team fills out a bracket.  My team (Warhammer - Gods of Thunder) came in second place which had a $100 prize for each team member (first place is $250 for each team member).  My team came in second last year as well and I used my $100 to buy my first FitBit.  This year I bought the GPS unit.

    

When will I use my new toy?  I will use it on all my Snake Hikes and Runs.  With the capability of recording where I go and where I find snakes, I can begin to look at snake distributions in the places I go.  In addition, I am a super nerd and want to know how many snakes per mile I find this summer.  Do I find more snakes hiking or running?  What species do I find most and where?  What time of day and year have the most snakes per mile (bang for my buck)?  The possibilities are endless.

Snake Hike on 24 April 2014 with 2 gartersnake hibernacula waypoints

 

3 Photos and What They Mean To Me

I caught a little photo bug this morning.  This created the need to post a few of the photos I took here.  All three of these photos were taken within a 30 minute time span.  The first as I was putting on my shoes, the second as I was feeding the chickens, and the third as I was trying to steal some sleep on my bus commute.

Photo 1:  Soccer Gear in a Row

Lately I have REALLY been enjoying my youngest's soccer team.  I coach this team and if any of you have ever tried to coach a group of 6 and 7 year old boys, you know that this can be a challenge.  You have to be careful not to push too hard but you also cannot let them pick flowers, play with sticks, touch each other, or build dust castles in the bare patches that are ever-present in a recreational soccer field.

Back to enjoying the team - they are GETTING it!  They are beginning to understand the game.  Soccer is growing in them.  I recently heard from a parent that their son is heading outside just to kick the soccer ball - this is a huge success in my mind.  When a child goes from soccer at practice only to soccer on their time, I have done my job - they are learning to love the game.

The picture below is near and dear to my heart.  It shows how much love my youngest has for the game.  As I was putting on my shoes this morning, I saw all his soccer gear (boots, guards, and socks) lined up and ready to go.  I smiled and felt amazing - Ashton is ready for his game on Saturday.

Photo 2: The Girls in Their Bedroom

The chickens were still in their coop this morning when I headed out to feed them.  We feed our chickens all of our table scraps (everything!) from the day before.  If you haven't ever fed chickens before, you need to stop by our house at first light when our chickens get their daily ration of table scraps.  They go nuts and fight over the best pieces (spaghetti is a favorite).  This morning the girls were still asleep.

Our girls crowd together in one of the nest boxes in their coop when they sleep.  It is a funny sight to see 8 chickens crammed into a small 12"x12" space but they manage it somehow.  This morning I tries to catch them all crammed together but they were ready for me.  As soon as I opened the nest box the girls fled.  It was like I caught them naked in their bedroom - just like a human caught naked, the girls rushed away to hide.  It was too funny and the photo below shows their surprise and their rush to get out of there and cover up.  Except for the two blonds - they just stayed there (hmmm).  :)

Photo 3:  My Bus Sleep

I was in a complete funk this morning despite the soccer and chicken experiences.  My bus commute is becoming a chore for me and a 25 minute self-loathing session.  I am working on mitigating the self-loathing by listening to music and trying to sleep.  It is working a little.

The first song that came into my ears this morning was "Master of Puppets" by Metallica.  I listened to less than 30 seconds of this song - it just wasn't right for me today.  For some reason I found myself clicking on the P!NK iTunes radio station and the first song that started playing was P!NK's "Try".  Although this song is about relationships, I can manipulate the lyrics to fit my struggles with my work, my life, and getting the Center for Snake Conservation flying.  This was a perfect song for me this morning and the photo below is of me trying to catch some sleep while embracing the lyrics of the song.

"Where there is desire
There is gonna be a flame
When there is a flame
Someone's bound to get burned
But just because it burns
Doesn't mean you're gonna die
You've gotta get up and try, and try, and try
Gotta get up and try, and try, and try
You gotta get up and try, and try, and try"

17 April 2014 - Cameron Raw and Unedited - Video Blog

Enjoy and watch it in HD.