I have written roughly eight posts in the last two days. Writing is how I leak out nervous energy when I have to otherwise be on my best behavior. We have a house guest, so farting loudly is off limits, saying "twat" instead of "what" in a sentence and giggling is off limits, "underwear time" in the living room is off limits, apparently Bill Clinton is off limits, too. What is a girl to do? A girl hammers and pecks at her keyboard in between making polite conversation and surrendering the computer to insistent small people who want to watch the latest episode of Word Girl and missed it when it was on TV because "Grammy talked through the whole thing."
None of those posts have made it onto the blog, though. Because, well just because. So I realized today that even though my stats have stayed fairly consistent over the last two days, there has been nothing new for anyone to look at. What are they doing? I wonder. I know what I'm doing, so I guess that's all that matters.
So here are a couple little secrets about me. I am demented. Well, that's not a secret. I have a tendency to get all bogged down inside my head and sometimes get trapped there and forget what's going on elsewhere in my world. Sometimes the wild mountain hamster in my head gets trapped on an endless loop and runs its little legs off. I don't like to feel this way, so I have tricks to keeping the old brain grease moving. One of those tricks is that I make up challenges for myself to compete with myself to complete. This is totally normal.
I love, love, love the show How I Met Your Mother. I could just eat Neil Patrick Harris with a spoon. Or put him in my pocket and carry him around. My own personal Doogie Howser on a leash. His character, Barney Stinson, is one of the most brilliantly written comedic characters of our time. Perhaps I exaggerate, but I do enjoy that character in all of his little complicated, womanizing, oedipal glory. My favorite is when his friends are talking about complete nonsense and suddenly he pops up and says "Challenge accepted!" and goes off to do something ridiculous that no one actually ever challenged him to do in the first place. I have a little Barney Stinson that lives in my soul.
I have always found it challenging to write well and originally about the following topics: love, death, becoming a mother, coming of age, faith, and marriage. So, like any self-respecting layabout, I've avoided them. Then a few days ago I discovered I was increasingly distracted by the squeak-squeak of my Wild Mountain Brain Hamster, so I sicced Barney Stinson on it. "Suit up!" my wee Barney hollered, "Challenge accepted!"* And that about sums up what I've been up to.
Do you set challenges like this for yourself? Writing is not the only area of my life where I do this, it's just the only pertinent one right now. Tell me about how you challenge yourselves. I'm curious.
*I realize that not everyone will understand this reference and honestly, I don't expect them to. If you do watch the show and enjoy it, then you may find this reference an amusing mental image. I know that some of my readers find television watching to be a bit of a plebeian activity and I acknowledge that and would rather not turn the comments section into a discussion thereof. I'm really interested in hearing about what sorts of challenges people set for themselves and why.
None of those posts have made it onto the blog, though. Because, well just because. So I realized today that even though my stats have stayed fairly consistent over the last two days, there has been nothing new for anyone to look at. What are they doing? I wonder. I know what I'm doing, so I guess that's all that matters.
So here are a couple little secrets about me. I am demented. Well, that's not a secret. I have a tendency to get all bogged down inside my head and sometimes get trapped there and forget what's going on elsewhere in my world. Sometimes the wild mountain hamster in my head gets trapped on an endless loop and runs its little legs off. I don't like to feel this way, so I have tricks to keeping the old brain grease moving. One of those tricks is that I make up challenges for myself to compete with myself to complete. This is totally normal.
I love, love, love the show How I Met Your Mother. I could just eat Neil Patrick Harris with a spoon. Or put him in my pocket and carry him around. My own personal Doogie Howser on a leash. His character, Barney Stinson, is one of the most brilliantly written comedic characters of our time. Perhaps I exaggerate, but I do enjoy that character in all of his little complicated, womanizing, oedipal glory. My favorite is when his friends are talking about complete nonsense and suddenly he pops up and says "Challenge accepted!" and goes off to do something ridiculous that no one actually ever challenged him to do in the first place. I have a little Barney Stinson that lives in my soul.
I have always found it challenging to write well and originally about the following topics: love, death, becoming a mother, coming of age, faith, and marriage. So, like any self-respecting layabout, I've avoided them. Then a few days ago I discovered I was increasingly distracted by the squeak-squeak of my Wild Mountain Brain Hamster, so I sicced Barney Stinson on it. "Suit up!" my wee Barney hollered, "Challenge accepted!"* And that about sums up what I've been up to.
Do you set challenges like this for yourself? Writing is not the only area of my life where I do this, it's just the only pertinent one right now. Tell me about how you challenge yourselves. I'm curious.
*I realize that not everyone will understand this reference and honestly, I don't expect them to. If you do watch the show and enjoy it, then you may find this reference an amusing mental image. I know that some of my readers find television watching to be a bit of a plebeian activity and I acknowledge that and would rather not turn the comments section into a discussion thereof. I'm really interested in hearing about what sorts of challenges people set for themselves and why.
I also set challenges for myself, in various areas. Recently, I opened up about my wild mountain hamster and revealed some ways I plan to tame him. That was a challenge for me, to write it in a way that didn't beg for sympathy. I can't stand when people feel sorry for me. Grr.
ReplyDeleteI also love me some Neil Patrick Harris and while I don't remember this phrase, I do love the game "Haave you met Ted?" I'm endlessly amused by "the bro code," even while I'm offended at most of them.
You did a very good job meeting that particular challenge. Sometimes I just want to wring my hamster's neck.
DeleteHaaaave you met Hamster? Ha ha ha ha ha!
By the way, I sort of hate that your "reactions" now stick that song into my head every time I visit your site. Then again, I also love me some Tim McGraw, so it's all good.
ReplyDeleteI could change it to the lyrics of "Achy Breaky Heart" if that helps.
DeleteScared us away I think. I like my cheetos and I will get them anyway I can without due consideration I realize now for the other who might want a cheeto. So I had to leave to my mountain retreat, castigate myself with birch switches, dive in cold water and generally abuse myself while praying.... i belong to a sect of catholocism wrong spelling... that requires this. Jesuit I think. From the school of theresa of avila or the other guy. DId you ever see that statue in rome. well anyway, I left and got scared off as you reminded me of my sins.... not good... not good for us sinners.
ReplyDeleteI'm a frightening, frightening person. Best you not forget it. You are, of course, completely insane. I wasn't accusing you of stealing my Cheetos. Methinks he does protest too much.
DeleteThere is a little panda in my bwain who can't decide whether she wants to be a Blackjack dealer in Vegas or a sushi chef. Whadda quandry. I tell her, "Why not both?" and she smiles that cute lil pandy smile and a gleam appears in her right eye.
ReplyDeleteI think the panda is right. Both would seem to employ a similar set of skills. You could hand out California rolls with the cards.
DeleteI'm kind of an over-achiever, who is too lazy to really be an over-achiever, so I end up being an average to so-so achiever with an ego-maniacal bent. Right now, I'm trying to teach myself computer security. I'm trying to write a book about Unitarian Universalism (why I think I have the focus or can summon the diligence to write a book is beyond me). I'm also trying to start a computer support business, for which I've received the official papers from the state and federal government to be legal. I guess I challenge myself, but not in any sort of way that might be considered sane...rather more like someone who drinks too much coffee and zealously jumps on ideas that pop into my head. hmmmm...never really saw this about myself, kind of disturbing! ah...well!
ReplyDeleteMy dad was very much like this and it drove my mother crazy, but he ended up accomplishing so many amazing things along the way. I have a touch of him in me, too. Grand ideas that I toe around the edge of and then jump in head first. Life tends to be a series of unfinished projects. In the last few years I've tried to take stock of this and force myself to see a few things through or at the very least, approach things in reasonable increments. It is very much an uncomfortable exercise for me, though.
DeleteI challenge myself all the time. For instance, I challenged myself to come up with a witty and original comment to this post. At that, I failed.
ReplyDeletePS--Seriously, though, I was just talking to Hubby yesterday about my failure to challenge myself enough particularly when it comes to writing. There is a certain laziness to it, but also a lack of time, energy, and, to some extent, a lack of venue for the end result. I both look forward (as a reader) and dread (as an envious writer) to what you make of those challenges you have set for yourself.
DeleteI own up to a certain amount of laziness when it comes to doing anything that might be hard. I can talk myself into and out of things with alarming speed. I, too, struggle with the lack of venue problem. Struggle a lot with it.
DeleteI'm not sure if the results of my challenges will make it onto the blog, but I really appreciate the support!
Setting goals yes. Often ridiculous ones...
ReplyDeleteLike getting to lunch time without having already eaten my lunch. I've often found it more satisfying to compete with myself than with anybody else, there will always be someone out there better than me anyway, but I can totally beat the past me!
I really think it's the ridiculous every day goals that bring us closer to the grand ones, though. It's like your post about narrating life, I have this constant coach in my head that's like "OK, that was good, now beat that!"
DeleteI don't challenge myself, ever, because I can't stand to fail. I don't know why but suddenly this strikes me as hilarious. I don't watch HIMYM but now that you mention it, it does sound pretty good.
ReplyDeleteYou should, it's ridiculous and funny.
DeleteI can't stand to fail, either. Hence the bizarre challenge setting - teaching myself to fail.
Oh s**t, I am one challenge after another. What the hell am I trying to prove? I constantly challenge myself at work... can I get the third tri schedule completely inputted by 2/29? Will I be able to have the Board report done by the designated hour? Can I make it through this day w/o ringing some parent's neck and/or getting myself hauled in for telling it the way I see it? All the years I had kids at home? Yikes - constant challenges -- can I get him to the soccer game on time? Can I feign enthusiasm for said soccer game? Can I be patient while she throws one more 13 year old "you don't understand" fit? Blah blah blah
ReplyDeleteNow the challenges do revolve around work. Likely the biggest challenge is , can I live a balanced life? Te jury is still out on that one.