Skip to main content

Posts

Becoming an Intrapersonal Storm Chaser - What is That?

  Becoming an Intrapersonal Storm Chaser – What is That? This article is about learning to notice fear, understand where it shows up, and approach it with support instead of shame. I am not writing as an expert or therapist. I am writing as someone who spent years avoiding certain storms and finally decided to study them instead of running from them. Never enter the eye of the storm until you have taken the time to know them, identified a team (therapist, trusted friends), and have tools to use for the different storms, similar to what a physical storm chaser would do before going into the eye of a tornado. What works for me may not work for you or my future self. We are always changing. For example, I used to hate running, now I love it. Ironically enough it became one of my most valuable tools. You might be asking, what is the eye of the storm? It is one of the calmest parts of a physical storm, but it can also be one of the most dangerous places to enter. From an interperso...
Post a Comment
Read more
Recent posts

Gallo Pinto - Gabriel's Way

Do you know what the English translation is for Gallo Pinto?  Spotted Rooster!  Only because of the appearance. Gallo pinto is vital to Costa Rica as the national dish, embodying the "Pura Vida" lifestlye. Most Costa Rican families have leftover beans and rice to reuse the next day.  Making this dish does represent a healthy and simple lifestyle.  Lizano is a very poplual sauce in Costa Rica as well.  I LOVE IT. The protein is AMAZING in this bowl:  Fresh Farm Egg (7 grams), 1 cup of Long Grain White Rice (4 grams), 1/2 cup Avacado (2 grams), and Black Beans (1 TBS 1 gram)!  What an amazing way to start your day! For the book I am writing, The Confused Rooster of Jaco :   Alba's mother Megan LOVED Gallo Pinto, especially the way that Gabriel made it, Alba's father.  This is why he was up early, in celebration of Alba's mother's birthday (March 21st).  Ironically Coco hatched on March 21st as well.  He will get a special treat of Gal...
Post a Comment
Read more

Costa Rica - Masks and The Dinner Story

  Batle De Los Diablitos:    DANCE OF THE LITTLE DEVILS The mask you are seeing on my Scape was a gift to me while in Coasta Rica.  I treasure for several reasons, the monarch is near and dear to my heart ot name one. Traditional wooden masks made by the indigenous Boruca tribe from Costa Rica were used to scare off the Spanish Conquistadore in the early 1500s. The Boruca Tribe was successful in maintaining their independence even though Costa Rica was colonized by the Spanish. To this day, the Boruca's celebrate their rich history in an annual festival where the new masks are made and battles and rituals are recreated. Traditional masks depict a scary figure to ward off invaders while a newer style shows that man does not own nature, we are a part of it. In the story of The Confused Rooster of Jaco, the Monarch Rainforest mask was given to Alba along with the cross necklace, the travel journel with a Mother's Blessing, and the picture I Cry A Lot.  Alba is clo...
Post a Comment
Read more

Fresh Farm Eggs, Did You Know?

  Please make sure to always wash your hands after touching fresh farm eggs.  Wash the shell before cracking. Unwashed farm eggs  retain a natural protective coating called the " bloom " or cuticle, which seals pores to block bacteria and maintain freshness . They can be stored at room temperature for 2–3 weeks or in the refrigerator for up to 3–6 months. Washing removes this layer, requiring immediate refrigeration.   If you are unsure if your eggs are good, there is a quick and easy test.   Fill up a bowl of water and submerge your eggs.  If they stay submerged, they are good!
Post a Comment
Read more

The Confused Rooster of Jaco

  I can smell the eggs and now hear Coco.   My eyes dart to the alarm clock.   It is only 4:27 am.   Dang, I could have laid in bed for at least another hour.   Slowly I raise my hands above my head and take a deep breath.   Here it goes, another day.   Not sure if it is Monday or Tuesday.   Ugh.   Oh well.   Normally I have time to just sit and think about it for an hour.   Not today! I swing my legs off the bed till my toes touch the ground.   Do I want to go to the kitchen?   I sit for a moment then scratch my brain.   Almost as if that is going to help me make my decision.   Am I the only person that talks to themselves? Yep, I am hungry, going to see what the heck is going on. Good morning sunshine.   My dad says as I arrive at the kitchen table.   Wow dad, how long have you been at it.   Well, I couldn’t sleep.   So, I decided to make breakfast.   I didn’t mean to wake you, if I...
Post a Comment
Read more

Words: What are they good for anyway?

“Single” doesn’t mean a heart is available and free. Married doesn’t mean a heart is not available and trapped.” -Stacey Cook   (Added one of my scarlet macaw Costa Rica pictures for fun.  He had no mate in sight, "Single" and hanging out with me.  The safety guy says, "They are not that friendly.  Plus, I don't see his mate.".  Therefore, the conclusion, he must have been bitten by a snake and was dying.  Maybe the last hours of his life, all because he was "Single".) Why in the h-e-double hockey sticks would I say, “Words, what are they good for anyway”? I will explain. Words are just that, words. What gives them meaning are the attachments such as beliefs, culture, emotions, experiences, commitment, behavior, and character to name a few. For example, “Single” might mean “I am not married,” simple as that.  For others, it might mean, “I am available to have fun”.  I will let you guess what kind of fun I mean. Words are used to he...
Post a Comment
Read more

Time Bank

  Today's morning coffee reflections...how ironic it is that we are responsible for robbing our own time bank and many times we don’t even realize it. Incessant thinking about insecurities (I am 100% guilty) is one. Life is a teacher, but only if we are open to the lessons. With that, I am sharing an article I sent my mother over 28 years ago. Love life lessons!  Thank you mom for keeping what I sent you and for putting it in a place I would find it after you passed. My hope is you find The Bank to be helpful in quantifying how valuable time really is..... The "Time" Bank Imagine there is a bank which credits your account each morning with $86,400, carries over no balance from day to day, allows you to keep no cash balance, and every evening cancels whatever part of the amount you have failed to use during the day. What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course! Well everyone has such a bank, its name is TIME. Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds.  Eve...
Post a Comment
Read more