My apologies for not having a “Week in Review” last week. My children participated in a ‘Nature and Science Summer Camp’ that ate the entire week. It was one of those situations where the kids could participate in one day, or all five days. I was sure we were only going to go for one day. Then we got there, and all of us had such a great time that we committed to the entire week.
I try to keep AT LEAST a week ahead on the website schedule, so I was grateful to be able to step away unexpectedly for the week so my family could enjoy their summer and not lose a ton of ground. If you’re considering creating a website of your own, or anything web-based, I highly suggest you work smarter and not harder. Set aside a day or two of solid work where you create you content AHEAD of time. Most platforms allow you to pre-upload content and schedule for publication. Do that. You can thank me later.
Even if you have no desire or reason to fall behind on an editorial calendar, it’s still a great insurance policy to be ahead of schedule just in case shyte hits the fan, so that your publication doesn’t fall behind.
FLOATING IN MOLASSES
It was probably for the best that I wasn’t trying to be original or insightful on the site last week regardless of how busy I was. The entire week felt like I was floating in a bowl of molasses. I have no idea what the moon was doing, but I’m sure there’s some reason for my inability to make any progress. I felt like a hamster on a running wheel, spinning a hundred miles per hour and going nowhere. At one point over the weekend I had been working on content and the site for three days straight and felt like I’d gotten nothing done.
I always look for the lesson in any difficulty. What I decided that I was supposed to be learning from that experience is not to push or pull for inspiration. If I’m not feeling pulled, then I’m not on the right track. Always follow where you feel pulled, and trust your intuition.
SCHEDULE TIME FOR YOU
As much as our culture wants us to believe that hugely successful people are always busy people, I call bullsh*t on that belief. When I sit down at the beginning of every week and look at my schedule for the week ahead I ALWAYS schedule my time first. I time block a lot of things. Time for daily meditations. Time for daily workouts. Time to read books. Time to think, brainstorm and create. Whatever time is left over after I’ve scheduled my time is what I use for taking masterclasses, writing articles, starting new fitness challenges, sourcing new recipes for the site and my family, and more.
You’ll never be or do your best if you’re not taking care of yourself first. Remember to prioritize your own growth before your professional growth. Think of it as a vehicle to carry all parts of your life forward. Self-care is the opposite of selfishness. Remember that.
BLACK POWDER PASS HIKE
Our family took a hike up Black Powder Pass last weekend. We’re based out of Colorado, if anyone didn’t know. We’re fortunate to have an endless supply of trails, passes, waterfalls, and back country to explore in this state. If you love the outdoors, Colorado is the place for you.
Black Powder Pass is a 12,159′ saddle between two impressive alpine peaks: 13,082′ Boreas Mountain and 13,684′ King Baldy Mountain. It is accessed from the top of Boreas Pass Road, an 11,481′ dirt road that is passable once the snow has melted (usually by mid-June). Boreas Pass Road can be reached south out of Breckenridge, CO or north out of Como, CO.
The trail begins by following Boreas Ditch #2, a peaceful creek that is lovelier than its gruff name implies. Continue on through meadows and forests until reaching tree line, where flowers and alpine grasses abound. Mountain views are spectacular and those who want to add more challenge to their day can opt to ascend either of the bracketing peaks—neither have formal trails but both are straightforward walk-ups.
Black Powder Pass Hiking Trail is fantastic. The trail is only about 3.4 miles round trip, but most of the hike is above 11,000 feet and has an elevation gain of 678 ft. The hike was gorgeous and a lot of fun. We packed in a picnic and sat up in the saddle where we ate while watching marmots and chipmunks frolic in the snow before descending back down. Coming down was hell on the knees, so bring trekking polls if you have some. Your knees will thank you.
COLORADO IS BURNING
Living in the Rocky Mountains is a privilege and we absolutely love it. It’s temperate in the summer, gorgeous in the winter and our neighbors are bobcats, moose, antelope and black bears. This past winter we had a lot less snow pack than usual which means this summer we’re incredibly dry up here. At this moment there are fires burning all over the mountains. We’re talking tens of thousands of acres of forests burning without containment. The skies are orange, the air smells like smoke and our lungs hurt. It’s tense, and feels very much like Russian roulette. You know the fires are going to happen, you just don’t know where or when. We live in a place where a lot of people come up and camp. Even though most counties are under complete burn bans and offenders face a fine of $1000, we still have a constant flow of people driving up out of Denver to camp. They’re having camp fires, and they’re burning our homes to the ground. Sigh. Monsoon season usually starts in July. We’ve got our fingers crossed that they come soon, and bring A LOT of moisture.
AB WORKOUT APP
I was supposed to start the 4-week ab workout program last Monday. That didn’t happen, as I didn’t even get my morning runs in any day last week because of the kids’ summer camp. It felt great getting back to my runs this past weekend. I’m not sure exactly when I’m going to start the ab workouts. Of course I’ll report back here when I do, and I’ll write a full review on the ab workout app I plan on using.
THIS WEEK’S FITNESS GOALS
I always aim to work out five out of seven days of every week. This week my aim is to meet that goal. I’ve also been laxed on my water drinking, and am going to work extra hard to meet my 100 oz./day goal. I bought a bunch of cucumbers at the store yesterday and will be drinking cucumber juice as much as possible. If you didn’t know, cucumber juice is hugely hydrating, on a cellular level.
CLASSES THIS WEEK
I realize I take a lot of classes through Mindvalley. I did branch out this week and tried to take two business classes from different web-based organizations. I ended up frustrated and let down, however, because their platforms sucked. One of them wanted me to download an entirely new program onto my computer just to watch their program. That’s invasive, unnecessary, and I simply didn’t bother. The other one never loaded on their own webpage.
I truly believe the future of education is through Masterclass-style seminars where people like you and I can teach each other the things we’re great at. Before that can happen there needs to be a platform developed for regular people to host their curriculum on that’s user-friendly, reliable and non-invasive. If I were at all tech-inclined I would build it myself and make a million dollars for the effort. I’m not, however, so I’ll stick to what works for now.
Mindvalley Masterclass: Psalm Isadora: Tantra and Sacred Sexuality
This class was less about sexuality and more about the healing effects of sensuality, different breathing techniques and discovering and healing intimacy blocks. Overall I was happy for having taken it because it illuminated for me the places where I need to work on intimacy blocks that may be preventing me from experiencing the most incredible sexual and sensual experiences in my life.
Psalm Isadora’s estate (she’s passed away) has a website with a lot of content, including instructional videos, if you’d like to immerse yourself more into her instructions, insight and style. I particularly liked her Kiss Meditation.
The website (and link to the kiss meditation) is: https://psalmisadora.com/kiss-meditation/
Mindvalley Masterclass: Christy Sheldon: Removing Abundance Blocks
I had taken a course on abundance blocks previously, so I was familiar with them and how they work. This course went a step further, and actually showed us how to discover when and how we created those blocks, how to find the blocks in our physical bodies, and how to clear and transmute them using energy work.
If you’re not someone who is interested in energy work, it would still benefit you to find and acknowledge any mental blocks you have to abundance in your life. Blocks are just a term for psychological beliefs that are going to affect how you make decisions and can have lasting and real consequences in your life.
There’s no reason to carry blocks, whether they’re about intimacy or money or something else entirely, forward with us in our lives if there’s a reason and ways to remove them. If you’re on the fence about taking a course like this, I’d suggest you give it a go.
This masterclass affected me in unexpected and powerful ways. There were points in the course where I was literally sobbing onto my laptop. I was shocked at how profoundly I felt affected by the experience, and psychologically I feel better for having turned toward the places in my mind that were holding unto untruths or misunderstandings so that I could heal, remove and replace them.
INDEX CARD SYSTEM FOR MEDITATIONS
I translated a lot of what I learned from the abundance block course into a system for clearing blockages and used an index card box to help. This might be a system that you find useful as well.
I have an index card box with dividers in it. In the front of the box I have different meditation techniques listed on different index cards, so that when I sit down for my daily meditations I’m not wasting time deciding what and how I want to work on in the moment. I can pick and choose and tailor a meditation that’s immediate and relevant to what I’m experiencing THAT DAY by sorting and picking through the techniques.
Then I have a divider and cards with intimacy blocks that I need to work on written on them. I can pick and choose what to work on in the moment without spending a lot of time trying to sort through my thoughts over and over again and wasting time. I can designate a good chunk of time to identifying my intimacy blocks ahead of time, and write them onto index cards. Then, later, when it’s time to meditate, I can pull them out and choose which ones to work on that day.
I have another divider, and behind it are listed abundance blocks I’m working on in the same way. I can spend time, separate from my precious meditation time, to identify blocks I need to work on. So that when I come to the meditative table it’s a quick and simple matter of choosing what to work on that day and getting right to work.
You can do this same thing with other types of mental blocks, mis-beliefs, or life issues you want to approach and deal with while meditating.
I have a lot of things in my life that clamor for, and demand my attention. I do not have the luxury of boundless free-time to commit to prolonged meditative and healing exploration. So I make the most of the time that I do have, and I put systems in place that can carry and sustain my work so that I can see real improvements. I hope by illuminating these systems for you guys, that someone is sparked to find similar ways in their own lives to grow and learn. The index card system is one of those tools.
That’s it for this week. As always, thank you for your precious time and attention that you’ve chosen to spend here with me. You can look forward to tomorrow’s article about different visualization techniques that will help you discover your life’s purpose. In the meantime take care of yourselves, and each other.
Becky xo
Vital Living Life 