The Apple Encounter

My iPad unexpectedly stopped working this past week. I wasn't quite sure what was happening so I did my homework on the online forums and after a bit of poking around like the expert I had become, I concluded it simply wasn't charging.

Leaving on a trip this week and wanting to take my iPad with me I scheduled an appointment at the Apple store. 

Unfortunately the Apple Store in Denver was pretty packed and I couldn't get in before my trip so I decided to strategically schedule my appointment for an evening in Boulder after I would be there for a meeting.

I arrived 5 minutes prior to my scheduled appointment - having not had the greatest of days: Got into an intenst conversation with a friend, got stuck in traffic causing backed up from an accident which caused me to be rushed when taking a dog for a walk, who proceeded to pee all over my shoe - conveniently soaking into the shoe and my sock, I drove to a meeting which had to be cut short and then to another meeting in Boulder, for which I was late... 

Nonetheless, I arrived the Apple and they said, "We are all caught up, someone should see you in just a few minutes - how about you take a seat at this table." I sat down. Played on my phone. Watched the people in the Apple Store. The appointment time came and went and I thought, "It's ok. I need to get this fixed." Employees arrived, others left, and I realized it was time for shift changes. 30 minutes went by and eventually someone came over to see me.

And then another person came to see me.

They had a race to see who could help me faster. And one remarked, "I am not going over to the other table, those people all came in swearing at us already and I don't have the patience to be yelled at right now." Of course, he was likely perpetuating the problem, but I get it.. these people are, well, people. The Lord knows I have my moments of frustration, where I feel like I get a little bit feisty, but to have already walked in like that didn't really make much sense to me. I felt bad for the other table, but was thankful for the help at mine.

"Sugar will always get you further than spice," said the avoidant one. Hah. Perhaps...

Within a few minutes they said, "You are right. It isn't charging. We're just going to give you a new iPad." I joked, "Is it better or worse than mine?" They said it was brand new, not refurbished or anything and likely all of the issues I've ever had with my iPad were likely just issues of the one I had. I joked, "Well, you know... I HAVE an iPad so I really don't feel like I can complain at all." The Genius worker laughed with me, thanked me for the enjoyable meeting and sent me on my way.

My way led me to the bathroom where I washed my hands and the woman next to me asked, "Do you have an Apple product?" I said, "I do." She asked me if I ever went into the Apple store for help - to which I noted I'd just been there. She asked me if I always had a positive experience and I reflected and I said, "Actually, yes. I have." She proceeded to tell me about her seemingly always negative experiences since Steve Jobs died.

I agreed with her, that the company did change a bit, as did the products, with his passing, but not enough for me to blame them for anything. So I shared with her a little bit of a podcast I'd heard back in January from NPR's Invisibilia and This American Life on projecting thoughts. That when we project positive thoughts onto someone or a situation, we are likely to get a positive response the same way we'd get a negative response if we projected negative thoughts.

This isn't a new concept, but for whatever reason it was what she needed to hear in that moment. Honestly, it's also what I need to hear right now. I could have thought "this is a terrible day" (particularly after the dog peed on my shoe and I smelled like urine...) but I just kept pressing on. And the day wasn't terrible.

Sometimes it's the little reminder, or the person who is bold enough to strike up a conversation with a stranger, or simply saying something to someone else to relearn a lesson we've learned time and time again. I want to project positivity. I want to encourage people in my conversations. This is who I was designed to be, and I'm just thankful for the reminder so that I might continue to lean into it even more.

Work

I feel incredibly lucky to say that I love my job. I think all jobs have their downfalls - and in some the bad overshadows the good, but not for me. Not anymore. I have a great job. I have a boss that cares about me and my well being and... this job pursued me.

I was thinking the other day that I should just keep the running tab of things that are great about my job, so here we go:

• Pursued me
• Boss cares about me
• She gives me GOOD food (organic, local, "clean")
• She gives me tools to create my own things (spelt sourdough starter and flour to feed it)
• She gives me gifts (Essential Oils and beyond)
• Flexible times
• I get to bake and cook.
• There are times of cleaning and organizing - which are deeply satisfying for me.
• When it snowed too much for me to drive home, the family made a place for me to sleep on the couch and bought me a toothbrush.
• I can joke around with my boss and be a bit sassy without problem
• She wants me to be happy - and can ask tough questions to promote happiness.
• She teaches me how to make incredibly healthy recipes and inspires new ways of cooking.
• When I ask a question about a health issue she immediately gives me a natural remedy - and concocts it right then.
• She's helping to change people's lives and I am able to help her do that. That's pretty dang cool.

I just keep finding myself feeling extremely thankful for all of these things.

They say good things come to those who wait... and I definitely waited for this.

Sun and Smooth Drives

It's winter... and much like it happens in Colorado in February and March, it's snowing.

I don't honestly mind the snow, but I'm not incredibly fond of being cold - and lately the snow has come with a decent amount of cold. 

One thing I've always loved about Colorado and its snow is that it might snow for a day or two but it all melts within a day after that because the sun is faithful. The past couple of weeks, though, it has snowed, melted, snowed, melted, snowed, snowed again, and again... and it's actually been a little stretch without as much sun. So today I gladly welcome the return of the sun.

It's easy to forget how much we love something, but I think I will always be thankful for the sun. Even when I was in a warmer spot a little over two weeks ago I found myself in a moment of thanks for the sun and its warmth.

So on a somewhat related note: the sun melts the snow, which helps people make their commutes without fear. The commute I make to work a few days a week is daunting, stressful and exhausting. So in lieu of the fact the sun was returning, and the snow melting, today's drive was actually relatively smooth. And for that I'm incredibly grateful.

Seasons - Welcoming Lent

I love seasons - I love the change from summer to autumn to winter to spring - and I tire of each season as they occur, but I love them.

I also love seasons we go through in life.

Today is Ash Wednesday. While I grew up in a church that didn't really celebrate any holidays at all, I found myself at a church a few years ago that acknowledges the sacredness of God. Liturgical texts are seen as some of those that really take into account God's reverence and the texts are guidelines for incredible discipline.

When you first walk into a church like this and many voices are saying the same prayers and creeds it can be a little uncomfortable. My first thought, "Um.. is this a cult?" Of course now I would admit that I've come to love this format... 

So it was three years ago that I, for the first time ever, chose to give "lent" a shot. I approached it from a different perspective than "I'm giving up chocolate" or anything along those lines - but I did say, "What are areas in my life that need improvement?" I chose something physical, something mental and something spiritual for my life adjustments and I chose things that I thought perhaps I would be able to make real changes for a long time.

It was a good experience. So this year as the lenten season begins, I find myself thankful for the opportunity for a new season to practice discipline. I'm not sure what changes I'm making - though I do feel like having time set aside on a daily basis is key.

I've been mulling over articles giving ideas and will continue to do so today. I welcome this season.

(Just one article if you're curious...)
http://rachelheldevans.com/blog/40-ideas-for-lent-2015

Colorado

On two different days last week the atmosphere proceeded to dump snow on Denver - after several days of it being sunny and 60 degrees. Snow makes traffic harder and late night walks trudging through the deep powder may seem a bit unpleasant, but it is winter and I feel it is to be expected.

Nonetheless, only 24 hours after our second day of snow fall (Wednesday) it was back to crisp, sunny weather - and by the time Monday rolled around it was 65 degrees and beautiful.

I love how Colorado just kind of does its own thing when it comes to weather. Colorado says, "You can't put me in a box or define me by a "season," I will do what I want when I want." I think it used to frustrate me to not know what to expect, but as time has gone on I've come to find that I kind of enjoy the spontaneity of it. I love the spring-like days in the middle of winter, and I love when winter is wintery. Both are beautiful in their own ways.

I know when Spring comes it will be beautiful and it will suddenly snow a couple of times in April and people will wonder what is going on. It might even snow in May. - and quite honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if it snowed in the middle of July with the surrounding days in the 80's.

Is it hard to predict? Sure. Do I like when traffic flow changes because of weather? No. Can it be annoying? Definitely.

But I love it. I love Colorado in all of its seasons. In it's rebellious nature. ...and I just keep falling more and more in love with so many other aspects of this state. A state I feel good about calling "home."

Good Coffee

Well, I feel like the majority of working Americans drink coffee - and likely a great percentage of the world. I'm sure I could even find some statistics if I wanted to search around a little bit but right now..no. No because I am actually feeling jittery!

I remember when I would slam coffee in the morning and then all day in order to stay alert and present. I even started using caffeine pills when I worked in childcare so that I wouldn't have to leave the area to use the restroom as much throughout the day. Over time, though, I have somehow become very sensitive to the affects of caffeine. I had to stop drinking it past 3pm in order to go to sleep at a reasonable hour. While I used to drink a whole french press before that time (coffee in the morning and afternoon!) sometimes I only have one cup a day now.

That said, it shouldn't be a surprise I'm a bit jittery right now. I've had some espresso and 1.5 cups of coffee - and very little food. Probably not the smartest choice I've made in my life, but... the coffee here at Thump is so GOOD.

Coming from the land of coffee in the Pacific Northwest I found the coffee shops in Denver to be limited (aside from America's lovely* dominating coffee chain, Starbucks) upon my arrival here 3.5 years ago. Needless to say, it's been fantastic to see the craft coffee culture grow and flourish in this city.

I truly don't believe people can appreciate good coffee until they've had proper exposure and have learned a bit about their own tastes. I try not to judge the people with their Starbucks addictions or that want to drown their coffee in sickly sweet syrups and creamers, but it's hard because I feel like everybody should know the value of good coffee.

What IS good coffee?

Well.. it is a number of things. There is a bit to be said about where the beans come from, what the relationship with the farmers looks like, how the beans are roasted and then later crafted into beautiful pieces of drinkable art. Perhaps I'll share some more in depth articles from experts on the subject, but knowing where your coffee is from and celebrating the hands through which it has passed is a wonderful thing.

And with that... I want to celebrate good coffee. And natural light. Because Thump also has a lot of that.

Three-hundred-sixty-five Days. Give or take a few.

So... Obviously I couldn't keep up on a daily blog post. I find this unfortunate for myself since I know that writing every day is a form of therapy, but I think as life would pick up, I would also fail to set aside the time to write.

Because I would benefit in the revival this blog, I'm doing it.

I don't know what it looks like yet, but it's going to happen. Will it be daily? Probably not, but it will certainly be weekly at the very least. I may even give some themes to the days, like devoting a day to write about the remarkable and fantastic people in my life and just focus on their loveliness once a week. But we shall see.

Perhaps this will develop a rhythm soon. And if not... thanks for having enough faith in me to start reading again.

Just to kick it off... today I am thankful for the fresh falling, fluffy snow, alliterations, the laughter of children, spontaneous interactions with friends afar through a variety of means.

How about you?