Richard Sherman and the Seattle Seahawks – Lessons Learned

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

There was a big American football game this weekend between the San Francisco 49ers and the Seattle Seahawks. There was a post-game interview with player Richard Sherman that went a bit out of control afterwards and has generated a ton of interest and discussion.

Basically he yelled into the camera and was angry and attacking another player and being self-righteous. There have been opinion pieces written to support him as well as those against him and those that explain how far he has come.

I don’t see what they see. I don’t see color or race or a hero or a victim. I see a person who probably should have been a bit more humble in the heat of the moment, and celebrated his team’s sweet victory in a more positive way than he chose to express.

I also see 10 things we can learn from this interaction that are good lessons for all of us.

1. Be nice. Always.

2. When you have strong feelings, take a breathe and count to three before speaking or acting. Give yourself a moment to think.

3. What you say is a reflection of your self and your team or family. Choose wisely.

4. If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say it out loud.

5. Be respectful. Respect yourself. Respect others.

6. Be humble. Have confidence in yourself, yet be humble. Your actions speak louder than your words.

7. Forgive your enemy. Let go of negative feelings and hate. It’s ugly.

8. Threatening others is ugly too. Be gracious with your own success and don’t attack others. Good sportsmanship is always in fashion.

9. When you make a mistake, acknowledge it by saying you’re sorry and meaning it, without making excuses for your part in the conflict. This makes it easier for everyone to move on and continue to be great.

10. Thou shall not judge. He made a mistake and he does not deserve to be attacked by America. Let’s move on and forgive and get ready for the next event. Move forward in peace.

20Jan2014

Juneuary

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

The weather is unseasonably warm in California for January. We really need rain and a state of emergency has been declared because of the drought. The kids had off from school to celebrate and remember Martin Luther King day. We spent the morning working together in our house and spent the afternoon playing tennis and swimming in the beautiful sunshine.

Life is good.

19Jan2014

Not Busy

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

When you’re not busy, the days are long and there is time to do everything and nothing.

Today I was not busy. It’s very challenging for me to not have anything to do. Believe me, I really will never have nothing to do, but I didn’t have anything I had to do. No pressure. No deadline. No one needing me. And I wasn’t quite sure what to do with myself. Not having a plan gives me anxiety. How about for you?

Football was on all day today, so the boys were occupied. I’m still fighting a cold, so going to the beach or shopping or getting out of the house wasn’t all that desirable to me. I decided to stay home and to just be home. I have a perpetual to do list, but I didn’t really feel like following a list. My problem in staying home is I tend to cook and clean. Not that that is a problem, but I don’t usually sit still and read or pick one or two projects to work on.

I need to practice being still, and being ok just staying home with “nothing” to do and enjoy the process of letting things unfold naturally. Life is a continuous practice, of this or that, isn’t it?

We went to church this morning and spent an hour afterwards working together in honor of Martin Luther King Day tomorrow and being of service. We came home and I cooked pork carnitas in the crock pot, prepared lunch and appetizers for the family, worked on uploading and organizing 2000+ photos, and watched football with my boys, and snuck away to watch some of the Australian Open. After the games were over, we all went for a walk together around the block to get a little exercise and fresh air. The day wasn’t fancy or all that exciting, but it just was. It’s probably what Sundays should look like. A day of rest. I’m working on being ok with being not busy (aka “bored”) and fighting the anxiety that makes me feel like I should be doing more. It’s ok to not be busy, and I’m going to keep on practicing, just being. Wish me luck.

How was your day? Can you sit still and do “nothing”?

18Jan2014

Kid Sports and Being Present

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

Having three kids is really cool and helps you to be really present and aware.

We have a boy, a girl, and another boy. I like this birth order too because of the age difference between the oldest and youngest of the same sex. It gives me a way to view the present and the past and to use the past experiences to appreciate the present moments.

Watching our third child play basketball today brought back memories of all the previous games we have watched over the years. We’ve observed our kids try new sports, join new teams, make new friends, develop new skills, and move on.

Seeing Charlie’s focus and determination and passion was exciting to watch. The kids are getting better and better as they age and gain more experience. It was cool to watch him play and to compare and contrast his way of playing with the way his siblings played. I was remembering watching Christian and Juliana play too and felt the awareness that time has passed away – that they are done playing in the community leagues. And knowing that they are done, made me want to really pay attention to Charlie still playing. Does that make any sense?

I feel like having the “baby” connects me to the memories of my first born and gives me another chance to really enjoy their childhood. It makes me nostalgic and reminds me to enjoy the moments and to continue to be present because I can really see and feel how fast the times flies by. I was thankful that Christian was sitting with us and observing his brother, “coaching” from the sidelines.

Life is good.

17Jan2014

Laughter

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

How often do you laugh so hard that your sides hurt, your checks hurt and you start to cry? I was laughing that hard tonight, partially because of something funny but also because I was over tired and stressed and needed a good laugh. Because I was laughing so hard, everyone else was too and that made me laugh even harder. I love that feeling!

This picture is from me laughing last night and being silly with a bunch of girlfriends playing Bunco.

I won the Bunco Boa and did my happy dance and wrapped it around my head because it was itchy. There were feathers everywhere and I was still itching and coughing this morning from them, bringing back all the fun memories from last night. I think I was allergic to it.

Bunco is a mindless dice game that is played with 12 people that has you rolling and moving and drinking and chatting and playing with friends for a couple of hours. It’s a perfect stress relief and a great form of entertainment.

Life is good! Live. Love. Laugh. Repeat.

16Jan2014

3D Printer

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

Have you seen a 3D printer yet? These are so cool and I can’t wait to watch the technology develop and turn into something great. They are already being used in the health care field to create medical devices like moveable hands for amputees.

Charlie’s public school teacher is so inspiring and talented and generous with sharing her gifts and passion. She wrote a grant to receive an almost free 3D printer and is sharing it with her class. The students and parents are curious and they are making all kinds of cool things.

Here are a few things they have made and some pictures of the printer in action.

Aren’t you curious how it works and what is possible? I love it!

15Jan2014

Old Friends

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

What is it about old friends that makes you smile and happy?

My old friend, Jeni, was In town tonight on a business trip and we had several hours to catch up. I haven’t seen her in several years, yet seeing her again made me so happy. She provides a link between the new me and the old me and she made it feel like no time had passed at all. She reminds me of a time when I had no responsibilities and ate lots of junk food and laughed all the time and had silly nicknames and when we danced to Madonna over and over again on my boom box. We were young and we really knew how to play and live in the moment.

We looked at old yearbooks and letters and cards and shared stories of a time long ago. This was comforting to me. We shared stories of our present married lives and being mothers and her working life. There were connections between our past and our present, and I enjoyed the comfort and familiarity that you get from a shared history and remembrance. I’m glad I held on to all the mementos and got to share memories and stories with my old friend.

I wish the same for you and if you are lucky enough to have an old friend or two, take the time to reconnect. I’m sure it’ll be good for your souls and make you feel young again.

Namaste.

14Jan2014

How to Be Happy

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

Time and INC. Magazine states that there are ten scientifically proven ways to be incredibly happy and I believe them!.

You can read the article here:

10-scientifically-proven-ways-to-be-incredibly-happy

The highlights, and I’ll be quick because I have to get to sleep (to be happy and healthy) are:

1. Exercise – 7 minutes could be enough! I wish you enough.

2. Sleep more. Working on it!!

3. Spend more time with friends and family. Money can’t but happiness.
Want to play?

4. Get outside more. 57 degrees is the magical temp.
I love California! Maybe because the weather adds to my happiness.

5. Help others. 2 hours per week or a 100 hours per year is the magical number.
Are you giving 2 hours per week?
What are you doing to give? I’m so curious!!
Does giving to your family count? Probably not, right?

6. Practice smiling.
Are you smiling now? You sure are cute! Fake it ’til you make it.

7. Plan a trip. Just the planning and visualization helps to create happiness.
Where do you want to go?
I want to go to Cabo and Hawaii with friends and family and smile and exercise and sleep and help rub suntan lotion on everyone.
Does that count as service?

8. Meditate. Focus and find clarity.
Be deliberate and know your intentions. Stop wasting time on Facebook and do something.

9. Move closer to work.
Interesting, huh? Makes sense. Who is happy with a long commute and traffic both ways?

10. Practice gratitude.
Thank you for reading and learning and sharing with me.

I am so happy now, and I bet you are too. Wasn’t that easy?

Good night!!

13Jan2014

Shine

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

I went to the doctor today and I don’t have a pneumonia! Phew! now back to living. He just ordered that I get to bed by 9 pm and get enough sleep. That has definitely been lacking and challenging! He said to just rest and drink lots of fluids. I also got the flu shot, and tomorrow I am taking the kids for theirs too. Better late than never. Have you gotten yours yet?

This has been your public service announcement! Stay healthy and rested and loved, friends.
xo

12Jan2014

Face Time

Posted in Uncategorized by adrianahartley

Since I’m feeling better, I thought I’d change things up and share something different.

Here’s some corporate lingo so you can sound smart! I found a box of corporate flash cards on the shelf when I was moving books around.

These are stupid things to make you laugh and I liked this one about face time.

Have you ever requested face time with someone? Not this way, but now we have a verb – to FaceTime someone, as in: Do you wanna FaceTime, meaning have a real time, video chat?

I can see us wanting more face time since everyone seems to have a phone in their face now. Next time I want to get together with someone, I’m going to text them and ask for some face time and see what kind of response I’ll get. I’ll probably get a selfie or my phone will start vibrating with a FaceTime request.

I miss your face!!