Climbing the not-so-corporate ladder

My boss approached me last Wednesday with an interesting proposition. After discussing it with The Wife, I accepted.

But first, a bit of back story:

From February to November of 2008, I was a Roadie for the Music Company that I work for. Kind of. I mean, I was on the road a lot. I visited Middle and High School orchestra directors in cities surrounding Home Base (ie: the Corporate Office) and provided services and supplies. It was a great gig, but it was fast paced and high stress. I didn't handle those parts very well, so in October or so, I asked to go back to the store and do sales there.

They agreed. And so it was that, after they found a replacement for me (whom I trained), I went back to store clerk-dom.

Well, the replacement didn't work out so much. Without going into details here, suffice it to say that my manager approached me with a Question:

Would I like to go back to being a Road Representative for the company?

My answer was a resounding, "Yes".

So I'm settling into my new-old routine, and loving it. I feel, in my heart of hearts, that I am better equipped to handle whatever stresses may come my way this time around.

You know what's funny? With the faster pace, I was anticipating having to eat more to compensate for the energy expended. Oddly enough, I've found the opposite to be true - I'm perfectly content with my PB&J sammitch that I bring for my lunch-on-the-fly. I've started eating the "25% less sugar" counterpart of the Quaker Oats Chewy Granola Bar I used to eat for breakfast. After a few days of my body going into shock in the mornings ("ZOMG, WTFBBQ? Less SUGAR??"), I've adjusted quite nicely, and only need the one bar to tie me over 'til lunch time.

And, as long as I play my cards right (ie: coming in to work at 7:25 am), I can leave a little earlier than I used to as a clerk. Instead of pulling a 9 - 6 shift, I'm doing a 7:30 - 4:30 shift. I'm rather liking it. Right now, I'm spending most of that evening time gearing up for the move, but soon --very soon-- I want to be using the time to do more yoga and maybe even walk around the neighborhood.

Anyway, that's what's keeping me away from the keyboard lately. Wish me luck on this new adventure!

Gooooooal!!

I'm sitting here on our awesomely fluffy couch with Merry, my beloved wife, sitting to my right. Our kitten, Luna Twinkletoes, is sandwiched between us. I live for these moments, the ones in which life and all its troubles seem to melt away in the simple pleasure of companionable silences.

I'm slowly sweeping out the cobwebs from This Old Blog (sounds like a TV show PBS would broadcast), and as I do, I can't help but compare myself, my current self, to the self of years long past. I'm coming out of a period of semi-stagnation, a time of little self-exploration, an embarrassingly long stretch of just "getting by". The new year has brought new hope, and the goal of vegetarianism seems to be settling in, taking root, and sustaining me right now. It represents something more to me than just changing what I eat. It represents my commitment to take care of and nourish the self. This is the first time in many years that I've wanted to take care of my self. She deserves it. When I let my guard down, I get glimpses of a well rounded, self-assured, interesting young woman. I feel I'm already headed down the path to release her from the layers of personal baggage that I've been clinging to for years now.

For the first time in months, maybe even a year, I'm allowing myself to hope. For the first time in my life, I can say that these dreams I have are attainable.

My darling wife will be going to school in the fall, studying to become an RN. When she finishes in a few years' time, it will be my turn to go back to school. Believe it or not, I won't be studying music again. I know! Crazy, innit? All these years, I've been hemming and hawing over my music, asking myself things like, "Will I ever feel that spark again?", "Why don't I feel the drive to practice anymore?", "What will everyone think if I don't go back to music??" My viola had become a source of guilt and depression - something that it should never have come to. I have been naturally moving away from it for years now, and you know what?


That's ok.

I've given hours upon hours of thought, meditation, and prayer to the question, "If not music, then what??" And I finally have an answer.

My sister invited me to attend the midwife-assisted birth of one of her sons about 9 years ago. I was moved to tears by the beauty of a life, my little nephew, coming into the world. The raw energy of that natural birth was palpable, and touched me in profound ways.

For the first time, I have now given credence to something that has niggled at the back of my mind since that very day. I want to become a midwife. I want to help women empower themselves through natural birth. I want to provide holistic heath care and sound nutritional advice to women throughout their pregnancies, and beyond. And I want to become a certified Yoga instructor, with a focus on yoga during pregnancy.

I've done extensive research. It'll require that I get my RN and then land a job in Labor/Delivery at a hospital. Once I've worked there for a year, I'll finally be eligible to enter the Certified Nurse-Midwifery program at Parkland Medical Center in Dallas. Because it is an extremely competitive school, anything I can do to set myself apart from the masses will only serve me well. I think that with the Yoga training I was already wanting to do, I'll be golden.

I think I've finally developed the patience that it takes to make dreams like these come to fruition. I have the support of a loving wife, and the drive to make it a reality.

This is the stuff dreams are made of.

Ohm ...

I hadn't done yoga in about a year, and I'd been missing it so ... I did something about it.

A while back, I went to Half Price Books and purchased a Yoga VHS for under $2.00. Excited, I began waking early to start my day with my new "AM Yoga" VHS. But there were problems ...

First and foremost, the routine goes much too quickly. According to the host, Rodney Ye, it's supposed to be a "gentle way to move me into my active day".

That's funny.

Each pose ends abruptly and the next begins with very little adieu. It's all so ... hasty! There's nothing gentle about it. It's rather comical, really.

The second thing that I have great issue with is the fact that Rodney is either hung like an ox, or has a raging hard-on ... under his very tight, very small Speedo.

*shudder*

SO. I have come to a decision:

This afternoon, I'm going to watch my VHS one final time and write down the poses. This way, I can turn on a gentle CD, read my notes, and do the damn thing at my own pace.

I really think I'll be happier without the VHS. Yoga to me is gentle. Sorry, Rodney. You won't be missed.