The Girl In The Band
  • Home
  • Who is the girl in the band?
  • My View From The Stage
  • Home Ideas
  • Career Tips
  • Fashion and Shopping
  • Just Life

Vacation Lessons

8/20/2017

0 Comments

 
It has been a long time since I took over a week off from band and work. Even a longer time when I took a week off from band, work and the internet.  No emails, no social media. 
So on the last week of July, I spent one week on a houseboat on Lake Shasta.  Occasionally, we had internet.  When we did, I scrambled to check emails and make sure no major disaster was brewing. (It wasn’t).  Texts came in only occasionally.  By the middle of the week, I noticed I was almost disappointed when we moved the boat and got some connectivity.  If I didn’t know about it, I didn’t have to fix it. Right?
My mornings were spent on solo Jet Ski rides, just taking in the scenery.  Me and my thoughts, like a water motorcycle rider on the lake of life.  Afternoons were spent swimming, kayaking or just hanging out with a book.  Evenings were a cocktail under the stars.
A houseboat trip had been on my bucket list.  Did it live up to my expectations? Yes. There were moments that were not fun. Sixteen people on a boat, three under the age of seven, and I know you can do the calculations.  But all in all, one of the best vacations I have ever had.
What really made it special, was I came home with some revelations.  Here are my top three vacation lessons.

I AM NOT IN AS GOOD OF SHAPE AS I WOULD LIKE TO BE
I could not get on the Jet Ski from the water.  I required getting on from the boat.    I plan on spending a lot more time on Jet Skis for the later part of my life and if I dump it, I need to be able to get back on it by myself.  I have modified my work outs to include things that will build more upper body strength.  Good bye Booty Barre class, hello Body Pump!

WHY NOT ME?
Could I live on a houseboat?  I discussed this very subject on the ride home with one of our friends who is experienced with this whole house boating thing.  He explained that some of the things I wasn’t digging (cold showers with no water pressure) could be fixed. (Bigger water tank).  It got me thinking.  Why not me?  Being an HGTV addict, I have spent many a half hour with Beach Front Bargain Hunters and Caribbean Life.  So why not me?  The life I have now, doesn’t necessarily have to be the last life I have.  After all, I went from being a Wisconsin factory girl to being a So Cal work at home Software Application Specialist.  Why not a beach front home in St Croix or a houseboat in Panama? 

WORK IS WORK
I have a new attitude toward work.  Work is work. Work is not my life.  My life is the things I love to do and the people I love doing them with.   Sometimes that is my work, but when it isn’t, getting tied up in knots about it, is ridiculous.  Office politics, worrying about decisions my company makes that I can’t control?  In the immortal words of one of my favorite bosses, “It’s not my table.”  Hanging on to bad feelings about a meeting I didn’t quite nail?  Counterproductive and just plain stupid.  My new motto? “Moving on.” Not to say I don’t learn from mistakes, but hanging on them?  Since my vacation, not happening anymore.
​
VACATIONS ARE NECESSARY
Which brings me to the biggest lesson.  Vacations need to happen.  Not long weekends.  Not a day off here and there. REAL VACATION, cut off from your daily life!  I had been feeling burned out and unable to focus on things for months.  Why?  No real time off!  I have come home energized and ready to get back to work, projects and learning.  I just signed up for a Conversational Spanish class at a community college.  Time to get ready for living on that houseboat in Panama!
0 Comments

THREE THINGS THAT HELPED MAKE MY SUMMER

8/10/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture



​The end of July, I crossed something off of my bucket list.  I spent a week long vacation on a houseboat at Lake Shasta.  Overall, it has been one of the better summers I have had in a long time.  More on everything to follow, but after my boat trip, I realized in addition to having some real fun the last couple of months, I have also found some great products .  Here are three that helped make this summer a good one.

Picture
ATHLETIC WORKS SHORTS FROM WALMART
These shorts are super comfortable, come in some great colors and fit really well.  I am wearing the blue ones in the picture above.  I practically lived in them on my vacation, using them as a swimsuit cover up and then transitioning them to cocktails under the stars!  I bought six pairs in different colors and still didn't spend fifty dollars!  Since I have been back, I have also been using them as my new favorite gym outfit.

Picture
SPEEDO LADIES HYBRID WATERCROSS SHOE
​I bought these after seeing someone else on my boat trip wear them.  I had to get a pair once I got home because they worked so great for her!  I ordered them from Amazon for under thirty dollars. A great shoe that is made for the water and the land, my friend wore them jet skiing, kayaking and never had to change shoes for the entire trip.   Perfect combination of support and water durability, I will be using my new pair on my next boat or beach outing!

Picture
NEUTROGENA BUILD-A-TAN
​This is the best tan I have had in years and no, it isn't all from the sun!  I have gone from never using a tanning product to finding two different ones I really love! Neutrogena's Build-A-Tan is very reasonably priced and goes on just like a moisturizer.  It gives a much lighter tan than the other product I was using,which works well for someone as white as I am!  I love having legs that don't match Casper the ghost, but still look like the color could be a possibility after a vacation.

In California, summer really isn't over until the end of October, so looking forward to more good times! And maybe some more great products!
0 Comments

    Archives

    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.