Peace of Mind Organizing

A little photo essay

4 September 2009

I’m going to write a blog post about the wonderful AAPO conference, but I’m tired today, so I’ll just share some photos. I’m still loving Australia!

Looking at what I’ve taken, I see that my beautiful sister-in-law, Marg, is prominently missing from the pix. I’ll definitely have to do something about that. In the meantime, here’s a little photo essay, with photos taken starting last Monday right before Larry, Miranda and I left for the Sunshine Coast through Wednesday afternoon.

Taylor on his way to school. In the winter, they wear ties with their shorts.

On the train to the Sunshine Coast. I'm eating a Dagwood Dog, aka corn dog.

Taken with the self timer at the beach

On the beach in Coulandra, at sunset

Larry loves pigs.

Miranda took this great picture of an echidna a the Australia Zoo.

Miranda feeding a sweet little wallaby.

The family dog, Dakoda. Photo styling by Taylor.

Whales, koalas, kangaroos and more!

2 September 2009

My brother, Larry, my niece, Miranda, and I took a trip a couple hours north from Brisbane to the Sunshine Coast where we paid a visit to Larry’s sister- and brother-in-law in Caloundra. We had such a lovely time.

Yesterday we went whale watching and saw humpback whales. I can’t resist sharing a photo.

Last night the family played twelve rounds of Scattergories. It’s the first time I’ve ever played with anyone who wanted to play as long as I did! Larry won two games, I won one, and we tied one. (Each game consists of three rounds.)

This morning we went to the Australia Zoo which was owned by famed Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin. It’s a very hands-on zoo, dedicated to conservation. I’m not necessarily a big fan of zoos, but I decided to go to make sure I saw Australian animals during my visit here.

Boy did I. Our visit started with me getting to hold a koala. Oh my goodness. She was very sweet. And she was holding on hard! It was as though I was getting a bear hug from her. Here’s the photo of Miranda and me with Mist, the koala (taken by Larry):

Other highlights included visiting Roo Heaven, an area in which kangaroos loll about and are hand-fed by the zoo visitors. (They sell us kangaroo food to feed them.) It was indeed heaven. These creatures were so interesting and so, so tame. I even pet a little joey, who was amazingly soft.

Here’s me feeding my very first kangaroo:

Larry and his family live on the edge of a forest and the birds are so loud and just different from what I’m used to. The kookaburras, in particular are amazingly noisy. They do sound like they’re laughing. Here’s a photo of three kookaburras, taken at the Australia Zoo. (Miranda took this excellent shot.)

Tomorrow the AAPO conference starts. I’m really excited to meet the Australasian organizers, but it is a little tough to be thinking about working!

Checking in from Down Under

30 August 2009

I’m here to tell you that Qantas rocks. My flight across the ocean was really quite easy. It was an overnight flight that lasted 14 hours (we left LA at 10:30 p.m. Thursday and arrived in Sydney at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, crossing the international date line). The captain cheerfully told us that the duration of our flight was “just over half a day.”

Flying Qantas was like flying on a US flight 20 years ago. There was food. There was leg room (I was seated in “premium economy,” whatever that is). There was even free alcohol. They gave us cozy blankets and real pillows. One great thing that didn’t exist 20 years ago was individual TV screens for each seat, with movies and TV on demand.

Thanks to the noise-cancelling headphones I brought and the pitch-dark cabin, I actually slept for seven hours. After I woke up, I watched the movie “Australia” (it seemed like the thing to do) and next thing I know it we were landing.

If I’d realized the journey would be so easy, perhaps I would have visited here long ago!

I caught a connecting flight to Brisbane — it was just a one-hour flight but they served us breakfast! And when I landed I was greeted at the gate (!) by my smiling family. So wonderful.

I managed to stay wake until bedtime so I’m doing really well with the jet lag. I feel great (I did take a nap on Sunday afternoon).

Larry, Miranda, Taylor and I did the Bridge to Brisbane race on Sunday morning. It’s a 10k/5k run/walk. We chose 5k walk. It was pleasantly warm and sunny and our pace was leisurely. I got to walk along the river and see some of Brisbane.

Here’s a photo of Larry and the kids while we’re waiting for the race to start.

And here’s a photo of me with some random guy in a tiger suit. He seemed to enjoy having his picture taken with strangers.

Today we head up to the Sunshine Coast to visit the beach and go whale watching. We return Wednesday. Thursday the AAPO conference starts.

I’m really enjoying Australia so far. It’s been such a pleasure to hang out with my family in their natural habitat!

A very long (but exciting!) trip

27 August 2009

I’m kind of nerdily excited because I’m writing (and will be posting) this blog post while on an airplane. In the air. My American Airlines flight to Los Angeles has WiFi. I wish I could say it was free, but they did give us a coupon for 25 percent off, so it’s only $6 to use WiFi for the duration of the flight.

Since I ran out of time to write a blog post before leaving on this trip, I’m grateful for the opportunity to do it now. I’m not sure why it’s such a thrill to surf the internet while flying. I’m sure it will be commonplace before long.

This is the first leg of my trip to Brisbane, Australia. From LA I fly to Sydney, then connect to Brisbane. I get there at 9:30 on Saturday morning. (I left St. Louis at 5 p.m. today, Thursday.) That’s about 25 hours of travel time.

As I always do on long flights, I fretted over what to bring on the flight to keep me occupied. The challenge is not packing so much that’s it’s uncomfortable to lug my carry-on. I see this time to myself as something of an opportunity I don’t want to squander. I have some brainstorming I’d like to do for my business and also some planning. This trip seems like a good time to do that. Maybe I’ll do it at LAX (I should have about three hours there). Along with a pad and pen, I also brought my iPod Touch, a hardcover book, and Oprah’s magazine. What I didn’t bring is my knitting needles, because they’re prohibited by the Australia version of TSA, and since I have to switch planes (and terminals) in Sydney, I didn’t want to risk having my knitting needles confiscated.

It’s a crying shame, because I understand that on Qantas they have TV screens in the seatback in front of you and each person controls his or her content. I love knitting while watching TV. But it’s not to be. Maybe I’ll actually sleep on that overnight flight.

I’m so excited to see my brother, Larry; sister-in-law, Marg; niece, Miranda, nephew, Taylor; and their dog, Dakoda. I’m also extremely excited to attend the Australasian Association of Professional Organisers conference conference and to be one of the speakers.

I never dreamed that starting my organizing business four years ago would result in a trip to Australia (and, last year, a trip to Hawaii). My brother has lived in Brisbane for almost 20 years and this is my first visit there. This is one of so many reasons that I’m grateful that I started Peace of Mind Organizing. I’m met so many wonderful people (colleagues and clients). Life is such an adventure.

I’m going to try to update my blog regularly during this trip and share my experiences and impressions. I’ll take lots of photos, and post some.

I don’t have any pictures of Australia yet, of course, but I’m so excited about seeing my Australia family, that I’m compelled to post a picture of my niece, Miranda, and nephew, Taylor, taken last fall in Walla Walla (where my parents and other brother live). They were helping their uncle walk dogs at the shelter where he volunteers.

Aren’t they cute?

My niece and nephew cuddling a shelter dog last fall on a visit to Walla Walla.

When is lounging around self-care and when is it sloth?

24 August 2009

Last Monday I blogged about my glorious Sunday (the day before) during which I did nothing but watch movies, do crafts, read and nap. I was enraptured at the rejuvenation I felt after taking a day to myself. I stand behind that post.

Today, I had a similar weekend, only Saturday was the day I took off. That day, I finished reading a book I couldn’t seem to put down. I spent some time figuring out my next knitting project. I took a nap.

But there was a big difference between this Saturday and the prior Sunday. On the Sunday, I had planned the day off. I got my Saturday chores done and I treated myself to a fabulous day.

This Saturday, I had a to-do list full of things I need to get done before leaving for Australia on Thursday. I highlighted the things I should do on Saturday, telling myself that if I got them done, I’d take time off on Sunday.

But instead, sloth set in. I was sleepy and uninterested in work, and I lazed about instead. And I felt pretty horrible about myself as a result. The good news is that I got all the highlighted things done on Sunday. But I didn’t get a day off this weekend that I enjoyed. Instead, I had one that I felt kinda guilty about.

So what have I learned? I’ve learned that it’s better to reward myself with a day off than take one almost by accident and feel guilty about it. Do some work, then take some time off. That’s the way (for me, anyway) to enjoy time to myself without feeling slothful.

Guest post on Unclutterer

19 August 2009

Last week, I had a guest post on Unclutterer, a blog I link to frequently here, and which I admire so much. I’m absolutely thrilled to be included there.

The post is about the anxiety I felt prior to having a group of professional organizers come to my home for a social gathering. (I was worried that my home wasn’t perfectly organized.) The ensuing discussion in comments was interesting. The basic gist of it is how we should live up to our own standards, not someone else’s.

So if you haven’t seen it, I encourage you to head over to Unclutterer and read my post, entitled Uncluttering is not a competition.

My role model in persistence

18 August 2009

I adore my orange tabby cat, Joe, of course. But he does a great job of annoying me on a regular basis. But when I pause to reflect on it, he’s also teaching me stuff.

As I posted about over a year ago, Joe regularly hampers my productivity by loving on me while I’m trying to work. He plants his furry self between me and my monitor, sometimes rubbing his face against mine, even getting a little drool on me. And sometimes he just lies on the keyboard, like he did the other day:

It's hard to type when Joe does this.

So as I’m getting annoyed (and sneezy because of the fur in my face) sometimes I can’t help but admire him. Why? Because in doing this, Joe is gratifying himself. And he’s figured out how to turn the situation around to work in his favor.

Scenario A: He gets to keep loving on me and I give in and pet him. Or invite him on my lap. He gets what he wants: my attention and love.

Scenario B: I push his butt out of the way and he lies down on my desk and stares at me. He’s comfy and in my presence. He leaves when he’s ready and not a moment before.

Scenario C: I pick him up and place him on the comfy upholstered chair behind me. He immediately jumps back up and starts rubbing my face again. I relocate him again. He does it again. I throw my hands in the air and leave the room. He runs out of the room ahead of me and jumps on the guest bed where he’s often given treats. And because I admire his cunning, I usually give it to him.

See? Joe always wins. And so what is Joe teaching me?

• Know what you want
• Keep trying to get it
• Shift the goal line so you still win if things don’t work out exactly as planned
• When efforts seem to fail, figure out a great consolation prize

Now I just need to figure out how to apply that lesson to my business!