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               LIVING MY WAY NEWSLETTER Fall 2009
 
WELCOME!

Hello!  Long time no see..... I've titled this the Fall newsletter
since September and October somehow went down the deep black hole
of time lost when Life Happens.

My Dad is now missing his gallbladder (and doing well, thank you)
and I own a T-shirt that proclaims "I Survived H1N1!"    Dad's
surgery was a breeze compared to my struggle to get over the flu -
the worst part was incredible fatigue and re-occurring dizzy spells
at the most inopportune times.  I've perfected the art of swooning
ala Jane Austen!  

The advantage of being a self-bosser is that I could just go to bed
until I felt better.  The down side is that there is no one else to
write my newsletter or blog posts or complete the curriculum for my
fall workshops.  Thus, the missing newsletters.

I've just discovered that I did something wrong when posting a blog
and the site is currently down.  Seems like a good time to refresh
it so the name is changing to What's Next? and the link on my
website will be updated to the new location in about a week. 

Welcome to my new subscribers. I hope you find this inspiring and
helpful.  Feel free to email me with comments or forward this copy
to friends and family who might enjoy it.     
     
                         Happy Fall
 
                                                                                                                         

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RING THE BELL FOR RECESS 

"We do not quit playing because we grow old, we grow old because we
quit playing."       Oliver Wendell Holmes

 "In our play we reveal what kind of people we are." Ovid (Roman
poet)
 
"To the art of working well a civilized race would add the art of
playing well."        George Santayana

You might have thought it was just for kids, but philosophers and
others have discussed the subject of play for centuries. 

Scientists have proven that engaging our brains in puzzles and
challenges, enjoying carefree, unstructured physical exertion and
good deep belly laughs are the best medicine for positive aging,
good mental health and an overall feeling of well-being and
happiness.

Remember when the bell rang for recess in elementary school and
everyone ran out onto the playground?   What a relief it was to get
out of the classroom for a little while. 

Unfortunately, as grownups, we don't have recess scheduled as often
as we should. We get all wrapped up in our work, chores and
responsibilities that we consider so important and take so
seriously.

In the intro to the last issue I mentioned seeing a 50-year-old man
riding a bicycle down a very long hill with his hands outstretched,
wind blowing through his hair and a huge grin on his face.  This
was at a vacation spot and I'm pretty sure that this guy hadn't
been on a bike in 30 some years.  He was re-living the thrill and
fun of a childhood activity and at the bottom of the hill he smiled
at me and just said, "WOW! That was great!"
 
When I ask my workshop students what they do for fun the most
frequent answers are going to movies or concerts or sporting
events.  Occasionally I get an athlete who is still playing a team
sport and the saving grace for many of us is our grandchildren who
have a way of insisting that we remember how to play.   I think we
need to do better than that.

Play is not just watching or listening.  Play is participating. 
Play is putting on a costume, riding the roller coaster, swinging
on a swing, finishing the puzzle, making up knock-knock jokes,
acting in a play, singing in a chorus, playing Monopoly, skipping
down the sidewalk, putting on a pair of skates, finger painting (my
personal favorite), taking dancing lessons ...
  
We learn as we play.  We learn new skills, we learn about
ourselves, and we learn about the people we play with.  People show
their true colors in how they play according to many psychologists.
We see each other in a new light after playing together.
  
Playing, laughing and having fun are the spice of life in a way. 
They jazz us up, improve our attitude, and bring variety to our
daily routines.
 
The best kind of play makes you laugh out loud or catch your breath
in awe.  Playing together brings you close to friends and family
and creates memories and stories that will be retold for years.
 
Nietzsche said "in every real man a child is hidden that wants to
play."  What does your child long to do?   The list of
possibilities is endless.

Below is a list of websites for places where grownups can go for 
recess. 
 

 www.grownupcamps.com      
      a collection of play experiences for adults

 www.rowadventures.com          
      an adventure travel site for those who love water

 www.flyingcolorsart.com         
      attend art workshops anywhere in the world

 www.rockandrollfantasycamp.com    
      play the guitar or drums on stage with a live ban

 www.evertacademy.com            
      Chris Evert's experiential tennis camp

 www.1800bepetty.com            
      learn to drive a race car on a NASCAR track

 www.sankeyrodeo.com            
     rope a bull or ride a bucking bronco in the ring

 www.kingstontrio.com/             
     Kingston Trio Fantasy Camp for 60's folksingers

 www.crowcanyon.org               
     go on an archeological dig and find history

Meanwhile take advantage of the holiday gatherings and vacations
from work and school to enjoy playing with family and friends.
(We've discovered that grandparents make excellent Trivial Pursuit
partners since they know and remember everything that happened more
than 40 years ago :) 

******************************************************************

YOUR BOOK AND BLOG REVIEWS 

Since I haven't been able to get much reading done  I'm going to
turn the tables this month.  

Instead of telling you about a great book I've recently read, I'd
like to hear your recommendations. 

Part of the value of an on-line community is the ability to share
information.  There are over 400 subscribers to this newsletter so
I know that we can generate a good list of must-reads either for
fun or for information. 

There is a link below that will allow you to send me an email
directly.  I'd like to hear about what you've been reading. Fiction
or non-fiction, inspirational or inane, even blogs you enjoy.
  
Let's see if we can create a list of at least 20  titles to share. 

     Send an email to jane at lifeandworkbydesign dot com

Meanwhile, I'll recommend these two blogs for your edification:

http://kalman.blogs.nytimes.com/    And The Pursuit of Happiness 
        by Maira Kalman

http://www.thegeminiweb.com/babyboomer/  The Boomer Chronicles 

                                                              
Remember that my recommended books are available through the BOOKS
page on my web-site from Amazon.  You get the same free shipping
deals and I get a small commission for sorting them all out for
you.  Thanks! 

                www.lifeandworkbydesign.com
   
******************************************************************

A LITTLE INSPIRATION 

 Woody Harrelson said, "A grownup is a child with layers on."  I
love that metaphor!  We add clothes to protect ourselves from cold
and wet but as we do we lose agility and the ability to use all our
senses to enjoy the world around us.
 

We would all benefit from peeling off some of those restrictive
protective layers so that we can experience some moments of
child-like wonder and fun. 

"What a distressing contrast there is between the radiant
intelligence of the child and the feeble mentality of the average
adult."   Sigmund Freud

"Humor helps us to think out of the box. The average child laughs
about 400 times per day, the average adult laughs only 15 times per
day. What happened to the other 385 laughs?"   (anonymous)


    My e-mail box is always open if you'd just like to chat..
               jane at lifeandworkbydesign dot com