Too Much Orange

(I'm experimenting with new looks for the blog and it is, perhaps, a bit OMGORANGE right now.  I'm using 'out of the box' Blogger templates, but yesterday I got my "You, Too, Can Learn HTML and CSS" book in the mail, so STAND BACK, everyone!  I'm learnin' to website.  (It's a verb, shuddup.))

Anywho, meditation.

Side note, every time I say "meditation" in my head it sounds like this:

Me-di-tay-shawn.  Ah, Cajun Man.

Anywho, meditation.

I find myself easily distracted (...distraction...) every time I think about this month's challenge.  I sat down to write this post last night and instead went to the gym.  I went to the gym -- the gym -- instead of writing about meditation.

(Ooh, I'm hungry.  I think I have a Chik Patty in freezer.  Mm, I still have a Red Bull in my bag too, and a banana.  I love bananas.  I have to volunteer at the USO tonight.  What am I going to eat for dinner?  I'm going to be there from 4-8, so I'll need to bring something with me because if I wait until after 8 to eat, I'll likely spawn little angry, Heather gremlins and nobody wants to see that.  Oh, shit, I forgot to bring a book with me.  What am I going to do for four hours?  I could ... meditate...)

I'm pretty sure that's how my entire month is going to go -- a constant struggle to overcome the "Monkey Mind" and sit quietly.  And let me tell you, I can justify the shit out of not meditating.  Hence, the challenge.  I think being held accountable (by myself, essentially, through the blog) I won't have the luxury of making excuses to do, well, pretty much anything to avoid sitting quietly; I don't want to come on here and say, "Oh, I didn't meditate today because I overcooked my eggs and I was really upset."  I'm forcing myself to start a meditation practice, with the hopes that at some point, it won't feel forced; it will be peaceful.  Based on last night, I already know it's going to be a frustrating process.  But that's why it's a challenge, yeah?  Being introspective and shit and using mediation as a form of stress management can only do good things.

(banana)

My plan:

1.  Mediate for at least 10 minutes every day, hopefully increasing that time throughout the month.
2.  Research different types of meditation, try those.
3.  Eat lots of bananas because they're, like, totally good for you.
4.  Go to the meditation class I signed up for instead of skipping it like I have been because meditating is hard.
(Holy shit, I'm going to be eating cupcakes tomorrow.  Jennie is making her infamous Heather-friendly S'Mores cupcakes and they are amazing.  I haven't had a cupcake in so long.  Maybe I should have a month of Eat a Cupcake Every Day.  Sure, I'd gain 10 pounds, but it would be worth it.  I wish I had a cupcake right now.)
5.  Focus on my inhalations and my exhalations.  Breathe in, breathe out.