GOSSIP FROM THE GIRLFRIEND GATHERINGS

Learning from YOU to empower ME !

NaBloPoMo #6 After 1 Week of Daily Blogging, I’ve Learned…….

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NaBloPoMo November 2013Women Having Coffee

Before my friend and fellow writer/blogger asked me to join her in BlogHer NaBloPoMo for November 2013, I never considered daily blogging because I thought it would be difficult.    Now, I am glad I did not hesitate because I have learned some things about myself while writing the first 5 blog posts.   What I have learned is presented as follows in order of importance:

  1.  I have learned there are people interested in my writing because I have acquired many new followers here and on Twitter in the last 5 days.  I want to say THANK YOU to all of them for dropping by and reading my thoughts.
  1. I have learned if I am presented a topic I can write about it pretty quickly.   (Now, what that really means is I have an opinion about everything!)   This month the topics are being provided by BlogHer and that is helpful.  So, I realize that, with some pre-planning, I can determine some topics and increase the frequency of my blog posts in the upcoming months.
  1. Daily blogging engages the writer more with the blog readers because of the frequency of new content.    It is more interactive.
  1. With some discipline, time management and the use of scheduling tools, I can do this!

NaBloPoMo #5– If I Had to Change My First Name, I Would Choose…….

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NaBloPoMo November 2013Women Having Coffee

If I was mandated to change my first name, I would rebel.    I would rise up and use all the power I could muster to retain my first name of Elaine.     You see I love my given names – Elaine Rouchelle.     I fell in love with my name as a child when my mother told me how my name was chosen.    My mother told me she allowed my beautiful Aunt Rae who lived in far away (when you have to drive across Texas to get there it’s far away!), mysterious California  to choose my name.   Over the years, when Aunt Rae would come to visit us she would always tell me how the beautiful name she gave me was fitting for the beautiful girl I was growing up to be.

Throughout my life I have not met very many women with the first name of Elaine.   Usually it is the second name.   I like this – having a common name that is sort of uncommon as a first name.   I love the meaning of my name – which is “Light”.     Here is a poem about my name and I think it is accurate for me.

You’re quick to solve puzzles

Without hints or clues

And shed light on situations

Known to confuse.

The inner glow you have

Because of your name

Makes your life a lighthearted,

Whimsical game.

You’ll always know happiness,

Love and delight,

For you follow a lifelong path

Cheerful and bright.

Also, last but not least, the greatest love of my life was Latino and the way he said my name makes it a keeper.    So, I am Elaine and Elaine is me.

NaBloPoMo #4– The One Thing I Wish I Could Change About Me Is…….

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NaBloPoMo November 2013Women Having Coffee
I am a person that performs an annual self-evaluation usually around my birthday.   Normally, I review my “things-to-improve” list from the year before and attempt to give myself an objective status.    I must admit that there are some items that have remained on that list.    When I consider why these items remain I can relate them to one personality trait that is persistent in my life and the root cause.   The one thing I wish I could change.  I am a perfectionist.

This trait has positive and negative aspects.   The positive aspects of a high level of persistence and meticulous attention to detail have allowed me to overcome insurmountable obstacles in my life and obtain skills that make it possible to enjoy the life that I have now.     However, the negative aspects of procrastination, self-deprecation, and the “all-or-nothing” attitude are also a part of my life when I cannot reach one of my goals.   This behavior manifest into the symptoms of writer’s block, unhealthy eating habits, and sedentary lifestyle which causes a vicious cycle that is hard to stop.

At the worst case, perfectionism can cause anxiety, eating disorders, depression, and low self-esteem.

It has taken me years to understand the personality trait within me and accept that I cannot change it.   However, since I am cognizant, I am proactive about self-monitoring and avoiding negative thinking.   I am improving on my eating habits, increasing my physical activity, and using transcendental meditation techniques to maintain a balanced productive lifestyle.

NaBloPoMo #3– The Place Where I Create…..My Writing Space

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NaBloPoMo November 2013Women Having Coffee
I have a nice large writing space in my home.   It is actually a home office that is open and bright.  The walls of my office are a beige color and I have dark mahogany wood blinds on the window to block the evening sunset.   The floor is mahogany hardwood with a large blue multi-colored Persian rug.   On one wall is a large white built-in bookcase and it is home to hard copies of my favorite books and some of my writing books that pre-date Kindle.   Also, on my bookcase is a television with cable/DVR hookup (which I really need to remove) and an IHOME to dock my IPOD to listen to Native American flute music or smooth jazz while I am writing.

In one corner of the office, I have a medium-sized computer stand with a desktop computer/printer setup and pullout keyboard.   This computer is used for all of my non-writing life needs.   My office desk is glass-topped on a wrought-iron base with a wrought iron/leather chair.   I love this desk and purchased it before I started on my writer’s journey but now I realize it is no longer functional.  I desperately need storage and my beautiful desk does not have drawers.    Also, the desk is too high ergonomically for me to use my designated writing laptop so I have to use it on a plastic tablemate stand which I keep near my desk.    I know at some point I will need to replace this desk as the only purpose it serves now is to hold all of my notebooks and writing class notes.

Overall, I am content with my writing space but it is in need of some mission organization and a makeover.   Sometimes when I take a short break from my writing sessions I jot down ideas so I do have the start of plans for a makeover.   However, at the moment, I am productive in my writing space and working to a self-imposed deadline to finish my novel.    Perhaps when that is done I will take a break and enhance my writing space.

I would love to share a picture of my writing space but today it is just a little too cluttered to show.

NaBloPoMo #2 – My Favorite Character of All Time Is………

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NaBloPoMo November 2013Women Having Coffee

I must admit that I do not have a favorite character of all time because I have many favorite characters from different times in my life.   I have been an avid reader since I was a child, I am the daughter of an avid reader/movie-goer, and I go to the movies almost every weekend.    So, I love everyone from Achilles to Captain Jean Luc Picard.  However,  since I must choose one I will refer back to my middle-school reading days when I was enraptured with Greek mythology.   While my friends were grooving to R&B, I was engrossed with the Greek tragedies – especially the love stories.   They did not always end in “happily ever after”.   One such story is the one about Orpheus and Eurydice.

Orpheus was the son of Apollo (god of the sun, music, medicine, poetry, and the fine arts) and Calliope (the superior of the nine Muses).   Therefore, he was gifted musically and poetically.    Orpheus met, loved, and wooed Eurydice for her hand in marriage.   During the days of their wedding celebration, Eurydice was bitten by a snake and died.  Orpheus was so grief stricken that he beseeched permission from Zeus to pursue the restoration of Eurydice’s life from Hades, god of the Underworld.    Zeus was so moved by the songs of the grief stricken Orpheus that he granted permission.   Orpheus traveled to Hades and conquered all barriers with his beautiful music and songs even bringing Hades and Persephone to tears with his songs.   They released Eurydice but with the stipulation that Orpheus not look upon her face until they had departed the Underworld.   Eurydice walked behind Orpheus as they traveled away from the Underworld but in his longing to see his wife, Orpheus turned too soon and only glimpsed her face before she returned to the Underworld.

Orpheus became one of my favorite characters because he sparked my imagination about the beauty of his music and songs that moved Hades, with the hardened heart, to tears.  The courage Orpheus demonstrated to descend to the depths of Hades for his true love was only diminished by the longing he felt to see Eurydice and hold her again.    Orpheus became one of my compass characters to set expectations for a mate – a man who can experience AND express deep emotions.

Thus, he is one of my all-time memorable characters.