It's Time...

Those of you new to Highlowaha will quickly learn that the 18th of any month means one thing to our community. It is the day we engage in our favorite monthly ritual - an activity worth sticking around for.

But first a short rant.

Where there is indifference there is apathy and where there is apathy there is rarely community. Last month I neglected to draw the name of one lucky winner to receive the Ray Wattson shirt of his/her choice. No one called me on it.

That's not good. Your indifference means we have work to do as a community. The shirts are way too cool to ignore, so it either means you didn't know, didn't care, or didn't want to hurt my feelings. Say nothing and I hear, "Whatever. What do I care?" Rattle my cage and I hear, "Listen up, Claudia. You promised a Ray shirt a month. I tune in every day, read what you have to say, and patiently wait for the chance to win a highly sought after Ray Wattson shirt. Get with it. I expect more from you and from this community."

All is not lost, though.

Scold me. Go to the comment section and hold me accountable for letting our community down. I'll give May's shirt to the person who makes me feel most guilty. That means you too, Lurkers! Visit GalleRay to see your choices.

And while you're at it... engage in the activity that has quickly become a monthly ritual (and enter yourself in a chance to win June's t-shirt)?

Each month on the 18th, we pay tribute to the origin of our blog name and to the core of what our blog is about. We stop, take a few minutes, and reflect on "highs" (best thing); "lows" (worst thing); and "ahas" (something we learned) from the past month.

That's what communities do - occasionally give the gift of time, knowing the investment you make in sharing a small piece of yourself, contributes to a whole far bigger than the sum of its parts. That, and hold one another accountable.

Here are my highs, lows, and ahas for the past month.

• High: Katie arriving in Texas and a fruitful HLA retreat, resulting in a bright future for Highlowaha.
• Low: Backing my car into a light post (small ding) and making a professional decision for which I am less than proud.
• Aha: Thomas Edison had, on average, 17 posts every year for 63 years.
  

Now you. Go to comment section. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200.

Signing off until tomorrow...

We Interrupt Your Hustle and Bustle...

for this important message...

Today is the 18th of December.  

For newcomers to our community, let me explain.  Each month on the 18th, no matter how busy or how wrapped up we may be in the week's creative ideas, we stop what we are doing and reflect on our month's high (best thing that happened), low (worst thing that happened), and aha (something your learned).  We engage in the simplicity of this activity because it is, in fact, the origin of this blog's name (see post titled, "Ding, Ding, Ding, I Interrupt This Programming" from 4/29 for more details).  

We do it on the 18th because, in this community, the number 18 carries special significance.  The seed for HLA's first blog entry was planted on the 18th of February (2/18/08); the birthdays of both my parent's (of whom I am a reflection) falls on July and August 18th, respectively; and HLA's reminder to make time for life's little pleasures is summarized in our challenge to "Live the Spirit of 218." 

Today, I hope you will join me, and the rest of our community, in finding a moment of solitude amidst all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, to reflect on your highs, lows, and ahas of last month.  Lurkers and newcomers, jumping in and sharing on this day of this month would feel a little like getting a box with a big red bow on top - the ultimate gift.  Consider it, would you?  For added incentive, remember... we do a drawing of everyone who posts his/her HLA and send one lucky winner a Highlowaha t-shirt.

Now let me try to set the mood and then I'll go first.

• High:  I want to say the excitement of the holidays, the outcome of our Helping Hands project,  or receiving greeting cards from friends I only hear from a couple of times a year.  BUT, if I'm being disciplined and only picking one...  it was a 30-minute, spontaneous coffee date with an acquaintance last week.  I see this woman only on occasion at the preschool my boys attend.  She saw me sitting in Starbucks one morning and asked if she could join me.  Naturally I said yes and we spent the next 30 minutes engrossed in great conversation.  She ended the conversation by giving me a very thoughtful compliment.  She shared with me, that a couple of weeks ago, on her day off, she changed all her plans so she could hand deliver an unexpected treat to a friend who was leaving on a trip.  She said, watching me inspired her to want to do it!  (I could go a very long time on that high).
  
• Low:  My car is a pain.  My "Do" list is long.  And, I spent 3-4 days this month feeling under the weather.  My real low this month, however, has been the constant, low-grade worry I am feeling.  People in my sphere of friends and family have lost jobs, the cost of oil to heat homes is prohibitive for many (including people I know), and the ripple effect of a bad economy is putting strain on lots of the people we have daily interactions with.  I don't want to sound completely selfless or like the consummate humanitarian.  I'm not (but aspire to be).  I am, however, a worrier and it is hard to dismiss the hardships many are feeling.
  
• Aha: Hanging around with all of you fills my months with more ahas than I might have had otherwise.  This month I learned a little about dueling in Paraguay, Mozart's childhood, the beauty of Zulu bead work, and the lasting impact of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address... among other things.  However, I measure this month's biggest "aha" as the thing I will carry with me the longest.  That being said, the single biggest "aha" I've had this month is the clarity with which we can see our worst shortcomings, simply by watching the imperfect behavior of our children.  I listen to my children get impatient with one another and, sadly, I recognize the tones in their voices all too well (I choose to believe this also applies to our best qualities)!

Now it's your turn.

Signing off until tomorrow... 

Begad! It's the 18th!

It's me goal to start a new Highlowaha ritual - even in the midst of settin' sail for National Talk Like a Pirate Day,  which is TOMORROW!!!

As many of our longstanding readers know, the number 18 is special to the highlowaha community.  The 18th, according to highlowaha legend, represents the date of our first post.  I say, "legend" because we later learned that the first post wasn't actually until the the 19th of February... not the 18th.  This little factoid compliments of Cheryl - Mad Ethel Bonney. 

No worries.  When presented with such Bilge(!), the highlowaha community rallied and determined that, rather than sweating recovery of the "lost day," we would embrace it as a symbol of what highlowaha stands for.  So today #218 (February 18) carries special meaning.  It means living a life where, no matter how busy you feel or how long your list of things to do is, we make time the little things - the things that make this world a nicer, more civil, and more joyous place to live.

Living the spirit of 218 will mean different things to different readers.  To me it might mean saying "yes" instead of "no" when one of my sons asks if I will help him paint.  It might mean sending a care package or writing a note to someone who I know is down in the dumps.  It might mean walking to the local park on a beautiful day, instead of rigidly following what's on my calendar.  It could mean attending a lecture when I didn't plan to... or reading an article that I might typically write-off as unimportant.  For you it will mean something totally different.

In some ways, highlowaha is embodies #218.  The blog itself is named "highlowaha," because of the simple Beeny ritual of sharing our high, low, and aha each night over dinner.  No matter how busy or bad our day is, we always come back to the safety of the dinner table where together where we settle into this comforting ritual.  

It's also about the writing of this almost-daily-blog.  My writing this blog started as a lark.  I was bored, on maternity leave, and curious to see if I could meet the challenge of posting a new idea each day for one year.  In the beginning making my posts took 15 - 20 minutes.  Seven months later our community has grown and we are busy!  We're earning patches; raising money; reading books; helping those in need; doing random acts of kindness; baking, baking, and more baking; tracking down readers in all corners of the map; painting the town red; and competing in Olympics.  Not to mention giving birth to blog mascot, Ray Wattson!

What used to take me 15-20 minutes now takes 50-75... what with all the announcements and record keeping that must happen.  But, I love it.  Highlowaha is my guilty pleasure.  It's one of those things I make time for, in spite of the fast paced life I live.  It's a small time-out that makes my world a nicer, more civil, and yes... more joyous place. 

The number 18 is additionally special to me, because it is the date of my mother and father's birthdays.  My mother's birthday is August 18 and my dad's is July 18.  Anyone who knows me, and knows my parents, can see glimpses of them in my daily posts.  From my dad I probably get his self-deprecating humor and love for writing (though not his mastery of the English language... and the usage of lay, lain, lie, etc...).  From my mother I get my creativity, my sense of occasion, and of course the life tip that serves as this blogs inspiration.  ...Foster your creativity by never using the same idea twice.

What a long prologue to today's simple post...

On the 18th of every month, no matter what theme week we might be in the middle of, we will stop to reflect on our highs, lows, and ahas.  You can share your high, low, aha since you posted a month ago, since last week, or since you woke up.  Your choice.  The point really is to live the Spirit of 218.  Stop... make time for friends and... make time to reflect on all that's going on in your life.

I'll start.

• High: The weather in Texas has been beautiful for the past four days and I LOVE sunny weather.
• Low:  My husband has been out of town for most of the week and I miss him.
• Aha: I learned a new organizational tip yesterday.  To better manage the paper in your life, try this...  Read whatever the paper is.  If you can't deal with it right then (which of course is the ultimate goal) then write the expiration date in the top right hand corner.  If, for instance, it is a birthday party invitation and the party is on September 27, then you might use October 1 as the expiration date.  Then, when talking on the phone or watching t.v., simply file through your stack of papers and discard any with an "expiration" date that is passed.  This tip allows you to more efficiently manage the stack of papers that can invariably overtake our counter(s).
  

Maybe we can add this to the mix.  Cheryl and I bantered back and forth about whether highlowaha readers would value/wear a t-shirt bearing the numbers 218 on front.  It would serve as a visible way to communicate the spirit of highlowaha and to celebrate the values behind the numbers.  Vote with your hands.  If you like the idea of the t-shirt then post your high, low, and aha today and your name will go in a drawing for the inaugural shirt! 

Signing off until tomorrow... when we are in full pirate swing and making final preparations for Virtual Pirate Bingo!