Well today was slow-going... I was very grateful for the added hour of sleep, because otherwise I would have been in sleep debt an hour. It is interesting that one of the most associated topics with Daylight Savings Time is sleep. Coincidentally, sleep and rest are topics we will be covering this week in our Foundations course.
I am not quite sure I remember the actual purpose of Daylight Savings Time and I would not think of boring anyone with a history lesson, however I am concerned with the thought of the consequences of Daylight Savings Time. I understand enough about sleep to discern that a change in perception of time can disturb sleeping patterns. As a person that typically experiences difficulty falling asleep, I wonder if it will make it easier to fall asleep.
I am also one of those people that gets drowsy as the lights fade into darkness. Will I hibernate this year? Only time will tell... For now, I will advise everyone not to rue the Pacific Northwest winter weather because of the related sluggishness and depression it causes. Definitely take it into account and combat it with an increasing use of lights and an appropriate amount of caffeine, just as I will.
Showing posts with label morning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label morning. Show all posts
03 November 2013
29 September 2013
Sunday Morning: Rain Is Falling
Most would think Sunday mornings are the perfect time to sleep in, especially on a stormy day like today. Not for me! Every Sunday I decide which mass I would like to attend. As I mentioned briefly before, I am Roman Catholic and I make it a point to attend weekly mass at the local parish. I have been fortunate enough to have been welcomed into St. Mary's Cathedral Parish and have been walking there every week since moving to Portland. It's usually a nice walk - early mornings in Portland are like none other. I usually run into a few homeless people, but I continually forget to pack something to offer them.
Today I was running late because I overslept. I packed a scone in my purse, expecting to eat it after mass when I stopped for coffee at Starbucks. Yet on my way to church I saw a homeless man and had the overwhelming instinct to stop and talk to him. I offered him the scone and impulsively asked if he would like to join me in going to mass. He said yes.
Can we take a moment to appreciate that a homeless person, a stranger, accepted my offer to attend mass with me?
I have no idea why I asked or why he said yes, I just felt like crying out of joy. I knew - I knew! - the Holy Spirit had something to do with it. Why would I do that? I mean, I know I have a habit of talking to strangers (thanks Ma), but still... If I had not slept in I would have gone to an earlier mass and missed the man nor packed breakfast to go. If it had not been raining I would have walked faster to church (because I wouldn't have to worry about stepping in puddles and getting excessively wet). I am still slightly flabbergasted at what happened.
The man decided not to sit with me at mass. I figured I would not want to intrude on his time with the Lord. I did not see him after mass, but I hope the man was able to enjoy his time with God.
Anyway, the homily today partially had to do with the Pope's interview. If you have not read it, I highly suggest you do. Later on I think I will do a segmented review of the interview as I have not entirely finished reading it. It seems as though there are some misunderstandings about it and I would like to discuss them and the rest of the interview as it has been on my mind lately.
Today I was running late because I overslept. I packed a scone in my purse, expecting to eat it after mass when I stopped for coffee at Starbucks. Yet on my way to church I saw a homeless man and had the overwhelming instinct to stop and talk to him. I offered him the scone and impulsively asked if he would like to join me in going to mass. He said yes.
Can we take a moment to appreciate that a homeless person, a stranger, accepted my offer to attend mass with me?
I have no idea why I asked or why he said yes, I just felt like crying out of joy. I knew - I knew! - the Holy Spirit had something to do with it. Why would I do that? I mean, I know I have a habit of talking to strangers (thanks Ma), but still... If I had not slept in I would have gone to an earlier mass and missed the man nor packed breakfast to go. If it had not been raining I would have walked faster to church (because I wouldn't have to worry about stepping in puddles and getting excessively wet). I am still slightly flabbergasted at what happened.
The man decided not to sit with me at mass. I figured I would not want to intrude on his time with the Lord. I did not see him after mass, but I hope the man was able to enjoy his time with God.
Anyway, the homily today partially had to do with the Pope's interview. If you have not read it, I highly suggest you do. Later on I think I will do a segmented review of the interview as I have not entirely finished reading it. It seems as though there are some misunderstandings about it and I would like to discuss them and the rest of the interview as it has been on my mind lately.
16 September 2013
Hispanic Heritage Month Breakfast
I don't know if I forgot to mention, but I'm Latina. This morning I had the opportunity to attend the Hispanic Heritage Month Breakfast in Salem, Oregon with some of my fellow Latina schoolmates. I was completely underdressed for the occasion, but I didn't let that ruin my experience. The breakfast itself was delightful - scrambled eggs with sausage, roasted red potatoes, pico de gallo, salsa roja, corn and flour tortillas, and fruit were some of the items offered. The featured speakers included a business associate, lawyer, the executive director of Latino Network, and a doctor.
The first to speak was Frank Garcia who works in the office of the governor. He proudly reminded us of legislation that recently passed, including tuition and drivers' license equity in the state of Oregon. He encouraged us to continue being active politically.
The second featured speaker was Alberto Moreno, who is a part of the Oregon Commission on Hispanic Affairs. He discussed the positive impact of migrant workers on Oregon's economy and the average life expectancy of a migrant worker as compared to non-migrant workers. Moreno spoke of the prenatal care act that was recently passed that made prenatal care available to all pregnant women regardless of documentation.
The third featured speaker was Jose Gonzalez, president of the Latino Business Alliance of the Willamette Valley. His speech on supporting local Latin@ businesses was inspiring and thought-provoking.
Following Jose Gonzalez was Carmen Rubio, executive director of Latino Network. The master of ceremonies including in her introduction several more organizations she was involved with. She spoke of her commitment to those organizations and introduced a colleague, Nancy Ramirez Arriaga. Both women worked on the short film "The Oregon Latin@ List" along with many others present at the breakfast. We then proceeded to watch the film; I was surprised at how succinctly everyone spoke about childhood and families and the connections I was making with my own experiences.
After the film, I mentally prepared myself for the presumably long, emotional speech given by the keynote speaker. The keynote speaker was Dr. Yara Delgado and her speech was quite the opposite of what I was expecting. She spoke briefly about her childhood, but mostly about her education and vaguely about the struggles she faced during it. Amidst her 17-minute long speech (she timed herself), she uttered a statement that struck me as being so truthful it almost hurt - "I was a mutt." She was referring to her experience in being seen as Americanized by her Puerto Rican peers and vice versa.
I oftentimes feel the same way, although I might add to her statement, saying instead, "I am a mutt, stuck between both breeds, wanting, but never willing to be either."
Dr. Delgado concluded her speech saying, "...find yourself becoming a leader." I like the idea of not intentionally becoming, but discovering a leadership role. It signifies that one does not simply become leaders because one wants to - one becomes a leader when the situation arises.
Anyway, I could go on about my experiences and my thoughts and opinions about the morning, but I will end here and leave more to be discussed than not.
The first to speak was Frank Garcia who works in the office of the governor. He proudly reminded us of legislation that recently passed, including tuition and drivers' license equity in the state of Oregon. He encouraged us to continue being active politically.
The second featured speaker was Alberto Moreno, who is a part of the Oregon Commission on Hispanic Affairs. He discussed the positive impact of migrant workers on Oregon's economy and the average life expectancy of a migrant worker as compared to non-migrant workers. Moreno spoke of the prenatal care act that was recently passed that made prenatal care available to all pregnant women regardless of documentation.
The third featured speaker was Jose Gonzalez, president of the Latino Business Alliance of the Willamette Valley. His speech on supporting local Latin@ businesses was inspiring and thought-provoking.
Following Jose Gonzalez was Carmen Rubio, executive director of Latino Network. The master of ceremonies including in her introduction several more organizations she was involved with. She spoke of her commitment to those organizations and introduced a colleague, Nancy Ramirez Arriaga. Both women worked on the short film "The Oregon Latin@ List" along with many others present at the breakfast. We then proceeded to watch the film; I was surprised at how succinctly everyone spoke about childhood and families and the connections I was making with my own experiences.
After the film, I mentally prepared myself for the presumably long, emotional speech given by the keynote speaker. The keynote speaker was Dr. Yara Delgado and her speech was quite the opposite of what I was expecting. She spoke briefly about her childhood, but mostly about her education and vaguely about the struggles she faced during it. Amidst her 17-minute long speech (she timed herself), she uttered a statement that struck me as being so truthful it almost hurt - "I was a mutt." She was referring to her experience in being seen as Americanized by her Puerto Rican peers and vice versa.
I oftentimes feel the same way, although I might add to her statement, saying instead, "I am a mutt, stuck between both breeds, wanting, but never willing to be either."
Dr. Delgado concluded her speech saying, "...find yourself becoming a leader." I like the idea of not intentionally becoming, but discovering a leadership role. It signifies that one does not simply become leaders because one wants to - one becomes a leader when the situation arises.
Anyway, I could go on about my experiences and my thoughts and opinions about the morning, but I will end here and leave more to be discussed than not.
25 July 2013
2am Tea
A few years ago, I woke up extremely early during the summer and had a cup of tea. Granted, 5am isn't terribly early, but it was back then! At that point I realized I would probably end up being a morning person considering how much I enjoyed the calm of the morning.
Since then, I've made it a point to wake up early and have a cup of tea at least once during the summer. I've never really pushed myself to get up earlier than 5am, so I set a challenge on The List to get up at 2am and have tea. I figured if I could get up at 2am and have tea I would be the ultimate morning person!
Anyway, I woke up this morning at 2am and had a nice cup of tea. Normally I would sit outside on the balcony and enjoy watching the sunrise, but it was ridiculously cold so I opted to sit indoors, light a candle, snuggle up in a blanket, and watch All About Eve. (It's from AFI's 100 Best Films list and also part of one of my challenges.) The movie kind of gave a theme to my early morning contemplations... Lately I've been thinking about manipulation.
In the movie, the character Eve Harrington manipulates the truth and the people around her that could have genuinely been her friends. The occasion arrises when she gets her own, but it takes another person a lot more manipulative to do that. People around me have been manipulating me and manipulating the truth and, frankly, I can't stand it. It's more than frustrating.
Fortunately, having tea so early gave me enough peace, quiet, and time to think about the people and situations that are causing so much havoc in my life and give me a little perspective on my thoughts and actions in dealing with them.
I'm not saying it's a good thing for everyone to do, considering schedules and, simply, personality differences, but it's something I like doing and will continue to do so every once in a while.
Since then, I've made it a point to wake up early and have a cup of tea at least once during the summer. I've never really pushed myself to get up earlier than 5am, so I set a challenge on The List to get up at 2am and have tea. I figured if I could get up at 2am and have tea I would be the ultimate morning person!
Anyway, I woke up this morning at 2am and had a nice cup of tea. Normally I would sit outside on the balcony and enjoy watching the sunrise, but it was ridiculously cold so I opted to sit indoors, light a candle, snuggle up in a blanket, and watch All About Eve. (It's from AFI's 100 Best Films list and also part of one of my challenges.) The movie kind of gave a theme to my early morning contemplations... Lately I've been thinking about manipulation.
In the movie, the character Eve Harrington manipulates the truth and the people around her that could have genuinely been her friends. The occasion arrises when she gets her own, but it takes another person a lot more manipulative to do that. People around me have been manipulating me and manipulating the truth and, frankly, I can't stand it. It's more than frustrating.
Fortunately, having tea so early gave me enough peace, quiet, and time to think about the people and situations that are causing so much havoc in my life and give me a little perspective on my thoughts and actions in dealing with them.
I'm not saying it's a good thing for everyone to do, considering schedules and, simply, personality differences, but it's something I like doing and will continue to do so every once in a while.
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