A little bit of good, a little bit of not so good. While this year has been off to a great start, there has been the constant reminder to slow down and take care of myself in the form of chronic lower back pain. I know that back pain is something a lot of people (maybe most people?) will eventually deal with in their life, but man, I didn't realize how debilitating it can be. So, there were a couple of days spent taking it easy with my cats and a stack of good books last week. Not too bad, right? Oh, and the season premier of Downton Abbey made it a bit easier too.
This week I'm feeling a lot better. I'm stretching and walking daily and just trying to not fall into the trap of babying my back and then it stiffening up and the pain ultimately becoming worse. Yesterday I took myself to Marquee Salon in Oakland and got my hair trimmed and some blond ("painterly") highlights added mainly to the top (my hair tends toward blond naturally, except my roots are always much darker). Up until yesterday I had not had a professional hair cut/dye in over 6 years! I have to say, it felt good to splurge on myself and I left feeling kind of rad (k, blushing a bit when I admit that!)
I feel like this week is when the gears are really cranking with Tangleweeds. I'm starting the very beginning prototypes for the men's collection and I'm prepping for the Treasure Island Flea (one of two events I'll be vending at this month). AND, you can bet I'm thinking lots about my spring/summer collection. It's all too easy for me to just wanna go full steam ahead and worry about the business of taking care of myself when the work is all done (and when is that exactly anyways?). I guess, in a round-about way, I'm saying that this week is an exercise in balance for me: steady goes it, take care of myself, work on the new ideas I'm passionate about, time is one my side.
Here's to finding your own balance!