Thursday, February 10, 2011

Controlling My Emotions Not My Environment


I would consider myself a bit of a control freak.  My husband will attest to this.  I guess I would call it one of my faults, but I always feel the need to control my environment.  I like a plan, a schedule, a constant regime and I especially like to be the overseer of these things.  

I actually don't like surprises.  I would rather know in order to mentally prepare myself the excitement than to be ambushed with a spur of the moment attack. 

Lately, I've been realizing that there are many things in my life that I have absolutely no control over.  No matter what I do, how hard I try, or how loud I yell, there is positively nothing I can do to change the outcome of the situation.  

One thing I have come to realize is that even though I may not be able to change the particular result, I can change the way I react and feel in the situation.  I need to do this more.  I need to focus on the way I acknowledge the situation and not so much on the way I try to control the situation.  

Trying to regulate something that I have no control over just causes unneeded stress and angst. So with that said, I'm going to try to put all of my energy into living each day as it comes and appreciate it for what it is. 

Life is good. 

So this day came and went in the blink of an eye.  

I slept like a baby last night as predicted.  I guess 1/2 a bottle of wine and an abundance of Thai food acts like as a sedative. 


 1/4 Cup Honey Nut Cheerios, 1/4 Cup Cinnamon Cheerios, 1/4 Cup Kashi Go Lean, Blueberries, Banana, 1/2 Banana Vita Top, Banana PB


I had another day of meetings and found myself with some time to kill in between. This happens to me a lot actually, and although I'm not thrilled about spending so much money on lunch out, I know once I have the house to go to, it will be a lot easier.

I usually carry my notebook with me so that when I have a few hours in between appointments and I'm not near the office, I can find a place with Free Wi-Fi and get some work done.

Today, I found myself near Cornerstone Coffeehouse.

I've alluded to this place before and absolutely LOVE it here.  I'm actually good friends with the owner who happens to be a complete doll. The atmosphere is calm and chic and the food and drink is off the hook!

I started with my favorite drink, Bubble Tea.
 Roobios Red Tea, SF Mango Syrup, SF Raspberry Syrup, Fresh Blueberries 

To eat, I asked the barista to make me a veggie wrap.  There really isn't a veggie wrap on the menu, but they ALWAYS make whatever you want.  I just told them to load up on the veggies and hummus and it would be fantastic. 


Oh and it was! 

On the side, they serve a beautiful little salad of romaine, dried pears, cranberries, pecans and coconut. 
 I ate 1/2 the wrap and plan to save the other 1/2 for tomorrow's lunch.

I spent a few hours here getting some work done and enjoying lunch and then headed back out for another meeting.

I was definitely feeling much better this evening and decided to hit the gym for a 7 mile run.

Only I had a little trouble with this run.  My left hamstring has really been bothering me and I thought it was just tight but I'm wondering if I may have strained something.  It hurt when I first started running and eventually went away.  It didn't start hurting again until after I finished.  I immediately stretched out and then rolled out as soon as I got home. It's still a little sore so I'm going to take the next few days off from running.

I had no idea what to make for dinner until I searched the fridge and found whatever was left to put this little creation together.

Spinach, Leftover Brown Rice, Zucchini, Mushrooms, Sweet Potatoes, Black Beans, Salsa, Over Easy Egg


This turned out to be delicious!  I haven't made a breakfast bowl in quite some time so I welcomed this with open arms. 

Tomorrow is FRIDAY!!!  Toly and I are sneaking away to celebrate our Valentines Day and I can't wait.  It's going to be so nice to get away and unplug from the world for a weekend.  Of course I'll be back to recap everything. Well, maybe not everything. ;) 

What are your Valentine's Day plans? 

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15 comments:

  1. ow! Have so much fun on your getaway! I am a control freak too. I am constantly working on reacting better when things don't turn out as planned! Glad you slept well and what a lunch! The wrap looks super tasty. I had eggs tonight too! But scrambled...I miss over easy!

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  2. I coach for Girls on the Run on Mondays. We have practice until 5:00 and then hanging with my dog. My husband is in Atlanta for work for the next few months, only coming home every other weekend. This isn't his home weekend. We'll celebrate the next time he comes home though. :)

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  3. I am totally the same way with being controlling. I want to know everything so I can play in my mine my different reactions. The reason why I like doing that is because I tend to say exactly what's on my mind and I usually end up hurting people's feelings. If I know ahead of time what's going to happen, I can calm down so I don't freak out and make someone upset. I'm such a freak.

    I don't know what we're doing for Valentine's Day! We will probably just stay in and have a nice dinner and exchange presents!

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  4. my valentine is in germany now, unfortunately :( i hope you have an amazing getaway, though!

    xo.

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  5. I posted something very similar today to this:

    "One thing I have come to realize is that even though I may not be able to change the particular result, I can change the way I react and feel in the situation."

    I was talking about people, though. How I can't change other people, only the way I react to them.

    I like how you think. :)

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  6. You know, ever since I have been more active in reporting and journalism, I've learned to accept nasty surprises and not being able to control things. Yesterday I had another unpleasant surprise; my editors wanted me to turn in my article right after the discussion I was covering. I might not like it, but it's been so much less stressful to just accept it and take the next necessary step to accommodate to the change.

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  7. This post really resonates with me! I am very similar in the control department. My boyfriend jokes about all my lists, plans, schedules, etc, but I like to be prepared. I know it stems from fear of the unknown, and fear that past situations will reoccur, but recognizing what causes my controlling tendencies has really made me loosen up. I now know that even if things do not go exactly the way I plan, I will be ok and that it just means the universe has something better in store for me! :) Have a great weekend!!

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  8. the title of this post says it all! I have a bunch of school stuff for valentines day; it's not exciting at all haha
    Katherine

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  9. I actually have a goal for this year to basically stop freaking out over things that I can't control....I so can relate to this post.

    We are suppose to go eat tomorrow night at a local restaurant if we are well. I currently have no voice (since yesterday) so I am not sure how our plans will be affected.

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  10. oh wow, I really need to try the overeasy egg atop all my goodies! why haven't I thought of that one? :)

    I'm planning to run a valentine 14k tomorrow.. woohoo!

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  11. I'm the same way, love to be in control, but with 3 kids, I've had to learn that sometimes the only thing I can control is myself and my emotions!

    No plans for Valentine's Day. I don't know why, we just never celebrate it.

    Jen
    http://www.jenslosinit.com/

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  12. You sound just like me - I like to have things planned out, I am kinda a control freak to! I also need to learn that sometimes I may not be able to change a particular result - WELL SAID :)

    Hey also, I am having a giveaway this week - check it out if you get a chance: http://oatsandspice.wordpress.com/2011/02/11/peeling-it-fresh-giveaway/

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  13. Aww I hope you have a wonderful getaway with your husband! I'm not doing anything for Valentine's day this weekend, too much studying, but I've left it up to the boy to plan something for Monday! :)

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  14. No big plans here - we've done the romantic thing before and to be honest - neither of us are romantic by nature so it never really feels like "us." I am, however, taking off on Monday (working today instead), and we plan to go on a half-day hike which should be really fun! Little picnic lunch, etc etc. Good times, I'm sure!

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  15. my whole career is about unpredictability so learning how to be okay with not having control over the outcome has been a big life lesson. my mantra is: "it is what it is."

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