music, therapy, and me

Walter - just because I love him!! Well, that was a rough week - I had food poisoning last Sunday after eating something I made on both Saturday and Sunday - only got food poisoning on Sunday for some reason. I did not go to work on Monday - it is hard to sing when nauseous - I slept instead. Last week went slowly and culminated with my second-to-last Talent Show. Nothing happened at the show, thank all things good and wholesome, and now we are on the downward slope to next week when all the end of the school year stuff happens. This week has a field trip for one group of students this morning. As far as I know, there is nothing else happening. Next week is a different story. We have graduation and then the end of the school carnival. After that, we will be done for a week before coming back and doing things all over again. Since I work in a psychiatric residential treatment facility school, my students are in school year round. That means that I am working year round. I really don...

This is one of those days where the to-do list easily overcomes the amount of time that I have to accomplish things. Add in some missing work keys, and everything that I have to do is made just a bit more complicated. Ugh. It has been a long week, and I've only been at work ONE DAY!! I was on my way out of town yesterday morning when I realized that I did not know where my work keys and badge were. Cue me to do a legal u-turn and frantic searching through things that I brought in with me on December 20th when I traded in the rental car and went to get my car from the shop! I did not find the badge and keys at home, so I went to work hoping to find them there. I did not. I came back home and searched some more - not to be found anywhere! I don't remember having my keys with me when I left work on Friday, the 20th, but I cannot imagine that I didn't have them. I usually attach them to my belt with my carabiner when I do not have pockets - but I think I had pockets in my...

Oh dear, the cat's been on the keyboard again. Well, that seems as good a title as any for this dark morning. As of this moment (4:31 am), my school district is still open for business which means I may get my wish for having a regular Wednesday rather than a snow day Wednesday like the past two weeks. We will see if that comes to pass. I was released at 1:00 yesterday due to the icing conditions. My commute home wasn't too bad, but things were getting a bit slick so I am glad that I had a chance to get home before the winter weather advisory started up. It was nice to be home, but it led to lots of yelling from the cat who didn't seem to understand why I was home and her bowl was empty. Life with cat. While I was at work yesterday, I spent some time looking at my work space and trying to figure out what I want to do with that space. I did my documentation yesterday while my intern was leading her group, so I have some time this morning to work on my office. I have ...

She REALLY likes my robe! I have written a version of this blog post now about five times. I got a bit frustrated with myself because I was coming across as a bit too whiny and "poor me-ish," even for me - just couldn't stomach what was coming across my keyboard. So, I decided to change up my routine a bit and see if that would help me write something that includes some sort of solution to problems that are happening around me. I took my shower in the middle of my morning rather than at the beginning or at the end like I usually do. My routine is more of a task list than a schedule, so I often mix things up a bit, but showers are not usually all that flexible for me for some strange reason. I decided to see if some shower time would help me to figure out what is going on with me. Here are some of the details. My family members, all out in California, are struggling with various and sundry medical issues. Some of these are specifically time-framed, others are not. ...

Random picture of my Bella-cat... just because I can! Yesterday, I got my first nomination for some music therapy happy mail for a deserving music therapist. I am looking forward to making up a box of stuff and sending it out to someone that I don't know. I hope that it will brighten up the day of the recipient! The best thing about this nomination is that it was truly anonymous! I have NO idea who nominated the recipient, but thank you. Thank you so much for allowing me to do this on your behalf and for the benefit of someone you have a vested interest in!! I love it when we support one another as fellow music therapists and as human beings. I think I could support about two more nominations this time around, so think about who could use a bit of music therapy support and NOMINATE please!! I will not publish the names of any person nominated, so feel free to nominate - I get the comments and make decisions about publication - nothing with names is published!! I will post a...

There is almost 3 inches of "wintry mix" outside this morning. It started just after I arrived at home after a good day at work, and continued all night. For all I know, it may still be precipitating out there - it's hard to see outside at the moment - seems to be still coming down, but more snow now than sleet and ice. This type of weather makes for some really interesting days at my job. You see, I work in a psychiatric residential treatment facility for kids with developmental/intellectual diagnoses and chronic psychiatric concerns. We have both a day school program and an educational program for our residents. When the local school district shuts down, we still have clients who live at the facility and who need something to do. So, we have school for our residents. Now, teachers are not required to attend on inclement weather days (AKA: any day where the weather causes us to close the school), but I have always worked on these days. I've missed three incleme...

My ever vigilant "assistant" (?), Bella! My cat, Bella, tends to walk over the keyboard when she is finished sitting between me and the screen. She usually hits the same key over and over again with all of her feet for some reason, and today's post title is courtesy of her urge to nibble on her kibble after keeping me from writing anything at all. She does a good job of keeping me from doing things that I want to do - she plops herself down in the center of any project and then smiles at me. Ah, cats. One of the good things about sharing my life with Bella-cat is that she reminds me that there are many ways to go through this lifetime. I could just keep my head down and rush from place to place and thing to thing, or I could spend some of my time in the sunshine, watching the birds outside the window. There is a post on Music Therapists Unite right now about work-life balance. I admit that I am currently struggling with my ability to separate between those two thi...

My mother arrived at my living space yesterday - a surprise type visit (I knew it was coming a bit over a month ago - very impulsive for us to make plans in only a couple of weeks) especially since I've lived here for 23 years and this is only the second time she's come to visit me - the first was when I had surgery. This is a "just because" visit as far as I know, and now that it's happening, I'm happy to see her. The living space is not "Mom clean," but it is functional, and I am going to work around her rather than just sit and watch everything she does. Bella-cat is adjusting to sharing a living space and is absolutely DYING to get into the room that is currently off-limits (because of the inflatable bed) but is enjoying the good g'ma attention and rubs behind the ears. She's a pretty easy house guest. She is looking forward to going through my extensive library of fiction and through my craft books and supplies. I figure she'll be ...

I read an article somewhere, a long, long time ago, that attempted to explain earworms - you know, the tunes that go through your head over and over again without any real conscious decision to recall them? Earworms. The theory was that the brain created stimulation when there was a lack of stimulation in the external environment. Okay. That's interesting to me. I get earworms pretty often, and I've learned to extinguish them pretty reliably. I have been accused of giving others many earworms over the years. Just one note can trigger some of my coworkers into singing songs with me - songs they would rather not sing... I've found myself singing things this week - just bursting out into song at times. Guess my brain is seeking musical stimulation and the soundtracks of my television programs is not cutting it. Those songs haven't become earworms - yet - but I am on the watch to see what sticks. I've spent quite a bit of time this past week in solitary pursuits...

The cat is typing this morning as she walks back and forth, trying to get my attention. She is not usually eloquent, but she is insistent. I was going to title this post something pithy like "Finding a Song," but she has a different idea. Apparently this will be titled, "iuuuuuuuuuuukfgvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv." Letting the cat type probably isn't the best idea for this Friday morning, but it has been a challenging week, so my brain isn't working the way it should be.  I went to work yesterday after two days at home with a horrible dizzy spell associated (I'm hoping) with an infection. I'm on anti-nausea medicine for the dizziness, but it is still affecting me. When I went to work yesterday, I met a new student who came to music therapy with our Behavior Specialist in tow. Now, our Behavior Specialist is a nice guy, but he really just doesn't get music therapy or the interaction behaviors that often emerge in therapeutic e...

I am having a day off today. It is a holiday, so there is no school. I am going to enjoy this bonus day as much as I possibly can. I am adding things to my to-do list and my not-to-do list as fast as I can. To-do - laundry, dishes, grocery shopping, chiropractor, changing the sheets, organizing the front closet. Not-to-do - listen to news, stress about situations that are not my responsibility, avoid toxic people and topics I'm working on things that will move me forward. I'll start some chicken in the crock-pot in a couple of minutes here. I am getting ready to go to my new chiropractor to get my second adjustment - there will probably be another on next Saturday as well. After the adjustment, I'll go grocery shopping for some hamburger and then I'll start the process of making food for the next couple of weeks. I enjoy these days, and I try to make the most out of them. There is something luxurious about having an extra weekend day that gives me such satisfa...

Cats have figured prominently in my social media feeds lately. I'm not exactly sure why, but there is probably some sort of algorithm in place that ensures that I get to see everything about cats that comes across the internet. I'm NOT complaining - I love my Bella-cat and all things cat - but I do feel that it is a bit strange that there are so many cat things recently. I do have other interests. Maybe it's because my friends are finally coming around to the cat life. Hmmm. One of my friends is going to be crocheting a cat sweater. She has a kit and everything! Someone posted a cat bath/rap video on Music Therapists Unite , and I just marveled at how calm that cat was in the bath, being rapped to, and at the skill of the guy, cuddling the cat while bathing said cat. My cat would NEVER be that calm or interested in my rapping when presented with the situation of a bath. NEVER. In fact, she is currently staring at me as if she knows what I am writing about and resents me...

NOTE: This post is not for the squeamish. If you are offended or easily disgusted, I would suggest that you skip this completely and move to one of my other posts. Could I suggest one with the label "Music Therapy Moments?" I don't usually resort to bathroom humor to get attention, but I really didn't have much to do with the title this morning. I typed the first part - the Thoughtful Thursday part - and then Bella cat walked over the keyboard and typed the next part. It made me laugh. I decided to keep the title as it seemed apropos of what has been happening in various areas of my life lately. One of my clients whispered to me yesterday, "I have diarrhea." I know of two other people right now who are struggling with good bowel health, and it's always a concern in my life - but, I digress. Trust the cat to get down to the basest of base elements and express that in her own direct way. No matter how much we may try to pretend, poo is part of the l...

I am feeling things way too deeply these days. Facebook and National Public Radio aren't helping me avoid the emotions going on, but I am trying my best to figure out what I think and what I want to see in this new climate. So, in order to do that, I am just going to focus on something else until I can make some sense of how I am going to write about what is going on. There are so many thoughts, feelings, and problems going on these days that I am trying to avoid in this moment that my only respite is cuddle time with my cat. Bella has welcomed me home from my travels in the usual manner - cuddles, loud rumbling purrs, a couple of nips on the arm, and the obligatory vomit episode. We spent most of our day yesterday in each other's company. She will probably be glad to see me go off to work, but will also be glad to see me when I come home again. Bella-cat approves of this post. I am getting ready to go back to work after a week away. In that week, lots has happened in...

My sister is sitting here, and I decided to pick her brain about my blog post for this morning (sorry it's late, Janice, my friend!). It's not going to be a Supplemental Sunday post as I haven't made anything this week, but it is music therapy post. This is Davi. She's a scaredy-cat in all sense of the word. She's skittish, frightened, jumpy, difficult to lure, and somewhat distrustful. We usually talk on the phone, Miss Davi and I, but this the only the second time that we've ever met each other in person. The first time, she allowed me to stroke her while her person was holding her tightly. This time, I am making progress on building our relationship. Meeting Davi and trying to get her to know me is very similar to building a relationship with clients at times. Often, my clients arrive at my facility after being shuttled from place to place for a time. They've been in different schools, treatment programs, foster homes, and detention situations. Th...

This post is late because my co-author, Bella-cat, refused to leave me alone until we cuddled a bit. (Sorry, Janice.) We've had our cuddle, she's left me for the peace of the comforter, and now I can spend some time thinking about what I want to write about today. I see some blog posts about the type of blog posts you SHOULD write to drive more traffic to your site. I read them and don't really feel that things work for what I want to write about, so I ignore them all. The title of this post comes from the lofty goals that I have for myself this week. I need to clear out and clean up my home. It's been a long time since I've been able to do what I need to do for housework, so things really need to be done. I also have a need to get things organized and cleared out so I can have a pet sitter come and sit for the cat. I am often spurred on by people coming to visit, and no one has for the past year, so things have piled up. So, now I am sitting here, trying to f...

I've been really getting into vacation lately - sleeping in, taking naps, working around the house - and the cat seems to be enjoying it as well. Usually, by this time, she is walking out of any room that I walk into, but she is actively following me around this time. We still get our alone time from each other, but if I sit on the couch, she comes out to see what's happening before either cuddling or heading back to her nap. She comes out to get me when it's time for a nap. She nags me when it's bedtime. Tonight, I'm throwing a wrench in her "It's time for bed" plans. It's the first week of an eight week webinar series for music therapy interns .  There are two things that inevitably happen during these webinars. The first is that the cat comes in and wants to be cuddled and attended to during the opening. She treats everyone to lots of purrs and smiles as she does everything she can to be in my way. Sometimes it makes the participants lau...

Today was another later type morning, but I had a good excuse...it was time to cuddle! My Bella doesn't usually get lap time in the early mornings unless it is a Saturday or Sunday. We usually start the day running, but this morning, she snuggled in, and I wanted the opportunity to listen to her purr. It's part of our self-care routine.  Now, because I am only one other cat away from being "Old Lady Landaker with all those cats," I am going to post a bunch of Bella pictures. This is partially for my friend, Kyle, who possibly only likes me because I have a cat and he has "Cat," and partially because I am still tired and want to have a post that has nothing to do with music therapy except for self-care.   Taking a couple of minutes to sit with a lap full of cat is one of life's pleasures. It's a luxury. If you don't like cats, that's fine. Find someone or something to spend some time with - don't talk, just be with each other. ...

I honestly think that she is trying to keep me from blogging in order to spread her purr and her nuzzles and head boops with me. I love it. While she is sitting in my way - between me and the computer - I have a chance to just bury my nose in her fur and revel in her cattiness. I am trying to be a bit more mindful in how I approach my days. Now, I am not an expert in mindfulness , but I am learning. I am learning to slow down and observe myself - again.  According to Psychology Today , mindfulness is defined as " a state of active, open attention on the present. When you're mindful, you observe your thoughts and feelings from a distance, without judging them good or bad. Instead of letting your life pass you by, mindfulness means living in the moment and awakening to experience." Another definition of mindfulness, from Berkeley, is " Mindfulness also involves acceptance, meaning that we pay attention to our thoughts and feelings without judging them—wi...