Alex Jamieson is a blogger and podcaster that I listen to on occasion. She talks about empowering women through feeling good, really looking into our cravings and what makes us happy. She put out the Play and Pleasure Challenge and I signed up for it with out thinking. I sign up for a lot of challenges really…. but since this is only a week long maybe my chances of actually finishing it are higher. Lets get started.
Day 1
So I opened my email, read some empowering stuff, and then clicked on link she had sent. I was to dance today…??…??…. I had just woken u and turned on my computer. I must admit, I’m not the best morning person. I have things to do, things to read, and I get kinda mean if anything interferes with that. But I saw that the video was only about 9mins long, so I decided to play it.
I can honestly say I was not amused at first, I was grumpy and tired and still hadn’t had my coffee. Why the fuck am I dancing? But as I started to wiggle around like an idiot, I started smiling and having a good time. So I guess it worked.
I leave day one of this challenge feeling a little silly, but still tired, grumpy, and coffee-less.
I’m going to get my coffee now.
Video (Alex dances with you, so don't feel silly dancing by yourself)
Day 2
So on day 2, we were suppose to plan a pleasure play date (as in fun and self amusement). Some examples were…
-wear wild headgear or hats to a museum and buy yourself an art book at the end.
-set up an indoor campground and put up a tent and play cards.
-dress up in gowns for tea at Starbucks or your favorite local cafe.
And while I wasn’t going to do any of those that day, I did like the dress up while at a cafe. But I wasn’t going to do, instead I waited a couple days. Mostly because a couple days before this I was told, my sister and mom wanted to see the movie Sisters, and Tom and his coworker wanted to see The Hateful Eight. Who doesn’t want to see 2 movies in 1 day? So I waited till Saturday, saw both movies and had a blast! It was fun and I laughed a lot, I feel it was something I really needed.
Day 3
Today was a day to just relax and play. So I picked up Fallout 4 and made some tea and played for about 2 hours before I had to go to work. Stopping to go to work was probably the hardest part, and is mostly why I leave gaming to weekends.Day 4
Today I had to write down 100 Desires, which took me 5 days to do. I didn’t have time to write down 100 in one day, I have work. Plus half the time I was just looking at the paper going “What the hell do I write?” Needless to say it took me a while to loosen up and get in the groove of writing down these desires. It kinda made me feel uncomfortable in ways, and fun in others. But roaming out of your comfort zone is never a bad thing. To remind myself of these desires I wrote them in my planner, that way I could look at them whenever. I could remind myself of things I deserve, things I would never ask for (but should), and things I wish I could express (but have a hard time doing). And maybe one by one I’ll ask, I’ll explore, I’ll express.
If you would like to try it out. These are the categories I had to write about.
20 Playful Desires - Playful desires help you feel like play can be a easy part of daily life.
20 Pleasurable Desires - Pleasurable desires help you feel comfortable with your sensual nature, and help you be more friendly towards your body.
20 Financial Desires - Financial Desires help you realize how much you could be asking for and how much you truly deserve.
20 Vengeful Desires - Vengeful desires help you disconnect from the “good girl syndrome” and “disease to please” and just let you honor your anger.
20 Fantastical, Out of This World, Magical Desires - Fantastical desires help you see how small you’ve been playing, and how BIG you could be playing.
Day 5
Today was to create something for 1 hour. And in a honesty, this actually took me a couple of days. But I finally got it done, and it felt great when it was completed. The two plants have been stuck in the same container for a while. I was afraid there water intake would be different, one being a succulent and the other a bulb type grass. They look happy in there new homes.
Today was to laugh! So before I went to work, I sent Tom a quick text saying I wanted today to be a silly fun day. So after work when I got home, he made dinner and then we drank and watched lots of funny youtube videos. It was a really great time.
Day 7
Today is the last day, so we had to write about “What Went Well in 2015”. At first I couldn’t think of much, a lot of misfortune happened. I had my first car crash with my first car, my first lay off, my first with unemployment, first time dealing with deferments on my loans, first time looking for work and feeling I was going backwards in profession.
But as I started to think about it, I could really say 2015 was a year of grace, learning, and empowerment. I may of crashed my car, but I went 25 years without any accidents on my own. I was out a good car, but I got to learn how to lease out a even better one. Without the help of my parents and my aunt, I would never know what it’s like to get a car I felt I deserved.
I lost my marketing job, and I felt anger, fear, and that feeling of being cast aside. But I learned how to look for jobs, I learned what I needed to do for unemployment, I learned that I had a different interest. With the help from the unemployment office, and the people at the community college I was able to study hard and get into a free program. Which helped me land a job that earns me more money then marketing did. And I have a lot more fun doing I might add.
I was lucky enough to still be living with my parents during that hard time, so when I deferred my loans those were the only bills I had to pay. I felt I was going backwards in profession because I couldn’t find any art related jobs in my area and all that was available was retail and fast food. But I did pick up a job in retail for a couple months and I learned things in a different way then I once had when I was younger.
2015 was rough, hard and trying. But I learned even more about myself then I had in the four years I had living away from home. But I’m happy all this happened to me now, because now at 26 I’m a little more smarter for it.
In the end, this challenge forced me to look into somethings. It may have taken me more then a week, but I still completed each task in my own time. I danced, and laughed, spent time with family and friends and looked back at unfortunate times in a new brighter light. This challenge was well worth it, and I can’t wait to see what other challenges are sitting in my inbox waiting to be read.
If you could like to see what Alex has going on or if she has a challenge you may be interested in try out her website.
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