Day Forty-Nine: I Do My Best Pirate!

I present to you the following blog post, which stands as a warning to all of my novelty seeking readers about what can happen when you leave your novel experience until the end of the day and have absolutely nothing planned to pull out at the last minute.  This is also a cautionary tale about peer pressure. 

It was another busy, sometimes frantic, day in which I attempted, unsuccessfully at times, to meet the needs of my very small children, my household, and myself.  I find that motherhood, for me at least, often resembles the work of a triage nurse:  you assess the level of the crisis, prioritize, and then follow through in order of importance and urgency.  My children's basic needs and happiness come before everything else, and some days it feels like that's where all my time is focused...  Thus, leading to the seemingly never-ending backlog of tasks of lesser importance that need to be addressed when there is a rare free moment!  But it is my internal list of priorities that gives some semblance of structure to my days.  As a result, this novelty experiment, which is, of course, a lower priority than the needs of my children, can get pushed off until  they are safely tucked in bed.  And then the race against the clock begins!

Tonight, my best friend, Angela was over so I decided to employ her as the generator of novel experience ideas for the evening.  So, of course, she suggested something really easy.  "You need to Google search Guinness Book of World Records," she said with authority.  "Dare I ask why," I replied.  "Just do it.  Trust me."  

So, like the obedient woman that I am, I typed in the search parameters and pulled up the website.  "Now you're going to break a world record," exclaimed Angela.  Oh.  Of course!  What else would I do with barely two hours to dedicate to a task?  Doesn't everybody set out to beat a world record when they have a few moments of free time?  

Shockingly, it became abundantly clear that this was not a realistic goal.  However, the website did provide endless amounts of amusement with some inspiration mixed in to boot!  As we perused long lists of the fastest, tallest, widest and smallest, Angela became excited about a listing for the most people dancing the Bharatnatyam, an Indian dance form, and decided that learning this dance was going to be my novel experience for the evening.

But here's the part where I put a damper on Angela's enthusiasm...  A quick search of the internet confirmed my darkest suspicions...  I've actually danced the Bharatnatyam before.  Seriously, what are the odds that this WOULDN'T be a novel experience?  But when I was at a welcome reception in India in 1995, a group of us went up on the stage to learn how to dance the Bharatnatyam with the performers...  I hadn't been able to remember the name of the dance, but the description gelled with my memory of the experience.  So it was back to the drawing board.

The good news, here, is that it was at this point that we became inspired to do random searches on YouTube.  A simple search for "how to" led me to the novel experience of the night...  Though I initially protested that this was a cop out, I was eventually peer pressured to participate.  And, while laughing to the point of tears, I did, in fact, practice like a good little student, thus alleviating my concern that this should not count.  Are you ready?

Yup...  This is how I ended up spending my night.  I do feel that my new bilingual status will help me in life in the long run so I am very grateful to Angela for convincing me of the worthwhileness of this novel experience.  I mean, just check out my mad pirate-speaking skills:

"Arrrr...  This sharp-tongued wench be tired.  I gunna be sleepin."

So, on that note, I will wish you all a goodnight, and will now retire to my bed to dream of plunderin' and booty, (of the pirate variety!)  

Day Forty-Eight: Mainers, Massholes, and Mangoes

For those of you who have not visited, Maine is, in many ways, an idyllic place to live.  With its endless coastlines, beautiful mountains, and quaint villages it's really a perfect place to raise a family.  And Mainers are acutely aware of their assets and fiercely proud of their state and their roots.  As a person of Scottish heritage, I liken Mainers to the Scots:  Rugged, proud, and rather disdainful of their neighbor to the South!  

My husband and best friend are both Maine natives.  This puts them into the elite class of Mainers and affords them acceptance without question throughout the state.  I, on the other hand, am the sworn enemy of the native Mainer.  I am from Massachusetts...  or, as we are referred to locally, I am a "Masshole."  

I can remember my husband's disappointment when he discovered my heritage on our first date.  At the time, I thought he was teasing when he exclaimed, "But I thought you were a nice New Hampshire girl!"  I now know better.  As far as my husband is concerned, my Masshole status is a secret that must be protected and a shame to his family.  At business dinners he has frequently told people that I am from New Hampshire.  You see, to the native Mainer, New Hampshire is a huge step up from Massachusetts...  A step up, but believe you me, it is still not Maine!    Maine is the way life should be!

Now, while we do live within the borders of the Great State of Maine, we happen to live quite close to my old stomping ground in New Hampshire.  On occasion, we will even leave utopia so that I can meet my long standing need to "live free or die."  You see, while I was born in Massachusetts, my heart is in the seacoast area of New Hampshire.  

In the later months of my pregnancies, these ventures south became a risky business.  To my husband, it was paramount that his children be born in Maine so that he could bestow native status on them, thus negating the blight of their Masshole mother.  Therefore, if I happened to go into labor while "away," his plan was to drive me over the border to ensure that his children receive their birthright.  In the final weeks of my pregnancy with our son, we needed to run an errand in Massachusetts.  As we crossed into "enemy territory," I remember requiring my husband to give me a verbal contract that he would take me to the NEAREST HOSPITAL if I were to go into labor, which, after hemming and hawing, he agreed to.  Thankfully, we were safely back in Maine before my water broke twelve hours later, and twenty-three hours from that point, our son officially became a native!

As an outsider in a family of natives, I've been able to observe the Native Mainers within their own habitats, and I've made some striking discoveries.  They can crack a lobster like nobody's business, a good majority really do answer questions with "ayuh," and they seem to be immune to the cold.  It is not unusual to see a Native Mainer in a t-shirt in below freezing weather, and shorts are often broken out as soon as the temperature hits a balmy 40 degrees.

It is the tolerance to cold that sets me most apart from the Native Mainer.  While I would be very happy moving down to Costa Rica and living in the glorious, tropical heat and humidity for the rest of my days, my husband lives for April snowstorms.  Crazy!

Which brings me to the novel experience of the day...  The weather today was cold, wet, and miserable, as it often can be this time of year and I was busy feeling sorry for myself while my husband celebrated.  In a futile attempt to cope, I pulled out all the stops...  I listened to Caliente on my satellite radio...  I turned up the heat...  I drank hot beverages and snuggled under blankets... but nothing was working.  The reality of the weather proved to be too much.  Just when I was about to give up hope, I remembered that I had bought myself a tropical treat at the store:  Orange MANGO juice.  

Nothing says tropical weather, monkeys swinging by in trees, and a very happy Christy like a mango!  While it did not take the cold away, it did remind me that sunnier days are coming and gave just the shot in the arm that we Massholes need when living outside of our natural habitat.

Novel Experience Day Forty Seven: Caught in the Hail Storm

While I do admit to having my fair share of neuroses, there are only two things that make me truly afraid.  The first, which I have already admitted to in this blog, is heights.  Or more specifically, I am afraid of falling or of witnessing the (serious) fall of a loved one.  I have no idea where this fear comes from, but I can remember climbing a fire tower as a wee one and having to cling to my grandfather's hand...  Or his leg... Or a support beam...  the entire way up and down.  This is my first memory of a great many memories of times that I have felt afraid of heights.   For the most part, I have not let this fear stop me from experiencing the good things in life, and there are many examples of the times that I have "felt the fear, and did it anyway..."

Recent examples include crossing a suspension bridge in the cloud forest in Costa Rica. Scared, but did it.  Climbing one of the only Mayan pyramids in Mexico that is still allowed to be climbed by the public...  Terrified, but did it, (while crying).  And doing the "cat walk" at a high ropes course...  Absolutely out of my mind with fear, crying, but did it.  After completing each of these experiences I had a high that was indescribable and felt incredible pride about my accomplishment. These are some of my most treasured memories...  Everything is a bit different in hindsight!

While my fear of heights is somewhat irrational and seems to be something I was born with, my other fear did not develop until college.  And, frankly, I experience absolutely no pride or exhilaration when forced to face it.  This fear is of lightening.  

The summer before my junior year of college, four people that I knew were struck by lightening.  Two of the people who were struck I knew very well...  Another was the mother of my roommate at the time.  The fourth person, who tragically lost his life, was the father of a college friend.  The whole experience was horrible.  Almost exactly a year before this tragedy occurred, I can remember purposefully sitting outside on a friend's porch during a storm, watching the lightening strike over the lake, feeling safe in the knowledge that being struck by lightening "couldn't happen to me" and thoroughly enjoying the experience.  Now I live with a very clear understanding that it certainly could happen to me, and I derive zero pleasure from storms.  Does it seriously impact my life?  No.  I am not a person who completely loses the ability to function at the first hint of thunder.  But at times, my fear of lightening can impact the decisions that I make.

Which brings me to today's novel experience.  Now I count on my "smart" phone to notify me of many things, and it serves me well most of the time.  However, today my phone failed me in a most profound way.  With absolutely no inkling that a monster storm was brewing and a severe weather alert had been issued for exactly where I was, I set out with my two babies and giant dog to drop my son off at daycare.  At first, there was just your typical rumbling of thunder followed by a bit of rain.  But then the sky darkened, opened up and I was suddenly driving in the most massive hail storm I have ever encountered...  and the only one I have ever been caught in.  Within two minutes the road was completely white with fallen hail and the thunder was booming around me.  When lightening struck a few hundred feet in front of me, (and exactly where I was headed), I pulled a u-turn and went home to assess the damage to my car, (thankfully, none!), and wait out the storm in the comfort of my garage.  It was a relatively warm day, and this photo was taken more than thirty minutes after the hail had fallen.

So while this photo does not do the storm justice, you can get a sense of what I was dealing with. 

The transforming power of hindsight has struck once again.  Fear has turned into awe, and I am amazed by the strange beauty of this experience and the power of mother nature.  But this is one novel experience that I definitely hope, (but seriously doubt), will remain novel for a long time!

Day Forty-Six: Binaural Beats

As the Experiment has unfolded, my novelty seeking skills have become honed and I have become much more efficient and prolific at discovering sources of novelty.  Where once I would have panicked as the clock struck 11:00 pm and I was left with one brief hour to discover and complete a novel experience, I now embrace the challenge with confidence that there is an almost endless amount of novel experiences for anyone who wishes to seek them out.  As a result of this new attitude, life seems much more exciting and filled with opportunity and wonder.  So, dear reader, let me share a few of my newfound secrets for discovering opportunities for novelty:  

Novel Experience Seeking Formula Number One:  I would consider this to be one of the best case scenarios for successful novelty seeking as the experience is meaningful, useful, and (in theory), integrates seamlessly with one's life.  When applying this novelty seeking formula, I first identify a need, desire, or goal in my life outside of this project.  These needs have varied from needing more energy, (i.e. Yoga Nidra), to addressing muscle pains, (i.e. Tea Bath), to completing home improvement projects, (i.e. Basic Wiring for Dummies).  From here, I try to find a novel way of addressing the pre-existing need or goal.  See?  The novelty just blends in with the flow of life, serves a purpose and is in no way disruptive.  Love it!

Novel Experience Seeking Formula Number Two:   I identify something that I have always wanted to try, but have not prioritized and I make it happen.  Making a cheesecake and going to the local Teppanyaki restaurant fall under this category.  I particularly revel in these novel activities as they tend to be things that I am more prone to really enjoy.  Also, the anticipation is heightened by the fact that I have procrastinated their completion for so very long, and I get the added benefit of checking something off of my mental to do list!

Novel Experience Seeking Formula Number Three:  Completely random, unplanned novelty.  Mother Nature, my friends and family, and my children tend to be a good source of this type of novelty.  Wonderful when this happens, (Usually!), but this type of novelty can not be counted on!

Novel Experience Seeking Formula Number Four:  I find inspiration in random places and plan an experience for the future.  Inspiration can be found almost everywhere!  Whether I'm briefly scanning my Facebook homepage, listening to a story told by a loved one, surfing the web, or reading advertisements in the paper, it is amazing to me how many opportunities for novelty are out there when it becomes a habit to notice them!  A friend's comment about tapping his maple trees led to a Google search and the discovery of Maine Maple Sunday.  Another friend's Facebook link and personal story led to the discovery of a fun tool on the web.   And then there are the many requests and suggestions I have received from readers and friends as this project has unfolded.  Other people's lives are a tremendous source of inspiration when you are open to moving outside of your normal comfort zone!

Novel Experience Seeking Formula Number Five:  Speaking of moving outside of your comfort zone...  I think most people have genres of activities that could be considered atypical for them.  I find that activities within these broad categories provide nearly endless opportunities for novelty, though I have sometimes had some initial resistance to stepping that far outside of my comfort zone!  For me, home improvement, anything team sports related and visual artsy or craftsy activities have in no way been part of my day to day life since I was a child.  However, talk about opportunity for novelty!  (In particular, I have discovered that anything creative by definition includes a dose of novelty!)  And, interestingly enough, I have actually enjoyed some of these activities the most!  

So there you have it!  The Novel Experience Experiment's Official List of the Top Five Ways of Discovering Novelty, (Other than a random Google search or web surfing, which can also be mighty effective, FYI!)  

Which brings me to tonight's novel experience...  Now I am a psychotherapist by trade, so one would think that most methods of working with the mind for healing purposes would at least be familiar to me.  This is a genre of experience that is incredibly well traversed!  However, while engaging in random web surfing, I came across a link for something called "binaural beats," which purported to increase focus, memory, creativity, decrease stress, pain, help you quit smoking, lose weight, etc., etc., etc....  Apparently a cure all for everything!  And, a quick scan of wikipedia confirmed that some of these claims appear to be backed by actual research!

Fearing that these free recordings would some day put me out of business, I put on my newly acquired speech to text headphones and attempted to increase my creativity by listening to this stream of background conversations and strange tones.  Really, this is an experience that has to be, well....  experienced!  It was quite interesting.  I excitedly opened up my blog, curious to see what level of brilliance might come out of me after all this prepping for increased creativity...  and had writer's block for the very first time since starting this experiment.  Looks like my career choice is safe...  for now!

And...  If you want to take my suggestions and run with them for seven days, go ahead and join the Novel Experience Challenge!  I bet you'll be glad that you did!