Britt Skrabanek

The End of A Physical Perspective

Many times I considered giving up on blogging. I always joke around with people that it’s a full-time job, because it kind of is.

If you’re not writing a post, sharing on social, responding to readers, and commenting on other blogs (tired yet?), you’re thinking about your next post and possibly the post after that.

But whenever I think about the “work” that goes into blogging, I think about the “awesome” instead. It’s actually quite easy to do, because there has been a lot of awesome.

Almost three years ago I started this blog, and I am not lying when I say that I had absolutely no freaking clue what I was doing. I knew that it was a big commitment, which is why I shied away from it before and why I refused to take on the responsibility at my job at the time.

I just knew. It’s a lot.

Back then I started a blog because I needed a platform as a writer, especially an Indie Author who nobody would have a chance of hearing about otherwise. I heard phrases like “build a tribe”.

Build a tribe? How in the hell am I supposed to do that? Is anyone ever going to read this crazy shit?

At first, nobody really did. Except for family and friends…thanks, guys. xoxoxo

But then, I started meeting people in the blogging community—people I had never met and had no association with my family or friends who might have forced them to visit. There were some likes, even a few comments, and eventually they shared.

I first came up with the title for this blog, A Physical Perspective, when I felt like I needed some sort of title.

It was thought of on a whim. I remember standing over my dining room table on an evening after work or something and writing it on a notepad.

It’s open to interpretation, which I won’t go into here, but I started thinking recently…who cares?

And, I listened to my people.

It’s very rare when any of you guys even use that name, because you say “Britt’s blog”. So, going into another wild year with this blog, I have ditched my old name.

Many of you were here the other day for Zen’s Life Enthusiast post, and you commented on the new look. Thank you all for your sweet compliments.

I think the space better represents who I am and what I have to say. There’s no need for a fancy blog title that leaves you scratching your head about the meaning.

This is Britt’s blog.

I am a flawed human just like everybody else, and all I do is write nonsense that sometimes makes sense. I am a Life Enthusiast, because I am flawed…and that means I’m alive.

Thank you all for being here. I’m excited to share many more of life’s ridiculously gorgeous moments with you…my tribe.

The Life Enthusiast Chronicles with Zen

Last month Julie of Les Petits Pas de Juls showed us what it’s like to drop everything, go absorb every ounce of life, and make your own way. In my monthly series, The Life Enthusiast Chronicles, gorgeous human beings from all over talk about what makes them excited to be alive.

Today I’m so happy to bring you guys this lovely gal I know all the way in Dubai, Zen from Zen Scribbles. Zen has been one of my faves for a long time. When I read her posts, it’s like seeing life for the first time. With her delightful views on books, chocolate, and more reading, and more dessert, her sweetness remains with you long after you’ve left her blog.

That kind of youthful joie de vivre is exactly why I asked Zen to be a Life Enthusiast.

Connect with Zen on Twitter.

Like others before me, I want to thank Britt for this opportunity. I’m actually quite honoured; I never thought – looking back at all Life Enthusiasts before me – that I could fit the bill, so this makes me happy.

It also made me realise that this is very difficult, haha.

Though I’ve always been one to take pleasure in the little things in life, I feel I haven’t really started “living” until I finally left the nest a few months ago.

In the Middle East, girls typically have to live with their parents until they are married, and mine were especially firm about that. It took quite a lot of effort and persuasion, but I was finally able to convince them to let me go, and so began quite a new adventure.

Mural — I see this mural on my way home every day, and it always puts a smile on my face.

In some aspects I am more of an adult now; I have my own place, I stress about bills and get buried under huge piles of work.

You would argue that, since I’m 26, I am already a fully-fledged adult, but I still feel like that teenager sitting between her best friends on graduation day, awkwardly accepting her diploma from the headmaster and darting off before her parents could even snap a picture.

Even now that we all have our careers and our responsibilities, when we all get together we are still able to have the same childish fun we had when we were younger, spending hours over a board game, watching cartoons and eating more sweets than our bodies can handle. I’m a very nostalgic person, and this whole formula suits me just fine, allowing me to relive the past with all the perks of being an adult.

A game of Pokémon Monopoly that got a little bit heated towards the end!

I think it’s really important never to lose sight of the child in you, and to continue enjoying the things that made you happy in that innocent phase of your life.

Though my tastes have developed over the years, I still squeal with delight when I hit the candy aisle of any store – especially now that there’s no one to tell me I only get to “pick one”, haha – and I cannot hide my joy when I step into a patisserie, often failing to control myself and my wallet in face of all the sugary goodies.

Jelly beans are like the best treat ever!

I still enjoy animated movies most of all… and cry during almost every single one of them, even on the fourth or fifth watch.

I still snuggle my stuffed bunny when I sleep.

An avid reader, I still allow myself to indulge in the innocence and simplicity of a good children’s novel. I still love “looking at the pictures.”

This one has so many pictures. :D — This one has so many pictures. 😀

I laugh easily, I cry easily, my foodie buds still crave the childhood comfort of mac & cheese… and at the end of the day, when I’m feeling particularly down, a scoop of ice-cream can cheer me right up.

I may not have everything figured out, but at least I know, I will never grow up to be a person who doesn’t delight in the simple things in life.

And when a toy store clerk asks me if I want Toothless wrapped up as a gift, I’ll firmly say, “No, thank you. This is actually mine.”

I’ll Be Happy When…

Happiness. We put so much pressure on that single word, don’t we?

It’s all too easy to get stuck in this mental cycle of thinking happiness will magically arrive once we get something we thought we wanted more than anything else—when we accomplish something we worked our asses off to get.

I’ll be happy when I get that promotion.

I’ll be happy when I buy that house.

I’ll be happy when I write that book.

Do we feel happy after obtaining or accomplishing any of these things? Not for very long. Like coming down from a high, we crash and we wonder where it all went wrong.

Hey, what happened to my happiness I deserve? I worked so hard for it, and now it’s gone.

The build-up we attach to thinking happiness comes after a certain thing causes this self-destructive roller coaster of emotions.

As a writer, I know this feeling well. And I see it all the time in other writers.

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Okay, that’s the teaser for the guest blog post I wrote over at Chris Stocking’s place.

To celebrate the relaunch of his website, my good friend asked me and a couple of writers to kick off christopherstocking.com with some good old fashioned writing about writing.

Head on over, read the rest of the piece, and check out his new pad. (And, make sure to bring Chris some good beer, since I know he worked hard on everything.)

Cheers, Chris!

Cat Yogi

One night last week I decided to treat myself to a Yin class. Usually I go for Vinyasa, because I adore the active flowing movement of this practice.

But, I’m also a firm Yin believer—especially with go, go, go people like yours truly.

I’ve been incorporating Yin into my practice for the past three years. I stumbled upon it accidentally, since I had a teacher that specialized in that particular style.

I remember the first class I took was so different from anything else I tried. In fact, I was confused.

Because though it looked like we weren’t doing much, it was one of the most difficult classes I have ever taken.

Mentally and physically Yin is ridiculously challenging. The poses are usually held for five minutes and rather than fighting the emotion and the body, you have to surrender.

For you Type A people like me, surrendering is just something we don’t do. Which is why I love Yin. It is a true test of what I am capable of, when I explore this unfamiliar stillness.

Well, there’s someone else that loves Yin in this house. Someone that looks a lot like a stuffed animal.

For any Yogi with pets out there, you understand the struggle with having a regular home practice.

When you’re on the floor, you’re fair game. You will be licked, mounted, and humiliated.

Aphrodite the cat usually gets kicked off my Yoga mat once sun salutations are in full swing, but she always comes back at the end of class and we do Savasana together. (It’s her favorite pose.)

So, when I took an advanced Yin class the other night—meaning seven minute holds instead of five—she took the entire class with me.

No, she wasn’t stretching next to me. She was on me.

I realize that grabbing an iPhone to snap pix and take videos during any Yoga class is taboo. But I needed to show proof to the world that humans aren’t the only ones that like Yoga.

Cats like it too.

I know, I know. We’re the cutest.

To tell you the truth, even though I’m usually irritated with my cat for “disrupting” my Yoga class, the other night I was fascinated with our time together.

She moved with me, from pose to pose, because I let her be. It’s an interesting concept—to let things be and see what happens.

(Some of you have seen this video already on social, but in case you missed it, here we are in Pigeon Pose together. Being awesome.)

Bend…Beer Mecca

For the longest time, I didn’t like beer. Because I was doing it wrong.

Like most youngsters in the US drinking under the legal age of 21 (gasp!), I drank what I could get my hands on. Typically that was watered down piss masquerading as beer which guaranteed a blinding hangover.

The first time I had real beer was in Munich when I studied abroad in college. I was on a bike tour and we stopped at the English Gardens for a beer break. Never one to like beer previously, someone recommended I try a Radler—half lemonade, half beer.

Though I was skeptical, I was soon enjoying my second glass, a changed woman forever. You see, I’m half Czech and part Irish, and a love for beer is in my blood.

Besides water, tea, and coffee, that’s all I drink now. Occasionally a little wine or a Moscow Mule, but I’m all about phenomenal beer.

When we moved to Portland last year, Bend was on our getaway list. For Mr. H’s birthday last weekend, we finally went. (If you missed last week’s post about Bend’s nature, be sure to check out Beautiful Misery.)

If you bring up Bend around any Portlander, you will get the same response from everyone…I love Bend!

And, we could see why.

Besides the high desert climate with soul-stopping ~~mountain~~ volcano views, Bend is a small, laid back town with happy people who have a knack for two lovely things. Food and beer.

While one can certainly take the predetermined Bend Ale Trail around town, we narrowed it down to three breweries that were non-negotiable.

BONEYARD

To tell you how much we love Boneyard Beer, we go to specific restaurants in Portland JUST because they have their glorious IPA.

Why? Because you can’t buy it in any store. Seriously, my boss even tried buying it for me for my birthday since it’s my favorite—and he just plain couldn’t.

You’ll notice in the picture above that the brewery is located in an old auto repair shop. People cram into the tiny tasting room, stand around because there is nowhere to sit, and drink delicious beer.

It’s not a fancy place to hang out it and be seen. It’s all about the beer.

And that rebellious no-frills atmosphere made us adore Boneyard even more. In case you couldn’t tell by the ridiculously goofy smiles we have on our little faces.

CRUX

But if you want amazing beer with some frills, Crux Fermentation Project is the place to be. Earlier that day was our epic hike at Smith Rock, so we were ready for lots of food and beer.

When we walked up, we were afraid there was a private event going on. There was a tent outside with people drinking beer everywhere. Not just adults, but entire families were hanging out.

We had stumbled upon their Sundowner Hour, with specials a half hour before and after sunset. And that particular day was crystal clear and sunny.

So we joined the sunset party, which consisted of everyone enjoying damn good beer and waiting for the big show. An amazing sunset.

It was a celebration of nature and beer. Everyone stood around watching the sunset together, smiling and quiet, sharing an unbeatable moment.

SILVER MOON

On our last night, based on several recommendations by fellow beer enthusiasts in Portland, we headed over to Silver Moon Brewing. A dive bar through and through, locals with thick beards and/or cowboy hats filled the place.

With St. Paddy’s just a few days off, we lucked out with a live performance by Five Pint Mary, an Irish/Celtic/Eastern Euro rock band from Bend. By the end of the night, everyone was dancing, including yours truly.

It doesn’t matter if you can’t dance or don’t know how to dance to such music, everyone was moving. Here’s a little tipsy video clip I shot…

All around Bend gets a huge thumbs up from us. We shall return when our bellies and livers are ready.