6footsix

a different look at the beauty of outside

I spend a lot of time outside and one of my favorite things to find solace in simply taking in the beauty.  It’s everywhere.  So here is my assignment to you: go outside sometime this weekend and become fully aware of your surroundings.  Get up close and personal with nature’s life and look at them from a different perspective.

Collect things you find on the ground that speak to you.  It might be fallen leaves, or interesting shaped rocks or a handful of pine needles.  Take a pet with you if one is available and watch them as they explore.  Be inspired by the thought of exploration and take in the beauty with all of your senses.  Take your senses places they don’t normally go.  Smell a tree.  Hug it.  Feel it’s bark.  Take deep breaths of fresh air.  Try to find as many shades of one color as you can.

After you come back inside, let your inspiration take you where it will.  Pick up some paint and create!  Pick up a pen and write.  If the artistic mood doesn’t strike you, reflect on the beauty of the world that surrounds us and make a promise to yourself and Earth to protect it, to take those few extra steps like getting a paper recycling bin in your house or teaching your kids the importance of our Earth and its resources.  

Lastly, visit this link and view artist Christoph Niemann's inspiration of nature.

be yourself ... as many yourselfs as there are!

the silly one...

the glamorous one...

 

the sporty one...

 

the animal loving one...

 

the pouty one...

 

Individuality is a beautiful thing!  

Don't ever be afraid to stand out...

colleen-i-fying the world

I tend to think of myself as invincible when it comes to doing anything athletic.  My parents taught me from a very young age to "cowgirl up" if I was ever hurting or sick in the middle of competition.  So when asked what kind of trail I wanted to ride when going mountain biking for the first time in Sedona a couple weeks ago, I didn't hesitate to take on the intermediate/advanced course.  

One of the challenges that I approach in life is being a bit too tall for modern day sporting equipment. The calf raise machine at the gym that my legs do not fit under because they are just too long, the hotel pool that I can't swim laps in because I can only fit three strokes in, and rental bikes which place my rear end at a height to accommodate my long legs that my center of gravity is at a constant push forward, which makes me so thankful to be working with Trek in fitting a bike to my non-traditional height.  

I wish I had video evidence to demonstrate how completely out of control I was when hurling down the rocky mountainside on an extremely light bike which I felt I had no control over.  No sooner than I would hit a rock as it would redirect me into a bush on the side of the trail.  I am still quite shocked I was not thrown over the handle bars as was my biggest fear throughout the "advanced" downhill part of the trail. My experienced mountain biking boyfriend instructed me to try to put my weight back when going downhill and slightly forward when climbing uphill.  Might I just say "easier said than done."

After twenty minutes of frustration and my eventual admittance to needing an easier course to ride, we relocated ourselves to a fun hour of or so of "Colleen friendly" mountain biking.  Sedona, AZ is absolutely beautiful and Chris and I had a wonderful weekend.

(The photo shows me on the largest frame bicycle at a store with a large selection of bikes.)

Other everyday matters of height:  

In the front seat of some cars, my foot cannot reach the gas pedal because my knees hit the dashboard first:

In the back seat of a "roomy" SUV, car manufacturers expect all legs to fit within this space:

 

The height of the sink I wash my face in is 30".  Also, note the length of my pajama pants:

 

The height of the kitchen counter where I chop veggies is 36":

 

And table manufacturers expect me to fit my legs under 2 feet of clearance?  And yes, there is 8 extra inches of denim sewn to the bottom of my jeans.

 

This world is about to become Colleen-i-fied, one step at a time...