Saturday, October 26, 2013

An Entirely Different Sort of Life


Today is  really the first day that I've had the time to actually sit down and take stock of my life and my current situation. Yes, the idea behind today's blog has been percolating in my brain for a few days now but I lacked the time and the inclination to get it together. I had so many other ideas for the first ATG blog post, including one that I wanted to call 'Fallen, Not Broken'. 

Two weeks ago, I did indeed feel 'fallen, but not broken'. I'm not sure if I really feel that way now. I'm pushing more towards seeing things through new eyes instead hence the current name of today's post. To get you up to speed, a couple of weeks ago I joined the not-so-exclusive club shared by many Americans called 'Unemployed'. (Yes, aside from doing this blog, I had a 'normal' job that basically paid the bills.) 

My mindset about this is not negative. I don't hate my former place of employment and am very grateful for what I learned there, the experiences I had and the things I took from it, in particular the people. The employees are always such a big part of wherever I've worked and thanks to social media, we all can stay in touch and on occasion, spend some time together. 

I think one thing that helped in this situation is that I somehow knew that the layoff was coming. And when it did, I was neither angry nor blindsided, as I'd been in past situations. I pretty much hit the ground running. I was prepared in a way that I hadn't been before while in the same situation years back. 

It's not to say that I haven't felt the pull of sadness, wondering 'what if' and 'what could have been.' I think those ideas reside in all of us to some degree. A great word for this feeling is what I'd found on Facebook of all places.

Hiraeth-

(n) a homesickness for a home to which you cannot return, a home which maybe never was; the nostalgia, the yearning, the grief for the lost places of your past. 
pronunciation- (HEER-eyeth)

I have spent a good portion of the past two weeks thinking not only of my most recent job but the ones I've had before this one. The yearning I felt for those good memories was almost physical. I call it a 'pull'. 

Luckily, I don't spend all my waking hours living in the past. I couldn't function if that was the case. An important thing that I focus on is that I need to give up the life I had to go for the life I want and this includes getting rid of preconceived notions about things and having a more open mindset. It seems that everything I thought I really wanted is ending up not really being that, if that makes any sense. I'm finding that I am pursuing new ideas, trying some on for size and when they don't fit, shedding them and moving on. 

It's becoming easier to move on when something doesn't work for me. In the past, I used to dwell and beat myself up something fierce. Sometimes when things don't work out, it really has nothing to do with you personally, it just might not have been the right thing for you at that time. 

I had lost my job five years ago from a company where I thought I'd retire from, I had been there nearly twenty years. I was completely blindsided and when it happened, my world dropped out from underneath me. It's been said how devastating job loss is for people and I believe it. At that time, I had skills in one industry but not enough to really take me where I wanted to go. At that time, I had no self worth at all as an employee. I didn't think I had much if anything to offer anyone. I would not want to live like that again. 

Yet, I am unemployed but this time it is different. When it happened this time, I had a long talk with myself. I was not going to make the same mistakes I'd made in the past. Last time, I did not enjoy my life at all. I had felt as if I didn't deserve to because I felt like I was 'bad.' I felt defective. I took it very personally, even though the reason really had nothing to do with me. I wasn't as well-rounded then as I am now. I didn't have the resources for support then as I do now and I just felt beat up and it immobilized me to the point where fear ruled my world. 

But, now? I'm not doing that. I am enjoying my life. I am not so attached to the outcome of things as I had been before. I've gotten away from the thinking that something needs to go a certain way to make me happy. Yes, I'd like things to go in a positive direction for my life but I feel that when one door closes, another opens. I'm learning to be happy now and not delay my happiness on some future event that may or may not ever happen. I think the concept I'm referring to is known as 'living in the present.' 

Because I feel and think differently, things are happening now that are for my greater good. Even if the situation or thing is seen as negative, I can always learn from it and do better next time or choose differently. I find myself not worrying quite so much and just taking things one step at a time. For a one-time chronic worrier, this is big. Worry really serves no purpose at all. I used to think that if I worried about something in the future that when the thing happened, I'd have covered all the bases and would be okay. Yes, this is how a brain on worry works, at least mine did. Not a great way to live life. I'd found that I miss a lot of what's happening in the present when I'm worrying about something in the future. 

I can't spend my life worrying. It is just a waste of time. There is nothing wrong with thinking things through but when it turns into over- thinking or worrying, then all is lost. 

Another thing is keeping a positive outlook. I am not listening to the news like I used to. I'm not hitting any of the news websites. I'm consciously seeking out positive people, messages and mindsets. I'm also providing positive, uplifting messages and friendship towards a lot of my other unemployed friends as well as people that seem to need it now. I'm working very hard to see the good in the world as opposed to all the doom and gloom. 

So having said all that, I am living an entirely different sort of life. I find myself doing a lot of things these past few weeks that I might have given a pass on before. I really don't know what's coming up and I'm going to keep my mind open to what it might turn out to be. I could say in all honesty, that living this 'entirely different sort of life' has been rather fun. 







Friday, October 25, 2013

New content coming soon!



Major life changes going on lately which have taken my time and attention away from this blog. I will be back soon. (Oh, and podcasts will still go on as well.) So, stay tuned! And as always, thanks for all the pages views, reads, watches and support! 

Sunday, October 13, 2013

All The Rods and Flying Cars Too!

New podcast under the All The Goods umbrella!


Hoy, everyone! I'm the Big Mag and the host of the all new Big Mag Show! On this first episode, I tell you about me and what I've got going on! So feel free to check me out! Thanks and have a great week! 

Sunday, October 6, 2013

ATR BoB Video 15

ATR BoB Video 14

ATR BoB Video 10

ATR BoB Video 7

ATR BoB Video 6

ATR BoB Video 5

ATR BoB Video 4

All The Rods BoB 1

ATR BoB Video 3

Looks+like+one+of+Mater's+friends! via ATR!

Looks+like+one+of+Mater's+friends!

ATR hangs out with Bumblebee!

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ATR and several shades of awesome! '41 Chevy Over-Cab

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ATR presents Just Stangin' Around!

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ATR presents All Pony All The Time!

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ATR Video 2 from BoB (Check out the Datsun Z)

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All The Rods Video 1 from Best of the Best 10-6-13

video-2013-10-06-09-15-42_zps39aecf85

Saturday, October 5, 2013

Closing in on a year



Been awhile, hasn't it? A while since I've sat my butt in a chair and wrote the blog. A lot of things going on, some to do with All The Goods and some not. I can say one thing with certainty and it's that All The Goods as a brand has gone so much farther than I ever could have imagined. I'm closing in on the year since this blog came about and it's been quite a ride. All The Goods has been a good friend to me. This year has had more changes than I can keep track of and through all of the outer world highs and lows, I always knew that this blog was a constant, meaning that it was always here for me, no matter what happened. I can count on All The Goods more than I've been able to count on a lot of other things. I don't see it going away anytime soon thankfully. I still have a lot of mileage left and so much more I want to do with this. 

I used to be a person who was afraid of change and a good bit of my personal life has reflected this. I really don't think I'm any different than most other people in this regard. Even the most seasoned veterans of change get thrown off occasionally. Now that I'm doing this blog, I know that it needs to change and change is a form of growth. Had I stuck to just doing interviews all the time and nothing else, this blog would have grown stagnant. So I can say with all certainty that I'm blessed and fortunate to have had change and that this blog has a lot of mileage yet to cover. 

One of the dreams I had about four months into doing the blog was taking it to another level...in this case, radio. Or radio as it exists now these days, in other words podcasting. The desire waxed and waned with me mostly due to fear of it being too expensive to do. It was only within the past month that I couldn't calm the persistent little voice in my head that kept banging on about podcasting. I finally summoned up the courage and sent a general notice out on my Facebook page, asking my techie friends if they knew how I could get this started. My good friend Dave pointed me in the right direction. The software was free, the only cost I incurred was for the mike.

Dave patiently walked me through the set up, gave me some tips and then sat back and let me at it. I gotta say, it's kind of fun. I have a blast doing the podcasts. This has opened a whole new other world for me and I've found myself in a whole new realm. Some of the people who do podcasts that I admire and listen to all the time have been very supportive with this new venture of mine.

Along with doing the podcasts, I found that I wanted to do some sort of video and that's now taking flight. Some of it is still tricky, like when  my equipment has a major fail but for the most part, I've also been  enjoying this as well. I've also got a lot of ideas for upcoming video cooking away in my mind.

I can't keep going without mentioning the new baby which is called All The Rods. All The Rods (or ATR) is part of the All The Goods brand. All The Rods focuses strictly on my love of all things auto. I've been to a few of the bigger carshows lately to shoot video and chat up people about their cars. I've also done a few ATR podcasts as well where I talk about carshows or general car news that I find online.

I have plans for all of this but you'd be surprised to find out that a good bit of this is usually just a flash of inspiration that just seems to pop up out of nowhere. I always have a pad and pen ready to go wherever I am because I always have to write these things down. I have stickies all over the place with show notes on them or people that I want to interview and in some cases, questions for potential interviews. I feel like if the iron is hot, you strike.

Anyway, it's been quite a ride and there is so much more yet to come. Before I close, I have a list of people to thank....but before that, I want to say thanks to all of you who come and check out my page. Thanks for the support.

Now onto the list-

David Tolar-for his help and encouragement. He is the one who helped me get going with the software for the podcasts. I also did one of my first interviews on the blog with him for his album 'The Path of Least Resistance'. David and I have known each other over 30 years and has always been there for me. I am proud to call him a friend.

Joy Hawkins-for also always being there for me and being one of my biggest cheerleaders. Joy and I have been friends for a few decades now. We began as coworkers, became friends and are still at it. Joy is an artist whose jewelry is amazing. (I hope to shoot some video of her working on her pieces soon; she just doesn't know it yet.)

Barbara Lewis-is another friend of long-standing. Barbara has always been in my corner, first with my own art and now with the blog/radio/video. Barbara is also an artist in her own right. She will be the topic of an interview within 2014.

Cathy Berens Paxton-also one of my biggest cheerleaders. She listens to the podcasts, watches the videos, reads all these blogs and is one of my most ardent supporters.

Terri Mills; Richard Jansen; Ron Gay; everyone else at PPAS that I haven't mentioned; Jill Morrison; Teresa Walker; Polly MacKenzie; Sharon Van Hout; mOw; Don Moore; Elaine Salter; TMOS; Slow Robot A Go-Go; Joseph P. Genera; Marilyn Martin; Robb Spewak; Michael J. Elston; The Marc and Lowell Show; The Don Geronimo Show; Tech 411; Mary Barbara; Pepito Valdez; The Wed Miracle Group; Phil Hendrie; Sean Merritt and Matt Loyd to name a few. (I'm sure I left someone out and will be back to edit later.)

*Some of the people on the above list, I have not met personally but they've inspired me in a lot of ways, therefore they're included.*

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Rock Star visits Volkswagen Poznań Factory

All The Goods-All The Rods Hybrid Show!

https://soundcloud.com/allthegoods/atr-show-3-hybrid

Did a little combo tonight, a little All The Goods talk spiced with lots of All The Rods chit-chat! I discuss various automotive Twitter sites as well as auto stuff in the news! Come and listen! Thanks for your support!