BouncebackCafe.com » adversity http://www.bouncebackcafe.com Dedicated to finding useful, resilient solutions to life's adversities. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 08:03:46 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 When Strong Winds Blow – Hunker Down http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2012/gen/when-strong-winds-blow-hunker-down-3169 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2012/gen/when-strong-winds-blow-hunker-down-3169#comments Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:01:12 +0000 Ellie http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=3169 The other day the TV weatherman announced high wind warnings and a worrisome night – one that rousted me out of bed at midnight. As my wind-buffeted house shuddered I worried, worried, worried over things not tied down: patio furniture, awnings, umbrellas… and the bitty little hummingbird perched directly in the path of those howling winds that ...Continue reading » When Strong Winds Blow – Hunker Down]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2012/gen/when-strong-winds-blow-hunker-down-3169/feed 0 Appreciate What You Have http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2011/gen/appreciate-what-you-have-2963 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2011/gen/appreciate-what-you-have-2963#comments Tue, 01 Nov 2011 07:01:06 +0000 PattiAnn http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=2963 How do we survive adversity? What is the difference between surviving and thriving? I believe the difference is in how we tell our story. And often, the story we tell is the one we inherited. My mother grew up in the depression. She was one of those people who remembered the depression as being an awful time. There were four of them, my grandfather and grandmother, my aunt and Mom. To hear her tell the story, life was ...Continue reading » Appreciate What You Have]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2011/gen/appreciate-what-you-have-2963/feed 0 Better and Better http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2011/gen/better-and-better-2622 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2011/gen/better-and-better-2622#comments Tue, 17 May 2011 07:01:56 +0000 PattiAnn http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=2622 Do you believe that you are a learning and growing being? Back in the beginning of the self-esteem movement, many proponents recommended that you repeat an affirmation to help you improve your self-esteem. It went, “Everyday, in every way, I’m getting better and better.” To say that this became the basis of jokes about self-esteem is to understate how much of a ...Continue reading » Better and Better]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2011/gen/better-and-better-2622/feed 0 Healing the Pain http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2011/gen/healing-the-pain-2350 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2011/gen/healing-the-pain-2350#comments Wed, 09 Feb 2011 08:01:09 +0000 PattiAnn http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=2350 Pain is a sign that something is wrong – a muscle injured or a loss endured. It has a positive role to play in our survival. But when we are in pain, it doesn’t seem positive. It hurts. It distracts us from the behaviors that we know work. And, because we are distracted, we sometimes don’t make the best choices. At the beginning of my great adventure, my second day on the job, I fell. I stepped on a seed pod, turned my ankle and ended up on my back like a ...Continue reading » Healing the Pain]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2011/gen/healing-the-pain-2350/feed 0 How to Change Your Outlook http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2010/gen/how-to-change-your-outlook-2014 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2010/gen/how-to-change-your-outlook-2014#comments Wed, 08 Sep 2010 07:01:21 +0000 PattiAnn http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=2014 During our lives we all face adversities. Some of them are “imposed” on us by forces that we can’t control. Some are of our own making. I know it doesn’t always seem like it, but it really doesn’t matter what the source of the adversity is. The only thing that really matters is our ability to respond to adversity. Here at BouncebackCafe.com our tag line is “Dedicated to finding useful, resilient solutions to life’s adversities.” Because we are always looking for new ways to respond to adversity, Ellie and I do a lot of research. This is something we both enjoy – finding and reading various perspectives on creating a life of accomplishment and joy. Rediscovering a New Idea One of the things that often strikes me (like “Duh, I coulda had a V8”) is that I’m always rediscovering something I’ve read or heard before. Today, it was ...Continue reading » How to Change Your Outlook]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2010/gen/how-to-change-your-outlook-2014/feed 0 Get Out of That Pit http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2010/gen/get-out-of-that-pit-1590 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2010/gen/get-out-of-that-pit-1590#comments Tue, 30 Mar 2010 07:01:43 +0000 PattiAnn http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=1590 Down in the holeLately, my friends have been facing some major challenges. One of my friends is struggling with a breakup – which she initiated. She’s now considering getting back together with the guy because she’s lonely – and her biological clock is ticking. Another friend has both of her grown sons living with her. The older one just lost his job – AGAIN(!!!) – and the younger hasn’t worked in many, many months. She’s heading towards retirement age but still has a house full of kids that she’s supporting. Both of these people are ...Continue reading » Get Out of That Pit]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2010/gen/get-out-of-that-pit-1590/feed 0 The Old Lessons Are the Best Lessons http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2010/gen/the-old-lessons-are-the-best-lessons-1272 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2010/gen/the-old-lessons-are-the-best-lessons-1272#comments Thu, 04 Feb 2010 08:01:20 +0000 PattiAnn http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=1272 watchingJust when I begin to think maybe I’ve figured out how to navigate all the demands on my time, fate intervenes and shows me just how wrong I am… or maybe it’s like my mentor once explained to me.  “To truly figure out what a secretary can do, you just keep adding little bits to her responsibilities until eventually no more can be added.  Then you know her true capacity for work.”  Needless to say, he said that many years ago, when ...Continue reading » The Old Lessons Are the Best Lessons]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2010/gen/the-old-lessons-are-the-best-lessons-1272/feed 2 Adversity be Damned, Please Pass the Carmels! http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2009/agg/adversity-be-damned-please-pass-the-carmels-1161 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2009/agg/adversity-be-damned-please-pass-the-carmels-1161#comments Thu, 10 Dec 2009 08:01:08 +0000 Ellie http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=1161 Carmels in a bowlHow do you choose to see your world?  Is it filled with things going wrong or are you filled with the confidence to carry you over, around and through whatever life throws you? Well, Ellie muttered her way through a bunch of clutter last week and forgot to mention it in Wishing You Joy…  Mutter, mutter, mutter… and at Aisling’s ArtistsJournals.com you can view a much more artistic version of clutter muttering – go ahead, look at it; it’s a fun rendition of:
Being clear of clutter is one of the greatest aids I know to discovering and manifesting the life you want.
Now ain’t that the truth? And PattiAnn suggested in Is It Adversity or Is It Life? that perhaps we’re cluttering our lives with mutterings about all those awful things that seem to pop up at the worst possible moment.  As if they’re not supposed to be happening to us!  And, contrary to ...Continue reading » Adversity be Damned, Please Pass the Carmels!]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2009/agg/adversity-be-damned-please-pass-the-carmels-1161/feed 0 The Decade of Testing http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2009/gen/the-decade-of-testing-1157 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2009/gen/the-decade-of-testing-1157#comments Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:01:52 +0000 PattiAnn http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=1157 Flowers in Blue Photo Calendar Template 2009At dog park the other day, my neighbor asked me if I had seen the latest Time Magazine.  He explained that according to Time, the last decade, from 2000 to the present, had been the decade from hell.  At first I didn’t want to read it but I decided that it might be interesting to see what had caused them to designate the last 10 years as the “decade from hell.” Some of the things included in the article were:
  • The 2000 election with its disputed results
  • September 11th
  • The war in Afghanistan
  • The war in Iraq
  • December, 2004 tsunami
  • Katrina
  • Recession
  • Bernie Madoff
  • Disintegration of Detroit
  • Guantanamo
Yes, there definitely were some challenges in the last 10 years.  AND there definitely is a bias to see things as only negative.  Although none of us would have chosen these events if we were given a choice, I find the list to be hopeful – here’s why:  ...Continue reading » The Decade of Testing]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2009/gen/the-decade-of-testing-1157/feed 0 Is It Adversity or Is It Life? http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2009/gen/is-it-adversity-or-is-it-life-1145 http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2009/gen/is-it-adversity-or-is-it-life-1145#comments Mon, 07 Dec 2009 08:01:20 +0000 PattiAnn http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/?p=1145 Leo Stanely Mager: a timeless smileRemember that commercial – “Is it real or is it Memorex?”  They would usually have an opera singer hitting a really high note and breaking a glass and then play the recording of the singer and break another glass.  It was a way to show the true fidelity of the recording. I’ve been noticing how much we, as a society, have been talking about our troubles.  Have you noticed?  We talk about what bothers us more than we talk about what pleases us.  There’s been a lot of conversation about how bad things are economically and how the Baby Boomers won’t have the retirement that they expected.  It seems that we’re on a perpetual downer around here.  The conclusion that I’ve reached is that somehow, we’ve decided that problems aren’t part of life, which is why we get soooo bent out of shape when a problem turns up. I blame it on the Declaration of Independence.  ...Continue reading » Is It Adversity or Is It Life?]]> http://www.bouncebackcafe.com/2009/gen/is-it-adversity-or-is-it-life-1145/feed 0