Heart Choices: 2008-07-27 -->

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Who Will Be America's Favorite Dancer?


Every Wednesday and Thursday evening, I've been glued to the TV watching the reality show "So You Think You Can Dance?". It's been on for several seasons but this is the first one I got hooked on from the beginning. I've always enjoyed "Dancing With the Stars" but I have to say I think I like this other show better, at least from my perspective. Instead of watching celebrities learning to dance, the dancers in this show have dedicated years of training to become the best dancers they could be. I respect that. It takes discipline and focus...and I'm amazed at how good they are!

Some of the contestants like Twitch seem to have natural ability, a street dancer. Katee is perfect in any dance number she performs but I think Courtney and Chelsie both add their unique and fun personalities to their dancing which makes it very entertaining. I can't believe how young they actually are. Most of the contestants ages range from 18-24 years old. I know at that age I never focused on becoming great in one area of my life, other than my friends and boyfriends.

I'm amazed at the strength of Joshua. He picks his partners up with ease and grace. I laughed when Courtney described him as "He's a man". You've got to watch this video of Twitch and Chelsie's performance of the Samba. It's incredible how this girl can move!





Tonight one guy and one girl will be eliminated and I have no idea who that will be since they are all great. And next week will be the finale...I can't wait to see who will become America's favorite dancer.

So, why am I focusing on dancing? Well, these young dancers have made the choice to focus on becoming the best dancer they can be. They've probably had to eliminate other distractions from their lives to allow the time to focus on their dance. They've spent time training and practicing their steps.


I start thinking about where I spend my time and energy. What do I focus on? How about you? Is there something in your life that you would love to become really good at? I know life happens and we get caught up in responsibilities but if we could do anything, what would it be? Any thoughts from you out there? I'd love to hear!
QuickEdit

Earthquake in LA



I first heard the news about the earthquake in LA from a post on Twitter. I was busy working online. I can see why news organizations are active on this site. Ordinary people can report on what's happening when it's happening. I'm really starting to enjoy technology. For a person who is working from home and has a popular sanguine personality, I can tell you it's been fun meeting many interesting and nice people online. And I don't mean the dating kind. After all, I'm a happily married woman.

The news of the LA earthquake immediately brought back memories of 1994; the Northridge Earthquake. I was very close to the epicenter of that one and it had a magnitude of 6.6! I had never experienced an earthquake in my life. After all, I live in Phoenix, Arizona. I was in California to attend a pacemaker seminar sponsored by Medtronics. At the time, I was working as a cardiovascular nurse and I had to keep up to date on programming the latest pacemakers. I found my journal from that date and read it after hearing of the latest quake news.

It was January 17, 1994 and I was rudely awakened from a deep sleep at 4:31 in the morning by a violent shaking of the building. I was staying on the 12th floor of the hotel and the lamps flew off the nightstand, crashing to the floor. The drawers were opening and closing and my watch and earrings were somewhere on the floor. Even though I had never experienced this before there was no doubt in my mind what it was. It seemed to last forever but I guess it was only about 20 seconds or so. Suddenly there was an eerie silence and the building began to sway back and forth and I heard a creaking sound. I remember at the time thinking, is the hotel going to collapse? Needless to say, I survived and we evacuated the hotel. I think I got one of the first flights out of the Burbank airport since they had grounded all planes for a time. I got the T-shirt from the Medtronics company as a souvenir and yes, they did reschedule our conference several months later.
I was amazed at how calm I actually was in the midst of this experience. You never really know how you will react; whether you'll panic or stay calm. I was glad that I was calm under the circumstances and was able to help comfort some of the other more frightened guests at the hotel. We never know when our last day will be but it caused me to think about the choices and priorities in my life; what's really important and to know where I'm going when it's all over. I was thankful it wasn't my time.
QuickEdit

Walk For Good Program


Are you ready to exercise? My sneakers are not a very pretty sight. But at least you can see they definitely get used! I've been so busy lately but I do try to get in my 40 minutes at least 5-6 days a week on my Treadmill. I know it can get boring but I have a TV set positioned so I can watch the latest news or cooking show while I'm exercising. I know, my husband laughs at me when I'm watching Giada cook those fabulous Italian meals as I exercise for my health. And did I happen to mention so I look better and don't get fat? After all, we need some motivation.

I mentioned in a previous post that the Cleveland Clinic and Google were teaming up to encourage people to walk. Check it out here. You can download a workout schedule along with videos and articles to support the whole concept. Even though I already exercise, I decided to do this to see how they would educate and try to motivate people to stick with the program for 15 weeks.


For me, Sunday was the day my program was to begin. Now usually I will skip exercise on Sundays but when I noticed the schedule on my Home Page, I figured I'd better "just do it". I had to enter the amount of time and the speed I walked. So I was accountable. I can tell you that having to write it down is a good motivator. They chart your progress which I think is great.


I watched the short video they provided. The doctor used each letter of the word "walk". She said that W was for where or when to walk, A was for attitude and the benefits to walking, L stood for lifestyle and how to make this change and K was for keeping on going with this challenge. There was an article that described the many benefits exercise can offer for your health.

Exercise is a choice and this one is definitely a choice that will help your heart. I know we all keep busy schedules but it is so important. I know I feel so much better when I exercise. I feel like I've accomplished something and I know it increases my metabolic rate so I burn more calories...and I can eat more (I wish).



QuickEdit
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