Author: wendemachete

wend E machete is a nickname/ pen name for me, Sandra Marek, a writer and entrepreneur. I'm an active, non-traditional, bleeding heart liberal, mother, and devoted wife. I'm an ethical vegan, reiki master practitioner, yogi, meditation guide, Ayurvedic practitioner, public health nutritionist, aspiring Jodo Shinshu Buddhist minister, and scooter enthusiast. I support the open sharing of real information and the non-violent, creative resistance of authority. Question everything. Think for yourself. Live a life of loving kindness and compassion towards others. We are all interconnected. United.

Good luck on the infinite abyss

Long time, no blog… I know.

But you know…. life.

Anyway, I digress. I just finished re-watching “Garden State” and it’s been a really long time since I’ve seen it, but I remember how much I loved it and it remains to be true. I remember how connected to that movie I felt the first time I saw it, even though someone said that it was pretentious. Yes, it could be construed at pretentious and trying too hard to be artsy, but there are certain aspects of the film that really resonate with me.

It’s humbling to realize that you’re not the only one who feels detached, numb, lost and uncertain. Yes, it’s a movie, but it comes across as honest. I think it’s that honesty that I identify with about those feelings of confusion and singularity. I feel like that is one of the few things that humans needs, crave… feeling connected to others.

For those of you that have seen the movie, as you can tell by the title of this post, one of my favorite lines in the movie is by the antique dealer guy living with his family on a defunct boat on the edge of a quarry. As Zach Braff, Natalie Portman and the other guy (I can’t think of his name right now, sorry) are leaving his place in the rain storm, Zach Braff says “Good luck on the infinite abyss” and the antique dealer smiles and says, “Hey, you too.” It seemed like such a pointed line of dialogue… like, “good luck out there”. Things like that line are what hit home for me. Of course, that line is followed up by the trio climbing on top of a excavator having a primal scream overlooking the edge of the infinite abyss.

I always feel introspective when I see films that hit home for me and today isn’t any different. I remember the previous times that I’ve seen it, the parts of it that make me think, how they’ve changed… how I’ve changed, how circumstances always change.

So, yeah, for those that haven’t watched it, it’s really slow, not much dialogue… but what talking there is, is character driven. There’s little action. Be forewarned.

May 14, 2013 0

Take a hike!

Happy Monday to everyone reading this post. I hope you all had wonderful weekends. I know I did… Though, I understand now how the saying ‘take a hike’ can be offensive.

My honey and I have done a little bit of hiking and we have plans to become more avid hikers. We decided that our Sunday would be a 10.7 mile hike. Pretty ambitious for a pair of beginners. But what the hell, it can’t be that bad right?

Zoom in… it’s the long purple line that goes left to right….

We had a pretty rough time though. It could have been much worse, I’m sure, but it was pretty strenuous. It was considered a moderate hike. Some parts were really easy while others were a bit harder. The hardest part really was doing it.

Sadly, we got off to a bad start to begin with. We hiked up the wrong trail accidentally and it took an hour or so for us to get to the right one. After that it took about 6 hours.

I will tell you that I’m feeling it today, a whole bunch. I’m definitely not 19 anymore. However, even though my body hates me at the moment, I got to spend the entire day with my honey, outside in the chilly wind, having a really cool, unusual shared experience. I wouldn’t trade that for anything. I love adventures and I love my man. What a perfect combination.

February 25, 2013 4

Long time, no see!

Hello again to my readers… It’s been a while.

First, let’s recap on the craziness that has been life since the new year: Enjoying my school-free days, spending time with my honey and planning stuff, working super long hours to pay for impeding plans and vacations, skating as often as I can with my growing team, training my new employees, and the most recent bit of crazy news… I applied and got accepted into a graduate program. I start next month. This will make the next year or so interesting with all the other things happening, but I’m excited that they have faith in me and see potential in my goals enough to accept me into the program. It’s a private school, so the selection process is rather strict. But I didn’t have to take the GRE, I just had to have good grades and a few other things during my undergrad. Finally! Being a nerd pays off!

As I mentioned at the end of 2012, I will be focusing more on certain goals and doing what it takes to get there. I have fewer things and they’re certainly less structured, but the ideas I have in mind are not easier than last year. I almost think these new goals and plans are more important and require daily action to make them reality.

I’ve got several indoor and outdoor projects in mind for the house. These will require not only cash, but also serious physical determination. Working all day makes that more difficult, since I have less energy and desire to put in labor after a 10 hour day. However, the light at the end of the tunnel is that once these projects are done, the house will be even more beautiful and inviting. It’s just getting to that point.

http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/015/cache/swirling-aurora-nicklen_1528_990x742.jpg

Needless to say, I am so happy and excited about all the good things that are finally happening. It makes me feel like the struggles and positivity over the last year or two is paying off. It’s easy for me to get sucked into the negativity, especially when I’ve got people coming at me from all directions. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and tired, to snap back at people and to feel defeated. That part is a constant struggle even now. But I try to take it all in stride and know that my life does not revolve around that swirling mess of negativity. My life revolves around my family and friends, the joy that I receive from them being parts of my life. It revolves around the simple joys I experience everyday, the love that I’m shown in a thousand ways by everyone that matters and of course in how I treat and appreciate others. For this, I am grateful, even more so for the fact that I can recognize it and appreciate it.

Thank you all for participating in the amazing lives of others and keep it positive.

February 14, 2013 0

Happiness Project Year in Review!

Hey there readers of my fledgling little blog, what few of you are left since I fell off the Earth.

I first want to thank you all for sticking with me and the crazy project I’ve had going on here. You stuck with my hairbrained plan, followed me through the ups and downs and I’m glad we made it. Without many of you, I’m not sure that I would have.

As many of you have read through these last 12 months, I have set out very specific goals for myself and a track to get to where I want in life. Not surprisingly, it hasn’t exactly gone the way I’d hoped and it certainly hasn’t gone smoothly. I’ve undergone countless changes within my personal, professional and scholarly lives, only to make it through no worse for ware, on the other side.

Some of the things I’ve learned I never would have imagined, such as my inner strength and my level of patience. However, I also reinforced many traits that I knew I had, such as self determination and hardworking nature. Without those things, I easily would have crumbled. Instead, I was able to stand my ground, complete my goals and while often frayed around the edges, I succeeded. The best part is that I have my loved ones in my camp to support me through it all. I could not have done it without them.

My plan going forward is to continue to write my goals down, perhaps not as structured and specifically this time around, but to also to track my progress. I truly believe that this is what motivates me and keeps me on track. That, and my overwhelming sense of obligation.

Anyway, in closing, thank you for reading and keeping me going this year. See you on the flip side with more craziness and hilarity.

http://beginningdharma.wordpress.com/2011/01/29/eightfold-path-right-action/

December 29, 2012 1

Such is my topsy turvy life

I first want to say that chaos seems to gravitate to me, in pretty much every facet of life, all the time. I can’t catch a break it feels like, but I shouldn’t be surprised. It’s not like this is some new development.

There are some new developments though in this mess that I call reality. Primarily on the work front, things have hit an interesting speed bump. It appears that 7 years is long enough for the head of my department to work for this company and he decided to move on. Everyone wishes him the best, including myself. He is a really great guy and I hope that his future endeavors are just as great. What this means for me is that I’ve officially been tagged, now that I’m done with my Bachelor’s degree, to fill his shoes. Last week was tremendously stressful since I was finishing up my classes and also training to be the boss. Starting tomorrow, I’ll be training a new “me”. Coincidentally enough, I already know her from a mutual friend, even though I had nothing to do with her getting the position. It was purely by chance. Such a small world. But yes, I’ll then be saddled with training a brand new person for 3 days before I go on vacation for 10 days. Craaaaazy. Naturally, I got hustled into chiming in remotely while away. But at least the brunt of the madness will be averted, I hope.

So, my goal of “career or grad school” has taken a slightly different course than what I expected, even from just a few weeks ago. I think I’m going to use this opportunity to see where it takes me and save the debt and chaos of going back to school for a later date. I think I need a nice long break from school anyway. I feel like I’ve been pulled in a million directions for too many years and I’d like to see if I can remember what it’s like to just have one place to be everyday instead of two or three. While my new gig will be slightly more stressful, it’ something that I’ll be able to leave at work and not have to take it home with me. I’ll ignore the fact that I’ll be taking it on vacation… for now.

Anyway, I’m looking forward to the change of pace from academic-while-working life and focusing just on the work aspect for a while.

December 17, 2012 3

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