Positive Activities

What are some positive activities you do during your day to help you live a fulfilling life?

I like to take walks around the city, mainly during the day time. Like today I got myself mexican food before walking to best buy. I will do these by myself so I can give myself some time to wind down and really think about what I've done today. I also use it as time to appreciate people and things in my life. Plus it keeps me *kinda* active.

Yesterday, I went and got tested for HIV. I knew I didn't have it (test was negative) but it was a good experience and I got to meet people I'd normally not have contact with.

I'm trying to be more open about experiences and meeting people, now.

Kind of like Carl Rodgers, I think unconditional positive praise (in the right context) can help foster good behaviors. Even though none of us fit the same shoe, it doesn't mean we can't learn from one another's positive behaviors and grow as people as we attempt to apply some of the things that work for them in our lives. If it doesn't work, just throw it out and try another one.

I go for walks late at night when everything is quiet. Gives me time to think. I've been thinking of volunteering at the free clinic one day a week. That would get me out and around new people.

Every morning I make my coffee and take it outside, drink it near my pond, and watch the birds. Even tho I'm terrified of them, I like the blue herons and there is a heron rookery in my back yard pretty much, bald eagles sometimes and owls. I just sit there and watch them and think.

Gonna have to look up Carl Rodgers now

Of course I'm glad your test was negative even though you knew it would be.

I go get my kids from school and spend time with them after they get home. Then, after everyone else goes to bed, I spend most of the night watching the basketball games I taped. That's my biggest obsession and my greatest distraction. Can't wait for the playoffs to start.

I also do my best to spend as much time with God as I can during the day. I find that keeps me grounded and gives me perspective.

I drink a special tea that I consider to be my healthy dessert: two tablespoons of honey, one teaspoon of cinnamon, and one cup of hot water. That's it! It is sooooo delicious and I feel great about myself when I drink it.

I also listen to upbeat music like LMFAO, Spice Girls, or Weird Al Yankovic

YAY!

I actually felt pretty good because I cleaned my backpack. I had so many old pieces of papers and stuff....>>;; Sucks though because I think I lost the number to my gym locker again. I've bought like 3 already...XD; A green one, purple and another purple one.

I think it's important we try to keep a positive board up on the first page. I think it will help remind people that good things do happen even if it's in small doses and it may reduce some board negativity. I saw that someone made a board about attitudes on the BP board. I think the problem is its SO much easier to focus on the negative and to forget that there /are/ positives even if they aren't huge. It's important that we cater to the problems as a community, but it's even more important that we're able to support and encourage. It's hard to do that if you don't see enough positive threads floating around. It also makes it easier to read posts as being inherently aggressive. I probably spend too much time on PC...haha. I just want to give back to the community though.

to respond to your initial positive activities question..

i work out (which gives me all the good endorphins in my head) i try to work out regularly, but i don't force myself to on the days that i really just don't feel like it...

i grow houseplants (including orchids & african violets) - brings me such joy to see the new growth & especially now while two of my orchids have totally burst into full bloom...

i spend time with my pets... one of my dogs is the type that if you sit still long enough, he will literally lick your face off... i know that's not for everyone, but when i'm really blue, his ridiculous exuberance is a mood lifter

i am getting ready to start volunteering at the animal shelter nearby... to help socialize animals to help them be more adoptable in the long run.. also hope to meet new people and expand my "in real life" support network...

i try to keep up with my friends on facebook & laugh fully and loudly at whatever strikes me funny... i also collect images that make me smile that i can come back to when i need a pick-me-up... sometimes just busting out laughing is an amazing cure-all

i also work part-time, which i know for a lot of people is a drag, but it gets me out of the house & i get paid to basically talk to people and make them smile, help them out all day long... it's awesome getting paid to be nice rocks!!

i have such horrible allergies that it's rare i can just go for a walk on a beautiful day.. so i envy you guys there... but what i can do, and do indulge myself on occasion, is go for a drive and turn the music up & sing and just ... let everything else not matter for a little while

i agree with you that the importance of keeping a spotlight on positivity & what a great impact it can have on your overall quality of life should be a prime subject on this board...

i've always been someone who's easily entertained, enjoying even the smallest things in life... i think you hit the nail on the head in your post that we need to celebrate the positive parts of life, no matter how small

I've been in a positivity slump, so thank you for this. I need positivity as much as I need oxygen.

Sitting outside with my herons as we speak or type. Really foggy here this morning, hard to see the birds, but I can here a woodpecker over the herons ungodly sounds.

That sounds fun.

I have noticed, weirdly enough, that the more I go outside and take walks, the more I appreciate everything around me.

Touching, thank you for your post!!! I really enjoyed reading it.

my main positive activities for the past two days have been the following:

going through old clothes that i haven't worn in a long time, deciding what to donate, what to keep... i've gotten through most of my clothes & have a whole wardrobe i'm sending to my sister-in-law's house for her to pick through b/c she just lost a lot of weight & needs new stuff... going thru the stuff, i recognized SO many items i purchased when i was manic... and i'm glad to be rid of the overencumberance of having more stuff than i need, plus it feels good to be donating the rest to charity for others... i also snagged a couple items of clothing to give to a coworker... she's been having a rough time & her favorite color is red... so i know she'll be tickled & it will make her day when i show up with a barely ever touched red sweater & a red tank top

side note: it feels good to focus on things outside our own heads for a while... reaching out to others to help them with things (no matter how small), seems to help when i'm down, or when i'm just too wrapped up in my own thoughts for my own good...

i also spent both yesterday & today with my mom (she was helping me go through all these things... i'm packing to move to a much smaller place)... and my mom is basically my best friend.. then today, for the first time in six months, i got to visit with my dad & it went so incredibly well... we patched up some things & basically decided to leave the past where it is & move forward from today... reconnecting with him after having been basically out of touch for a couple years really did my soul a lot of good...

i also meant to mention in my last post... i know it's silly, but i LOVE kung fu panda... i think po is generally hilarious... and there's a cartoon that comes on every night called "kung fu panda: legends of awesomeness" that i dvr... so when i'm "just not quite right" i can watch episodes & just laugh myself silly til i'm (hopefully) feeling better

speaking of which, a lot of really great new sitcoms have come out this season.. i haven't had any regular doses of flat out funny stuff to watch in years... basically since "friends" ended... this year a bunch of new shows have come out that strike me right in the funny bone, so to speak... so i also dvr those & watch them several at a time to keep my mood lifted...

another thing that helps me... every so often, i catch up on this amazing blog at www.kindnessgirl.com that is written by a woman whose mission in life is to help people see that "kindness changes everything"... there is so much love and inspiration in that blog (and often gorgeous pictures too), that it's hard to visit it, read and not have had your spirits lifted

ok, i shush myself now LOL sometimes i talk too much... don't want to irritate anyone

i hope some of my suggestions are helpful to some of you passing by this thread

I had a pretty good weekend too, and I'm finding that if I keep myself distracted and away from the computer my days feel more worthwhile....although I have internet connection on my phone, too...

I treated myself on Saturday to a card competition and then spent the rest of the night with some good friends at a party. I like having my Saturday's completely full because it feels like I have purpose and I just like going out and about. I think I might become more adventurous and explore my city a little more than I have in the next upcoming weeks. I've lived here for 4 years and never really ventured past the university and a some grocery stores...I know there is good mexican food here so I must find places to eat it!

I kind of want to read the hunger games because I'm curious at what makes it so popular...xD I haven't watched the movie either.

I'm wondering too why the Hunger Games series is so popular, so curiosity has caused me to pick it up as well, just starting it.

I've enjoyed exploring more lately, meeting a lot of interesting people in the process, seen some great sights and creatures, spending time with the dog on hikes in the field and playing, and reading outside now that the weather has been nice. It is such a pleasure being outdoors and seeing the changes. Three of the things that ground me are working with the plants (no pun intended) , drawing, and woodworking by creating new things. Instead of furniture restoring, have started carving and the delight giving the toys and decorative pieces to others. I still savor though having the moments in the morning just to have a cup tea and to read before the chaos begins.

going for walks by the lake, it was really windy today and almost didn't go but luckily I did go cos there was a nice fine misty rain and a beautiful rainbow!!!!
I think its a great idea to try and keep a positive thread on the first page of the forum... lets keep on encouraging each other to stay positive

ok, so even though my head hurts so bad that i'd actually consider allowing someone to chop it off & keep it on ice, i'm holding on for my main positive for the day...

in a little over an hour, i'm going to a volunteer orientation for a local animal shelter... i can't wait!!!! that is literally the only thing keeping me from takin something stronger for my head & crawling into bed and acknowledging defeat...

so excited... i LOVE animals!!!!! and i can't wait to be officially "orientated" so i can come in anytime and help socialize the dogs & cats in the shelter to help them adjust & find forever homes

i know going forward, this will help me by introducing me to new like-minded people with whom i can hopefuly develop meaningful friendships... and going in regularly to love all over the animals there should help keep my mood up

I got suckered into joining Greenpeace.

MUST SAVE THE ANIMALS!!!!! And environment.

I've been sick lately,

feeeeeeeeel bettterrrrrrrrrrr did that help??

yeah, orientation was great... i volunteered to be an adoptions counselor friday nights... can't imagine a better way to spend my friday evenings i can't wait to start...

this board is in need of some positivity today!!!

ok, feel free to laugh at me... but i'm about to go get ready for my day (yes, i realize it's almost noon), and my positive activity for the moment is to fire up itunes & blast kelly clarkson's stronger album while i put my face on, etc...

also, positive activity logged so far today: reaching out to encourage others has lifted my spirits temendously... spent about half an hour on facebook catching up with friends & finding funny pictures to make me smile...

positive activity for later today: my first shift as volunteer adoptions counselor at my local anima shelter... so ecstatic... can't wait i think it will also be a good test for me since i'm getting ready to go back to work after what has been about five weeks of medical LOA

may you find lots of little bright spots throughout your day & carry them with you the rest of the way

yeah, cheesy.. i know.. but the sentiment behind it is real

Listening to some upbeat music right now waiting for a load of laundry to finish. I checked in with daily challenege sent all my friends a have a good day text, cleaned out my mail and fixed up my dresser.

Bout to hop in the shower see who is available for lunch get my nails and eyebrows did and run the car through the car wash thinking about going out tonight with some friends.

Tonight I am going to a jewelry party, and I'm sure I will need a valium

TouchingSaturn, I hope your shift goes really well. That's exciting!! So report back how it went!

Confused, haha I'm confused, is you joining greenpeace a symptom of bipolar sickness, or are you sick, like physically sick?

I am just getting over the flu, I lost more weight, and I'm kinda ticked about that. Positivity in that? Is the fact that I am actually ticked about it and not letting the anorexic thoughts take over.

I got the px90 yoga video, different than any yoga I do, but I watched it through and some stuff is pretty advanced. So today I will try it at home. They use the crane pose in it. So today I will be trying to do that posture haha right! I'll try but yeah awkward. My arm strength isn't that great. This is one summer where I do not want to feel bad at the beach, and I am determined, even at my lowest weight I have some cellulite , whatcha gonna do? Learn to love it, and I'm really trying.

Other positive news, I did not had a headache upon waking up today!!!

hehehehe hahahahaha

way to go with positive thinking guys! and thanks!
I actually did 2 workouts at the gym in the past week, I do worry i might not be able to keep it up, but i'm trying and proud of myself.

That's awesome!!! I'm proud of you tooooo!!!!

I just looked at my iPhone and the whole back of it is shattered into a million pieces, I didn't even drop it. I'm trying to find a positive angle here.

EDIT:

I just found out I can replace the whole casing and make it blue, also that means I can get rid of the apple logo too. So that's positive!

Getting to play with my kids has been my positive activity over the past couple days Rarely is there much time anymore, and rarely am I able to focus because my mind is drifting away to other things that need to be done....but this weekend was great....
Logging on here and being more active over this past week has been a positive for me.
My coffee pot going off at 7am in the morning makes me happy
I love calling and chit chatting with my parents or an old friend-I talk to my parents almost daily, and old friends at least once a week...
My crazy animals make me laugh, always...
My crazy kids make me laugh even harder.....most of the time lol
I love doing things around my house-decorating/crafts, etc....
My boyfriend is a wonderful man who takes me antique/junking all of the time YAY!!!
I watch a little bit of TV....Roseanne still makes me laugh....and I love all of the 48 Hours Mystery shows...
I love going to the movies....either with SO or the kids or all of us together....saw 21 Jumpstreet last night and it was hilarious!

And of course, I love to chatter and rattle on and on lol

Do what makes you smile....be with who makes you smile....Those who mind dont matter, and those that matter dont mind

i'm excited for you!! i really need to get back in the habit of working out.. i've been so tired lately that i kinda threw in the towel.. but i know for a fact that working out will make me feel better... your post is encouragement to me to get off the couch & get moving

my volunteer shift at the animal shelter friday night was great.. i was exhausted before & after, but i can tell it's gong to be something that will be very good for me - i'm very much looking forward to this friday night's shift..

anika - i'm so glad you can fix your phone & make it even better than it was to start with!!! of course, i would choose a purple case... but i'm a nut about the colors purple & green.. so that's just me i'm glad that the phone wasn't a total loss & that you found the positive in the situation

yesterday, my positive activity was spending some time with mom.. we both kinda felt like crap, so we didn't visit very long.. but it's always good when we get to see each other... and even just sharing the hug right before she left was a major bonus to the day... i'm blessed to be able to say my mom is my best friend... so any time spent with her or talking to her is always a plus

speaking of which, it felt great talking to her on the phone yesterday morning... i made her bust out laughing more times than i can count.. that's one of the most rewarding feelings in the world.. to bring a smile to someone you love

for today, i have to go out... so i'll get some exposure to the sunshine... which is always a plus and i'm going to try to get myself in the mode of coming home to work out after i run the couple errands i need to get done...

best wishes for a good day to all

Not so much positive -- no emotional content... a question:

How do you edit a message you have posted. I've seen others add EDIT to their posts but I am completely bewildered by how to do it.