Monthly Archives: May 2017

Day 1592: Mug Shots

Posted on May 11, 2017 by Ann Koplow

My first shot at writing today’s post is defining the term “mug shot.”

mug shot
noun: mugshot
a photograph of a person’s face made for an official purpose, especially police records.
humorous
any photograph of a person’s face.

If this mug wrote that “mug shot” definition, I would have added this:

humorous

any photograph of a mug

… because I collect and also photograph mugs.

I wanted to start off this mug-shots post with that particular mug shot, because

we’re going to move, so we need to pack up all our belongings, including our many mugs,
I’ve been struggling to balance trust lately, because of all the mugs and mugging in the news, and
if you took a mug shot of my face, it might show worry, acceptance, fear, contentment, confusion, trust, distrust, anticipation, anger, hope, excitement, sadness, or happiness, depending upon the moment of the mug shot.

I think it’s helpful to show on your mug what you’re feeling inside.

Because I knew that today’s post was going to be “Mug Shots,’ I took lots of mug shots yesterday.

That last mug shot inspires me to share this version of “I’ve Just Seen a Face.”

I’ve just seen a face in the mirror and it looks very grateful, for all who helped me create this post and — of course! — for YOU.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: "I've Just Seen a Face", definition of "mug shot", Home Goods, moving, mugs, Paul McCartney, shots of Fenway Park, the news, worry doll | 29 Comments

Day 1591: Helpful

Posted on May 10, 2017 by Ann Koplow

If you read any of my helpful posts on this blog, you’ll see that I use the word “helpful” a lot.

I shall now provide helpful links to my four previous helpful posts with “helpful” in the title (here, here, here, and here).

I wonder if it’s helpful for me to remember that the last time I wrote a blog post about a word I use frequently (Day 734: Actually), somebody actually tried to be helpful by advising me about how to use that word less. Is it helpful for me to confess that I don’t want to use the word “helpful” less, because I like the word “helpful”?

Is it helpful for me to speculate why I like the word “helpful” so much?

I guess I like to be helpful to other people, especially in my work as an individual and group therapist. I also think it’s helpful for me to remember that people I want to help are in control of any helpful changes I might wish for them. Perhaps it would be helpful to quote this helpful lightbulb joke right now:

How many psychotherapists does it take to change a lightbulb?

One, but the lightbulb has to really want to change.

Here’s my first helpful photograph from yesterday:

It might be helpful if I explain that photo. “Is that a helpful thought?” can be a helpful challenge to any cognitive distortion, including shoulds, fortune-telling, catastrophizing, mind-reading, blaming, labeling, comparisons, and overgeneralization. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck is a helpful book by Mark Manson.

Are any of my perhaps inexplicable photos from yesterday helpful?

Since people liked the octopus cookie in yesterday’s post, I thought it would be helpful to take and share that last picture.

Here‘s a helpful video from YouTube:

I always find comments from my readers very helpful.

Helpful thanks to all who helped me create this post and — of course! — to helpful you.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism, Psychotherapy | Tags: CBT, challenging unhelpful thoughts, cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive distortions, I put on two watches yesterday, Mark Manson, Starbucks octopus cookie, The Most Helpful Dog in the World, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, therapist light bulb joke | 32 Comments

Day 1590: The inexplicable

Posted on May 9, 2017 by Ann Koplow

Lately, I’ve been encountering lots of human behavior I find inexplicable. Indeed, I’ve been inexplicably signing emails

Confused and confusing,

Ann

If “inexplicable” is inexplicable to you, let’s explain it:

in·ex·pli·ca·ble
ˌinekˈsplikəb(ə)l/
adjective
unable to be explained or accounted for.
“for some inexplicable reason her mind went completely blank”
synonyms: unaccountable, unexplainable, incomprehensible, unfathomable, impenetrable, insoluble.

Actually, when I encounter inexplicable human behavior, my mind CAN go completely blank. That’s why I like to talk to people I love and trust about the inexplicable, to try to make sense of it.

Last night, my inexplicable boyfriend Michael and I walked around our neighborhood, inexplicably talking, talking, talking about politics, murder, greed, cruelty, and other inexplicable inhumanity. I said to Michael, “We are trying to make the inexplicable splicable.” That got an inexplicably big laugh out of him.

Are any of my photos from yesterday inexplicable?

Am I letting myself be successful in this post? Or is success itself inexplicable?

Let’s see how inexplicable YouTube can be this morning.

Here and now, I am splicably grateful to all who helped me create this inexplicable post and — of course! — to you.

Categories: definition, personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: "Inexplicable", angel cards, Imogen Cunningham, inexplicable behaviors, inhumanity, making sense, Monkfish, Opera Cat, The Correspondents, U.S. politics 2017, Yogi Tea | 37 Comments

Day 1589: Abstracts in pastels

Posted on May 8, 2017 by Ann Koplow

Yesterday, my friend Deb and I had good times in Plymouth, Massachusetts, where we saw my sister Ellen’s “Abstract in Pastel” at a photography show.

The light reflections added some additional abstracts in pastels there, so here’s “Abstract in Pastel” from the photography show book:

Deb and I both concretely voted for “Abstract in Pastel” in the people’s choice poll at the photography show. My admiration for my sister’s photographic skills is not abstract at all.

I saw many more abstracts in pastels during the rest of the day, which I shall concretely display here.

I am concretely choosing this song for today’s abstract pastel post:

Now for some concrete thanks for my sister Ellen, my friend Deb, Plymouth, the B-52’s, rocks, lobsters, bunny rabbits, cats, and everyone and everything else contributing to this abstract-in-pastel post. Also, special abstract pastel thanks for you — of course! — here and now.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: Bunny Rabbit Yoga Class, Ellen Koplow photography, French election 2017, Plymouth Center for the Arts, Plymouth Lobster Crawl, Plymouth Massachusetts, Plymouth Rock, Rock Lobster, Thanks to the people of France!, The B-52's | 18 Comments

Day 1588: When will the good times start?

Posted on May 7, 2017 by Ann Koplow

If you’re like most people, you probably believe the good times will start when

you have more money,
your living situation improves,
you’re healthier,
you look more attractive,
the political situation changes,
more people agree with you,
your relationships get better,
your job gets better,
you’re doing more interesting things,
other people alter their behaviors,
you alter your behaviors, or
something else changes in the future.

Last night, the good times started when I got this fortune:

Okay, everybody! Let’s count to 3!

1 ….

2…

According to that good fortune I found last night, now that we’ve counted to 3, the good times have started!

How shall we celebrate these good times?

1…

2…

When will the good comments start? 1… 2… 3. Let’s look below and see!

Finally, how shall I express good-time thanks to all who helped me create the good times in this post and — of course — to you?

1…

2 …

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: "Good Times" by Chic, "Let the Good Times Roll" by The Cars, beliefs about good times, Fortune cookie, living in the moment, seize the day, seize the moment, the good times are now | 42 Comments

Day 1587: All kinds of time

Posted on May 6, 2017 by Ann Koplow

When I was spending all kinds of time yesterday getting new batteries for all kinds of watches, I saw this:

Because I’m all kinds of polite, I didn’t open a book that didn’t belong to me, so I don’t know what kinds of time Harry Behn had in mind.

In the present time, my mind is having all kinds of thoughts about different kinds of time, including

teatime
facetime
playtime
noontime
daytime
nighttime
naptime
springtime
wintertime
summertime
dinnertime
lunchtime
flextime
showtime
downtime
sometime
anytime
halftime
wartime
peacetime
lifetime.

If I had all kinds of time to write today’s post, I’d probably think of other kinds of time. Can you?

There’s no kind of time like nowtime, so here are all kinds of other photos from yesterday:

That’s Ari, who spent all kinds of time last night singing a great original song at the Jam’n Java Open Mic in Arlington, Massachusetts. Ari previously appeared in this kind of blog post from all kinds of time ago.

I spent all kinds of time singing last night, too. I considered singing “Summertime,” but I sang this instead, with all kinds of accompaniment:

I’m looking forward to all kinds of comments.

All kinds of gratitude to all those who help me create all kinds of blog posts (including this one) and to you — of course! — for being kind enough to visit this time.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", Ari Marcovski, different kinds of time, Harry Behn, Jam'n Java Open Mic, Kalimba solo, Kickstand Cafe, singing at an open mic | 38 Comments

Day 1586: Messes

Posted on May 5, 2017 by Ann Koplow

I don’t want to make any messes here in the blogging world, but yesterday the topic of my therapy group was “Messes.”

That’s the mess I made last night, as we all got messes down on paper. My mess was actually messier than it looks in that photo, because I actually spilled cracker crumbs all over it. Because I made a mess of taking that picture, you can’t read all that I wrote. However, I will tell you that I messily shared at the end of the group session my inspiration to make a new t-shirt that says, “Say YES to the mess.”

Why is it important to say YES to the mess? Because we are all messes, in ways, even though we may think we need to appear neat and organized to others.

Before the group last night, I was dealing with lots of messes related to

miscommunication,
mistakes,
broken promises,
fear,
worry,
shame,
guilt,
misunderstandings,
distrust,
anger,
loss,
regret,
pain,
insecurity,
health,
health care,
health care bills,
politics,
lawyers,
guns, and
money.

Here‘s another fine mess: “Lawyers, Guns, and Money” by the late Warren Zevon.

Here are all the other messes I photographed yesterday:

Please don’t be afraid to make messes in the comments section, below.

Messy thanks to all who helped me create this mess of a post and to you — of course! — for all the beautiful messes you bring.

Categories: group therapy, personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: acceptance, group therapy exercise, health care bill 2017, Lawyers Guns and Money, letting go of shame, Say YES to the mess, U.S. politics 2017, Warren Zevon | 33 Comments

Day 1585: Excellence

Posted on May 4, 2017 by Ann Koplow

If you came to this blog today looking for excellence, you’re in luck.

My social work intern, Justine …

… has shown excellence in individual and group psychotherapy this entire year. Justine is so excellent that I recently acknowledged her excellence with a list titled “Reasons Why Justine is Awesome.” When we said goodbye yesterday, Justine demonstrated more excellence.

Justine shared the excellence of that ant quote during the therapy group we both facilitated yesterday. Because of that ant, we all sang this excellent song:

At that same excellent therapy group, as we were saying goodbye to Justine, we all acknowledged Justine’s excellence as well as the excellence of this helpful thought:

The pain of the loss is directly proportional to the importance of the connection.

Do you see excellence in my other photos from yesterday?

Please share the excellence of your own thoughts and feelings in a comment, below.

Thanks to Justine, our therapy group, Frank Sinatra, Greg Stones, and everybody else who contributed to the excellence of today’s post. Also, thanks for the excellence of your visit to this blog, here and now.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: an old city with a young spirit, at the end of the day, expressing appreciation, Frank Sinatra and Eddie Hodges, Greg Stones, group therapy, Hancock Cemetery, High Hopes, Quincy Massachusetts, saying "goodbye", wild turkeys | 39 Comments

Day 1584: Yays and Boos

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Ann Koplow

Yay! It’s time for me to write another blog post!

Boo! I only have a short time to do it before I need to leave for work.

Yay! I love my work!

Boo! Work can be stressful.

Yay! Yesterday, I facilitated a therapy group where we made a list of Yays and Boos.

Yay! People said they found that exercise very helpful.

Boo! People had a lot of boos to list.

Yay! People had a lot of yays to list, too!

Boo! I haven’t been to a Red Sox baseball game in a long time.

Yay! I’ve been to two World Series games at Fenway Park with my sister!

Boo! I haven’t seen my sister enough lately.

Yay! I’ll give her a call today.

Boo! I’ve got a lot of tasks on my plate.

Yay! A lot of those tasks relate to my making a successful offer on a house near the ocean!

Boo! Soon I’ll have to pack and leave our current home.

Yay! Yesterday we had a fun meeting at work where teams competed to build the tallest free-standing structure using spaghetti, masking tape, string, and a marshmallow on top.

Boo! I’m not sure if that last sentence was clear or detailed enough.

Yay! There‘s a great video on YouTube that explains it.

Boo! My team’s structure wasn’t very tall.

Yay! It still won the contest!

Boo! I need to end this post.

Yay! I’m so grateful for all who helped me create this post and — of course! — for YOU.

Categories: group therapy, personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: Boston Red Sox, group decisions, group process, house offer was accepted!, marshmallowchallenge.com, Peter Skillman, pros and cons, Team Building, Ted Talk, Tom Wujec | 36 Comments

Day 1583: Realizing who you are

Posted on May 2, 2017 by Ann Koplow

Realizing who I am as a blogger, I’m sharing this teabag saying from yesterday:

I’m realizing I want happiness to come to me, so how can I realize who I am?

I am realizing I am somebody who

drinks tea,
pays attention to messages and signs from the universe,
blogs,
likes to link to previous blog posts,
works,
hopes for the best,
dreams,
takes action,
shares complex information,
enjoys good food,
focuses on self care (for myself and others),
loves,
breathes,
is mortal,
notices the passage of time,
collects watches,
watches other people,
tries to be kind,
can be a bitch sometimes,
enjoys festivals and other happenings,
lives in the moment,
mourns losses,
is healing,
wants to realize my potential, and
takes pictures.

Do you realize I usually take more pictures than that? I’m realizing I was distracted yesterday because I put a bid on another house. If you read this blog regularly, you’re realizing that I’m trying to realize my dream of living near the water.

Realizing I’m somebody who gets nervous about big decisions, I consulted two different online tarot-reading sites last night. Realizing that fortune telling is a cognitive distortion, I’m realizing I like pretending that tarot cards know the future.

Your answer is YES
The Hanged Man indicates a spiritual, emotional, or physical trial that has purifying effects. The troubles that you have experienced lately have given you a more peaceful and compassionate view of the world. You are able to feel for others around you and see the temporary nature of all things and events. Others will look to you for guidance and comfort, and your deep inner resources will not fail.

___________________________

You may choose to buy that dream house or a wonderfully fulfilling relationship is on offer.

Enjoy!

I’m realizing, again, that I enjoy sharing music in this blog.