Stress (2)

Where does stress emerge in your life? What person, place, responsibility, or activity is tied to your biggest area of stress?

Year ending, year beginning (4)

Taking an inventory of what happened to you last year, what is a good trend, condition, or practice you would like to contine in 2013? And what is one trend, condition, or practice you'd prefer to leave behind in 2012?

My life on TV

Which TV show is the best reflection of the social world that you live in? Which show makes you say, "Yes, I know people just like that" or "Things like that happen in my own life"?

Little black dress

What color dominates your wardrobe? Has that always been your most worn color?

Feeling stuck (4)

Think of a few different times in your life when you had felt stuck and then managed to get unstuck.  In each of those cases, what ingredient made the critical difference that got you moving again?  Did you follow the same pattern every time you got yourself unstuck, or was it different every time? 

Tell us a story: breaking the pattern

Tell us about a time when you deliberately defied a tradition or broke an established pattern in order to do something different.  What was the expected action, and what did you do instead?  What prompted you to want to change things?

All talk

What is one thing you've talked about doing for years, but still haven't gotten started on?

Daily slump

At what time of day do you find your energy at its lowest point?

Every slot is already filled

If you start running out of open time slots in your schedule or empty spaces in your home — or if things start "filling up" in any other context — the cost is loss of flexibility. For example, a new problem comes up, and you have very few options for how to deal with it. Or someone gives you a new car, but you don't have a place to park it.

What is one part of your life where you can see this happening — there's no empty space, and things suffer because of your lack of flexibility?

This week's theme is empty space.

Playing catch-up

It's rarely good to be behind the curve, whether you're arriving late for events, missing out on trends and opportunities, or being the last to hear important news. What is one area where you always seem to be behind everyone else?

This week's theme is timing.

Social diet

You might eat healthier when other people are around, because their scrutiny helps keep you on your best behavior. Or you might eat worse, because social occasions are times to celebrate and forget your cares. Which pattern is more common in your life? Do you eat better when you're alone, or with other people?

This week's theme is your diet.

Give and give again

How do you feel about repeat gifts? Is it okay to give the same thing to someone year after year (something nice, obviously), or is it important that each gift be a unique surprise?

This week's theme is giving.

Home cooking

In a typical week, how many of your meals do you prepare in the kitchen and eat at home?

This week's theme is your kitchen.

Your freedom cup

Even under the same set of rules, some people seem to enjoy more freedom than other people do. Do you see generally see yourself as someone with more freedom, or someone with less freedom? What makes the difference between your situation and other people's?

This week's theme is freedom.

Z, Y, X, W, V, U, T...

Did you ever play a musical recording backwards, just to hear the strange-yet-familiar sounds of the reversed music? Have you started at the end a museum exhibit and walked through it in reverse order? Did you ever try playing the holes of a golf course in reverse?

What is something that you deliberately tried doing backwards, just to see what would happen if you reversed the customary order of things?

This week's theme is moving backwards.

Guilt or great

When you think about your health, do you have generally positive feelings ("I really treat my body as a temple, yay, me!") or are you wracked with negativity ("Augh, I feel so guilty for every pint of Ben & Jerry's I've ever eaten!")?

This week's theme is your health.

Going postal

What kind of stress does your work cause for you? Are you stressed out by the things you have to do there, or by the people you work with? Or unexpected crises that cause extra work? Is your work stress the kind of stress you can leave at the office, or do you bring it home with you?

This week's theme is stressful situations.

Stressful situations

Are you under a lot of stress when you visit with family members? Is it only one particular family member, or several of them? Is the stress related to ongoing patterns from childhood, or is it new issues that put a strain on this (or these) relationship(s)?

This week's theme is stressful situations.

You're wrong, and your mother dresses you funny!

What is your favorite fallback tactic when you realize you can't win an argument on logic alone?

Easy and hard

What routine chore do you handle easily, comfortably, and with little thought? At the opposite extreme, what necessary chore feels difficult and makes you anxious and uncomfortable?

What makes some things easier than others?

This week's theme is routine chores.