New Things Challenge Update: #12-15

I feel like I’ve been cleaning out the attic of my mind lately. It’s been collecting pieces of my past that I’ve become a professional at compartmentalizing, but I’m running out of drawers to keep stuffing with emotions for a later time. I can feel it all spilling out and getting in the way of my creative direction.

For a while, I just sat on the floor, daunted by all the dust-coated boxes, feeling this emptiness inside that kept me from moving. This challenge of trying 100 new things is one of the ways I’m trying to get up off the floor and just keep moving—sweeping a piece of the corner, opening the curtain, and feeling the way the sunlight makes it easier to breathe. Just picking one box and unpacking it, one small step at a time.

Slowly, I’m starting to feel it making space in that attic of my mind. Nothing about this process has been linear. Some days, I feel like I’ve moved so far backward, closing the curtains and struggling to believe I’ll ever get my thoughts under control. Other days, I can find it in me to smile at how beautiful it’s starting to look in there.

I’m trying not to judge any of these days—just to notice them. That’s been a hard habit to break, but I’m working on it. And it does feel good to be working on it.

New Thing #12: Develop Film

My friend Brenton Giesey is an amazing photographer. He reached out about taking a few black-and-white film photos with the winter trees and offered to show me how to develop them.

I think I feel drawn to analog creativity lately because of how fast it feels like our world scrolls and spins in the land of short attention spans. It felt great to learn about something that requires so many precise steps—like a chemistry lesson—adding up to something tangible we can hold in a photograph.

I like film photography in general because it feels like intentionality: setting up the right shot and then pressing a button to actually stop time for a moment. I was surprised by how many steps are involved—timers, temperatures, different treatment chemicals—to ensure the roll of film is properly developed. And during that process, it can’t be exposed to any light.

I liked thinking about that, too. Sometimes, the making of something happens in the darkest places. I think art needs to be protected in this cocoon of exploration to find your own idea of what you love, until it’s ready to share. It feels a lot like what I’ve been working on musically lately, trying to keep it in this container with the right conditions so that what I create comes out feeling the way I want it to.

Here’s a couple of photos we developed on the roll!

New Thing #13: Cold Plunge

I’ve been meaning to try this for a while now. I don’t think I’m going to become someone who does it every day, but my understanding of the buzz around it has definitely expanded.

It was a mind-over-matter high. The woman at the Pure Sweat Sauna Studio suggested to set a goal of two minutes in the cold plunge, and I was terrified I was going to panic. I talked myself into it for a while, eventually took a deep breath, and sat all the way into the tub full of ice-cold water.

It didn’t take my breath away the way I thought it might. I focused on my breathing, and time moved fairly quickly. I made it over six minutes and felt pretty proud. I did have to lift my toes out of the water at one point because they started to hurt, but otherwise, it felt refreshing. I got out feeling so alive and ready for the day. I can see why this has such an appeal.

Next, I want to try this outside—in a lake or a river or something. Maybe it’s my northern Canadian blood, ha, but I didn’t think this was too bad at all!

New Thing #14: Take an Improv Class

I loved the improv show I went to at Third Coast Comedy Club so much that I ended up signing up for a class. A songwriting friend told me she had done a bit of improv and loved it, finding it helped with getting out of her own way as a writer. That sounded like something I’d like to try, and I’d been waiting for the right season of time to line up.

For eight Saturdays, I spent a few hours each week with a great group of classmates, just playing. It felt almost reminiscent of childhood theater days. The first few classes, I felt so out of place and had a really hard time not worrying about coming up with the right thing to say and feeling a little stupid for that. But eventually, I was able to practice listening and just responding without letting thought get in the way. That’s when I started having more fun with it.

I really enjoyed the lessons about character development and felt a growing curiosity about acting. Stepping into a character was really fun for me, and this class became a helpful outlet for surrendering the need to have the right answer all the time. To just make a choice and not hesitate. No room for overthinking.

That’s a muscle that needs a lot of work in my life, ha, and it felt good to have a playground to practice that. It was also great to meet a group of new friends who, like me, were looking for more fun and joy in their lives. This was way out of my comfort zone and a longer commitment, but I had a blast and am really glad I did it.

New Thing #15: Turn My Phone Off for a Week

I don’t think I’ve ever turned off my phone for a full week before. At Christmas, I always try to be intentional about putting it away, but I’ve never fully powered it down for that long.

I attended a therapy retreat that required me to turn in my phone upon arrival for a forced break from technology. At first, I had phantom feelings of it in my pocket, and even simple things, like checking the time, felt strange without it. But after a couple of days, I noticed I didn’t miss it at all. I felt incredibly present in the work I was doing, more aware of the world around me, with a sense of calm and a quieter mind.

Since coming back, I still haven’t entirely turned my socials back on. I do miss the online community, but I also know that scrolling hasn’t been healthy for me in the headspace I’ve been in. I’m getting closer to clarity on my creative direction and look forward to returning to it with more intention—feeling more like myself.

Taking my foot off the gas for a moment has shaken up some long-held beliefs — that I am what I do, that my worthiness comes from my output. It’s been incredibly disorienting, but also really helpful in shifting my mindset to just press pause for a moment. We are human beings, not human doings. It’s easy to type that out and think of it as true for someone else, but I’m working on owning that truth for myself. I’m still somewhere in the middle of my wrestle with that, but I’m getting there.

Thanks for coming with me on this challenge of trying 100 new things. If you have ideas to add to my list, I’m all ears. And if you’re working on your own list, I’d love to hear how it’s going in the comments!

From one wandering soul to another, I hope you know you’re loved as you are.

<3 T