How personal challenges can break, then rebuild you—stronger By Sandra Dee Owens When I was 29 I lost my mental health. It took nearly three years to get it back. Though a nervous breakdown was the most painful thing I […]
Category: Funologist
Column, Funologist
The back story: Quitting 1,000 times and un-quitting 1,001
By Sandra Dee Owens When I was 25 I lost my health. I had no health insurance and was turned down for disability. While that news felt devastating at the time, I now view this as the greatest gift my […]
Column, Funologist, Lifestyle
Funology: the origin is thought
By Sandra Dee Owens A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single … thought. Before taking a single step, I first have to think about taking a single step. Consciously or otherwise, everything begins … with a thought. […]
Column, Funologist
Snow swimming, Part 4: Meeting my wild voice
By Sandra Dee Owens All my life, I noticed it. The presence of a gentle, internal voice, offering helpful suggestions I mostly ignored. No, not ignored … flicked off my shoulder like a bothersome bug. I gave my internal guidance […]
Column, Funologist
Snow swimming, part 3: Shifting my relationship with fear
Is your relationship with fear contentious or friendly? By Sandra Dee Owens Throughout my life, I have thought of fear as something I should overcome, battle and conquer. But when I began snow swimming four years ago, I wanted a […]
Column, Funologist
Snow swimming, part 2
How embracing the word ‘slower’ lead to a new sport: snow swimming By Sandra Dee Owens Have you ever made your own speed limits? After I received two speeding tickets and a warning within six weeks—I realized I had a […]
Column, Funologist
Snow swimming, part 1: getting started
Flipping the switch from boring—to “woohoo!!!” By Sandra Dee Owens Have you ever yearned to do something but were afraid to try it? Climbing out of the mid-October water, I excitedly hopped up and down at the effectiveness of my […]
Column, Funologist
Days and weeks seeking adventures as I achieve my goal
Do you know what motivates you? By Sandra Dee Owens Through a series of mental growth spurts, I discovered that adventure is highly motivating for me while telling myself I “should” do something—is not. Below is the true story of […]
Column, Funologist
The wall
By Sandra Dee Owens For years I told myself (and anyone listening), that I was going to begin a personal challenge of skiing the length of Vermont on the Catamount Trail—but I never did. Years before, while backcountry skiing with […]
Column, Funologist
365 seasons: each day is a new adventure
By Sandra Dee Owens I made a “Funology” calendar. This calendar has no days or months in it. It has 365 seasons. Living by this calendar, I wake up each morning with anticipation, and think, ‘What season is it today?” […]