Escape Adulthood

Live with Less Stress & More Fun

Archives for January 2018

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Sheri St. Marie, January 2018 Adultitis Fighter of the Month

An Adultitis Fighter is someone who rallies against rules that don't exist and engages in ruthless, senseless acts of silliness that undermine Adultitis and its unadventurous version of adulthood. Once a month, we shine a light upon the most remarkable among us, holding them up as a dazzling example of what we should strive for in this epic battle against a formidable enemy. Sheri St. Marie knows how to have fun, but much to the chagrin of Adultitis, she also knows how to make dreams come true. Some people might think that having fun and taking yourself lightly is a barrier to success, but Sheri's track record argues otherwise. From top Girl Scout Cookie seller to top producer in real estate, Sheri has set and achieved many goals in her life while honoring her childlike spirit and instigating all kinds of shenanigans. This master's level educator and successful business owner is part Realtor and part life coach, working hard every day to encourage and inspire others to achieve their …

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Life’s A Wave

"Life's A Wave" by Jason Kotecki. 24 x 30 Oil on canvas. Original is SOLD. Prints and canvas reproductions available here. The familiar pit formed at the bottom of my stomach like a butterfly battle royal on pay per view. It developed after my mom answered the phone and told me it was for me. When I was younger, I was afraid of just about everything. New situations always brought an enormous level of anxiety, and phone calls delivered a special level of dread. It was a classmate on the other end, asking if I wanted to come over to play. For most people this would be great news, not a situation worth getting nauseous over. But I was not most people. I've never been keen on having my plans changed at the last minute. I had a whole day planned of doing nothing ahead of me. Not to mention, I'd never been to Chris' house before. Talk about a new situation! It was clearly a sensory overload too treacherous for a lazy Saturday. I quickly mumbled some excuse about how My …

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Keep Your Eyes On Your Own Work

Remember back in school, when your class was taking a test, and the teacher would exhort, “Eyes on your own work!” Of course, as I was an amazing student (and because my parents might be reading this), I knew this rebuke was never aimed at me. But you know what? I kind of wish that I had someone like this in my life now, periodically reminding me to keep my eyes on my own work. You see, my ability to keep my eyes on my own work seems to be in direct relation to my level of happiness. I think it could be useful to have someone around to slap my knuckles with a ruler anytime I got jealous over an opportunity given to someone else that I feel I deserved. When my eyes linger too long on the fruits of someone else’s success, it’s easy to feel discontent, frustrated, aimless, impatient, disappointed in myself and generally like a steaming pile of failure. Theodore Roosevelt said, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” Boy, is it ever. Scrolling through Instagram or perusing your …

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Be The Light

"Let There Be Light" by Jason Kotecki. 24 x 30 Oil on canvas. Original is SOLD. Prints and canvas reproductions available here. When we were children, creativity was a regular part of life, whether it led to building a fort out of blocks, fashioning a fantasy world with our imagination, or coloring made-up creatures with our crayons. We are all still creative. Sometimes we don’t think we are, and sometimes we don’t use our creativity as much as we could. But our creativity is a gift from our Creator, and it might be my favorite. Not only is it amazingly practical, allowing us to solve problems and bring beauty into the world, but it’s magical and fun, too. It’s been written that on the fourth day of creation, God said, “Let there be light.” And then he put the sun and the moon and the stars in their places. Here’s the amazing thing: the declaration still stands, but the torch has been passed to us. It’s hard to imagine fashioning an entire solar system made up of planets …

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A Better Alternative to New Year’s Resolutions?

New Year's resolutions are okay, but I like tinkering better. A resolution feels like a stern, rigid taskmaster who shames you when you fall down. But tinkering is a curious friend, nudging you into new adventures in which you uncover things you didn’t know about yourself. With a resolution we say, “I’m going to immediately change forever.” When we tinker, we say, “I wonder what would happen if I tried this for a little bit…” Instead of committing to a resolution, I recommend starting a Tinker Project. A Tinker Project as a playful endeavor of any size or scope that gives you permission to experiment with something that’s been tugging at your soul, without regard to any particular outcome. It’s a chance to chase your curiosity and try something new. It’s about venturing into the unknown, just because, where the act of exploration is reward enough. A Tinker Project is meant to be pretty flexible. It could be a year long, or just a few days. You could use it to …

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