About Me
An optimist is someone who, upon stepping into a pile of manure, looks for the pony. I am someone who, when the “shit hits the fan,” looks for Pegasus. Paulo Coelho, author of The Alchemist, said “at every moment in our lives, we have one foot in a fairy tale and one foot in the abyss.” My dream is to bridge those two disparate worlds.
My primary message: Have hope and always choose love over fear, and you’ll never be sorry. I attempt to convey this message through a mixture of transient insight, feeble attempts at humor, philosophical mumbo jumbo, attenuated arrogance, and wordiness. Alas, I think I have read too many self help books! But don’t let my failure to perfect the written word obscure whatever insight my stories might impart. I dare claim that I have learned a thing or two about life, and what good is an insight into unconditional happiness if you can’t share it?
may you hear your own voice,
and when you read my words,
may you see yourself reflected.
If I say anything, let it be
“I hear you.”
Lisa Lindeman
A Native American originally from Oklahoma, I earned my BA in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. I’m currently working towards a PhD at the University of Wisconsin, Madison (less than one year to go, woo hoo).
I’ve been meditating for more than fifteen years. I practice in both Zen and Tibetan Buddhist traditions. I have two beautiful, amazingly intelligent children, Erik (5 years, aka “The Monkey”) and Luke (3 years, aka “My Little Buddha”).
MY RESEARCH: The aim of my research is to understand how thoughts and evaluations about life events become the bodily sensations associated with emotions and motivational impulses. As an individualized graduate major cutting across various area groups in the department of psychology (e.g., clinical, cognitive, social), I have several faculty mentors, including Lyn Abramson, a pioneer in research on depression.
HOBBIES:
- oil painting
- karaoke
- writing science fiction short stories
- meditation
FAVORITES:
- AUTHORS: Alan Watts, Carl Sagan, Pema Chodron, George Lakoff
- MOVIES: Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Fifth Element, Before Sunrise, Les Miserables, The Saint, Lost in Translation
- MUSICIANS: Thievery Corporation, Shpongle, Shakatura, Manx, Fiona Apple, Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, Steve Miller Band, Depeche Mode, Stevie Wonder, Ray LaMontagne, Luscious Jackson
- MISC: extra dark chocolate, new paint brushes, the Carribean ocean, heartfelt hugs
Songs that make me utterly euphoric:
- Get Together, The Youngbloods
- Sullen Girl, Fiona Apple
- If I Could, Seal
- For the Love of God, Steve Vai
- Never Going Back Again, Fleetwood Mac
- Take These Broken Wings, Mike and the Mechanics
- Jammin’, Bill Marley