The Blog is Not Here

Dear readers,

I have moved where my blog will be posted from here on out. I hope you will follow me there at AnnalisaCWilliams.com

Thanks for the read!

Social Media As I See It

 Facebook: Look friends! I am really cool! I do cool things! Like me! Liiiiiiiiike meeeeee!

Twitter: Squirrel! (aka every vacant thought ever had on display)

Instagram: Land of the Selfies, Babies and Pets

Pinterest: Where women go to plan their weddings that will never happen, how they'll dress the perfectly behaved children they'll never have, and the desserts they'll eat to make themselves feel better when they come to the realization that: they will never have that dream million dollar wedding, and that little children don't like to wear hats or bows...or really clothes in general.


By the way, you can find me on all of these social networks. Give me a follow/like and say hello!

Facebook: /annalisacwilliams

Twitter: @AnnalisaCleo

Instagram: @AnnalisaCWilliams

Pinterest: /AnnalisaCleo

Constraint Breeds Creativity

I've been reflecting on a phrase my sweetheart often says. Not sure where he got it from, but it's a good one. He often says that constraint is what breeds creativity.

I think a lot of people get this hippy-dippy idea that creativity comes when one is faced with loads of free time to slowly sip your coffee, enjoy a warm muffin and sit in a quiet, relaxing environment with no interruptions, no obligations, and a full day to spend immersed in the art of painting, writing, composing, etc.

Now, before I proceed to crush these notions, let me first say that hey, who doesn't want to enjoy a nice day immersed in art and enjoying warm muffins? Go for it. Those can be refreshing moments.

There you go, a relaxing moment for you. NOW GET WRITING!

Just don't expect anything truly creative, or really any good, to come out of  it.

Creativity doesn't come from comfortable, obligation-free living or from other's "understanding" you. These are just lame excuses wanna-be writers make for themselves when they are unsuccessful in a goal.

What makes good writing is the stress, the time crunch...it's the chase of finding that idea and sweating to develop it. It's what makes NaNoWriMo so great. You've got the constraint...a novel, written in a mere 30 days. Brilliant!

Don't wait for the perfect circumstances to write. Don't sit around expecting writing to feel good, or for the inspiration to just "come to you". Take breaks as needed. Have some R and R time, but if you really care about your craft and your goals, you're going spend a lot of time with your head against wall trying to bang ideas out of it. You want to be the proud author of a brilliant novel, you've got to make it happen.

That's my plan anyway. Make. It. Happen. I write everyday now. Sometimes only a little. Sometimes it's a lot. The habit is growing though. My creativity is coming back. This recovering Finance major is going to write an awesome little book. I'm getting really excited.

I want to hear, what's your excuse you make that you need to let go? A recurring one for me is that the room isn't clean enough for me to think. It's like dirty socks make too much noise for me to think. Isn't that ridiculous? I'm learning to write through that. I clear a space for my notebook or laptop and light a candle and move on.

When You Go To Mexico

I spent a lovely week on my first ever cruise a few weeks ago. It was really a fantastic trip, with so many new things to see and experiences. THAT is a good trip.

Cruises are interesting things. I was on a Carnival cruise, and I have to be perfectly honest with you...cruises are not my favorite mode of vacationing. Mostly, it was the food. Food is a big deal to me. I love good food. Cruise food, well, you can't blame them for not having fresh food because they pack up all the food and it sits there all week while you float in a boat for a week. The food will only be so good.

They sell you on the fact you can eat whatever you want, all that you want, but the fact is (at least for me) you won't want to eat much of it. It's much like a college cafeteria, but the food gets served to you on fancy china with sprigs of cilantro or parsley for garnish. Presentation is a great way to fool people in to thinking that the meat wasn't overcooked and the veggies weren't steamed for long enough.

In short, the cruise reminded me of how awesome of a cook I am. So both my sweetheart and I missed my cooking while I was away.

However, we got off in Cozumel, Mexico and I had THE best taco of my life. I could have eaten 20 of them. Cozumel is paradise. It's the most beautiful place in the world I have ever been. It was a majestic day on that island. We rented mopeds...while I feared for my life riding those beasties, it was a delight. I loved being out in the sun, zipping along the coast with the sweetest scent in the air.

There was a cheap little "resort" that I got to go try snorkeling in. It was INCREDIBLE! After I got past the I am going to suffocate to death and be eaten by fish fear, it was nice. The ocean around Cozumel is...get this...WARM! In California, I usually enjoy observing the ocean and maybe dipping my foot in. Cozumel, it's like jumping into a nice warm tub.

I'm moving to Mexico, guys. I wish.

Here we all are! I'm the shorty on the far right.

Next day was Mayan ruins. I saw the ruins in Chichen Itza! How cool is that! Now. I could write an entire blog post on all the neat little facts on Mayan culture and architecture, but I don't know how many of my dear readers are as big of dweebs as I am. So I'll simply share some photos with you and tell you that ancient Mayans were some dang smart people.

It was an incredible society with some weird stuff going on.(Okay, one weird fact and I'll be done: They had a sport they played and at the end of the game, one person was sacrificed. Guess who it was? Ready? Winning. Team. Captain. My sweetheart jokes that this might be why they were able to become such an advanced society, they simply killed off the jocks. Ha!) 


I guess I should also mention I saw New Orleans. Now. True to my nature, the highlight of New Orleans was this old coffee stand. I fell head over heals in love with Cafe Du Monde.

Beignets are simply the bomb. You eat them, and after you finish you have like a quarter pound of powdered sugar leftover. Deep fried. Done right.

Now did I try out some Southern food? Well...let's put it this way.

But in short, New Orleans is exactly how you would picture it. A little French influence. A lot of cheap plastic beads (New Orleans is the land of the cheap plastic bead necklaces). Jazz music is always playing somewhere, everywhere. You'll probably even see strange voodoo priestesses wandering around now and again. We're not in Utah anymore...

This is a VooDoo Priestess's crypt. Freaky, deaky, eh?

Yes, I took this trip without my sweetheart. That in and of itself was an experience. In the two years we've known each other, I think the longest we've gone without seeing each other since our first date was two days. I totally didn't even realize that until I thought about it the week before this trip.

My family has a saying, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder, but usually that fondness for someone else."  But I can tell you, that trip just made me appreciate what I have at home with my sweetheart all the more. After all, it's incredibly awkward cracking jokes in an elevator and no one laughs, and you still have three more floors to go. That's where my sweetheart comes in.

The charmer that he is, I came home to not one, not two but THREE bouquets of flowers and a lovely candle when I walked in around midnight at the conclusion of my journey. I feel so blessed to not only have the opportunity to have seen more of the world, but to have a wonderful home to come to with him. I am living the dream.

Ode to the Internet

I LOVE THE INTERNET SO MUCH!

Whew, okay, that is out of the way.

Two weeks after moving, we finally have Internet. From now on...next time we move I am going to insist on having Internet on right along with water, electricity and gas before I set foot in my abode. It has been a rough two weeks, no music, no blogging, no reading endless and mindless articles, YouTube, Netflix...can you see how sad I've been? Going camping for a few days, I can handle roughing it without Internet...beyond that all bets are off.

We're loving our new apartment. My favorite feature? Windows. Our last apartment didn't have a window anywhere, or at least a window respectable enough to call a window. This is what basement apartment living is all about. That's before we get to the made in the 1970's carpet.

Yes, we love our new apartment. It's taken a lot of getting used to...before I could be in the kitchen, my sweetheart could be in any given room in the apartment and we could carry on a conversation. This apartment is a little too big for us to be wandering around in and have nice continuous conversations. So we're learning to sit still and complete conversations before exiting the room.

Also...we've never needed furniture up until this point. Last apartment was too small for furniture. Now we have a big vacant room that I believe people call a "living room". It's a bit echo-y, and it turns out (as we learned from our prior apartments) American visitors (well, come to think of it even our international visitors...) find it a bit odd to be invited to take a seat on the floor. Couches, dinner table seating are apparently big things in our culture. (I sincerely hope you caught my sarcasm through all of that.)

I'm incredibly happy right now. I'm so happy to be moved out of Utah County, so not my kind of town. I've gotten comments from Salt Lakers about how "rough" a transition it must be working in Salt Lake City and moving here after growing up in and living in Happy Valley for so long...but honestly, it just feels like coming home. People are so nice in Salt Lake. Everyone's a little "weird", and it makes it so we can all get along and be genuine. I love it.

Years ago, when I first moved to Salt Lake City, people must have thought I was so strange being so quiet, shy and downright fearful of speaking. I got over that fast once I saw that Salt Lake City really is a place you can be open and honest about who and what you are. As long as you don't shame others for being different, others won't shame you for being your brand of different.

I definitely feel like my sweetheart and I are moving towards a brilliant new era in our lives. I'm excited about all the opportunities we're being presented with and blessings we're receiving from God everyday. Every time I get alone with my thoughts, I feel as if I'm bursting with joy. I'm so grateful my little heart can't quite contain it. I can't believe I wake up every morning with my sweetheart right beside me. I spend each day working on various creative projects for my JOB. I've put a great distance between me and my hometown. I can't believe this is my real life.

I feel like I should use that last paragraph for an acceptance speech or something. I am pretty sure a few of you readers are laughing and saying something like, "Sheesh, Annalisa...don't get so excited you're STILL in Utah and that's not very exciting." and "Whoop-dee-do, you have a decent job out of college...chill out."

But I will not "chill out", I am celebrating this victory with full gusto.

Peace!

New Job! New Home!

Well, folks. As you can probably tell, right now I am struggling to keep this blog from dying. You wouldn't believe all that's been happening in a few short months. I remember taking a road trip with my mum and sister and saying, "You know, I feel like my life has gotten a little too calm. I haven't really had much change in the last couple years. Things are a little too easy. I just go to college and get doted on by my wonderful boyfriend. I kind of get the feeling things are about to change, like, a lot."

Can't wait to move here!

How's that for premonition? In an era where marriage proposals are massively orchestrated events with the date typically picked out by the bride-to-be, that next week my boyfriend surprised me. A few short months later we married and I left my hometown (hooray!) The semester after that I graduated from college and thus was formally tossed out in to the cold, cruel world.

Following graduating, I worked an internship at Pearls with Purpose (great cause, I do recommend checking them out. I'm not just saying that because I've worked on their website and written some of their content.) Two months passed, I got a dream of a job offer. Title? Marketing Lead. That title comes with my own office, benefits annnnnnnd a huge move northward!

I wrote a while back that while you're in your twenties, if two years of life are the same, something's probably wrong. This decade of life is ALL about change. So, so far I am greatly succeeding at keeping the changes running. This new job means a move for us that I'm very thrilled for, I hate living here. It will be so good to head to a bigger city and enjoy bigger opportunities.

Valentine's Day

I get spoiled year round. I married Prince Charming, what can I say? But I thought post-February 14th I could share a slice of my daydream of a life.

Morning. I'm the morning person in our relationship. I can think of about three times in our marriage he has ever gotten up before me; likewise, he can probably think of about three times I've ever stayed up past 11:30 pm. My sweetheart was awake BEFORE me making delicious scrambled eggs and OJ for me. Bonus, he washed dishes...which is always a delight. Since moving to this apartment and realizing the sink does not have a garbage disposal (and no dishwasher!) dishes have become a sheer horror for me. My sweetheart has become a superwasher now, I've got entire weeks without touching a dirty dish. That's love, friends. 

After breakfast we headed up to Salt Lake City. We both were delighted to be away from Happy Valley for the afternoon, especially to go hang out with DINOSAURS! You read that right, we hit the Utah Museum of Natural History up by the U. It's a delightful museum. I highly recommend it. Currently the exhibit of interest is the Chocolate Exhibit. Have some chocolate handy before you come because this exhibit stinks up the whole museum. You will INSTANTANEOUSLY  have  a craving for chocolate as you try to read about the Utahceratops. It's going to happen. 

After some delightful "museuming" (Museuming needs to be a word...museums are truly meant to be experienced as a verb,) he let me pick our restaurant. Lo and behold, I've been away from Salt Lake City for too long and totally forgot my favorite sushi restaurant wasn't open until evening. We headed off to downtown to go to an old sandwich shop I used to frequent...but my observant sweetheart pointed across the street to a doner kebab shop.

Dear Americans. This isn't a grilled veggies and meat on a skewer shop. The DONER part of doner kebab is very critical. Doner Kebab is only the most magical thing you could wrap your lips around and sink your teeth into. I got introduced to doner kebab when I was in Germany three years ago. It is a Turkish thing. It's closest cousin is probably the Greek Gyro...however doner kebab is prepared and served with delightful seasonings and spices that you would never find in a gryo. 

The place is called Spitz, and although a doner kebab in Utah is not the same as a doner kebab in Ulm, sitting on a bench staring up at the world's tallest cathedral...it's stunningly delicious for something you don't have to cross the Atlantic to get. I daresay, the fries are simply to die for. I about cried from joy eating this food much like what I enjoyed during my time in Europe. 

All in all...a fabulous Valentine's Day with the love of my eternity. That was even before he unveiled two giant bags of SweetHearts and a tin of Pirouette Hazelnut cookies. What can I say? The man knows me well. 

Education Series: At-Home Education and Socialization

We're going in to opinion blog mode for a bit. So make some popcorn, sit down and prepare to get offended!

Education is a hot topic these days. It won't be hard for you to do a new search and find articles about the US slipping in education, the impeding student loan crisis, the value of a college education declining, bullying at school, STEM...I could be here all day. School/Education is a big part of American culture, it's no surprise we would discuss it at length. (now if we could actually do something about it...)

I'm sure at one point or another I'll address these topics here, but initially I just wanted to talk about homeschooling. Homeschooling has been a big part of my education and there are a lot of misconceptions about what homeschooling is, what it does and how it works.

I will address the #1 problem people have with the idea of homeschooling is the concept of socialization. First, let me paint a picture of what socialization at your local junior high looks like. It goes something like getting body slammed in to a locker...and this happens just when your bruise from last weeks body slam healed. Your money is stolen. A girl pulls on your hair, stripping out the bobby pins and headband from your hair. You don't even know who she is.

But wait, there's your friend and she's got some classmates with her. This should be a delightful respite from another rough day, as you stand up from picking up your books and initiate conversation you are in moments reprimanded. She asks, "Why are you talking to me?" Your friend is quick to lecture you, "You do not talk to my friends." They leave you and you are uncertain what just happened to you. You turn to head to history class, only to have your bra strap snapped by one boy and get groped by another.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but that doesn't sound like socialization happening. I think the equivalent of saying to a child they need to go to public school is a lot like telling a woman with a black eye and fat lip that she should stay with her boyfriend because she needs to learn how to have a relationship. When your school allows students to roam in large packs in the halls and there's so much anonymity that stealing, hitting and groping can occur with no consequences that is a bad situation that is best left behind, not stuck out so you can learn more about tolerating abuse.

I'm not saying public schools are bad. I just happened to go to a bad school. The troubling thing is that a lot of people don't recognize a bad school when they see one. No one would call my school a bad school if you asked them. The demographics of my school probably were along the lines of 90% church-going families or something like that. I came from a very upper crust white-bread neighborhood and all but a couple families sent their children to this same school.

In short, kids aren't learning social skills by imitating each other. Junior high age students do not know how to properly conduct themselves. Elementary school students hardly know how to properly conduct themselves. High school students...well, maybe some start getting their act together, but let's be honest my adult friends; one of the worst experiences you have to endure when you're on public transit is seeing a pack of teenage girls getting on. Be honest. Your skin crawls.

"Social skills" are learned at school, yes--but improved social skills are learned from those with superior social skills to your own.

If I Ruled the World

Welcome to my blog post about the hippy-dippy things I would do if I ruled the world.

1. Yoga pants and a comfy t-shirt would be an acceptable form of business wear. Anytime, any day, if you don't want to suit up for work or deal with a work uniform, you have full permission to wear comfy yoga pants. Your boss is forbidden from writing you up for dressing "sloppily". Why? Because it should never be wrong to be comfortable. Happiness should never be punishable.

2. While we're talking about laws regarding dress. Crappy shoes are outlawed. No heels. No stilettos. No pointy-toes. None of that! The only shoes anyone gets to wear must allow one to go running at a moments notice. You can run in heels? TOO BAD! I'm just trying to help you to succeed here, you will never win a footrace in heels.

3. One day a week no one gets paid. No one works for money. Of course this means that probably all or most businesses would be closed depending on human generosity. So instead, we would all have to get things by asking to borrow or trade with neighbors. Think of all friends we could make on this one day. We all just take a day off from the consumerism and overworking.

4. Human labeling is disallowed. Any word that places people in a group such as race, sexual orientation, religion, clubs or class cannot be used. Instead of talking about Jeanine being an upper-class, orc-dork, white, Catholic...she is Jeanine and now you have to get to know who Jeanine is to find out what she is about. As you learn about who Jeanine is, you find out she's doing well, loves to play the cello, has light skin that freckles in the sun, dark brown hair and green eyes. She's read the Bible all through once already and is halfway through her second time. Everyone is just whatever it is they are. We'll accept one unique identifier label (first name) and that is all.

You don't get one word to tell you things about people. You get sentences, paragraphs...real descriptions! Generalizations cannot be used to talk about people. You cannot say "All brown-haired people are shy." You cannot even say "the majority" or "most". You just have to talk about people as individuals. Because guess what? They are.

Student Loan Debt is not Good Debt

As I've started working on a project for this blog in which I discuss various issues and concerns surrounding our education system here in the US, I've felt a pull to address the pending Student Loan Debt Crisis. Pending? Did I say pending? I meant, the already existing crisis.

While the bubble hasn't formally burst, we already have an issue. I have heard it preached across church pulpits and spoken to young college students as kind parental advice. It is the statement that "student loan debt is an acceptable debt to take out." Or sometimes phrased as, "There are good forms of debt, student loans are a good debt"

False. 

Honestly, I wish I had an air horn that I could take and stand up in the chapel pews to sound off when this falsehood is spoken. I wish I could be there for every parent-child talk and say, "Johnny, no offense, but your father is an idiot." As a Finance graduate, perhaps I should take my laptop to dinner parties and when I meet college students I could take their projected potential earnings and match them to their current debt and produce a special chart for every individual and armed with the purest logic, show them they're screwed if they decide to finance their education with debt. This would probably be the best use of my degree.

Since these are not socially acceptable or even possible solutions, a blog post will have to do...and an infogram.

Student loans are not automatically a good idea just for the sake of being used for a "good" thing called "education". Look at the numbers before you get that loan. If you're an art student, social work major or going in to teaching and many other majors...you are not going to earn a lot of money. Do your homework and find out how much your starting wage in your career will be. Here's a good website to get started.

STEM and business majors, I'm looking at you. Don't get off thinking you're special and studying science and math so you're automatically getting high paying jobs out of college. I swear, you nerds are the worst. You think it's six-figures from day one and that you'll love your career if not for the cool science-y stuff or fun with numbers, you'll love the money.

Get off your high-horse and do the research, the math before you get that loan. It is completely and entirely possible to take out more loans than you can pay off. Just because you qualify does not mean it's a good idea.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/10/college-graduates-full-time-jobs-study_n_1496827.html

http://money.cnn.com/2013/12/04/pf/college/student-loan-debt/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/26/student-debt-repayment_n_3500251.html

Let Me Eat This!

I'm venting. I'm also warning friends and family who want to have dinner with me.

Do not look at my plate.

If you must look at my plate, don't judge my food. I don't want to hear about how much "rabbit food" I have on my plate. I don't want to hear your commentary on how much I have or haven't eaten.

Considering that over one-third of American adults are considered obese*, you probably don't have too much right to tell me what my diet ought or ought not look like. There is a one-in-three chance you are one of these chubbies who are at risk for preventable forms of diabetes, cancer and heart diseases. You don't comment on my weight and I won't comment on yours.

You know, I'm a smaller person. I'm only 5'3. My caloric intake needs are going to be so different from a 6'3 male. On average, when I go to restaurants what they put on my plate is enough for two meals, maybe even three. This is America, people. You, being a taller individual, maybe you're a bodybuilder or something, you might need to eat that whole plate. I cannot. There is nothing wrong with this! You eat what you need to eat and I'll eat what I need to eat and I'll go home with my little white takeout box to enjoy a later lunch.

Yes, sometimes I opt for just a salad. Have you thought that maybe at that moment a salad sounds good to me? I love steaks and deep fried deliciousness as much as the next person, but every so often I don't want to full-on assault my arteries and I want to eat something in a flavor other than oil.

I really love food. It just hurts that you would suggest I feel anything but love towards delicious food. Food and I have a beautiful relationship. Don't hate on it.






*http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html

Salute to 2013

Oh blog! I've missed you! It's been a crazy couple of weeks, and there will some catch-up blog posts later. However, currently I am recovering from illness and getting settled back in to life post-vacation.

However, New Years Eve/New Years Day is my favorite holiday, and it would be wrong to not post a little bit of something in the way of a tip of a hat to 2013. 

I didn't set any goals or resolutions in 2013. I had decided that I had more than enough on my plate with my last year of college and finalizing things for my wedding day. That was a big choice because I love goal-setting, but I decided to keep it simple.

Instead of trying to be a full-time college student and marathon runner, entrepreneur, guitar god, whatever, 2013 I was just going to have a wonderful wedding and get married to my sweetheart 10 days in and finish college. The end.

I had my best year ever in 2013. In another week, we will be celebrating one year of marriage. Which, in my current peer group now makes me incredibly seasoned pro at marriage. Go us. Yes, I did graduate from college. B.S. Finance. That's me! Since my university does not do winter graduation...please accept this photo as my graduation photo for now. Maybe in May I'll go prance around in a cap and gown, but in the meantime...

Can I just say it is incredibly anti-climatic to have been in college on and off for the last 5 years, working like crazy and then have to photo shop yourself looking all college graduated? Poorly photo shopped at that...

In short, I've had a life-changing 2013. It's made goal setting for 2014 interesting. I've gotten two major life milestones passed in a single year, and it's the big "now what". I've set my goals for 2014 and I can hardly dare to hope this year could be any better than the last, but anything could happen I suppose!

I feel it appropriate to suggest a reading at this time about fear. I think fear is a topic to address as we set goals for ourselves this year. You can read about my thoughts on it by clicking here.

If you wanted to hear a little more about 2013, my year in a summary has marked the beginning of my return to my love of writing. Also, we enjoyed a lovely trip to Bear Lake. I went SUP boarding and found out how cool it is! Later, a link to my blog about our vacation we returned from just yesterday will be added here. We had a lovely time celebrating my graduation in Southern California, we did everything from SeaWorld to Disneyland courtesy of my incredibly generous parents, I would be nowhere without them.

Later Gators! 

Rowling Brings Us More Harry Potter

Big news! J.K. Rowling is producing a play based around Harry Potter. Thus the Potter franchise carries on!

However, I'm skeptical. I'm a Potter fan. I grew up with Harry Potter. However, I'm not sure I want more Potter in the form of a play. Particularly with that play being one adding on to the story but not written by J.K. Rowling herself.

I'm a bookworm through and through. I don't like watching movies nearly as much as others in the States. Usually, my first question when a movie to be watched at a social function is "How long is it?" Because if it goes over 90 minutes, I need to do some serious thinking about engaging in this function. I might have to sit still for over an hour and a half. Shivers.Only a corpse would hold that still for that long.

A play is a nice idea, most plays have intermissions so that's a good start. However, I think books are what we need. Writing is such a beautiful art form, one in which Rowling does so with particular grace and intrigue in every word. I do wish we could read books and be excited about books being written rather than reading a book and thinking to ourselves "Can't wait to see this as a movie!"

As I am working on my novel, I wonder, what would I do if someone approached me and said they wanted this story made in to a movie. What would I do? It's a silly question and I know it, I'm a long way off from even finishing my first draft much less gaining the traction necessary to call L.A.'s attention.

I do love that movies have given me opportunities to discuss with my not-so-avid reader friends the stories I have loved. I can also appreciate that movies make these stories accessible to younger friends who are still developing their reading skills. But how much does a movie help give a story more reach or detract from the original work?

Putting Together Your Minute Christmas

Maybe you're like me, Christmas is something you DO NOT start until December 1st. Usually, Christmas does not start until after finals are over with because I am not bothering with much else in life but classwork. Until December 19, I will almost exclusively grump about scraping ice off my car again and about being cold while later that day spend hours finishing up final projects and studying for finals. (If I'm lucky, I get a break to ski for a few hours so I can be less grumpy at the icky snow.)

Christmas is "experienced" in 7 days. For all the things people say you simply have to do for Christmas, 7 days isn't enough. So it's nice when things are condensed. So re-gifting or cheap, thrown together at the last minute gifts, and store-bought, extra processed goodies and easy to put up Christmas decor (like this) is much appreciated:

Easy Christmas Decor

Which is why I recommend the following song. It is excellent condensed Christmas. Get all your Christmas music listening in within 3 minutes and 31 seconds. For good measure, there's some Hanukkah in there. Enjoy!

I Bought My MegaPak of Spider Squishers This Season! Did You?

Dear friends, I've been sick for the last four days. I was going to not post this week, but my *ahem* motivator (also known as, my husband or "sweetheart") is making me write anyway...so here you are.

No, I appreciate his support for my writing in my haphazardly written personal blog. My sweetheart is a total rock star. Being sick has almost been nice with flowers by my bed and having Taco Time brought to me. (Which after two days of soups...ZOMG Taco Time is SO GOOD! Either get a spouse to get you a Casita Burrito or go get it yourself right now. Seriously. They're delicious.) However, I am definitely ready to be well again. I think feeling completely useless is the worst part of being sick.

There are few things worse than the torture of being an ill college student when near finals, especially for this poor senior who would like to graduate. (11 more days folks!) College doesn't give you a day off. Things are due when they're due and that's when they're due. I've had to scrape ice off my car and brave a blizzard to turn in a final project and two assignments. Not helpful when your eyes are swollen, throat is burning and you're exceptionally grateful you had the foresight to buy the MegaPak of tissues that should have lasted at least half the year, depending on how many spiders turn up come Spring. Hmmm, they should print this on tissue boxes: Use in case of spider infestation. Unique marketing angle, don't you think?

I'm very hopeful that in the real world (away from academia) people don't want me to make them ill or turn in poorly done projects and will allow a couple days off to recoup. Everyone says it only gets worse from here, but I think I'll ignore them for now and will permit myself to procrastinate one paper and not vacuum my apartment or wash dishes until the energy to do so returns.

Also, any and all spelling or grammatical errors, excessive usage of ellipses and parts that I thought were humorous but actually weren't are hereby excused by myself on account of my being ill. Thank you.

Things People ARE Saying Behind Your Back

So, I was thinking about how I made a lot of choices in my life that...well, are surprisingly controversial. There are choices I had expected a lot more reaction out of just because I'd been around people who said things about people who did what I did. They were so vicious and sure of how they were right that I thought they'd be all up on my case.

Actually, what really happens is this...

They say nothing.

So I thought I'd write this blog to let you all know what people are REALLY thinking about you and your life choices. Because now that you've made your choice, they're not going to tell you! You always wanted the superpower of mind reading...here are the things I've heard people say that you might have missed.

You got married. I mean, you got married, period. Doesn't matter if you were 19, 25 or 50. You got married and there are people who think one of these things about you:
1. You got married too young.
2. You settled too soon.
3. You don't know anything about marriage, because if you did you wouldn't have done it.
4. Your reception was weird.

You're having a baby. 
1. You're too broke. Basically, everyone tries to break down what they think your income is and how much debt you must have and where the extra money for baby is coming from. Come to think of it...people do the same thing when you buy a car or house or go on vacation or really any large purchase.
2. You're too young.
3. You're having an "oops" kid.

You picked a major.
1. You'll never get a decent job.
2. You're being too ambitious and greedy.
3. So...you don't want to be a mom? You must, like, hate children or something.

You have a religion/You're not religious. You changed religions, you're religious, you're orthodox, you're unorthodox, are "spiritual", atheist...just whatever. Doesn't matter...all of these apply to everyone.
1. You've got some weird beliefs.
2. You just go along with whatever is "cool" or are just doing what your mommy and daddy told you to.
3. You must have made a lot of really dumb mistakes in your life to get you where you are...
4. That does not sound fun. At all.

You've expressed a political opinion.
1. What an idiot, no idea what he/she is talking about.
2. Someone's on CNN/Fox waaaaaay too much.

On a positive more encouraging note: be brave little souls. Everybody talks, but very few are individuals of action. Be a man/woman of action!

Women in Leadership: You and Female Bosses

Good news! The gender gap is decreasing. Bad news...a lot of people still look at women in leadership and think it's a bad deal.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/13/living/identity-gallup-male-boss-female-boss/index.html?hpt=hp_bn11

At the commencement of my college career and the beginning of my career, surveys like this make me feel nervous in regards to my career, but not surprised. In leadership roles I've held in through college I know first hand about the kind of disrespect and negative opinions people have held against me because I am a woman. I was in charge of a meeting and as I began to move the group through the agenda one man turned to another and said, "Oh, look how cute. She's trying to be in charge." 

I still feel sick about this comment and incredibly hurt by the laughter that followed from all the other men in the room. Before that, I hadn't noticed that I was standing in front of an all-male group. Then I was keenly aware, and saw fully how little regard they had for my expertise, planning and preparation despite being confident and assertive in my demeanor.

I don't know if that hurt nearly as bad as when I've shared my story and shock at how objectified I was made to be to others and was met with such comments as "It's okay that they think you're cute, you should be flattered" or "You're overreacting". If you also do not see the problem with my situation, I dare you in your next meeting to call your male boss cute and mock their attempts to direct your team. Do it and see how excited they are to give you a raise or promotion...ever.

I'm writing this blog post to call everyone's attention to this issue and to call for you to recognize this issue as an actual issue. It does matter. It's wrong to judge a person's leadership skills based on gender, and it's wrong to discount someones qualifications and work based on gender. Don't wrongly call assertiveness bossiness just because the subject in question is female!

It scares me as I enter the workforce formally that I may have yet another hurdle to jump over in addition to becoming more qualified and working hard. After all that, I have to figure out how to negate these stereotypes that came in to play because who knows who got together and decided, "Hey, let's pretend women aren't real people and get offended when they get to be the boss of us."

I just wish people could just hate their boss and have it be about the person and not the person's gender. One boss who wasn't very good who happened to be female doesn't mean you won't love me as your boss.

Uninspiring Pile of Old Socks

I am realizing that when I do not take time to do writing, I feel like a pile of dirty old socks that don't know the meaning of a laundry basket. I am worn, tired and at times...a little sweaty. I need to write.

Sure, going running unleashes my excess energy that is oft just nervous energy. There's so much to be nervous about: new neighborhood, pending college graduation, exams, job searching and adjusting to all of my sibling and siblings-in-law moving in to other times zones. 

Absolutely, yoga can be incredibly restorative and get my stressed muscles relaxed and my mind refocused on the things that are most important. There are a lot of distractions, all the little details on my homework that I could agonize over in to eternity until I lost whatever semblance of sanity I pretended to have. The endless calculating "what ifs" about job prospects and potential cumulative GPA. 

However, it is writing that wakes me up, makes me excited and energized. When my life is college classes, running and yoga...all I am is just a relaxed, calm but depressed lump of socks. 

What's that saying? A bad day of writing is better than a good day of college? Yes. That sounds right. 

It's a little hard being patient to work on the writing projects I'm so excited about. I'll be starting up my website and a new blog (yes, a new blog...better yet a blog with a purpose! Unlike this one...) on Wordpress! I'm REALLY excited about this project, and I think you'll really like it. Besides, I know I will even if you don't!

I want to do it all TODAY but I have to do homework. I have to make sure this semester is my last semester of college. It would be silly to be this close and shirk off managerial economics. So I wait...

However, I need to keep doing a little writing here and there where I can in between quizzes and class projects. It keeps me feeling motivated and happy. Hmm, inspired. That's the word. Inspired. After days and days and days of mathematics and charts and numbers, it tends to leave one feeling a bit uninspired.

Now that's just sad looking isn't it?

So, as a message to my never ending pile of homework and exams: you can wait. You can wait for 30 minutes, maybe an hour, or since I'm feeling crazy...two hours! I'm spending time elsewhere. I have a novel to write, a blog to start, a website for my writing to create...you can wait.

Dear Mankind (from All the Attractive Women of the World)

I just found this gem of a blog post I wrote when I was 19. (March 2010) It deserved a re-publish.

This blog entry is written for you (cough…cough…men) who seem to not understand how to cope with our (seriously hot mama’s) attractiveness. Here is our outline of requests.

1.       Just because we are attractive…does not mean “Please, touch me!” Quite frankly at our level of awesomeness…it means “Touch me and I will personally see to your demise.”  I think I speak for all women when I say this. People, you need to understand women very much so are like cats. We are very adorable, but please don’t look so shocked if the claws come out. We as attractive women, are not whores and we don’t want you getting all grabby!

2.       We insist upon intelligent conversation. If that cannot be provided the exit is just that-a-way.

3.       To the men who think they leave a seriously attractive woman and think we’re going to just “take them back” or expect us to miss you enough to care. Grow up. It’s not happening, sweetheart.

4.       We’re very attractive. It means we expect some effort on your part. Aka…the shower and some hair gel.

5.       Don’t expect us to change our minds about our standards.

6.       No seriously, we’re not changing.

7.       We are not jealous. We just don’t share, because we deserve the best.

8.       We don’t look like convenience shops. We are not convenience shops.

9.       We really don’t care that our attractiveness is overwhelming to you, if you want to argue with a seriously attractive woman you’d better have the guts to do it in person. Never via text message or IM.

10.   Just because that one time, that one girl was okay with something, or acted more like this or whatever it was that she was like…does not mean we’re the same way. Every woman is different. If you don’t appreciate us as the individuals we are you don’t deserve us. 

Take a Break!

Note: I wrote this blog a few weeks back and neglected to publish it...so here it is. Enjoy!

I missed a week of blogging, well, okay, I took time to write my blog but nothing is ready for the final upload. I have a project I'm working on for this blog. I will be doing an education series soon. It turned out to be a bigger project than I expected. At first I thought I was just going to tackle homeschooling and student loan debt and maybe health education, but then there was so much more to discuss! I want to wait until I've pulled all of my facts together and organized the topics appropriately (it is too easy to rant about education! I don't want a rant. Neither do you.)

What my Fall Break hike looked like.

Right now, I am enjoying a lovely Fall Break. Typically, my Fall and Spring Breaks generally consist of me saying I'm going to get ahead (or catch up...depending on circumstances). Instead I end up doing some work (which is nice) but I end up feeling disappointed in how much I am able to get done.

This semester is a little different. First way it is different is I do not do homework on Sunday's anymore. (Well, okay, there was one Sunday I did...fell ill on Saturday, so I made up for it Sunday.) One way this has been great is that come Monday, I am so excited to do homework. Perhaps it is part adrenaline of have a deadline move a day closer without having done anything...but in any case, I think having that day has been very good for me. In that same vein, I've decided to actually have Fall Break and not do homework.

It's amazing how telling taking a break is. I've learned I have a sick compulsion to study. All. the. time. I hid the textbooks. I put away my notes. My first moment of no homework, I instantly thought. Homework. That sounds good. Guys, I don't particularly enjoy some of these classes, and it's not that I don't have other talents and hobbies outside of spreadsheets and financial auditing. I have a lot of things I could be doing. Practice the ukulele or guitar. Writing, heavens! Writing!! I love writing! Yoga? Running? Hiking up the canyon that is just 15 minutes away from me? Reading. Hanging out at a bookstore. I have a lot I could be doing.

Breaks are so good for you. Take a break. It's fun to find out what your habits are and see how attached you are to what things. I don't think we really know what we "do" until we have nothing to do.