For the rest of November, I'm going to write at least one thing I'm thankful for every day. I was in denial that it really was November already, so I'm 9 days in. I'll write 9 things in this one to make up for it.
1. My family
2. My friends
3. My home
4. My job
5. My photography
6. My electric blanket
7. Monthly poker night with the girls
8. Laughter
9. My vacation to Cabo
Monday, November 9, 2009
Juice It Up - Or Not.
This is an interesting article on juice. I don't drink much juice because it's just as high in calories and sugar as soda and if I have to pick one, Dr. Pepper beats out OJ any day of the week.
What this article spurred me to do is go. grocery. shopping. I'm sick, and yesterday was so lame because I had no soup, no veggies, nothing that had enough nutrients to help me get better. Popcorn and a bagel with cream cheese a day will not keep the doctor away.
Cheers to eating more actual produce! I wish we had Andy's Produce over here. I love that place.
What this article spurred me to do is go. grocery. shopping. I'm sick, and yesterday was so lame because I had no soup, no veggies, nothing that had enough nutrients to help me get better. Popcorn and a bagel with cream cheese a day will not keep the doctor away.
Cheers to eating more actual produce! I wish we had Andy's Produce over here. I love that place.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Changes.
I needed a change. Since it took me a year to grow out my hair, I decided against cutting it and changed my blog template instead.
It was time.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Energy Star
This makes me furious.
One comment has it right....charging for checked bags when those same bags were free 2 years ago (same cargo space! argh.), Comcast raising rates 40% over the past 5 years, credit card companies slamming us with new fees at the start of the year......How can consumers push back? HOW? If I could figure out a way, I'd do it. From what I can tell, I need solar panels to go off the grid of PG&E, I need to get rid of my internet so I don't have to deal with Comcast, I have to get rid of my phone because AT&T is the WORST EVER, and I should probably get rid of my car since gas is a rip off and I look like a soccer mom. (ok, not energy related but it's true.)
The only thing I have going for me is I'm on a well. Too bad it stains my tub/sink/toilet and doesn't taste great. Now if I could just get my garden going...
One comment has it right....charging for checked bags when those same bags were free 2 years ago (same cargo space! argh.), Comcast raising rates 40% over the past 5 years, credit card companies slamming us with new fees at the start of the year......How can consumers push back? HOW? If I could figure out a way, I'd do it. From what I can tell, I need solar panels to go off the grid of PG&E, I need to get rid of my internet so I don't have to deal with Comcast, I have to get rid of my phone because AT&T is the WORST EVER, and I should probably get rid of my car since gas is a rip off and I look like a soccer mom. (ok, not energy related but it's true.)
The only thing I have going for me is I'm on a well. Too bad it stains my tub/sink/toilet and doesn't taste great. Now if I could just get my garden going...
Thursday, November 5, 2009
TEN YEARS.
November 1st marked my 10th year of corporate life. Wow. I was such a baby when I started! Fresh from the video store, 21 years old, I thought corporate life was so exciting and adult-like. Ten years later, it's really not that exciting and it's WAY too adult-like.
I have learned so much in the past ten years, both personally and professionally, and have had some great (and not so great) experiences. I've become a more rational, patient person who is loyal (too loyal?) and genuine.
[and for the Academy Award thank-yous...]
Thank you to all of my bosses over the years who have shaped me into the black slack, button-down shirt employee I am today. Thank you to the ones who believed in me, the ones who supported me, and the ones who saw my potential. Thank you to my previous employer and my current for providing the benefits and employee consideration that is rare in the work force today. For those bosses who didn't do any of the above, thank you for making me realize that there are more important things in my life than working for you, like my sanity, or my ability to be a non-bitter person, or my integrity and self-worth.
Can I retire now? Come on, that was a good speech.
I have learned so much in the past ten years, both personally and professionally, and have had some great (and not so great) experiences. I've become a more rational, patient person who is loyal (too loyal?) and genuine.
[and for the Academy Award thank-yous...]
Thank you to all of my bosses over the years who have shaped me into the black slack, button-down shirt employee I am today. Thank you to the ones who believed in me, the ones who supported me, and the ones who saw my potential. Thank you to my previous employer and my current for providing the benefits and employee consideration that is rare in the work force today. For those bosses who didn't do any of the above, thank you for making me realize that there are more important things in my life than working for you, like my sanity, or my ability to be a non-bitter person, or my integrity and self-worth.
Can I retire now? Come on, that was a good speech.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Photography
Soooo I love photography. Everyone knows that. I tried to use iWeb for a blog but that was just lame (or it was user error. I'm going with iWeb is lame.) I broke down and got yet another Blogger blog for my photography...I'll try to keep that updated as often as I keep my Facebook fan page updated. I may be dangerously close to drowning in social media...
I'm going to keep shooting and posting and editing and joining groups and being as active of a photographer I can because I. heart. it.
My FAVORITE photo of the year:
For some reason I just love to shoot cutlery. Pretty, though, ain't it?
Cheers!
Monday, November 2, 2009
Halloween 2009
On the list to do for Halloween 2009:
Turned out to be a really fun Halloween. Cheers!
- Go to Tahoe
- Go to SBC
- Go to Santa Rosa
- Go to Petaluma
- Stay home and watch movies.
Turned out to be a really fun Halloween. Cheers!
Thursday, October 29, 2009
First Day Back
The first day back from vacation almost makes me never want to take another vacation. On Tuesday, at Aeropuerto Internacional de Los Cabos, I panicked because I forgot how to do my job. Sign of a good vacation? Probably. Makes for a good first day back? Not so much.
On my list of things to do post-vacation:
--Send Hurricane Rick an Edible Arrangements fruit basket for completely leaving before we got there.
--Finish up my Halloween costume. (I should have gone as peopleofwalmart.com but I have another idea. Maybe next year.)
--Sleep
--Figure out how to keep my tan without sprays or beds. Fly back to Mexico? That's still an option.
--Blog about the trip for real.
--Figure out how to give boys my phone number. I have a feeling I missed an opportunity.
That's all for now.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Vacation
Ya know how people say, "Vacation was so great but it's so nice to sleep in my own bed and be in my own home."
I don't feel that way one bit. I'm actually going to just do some laundry today and hop back on the next flight to Cabo. Anyone wanna come with me?
PS - It's WAY warmer there.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Vacation Time
Puerta Vallarta/Chicago/Indianapolis/New York - 2004
Costa Rica - 2006
Mucho mini-vacations - 2000 - present
Cabo San Lucas - 2009
Passport. Check.
Check ya later....I'm going on vacation!!
Monday, October 19, 2009
Positive Thinking: "Smile or Die"
I don't usually characterized myself in many ways...in the more trivial things in life, I'm usually a fence-sitter who can't commit to an entree decision (granted, the way that I love food is anything but trivial.) In the more important things in life, I definitely lean more to one side than the other, but depending on the issue, I can't lump myself into one camp generally speaking. I'll see what I can figure out now on this gloomy day in October.
Disclaimer: I'm a happy, friendly, genuine, sincere, easy-going person born without the debate gene. I like to hear all sides of everything before making a decision. I love to research and read and dig deeper into subjects that interest me. I'm a skeptic on things that seem ridiculous but until I've researched it, I hold judgment. I love with reckless abandon, eat with reckless abandon, but aren't reckless in nature.
I'm a realist with a heavy dollop of optimism. I do the right thing because it's the right thing to do, even if it's not in my best interest, uncomfortable, or the more difficult of paths. I'm generally a happy person who knows that when the going gets tough, positive-thinking my way through it is for suckers. The world works in a certain way, I can strive to make positive changes, but things like The Secret are hogwash to me (yes, I just used hogwash.) Like I've said before, I do not believe that positive thinking or mass amounts of vegetables will prevent or cure cancer. And like I've said before, I am offended by this school of thought.
On the heels of that, I have finally come across someone who sounds like she feels the same way I do. This is probably the first time in my life I actually want to attend an author's appearance/book signing thing. Barbara Ehrenreich has written a book called "Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America" - a book I fully intend to read. When Ms. Ehrenreich was diagnosed with breast cancer, she found that she was bombarded with books, articles, stories, and people who told her to think positively as it was the only way to overcome this horrible disease. Her quote from the article on SFGate today: "When I reached out, all I could find were these exhortations to be positive or cheerful because it will make you better," she said. "It was either smile or die."
Like Ms. Ehrenreic, I believe that people have become attached to the notion that if you think in a way that is overly optimistic, narcissistic or blindly positive, anything they want will come true. Are Americans that delusional? Have we lost our sense of reality? Are people wanting so badly to grab onto any ideal or "philosophy" that is easily accessible that they are becoming (more?) gullible? Welcome back to REALITY, people. Not reality shows, reality. Life isn't easy. There isn't a magic pill that makes it all better. I'm willing to admit right now that I wish there were! That isn't REALITY. Reality is assessing your situation and doing the leg work to figure out a solution. Decisions based in reality are not the ones that rely on scam artists who appeal to people when they are at their lowest, taking take their money for impossible promises and lofty ideas. Reality is accepting that we aren't perfect, we don't get everything we want, and just because one channels all of their thoughts through the Positive Thinking Machine, they won't get anything unless they work for it.
I am by no means expecting everyone to think negatively because the world is not a friendly place and bad things will happen. All I'm asking for is a huge dose of reality.
I wish for things all the time. A hot guy has never once shown up on my doorstep. He won't ever show up on my doorstep and if he did, then I should alert the press because I've just made a guest appearance in a Nicholas Sparks book. I know that in order to meet people (potential dates, friends, clients, business associates), I have to attend events, join organizations, follow my passions and utilize my skills. I do not for one moment believe that if I had just thought more positively, my grandparents, aunt, and uncles would still be with me. I do not believe that if I had just thought more positively and put those thoughts out into the universe, I wouldn't be upside down on my condo. I do not believe that if I had just thought more positively, I would have won the lottery by now. I do believe that thinking positively and trying to see the bright side of things can help when you're overwhelmed or need a pick me up.
"Thinking positively" has gotten a negative connotation in my mind, one that speaks to naiveté and gullibility. I do not expect positive thoughts to satisfy my basic needs and that's why I go to a job everyday. I think positively because why would I want to be sad or depressed all the time? I think positively because I am happy. That's all it comes down to.
Disclaimer: I'm a happy, friendly, genuine, sincere, easy-going person born without the debate gene. I like to hear all sides of everything before making a decision. I love to research and read and dig deeper into subjects that interest me. I'm a skeptic on things that seem ridiculous but until I've researched it, I hold judgment. I love with reckless abandon, eat with reckless abandon, but aren't reckless in nature.
I'm a realist with a heavy dollop of optimism. I do the right thing because it's the right thing to do, even if it's not in my best interest, uncomfortable, or the more difficult of paths. I'm generally a happy person who knows that when the going gets tough, positive-thinking my way through it is for suckers. The world works in a certain way, I can strive to make positive changes, but things like The Secret are hogwash to me (yes, I just used hogwash.) Like I've said before, I do not believe that positive thinking or mass amounts of vegetables will prevent or cure cancer. And like I've said before, I am offended by this school of thought.
On the heels of that, I have finally come across someone who sounds like she feels the same way I do. This is probably the first time in my life I actually want to attend an author's appearance/book signing thing. Barbara Ehrenreich has written a book called "Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America" - a book I fully intend to read. When Ms. Ehrenreich was diagnosed with breast cancer, she found that she was bombarded with books, articles, stories, and people who told her to think positively as it was the only way to overcome this horrible disease. Her quote from the article on SFGate today: "When I reached out, all I could find were these exhortations to be positive or cheerful because it will make you better," she said. "It was either smile or die."
Like Ms. Ehrenreic, I believe that people have become attached to the notion that if you think in a way that is overly optimistic, narcissistic or blindly positive, anything they want will come true. Are Americans that delusional? Have we lost our sense of reality? Are people wanting so badly to grab onto any ideal or "philosophy" that is easily accessible that they are becoming (more?) gullible? Welcome back to REALITY, people. Not reality shows, reality. Life isn't easy. There isn't a magic pill that makes it all better. I'm willing to admit right now that I wish there were! That isn't REALITY. Reality is assessing your situation and doing the leg work to figure out a solution. Decisions based in reality are not the ones that rely on scam artists who appeal to people when they are at their lowest, taking take their money for impossible promises and lofty ideas. Reality is accepting that we aren't perfect, we don't get everything we want, and just because one channels all of their thoughts through the Positive Thinking Machine, they won't get anything unless they work for it.
I am by no means expecting everyone to think negatively because the world is not a friendly place and bad things will happen. All I'm asking for is a huge dose of reality.
I wish for things all the time. A hot guy has never once shown up on my doorstep. He won't ever show up on my doorstep and if he did, then I should alert the press because I've just made a guest appearance in a Nicholas Sparks book. I know that in order to meet people (potential dates, friends, clients, business associates), I have to attend events, join organizations, follow my passions and utilize my skills. I do not for one moment believe that if I had just thought more positively, my grandparents, aunt, and uncles would still be with me. I do not believe that if I had just thought more positively and put those thoughts out into the universe, I wouldn't be upside down on my condo. I do not believe that if I had just thought more positively, I would have won the lottery by now. I do believe that thinking positively and trying to see the bright side of things can help when you're overwhelmed or need a pick me up.
"Thinking positively" has gotten a negative connotation in my mind, one that speaks to naiveté and gullibility. I do not expect positive thoughts to satisfy my basic needs and that's why I go to a job everyday. I think positively because why would I want to be sad or depressed all the time? I think positively because I am happy. That's all it comes down to.
Hurricane Rick Sucks.
I just wanted to write an open letter to Hurricane Rick.
Dear Hurricane Rick,
About a month and a half ago, your friend, Hurricane Jimena, caused a little panic in me. She swirled around Cabo, making me nervous that my hotel wouldn't be there by the time I got there in October. Supposedly, October is well past the end of hurricane season, so I was trying not to worry.
Today, Mr. H. Rick, I saw that you have decided to visit Cabo as well. I understand that we all need a vacation now and then, but did you have to choose the place I'm visiting on Wednesday? Did you? I don't think that's very nice and I'd appreciate it if you and all of your Hurricane friends would just let me take the vacation I so desperately need and either hang out in the ocean for a while or hit Cabo in November.
According to my friends at weather.com, you're weakening. Now I know this may be very emasculating for you, but I for one am happy to hear it. I'll get you a nice fruit basket when I return home next week if you'll please just stay away.
Thank you, and if we happen to meet the Category 1 side of you on Wednesday, I'll be polite but don't expect a welcome hug.
Sincerely,
Wine Chick
Dear Hurricane Rick,
About a month and a half ago, your friend, Hurricane Jimena, caused a little panic in me. She swirled around Cabo, making me nervous that my hotel wouldn't be there by the time I got there in October. Supposedly, October is well past the end of hurricane season, so I was trying not to worry.
Today, Mr. H. Rick, I saw that you have decided to visit Cabo as well. I understand that we all need a vacation now and then, but did you have to choose the place I'm visiting on Wednesday? Did you? I don't think that's very nice and I'd appreciate it if you and all of your Hurricane friends would just let me take the vacation I so desperately need and either hang out in the ocean for a while or hit Cabo in November.
According to my friends at weather.com, you're weakening. Now I know this may be very emasculating for you, but I for one am happy to hear it. I'll get you a nice fruit basket when I return home next week if you'll please just stay away.
Thank you, and if we happen to meet the Category 1 side of you on Wednesday, I'll be polite but don't expect a welcome hug.
Sincerely,
Wine Chick
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