Saturday, December 31, 2011

Leaping into 2012

Well, well, well... look who took another sabbatical from blogging! I was catching up on reading my best girl's blog last night and felt the need to catch up with my blog as well.

Cheers!
It's currently 6:16 p.m. on New Year's Eve and I'll soon be prepping for a night of love and laughter with some friends to ring in 2012 on a positive note. In the past hour I got to thinking about all of the many things that happened in 2011 that change my whole life and many of the fun and exciting things I was lucky enough to experience. It made me realize how much of a lucky girl I was in 2011 and I'm crossing my fingers that I'll be just as blessed in 2012.

1 - I took some fantastic trips this year! Nashville, Chicago, Louisville, New York, and Las Vegas. I experienced these cities with both friends and family and each trip created some amazing memories.
2 - I came into my own in my new career and allowed myself to fall madly in love with it. The school I was at last year was rough and the group I had was probably one of the toughest to handle, but about midway through the year (and especially after that dreaded FCAT), I realized how great I am at this and what an amazing decision I made to follow my heart and go into teaching. The students I had last year taught me as much as I taught them and they'll forever have a huge place in my heart. Leaving them at the end of the school year was absolutely heartbreaking, but I feel so lucky to have had them as my first class.
3 - I met a boy who, while he's no longer in my life, showed me that I am deserving of a lot. While going our separate ways was inevitable, he's one of the best treasures I've ever found and treated me like he felt the same.
4 - I became a godmother! It meant the absolute world to me when one of my very favorite people asked me to be the godmother to her son. Lucas is the most precious little boy in the world and it's such a special feeling to be a part of his life.
5 - I moved to a new city (sort of). I'm experiencing my 'hometown' (I don't know that I'll ever consider it my hometown as Louisville is what my family considers our real home) in a very different way than I ever had before. I moved back after getting a job at a school over here, but I only ever lived here with my parents and knew nothing about life outside of their home. I'm living in a bustling part of this city and it's exciting to see all the things I haven't experienced before, even though I had lived here for 12 years before college!
6 - I got a job that many teachers dream of. While I'm still trying to love my new school, it really is in a fantastic location and I've had a lot of opportunities to develop myself and leadership more into the world of education.
7 - I saw Garth Brooks in concert. "Just put me in a coffin and bury me," were my exact words to my dad when I called him to thank him for getting us tickets to see my ALL. TIME. FAVORITE. singer... IN. THE. WORLD. Being six rows away from Garth Brooks, in an intimate concert, was one of the very coolest experiences that I'll ever have.

There are a bajillion other things I could list. But thinking about all of these things helped me to realize that 2011 really was amazing and that there are probably many more amazing things in store for me in 2012! I'm excited for the future and all that is to come!


Sunday, September 25, 2011

No idea

Lately I've developed a sick obsession to Pinterest. Last night I stumbled across the thumbnail of this quote and I couldn't help but fall in love with it --

How true it it for everyone that has become important in your life.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Literally, CANNOT get enough of this song!

Same old story, but lots of new details

It's been a while AGAIN.. I know. Sorry to all of my millions of fans and followers who anxiously await these fantastic posts. :)

Well life sure has taken me for a ride as of late. Mid-summer I was offered a teaching job at a school in Orlando and it seemed like a very good opportunity compared to where I had been teaching. I accepted and was immediately thrown into looking for a new place to live and planning a move in the middle of vacations and trying to soak up my summer and life in Tampa as much as possible. All of this happening without really thinking -- oh shit, I'm leaving my whole life behind.

Yes, of course it's not a long distance. Thank goodness I can go see my friends whenever I want, but after living in one city for almost 9 whole years and then leaving can really be a bit traumatizing. I was too busy preparing for my new life to really realize that there was going to be a new life. I looked at all of the positives and tried to ignore that voice in the back of my head saying "Bitch! We aren't ready for this kind of change!" The week before the move I was on vacation in New York, pretty much moved right after I came back, and immediately after the move I started work that Monday. I was busy enjoying my new work environment and getting my new apartment set up and still not allowing myself to listen to that voice searching for my attention, still calling out to me, "This is a lot of change homegirl, you betta reckanize." (Yes I do get sassy inside my own head on the reg.)

It wasn't until I actually went back to Tampa to visit a friend in town 3 weeks after my move that it really hit me. I don't live here anymore, holy shit. And again, people may wonder why it's such a big deal... but this little lady does not like change. I was comfortable. I knew everyone around me. I knew my surroundings like the back of my hand. It was my home. It broke my heart to drive past my old apartment complex, to go to the bars I used to frequent on an almost weekly basis, to know that everyone I was seeing was able to stay there - in our old routine - and I had to leave in a couple of days. Once I got back to Orlando I was almost devastated. I couldn't stop feeling like I'd made the biggest mistake by moving to Orlando, the place I technically grew up and was supposed to be 'home' for me. It was a very rough week of trying to convince myself that it would all work out and it's all happened for a reason.

My affection for Tampa is so strong because I feel like that is the place I actually grew up. I went to college there, met the best friends in the world, met the boys I loved and lost, experienced firsts of almost every kind, and really grew into and became a person I am so proud of being based on everything that was experienced and happened there.

It's been, and still is, a rough transition. It's been just over a month since my move. I still miss my old apartment, my comfort of knowing that city, my bars and nightlife, and of course my friends in Tampa. However I'm slowly forcing myself to adjust. Luckily I have been able to see the bright side of my career opportunities at my new school, and decided to take serious advantage of the friends and family that I do have here in order to build upon the life I left behind.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

You'll Never See a Post Like This Again

Anyone who knows me know that I very much dislike Jennifer Lopez, and that's putting it nicely. However, I ran across an article on People about why she walked away from her marraige. This is what she had to say:

"Sometimes we don't realize that we are compromising ourselves. To understand that a person is not good for you, or that that person is not treating you in the right way, or that he is not doing the right thing for himself – if I stay, then I am not doing the right thing for me."

For anyone who has been in a relationship that compromises who you truly are, this is a strong sentiment. I've been in that place before and wish I would have been strong enough to look inside myself enough to know I was compromising who I was at the time. Somtimes you don't realize it until way too late. Good for J.Lo! (and that's the only nice thing I will ever say about her.)

Monday, August 1, 2011

Friday Night Anecdote

I was at happy hour on Friday with some friends and the bartender didn't like the way I was holding my cup as I was standing at the bar waiting for him to serve me so he took it and threw it across the bar. My reaction was to say to him, "that was very unprofessional of you."



I thought it was funny. Douchebag.

I Love This Woman!

Bethenny Frankel is someone I have come to admire greatly! She is a strong woman who says what she feels and stands up for herself with no apologies for who she is.

Instead of reading A Place of Yes, I've gotten the book on CD so that I can listen on my many drives across the state I've been doing as of late! It's got an amazing message and many great points that every woman can benefit from. I'm mid-CD set at Rule #5 of 10: All Roads Lead to Rome. This rule basically states that everything that happens, whether good or bad, leads to the next thing and eventually no matter how bad one situation may be, it leads to a better road. I've experienced this to the extreme in the past year and will testify that this rule is completely true! Two of my favorite quotes from this section are: "Just when I thought I'd gone the wrong way or messed it all up beyond repair, something happened that made me see it was all for a reason," and "You just never know when a seemingly random decision will reset the course of your life."

I Don't Want to Be a Bride

The prettiest song I've heard in a VERY long time, with a message I can't help but fall in love with.

“What about the other side of the argument?” she said, referring to the hundreds of songs women sing about wanting to get married. “What about if it’s more about what love is? And what it can be? And it has nothing to do with the confines or the tradition of any of that?”
Elle magazine with Vanessa Carlton (http://fashion.elle.com/fashion/insider/2011/07/25/first-listen-vanessa-carltons-new-song/)



I like your company, got a fresh philosophy
Never knew such a gentleman
You can take me on a cheap vacation
I don't want to have expectations
Cause you could be the end of me


And I don't need a house on a hill
A swing on a tree, a grandfather clock
Porcelain for tea, a garden with rose and jasmine


Gonna get drunk on a bottle of wine
No better way to pass the time
Forever by your side


But I don't wanna be a bride
Apologies to your mother
I wanna be your girl
And spend this life with you
But I don't wanna wear white
You know it's too late for that
But can't we keep the ever after, love
Or could it be?


Don't need no golden ring
It'd be no match for the love you bring
From London to Tennessee


We could catch a train to another life
On a whim under the moonlight
I promise you, will you promise me?


Our last names on a wooden sign

Arm in arm where the river starts to wind
Forever by your side


But I don't wanna be a bride
Apologies to each other
I wanna be your girl
And spend this life with you
But I don't wanna wear white
Oh you know it's too late for that
But can't we keep the ever after
Or could it be just you and me?

Ah, ah, ah...

We will live like kings under lavender skies, skies
We will live like kings under lavender skies, skies

We built a poem, we kept a rhyme
Wrapped our love in golden twine
We wrote, we wrote a legacy
Just you and me

We will live like kings under lavender skies, skies


We will

Once Again..

I've taken a serious vacation from blogging! I thought over summer break I'd stay on top of it, but this summer vacation is making me a lazy bum!



I've been having a fabulous break though. It started out with a lovely day trip to see my Little and her little cuties who just light up my life! Then I had a perfect trip to Chicago to see two of my best girls for six whole days. We laughed, we cried, we drank lots of beer - what more could I ask for?! Following that I just had a mini summer concert tourin Orlando with my Femme Fatales to see Britney and NKOTBSB! We couldn't have asked for better concerts to see!! In about a week and a half I'll be headed to New York to see two more of my lady loves.

I'm a very lucky lady to be so blessed with amazing people to spend my summer with!!

Sunday, April 3, 2011

"Find life experiences and swallow them whole. Travel. Meet many people. Go down some dead ends and explore dark alleys. Try everything. Exhaust yourself in the glorious pursuit of life." ~Lawrence K. Fish

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Countdown to Chi-Town

It's on!

I'm so excited to have a little summer fun in the Windy City this June. I'll be heading to Chicago to see two of my favorite gals for six whole days of love and laughter with them!

The agenda so far consists of a Cubs/Yankees game, the Lincoln Park Zoo, and a day of bridesmaid dress shopping!

Bitches be crazy

Most people are crazy. Actually, everyone is crazy. We all have it in us and if you question whether you are crazy, then you're just ignorant because we're all absolutely crazy. Even if we don't allow others to see the crazy in us, it's there!

So, there are the crazy people. Then there are what I like to call the batshit crazy people. These are the people that I think were put on this Earth to entertain us. Unfortunately, they cause drama in the lives of others and even sometimes pain and conflict, but in all reality, once you allow yourself to let go of that pain and conflict you are able to see them for what they are - pure entertainment, batshit crazy people.

These people make up ideas and situations in their head, create false senses of reality, establish conflict between people, purposely hurt others, and the list goes on and on as their antics make themselves feel better for that moment. And of course we all get caught up in it, which is what makes them happiest and allows them to thrive on their batshit craziness. But us regular crazies have to restrain ourselves and take a step back, see them for what they are, and have a good laugh over it.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

She's baaack!!

Who am I talking about?


None other than Britney, bitch!!

Once again, the Princess of Pop has done it. Amazed us with her reinvention and has made a brilliant new CD.
And while, yes, we all have seen she doesn't dance like she used to (she's almost 30 years-old with two children, hello!), she still puts on a hell of a show that gets you excited to see more. Love her or hate her, you can't look away.

Being a long time fan of this delicious diva, I feel so proud of her. It may sound silly, but when she entered the K-Fed stage of her life (going into gas station bathrooms barefoot, the chaos of their reality show Chaos, etc.) and then the out-of-control partying, pink wigs, and loss of her kids stage of life, it really was heartbreaking to see someone I admired and think so much of to fall so hard. As a VERY serious Britney fan, it's so exciting to see her get back to the Old Brit, showing off her talent and showing us how much fun she still has with what she does. I know a lot of people don't get it, and that's fine. But when I turn on a Britney CD, I can get completely lost in the fun of her music, dance around, and forget about any cares in the world. Who wouldn't love anything that gave them that kind of release?

PLUS, she says things like, "The bitch is back," in interviews and it totally makes me fall a little harder for her because we all know I love a little sass!!

Tunes

Music is pretty much what gets me through each day - happy, sad, excited, bored, hungry.. whatever the feeling is, I can always find something to fit the mood. So I get TOTALLY pumped when there are CDs that I totally fall in love with. These two have been playing non-stop in my car for the past few weeks. (Scratch that: HAD BEEN playing non-stop in my car for the past few weeks, until Brit Brit finally graced us with her presence!! More to come on that little gem.)

First up is Sara Bareilles' Kaleidoscope Heart:

Not every song is my favorite but some of them seem like she crawled inside my brain and read my thoughts and feelings. I love hearing songs that I can relate to so well, it's like free therapy.

Next is Nicki Minaj's Pink Friday:

I promised myself I'd never give into her... but it just happend- she infiltrated my brain. Kind of like Gaga did, which is funny because she's kind of like a black Lady Gaga. Anyway, I love the mix of her singing and rapping and the way she changes her voice adds so much to her songs.

It's been a minute

A reaaaal hot minute! I keep telling myself on a daily basis that I'm going to get back to blogging - because in all reality who DOESN'T want to read my thoughts on a daily basis - and it just seems like one more exhausting task for the day!

Thank goodness I was offered a last minute job in a 4th grade position and finally have MY dream job. It may not be anyone else's but it truly is mine and every day I'm reminded of that and how lucky I am for finding something I'm so passionate about and that I'm able to get paid for.

With that being said, teaching is the most exhausting job on the planet - out of all the experiences that I've experienced anyway! This polar bear TOTALLY gets my drift; he's role playing how I feel when I get home each day. So when I come home and I turn on my computer, as much as my quirky thoughts and ideas are at the tip of my tongue, it just seems to be a burden to release them onto the blogosphere.

Regardless, I'm gonna try to get with the program.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Sunday, March 13, 2011

That's What Single Girls Do

One more glass of wine
Before I turn off the lights
...this time I'll be fine

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

"The idea that you can get everything you want in one person is destructive. And maybe when you accept that the number is closer to 50 or 60 or 70 percent, that's when you can start to make some progress in choosing the right person." -Michelle Williams