There's no time! There's never any TIME!

Oh, time. You are the cheekiest little monkey. When we want more time, there's not enough time. When we want less time, there's too much time. When we want time to go slow, it goes fast. When we want time to go fast, too bad you are still in line at the DMV.

Our biggest excuse in life is that we don't have time. "I'd volunteer, but I don't have time. I'd join a club, but I'm so busy. I'd exercise, but I can't break my previous engagement with this cookie." My challenge this segment is to make time, which is going to be difficult because of my work schedule, my school schedule, and the fact that I am going to try to do the Novel in Month for Novemeber.

Novemeber is National Novel Writing month, and I am going to write one. See that? See all that resolve and self-confidence? Yeah, let's remember that come midnight on day 14. Writing is one of my passions, so this is the perfect challenge to make time, write unapologetically, and to "enjoy failure" as Gretchen Rubin would say.

You can do it too!

http://www.nanowrimo.org/

Simplicity :/
Energy :) (mostly from Halloween candy)
Mindfulness :)

Make Time :)
Don't apologize :)
Fun in Failure :/

"Much may be done in those little shreds and patches of time which every day produces, and which most men throw away." Charles Caleb Cotton


photo by http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&safe=active&sa=N&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-Address&biw=1280&bih=878&tbm=isch&tbnid=lClqRMCjXU9igM:&imgrefurl=http://campusclipper.com/blog/%3Fattachment_id%3D6185&docid=z-JMOvGI8siBmM&imgurl=http://campusclipper.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/jessie-spano-caffeine-addict.jpg&w=473&h=347&ei=1I6RUMmhMOf40gH50YCoDA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=912&vpy=151&dur=243&hovh=192&hovw=262&tx=176&ty=135&sig=108161597663437873127&page=1&tbnh=139&tbnw=189&start=0&ndsp=34&ved=1t:429,i:86

Oh Sandy, Ba-ay-bee...

I think the last thing I thought I would be doing after moving to Philadelphia from the east coast of Florida is prepping for a hurricane. I think I might be losing my touch--In college, I was like an evacuation guru. "Everyone unplug your electronics and pull them away from the window. Fill up the bath tubs and elevate your valuables. Eat all those frozen tater-tots, they will not make it through the night." Now, I find myself scavenging for cases of water, fighting the storm lines at Target, and lugging my cornhole set upstairs last minute. At least I have you, blog and blog-readers.

I think my chapter on Mindfulness has been my favorite and most effective segment yet. It is the first one that I actually felt significantly happier practicing. Sure, I had some bad weeks (last week) and some bad days (*ahem* I'm looking at you, Wednesday). Still, while practicing mindfulness, I truly was more relaxed, less irritable, and just plain happier.

With such as successful third segment, choosing my fourth has proven to be a challenge. There are so many more avenues of happiness I want to explore and am not sure which one to explore next. Here are some possibilities: family, friends, passions, relationship, body image, spirituality, money, career, self-confidence, giving back...

While I have some trepidation, I'm thinking the next segment will be on passions. While I am worried that my current school and work schedule leaves very time for extracurricular activities, part of the goal of this project was to find happiness WITHIN a crazy schedule and WITHIN my normal life (whatever that means). So, what are some of my passions? Here's a list

1. Theatre
2. Singing
3. Writing
4. Drawing
5. Baking
6. Running

I feel lucky to be passionate about so many things and sometimes I always want to add something more. However, the important thing with this project is to be honest with myself. Sorry, but I'm not passionate about Mozart, I'm not passionate about Warhol, and I'll never be passionate about any TV show where two men go antiquing together.My three goals for my segment on passions will be:

1. Make time for the things you love.
2. Do not apologize for the things you love.
3. Enjoy your hobbies, even if you are not so good at them.

Simplicity :/
Energy :)
Mindfulness :/

"Cows are my passion. What I have ever sighed for has been to retreat to a Swiss farm, and live entirely surrounded by cows - and china." Charles Dickens

It's time I got back

Wow, have I been slacking. I have to say, this past week has been rotten on all fronts. I haven't blogged, I've given into distructive thoughts and actions, I haven't cleaned or been mindful, and I just snapped at the security guard for asking to see my student ID before five ("Yo' enterin from the right side of the building." Take note: Terrorist only enter the school from the left side of building after 5:00PM, but they have no such time constraints on the right side of the building).

Up until this past week, I was feeling confident that my personal "happiness project" was working. I won't let this week's set back deter me, but I would like to discuss what put me in this particular funk.

In Rubin's book, she says that to be happy one must "feel right in an environment of growth". She was referring to how when she was a lawyer, she didn't feel right, so she switched to being a writer. Now, she loves her job and feels right doing it. Well, la-tee-da for her, I say. I was a freelance actor for three years before I took my current job. There were several times I felt "right": my internships in Vermont, my apprenticeships in Philadelphia, rehearsing for tour, etc. In fact, theatre is often the very place I DO feel right: the musty smell of the backstage, the sawdust fromt he shop, the blue light that surrounds you while you're waiting in the wings, I could go on for days. However, there was a lot else connected with being an actor that felt, well, wrong: lack of health insurance, living below the poverty line, constant rejection, the cost of the business (head shots, bus rides, audition outfits, agent fees) Here is a list of side jobs I had to have to make ends meet.

1. Caterer to the stars (George Bush Sr. and the 2008-2009 Phillies. Ya know, when they were good).

2. Promo Model (Would you like a Miller High Life? No? Are you sure? But it's the champagne of beers? How about thie Leunenkeugel that tastes like fruity pebbles?)

3. Theatre Instructor (this one I actually like, aside for the early Saturday mornings of course. And the inner city schools where I was less of a teacher and more of a warden)

4. Hanna Montana impersonator (It was exactly as bad as you think it was)

5. Kids Gym Instructor (This one wasn't so bad either, except for all those sticky, snotty baby hands)

6. Box Office employee (I liked working for the theatre, but had to give it up for tour)

7. Nanny (to the stars! I like to end most of my jobs with "to the stars!")

8. Chart House Hostess (I maybe lasted two weeks there)

9. Philadelphia Chocolate Tour Guide (How I didn't get fat, I have no idea)

10. Server/Singer on the Spirit of Philadelphia (I'm on a boat! and it sucks!)

Some of these I did individually, but for the most part it was a combination of two-four of these things. And I STILL didn't make ends meet. So, Rubin, how is a single-lady supposed to feel "right" when she is working a ton of crappy jobs to support the thing she only gets to do MAYBE once a year? Rubin would be angry at me if I said that I was working to support school, and studying ASL to support theatre. She would say those are all distractions from my passion. Well, what has my passion done for me lately? What's the answer to that, Rubin? Grumpily yours, Kristen.

Simplicity :(
Energy :)
Slow down :/
Senses :(
No negative thoughts/actions :(

"Do what you love to do and give it your very best. Whether it's business or baseball, or the theater, or any field. If you don't love what you're doing and you can't give it your best, get out of it. Life is too short. You'll be an old man before you know it."~Al Lopez

Photo by: http://professionaldestiny.com/2009/09/

Stop, Collaborate, and LISTEN

You know those authentication things websites make you do to ensure you're not a robot? You know, when it says 'Please type the word you see?'Yeah, sometimes those things seriously make me question my literacy. Usually, I mess up three times and give up. Maybe I am a robot.

I interpreted an interesting article the other day about how humans are losing our listening. The world is so noisy, that we all take refuge in headphones. We've stopped listening to each other, and prefer to text message. This means that we miss A LOT, and sometimes things that are pretty important. Ever ask someone their name, and realize two seconds later that you've forgotten it? Ever ask someone the time, and when they walk away, realize that you have no idea what time it is? Listening is key to living in the moment. As part of my mindfulness exercises, I have stopped walking with headphones in. Don't get me wrong, I love music, and I still jam out to some showtunes in the office and some Pitbull or Sean Paul on my morning run. I may need to get better taste in music. However, I will say that I have found it incredibly soothing to walk around town, just listening to the sounds of the city. This is gonna sound hippy-dippy, but listening connects us to our environment. If you are concentrating on the feel of the cool air, the smell of the grass, the yellow of the leaves, and the sounds of the wind and the birds, that is when you really get the full picture.

Listening has also made me less anxious and irritable. You're brain doesn't start worrying about all the little, nagging things in your life, if it is focused on everything going around you. Also, I am a person who is easily irritated by inconsistently repetitive noise. It's like chinese water torture. Just ask my sister about the times she has bitten her nails too close to me. She is just one victim of my seemingly sudden freak outs. While this will always be a difficulty for me, I find that trying to ignore sounds, actually makes them worse, much like a tooth ache or a child. Instead, if you think of all the sounds around you like an orchestra, it somehow becomes more bearable.

I was sitting on the steps of school, when a student behind me started speaking very loudly. Usually, I would have scowled and moved away. Instead, I accepted it and listened to it, like a sudden trumpet solo. I found that if I paid attention to it, it didn't annoy me at all. I have also been attempting to listen to people closer in conversation, and what I discovered is that people are FUNNY. So often, we are just riding out someone's conversation until we get to talk, or tell our story or our joke. It's somewhat backwards, but sometimes the more you pay attention to someone, the more interesting they become. I have also noticed that I have more to say, because I have follow up questions to ask.

Also, my boyfriend said it would be more aesthetically pleasing to consolidate my categories, and he knows WAY more about this stuff than I do, so here we go!

Simplicity :(
Energy :/
Slow down :(
Senses :/
No negative thoughts/actions :/

"Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence."~Robert Frost

Original Photo byhttp://www.gnu.org/graphics/listen.html

Congrats to them on having a Yak in Headphones

Rules of Being a Grown-up

In The Happiness Project, Rubin lists her rules of adulthood. I've been thinking a lot about these things, as I think they are very connected to our well-being. I also think they are things that we would tell our best friends, but often don't apply to ourselves. So, here we go, a list of rules of adulthood:

1. Think of the big picture.

2. No one is thinking about you as much as you think. A friend once told me, "Think of all you could do, if you didn't care what other people thought." That one always stuck with me.

3. Set yourself up for success- This is something I always tell my friends when they are trying to get over a guy. Put your phone in someone's purse when you go out. Erase his number. Avoid the places you might run into the guy. I also apply it to other things in life. If you want to get homework done, but know you're easily distracted, go to the library. If you want to save some money, but know you're bad at budgeting, set up a separate account. If you want to loose weight, but have a sweet tooth, don't sit in a barrel of reese's peanut butter cups.

4. When in doubt, run it out. Those endorphins are no joke.

5. Monkeys and falling down are two things that are always funny.

6. Wear sunscreen. And a hat. And walk with a parasol if you don't think it's too socially unacceptable.

7. Never say "This is going to be so much fun!" Here's the thing- when you anticipate that something is going to be awesome, it's probably not going to live up to your expectations. The awesome times come when you're not looking for them. They're the times where you're just hanging out with friends and end up rolling on the floor laughing or bursting into song and dance at a laundry mat or suddenly being invited to the birthday party of a prominent strip-club owner (it was a mixed crowd to be assured)

8. Never wear white while cooking with tomato sauce. You WILL spill.

9. Never say "I'll just go for one." Whether it's chocolate, potatoe chips, or beer, it's never going to be one.

10. God has three answers to your prayers "Yes", "Not right now", and "I've got something better planned." I know that sounds corny, and I'm not someone who believes heavily in fates. But I do believe that things work out the way they're supposed to work out. For better or worse.

What about you? Do you have rules of adulthoood?

Also, you may notice that my checklist has shortened. This is because I remove resolutions that are either not effective or actually increase my anxiety rather than decrease. And I'm the boss of this blog, so what I say goes, got it?

Clean it up :(
Let it go :(
Eat Right :)
Act energetic :)
Slow Down :(
Senses :/
No negative thoughts/actions :(

"I think you should be a child for as long as you can. I have been successful for 74 years being able to do that. Don't rush into adulthood, it isn't all that much fun."~Bob Newhart

Photo by http://amoviediary.tumblr.com/post/20915271951/peter-pan

Robbery at 7-Eleven

When I first moved to this city, I was overjoyed. I'm not exaggerating with that word; I literally skipped around the city, exploring the historic buildings, popping in every shop, and most of all--looking up. When you grow up in Florida, tall buildings are pretty rare (the base of ground is often sand and weak sediment so when it gets we the buildings sink and are you bored? you're bored well then GATOR ATTACK!) When I moved here, I looked up all the time. My NYC friends always say that's how to spot a tourist--their gaping upwards towards the top of the buildings.

After a while though, you stop looking up. In fact, you're usually looking down, as if counting the cracks in the sidewalk will get you to your destination faster. You are texting on your phone and arranging your playlist and ignoring everyone around you.

So, for the past two days, I've tried to look up. I walk for 30-90 minutes a day. I tried to turn off my thoughts, and pay attention to everything around me. I listened to the car engines in the street, I felt the rain drops on my cheek, I smelled the wet sidewalk, and I studied the concrete on the rooftops.

Mostly, what I first started to notice was real estate. I mean, who gets a roof deck, a yard, AND a parking spot in this city?! Ridiculous. But besides that, I start to appreciate things. I appreciate the cold weather that I used to adore as a kid. I appreciate the puddles on the sidewalk. I actually played the glad game while being mindful. "I'm glad that dog has spots, I'm glad that plant is so green, I'm glad my sweater feels cozy" and on and on. It's a lot harder than it seems. Trying walking for 30 minutes without thinking about what happened last night or what you have to do a work today or what vacation you want to take next. Thinking about nothing takes SERIOUS effort. Still, I will say that it really does help me experience what is happening now, and let go of what happened or will happen. That heaviness that usually falls over me stays away as long as I focus on my surroundings.

I mean, how else would I have noticed the man run out of 7-eleven with a back-pack of stuff and all of the employees run after him? That would have been something growing up that I would have saved and shared with everyone I knew at school the next day. Now, it's so commonplace, I barely watched to see if they caught him (They did. Who tries to rob a store in a red jumpsuit anyway). We get so used to things, and we take so much for granted. We gotta look at each moment as something new, before it passes and we look back wishing we'd appreciated it more.

Clean it up :/
Let it go :)
Eat right :(
Act Energetic :/
Slow Down :(
Use your senses :)
Stop Bad thoughts/Actions :)

"When I look down, I miss all the good stuff when I look up, I just trip over things"~Ani DiFranco

Photo by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Don't_Look_Up_Here.jpg

Mind the Gap, the dog poo, and anything else that will seriously ruin your day

As I end the chapter on Energy, let's take a look at what we've learned.

1. Eat when you're hungry, not when someone else is hungry.
2. Don't let yourself get hangry
3. Take the stairs
4. Look at the big picture
5. Less choices, more decisions
6. It's better to be kind than right
7. When someone throws a cigarette, duck.

It's a little hard to tell if I am more energetic or not. However, the most valuable thing I have learned is to know your limitations and your physical tendencies. I have learned to eat at 11 am and 3 pm, because it is what makes me feel best and helps me maintain my weight. I have learned that I can actually get a lot of homework done on my lunch break, but will not be able to form a coherent sentence between the hours of three and five. So, I do work during lunch, and relax, blog, or run errands during my foggy times. Even if I'm not super peppy and energetic, following these patterns has truly improved my mood and made me feel more productive.

The next segment of my own personal happiness project is called Mindfulness. Psychology today defines mindfulness as "a state of active, open attention on the present. When you're mindful, you observe your thoughts and feelings from a distance, without judging them good or bad. Instead of letting your life pass you by, mindfulness means living in the moment and awakening to experience." There is SO much talk about mindfulness these days, and especially it's benefits for people with anxiety and stress (which is pretty much everyone these days).

The problem is, I don't really have the time or desire to meditate for fifteen minutes everyday. Who does? I'm looking to create mindfulness in my own crazy life. To do this, I'm going to focus on three things:

1. Slow Down
2. Listen to the senses
3. Stop negative thoughts or actions

Mindfulness is something I think is beautiful and SO darn difficult to achieve. How do I stop the carousel of to-do's from spinning in my head? How do I stop daydreaming of being a Broadway star while I'm typing people's salaries? How do you get your mind to just not go anywhere than where it's supposed to be? My brain needs like a canine crate, because it's rolling around in a hamster wheel right now, and I have a feeling it's gonna get stuck under the couch and everyone's gonna forget about it.

Clean it up :)
Let it go :)
Eat Right :/
Move more :)
Slow Down :/
Use senses :)
Stop bad thoughts/ actions :/

"Expecting is the greatest impediment to living. In anticipation of tomorrow, it loses today."~Seneca

Photo http://www.today.ucla.edu/portal/ut/using-mindfulness-to-reduce-stress-96966.aspx

A Debutante Goes to Community College

I imagine there must be some of you out there who are thinking, "What could possibly be so exhausting and complicated about this girl's life? She doesn't have kids yet, she's got her health, and all she has to worry about is work and school." I'll say this, you are correct. By all accounts, I should be waking up as Susy McSunshine, ready to lead the marching band down Main St. Therefore, to get us all on the same page, I would like to tell a most lamentous tale, of a girl who graduated with a BA, only to return to the tragic world of academia at Community College.

The school did not allow new students to enroll online, because we are living in the medieval times (where's my liter of diet coke, wench?), so I stood in line for a couple of hours to get into the class. When I received my receipt for the class, I noted that they had overcharged me by $700. They overcharged an ACTOR $700. After several unanswered phone calls, I went to the college in person. They said that they had charged me the non-resident fee and that I would have to return with my lease. I came back the next day, and they said that would not be enough, I would have to return with my lease AND a bill. I returned the next day, and they printed a receipt saying they refunded the $700. I checked my bank account--no such money. I called, and they said they were sending a check. No such check. I went back to the school and they said they had no record of a refund and no record of my residency. I asked to speak to the manager (or whatever the community college admin equivalent is) They sent me to another office. I showed my refund receipt, printed on the college letterhead, and they said they had no record of the transaction in the computer. Finally, I raised my voice and demanded to speak to the top-guy, whoever that was. A woman came out with a post-it. "Write your name and address on here." and then turning to the administrator. "Send her a check."

I have learned that all official financial transactions should involve the f-bomb and a post-it note.

I am enrolled in a two-year program, and have been for the past four years. Thanks to cancelled classes that the college did not want to pay for, I have met people who have been in the same program for eight years. You could be a lawyer by then. You could be a lot of things by then.

A little description of the environment. There were escalators to get from one floor to the other, but only one out of six worked at any given time. There is a line of dirt that circumnavigates each classroom, which students claim is the the reminents of afro-spray. There are no wipe-off boards, only chalk boards. There is never any chalk available to the teachers, so they are often forced to hide it in various parts of the room. The amount of gum under the desk is so large, that one cannot discern if there once was wood in its place. The artwork and profanity etched into every desk should be it's own "student works" display in the art department. The "student life" bulletin board should be a place for club meetings and student government announcements, but is instead a place for "Missing persons" notices and "Pregnant and don't know where to turn?" flyers. The bathrooms might be cleaned once a week, but usually are a place for people to make toilet paper confetti and steal the locks off the stall doors. What the hell are you doing with bathroom stall locks anyway?

Friends, I wish I was exaggerating. You just can't make this stuff up.

So, yes. I should be doing cartwheels. I should be whistling to little blue birds and baby deer as they help me clean my apartment. But when the transcript department finally answers my calls after three years of my attempted contact, and tells me I need to stay in this 11th circle of hell for another year because they only want to give me and English credit for Acting 101 (English=Acting, you learn something everyday!), then I start to lose it. The I want to start exchanging my cartwheels for roundhouse kicks, and my whistles for some venison. And I'm a vegetarian.

Clean it up :)
Let it go :(
Eat right :/
Move more :/
Act Energetic :(

"it-it- the f - it -flam - flames. Flames, on the side of my face, breathing-breathl- heaving breaths. Heaving breaths... Heathing..."~Mrs. White "Clue"

Photo by http://boofsbookshelf.com/2010/04/13/boofs-whisperings-im-freaking-out/

No negativity? No chance.

Today I saw a crazy woman on the street throw a cigarette in the face of a complete stranger. I turned sharply, ready for the fight, but the victim shook her head and said, "Are you out of your mind?" I was amazed at her restraint, but still, you have to admit, it's hard to stay positive in this crazy crack-head town.

For the past two days, I have been trying to make it a whole day without saying something negative. Both days I have completely forgotten half-way through. Here's the thing. People like to say negative things. We love to vent and gossip and bond over our pains, but it has been shown that this actually does not make us feel better. That is why I was trying to be positive for a whole day, even when my initial instinct is to complain. This is hard to do, because as I'm realizing, I'm a pretty cranky person. Oh, how I love the sarcastic, the dry, the woe-is-me.

A man I dated briefly once called me "nice." That's why it was brief. Nice? What's nice? Nice is not funny or smart or talented. This man clearly had no understanding of who I was. Nice is boring. Nice is what you call people who you hope to never see again. "Oh, what did you think of her?" "She was nice. So dull I wanted to stab myself in the knee with my fork, but nice!" These days there's not much to say about being "nice." Except that there is.

Being in theater, I am surrounded by people who are funny and entertaining. They are people who you meet and are instantly like, "I want them to be my best friend!" It's our job. We know how to make an impression. Still, think of the most important times in your life, the big moments, the moments that stick. You may find that you can recall funny quotes, but other things come to mind that never leave. I once had a friend tell me, "You are so genuine. I hope you never lose that." It was out of the blue. It wasn't funny, but it was so kind. It was nine years ago. I remember gossiping with another girl in college, venting about something mean someone said about me and oh-no-she-didn't and all that. The girl looked at me and said, "Yeah, but you're way too smart to get caught up in all that, right?" Just like that, my negative comments were flicked off like a light switch. "Well, yeah, no, I mean...I don't care" was all I could say. What she said wasn't entertaining, but it was honest, smart, and kind. That was also all of nine years ago.

I guess this blog is more about kindness then being positive, but maybe they go hand-in-hand. One of my adult truths is that "It is better to be kind, then to be right". As a lil' Miss Know-it-All, I LOVE to be right, especially in school. But isn't it sometimes better to let someone talk and be themselves and have their self-confidence? Why do I need to correct them? I may not have changed my cranky attitude yet, but maybe I can see when I'm being, well, just plain mean.

Clean it up :)
Let it go :)
Move more :/
Eat right :/
Act energetic :(

"You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late."~Ralph Waldo Emerson
photo by http://www.maine.gov/dps/fmo/MainesReducedIgnitionPropensityCigaretteLawNEW.htm

Attack of the fog!

Does anyone else's brain get like this? I have been trying to think of something to write for the past 20 minutes and it's like a fog has drifted over my brain. This is definitely what people call the afternoon slump. It's the perfect time for a nap, but I have a feeling falling asleep at community college would result in being kidnapped and sold into Russian slavery like that girl in Taken. Shut up, I love Taken. Fine, I'll see the sequel by myself.

I think part of the reason for this haze my brain seems to be swimming in is the fact that I am breaking all my rules today. I stayed up too late last night working on writing a new kid's show. This brought me a lot of happiness at the time, but led me to only get six hours of sleep, which many people might be used to, but makes me one cranky bunny. I have also been trying to eat big breakfasts and smaller lunches, because this was said to improve your energy level. Well, I managed half a yogurt this morning, and God knows why, but the bag of popcorn I bought from this crappy cafeteria, doesn't seem to be cutting it. Add poor eating, little sleep, no exercise, to a rainy day, and nd you've got one zombie who is dangerously close to sending her hand through the mail machine on accident.

I read a very interesting article on the President the other day. First of all, he only gets six hours of sleep a night. Man, the country would be in bad shape if I kept that kinda sleep schedule. I'd be all like, "Where's my animal crackers and juice box?! You're all fired! This whole country is fired! You all are a bunch of jerks!" and then I'd cry because I was missing a button or something. Also, he only wears navy or grey suits, because he doesn't want to have to decide what to wear each morning. Disappointed as I was to find out that we will never see Obama leave the White House in say, Seersucker, his limited selection makes sense. Like I said before, more choices actually make us less happy. Also, apparently making decisions drains our energy level and hinders us from making other decisions in the day. Think about if someone starts asking you a lot of questions "Red or blue?" "Red" "Hot or cold?" "Cold" "Tall or short?" "Uh..Tall" "Should we invade this country?" "Oh my God, I don't care anymore" It might not go exactly like that. Again, let's all be glad I'm not the president.

Still, the president says he would rather spend his decision-making abilities deciding on things like foreign policy rather than the type of suit he wears. Just another supporter of my "less choices, more decisions" policy.

Now can someone DECIDE to get me a pumpkin spice latte and a pillow before I have to go to class? Thanks.

Clean it up :(
Do it right :/
Let it go :/
Move more :(
Eat right :(
Act Energetic :(

"Most consequential choices involve shades of gray, and some fog is often useful in getting things done."~Timothy Geithner

Rule #1: Never let yourself get hangry

I think that one of my revelations through this project has been that my personal definition of maturity is the ability to focus on your "big picture". Often this involves delayed gratification, but the ability to make choices that benefit your "big picture" is what makes you more mature, and most of the time, happier. For example, should you go out partying or stay in and study for an exam the next day? The mature decision is pretty obvious here, but it means putting off the instant gratification of having fun at the party. Still, there are always other parties, but you probably can't retake the exam. This is just one example, but for me, it applies to a lot of things. Sure, that entire tin of cupcakes looks delicious, but in the end it will make me feel like hell to say, eat five of them at 3 am and won't do great things for my waistline either.

So, what is your big picture? Mine involves the typical dreams of a wonderful family in a beautiful house in a place that I love to live, but it also involves being heavily involved in theatre, having a successful career as an ASL interpreter, and somehow creating all of the food dishes I see on Pinterest while still managing to look like Charlize Theron until I'm 60. Screw it, I'd stand for looking like her now.

In summary, I'm a pretty typical woman in my late twenties wanting it all, as they say. And for me this means keeping my eyes on the prize. Sure, there's gonna be slip-ups. There's gonna be times when your only dinner utensiles are a spoon and a jar of peanut butter. But overall, you've gotta always think of what will help your overall happiness, not your immediate happiness. This often means letting things go, giving things up, and putting down the spoonful of cookie dough.

clean it up :)
do it right :)
let it go :/
move more :)
eat right :)
act energetic :)

"You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don’t make money your goal. Instead, pursue the things you love doing, and then do them so well that people can’t take their eyes off you."~Maya Angelou

photo by http://www.armypictorialcenter.com/the_big_picture.htm