Happy New Year

Year's end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.  ~Hal Borland

Drop the last year into the silent limbo of the past. Let it go, for it was imperfect, and thank God that it can go. ~Brooke Atkinson

I had Christmas dinner at Denny's...

My family is great, only we can pull off Christmas Dinner at Denny's and make it fun. Christmas Eve is our regular extravagant dinner night and my mothers cooks up all her wonderful dishes. This year was nothing short of DELICIOUS like always. After a huge meal like that we all slink off to bed and sleep till about 10am to open our gifts. My grandparents who are conveniently located in the house right next door come for Christmas Eve dinner and for Christmas Day breakfast and present opening. On Christmas Day my mother, sister and I went to see my sisters grandmother and family (we have different dads), they're interesting people. Well that's putting it wrong, what's interesting is that they're all really rather boring actually. We showed up late because we had been relaxing after present opening and breakfast. When we finally arrived at the their house they'd already eaten (bastards), honestly it's ok my step father's mom is a icky cook. She tries to get all creative, and really I just want some normal good food that stays down!! So we get there late and we aren't even offered food. Immediately my sister and I are over it and ready to leave, but we stay for about an hour. After that we decided McDonalds would be the Christmas dinner of choice, only to find out that was CLOSED, seriously McDonalds closed...mortal sin! So we called Denny's and just like trusty ole Denny's they were open, we high tailed it out to Amherst and ate Denny's for Christmas dinner. I really think this should be our new Christmas dinner tradition. Who doesn't like to sit at Denny's and laugh at the most random people. My sister and I traded comments back and forth all night about this absolutely tragic family who we came to realize after being nosey ALL worked at Denny's. There was a daughter who looked 12, and had a pedophilish looking boyfriend. Her dad then walked in PLASTERED, he was apparently coming to pick up his daughter and his son who was doing dishes. Now if that isn't family bonding I don't know what is.

New Years Resolutions...yeah I'm serious!!

Every year I avoid resolutions because it seems like just another waste of time, adding more to my already overflowing to do list. This year I figured I'd get into the spirit and give it a try.

1. GET IN SHAPE
2. Take more vacations this year
3. Leave work AT WORK where it belongs
4. Meet new people
5. Start MS degree
6. Reduce stress "just breathe"
7. Stop drinking pop (well maybe a few)
8. BE HAPPY
9. Get out more (aka get a dang social life)
10. Just live life and take advantage of all opportunities that come my way!

I just turned 27 I think its time for me to have more follow through on goals that aren't just professional. I've been kickin ass at job oriented goals but beyond that I've been pretty blah. Time to jump start my life and make age 27 the best ever!!

Why cheat? What is wrong with these women making money by cheating?

This whole Tiger Woods thing has me thinking about two big things; why do men cheat, and why do women cheat with high profile men and then feel it's ok to capitalize off of it?

Why do men cheat? Let me start here, honestly people in general. What is the purpose of marrying someone to turn around and cheat on them? Let's speak specifically about high profile athletes and celebs first. These men travel all the time, and see the opportunities as being easy and quick. They just do and don't think.On the other hand there are regular men who cheating and who aren't traveling or living extravagant lives. There is a difference between the two. High profile men are essentially hunted by women who are trying to have the experience of sleeping with them. Regular men aren't always hunted, a lot of times they're the hunters, or it's just circumstance. Is either more wrong then the other? I think cheating is just wrong, especially when you're married. You stand up before god and take vows then lay down with someone else, it just seems unimaginable. I sure hope when I get married my husband never does it, and if he chooses to be with other women then he should just ask for a divorce. Honestly men who can't be with just one woman shouldn't get married in the first place!! 


I was watching the Khloe Kardashian wedding earlier on my computer and I couldn't help but hope the best for the girl whose married to an NBA player, but in the same breathe I couldn't help but wonder when he'll start cheating. It'd be so interesting to know how many athletes have actually stayed faithful to the women they're with. Do these women who have cheating athlete husbands actually think their husbands are being faithful. After what happened to Steve McNair you'd think some of these athletes would have gotten their shit together and now Tiger Woods drama came out. Each and every one of them thinks they'll get away with it.


As a single woman who still believes in happily ever after, all of this frightens me. Am I just being foolish, should I give up hope now on having happily ever after? After all more then 50% of marriages end up in divorce. Finding a good guy first and foremost is worse then finding a needle in a 1000 mile long hay stack, so then once you find him you have to hope he's not sneaking behind your back.



So here is the other side of the issue, what kind of women are these who are cheating with these high profile men simply to make a buck off of them in the end? First of all they're cheating with a man whose married, they're believing whatever BS he has to tell them about how he's not happy, or they might not even need an excuse, they just need to know who he is. These women are risking their futures for 15 minutes of fame and payoffs from gossip magazines to get them through to long term success. Are they not considering that after we're done reading OK magazine for a few months they'll become irrelevant and a laughing stock in all professional worlds. What would make someone risk everything to be someones side whore?



I'm disappointed that affairs are really this huge in the media, do we really care that much that Tiger Woods has slept with a lot of desperate women who just want money? I know I sure as hell don't care. Do we care that his wife won't leave him, because all she ever was was a nanny and she won't have much without him especially if the prenup is tight. 


An interesting thought is that if these high profile men REALLY wanted to go out and do their thing on the side why would he continue to choose women with nothing. Those women have the most to gain. Go do your side thing with women who have everything they need, they're the least threatening. Why choose a waitress, nanny, cheerleader, they've got everything to gain from a man messing up and leaving evidence.

This is just wrong lol...but hey don't mess with the wrong women!! HILARIOUS!!

 

Black Friday=Bust!!

My sister and I got the CRAZY idea that doing the early Black Friday festivities would be fun.

2:48am Mom, Cal and I left the house (wtf I know).

3:30am First stop Old Navy. Usually they have awesome sweater deals and some cute stuff. I wasn't impressed at all. Mind you they're super affordable but on Black Friday I want deals and steals and nothing impressed me! Not only that but they had over 100 people in line it wrapped around the store twice. Ugh too crazy for us. See some of the happy campers in line below lol. Suckers!

4:00am We go to JCPennys its all that was open. We checked it out they had a few good deals, mom got a sweater. Then we realized nothing else was open and we were starving. We want to get breakfast and the McDonalds in the mall apparently doesn't do any bacon, egg and cheese bagel or biscuits. So off we went to Dennys which is in Berea/Middleburg Hts right by my Cal's school.

5:00am We get to Denny's to start our breakfast experience. So there are a few tables filled there, maybe 5 total and one waitress whose flippin' out with stress. Anyhow we sit there and the womans a nut and a horrible server. My mom, sister and I have all served so we know what busy is and we are very understanding but this woman was just bad and rude. She would tell new customers she's sit them in 10 minutes. What an idiot, she could of sat them and let them look at their menus. Just not a very bright woman. Anyhow while we were in there eating it started to SNOW...wet snow. Gross!! My first snow of the year was in Ohio with my family.

6:30am Back to the mall to check out regular stores the sales weren't great at all. Few stores had 30-50% off but it was of all their overpriced stuff. Boo I found no good deals that were really deals. I found one thing and it was full price. I needed a new bra and as always Victoria's Secret had no good deals. They think buy one get one half off is a good deal, but essentially your total then ends up being $70 for two bras and that just isn't my cup of tea!!

To summarize Black Friday...it sucked!! I think I'm getting a cold now and I got no deals or sleep. 

Update: Totally wasn't getting sick just lack of sleep + crabbiness=short lived runny nose! All in all I did enjoy the time with my family even if we didn't get to spend money!!

I got in!!

I got accepted to Bay Path Colleges graduate program today. It's in Maryland, but I'll be completing the coursework online. They have an excellent program and I'm very excited to start. I'll be working on my Masters of Science in Nonprofit Management and Philanthropy!!

Why...

Why would you go to a club to spend $100 on a bottle of vodka or whatever when in the store you an spend $30 on the same one? Is it cheaper then having to buy all your drinks? Cause if someone is on to something and a bottle for $100 is a good deal at a club then let me know...not that I ever club but just food for thought!

Random thought..I wish tattoos had an on and off switch

Ok so welcome to my random side. I absolutely love tattoos! I only have two so I'm no pro but I'm ready for #4!! I wish I could get some of these daring tattoos like on my wrist but have it only show up when it was appropriate lol. I wish tattoos had an on and off setting because there are so many cool ones out there I'm not daring enough to get. My most daring is the one behind my ear in the pic above!

The wait, thinking happy thoughts.

Its final, I officially finished all my graduate school admissions requirements. I normally would never talk about this because of the chance of not getting in. At this point if I don't get in I think I'm ok with it. It'd be happening for a reason. I feel like this is the determining factor to let me know if nonprofit is what ill always be doing. If not maybe ill go get a MBA, who knows. I can truthfully say for once my whole life isn't planned out and things will just fall how they should once I find out the answer. I'm almost 27 and I stress WAY too much for someone any age. I know my career is in helping the youth of the future. I didn't grow up rich, nor did I grow up poor. I grew up taken care of and happy. I am from a middle of nowhere country town in Ohio and I never had to worry about the things the kids today do. I feel sorry that they have to be a part of the negativity that the world puts out. I want to run an organization that can help pull kids out of the negative worlds that so many slip into. I won't talk too much about it because it's a unique idea and I don't want to lose it to another. Anyhow, I'm thinking happy thoughts. My future is bright, this degree won't determine my success it may just lead me to success down a certain path over another.

I use to blog, things happen for a reason

How funny is it that I pretty much completely forgot that I use to blog on Xanga...seriously OLD AGE! Check it out these were the good ole days: http://umgoblueangel.xanga.com/. It's so funny to read the old blog it's like an old diary I was so excited and full of youth and energy. Just another reminder that it's time for me to GET A LIFE!! I'm actually almost embarrassed at the amount of slang I use to use haha. I just graduated college and I was saying things like "it's been a grip"...who was I hahaha. This blog was in a pretty major part of my life. I graduated, couldn't find a job, was miserable and hiding it well by PARTYING nonstop and spending money I didn't have. Oh the joys of youth. I thought for sure I'd be moving to Columbus, Ohio which is a great city and I really do love it but I found this Chicago opportunity last minute and came here. Things really do happen for a reason even when we think they don't.

It's funny how many times things happen in life and we just rest in the notion that "life isn't fair", I've had a variety of things happen to me good and bad. I'm learning to role with the punches and take it all as a learning experience no matter how much it sucks. I wish I would have given myself more credit throughout my 20s and counted more on myself to be who I am and to succeed then to put debilitating pressure on myself. Sometimes it's better to just give it all a shot and see where fate leads you instead of holding back because you're not 100% sure of yourself. That's been me my entire life, if I'm not sure I'll be great at it I hold back. I'm starting to let that go. I'm starting to be confident in who I am and confident that things will happen how they should.

My attempt at free therapy...

Sometimes it helps to just talk about it and get things off your chest. Sometimes blowing off steam and complaining your way out of a mental breakdown is just what you need. I gave a therapist a try before...ugh she was a snooze. I think everything she told me I may have learned in Psych 101 as a Psychology Major. I think I'll just prescribe myself some self help and blogging. This is totally new for me, I'm not use to talking about my life, sharing my opinions yes but talking about me not really. I figure, I'm turning 27 in a week time to stop being such a wuss. Actually the fact that I'm about to turn 27 is the main reason I'm here, I've been doing a lot of reflecting and I'm missing something...A LIFE lol. I'm a full-fledged workaholic, which is ok because I love my job and what I do. 

Right now as I type I'm sitting on a beautiful balcony in the heart of Chicago, I'm house sitting watching the city and people walk by below. Chicago is beautiful, I've been here for almost 5 years and I feel so happy to have made that choice. I of course miss my family back in good ole oHIo, but I know they support my journey and my career. I'm actually Amtrak'in it home in a week to to spend a week with them. 

I love watching life go by and watching people interact, not until recently did I realize that I've been spending the better part of my 20s just watching and not living. It's time for a change, how I'm not sure yet but honestly the first step was realizing something has to change...right?