Filed under: Bloggin' | Tags: career, duel, networking, persona, professional, twitter
Has anyone else started having this problem?
As I start to move into my career, one where a lot of networking, self-advertisement, and communication happens online, I have gotten flustered more than once about how I am to present myself to the world. More than once, I have considered getting another facebook page or twitter account for my professional life so that keeping them separate won’t be as hard. I keep forgetting that I’m friends with family members and important people in my career when I’m on facebook. I don’t think I have embarrassed or undermined myself just yet, but I am dreading the day when I will. Also, I’ve been deleting things off the internet like crazy, but I’m worried that someone is going to read something or see something and think… something. I can’t say I have too many skeletons in the closet, so I probably shouldn’t worry, but I’m afraid that with just one misstep…
I think keeping my two lives separate would be not only a hassle, but also futile.
I’m cutting it here, but I’d like to hear if you all have had similar problems and frustrations.
*EDIT* For instance: to delete all my tweets, or not delete all my tweets. THOUGHTS???
Filed under: Bloggin', Resolutions | Tags: active, books, buying, christmas, consumerism, eating, money, movies, Resolutions, thriller, weight
I still have five months of 2009 left, and yet it feels like the year is already slowly coming to a close. I realized that I have five months only to accomplish my resolution of learning the Thriller dance this year. How appropriate it was that I made that resolution this year. I will now not only be learning it for my own pleasure and party-trickery, but also to honor Michael Jackson. I think it’s safe to say that a video will be made in memoriam for all of you to enjoy.
After having this realization, I thought it would be a good idea to check up on my other resolutions. As a side note, I am so glad I officially made these resolutions this year. I haven’t, that I recall, ever made resolutions that I remembered months later.
—————————————————————————————————
Resolution 1: Stop buying things.
Success rate: 15 %. I have certainly been a lot more conscious of money, and I’ve been doing more on the opposite side of this: making money. But I don’t think my spending habits have really changed that much, so I’d say 15% is even a little generous. I’d say I’m at fault here because this resolution is far too general. How do I know when I’ve succeeded?
Resolution 2: Keep a list of all the books I read and all the movies I see.
Uh oh. Success rate: 1%. I really have been trying to do this for several years. I generally have 100% success for the first month, maybe, and then I completely forget. Also, with books, it’s hard because I want to write them down as soon as I start reading them, but then I’m not sure if I’ll finish them so I don’t, and then I completely forget about the whole fandango, period.
Resolution 3: Learn the Thriller dance.
See first paragraph above.
Resolution 4: Start Christmas preparations in November.
Success rate is unknown, as it is not yet November. I will give myself some points, though, because, for the first time on record, I thought about Christmas well in advance. Today, in fact (and before I reviewed these!). So good for me.
Resolution 5: No eating after 9.
I’d say 80% success. I have not been a stickler about it, but I have really stuck to it. You know, I actually forgot this was a resolution, which I’d say is a good sign; it has become part of my lifestyle. And I will have you know I did not eat once after 9 until February or March, which I find bloody impressive.
Resolution 6: Be more active.
Ooh, that is a really hard one to judge. I’d say 100%, which isn’t hard. If I am even a smidgen more active than I was, I would be successful based on the wording here. Also, it’s summer, which is cheating a little. However, I have been playing tennis once a week, and I’ve been doing other nonsense like frisbee and frisbee golf, and generally just running around like a ninny, which is quite a strong point for me. I’d say this is all good news for the activity department.
Resolution 7: Lose weight.
Technically, I should get 100% because I have lost weight several times this year. 8 pounds was my record. My resolution, however, said nothing about keeping it off, though I (obviously) know what I meant. So I’d give myself a 0. At least it’s not a negative 100! I didn’t gain weight! And I have made a hell of a lot of progress in the self-acceptance department.
—————————————————————————————————
If anyone reading this is considering making some resolutions for 2010, my advice to you, and to myself, is to be specific. Really think about what exactly you want to see happen. Then think about how. I’d say my biggest shortcoming with these resolutions was a lack of foresight. What exactly is being “more active”? How much weight do I want to lose? How will I know when I succeed? I think we all know the joy of checking items off a to-do list. But if I don’t know when I’m done, I don’t get the satisfaction of making the check.
—————————————————————————————————
As a side note about Resolutions:
My friend and I used to keep a notebook that we would write letters to each other in and hand back and forth. I remember she wrote me once toward the end of February and asked what my goals (or she might have even used the word, “resolutions”) for March were. That sparked a huge conversation in my head. Why is it that people feel they only have to set goals for themselves once a year? Aren’t we letting ourselves off pretty easy?
So I say: screw New Years resolutions. Why not biannual resolutions? Seasonal resolutions? Monthly resolutions? Even weekly. Not only are we taking more initiative with our lives and saying we are capable of achieving more than a few resolutions we make December 31, but we are also probably going to have a much higher success rate! When I got back from winter break, my school’s gym was absolutely packed with twenty-somethings, who had all obviously made resolutions related to fitness or weight. But a month later? Back to normal. None of us can function under the weight of a year-long goal. It is far too big for us to be able to envision. So why not break it up into smaller chunks?
So what are your goals for tomorrow? This week? August? It’s a new month! Clean slate!
Filed under: Recommendations
Highlights from today’s episode of My Yard, the new reality television series based in Morgan’s Front Yard!
——————————————————————-
Tensions were high today when the bird feeder was empty and no one remembers how they used to find food.
Squirrels from rivalling trees had a loud squabble, complete with chase scene. Then the new guy, Peregrine Falcon, showed up. Uh oh!
Oak Tree Squirrel was upset that Maple Tree Squirrel was on his turf. OTS was never taught street smarts by his mom, though, so he’s on the run.
Everyone quickly abandons the Food Source when Finch farts. Finch, trying to cover it up, said, “could MTS eat any louder? I’m out of here.”
Tune in tonight to find out what every thinks of Peregrine Falcon! (“He’s huge!!”)
——————————————————————-
My Yard will be on tonight at 8 EST. Tune into the MHB Network and learn about the birds and the bees!.
Filed under: Bloggin' | Tags: conservative, consumerism, everydayuncommon, frugal, frugality
Have you noticed how a person’s behavior changes as time gets closer to something ending (or something beginning, depending on how you look at it)? It’s a topic my mind frequents. I’m brought back to it because my parents have been out of town for a month, and I’ve been in my house all by myself. They get back tomorrow, and as my time alone dwindles, I find that I’m not doing much. The majority of the time they’ve been gone, I’ve been very productive and motivated. But as the burden of responsibility and duty starts resting its weight on me, I no longer have my natural motivation.
What changed? I’ve known the date of their return since they left, and it hasn’t affected me (in this way) until now. I have long known that my mom wants me to sort through things in the attic. And I’ve known I need to put gas in the car and clean the house. I’ve been at peace with these chores until now. Now that time is leaving me, I don’t want to waste it on responsibility! I want to have fun! And yet, my mind is caught in turmoil, confused between its alliance. Do I answer to fun, or do I answer to responsibility? I don’t know, and so I just sit, enjoying the quietness of alone.
With this issue, though, I’m not normally thinking of intangible things, like Time, but of physical possessions, items we buy. Take, for example, a box of truffles. At first, we scarf them down–there are so many, they’re not going anywhere soon! But as we eat more, there are, of course, less truffles. We get down to the last five or so, and only eat them when we really want one. We treasure those last five truffles. Where does this frugality spring from? Just days earlier, we were eating truffles like there was no tomorrow.
Or, another example, toilet paper. Toilet paper is that magical object that never seems to last. Rolls disappear like cat calls when you’ve got a bad haircut. Any young person living with roommates has probably experienced this at least once: either everyone says it’s someone else’s turn to buy, or no one has time to buy toilet paper. Toilet paper is a necessary object, unlike truffles, so the stakes are higher–we’re down to the last one or two rolls so everyone starts using less to make it last longer.
My question is: if toilet paper disappears so quickly, and we can easily live by using less, then why do we not use less all the time?
This issue always comes to my mind when I hear of a low-income family who suddenly comes into some money. They start buying name brands and shopping at different stores and get a fancy new car. And often the money is gone as quickly as it came.
I can see the family’s side, where they’ve been watching richer families buy products, go places, and do things that the poorer family can’t afford, so that when they can, they want a glimpse of how the other half lives.
But why is it that we don’t live in that conservative state more often? That family was functioning perfectly well with their use of the Big Bad Store Brand and the not-so-Brand-New Car. Think of the money we would save, how many less times we would need to shop!
I think it all comes down to social acceptance. We all want to create the illusion that we have it all.
Oh, this nearly-gone roll of toilet paper? Use as much as you like because I can afford that.
It doesn’t matter if I eat the entire box of truffles; I can just buy another tomorrow!
You see this car that I bought with my own money? It is just the same as your car, if not better. Will you please like me now?
Am I wrong to think that this is an American thing? I’ve been to other countries, and they all seem to live well within their means, not eating eight truffles at a time because look how many there are in the box.
Penny for your thoughts.
(And as an unrelated matter, why is it that we offer a penny for others’ thoughts, but then call our own thoughts worth “two cents”? Do we think our own thoughts are more valuable than the thoughts of others? In that case, I will give you two pennies for your thoughts)
Filed under: Bloggin'
I’m the kind of person who finds staying at home eating Ben and Jerry’s ice cream and watching cartoons (hey, it’s research!) more appealing than a party. Just sayin’.
I mean, I’ve got nothing against parties. But when B&J’s calls, its call is loud and clear.
