Disconnecting and Unwinding

So, you may have noticed that I have been a bad blogger lately.
Or maybe you haven't. Who knows.
Anyway, I have just been overwhelmed. Burned out. Tired.
In need of a huge glass of wine.
I needed a break.

Luckily, Dakota's annual trip to the mountains was coming up. So I decided to take a day off and join him for a night (he was gone for a WEEK! Four years together and I still miss him like crazy when he's gone!)
And by golly, I am so glad I went. It was nice to not have cell phone reception and not have to be anywhere, or really have to do anything except laugh, hang out, read, and spend some much needed quality time with my beau.
The mountain air felt amazing. I can't wait for cold weather.

Dakota and I took a few walks together, just the two of us, and talked. It was, for lack of a better word, awesome. Definitely plan on going again later in the season, and next year.

I think in our world today, we are too focused on productivity, getting things done, and being the best that we can be all. the. time.

I think that is a noble goal, but we are only human. Our bodies can only take so much abuse. And mine was about to give out. My mini-vacation came at a great time.

My advice to you on this Monday, is take the time to relax. Turn off your cell phone. Give your loved ones a nice big hug. It feels great.

Your body will thank you for it.

And, because you have been so good, here are some pictures from my trip (my camera battery was dying - I forgot the spare! :() I didn't get that many because I finally got a good stiff drink..or two.....











Happy Monday!

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Time Flies

Do you ever have those moments where you realize that time has just flown by you?

6 Best Things About Being An Adult

Dear Kids,

Don't believe what people say. Growing up sucks. Being a kid is great! No responsibilities, you get summers off and 2 weeks for Christmas!

Enjoy it while it lasts.
You can never get it back. Unless, at some point in the future, my prayers get answered and someone creates a time machine.

Knock on wood.

But, you will become an adult. Even if you are kicking and screaming trying to fight it.

If you are an optimist, like me, here are the top 6 things about being an adult.

1) Alcohol. You can never enjoy its perks until you are an adult. I'm serious. I tried it when I was a teenager, and let me tell you, beer pong and Jack Daniels get old fast. Sometimes you just want to drink a glass of wine and relax. And get classy drunk.

I know you probably don't believe me, but seriously, take my word for it.
I have gotten drunk enough since I've been a "real" adult (post-21) to understand this.

(Source)

2) Living on your own. This is one of the best things, but also one of the hardest. When you're a kid, and even a teenager, if you don't have any bills, like I did, it can be hard to learn to budget money.

But you get used to it.And being able to decorate your house how you want, being able to sleep next to the person you love (even if he does tell you to scoot over when you are TOTALLY not on his side) , and not having to vacuum all the time.

Are all AMAZING things.

Except the vacuuming part. I need to do that more often. And dishes. I hate doing the freakin' dishes.

3) Tattoos. I have one that I got when I was 18. I wish I had thought it through a little more, but its become a part of me. And since its on my back, sometimes I forget that it's there. (I have a bad memory) My next one I have wanted for a while, but I'm going to think about it a while longer. Maybe in a few months. Just promise you will say no to tramp stamps. Or, at least thinkabout it first.

4) Having a job. Having a job is SO much better than going to school. For one, you get paid. And two, you get paid. (Sorry, that's my favorite part.) Third, if you're lucky, you will find something you like. And that makes all the difference. Going to work everyday to a job you like is SO much better than going to school and getting detention doing math.

(Source)

5) Staying out as late as I want. There have been nights that I have stayed up drinking (or being otherwise occupied) until the wee morning hours. It is awesome. It usually takes me a day and a half to recover, but its worth it. Granted, most nights I am dead by 11 PM, but it is still nice to have the option. With no one to stop me. (Sorry, Mom!)

6) Cereal for dinner, ice cream for breakfast. I know this is going to catch up with me. In fact, it probably already has, but I love cereal. I can (and have) eaten it three meals a day for dayys. Although, the flip side of this is missing real food. But for that, just go over to your Mama's. She knows how to make the good stuff.

Family Reunion

I haven't shared very many pictures of my own lately.

Because I am a bad blogger.

And most of the pictures I have taken lately have been of Waterman gates.

It's been all work and no play for my poor camera.

Well, the situation has been rectified!
I finally got some pictures worth showing you.
Because I am very self-concious. Even though I am probably the only one reading this blog.
Probably because I say "because" so much.

I'll work on that.

Ahem.

Anyways.

My Aunt Jonye came back home to California from Texas (I say home, but really she has lived longer in Texas than she did here..) and I have to spent a large amount of time with her whenever she is around.

Because I love her.

And because I love you guys, here are some pictures! This is my first time making a collage type thing, so be nice. :)

 

Five Question Friday

1. Would you grow your hair out to donate it?
Of course I would! It would take me forever, though, because my hair grows so slooooooooooowly.

Seriously. Like molasses at wintertime.

It is one of my hopes for my life, though.

To do SOMETHING good for someone else.

AND my hair is finally grown out of the dye that used to torture it with.

So I'm eligible!

2. What song makes you think of summer?

"When The Sun Goes Down" by Kenny Chesney

"Boys of Summer" by The Ataris

"All Summer Long" by Kid Rock

"But I can see you-

Your brown skin shinin' in the sun
You got your hair combed back and your sunglasses on, baby
And I can tell you my love for you will still be strong
After the boys of summer have gone"

(I had to listen to it. Sue me)

3. Are you a flip flops or sandals kind of person?

I'm a sneakers person. I go barefoot at home. But at work, (I work at a manufacturing facility) the guys bring in scraps of metal on their shoes. That hurts when it gets in your feet.

There is reasons why they wear steel toed boots. People who wear sandals in my office either don't have the guys coming in to their area, or they are just crazy.

Its alright, though, because I have ghosty white feet. Like the rest of me.

And no one wants to see that.

4. Favorite summer treat (ie ice cream, snow cones, etc)?

Ice Cream or Frozen Yogurt! Guilty pleasure.

And I love a nice cold Smirnoff to go with it ;)

5. Do you do something special for the father of your children on Fathers day?

I'm not a mother yet but I do get my dad cards and little presents when I can.

Last year I got him a book of why I love my Daddy. It was a children's book, but it was cute.

And he likes the sappy stuff.

I will be posting something for my Dad, though, so stay tuned.

Friday Letters

Dear Dakota, thank you for curling up with me and watching Jack and Jill, no matter if you were feeling too sick to go do other things. Dear Truck, thank you for not doing that not-wanting-

to-start-thing. I guess that talking-to I gave you helped. Keep it up. Dear brother-in-law, please stop eating my cereal. when you pay rent I might share my cocoa pebbles. Until then, you are

eating my primary source of food. Stop it. Dear Abigail, I'm sorry that your birthday wasn't the best ever, but I am glad your truck is getting fixed! Dear Brother, I miss you more every day.

I can't wait for the news if you are being stationed here! And I can't wait until you come to visit in October, too! Dear Weekly Review, I am looking forward to you tomorrow. Nothing I like

more than to scratch 3 things off my to-do list and add 50 more. Dear Scooter, Please stop meowing at me at 4:30 AM. I am aware I don't wake up that early anymore. I don't need you as my

alarm clock. Especially since what you want is for me to lay out Dakota's blanket. He's not the one who wakes up for you. I am. I will lock you out next time. Dear Friday Night, why are you taking so long to get here?! Dakota's off and I want to drink! Hurry it up, bro.Dear Microsoft, please program a way for me to put two spreadsheets on my seperate monitors. I really hate having to switch back and forth. It's annoying.

Lots of love,

Jessica <3

An Open Letter to My Truck

Dear Truck,

I'm sorry I never gave you a proper name.
I'm sorry I refer to you as a man, but dude, you are a stick shift, you are red, and sometimes you get mad at me for no apparent reason.
I don't mean to assume anything, but dude, I'm going with what you are giving me.

But seriously,
Why must you make me look like an idiot?
You may think its funny to not start up a few dozen times until I get someone.
...And then starting up the first try...
But me? Not so much.

Not funny.

I thought we were friends.
I promise to give you a bath this weekend.
I promise to not call you an asshole, a scumbag, or any other sort of bad names.
If you just please start when I want you to.

Deal?

Thanks,

Your Loving Owner and The One Who Will Kick You The Next Time You Don't Start

Two of My Favorite Productivity Tools

So I have been thinking for a while of how addicted I am to the computer and the internet.

Due to the nature of my work, I am often on a computer 8-12 hours a day.

And yet, I still find time to be on the computer at home.

Why? Because I am an addict and have no life.

Well, I do, but so much of it is spent on the computer.

So today I am going to talk about two of the productivity tools I use on a daily basis at school, work, and at home.

Because I am addicted. And I forget things.

And because they are awesome.

Dropbox

Dropbox is an amazing tool. If you haven't heard of Dropbox, you need to google it already. Seriously.

Dropbox has saved me so much time, especially when I run back and forth between work and school and home.

It's easy to know that my files are going to be in one place.

The best part about Dropbox, in my opinion, is that it integrates within your system. As you can see, my dropbox is in my Documents folder. It comes up as one of my Favorites. This means I don't go searching around. It's always at the top.

Another great thing about Dropbox is that I don't have to wonder how many versions of a file I have around somewhere. When I update the file in Dropbox, it updates across all of my systems. No more wondering where that picture went when I'm sure I saved it that way. (And yes, that has happened many times before.)

I don't use Dropbox for much of my work stuff, but I have it integrated with my work computer so that I can pull things up at work if I need to.

You can learn more about Dropbox here.

Evernote

This is going to be a little strange, because I am writing this inside of Evernote right now. Please ignore the red squiggles. Evernote doesn't understand the spelling of its own name, apparently.

Evernote is one of my favorite tools because of one simple reason: I forget stuff.  A lot. Seriously. If I didn't write things down, I would be so lost in this world. My mind moves in so many different directions on a daily basis, that its easy for stuff to fall through the cracks.

Not with Evernote.

With Evernote, I keep track of everything. I keep all my blog posts and ideas that I am working on (you can see a few in the screenshot above that I haven't finished yet. My mind is a funny thing.) I keep track of all my work notes. I keep track of things I have to talk to my boss about, so that when he calls me in for a meeting I have all the information at hand so that I'm not scrambling trying to remember what it was that was so important.

Here are some awesome parts of Evernote:

As you can see, Evernote can clip articles from the internet with their tool the Web Clipper. I clipped this article because I was trying to figure out how to work our mailboxes with SugarCRM. I clipped the article because I wanted to have the information, in case the website ever went down or if I just couldn't find it again.  Links just aren't reliable. And cutting the article saves me a step. Because clicking a link adds up in time spent. Just saying.

But the thing is, Evernote copies the address you got it from. In case this website had more info that I need pertaining to SugarCRM, I can go to this note and click on the link.

Evernote also uses Tags. It's like making sure that reciepts are on pink paper. Except with tags, you can apply more than one. The combination I use the most is "work" and "CRM". I haven't had this system for very long, so I don't have an intricate tagging sytem. And plus, like I said, sometimes I get lazy and just want to get to the point. I didn't even have the "work" tag until not too long ago. But I just selected all my work notes and applied the tag to all of them. So I can always go back later and fine tune my system if it gets too overwelming.

Another great thing about Evernote is the ability to share notebooks. For our CRM system, I administrate with a coworker. He does back end nerdy stuff and I am the enforcer. If only that was my true title.

Anyways.

I shared my SugarCRM notebook with him, so he can have access to all of my information. Makes it much easier than copying and pasting into an email. Those few minutes add up!

You can learn more about Evernote here.

---

If you have any questions about these or other productivity tools, leave me a comment below. I love comments!

I will be doing a post soon on services like ifttt, Pinterest, and some others if I can think of some.

If you like this post, follow me! :)

To My Future Children

I have to make an apology to you.

Your father and I, we are kind of, well, dorks.
I am, anyways. And he puts up with me. So does that make him a dork by association?

We will embarrass you. Know how I know? Because I embarrass myself.
And because parents embarrass children. That's just how it goes.
Just think of the wonders I could do for you!

Regardless of this, you will be loved more than you can ever truly imagine.

I hope you get your Daddy's green eyes.
But my big brown eyes would be good, too.
And maybe your Uncle David's hair.
So that he's not the only ginger in the family.
But whatever you look like, I'm sure you will be beautiful.

You will probably know how to use a computer before you can walk.
You will be given crayons, pencils, chalk, anything you want as long as you can express yourself.
(And hopefully not throw them at Mommy. Mommy doesn't like that)
But if you would rather play sports, we will support you. I may not understand the games, but I will show up every time.

And I would get used to cereal. Or learn how to cook.
Daddy is a good cook, but your Mommy, her, not so much.
Let's just say we will be eating at Grandma's a lot. She will love to cook for you. As long as you compliment her food. And eat your vegetables.

You will not be raised with a particular religion, but you will know right or wrong.
You will be honest, and treat others with fairness and kindness and respect.
You will learn love by watching Mommy and Daddy, and know that love can conquer all.
You will do chores and learn responsibility.
But most of all, I hope that you will learn what happiness feels like before you ever feel pain or heartache.

I will not always be your best friend. You will dislike me sometimes.
And that's alright.
But I will always be there for you.
I promise to give you the benefit of the doubt, no matter what.
I promise to always give you a chance to explain your story.
I will accept that sometimes you may not like me, and maybe even hate me.
But there will come a day that you will understand.

I may not have gone where I intended to go....

.....But I think I have ended up where I needed to be.

When I was a kid, I wanted to be an artist. I loved to draw and paint along side my mom and my grandmothers. I loved the feeling of a pen in my hand (I hate pencils) I loved the feeling of paper against my skin.

As I got older, I toyed with the idea of being a doctor or veterinarian. (Both scrapped because it hurts me too much to see others in pain.) But alas, such a future just wasn't for me.

When I entered high school, a bad grade in an art class almost took me away from art all together. I couldn't believe that I got such a bad grade in a class that I was naturally good at.
Did I talk too much? Did I not do the assignments as the teacher intended? Did I miss something here?

Either way, art is supposed to be subjective. How can I be graded because I did some things a bit differently?

I thought I was graded unfairly. (I still hold a grudge. Probably shouldn't, but I can't help it. I do). But alas, high school isn't always the best incubator for talent. I talked too much. So I got a C in Art class. I learned some from that class, but mostly I learned I didn't want to waste my time in art classes.

So I took drafting classes instead. All four years of high school. Almost every semester.
I loved those classes. I loved the clean lines, the drafting arm. I even loved the erasers. As the semesters went on, I got more and more freedom from the instructor to design what I wanted.

And that is where I met my boy. The love of my life. My other, sometimes better, half.
We sat together in drafting and due to our history of many, many, drafting classes, we had a special assignment to work on together. I fell for the guy who helped me cut balsa wood for a model house. He had a quick sense of humor, a good heart, and great smile. It was like a light bulb went off in my head.

We spent two semesters together before enrolling in a night class together. Then we started dating.

We were going to study architecture (me) and mechanical drafting (him) but before we started our freshman year, we decided to go another route.

Graphic Design.

The fun of drafting, without all the extra math. (Do you know what the density of concrete is? I for sure don't.)

From six years old I knew where I wanted to go, I just didn't know how I was going to get there.

And thus, I got where I needed to be.

Read all the other great entries at Yeah Write #57 here.. here..

 

 

Five Question Friday

I cannot believe it is already Friday!
My dad always told me that as you get older time goes by faster.

It's so scary how right he always is.

I'll have to write him a post one day, like I did for my mom.

Anyways, since it is Friday, I thought I would play Five Question Friday again! Are you ready for this?

1. What advice would you give a couple getting married?
Well, since I am not married, I don't know how much anyone would want to take my advice. But, my thing is with marriage is that even though I would love to marry my love someday, I don't see the need to rush.
I seriously do believe that we were made for each other. When I hug him I feel completed inside.
But at the same time, we are still young. I want to enjoy it just being me and him for a little while longer. That sounds really selfish, I know, but he won't always be just mine. If we have kids, he will be theirs. And when that happens, I will be even more in love with him. But for now, I want him to just be mine.

My point is, I don't think people should rush into getting married. I mean, obviously I have no say in people's personal affairs, but I think that I love him just as much if not more than people who have gotten married. Getting married wouldn't make me love him even more. I just don't see the point.

It may work for other people, for right now, that's just not what I want. :)


2. If you could tell your 16 year old self ONE thing, what would it be?
If only. I would tell her (it feels weird calling myself "her", kinda like I got a schizo thing goin' on.) Anyways. I would tell her to rexamine her life. Her priorities are way off. She is spending way too much time worrying about someone who she won't even speak to five years later. Not to mention that she meets someone who completes her heart so completely. Why spend time worrying about someone when you are so young?! And stop being such a smart ass. Love your mom. Hug your daddy. You will miss them so much when you move out. But they are always there. That boy I was talking about? Yeah, not so much.

3. What do you do to keep cool in the summer? (AC, windows, fans, swimming, etc.)

Well, this is something where dork and I differ. In the winter, he has the heater blazing. I put on a blanket. In the summer, same thing. I open windows and turn on the fans. He puts on the AC. I just don't want a high electric bill is all;)

Plus my parents have a pool. And so does his. They will be utilized.

4. What did you (or your wife) crave most while pregnant right now?

I had to alter this question because I have never been pregnant. Right now I am craving chocolate oreos. Good thing I got some in my purse. I'm so smart, planning ahead and what not.

5. Who is your favorite TV mom? Why?

I'm going to have to say Mrs. Brady. She is like the quintessential mother. Never angry, always supportive, always with perfect hair. Something all mothers strive for, I am sure.
I have yet to meet a mother that perfect in real life. But that's what TV is about, right?!

 

Linking up with My Little Life.

Five Question Friday

It's Friday!
As I say to my work-neighbor, I am so glad to have made it.

Today is Five Question Friday! Just to get my creative juices flowing for some design projects I have been neglecting. :) Bad Jessica.

1. What did you wear to prom? Include a picture if possible.

Are you ready for this? This is me and the dork at prom. Same guy, after the years. I was going to say all these years, but we have only been out of high school for three years.
It seems like so much has changed, but me and my man have not. I just love him more and more every day.



Look how skinny I was! Dork looks exactly.the.same. Men. Sigh.

I loved this dress, but there was SO much glitter. His truck was like COVERED in blue glitter. For years. Seriously. Glitter is the herpes of craft supplies.


2. Would you rather be on the biggest loser or a food eating challenge?
The biggest loser. For sure. I'm competitive. I think I could do it. Then again, I might cry.
But if I lose weight, I won't mind losing a few tears in the process.

3. Fave sonic drink? Refreshing summer drink? 

Sweet tea. Or Passion Tea Lemonade from Starbucks. I love tea. Soda just doesn't help in the California heat.

4. What was your first car, and what did you call it?

My truck that I still have.  Unlike most kids my age, I was not given a car. I had to save up for him. Yes, my truck is a "him".
Just look at him. He's a manly truck.  I hope he stays with us for a long, long time.
He's been good to me so far. We had trouble in the beginning. He has a manual transmission.
We got into arguments. But we are over it now.



5. What's one thing your child or spouse does that sends you over the edge?

I have to say, the dork is pretty amazing. (Have you noticed that I have a new nickname for him every day I talk about him? Dork is the most common one. I call him Dork more than I call him Dakota. It's a term of endearment, I swear. He isn't even that dorky. Compared to me he is a jock.Don't tell him I said that. He was already threatening to take away my internet privledges. And that was just for watching Jenna Marbles)

But sometimes, sometimes I just question his sanity. He does the dishes backwards. Instead of washing them in the side of sink farthest from the counter, he does it in the closest, moves it to the other side to rinse, and then puts it on the counter. Small thing, but it is sooo inefficient. It is a small thing, but it bothers me. I'm weird like that.

Linking up with My Little Life.

Lies I Tell

Sometimes, the truth just isn't what works at that moment.
I just hope and pray no one I have said these to will read this.

If they do, oh well.

The thing is, I am not usually a liar. I used to be good at it.
...And then I met Dakota.

If I haven't mentioned it before, Dakota is an interesting person.
I'm not saying that just because I love him and he is adorable.
He is interesting.
Not only can he make changes in his life (and encourage me to do the same) like nobody's business, he can tell when I am lying.
Every. Single. Stinkin'. Time.

So, needless to say, I don't lie often. It's just too much work, in my opinion.
Ahem. Anyways.

Lies I tell:

"I will go to bed on time tonight."

Okay, so this is a lie to myself. But I really try, I really do. But going to bed at 8:30 PM makes me feel like an 8 year old. So I end up staying up way too late reading or watching TV. And then I regret it the next day when I get up at 4:30 AM.



I'll do the homework today."
This is a lie to Dakota and also myself. But its not like he wants to do the homework either.

"I'm not mad."
Okay, seriously, who doesn't tell this one?!
Truth is, if I am being strangely quiet, and I haven't been drinking (if I have been drinking and I get quiet, that is usually a sign to cut me off. Just saying) then I am pissed.
I will probably get over it quickly though. If you bring me chocolate.

"We should hang out sometime!"
If you don't know me, I am kind of an antisocial person. I have Dakota, I have my best friend, and I have my family. That is pretty much the extent of my social life.
If you make plans with me, bear in mind that I will usually cancel.
Socialness makes me nervous. And I would rather stay in bed and watch Netflix.



Which leads me to my biggest and most often told lie...

"No, I haven't been watching Lie to Me without you!"
This is why Dakota and I can't watch the same shows on Netflix. I cheat and get ahead. Then he gets wind of it and watches without me.
Now he has finished them all on Netflix and I got distracted by America's Funniest Home Videos.
And he doesn't want to watch them again with me.

(I probably shouldn't have let him watch that show anyways. Now he is just getting better at knowing when I'm lying. When can a girl get a break?!)

I've Learned in San Fransisco So Far

... If you get back to your hotel after 1 AM, your best bet is probably room service.

...It is better to close your eyes while being driven around in cabs. Those people are crazy.

...If you have a room at the Mark Hopkins, or even if you don't, go see the Top of the Mark.. the view is amazing!

...Get a phone with a better battery. Playing with twitter all day tends to drain it.

...San Fransiscans (Correct me if I'm wrong here?) like Macs.

...Wear great shoes, walking uphill hurts. And makes my feet swell.

 

.. More to come, and pictures!

Five for Five: Words

Words are one of my favorite things.

Seriously.

As a graphic designer, part of my job is to work with text. I love playing with different fonts and using the tools available to me to adjust the spacing between letters, between words.

Through this you can make words into art.

As an avid reader (read: addicted to my Kindle), words can make or break a story. Give William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway the same view and you will end up with two totally different accounts. Words make a difference.

Have you ever met someone who is just gifted with words?

Not exactly someone who is like an English teacher, but someone who always knows exactly what to say?

Who, me? No, no, no. I am NOT one of those people.

I trip and stumble over words like.. like I do over my feet.

I usually know what I want to say, but it comes out in jumbles. My brain has the words down pat. Organized and orderly. Somewhere between there and my mouth, my thoughts get jumbled. I try and say one thought while thinking of another. Doesn't always work well.

I had to take speech classes when I was a kid. I talked too fast. Still do. I think most people get the point that I am trying to get around to.

This is why in school, I would take an essay over a speech any day.

My brother on the other hand? Complete opposite.

He is very eloquent. He says what he means the first time. His voice does not quiver. He does not stutter.

He just can talk. He gets his point across quickly and painlessly. I think being in the military really helps with that. The military has really helped shape my brother into a man, which is scary to me, but that's a whole other story.

My dad is the same way.

Come to think of it, my mom has the same ability.

What makes me so weird?

Linking up with Link'n Blogs

Five for Five: Change

I am going to let you in on a little secret. I am not happy with a few things in my life.
I am a very happy person, don't get me wrong, but there are a few things I would like to change.

The problem is, it is hard for me to get motivated.
I feel like there are so many other places where I am giving my attention: my job, my life, school..
I just don't feel like there is much more Jessica to give.

I know they say that if you want something bad enough, you will work for it. This is a belief I have as well.
But sometimes, change takes a back burner to just existing. It takes enough energy and concentration to stay above water, figuratively speaking.

That isn't to say I haven't tried. I have successfully made changes. I have made out plans to change. I have read books.
But when it comes down to it, I haven't been successful. Because the changes I wanted to make? I am still struggling.
Every time that I feel like I fail, it just makes getting motivated that much harder.
And I know things won't get better, but it depresses me thinking about it, rather than motivating me.

I am so different from my darling boyfriend, who, when he wants change, he goes out and makes it happen.
He cuts to the chase. He understands no one can do these things for him.
When he wants his life to change, he does it.

That is one of the things I respect most about him. I always hold off,  testing the waters. He goes for it.
I wish I could be like him sometimes.

Where can I find motivation?

The Kind of Week We've Had

Me: "I feel like a chicken with its head cut off. "
Abby: "I feel like the chicken's head."

(Seriously, though. I was laughing about that for like five minutes. People in my office thought I was crazy. Well, it just made their belief stronger.)

Oh well. At least we have each other. And Starbucks.

Good things come to.. who, again?

Good things who come to those who wait?
Yeah, we've all heard it before.

But the thing is, I'm starting to not even really believe it.

Good things come to those who work their asses off and never give up.

It seems like in the present day that people no longer have to work for the things they want.
I am not one to judge, but I was always taught that if I wanted something, I had to earn it.

Why am I, the girl who likes to keep things light and fluffy over here in her little section of the blogosphere, being so negative?

I just hate feeling that people around me have no ambition. No drive.
I hate seeing the people I used to hang around in high school due to the fact that they ARE EXACTLY THE SAME.

People who are content with the same old thing.
The problem here isn't with them, it's with me.

I'm the one who has to always work harder, do better, get farther.
I am the one who even when I couldn't get a job, I worked temporary jobs on weekends, just to have the experience and extra money.

So what is the difference?

I work for what I have.
Now, don't feel that I am making myself sound perfect.
Believe it, I am close no where near.
There are dishes in my sink to be washed.
My counter is covered in groceries that need to be put away. (Don't worry, I put the refrigerated ones away. I'm not a heathen.)

My point is, I am doing what I love.
If, at the end of the day, I am so exhausted I come home, lay on my bed (too tired to even take off my shoes) and sleep, I still love my job.
If I come home to a filthy house and go to bed anyway do dishes when I would rather be sleeping, I feel like I deserve a medal.

Don't get me wrong. There are things I wish didn't happen.

I wish I didn't miss my darling boyfriend some days because we work opposite schedules.
When I go to work he is still asleep. (Can you blame him? It's 4 AM)
When I get home from work he's already gone to work.
He doesn't get home until I am going to bed.

And yet, I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Good things come to those who work their asses off and never give up.

Am I wrong here?

My advice to you:

Do something you love. Even if it makes you crazy.
Because a wise man once said if you do something you love, you'll never work a day in your life.

Work when you work best.
I come into work at 5 AM. I get a lot done in the mornings, while the office is still quiet.

Never stop learning.
Just because you got the job doesn't mean you can stop learning and improving.
Especially in graphic design, the industry is always changing. Keep updated on the programs you use. Trends in the industry.

Have paitence.
You won't have it all in the beginning. You will have bad days. You will have days where you want to throw up everything in the air and go home.
I have been there.

A job shouldn't be your main source of happiness.
I know this goes against  what I just said. But you can love your job and not make it your life.
Like the song says, "Have you ever seen a headstone with these words, 'If only I had spent more time at work?' "
People in your life should do that for you. All work and no play made Jack a dull boy, what do you think it will do to  you?

I hope this helps.