It’s Finally Friday!!! (sort of…)

Quote of the Day:

Fresh Air:

It doesn’t quite feel like Spring yet but it does if you get your blood pumping! Check out these great spring hikes in Massachusetts.

Inspirational:

For those days when it feels like you just can’t get up.

Luscious Locks:

Get soft, shiny hair at home.

Wine Me, Dine Me:

Healthy, vegan, AND delish!

Waiting for the warm weather got you down? Some comfort food for your soul.

DIY:

40 ways to decorate your Easter eggs.

Round the World:

Need a get-away? Check out these easy-to-reach islands.

Techie Love:

Will that tweet get you fired?

Giggles and Such:

Kids say the darnedest things.

23 things that can only get better from here.

Have a great week(end)!

It’s Finally Friday!!!

Quote of the Day:

Beautify Me:

6 green beauty recipes straight from your kitchen.

Inspirational:

Live life like a love letter. A manifesto for living positively.

Dollars and Sense:

Do you tweet? Here are 10 personal finance experts to follow.

Follow Your Dreams:

Who says you have to let your dreams die to become a “grown-up”??

Body Lovin’:

Everyone who has ever felt bad about her looks should take a gander at this.

Out on the Town:

Have you ever heard of PostSecret? It’s pretty amazing and they’re coming to Connecticut!

Giggles and Such:

32 of the world’s coolest and happiest facts 🙂

Once you find a poutine you really like, you put a ring on it.

Have a great weekend!!

Untie Me

Almost everyone these days has a smartphone.

In fact, the only people I know who don’t, are my parents and my off-the-grid roomie who purposely downgraded to a “dumb” phone several years ago.

Don’t get me wrong I love my smartphone.

With Google in my pocket there’s not a random factoid I can’t find or a place I can’t figure out how to get to.

But, it can get overwhelming.

Sometimes it feels like I can’t get away.

I recently spent the weekend at my cousin’s lake house in New Hampshire.

Among it’s many attributes is the lack of cell coverage.

Or at least it used to be!

Thanks to AT&T, I now have 4G coverage out in the boonies.

Some of you might think I’m bat shit right now.

What’s so bad about having service??

Nothing. If you want to stay connected to the outside world.

But one of the things I love about my home away from home is unplugging.

Most of the time I don’t even bring my charger.

It’s insanely liberating.

Especially for someone who works in social media. Even when I want to cut the ties that bind me, I still have a job to do.

my home away from home 🙂

In our hyper-connected, Facebook obsessed world, not having internet access completely changes your perspective.

If you’re trying to be more mindful, live more fully in the moment, or maybe trying a Happiness Project of your own, I highly recommend unplugging.

Have you ever gone out without your phone?

Did you feel naked?

Or does it make you feel free??

For me it’s a little of Column A, a little from Column B.

We’ve all see that group of friends out to dinner, eyeballs glued to their phones, instead of actually talking to each other.

Don’t be those people.

My Mom has this awesome rule of no phones at her dinner table.

It’s pretty rude when you think about it.

It’s okay to break bread together, but God forbid you have an actual face to face conversation?!

The next time you’re out, leave your phone at home.

Or if you really can’t be without it, at least turn your ringer off.

The electronic tether is much easier to ignore if you can’t hear it.

It’s the polite thing to do.

Mom said so 🙂

It’s Finally Friday!!!

Quote of the Day:

Wine me, Dine me:

This smoothie is packed with foods your brain will love.

Inspirational:

The only three questions that matter.

Out on the Town:

You and your love strapped for cash? Check out 70 cheap or free date ideas.

Body Lovin’:

Get your arms ready for all those sexy summer styles.

Health and Wellness:

Have you ever tried reflexology? Check out this guide on how to give the perfect foot massage.

Climbing the Ladder:

Do you have a life after work?

Giggles and Such:

Have a great weekend!

Do the Hustle

There was a time, in a land far, far away, where the economy was booming and jobs opportunities were plentiful.

I worked a full-time job that paid me (in hindsight) ridiculously well, provided all sorts of perks, all while reporting to a boss who was genuinely concerned with my career development.

Fast forward four years.

The economy is in the shitter.

Average Americans work two or three jobs just to eat and keep a roof over their heads, and most days I feel like a bartender who just gets dressed up during the day to go play “office”.

It’s sad that I dream of another part-time marketing/PR gig so I can feel like a “grown-up” working a “real” job.

It’s even sadder that I will never be able to replicate the income I make slinging drinks with said “real” job.

The irony is I finally figured out what I wanted to be when I “grew up” just in time for the entire economy and workforce landscape to change.

When I had the support, encouragement, and means to explore what made me happy, I squandered my opportunities.

There are days when I feel like a failure.

At 30 it’s extremely discouraging to be starting from the bottom all over again.

But then I look at the open job postings in my field and realize, it’s not me.

If there were a full-time opportunity out there, I would rock it like Jimi Hendrix shredding the Star Spangled Banner.

But those positions are few and far between these days.

Most companies can’t afford full-time, in-house marketing. They either outsource to an agency or hire someone part-time.

Think about it, as a full-time employee your cost to an organization goes well beyond your paycheck.

When I was living the life in Corporate America, I was a twenty-something earning an upper-middle class salary, I had health insurance, an employer matched retirement plan, and tuition reimbursement.

That’s a hell of a lot of perks. Really expensive perks.

The hustle doesn’t have many perks. My paycheck is what it is and three nights a week I put up with obnoxious drunks while trying to keep a smile on my face.

(Btw if your bartender is not smiling please, please, please do NOT tell her too. In any way, shape, or form. It is super irritating and not at all helpful.)

However, there might be some big moves in the works.

Stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed for me 🙂

It’s Finally Friday!!!

Quote of the Day:

Techie Love:

Organize your life digitally!

Round the World:

This might be the coolest “subway” EVER!!

What’s on your travel bucket list?

Follow your Dreams:

The power of visualization.

Climbing the Ladder:

Is shyness holding you back at work?

Luscious Locks:

How to get perfect beachy curls.

Health and Wellness:

Do you live on Red Bull? Check out how to have high energy naturally.

Body Lovin:

Good Morning Yoga 🙂

Peace of Art:

Think finger painting is only for kids?? Think again!

Inspirational:

The secret to winning.

Giggles and Such:

You’re just a thick mint of my imagination.

Diarrhea is the best excuse for anything. Unless you really have it….

Have a great weekend!

Wicked Hard and Extremely Fragile

I’m not a trusting person.

Call me paranoid but I don’t take anyone’s word for it.

It’s especially hard, after someone you want to trust, has broken that bond.

How are you supposed to take that leap again?

There is no magic pill to take to guarantee a clean slate.

Old fears creep in and the most innocent of exchanges can feel like a plot against your happiness.

How can you truly trust if you haven’t figured out how to forgive?

And I’m not just talking about forgiving others.

I don’t know about you, but when my trust is broken, the person I blame the most is myself.

I should have known better!

How could I have been so stupid??

Why couldn’t I tell he/she was lying?

Trust is such a vulnerable bond.

Even when you have the courage to open your heart and trust.

There are so many obstacles, so many worries that can gnaw on your mind.

The fears and anxieties pick with vicious tenacity at your fragile trust until it has been shredded. Completely destroyed, only the fears and anxieties remaining.

Stop the fear!

The fears and anxieties cannot win if you fill your heart and mind with love.

As part of my Happiness Project I am making a conscious effort to be more trusting. To chose love over fear.

(For those of you who missed those posts – shame on you! Just kidding 🙂 You can check them out here and here.)

This is especially hard for me.

I have an overwhelming need to always be prepared (thank you Girl Scouts) and what may be the world’s most over-active imagination.

When these super powers combine they make me:

The Queen of the Worst.Case.Scenario.

You might be thinking, ‘well that doesn’t sound too bad.’

The problem lies in the thoughts.

If our reality is a manifestation of our thoughts, then being worried, anxious, and distrusting will just bring you more of the same.

And who wants that??

What about you guys?

Do you trust easily?

Or is trusting someone the hardest.thing.ever for you??

It’s Finally Friday!!!

Quote of the Day:

Techie Love:

Everybody pees and everybody carries a cellphone.

Inspirational:

One open heart at a time, you can change the world.

Health and Wellness:

Do you take things personally? Do you find your feelings get hurt more than you’d like? How to fix it.

Wine me, Dine me:

Thinking of going gluten-free? Check out this 5-day meal plan.

Do you love Chips Ahoy cookies as much as me?? Make your own at home! They’re even gluten-free!!

Survival Skills:

Power out? No candles? Flashlight out of juice? Try this.

Feed your Mind:

15 books to read before they get turned into movies.

Climbing the Ladder:

Looking for a job? Make sure you have these 7 skills on your resume.

Peace of Art:

Calling all gamers. The classics are now considered art. Who woulda thunk??

Giggles and Such:

Give the world a reason to dance.

Live your life like an open faced sandwich.

Have a great weekend!