Think-About Thursday 08-05-10

I've been thinking all day about what I should write about. I've been thinking about a lot the past few days and I have a lot running through my mind. I don't want to be a total downer but I don't want to pretend to be all rainbows and bunnies... I don't want to be fake with you, my readers, my online (and some real life) friends.

Every day we blog we let total strangers into our world. Every day we check our favorite blogs and we peer into other people's lives. We get to live in their world for a little bit.

People who don't blog, don't always understand. Some people who are not big into the social aspect of the internet think it's all creepy and weird and pathetic. They stick the people they know in the real world, they talk to their "friends" some of whom they haven't spoken to since highschool even after adding them to their friends list and ignore the rest of the world wide web.

Not me. I embrace all aspects of online social networking. Without it, I don't know how I would have survived the past 10 years of my life. I'm not saying I would have died or anything dramatic, I just... can't fathom a world without my online friends.

I have a friend named Chris that I have known longer than almost any of my "real" friends. We have never met, but I know that I could call them, email them, talk to them about anything at any time rain or shine good or bad even though we live on opposite sides of the continent. One day we're going to take over Canada and it's going to be wonderful. In a sense we've grown up together. If one day the internet would just disapear and I lost my friend forever, it would hurt just as much as losing a friend that lives up the block.

The best thing about the internet is how small it makes the world seem. No matter what is wrong, no matter what I need help with, there is someone a few keystrokes away that is there to offer help, advice, and most importantly support.

I have met an amazing group of women who have become dear friends. If you had asked me 4 years ago if I'd have a group of girlfriends to hang out with, go to supper club, have a book club, I would have laughed in your face. No way. Not me. Well, I would have been wrong.

2 months ago if you had asked me if I'd be able to keep 7 goldfish alive no matter what answer I gave, I would have been wrong. What I thought I knew about goldfish was completely wrong, but b/c of the internet The Fred's are thriving.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't completely freaking out about losing my job. BUT b/c of the internet, b/c of some of YOU frugal coupon cutting, recipe sharing, money saving bloggers, b/c of you who share your lives, your hardships, your failures and your strength, I know I will be okay. Everything will be okay.

Thank you for that. Thank you for letting me vent, for supporting a stranger, for making me laugh and making me cry and for letting me be a part of your world. I hope you enjoy being a part of mine as much as I do, being a part of yours.


What is your favorite thing about the internet?

No-Go BlogHer Blog Hop

Are you staying home during  the BlogHer 2010 conference?  Well, there is no reason to be down about it.  Maya from Musings of a Marfan Mom and Stefany from ToBeThode are here to host the No-Go BlogHer party.  This is guaranteed to be a great time and you can participate right from your sofa (or kitchen, office, heck even your bathroom if you want).    Here is what you need to do to participate:

1. Answer the questions below on your blog and then link up that post in the linky.  You will find the linky at ToBeThode or Musings of a Marfan Mom but you only need to link up once as it will be identical information.
2. Grab the button for the No-Go BlogHer party and place it on your sidebar during the duration of the party.

Here are the questions  to answer:

1. When did you start blogging?
   I started blogging back in 2001 but I didn't call it blogging back then. I had a livejournal that I used for years. I've been on wordpress, livejournal and a few other sites in the past. I started this blog back in 2008, but then renamed it and started over again back in January of 2010
   
2. Why did you start blogging?
   Back in the day it was just to talk about whatever was on my mind. Complain about boyfriends, keep in touch with friends back home while I was away at college. This blog was originally to keep friends and family up to date on life after the wedding but it has since become my place to document my self discovery journey.
3. What is one thing you are going to do this week that is WAY cooler than going to BlogHer?
   I am going to spend a lot of time with my dog and my hubby and my kitties and maybe go bowling and fishing. Very exciting stuff.
4. Share a post that you think says a lot about you or is your favorite.  (share the link in YOUR post so we all can see)
   Family is very important to me. I wrote this post back when no one was really reading it... maybe now is a good time to bring it back. It's about my daddy. Father's Day 2009

Workout Wednesday 8-03-10 - Now THAT'S a nice fish.

EDIT: WOW. I know sometimes people post their daily ramblings the night before on purpose, and I usually schedule some of my posts to go live at 12:01AM but I honestly thought today was Wednesday when I wrote this post. It's not. It's only 10:00PM EST now and I posted this about 20 minutes ago. OOOPS.

I will admit I did not work out today. In fact, I indulged in eating one of my favorite comfort foods...Cheez-It crackers . Mmmmm
However, I did get a good workout this weekend.
In case you couldn't tell from last week's Friday 5! I spent this past weekend in the Hamptons.
Most of my long time readers will surely have noticed that I love to go fishing and pretty much enjoy fish in general. This weekend consisted of a lovely all day fishing trip with my dad and Lord Hill.
My arms and shoulders and back are still sore from all the lifting and other tasks involved in fishing.

You know how I've been complaining about not getting any keepers and a few of you have looked at pictures from previous trips and said "Wow that's a big/nice sized fish!" and I've basically laughed it off?

This is why...

This is what a keeper sized fluke looks like in NY this side of the Hudson River.

Workout Wednesdays may become Work Search Wednesdays in the very near future. I hope you'll stick around.
In the meantime... how did you work out or burn some extra calories this week?

To Do Tuesday 08-3-10

As you may have read in this post I will be out of a job in September. This came as a big surprise and has required some reorganization of my priorities. This week's to do list will be more about keeping my sanity than keeping my apartment clean. Thank you to those of you who have emailed and tweeted and blogged your support. I really appreciate it.

1. Stay Calm. You still have a job for the next month, unemployment will kick in after that, and everything will be okay.
2. Have faith and trust that everything will be okay. It might be hard, it might be scary, but in the end it will be okay. Let God take the wheel on this one. Read Footprints often, pray, and be thankful for the things you do have instead of upset about the things you don't.
3. Rewrite your resume and send it to everyone under the sun. 
4. Create. Use this negative energy and turn it into something positive. Make jewelry, take photos, open an etsy shop.
5. Lean on friends and family. They care about you and are here for you.
6. Try not to take out the frustrations and anger on Lord Hill. Just b/c he works for the same company does not mean he IS the company. We need his paycheck now more than ever. 
7. Remind yourself that you did nothing wrong. Your boss will write a letter of recommendation, you were not fired due to poor performance. This was a relocation thing more than anything else. You have nothing to be ashamed or embarrassed about. 
8. Write. blog. Focus on the things you love
9. Don't forget to throw Tango a birthday party. 
10. RELAX. 

Have you ever been laid off or lost a job due to no fault of your own? How did you cope? Were you angry? Do you have any tips to help me through this?

Trendy Treehouse Shutter Love Tuesday - "Weddings"

This is my fabulous friend Kristin. Isn't she gorgeous?

Makeup by- Linda of  Makeup By Lo

Welcome to the world of Unemployment Lady Hill...

I was just laid off. Fired. Whatever.
I was told that it's not that I'm not good at my job, and that I am the company's #1 choice for the job, but that the current situation just isn't working out and they have found someone to replace me.
My replacement starts in September which gives me another 4 weeks of paychecks. Which is a good thing. It's also horribly uncomfortable.

It looks like you might start seeing more money saving tips, cheap recipes, and other frugal ideas popping up in my writing.

I will try to keep my head up, and my spirits high, and not let it affect the humor that I know many of you appreciate about this blog. Please keep in mind that for the next few weeks/months it will not be all puppies, sunshine and rainbows around here.

Monday Minute 8-02-10

This week's co-host is Jenn from Brown Eyed Girl.  Click the link to check her out or else Yoda will go all dark side on yo ass!

Describe your life in one word
Eclectic

Is there something you wish you had learned how to do as a child?
I really wish I learned how to play the guitar. I own 3 guitars and can't play any of them. I took guitar lessons in college but the rest of the class was actually advanced and taking the class to earn a credit so the teacher didn't teach it as an intro class and I suffered greatly.

Who has been the biggest influence on your life?
The person who has had the biggest influence is not the same person that has had the best influence, but you said biggest, not best so my answer is a predator named Scott.


What is your greatest dream/hope/aspiration?
To be content.

and finally...

Do you believe you have reached your potential?  Why/why not?
No. I had a 4.0 GPA in college. I graduated at the top of my class in highschool... I was supposed to be a psychologist, a published author...or on the road to being the President. I was supposed to be rich or at least on my way to being there... Instead, I'm struggling to decide what I want to be when I "grow up" even though I'm pretty sure that happened without my permission at least 5 years ago.