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So sad that John Hughes has died. But his legacy will live on as will his words to live by…
“Dear Mr. Vernon, we accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was we did wrong. What we did was wrong, but we think you’re crazy to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us as you want to see us, in the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain…and an athlete…and a basket case…a princess…and a criminal. Does that answer your question? Sincerely yours, the Breakfast Club.” — Brian Johnson
photo via
my weekend was this kind of fun…
First (and most importantly) it is 65 degrees and sunny and I’m headed outside in two seconds!
Second, I just purchased a fabulous 1960’s mint condition typewriter! Yeah!!! I love the clickety-click of the keys, the bang of the bell and definitely my most favorite sound is that of ripping the paper through the roller as it ripples all the way out!
Happy Friday!
…that i was here instead of in the rain, sleet, & snow!!!
I think that I am personally responsible for the destruction of over half of the rain forest. Because it was 60 degrees and sunny on Sunday, Brad and I took the time to PURGE… and I mean trim down! We have a small, but cleverly over-stuffed storage space. It is located on the ground level of our building, right next to the door. Thus we began assembling what some thought was a “yard” sale… or more like a back-door sale.
I couldn’t believe just how much shit we’ve not only accumulated over 4 years as is natural, but all the shit that we’ve moved — multiple times! And as we are now looking to make a move again, I refused to relocate one more box of unnecessary crap. However, as I saw the last seven years of my life in the shambled boxes, I had mixed emotions. So much of that “stuff” made me feel terrible. I mean, who really wants to see all of their old school work… especially when it wasn’t exactly all A’s?! And what do you do with old photos…boxes of photos from college, summer trips, old flames? Well I made a decision that if I didn’t know what was in a box from looking at the outside, I probably didn’t need it. Tossed. All of it.
Well, not just tossed, but I then frantically started ripping apart every item as I pulled it out, hoping to find some way to recycle it. I mean, I alone had probably 20 spirals of class notes that turned into three different recycling piles: paper, cardboard, metal. I knew I should be feeling better about cleansing myself of this unnecessary yoke, but I was really aware of my “stuff factor.” For example, I had an entire rubbermaid container full of toiletries (that have been in that same box since the first time I moved in MA in 2004); if it was unopened it went to a give-away pile, but so much had to be thrown away: medicine that had expired, old make-up bags, samples of anything and everything. Why do I “collect” these things? They sit in drawers, unopened, for a special occasion or something else. I will admit that I have gotten much, much better about using and/or giving things away, but I still have an entire house full of stuff. It really can feel like a burden. Then I really started to get upset when I realized just how much couldn’t really be recycled and will probably sit in some landfill for the next millennia. Awful.
I guess all I can do is start to change a day at a time. The one nugget I took away for the day was in a box that I would have sworn I had lost in 2003. I had no idea that it has moved to SIX different locations with me. I was almost in tears I was so excited… Six of my old journals hidden under my LPs! I thought for certain that those journals were never to be found again…or worse, they would end up on some tacky website. AND THEN to get my records back was too much! Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Indigo Girls… ahhh vinyl.
It ended up being a pretty good day, despite my attempts to single-handedly destroy our environment!!
fire & ice
…your boss walks by your desk, pauses, looks you up and down to take in your well accessorized outfit and then duplicitously says, “Do you have something special today or did you wear that just for us?” As the question of course baffles you, you then respond confused, “no… I… don’t…?” She then retorts condescending, “Hm! Lucky Us.”
(THROW IN THE TOWEL TODAY! IT’S NOT WORTH IT!)
40 inspirational speeches in 2 minutes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6wRkzCW5qI
(via swissmiss)
I just feel more organized looking here:
http://shop.getbuttonedup.com/
(via Outblush)
You can’t not LOVE this place:
http://www.sexypeople-blog.com/
(via For Me, For You)
Well this is just more affirmation that B is headed into the right profession. I love that he was sitting with me when we visited the fantastic blog SwissMiss, so that we could both crack up together. (FYI, he hears back from Architecture Schools in February.)
(Originally uploaded from here, who got it from here, who got it from here)
No one else can motivate me.
…then it probably is. Yep, my girl hero is a fraud. She is a sponsored stunt woman for Gatorade. I’m not upset that I’ve been duped, but rather that I knew what would come out of my co-workers mouth…and it did:
“See, I knew a girl couldn’t really do that.”
Whether you’re a sports fan or not, this girl is awesome! I love how smooth she is! Her athletic prowess is beyond her years.
After I finally finished my resume I scrounged up some gusto and I walked into the new potential job-site. I thought I was just going to hand in my resume and then leave, but the owner decided to interview me right there on the spot. He called in his wife to also interview me and we talked for a little over an hour. It was great. Really great. One week passed, no phone call. Then on Monday I finally got the call I was waiting for. It was from the woman who interviewed me. She left a very positive message saying that “she and her husband talked a lot all week about what it would be like working with me and that she would like to talk me about it a bit more so call her on her cell phone any time.”
I was ecstatic & so nervous. This was actually real & happening. I got the message at 5:30 and called her immediately. I got her voicemail so I left a message. And despite the death grip on my phone, I didn’t hear from her that night. Then I thought, well it won’t hurt to call again Tuesday morning…after all, maybe she didn’t get the message, etc. Tuesday 10:30am second message for her on her cell phone. By Tuesday night…still nothing. Wednesday I was feeling a bit nervous that she wasn’t getting the messages b/c cell phones can be crazy and I’m thinking that she’s thinking that I’m being disrespectful and/or I’m not interested. So I thought, maybe I’ll call the office. I did…she wasn’t there. I didn’t leave a message and thought, O.K., she had to go out of town or something. She’ll call back. Thursday morning…still nothing. Thursday afternoon I decide to call the office and leave a message this time. I call, her secretary says she’s in and asks who’s calling of course. After I’m put on hold for a minute the secretary says she’s on another line and wants to know if I want to be put through to her voicemail…. so, I did what i’ve been doing…and left another message. Tonight…still no returned phone call.
By now, I’m feeling a little bit like the stalker girlfriend. I absolutely cannot believe that she hasn’t call me back…particularly after specifically telling me to “call my mobile any time.” Are you kidding me. This has been an awful waiting game.
So do I keep calling until I get her? You know, the squeaky wheel gets greased first thing? Is she testing me? Am I just being annoying or professionally persistent? Why in the world has she not called me back? And why am I the one that feels like the jerk?
********************************************UPDATE**********************************************
She called!!! I go back for a second interview Tuesday at 10:30am. She apologized for not getting back to me sooner. She said she had to unexpectedly go out of town & things just got nuts. I feel really good about me being a good fit for the company, now I’m curious to see what it is that they would want me to do & if it’s a good fit for me. But man, just to have normal people hours alone would be amazing *swoon*!
Thanks to swissmiss, I have spent too much time on-line analyzing different brand identities…at least according to those who have contributed to the sight. Follow the link here to check out what other people think of a familiar brand. The program uses a tag cloud to show the responses. Once you have typed in your thought and hit the submit button, look up at the top to click on the page showing what others think too. I wonder if corporate monkeys are checking this because you would think if they did, they might start making some changes.
I’ve spent the last two evenings right here in front of my computer searching for the right words to make myself sound…appealing…desireable…and just all around fantastic. No, I’m not signing up for internet dating, I’m working on a resume. It’s not quite as easy as I remember. In my previous job I interviewed people all the time and therefore had resumes coming across my desk and was quite familiar with the nomenclature and formality of it all. But now since I don’t even have a desk, I have very little ‘professional’ information passing in front of my eyes. I’m a little out of practice, I’d say.
I feel all out of sorts actually. I had a customer who apparently had a really positive experience and subsequently offered an invitation to ‘explore my options’ with his company. This was four weeks ago. (I sat on it because he was leaving to go out of the country to several weeks.) He’s back now; and I’m feeling like an awkward 17 year old applying for her first job. But in all reality I don’t even know that there is a job to apply for. I have since done a bit of research on the company and the president and found out that he is a bit of a space cadet, she says with repspect. (The company is solid though.) This makes me curious all the more as to if this invitation was even real or just something that he does at the drop of a hat. I will admit, I felt really special and appreciated when he offered and extended his compliments. But now, I don’t even know if he will remember me; so here I am wringing my hands in the sea of wonderment. I wonder if… What about… And what if… I know, I know; I just need to make it happen; and thus, the resume stares back at me.
This little endeavor has definitely caused a moment of reflection and pause to contemplate just what the heck I’ve been doing the last 3 years? I never expected to be here in Michigan, much less working as a buyer, customer service agent & bathroom cleaner in a small store. It’s like I stepped into someone else’s vocational life. It’s not that it’s all bad, but something different would be much appreciated and I think I’m a little scared to hope for it. I’m of course fearful that it will reinforce the feeling that I’m stuck…stuck in a place I don’t want to be. But I feel awful saying that because it’s not a bad place…it’s just not where I want to be.
And clearly I’m using this forum as a procrastination technique to not work on my resume. Alas…I will get back to it.
I’m officially a red-head. I needed change & my hair is the easiest target. Although it may seem subtle in the photos…it doesn’t seem that way. But I’m happy with the new color. Change your hair, change your life.
Well we’re off to the Windy City this weekend. We plan to spend half the day at the Art Institute of Chicago & then some time shopping. We’ve mapped our route from the museum to anthropologie to paper source. Finally…city people! Have a great weekend!
One of my favorite daily reads is Swissmiss. Yesterday she posted this cute little number that can be found at modern seed.
I knew exactly where I had seen something similar. I walk to work past a dress shop every day and this very spring skirt has me ready for tulips and birds chirping…or ducks quacking. 
Too scared to cut my fabric.
my friday will be spent working, reading & writing. i started this week natalie goldberg’s book: writing down the bones. i hope to finish it next week. it’s a relatively quick read packed with lots of helpful tips for writers. i’m sure i will continue to reference it for years to come. i was also pretty excited to find a used copy on-line for a dollar! i’ve enjoyed reading the previous owners notes & thoughts along with the author’s.
although the clouds are still hanging around, i found a little sunshine at my favorite local bookstore. the periodical section is enormous (for such a tiny corner shop) and i am able to peruse swanky, european magazines & literary journals i can’t afford. it was a good day.
