It's been a while since little ole me has been to Blogger-land. I know ya'll need catching up so here goes a list:
1) Finished up my second to last semester of college two days ago. All I have left is finals, next semester, and Im home free. Yippeee....
2) Ended the almost 2 year relationship with Alex back in October. It was a hard decision but our lives just were not going in the same direction.
3) Managed to work 4 different part-time jobs in the past 3 months and still barely have enough money every month. Good thing oxygen doesn't cost anything.
4) Started dating a new guy in mid-November. His name is Ben and everything is going great so far. I will be talking about him for a while to come I believe :)
5) Succesfully networked with a district manager with State Industrial Products, a chemical manufacturer based in Columbus, OH, and will start the first week of January as the new Sales Rep for the Nashville territory! A great job with an awesome company before I even graduate college, yeah!
I think that's about it for right now. Even though its only 5 things, they're all pretty major and are the reason I exhale deeply every night before I lay my head down. My life is exciting and very very blessed indeed.
Til next time...
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Friday, September 4, 2009
A Little Political Rant (from a Conservatives POV)
Even as a Conservative, I stress belief in our Country and most importantly our Leader. I am a firm believer that if we operate as a country split in half over politics, we will present ourselves to the world as a broken land. We can have all the security in the world, but our we protecting our name as the United States?
Our Leader says he wants to speak to our children words of encouragement, focusing on staying in school. He wants to present himself as a Leader to everyone, not just adults. I feel this is important because the choices he and the lawmakers under him make will affect our childrens lives for many years to come.
So it comes down to this: If you think he might say something resembling propoganda, do you want your child listening to him?
In my personal opinion, I don't think he would dare say anything that would come across as what I like to call "Drinkin the Kool-aid talk." I'll go a step further and say that being this is a sensitive audience to speak to, that speech has gone through the editors and speech analysts more than the usual speech.
The important thing I see here is people need to learn how to speak to their children about what is going on in the world. I believe for children to be well-rounded, they need to be able to listen to a political figure speak, understand what their saying, and then make a decision for themselves. There needs to be dialog between parents and children, not just parents telling the children what they believe. I love to see parents and children having different viewpoints, it means that at one point, the parents let the children share what they thought and they didn't make the child feel bad for their opinion.
I am a child of this example family relationship, and I will forever thank my parents for their support.
If I don't post before Monday, have a great Labor Day weekend Bloggers!
Our Leader says he wants to speak to our children words of encouragement, focusing on staying in school. He wants to present himself as a Leader to everyone, not just adults. I feel this is important because the choices he and the lawmakers under him make will affect our childrens lives for many years to come.
So it comes down to this: If you think he might say something resembling propoganda, do you want your child listening to him?
In my personal opinion, I don't think he would dare say anything that would come across as what I like to call "Drinkin the Kool-aid talk." I'll go a step further and say that being this is a sensitive audience to speak to, that speech has gone through the editors and speech analysts more than the usual speech.
The important thing I see here is people need to learn how to speak to their children about what is going on in the world. I believe for children to be well-rounded, they need to be able to listen to a political figure speak, understand what their saying, and then make a decision for themselves. There needs to be dialog between parents and children, not just parents telling the children what they believe. I love to see parents and children having different viewpoints, it means that at one point, the parents let the children share what they thought and they didn't make the child feel bad for their opinion.
I am a child of this example family relationship, and I will forever thank my parents for their support.
If I don't post before Monday, have a great Labor Day weekend Bloggers!
Thursday, September 3, 2009
French cousins and a trip to Europe
Have you ever tried to learn a new language? In high school, as a requirement, I was required to take a foreign language and I chose French. I never really knew anyone that spoke French, or if I would ever get to use it. The fact remained that it was a romance language, and it appealed to young Allyson. I didn't do too well in this endeavor, but I retained very very miniscule parts from this class.
Well you know how you should really pay attention in class when you think it won't make the difference? Well to make a long story short, my beautiful and intelligent cousin Brooke moved to Switzerland earlier this year to practice her science as a Doctor of Audiology in Geneva. I can hear what you're thinking, seriously, people actually do that? I know, I thought that myself. Brooke is a force to be reckoned with and aint nothing standing in that girls' way.
So I find myself intrigued, and upon a very expressive invitation to visit, I am tentatively planning a journey to Geneva, Switzerland sometime next summer (tentatively based upon my May graduation). I'm pretty excited about this trip and I hope to add a detour into Austria to do the Sound of Music tour. Talk about a dream that can really come true.
Back to my spat about paying attention (especially in French class) I find myself wanting to polish up on my French skills. Here I go using Google translator to converse with my cousin, which I encourage by the way, it will only help me brush up on my old French courses. It's definitely a change from learning to earn a grade to learning to communicate with someone you love.
Have you tried to learn a new language for a purpose other than just the challenge? I would love to hear your techniques.
Until next time, keep me in your thoughts. So far 18 hours ain't so bad on this girl, but crazier things have happened.
Bonne nuit,
Allyson
Well you know how you should really pay attention in class when you think it won't make the difference? Well to make a long story short, my beautiful and intelligent cousin Brooke moved to Switzerland earlier this year to practice her science as a Doctor of Audiology in Geneva. I can hear what you're thinking, seriously, people actually do that? I know, I thought that myself. Brooke is a force to be reckoned with and aint nothing standing in that girls' way.
So I find myself intrigued, and upon a very expressive invitation to visit, I am tentatively planning a journey to Geneva, Switzerland sometime next summer (tentatively based upon my May graduation). I'm pretty excited about this trip and I hope to add a detour into Austria to do the Sound of Music tour. Talk about a dream that can really come true.
Back to my spat about paying attention (especially in French class) I find myself wanting to polish up on my French skills. Here I go using Google translator to converse with my cousin, which I encourage by the way, it will only help me brush up on my old French courses. It's definitely a change from learning to earn a grade to learning to communicate with someone you love.
Have you tried to learn a new language for a purpose other than just the challenge? I would love to hear your techniques.
Until next time, keep me in your thoughts. So far 18 hours ain't so bad on this girl, but crazier things have happened.
Bonne nuit,
Allyson
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Really? 18 hours?
On Monday I turn my life over to MTSU. This semester consists of 18 hours, of which 2 classes are night classes and one is an online course. Whoo hoo. I'm also going to try to hold down my work/study job, a cleaning job at a local salon, and working on maybe a new restaurant job. That one is still in the development stages. If I don't think about all of it then I don't freak out about it. Just do it. Nike.
This summer has been just a season for me. I had my two classes that took up most of it, and I haven't really had the money to go anywhere other than Georgia a couple of times. I had really wanted to get to the beach, but that doesn't look like it's going to happen. Maybe later on in the year...maybe.
I haven't seen Alex that much, which sadly I'm getting used to. I'm sure we have a great relationship, but I'm now afraid that if we ever do actually live together, we'll be so unaccustomed to each other like we once were. I digress about the whole situation, because who knows what lies in the future for us. Maybe I will get that nice job in Atlanta. Maybe I'll get an awesome job here in Nashville and he'll find it better just to move back to Middle Tennessee. I don't see that ever happening by the way.
So, until Monday, I'm here at the cabin, crocheting and looking up funny videos on youtube.
Welcome to almost September.
This summer has been just a season for me. I had my two classes that took up most of it, and I haven't really had the money to go anywhere other than Georgia a couple of times. I had really wanted to get to the beach, but that doesn't look like it's going to happen. Maybe later on in the year...maybe.
I haven't seen Alex that much, which sadly I'm getting used to. I'm sure we have a great relationship, but I'm now afraid that if we ever do actually live together, we'll be so unaccustomed to each other like we once were. I digress about the whole situation, because who knows what lies in the future for us. Maybe I will get that nice job in Atlanta. Maybe I'll get an awesome job here in Nashville and he'll find it better just to move back to Middle Tennessee. I don't see that ever happening by the way.
So, until Monday, I'm here at the cabin, crocheting and looking up funny videos on youtube.
Welcome to almost September.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Have you explored your career lately?
Yesterday I changed my major from Business Education/ Secondary Education to Business Education/ Non-teaching. This means that I don't have to do student teaching thus I can graduate in May like I had wanted to do from the get-go. But that also means I wont automatically be testing for a teaching license when I get done with college.
Ive come to the conclusion that I don't really want to teach high school after all. I figure its probably good that I figure this out now rather than in the middle of my student teaching. So where does this leave me? What career field do I go into now?
According to my new course layout, I have to take two upper-division Non-Business courses. I'm planning on trying to take those courses in Public Relations (which at MTSU is in the College of Mass Communication) and maybe something in Human Development (College of Education). Hopefully with those two classes I'll be able to figure out where I would like to try to apply for an internship in the Spring. Thats another thing. In lieu of student teaching, I'm doing an internship which I think is a excellent plan. Put me out there in the real world, hopefully make a stipend, and wish for a walk-on position after graduation. Now that would definitely be the cat's meow.
Usually change is scary but this change is making me feel better about my college career. I'm one of those subjective people who say that getting a good job depends on your inner abilities, not your GPA. I also believe that you can learn things in college, but a good deal of what career you're suited for depends on your attitude.
I think I would be good in Public Relations. I also think I would be good in the government sector. Lobbying congress would be right down my alley. Counseling troubled teens would seem like a good job (depending on the area I was living in!) I feel like with my new major, the possibilities are endless. I can't wait to see what my future career looks like.
What does your career exploration look like?
Ive come to the conclusion that I don't really want to teach high school after all. I figure its probably good that I figure this out now rather than in the middle of my student teaching. So where does this leave me? What career field do I go into now?
According to my new course layout, I have to take two upper-division Non-Business courses. I'm planning on trying to take those courses in Public Relations (which at MTSU is in the College of Mass Communication) and maybe something in Human Development (College of Education). Hopefully with those two classes I'll be able to figure out where I would like to try to apply for an internship in the Spring. Thats another thing. In lieu of student teaching, I'm doing an internship which I think is a excellent plan. Put me out there in the real world, hopefully make a stipend, and wish for a walk-on position after graduation. Now that would definitely be the cat's meow.
Usually change is scary but this change is making me feel better about my college career. I'm one of those subjective people who say that getting a good job depends on your inner abilities, not your GPA. I also believe that you can learn things in college, but a good deal of what career you're suited for depends on your attitude.
I think I would be good in Public Relations. I also think I would be good in the government sector. Lobbying congress would be right down my alley. Counseling troubled teens would seem like a good job (depending on the area I was living in!) I feel like with my new major, the possibilities are endless. I can't wait to see what my future career looks like.
What does your career exploration look like?
Thursday, July 23, 2009
What have I been doing?
Crocheting dishcloths, that's what. At the beginning of the month I bought a bag full of 100% cotton yarn at Hobby Lobby with the intention of making dishcloths to sell in an antique store that my mother has a booth in. I finally got done with said dishcloths last Friday and delivered them. As of today, none of the sets have sold.
So basically I feel like I've busted hump to crunch out what I believe are really cute pieces of old fashioned kitchen necessity, and no one has yet to take a bite! They're cute colors...good and tight needlework....good at cleaning dishes for many years...
Maybe after a few more days of no bites we will re-evaluate the asking price. I will put my one semester of marketing classes to good use! Product- check. Placement-check. Promotion-check. Price- might need tweaking.
So as I'm laying here in bed in Georgia for the weekend, what am I thinking about? Crocheting dishcloths of course! I'm here for a wedding that my handsome Alex is starring in as a groomsman, and I had said that I will crochet the lovely bride some dishcloths. T-minus 1.5 days until said dishcloths are due and only two of the set of four are done and DOH!! I just remembered the twine I use to normally wrap around the sets as decoration is sitting on the table...in my house...in Tennessee. Oh well, no cute old-fashioned wrapping for this present. Maybe I'll luck up and find some ribbon around in this house in the next day. I really dont have the money nor the time to rummage around the local Michael's, Hobby Lobby, or Joann's.
I hope you have all had a productive and happy July. I'm ready for it to be over to be honest.
So basically I feel like I've busted hump to crunch out what I believe are really cute pieces of old fashioned kitchen necessity, and no one has yet to take a bite! They're cute colors...good and tight needlework....good at cleaning dishes for many years...
Maybe after a few more days of no bites we will re-evaluate the asking price. I will put my one semester of marketing classes to good use! Product- check. Placement-check. Promotion-check. Price- might need tweaking.
So as I'm laying here in bed in Georgia for the weekend, what am I thinking about? Crocheting dishcloths of course! I'm here for a wedding that my handsome Alex is starring in as a groomsman, and I had said that I will crochet the lovely bride some dishcloths. T-minus 1.5 days until said dishcloths are due and only two of the set of four are done and DOH!! I just remembered the twine I use to normally wrap around the sets as decoration is sitting on the table...in my house...in Tennessee. Oh well, no cute old-fashioned wrapping for this present. Maybe I'll luck up and find some ribbon around in this house in the next day. I really dont have the money nor the time to rummage around the local Michael's, Hobby Lobby, or Joann's.
I hope you have all had a productive and happy July. I'm ready for it to be over to be honest.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Blogging about 200 yards away from a computer
Blackberry is my new form is communication. I'm sitting in my finance class right now, and in a few steps I can be on facebook, twitter, myspace, etc. I think technology is about the coolest thing happening right now. I'll re-evaluate this when my cell phone bill comes at the end of the month.
On a different front, I'm avoiding television at the moment. If they're not talking about Michael Jackson, its the death of Steve Mcnair which happened just on down the road in Nashville. If its not on my Blackberry news application, I'm left in the dark and I'm okay with that.
So as we go into July I'm looking forward to many long summer days fixing garden vegetables and playing with my dog. I wish everyone obsessing about celebrities dying would do the same.
On a different front, I'm avoiding television at the moment. If they're not talking about Michael Jackson, its the death of Steve Mcnair which happened just on down the road in Nashville. If its not on my Blackberry news application, I'm left in the dark and I'm okay with that.
So as we go into July I'm looking forward to many long summer days fixing garden vegetables and playing with my dog. I wish everyone obsessing about celebrities dying would do the same.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Are you a good mix?
I know everyone has heard at one time or another "Oh, you're just like your mother/father". But have you ever really considered which part of you corresponds to each parent?
I know for sure that I get my gift-giving ways from my father. He strives to make sure everyone has something at Christmas, including his co-workers. For that matter, he makes sure everyone at least gets a card for every other special occasion throughout the year. Unfortunately, I also get my money-managing skills from my dad. Not in any capacity is he bad at finances, but he's already figured it all out. I havent. Oh well, I'm working on it.
From my mother I get my tenacity. My will to survive. The will to make sure that I'm comfortable with whatever is happening in my life and change it if I feel the need to. I also get my savvy-ness. Mom has always instilled in me to find a way to get out of any predicament. Don't always wait for Prince Charming (not the Ohio one)to come and save you. I've also figured out that whenever I'm trying something new, I try to figure out an escape plan. I know its silly, but hey, it makes me feel better and its come to good use before. It kinda drives Alex crazy, but I rarely "live on the edge." I have learned to turn off the cell phone when going camping now.
From both of my parents I get my cool-headed attitude. Those who remember me from my younger days are saying "Ummm riiiggghhhtttt". Hey, I was a kid, we were all a little tuned up tight. My parents never saw a need in getting bent out of shape about anything. What's the use? The problem won't solve itself if people are going crazy. Cooler heads always prevail.
Have you ever seen the families who do get bent all out of shape when things happen? Isn't everyone in that family, even the dog, stressed to the max? If people would just chill out, quit yelling, take a 5, things might become a little clearer. And this goes out to all the "screamer moms" out there, kids get used to it, then you're losing your voice for nothing. Believe me, I saw my aunt do it for years. My cousin literally thought his mom was deaf because she was always yelling at him.
Do you think you're a good mix of your mother and father?
I know for sure that I get my gift-giving ways from my father. He strives to make sure everyone has something at Christmas, including his co-workers. For that matter, he makes sure everyone at least gets a card for every other special occasion throughout the year. Unfortunately, I also get my money-managing skills from my dad. Not in any capacity is he bad at finances, but he's already figured it all out. I havent. Oh well, I'm working on it.
From my mother I get my tenacity. My will to survive. The will to make sure that I'm comfortable with whatever is happening in my life and change it if I feel the need to. I also get my savvy-ness. Mom has always instilled in me to find a way to get out of any predicament. Don't always wait for Prince Charming (not the Ohio one)to come and save you. I've also figured out that whenever I'm trying something new, I try to figure out an escape plan. I know its silly, but hey, it makes me feel better and its come to good use before. It kinda drives Alex crazy, but I rarely "live on the edge." I have learned to turn off the cell phone when going camping now.
From both of my parents I get my cool-headed attitude. Those who remember me from my younger days are saying "Ummm riiiggghhhtttt". Hey, I was a kid, we were all a little tuned up tight. My parents never saw a need in getting bent out of shape about anything. What's the use? The problem won't solve itself if people are going crazy. Cooler heads always prevail.
Have you ever seen the families who do get bent all out of shape when things happen? Isn't everyone in that family, even the dog, stressed to the max? If people would just chill out, quit yelling, take a 5, things might become a little clearer. And this goes out to all the "screamer moms" out there, kids get used to it, then you're losing your voice for nothing. Believe me, I saw my aunt do it for years. My cousin literally thought his mom was deaf because she was always yelling at him.
Do you think you're a good mix of your mother and father?
Friday, June 19, 2009
Canned in a positive way
When I was thinking of my post for this week, I considered talking about my past weekend experience with Bonnaroo. I won't go into all that, but let it be said I had to take Monday off to crash for a while.
But as I was reading my Twitter updates this morning at my desk, I saw an interesting post by NPR talking about the rise in Canning since the current economic status hit us. For some reason I couldnt get the URL link to work correctly, but I found a similar link that talks about the current canning revolution.
I know that some of my fellow bloggers are canners so I pose this question: Do you see a huge difference in your shopping bill when you consider the things that you have canned over the summer months?
I have been interested in learning the fine art of canning in order to savor the summer tastes of squash, tomatoes, and maybe even a pickled okra. Another question posed to my cunning canners: What are some other things you enjoy canning? My mom was never very interested in cooking, but she did do some canning in the summer when my grandfather would bring extra crop from his amazing garden over to our house. Many a day I remember standing in the kitchen, helping my mother stuff Ball jars full of squash or cooked tomatoes, trying to get every little air bubble out, and lugging around the heavy metal pressure cooker.
Who knows. Maybe if I get a few extra squash plants from my Grannie Miller or my cousin Glenna I will have to try my hand at canning again.
Hope you all have a good weekend! I will be disconnecting this weekend so hopefully I will have a few stories of that experience next week!
Monday, June 8, 2009
How refreshing to find a new outlook...
This last weekend was an excellent weekend starting Friday morning. After I had an uneventful and efficient drive to Fayetteville, GA in the a.m., Alex and I made the trip to Atlanta to see the band No Doubt with my best friend Sara, her husband Chris and our very good friend Cory. Easily one of the most impressive shows I have ever seen, and it was relatively inexpensive tickets (after Ticketmaster fees- $15).
Here is a picture of me and my handsome guy, who is constantly making me smile:
My best friend Sara and I waiting for the very popular attraction at the venue, the bathroom:
The fun didn't just end at Friday night. Alex and I returned to Atlanta on Saturday afternoon to take in the wonderful animals at Zoo Atlanta. Which is the artsy name for the Atlanta Zoo... I see what they did there. Sadly, no pictures were taken, we were having too much fun watching the gorillas.
The reason to be in Atlanta all along was to celebrate the Retirement/ Graduation party for Alex's best friend's mother, Mrs. Linda Andrews, Ph.D. Before I wax poetically about this wonderful woman and the reason for this posting, one more picture of me and my guy at the Twisted Taco for the party:
Miss Linda has an outlook on life, and its basically this: Live Your Life. You will never have this moment again, so make the most of it. She intends to take every moment she has available and make sure there is something happening. We asked her what her future plans were, and just within the next 3 months she will be going on a Mediterranean cruise, doing speaking engagements for a week in Japan, graduating in August with her Ph.D., and considering a move to Quatar (yeah, the Middle East) depending on her interview for a job with the Rand Company. Did I mention she just retired from 30 years teaching and trying to convince the GA Department of Education that gifted children needed more attention?
I must add in here that she also raised two very awesome children, Lauren and Stuart who are both very successful and talented human beings.
I would take a breath if I were her. But thats the grand difference between us. She is determined to make something of every minute that God gives her, and she admits that she's still going to make as much money as she possibly can. I respect that. Money makes our lives a whole lot easier and if I can make money responsibly and according to my morals, its going to happen.
I intend to take her outlook on life and form it to fit my own situation. Things might have to be left behind, I might be uncomfortable from time to time, but I need to start living my life, especially while I am still unmarried and without children. Don't worry, I won't stop living when these life events happen. The outlook will evolve to include those new special people in my life, and they will hopefully benefit from the decisions that I make right now in my life.
Okay. Post went long. I hope you're still with me. I hope you have found your outlook on life and have achieved everything you wished and maybe even more.
I'm going to go start the rest of my life. Talk to you later.
Here is a picture of me and my handsome guy, who is constantly making me smile:
My best friend Sara and I waiting for the very popular attraction at the venue, the bathroom:
The fun didn't just end at Friday night. Alex and I returned to Atlanta on Saturday afternoon to take in the wonderful animals at Zoo Atlanta. Which is the artsy name for the Atlanta Zoo... I see what they did there. Sadly, no pictures were taken, we were having too much fun watching the gorillas.
The reason to be in Atlanta all along was to celebrate the Retirement/ Graduation party for Alex's best friend's mother, Mrs. Linda Andrews, Ph.D. Before I wax poetically about this wonderful woman and the reason for this posting, one more picture of me and my guy at the Twisted Taco for the party:
Miss Linda has an outlook on life, and its basically this: Live Your Life. You will never have this moment again, so make the most of it. She intends to take every moment she has available and make sure there is something happening. We asked her what her future plans were, and just within the next 3 months she will be going on a Mediterranean cruise, doing speaking engagements for a week in Japan, graduating in August with her Ph.D., and considering a move to Quatar (yeah, the Middle East) depending on her interview for a job with the Rand Company. Did I mention she just retired from 30 years teaching and trying to convince the GA Department of Education that gifted children needed more attention?
I must add in here that she also raised two very awesome children, Lauren and Stuart who are both very successful and talented human beings.
I would take a breath if I were her. But thats the grand difference between us. She is determined to make something of every minute that God gives her, and she admits that she's still going to make as much money as she possibly can. I respect that. Money makes our lives a whole lot easier and if I can make money responsibly and according to my morals, its going to happen.
I intend to take her outlook on life and form it to fit my own situation. Things might have to be left behind, I might be uncomfortable from time to time, but I need to start living my life, especially while I am still unmarried and without children. Don't worry, I won't stop living when these life events happen. The outlook will evolve to include those new special people in my life, and they will hopefully benefit from the decisions that I make right now in my life.
Okay. Post went long. I hope you're still with me. I hope you have found your outlook on life and have achieved everything you wished and maybe even more.
I'm going to go start the rest of my life. Talk to you later.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
I'm still alive!
I know there's no excuse for this much of an absence from Blogger-land! I really have been busy though...
First of all, I've been working, and also looking for more work. 20 hours a week at the Career Development Center isn't enough, so I'm looking at other possibilities on campus to get more of MTSU's money. Luckily they would rather hire students for temp positions because they can get away with not giving us health insurance. The people I work with are always keeping their ears tuned for other positions around campus, and I have a couple of leads. Hopefully I'll find something for the months of July and August since the Career Center has no money in its budget to hire me for those months.
For some fun news, I found out yesterday that I was accepted to work as a Brand Ambassador for FuseTV at Bonnaroo Music Festival! This is a major event for Middle Tennessee and brings people from all around the world to listen to some top bands. I'll be working 38 hours over the 4 days, so by the time I get paid I should have a good chunk of change. Cant wait! Hope to bring you back some pics, I'm sure I'll have a most interesting time.
This summer also consists of me taking 2 classes, luckily only one of them started this week. I thought Finance was going to be a tricky subject, but as long as you have a calculator with the Finance application, life is golden. The tricky part is listening to the teacher, who's Chinese (been in America only 6 years), and very proud of his American name which is Kevin. Too funny...
So tomorrow I travel to Atlanta to spend the weekend with my handsome Prince Alex. We shall enjoy seeing No Doubt in concert along with my best friends Sara, Chris, and Cory. A cocktail party on Saturday will round off the weekend and on my way home on Sunday I will be dropping off Alex at the airport for his business trip to Anaheim, Cali. Traveling for everyone indeed!
I hope you havent missed me too much. I promise to blog sooner next time!
P.S. Karabeth- Not like you dont feel the exact same way, but I can't wait for Princess to have the much awaited for Fennec!
First of all, I've been working, and also looking for more work. 20 hours a week at the Career Development Center isn't enough, so I'm looking at other possibilities on campus to get more of MTSU's money. Luckily they would rather hire students for temp positions because they can get away with not giving us health insurance. The people I work with are always keeping their ears tuned for other positions around campus, and I have a couple of leads. Hopefully I'll find something for the months of July and August since the Career Center has no money in its budget to hire me for those months.
For some fun news, I found out yesterday that I was accepted to work as a Brand Ambassador for FuseTV at Bonnaroo Music Festival! This is a major event for Middle Tennessee and brings people from all around the world to listen to some top bands. I'll be working 38 hours over the 4 days, so by the time I get paid I should have a good chunk of change. Cant wait! Hope to bring you back some pics, I'm sure I'll have a most interesting time.
This summer also consists of me taking 2 classes, luckily only one of them started this week. I thought Finance was going to be a tricky subject, but as long as you have a calculator with the Finance application, life is golden. The tricky part is listening to the teacher, who's Chinese (been in America only 6 years), and very proud of his American name which is Kevin. Too funny...
So tomorrow I travel to Atlanta to spend the weekend with my handsome Prince Alex. We shall enjoy seeing No Doubt in concert along with my best friends Sara, Chris, and Cory. A cocktail party on Saturday will round off the weekend and on my way home on Sunday I will be dropping off Alex at the airport for his business trip to Anaheim, Cali. Traveling for everyone indeed!
I hope you havent missed me too much. I promise to blog sooner next time!
P.S. Karabeth- Not like you dont feel the exact same way, but I can't wait for Princess to have the much awaited for Fennec!
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
The Smells of Middle Tennessee
Welcome to a day in wonderful Middle Tennessee. The recent rains have produced a cleaner air to the area, and you can't go anywhere in nature without smelling the wonderful scent of the plant above, the almighty Honeysuckle.
As I was walking Applesauce yesterday on the city Greenway, I noticed that God has provided us with a natural fragrance for every season. The season we're in right now (Spring although its really summer) is frangranced by honeysuckle, and soon we'll be going into the smell of grass. Yeah I said it, grass. My olfactory senses go crazy in the summer when I pass a field. I love it though, its such an alive scent.
Also coming up soon will be the smell of a garden which I truly love. The smell of cucumber, tomato and okra plants all send me to a place where the only thing that should fear anything is my handy peeler. And the best of all is the eatin', and the eatin' is good as my lovely Grannie Miller would say.
I wish I could send you all a basket of cucumbers and squash, Lord knows they grow quicker than weeds at the height of the season.
But for now I will enjoy the smell of the blooming honeysuckle plants that sit on our property line and think about the upcoming olfactory circus that lies ahead.
What's the scent in your neck of the woods at the moment?
Monday, May 11, 2009
Guess what this computer says...
This computer says that I'm officially a Senior!
GO me!
I'm a little (strike that: enter "very") stoked that possibly a year from now I will be done with college. Don't get me wrong, its fun and all, but I'm kind of over it. I'm ready to teach!
All I have to worry about now is getting into the Education program, which might be a little tricky with my GPA. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
Yay for now!
GO me!
I'm a little (strike that: enter "very") stoked that possibly a year from now I will be done with college. Don't get me wrong, its fun and all, but I'm kind of over it. I'm ready to teach!
All I have to worry about now is getting into the Education program, which might be a little tricky with my GPA. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
Yay for now!
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Life has changed a teensy bit...
I haven't blogged in a while due to Final Exam week which ends for me tonight. Whew...
BIG NEWS: I have a new roommate and she goes by Applesauce. She is a 50 lb. Pitbull Mix and I love her dearly.
I've actually known Applesauce for a while. She was rescued by my friend Jennie's brother on a work site, and since she was living with my best friend Mark (an animal lover of many species) he agreed to take over care of the very malnourished dog. We believe she was a 1 year old, had been trained by her previous owner, but may have been at a puppy mill because it was very visible that she had already had a litter of puppies.
The reason for her name is simple. Mark's other dog, an English bulldog, is named Pork Chop. To make all Peter Brady fans happy, Jennie and I named our new friend Applesauce. Mark always claims that he had nothing to do with the name, it was the women who named her.
So she is very well-trained and generally a happy dog. Until she gets more used to the area I have to walk her on a leash everytime she goes out, which is a little tricky right now with our daily rains. As far as the furniture goes, if I'm sitting on the couch she's only allowed up with me if she's invited. When I'm asleep she can either sleep on the couch or lay on a quilt I've put in the floor for her. She seems content with the couch more and I don't blame her. It's pretty comfy.
I'm really getting used to the responsibility of having a dog actually living with me, and hopefully I will be able to socialize Applesauce with my dad's dog Reese soon. Reese is not happy that there's a new dog on "her territory" so we'll just have to let her warm up to the idea.
Hope you all are enjoying the Dog Days of Spring!
BIG NEWS: I have a new roommate and she goes by Applesauce. She is a 50 lb. Pitbull Mix and I love her dearly.
I've actually known Applesauce for a while. She was rescued by my friend Jennie's brother on a work site, and since she was living with my best friend Mark (an animal lover of many species) he agreed to take over care of the very malnourished dog. We believe she was a 1 year old, had been trained by her previous owner, but may have been at a puppy mill because it was very visible that she had already had a litter of puppies.
The reason for her name is simple. Mark's other dog, an English bulldog, is named Pork Chop. To make all Peter Brady fans happy, Jennie and I named our new friend Applesauce. Mark always claims that he had nothing to do with the name, it was the women who named her.
So she is very well-trained and generally a happy dog. Until she gets more used to the area I have to walk her on a leash everytime she goes out, which is a little tricky right now with our daily rains. As far as the furniture goes, if I'm sitting on the couch she's only allowed up with me if she's invited. When I'm asleep she can either sleep on the couch or lay on a quilt I've put in the floor for her. She seems content with the couch more and I don't blame her. It's pretty comfy.
I'm really getting used to the responsibility of having a dog actually living with me, and hopefully I will be able to socialize Applesauce with my dad's dog Reese soon. Reese is not happy that there's a new dog on "her territory" so we'll just have to let her warm up to the idea.
Hope you all are enjoying the Dog Days of Spring!
Friday, April 24, 2009
I learned from this man!
Imre Lagler was a Hungarian force to be reckoned with. He was a cantankerous man, but he had a past that he could amaze anyone with. Escaping communist Hungary, immigrating to the United States, and finally settling down in Bell Buckle, Tennessee of all places.
My brother adored him. When I was his student, I feared him. Not because he was mean, but because I knew that he expected much out of me, and I didnt know if I could fill the shoes he laid before me. He was a man of many words, many funny words at that. He had special ways to inflict little silly punishments for our small offenses such as talking in class. When he was done with our foolishness, he would simply just tell us to get out of his sight, which meant sit outside the class and be sure youre sitting right there when the bell rings. He wouldn't tell anybody of higher authority if you werent sitting there, but you better hope the rotating schedule meant you didnt have his class the next day.
He was political, sometimes close-minded, always argumentative, and competitive in every sense of the word. But at the same time he loved teaching and he loved talking to students. Here's to you Imre!
http://www.boomeradventurestv.com/lagler.html - A video tribute made by a Webb School alumni featuring one of my favorite teachers, Mr. L.R. Smith and also an alumni that graduated the last year that I attended Webb.
My brother adored him. When I was his student, I feared him. Not because he was mean, but because I knew that he expected much out of me, and I didnt know if I could fill the shoes he laid before me. He was a man of many words, many funny words at that. He had special ways to inflict little silly punishments for our small offenses such as talking in class. When he was done with our foolishness, he would simply just tell us to get out of his sight, which meant sit outside the class and be sure youre sitting right there when the bell rings. He wouldn't tell anybody of higher authority if you werent sitting there, but you better hope the rotating schedule meant you didnt have his class the next day.
He was political, sometimes close-minded, always argumentative, and competitive in every sense of the word. But at the same time he loved teaching and he loved talking to students. Here's to you Imre!
http://www.boomeradventurestv.com/lagler.html - A video tribute made by a Webb School alumni featuring one of my favorite teachers, Mr. L.R. Smith and also an alumni that graduated the last year that I attended Webb.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Back to reality...which is what it was all along come to find out.
It's been a week since my grandmother passed and it feels like it was 2 minutes ago. The services were beautiful, a good part due to the music that my father pre-recorded. Karabeth, if you are interested, I'm going to make a few copies for people who know his music or are interested in listening, some of his classics that Grannie loved such as Thank You are featured. I would be glad to send you a copy if you would like. Email me your address if you want one. :)
Here's the plant that Alex's sweet family sent for the funeral. I also got a beautiful peace lilly from the girls that I work with. I'm blessed to have so many great people in my life.
Karabeth, if you notice on the wall behind the plant is a painting that was painted by Prince Charming's mother back in 1986 I believe. Grannie gave that to me about a year ago, and I absolutely love it.
So after Saturday, I was eager to feel some sort of normal again. I had a moment of closure at my grandmother's grave site which I have to say is one of the more picturesque places. Its set on a hill in the countryside of North Rutherford county right before you get to Wilson county. The last time I had been to this spot was the day my Papa was buried, so it was a sort of homecoming for me and my cousins. You're standing on the side of the hill, and you look out and feel like you can see about 15 miles. I'm eager to go back, it easily tops my favorite places list.
Sunday I felt a little back to normal. No more getting dressed everyday, no more seeing people I hadn't seen in years (literally since the days that Karabeth lived here) and definitely no more putting up with crazy funeral directors. They cease to amaze me (side note, I know there are other funerals happening, but the flowers can wait a couple of minutes to be picked up.) I enjoyed being able to go about my business, eating dinner at Lindsay's house, and not having to be accountable to my family to my immediate whereabouts at any given moment.
So my life is officially back to normal, minus the part of my Grandmother's voice on the other end when I call her house now. I called over there the other day looking for my aunt, and Grannie's familiar "Heelllloooo" was all I heard in my head. That will take some getting used to.
Have a good day people!
Here's the plant that Alex's sweet family sent for the funeral. I also got a beautiful peace lilly from the girls that I work with. I'm blessed to have so many great people in my life.
Karabeth, if you notice on the wall behind the plant is a painting that was painted by Prince Charming's mother back in 1986 I believe. Grannie gave that to me about a year ago, and I absolutely love it.
So after Saturday, I was eager to feel some sort of normal again. I had a moment of closure at my grandmother's grave site which I have to say is one of the more picturesque places. Its set on a hill in the countryside of North Rutherford county right before you get to Wilson county. The last time I had been to this spot was the day my Papa was buried, so it was a sort of homecoming for me and my cousins. You're standing on the side of the hill, and you look out and feel like you can see about 15 miles. I'm eager to go back, it easily tops my favorite places list.
Sunday I felt a little back to normal. No more getting dressed everyday, no more seeing people I hadn't seen in years (literally since the days that Karabeth lived here) and definitely no more putting up with crazy funeral directors. They cease to amaze me (side note, I know there are other funerals happening, but the flowers can wait a couple of minutes to be picked up.) I enjoyed being able to go about my business, eating dinner at Lindsay's house, and not having to be accountable to my family to my immediate whereabouts at any given moment.
So my life is officially back to normal, minus the part of my Grandmother's voice on the other end when I call her house now. I called over there the other day looking for my aunt, and Grannie's familiar "Heelllloooo" was all I heard in my head. That will take some getting used to.
Have a good day people!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Its all done
Grannie passed at 9:00 this morning, right after I got there. She had been awake for a little while, and had talked up until about 4:45. We told her to go find Papa in heaven, but I believe he was standing right there with us, waiting to escort her spirit up to heaven.
Her visitation is from 4-8 on Friday evening, and the service will be on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. at Jennings and Ayers.
Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers. It has helped us go through this hard time in our lives. Please keep my father in your prayers, my grandmother was his greatest confidant and one of his best friends.
I'm again lost for words. It's the first day of the rest of my life without my Grannie Gilbert.
Her visitation is from 4-8 on Friday evening, and the service will be on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. at Jennings and Ayers.
Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers. It has helped us go through this hard time in our lives. Please keep my father in your prayers, my grandmother was his greatest confidant and one of his best friends.
I'm again lost for words. It's the first day of the rest of my life without my Grannie Gilbert.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
I'm tired guys....
I have a feeling I have no idea what the word tired means. When I'm watching people like my grandmother in their failing health, all I can imagine them saying is "I'm tired guys, just let me be." She just wants to be left alone and she doesn't want family hovering over her. That's not passing away peacefully.
My grandfather passed away in such fashion. We had been watching him round the clock for over a week, someone always sitting by his side, listening to him just barely breathe. The moment he passed away was the first time in two weeks that someone wasn't awake to hear if he was just struggling or if it was finally over. It wasn't that our family was negligent, we were unconsciously just giving him a moment to himself, a moment to decide if it was okay to let go.
Now my grandmother is at this point. She's had a horrible day, and they're pretty sure she has only a few days, if she makes it through tonight. I wish I could just tell her to let go, that its alright just to fall asleep. She's so figgety which causes more pain. She's mad that she can't be comfortable and she fights sleep because she wants to keeping fighting, keep trying to live. She's tired, and she just wants to rest. I so badly want to help her, but there is nothing for me to do but give her the pain medication.
I'm spaced out right now with all the thoughts running through my head at any one point and I will probably continue to be this way until my grandmother's situation is over. I had to tell that to my teacher tonight after an exam because I read each answer I put and none of them made sense. I'm hoping she'll give me a little grace concerning the situation I'm in.
Til the next time I have any thoughts or news to convey,
Allyson
My grandfather passed away in such fashion. We had been watching him round the clock for over a week, someone always sitting by his side, listening to him just barely breathe. The moment he passed away was the first time in two weeks that someone wasn't awake to hear if he was just struggling or if it was finally over. It wasn't that our family was negligent, we were unconsciously just giving him a moment to himself, a moment to decide if it was okay to let go.
Now my grandmother is at this point. She's had a horrible day, and they're pretty sure she has only a few days, if she makes it through tonight. I wish I could just tell her to let go, that its alright just to fall asleep. She's so figgety which causes more pain. She's mad that she can't be comfortable and she fights sleep because she wants to keeping fighting, keep trying to live. She's tired, and she just wants to rest. I so badly want to help her, but there is nothing for me to do but give her the pain medication.
I'm spaced out right now with all the thoughts running through my head at any one point and I will probably continue to be this way until my grandmother's situation is over. I had to tell that to my teacher tonight after an exam because I read each answer I put and none of them made sense. I'm hoping she'll give me a little grace concerning the situation I'm in.
Til the next time I have any thoughts or news to convey,
Allyson
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Perceptions
Do you ever wonder if you know everything about your friends?
It would be the furthest thing from the truth for me to claim this, but I definitely hope I at least have a good grasp on the details of at least my closest of friends. But I have recently had friends make comments that Im sure were innocent, but make me wonder if they knew that what they were talking about actually applied to my past?
Would it be right for me to call them out on it?
Wouldnt that make me seem petty just to get some sort of apology out of them?
Does it really matter where I've come from? I happen to think my upbringing has alot to do with where I am in my life, whether you can tell it or not. Sorry to be vague on the details on my encounter that sparked this brainstorming moment. Just my average internal bantering that I needed to jot down.
Hope you are all having a springy April!
It would be the furthest thing from the truth for me to claim this, but I definitely hope I at least have a good grasp on the details of at least my closest of friends. But I have recently had friends make comments that Im sure were innocent, but make me wonder if they knew that what they were talking about actually applied to my past?
Would it be right for me to call them out on it?
Wouldnt that make me seem petty just to get some sort of apology out of them?
Does it really matter where I've come from? I happen to think my upbringing has alot to do with where I am in my life, whether you can tell it or not. Sorry to be vague on the details on my encounter that sparked this brainstorming moment. Just my average internal bantering that I needed to jot down.
Hope you are all having a springy April!
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
The Days Go On...
I can't believe we're almost at April!
Update on my Grannie Gilbert: We're starting 24 hour care now. My shift starts on Friday morning for a few hours before I go into work. She saw her doctor on Monday and he said her disease is progressing alot faster than he would have liked and suggests bringing in Hospice soon. I'm guessing this is due to the cancer spreading to the liver. Once its there it can go about anywhere in the body.
When I was visiting with her a week ago, she was talking about an odd experience she had at her church a couple Sundays ago. The pastor had informed the church of her illness the previous Wednesday when she wasnt there, and the following Sunday she was of course almost knocked down with everyone coming up to give their sympathies. More than a few people, however, had a very important task for her when she eventually did enter Heaven. They wanted her to speak to their loved ones who had already passed on. They were very sweet messages, such as "Tell Daddy that I wrote a song about him." In her infinite knowledge, my grandmother agreed as to not upset the people, but also let them know that most likely their loved ones already knew. Still, I could not imagine the burden put on her shoulders because we truly don't know exactly how everything is going to work in Heaven. We know what the scriptures say, but its not that cut and dry when we get there.
April holds some exciting things. Alex gets to travel to Texas twice for business (Yay for having a job in the event industry in this economy!) It's my last full month of the semester and hopefully will find out if I can keep my job in the MTSU Career Development Center through the summer (Economy not helping on this one). And most importantly, the birthday of my personal little Superman, my nephew Matthew, who will turn 6. Can't believe it!
Hope you are all enjoying the erupting Springtime. It's rainy in Murfreesboro, hopefully giving good watering to my tomato plant!
Update on my Grannie Gilbert: We're starting 24 hour care now. My shift starts on Friday morning for a few hours before I go into work. She saw her doctor on Monday and he said her disease is progressing alot faster than he would have liked and suggests bringing in Hospice soon. I'm guessing this is due to the cancer spreading to the liver. Once its there it can go about anywhere in the body.
When I was visiting with her a week ago, she was talking about an odd experience she had at her church a couple Sundays ago. The pastor had informed the church of her illness the previous Wednesday when she wasnt there, and the following Sunday she was of course almost knocked down with everyone coming up to give their sympathies. More than a few people, however, had a very important task for her when she eventually did enter Heaven. They wanted her to speak to their loved ones who had already passed on. They were very sweet messages, such as "Tell Daddy that I wrote a song about him." In her infinite knowledge, my grandmother agreed as to not upset the people, but also let them know that most likely their loved ones already knew. Still, I could not imagine the burden put on her shoulders because we truly don't know exactly how everything is going to work in Heaven. We know what the scriptures say, but its not that cut and dry when we get there.
April holds some exciting things. Alex gets to travel to Texas twice for business (Yay for having a job in the event industry in this economy!) It's my last full month of the semester and hopefully will find out if I can keep my job in the MTSU Career Development Center through the summer (Economy not helping on this one). And most importantly, the birthday of my personal little Superman, my nephew Matthew, who will turn 6. Can't believe it!
Hope you are all enjoying the erupting Springtime. It's rainy in Murfreesboro, hopefully giving good watering to my tomato plant!
Friday, March 20, 2009
In connection to yesterday's post.
For some reason I make time for my online components. Of course, I have my trusty Blogger account. I also hold accounts with Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, and the newly acquired Twitter. Alex says I am rediculous with all the "connecting" I do but in reality each one serves a different purpose in my life.
I would have to name Facebook as my overall favorite of all my accounts simply because I connect with friends and family most through it. Granted, Facebook has taken a huge swing in the past 2 weeks, and I'm not fully appreciating the "new look" that everyone is protesting. But still, the fact remains that through Facebook, most everyone uses their actual name and the information of where they live or where they went to high school, college, etc. in order to facilitate finding them.
I had a conversation with someone recently who said "I have this facebook thing, but I really don't want to connect with people." I told him to simply delete his facebook because that totally goes against the purpose of having one in the first place. Facebook isn't for everyone, and I think this dude was a total goob for thinking his anti-social self would magically do a 180 and suddenly want to connect.
My second favorite (starting this morning with its inception) is Twitter. It's been highly publicized as the new "it" website, and I totally agree. This is my website to connect with those people I will probably never meet. True, I'm not really connecting with people such as John Mayer or Lance Armstrong, but instead taking a look through the peep hole at their lives. Twitter is a no frills, no complex applications website such as Facebook. All you do is simply update your status whenever you feel the need, and whoever is "following" you will see it. I'm excited to see where this website will go in the future.
MySpace is my strange side. I don't check on it much, I would say I have only around 140 friends (small number really), and to be perfectly honest, I'm tired of it. I get random friend requests from people who would be the Webster definition of creepy, half the time I find myself criticizing my background more than actually looking at people's profiles, and not alot of my people update too often. So yeah, MySpace is on the downward slope for me.
LinkedIn is simply just what it is. A professional networking site that I really don't need to have yet, but hey, networking never hurts. I won't say much about this since I haven't even logged in for about 4 months now.
Stay sure that I love my Blogger. Love is not even the right word for it. I will have to make one up for it I guess.
Are you connected?
I would have to name Facebook as my overall favorite of all my accounts simply because I connect with friends and family most through it. Granted, Facebook has taken a huge swing in the past 2 weeks, and I'm not fully appreciating the "new look" that everyone is protesting. But still, the fact remains that through Facebook, most everyone uses their actual name and the information of where they live or where they went to high school, college, etc. in order to facilitate finding them.
I had a conversation with someone recently who said "I have this facebook thing, but I really don't want to connect with people." I told him to simply delete his facebook because that totally goes against the purpose of having one in the first place. Facebook isn't for everyone, and I think this dude was a total goob for thinking his anti-social self would magically do a 180 and suddenly want to connect.
My second favorite (starting this morning with its inception) is Twitter. It's been highly publicized as the new "it" website, and I totally agree. This is my website to connect with those people I will probably never meet. True, I'm not really connecting with people such as John Mayer or Lance Armstrong, but instead taking a look through the peep hole at their lives. Twitter is a no frills, no complex applications website such as Facebook. All you do is simply update your status whenever you feel the need, and whoever is "following" you will see it. I'm excited to see where this website will go in the future.
MySpace is my strange side. I don't check on it much, I would say I have only around 140 friends (small number really), and to be perfectly honest, I'm tired of it. I get random friend requests from people who would be the Webster definition of creepy, half the time I find myself criticizing my background more than actually looking at people's profiles, and not alot of my people update too often. So yeah, MySpace is on the downward slope for me.
LinkedIn is simply just what it is. A professional networking site that I really don't need to have yet, but hey, networking never hurts. I won't say much about this since I haven't even logged in for about 4 months now.
Stay sure that I love my Blogger. Love is not even the right word for it. I will have to make one up for it I guess.
Are you connected?
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Have I always been like this?
I need to ask my parents I guess.
Trying to be as unpolitical as I can, let me just say that I think some of the people who claim that either they or their kids have A.D.D. are pulling shenanigans. Granted, there are some cases where kids honestly have an attention problem and those problems are dealt with swiftly upon dispensing of correct medication. However, I believe we live in an over-medicated, over-simplified society where your "pains" are met with "Oh, there's a pill for that".
I dealt with this first hand with the person I dated for 5 years through high school and the first two years of college. Over-medicated and still not satisfied, he had a tough road of emotional problems and overall unhappiness that he would not attempt to solve on his own without medication, thus I chose not to put my own happiness for granted on his behalf. Now I have the wonderful Alex who lives in mental peace and is probably the most easy-going guy I've ever met.
*By the way, let me say that my former boyfriend's dependency on medication drove me crazy simply because I don't even take Ibuprofen unless I feel like my head will fall off. The fact that I have to have an antibiotic right now drives me up the wall...*
With all that said, my commitment levels to certain things are for some reason waaayyy out of whack. I find myself going the bare minimum to make the grade in classes (which has never changed since I was a child so no surprise). The problem with this is, I'M IN COLLEGE. The bare minimum doesn't work like it used to. The bare minimum in Principles of Accounting 1 worked for me last semester. Principles of Accounting 2, not surprisingly, builds on 1 so the bare minimum in this course actually doesn't work now (surprise surprise). Other classes are pretty much the same story, half the work, twice the pain on exam days.
I can't help but think that I have (and have had in the past) motivation/ attention problems. I have the end in sight, May 2010 can't come quick enough. For some reason I can't find meaning to the courses I'm taking other than the old standard "because one day you might need to know this." The only time in my "school life" that I can remember actually putting forth great effort was my senior year in high school when I was trying to get accepted at Belmont University. I felt relieved when I did get accepted, and then lost that feeling when I found out there was no way I could afford to go there. Well, take that back, I could have, but I would be in soo much debt coming out of college there would be no reason to ever try to buy a house or a car because I would giving my paychecks back to my student loans.
Karabeth, here is my blog question for you this week: Is there anywhere in the Bible that mentions motivation and how we motivate ourselves?
Hope everyone else is tying up loose ends in their life, for some reason it just doesn't happen for me.
Trying to be as unpolitical as I can, let me just say that I think some of the people who claim that either they or their kids have A.D.D. are pulling shenanigans. Granted, there are some cases where kids honestly have an attention problem and those problems are dealt with swiftly upon dispensing of correct medication. However, I believe we live in an over-medicated, over-simplified society where your "pains" are met with "Oh, there's a pill for that".
I dealt with this first hand with the person I dated for 5 years through high school and the first two years of college. Over-medicated and still not satisfied, he had a tough road of emotional problems and overall unhappiness that he would not attempt to solve on his own without medication, thus I chose not to put my own happiness for granted on his behalf. Now I have the wonderful Alex who lives in mental peace and is probably the most easy-going guy I've ever met.
*By the way, let me say that my former boyfriend's dependency on medication drove me crazy simply because I don't even take Ibuprofen unless I feel like my head will fall off. The fact that I have to have an antibiotic right now drives me up the wall...*
With all that said, my commitment levels to certain things are for some reason waaayyy out of whack. I find myself going the bare minimum to make the grade in classes (which has never changed since I was a child so no surprise). The problem with this is, I'M IN COLLEGE. The bare minimum doesn't work like it used to. The bare minimum in Principles of Accounting 1 worked for me last semester. Principles of Accounting 2, not surprisingly, builds on 1 so the bare minimum in this course actually doesn't work now (surprise surprise). Other classes are pretty much the same story, half the work, twice the pain on exam days.
I can't help but think that I have (and have had in the past) motivation/ attention problems. I have the end in sight, May 2010 can't come quick enough. For some reason I can't find meaning to the courses I'm taking other than the old standard "because one day you might need to know this." The only time in my "school life" that I can remember actually putting forth great effort was my senior year in high school when I was trying to get accepted at Belmont University. I felt relieved when I did get accepted, and then lost that feeling when I found out there was no way I could afford to go there. Well, take that back, I could have, but I would be in soo much debt coming out of college there would be no reason to ever try to buy a house or a car because I would giving my paychecks back to my student loans.
Karabeth, here is my blog question for you this week: Is there anywhere in the Bible that mentions motivation and how we motivate ourselves?
Hope everyone else is tying up loose ends in their life, for some reason it just doesn't happen for me.
Monday, March 16, 2009
When you have those moments...
I have been on Spring Break for the past week and to celebrate this time off from school I made a journey to my beloved Georgia. Upon this journey, I learned many things:
1. Traffic is nothing to mess with.
2. Nature is a wonderful yet sometimes harsh thing.
3. Outside weddings are not to be scheduled in March.
4. God and his peace and serenity can be found anywhere. You just have to be ready to recognize it.
A quick definition:
Chattanooga fakeout- the part of I-24 east which weaves from Tennessee into Georgia back into Tennessee (where Chattanooga lies) and then back into Georgia all within about 15-30 minutes depending on traffic.
I almost didn't survive the Chattanooga fakeout on my journey to Georgia due to 2 tractor trailer trucks who decided to flip and block both directions of I-24. I did however get the chance to sit down in the middle of I-24 when traffic literally stopped dead for an hour. I felt like it was one of those small experiences that I would never get a chance to do again. Instead of the normal 4-5 hours of travel time, it took me 7.5 hours to get to my destination of Athens, GA (home of the UGA Bulldogs woof woof!)
The next morning, I journeyed with my handsome Alex, his brother Nick and girlfriend Joy (who I affectionately call Joey) and two other great girls from UGA to Clayton, GA, a town nestled in the North Georgia mountains. We camped in a lovely area named Sarah's Creek and spent the next 2 days hiking, eating small amounts of food (and feeling full surprisingly) and meditating in what I imagine is an area that God meant just for that purpose. We found waterfalls that I'm sure many other people had found, but I got the feeling of being all alone with just these 5 other people in this huge forest. I didnt think about my current trials and tribulations of my life, just about the beauty of the land and what it means to be totally peaceful. Alex said I transformed into the "hippie" of the camping trip.
My aforementioned "hippie" look in front of a waterfall.
My GQ man on one of our hikes.
Nick and Joy taking a break.
At night, many good laughs were shared and for the first time in a long time I felt like everyone I was with was contributing wholly to my happiness, rather than finding ways to manipulate me or take advantage of me. I'm not saying I usually let people treat me badly, but every once in a while I find myself in that situation as do most people.
I returned a changed being. It took effect immediately upon return to modern technology. Once my phone was recharged and my facebook account was updated, I figured out that a few people in my life really needed to be re-evaluated. My closest friends agreed with me (and I know in the back of their minds they were probably wondering what took me so long). I also have recognized a new passion for camping and I intend to continue pursueing this passion further in the next few months (cheap vacation!).
Alex and I made the voyage to Fayetteville on Monday and skeddaddled around (a word I use from time to time to define doing things of no great importance yet still meaningful to me). Saturday rolled around and we were to attend the wedding of a high school friend of Alex's brother Nick. Remembering lesson number 3, let me tell you I really felt sorry for the poor bride. The good thing was we were under a pavillion and I had an umbrella for the treck to and from the reception hall. The bride was glowing however and I am assured that the rain will probably be one of the smaller memories of her wedding day.
Joy, Nick, Alex and I at Glendalough Manor for the wedding.
Hope you all had a great week while I was resting under the Georgia pines!
1. Traffic is nothing to mess with.
2. Nature is a wonderful yet sometimes harsh thing.
3. Outside weddings are not to be scheduled in March.
4. God and his peace and serenity can be found anywhere. You just have to be ready to recognize it.
A quick definition:
Chattanooga fakeout- the part of I-24 east which weaves from Tennessee into Georgia back into Tennessee (where Chattanooga lies) and then back into Georgia all within about 15-30 minutes depending on traffic.
I almost didn't survive the Chattanooga fakeout on my journey to Georgia due to 2 tractor trailer trucks who decided to flip and block both directions of I-24. I did however get the chance to sit down in the middle of I-24 when traffic literally stopped dead for an hour. I felt like it was one of those small experiences that I would never get a chance to do again. Instead of the normal 4-5 hours of travel time, it took me 7.5 hours to get to my destination of Athens, GA (home of the UGA Bulldogs woof woof!)
The next morning, I journeyed with my handsome Alex, his brother Nick and girlfriend Joy (who I affectionately call Joey) and two other great girls from UGA to Clayton, GA, a town nestled in the North Georgia mountains. We camped in a lovely area named Sarah's Creek and spent the next 2 days hiking, eating small amounts of food (and feeling full surprisingly) and meditating in what I imagine is an area that God meant just for that purpose. We found waterfalls that I'm sure many other people had found, but I got the feeling of being all alone with just these 5 other people in this huge forest. I didnt think about my current trials and tribulations of my life, just about the beauty of the land and what it means to be totally peaceful. Alex said I transformed into the "hippie" of the camping trip.
My aforementioned "hippie" look in front of a waterfall.
My GQ man on one of our hikes.
Nick and Joy taking a break.
At night, many good laughs were shared and for the first time in a long time I felt like everyone I was with was contributing wholly to my happiness, rather than finding ways to manipulate me or take advantage of me. I'm not saying I usually let people treat me badly, but every once in a while I find myself in that situation as do most people.
I returned a changed being. It took effect immediately upon return to modern technology. Once my phone was recharged and my facebook account was updated, I figured out that a few people in my life really needed to be re-evaluated. My closest friends agreed with me (and I know in the back of their minds they were probably wondering what took me so long). I also have recognized a new passion for camping and I intend to continue pursueing this passion further in the next few months (cheap vacation!).
Alex and I made the voyage to Fayetteville on Monday and skeddaddled around (a word I use from time to time to define doing things of no great importance yet still meaningful to me). Saturday rolled around and we were to attend the wedding of a high school friend of Alex's brother Nick. Remembering lesson number 3, let me tell you I really felt sorry for the poor bride. The good thing was we were under a pavillion and I had an umbrella for the treck to and from the reception hall. The bride was glowing however and I am assured that the rain will probably be one of the smaller memories of her wedding day.
Joy, Nick, Alex and I at Glendalough Manor for the wedding.Hope you all had a great week while I was resting under the Georgia pines!
Friday, March 6, 2009
Playing the worst waiting game....
The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.
-Leo Tolstoy, author
My Grannie Gilbert has been diagnosed with Cholangiocarcinoma, also known as Bile duct cancer. After multiple trips to the doctor (and many vials of blood drawn) we have been told a life expectancy of 6-8 months. MONTHS? Months.... I have to say it over and over to get it through my thick skull. 6 months puts us at September, the month of my birthday. 8 months puts us in November, getting ready for the holidays, for the Thanksgiving feast, many hours spent buying Christmas presents.
I have to keep saying, It's okay you can do this again. I've helped many people ease away from this earth peacefully through caregiving. I watched my two grandfathers both suffer many years with different illnesses, and it was kind of a release when they finally passed. Their pain was over.
But this is my grandmother. She's a matriarch in every meaning of the word. Up until a month ago all she knew was that she had a tumor in some place she didnt even know existed in the human body. Now, she's told she might only have 6-8 months?
I can't lie, I don't want to accept it yet. Karabeth, your post the other day concerning how we need to trust in God and everything he gives us was right on the mark. I'm not bitter, and I trust that God knows what he's doing. But this is MY grandmother. My Grannie Gilbert. Yeah I know I share her with 6 other people, but she's still 1/7 mine.
I'm going through the immature, "This is not fair", I demand a recount, stage of grieving. My heart hurts.
-Leo Tolstoy, author
My Grannie Gilbert has been diagnosed with Cholangiocarcinoma, also known as Bile duct cancer. After multiple trips to the doctor (and many vials of blood drawn) we have been told a life expectancy of 6-8 months. MONTHS? Months.... I have to say it over and over to get it through my thick skull. 6 months puts us at September, the month of my birthday. 8 months puts us in November, getting ready for the holidays, for the Thanksgiving feast, many hours spent buying Christmas presents.
I have to keep saying, It's okay you can do this again. I've helped many people ease away from this earth peacefully through caregiving. I watched my two grandfathers both suffer many years with different illnesses, and it was kind of a release when they finally passed. Their pain was over.
But this is my grandmother. She's a matriarch in every meaning of the word. Up until a month ago all she knew was that she had a tumor in some place she didnt even know existed in the human body. Now, she's told she might only have 6-8 months?
I can't lie, I don't want to accept it yet. Karabeth, your post the other day concerning how we need to trust in God and everything he gives us was right on the mark. I'm not bitter, and I trust that God knows what he's doing. But this is MY grandmother. My Grannie Gilbert. Yeah I know I share her with 6 other people, but she's still 1/7 mine.
I'm going through the immature, "This is not fair", I demand a recount, stage of grieving. My heart hurts.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
The Brethren by John Grisham
As my first John Grisham book, this was a good one to pick (nevermind that it was free). If you are interested in politics and the "puppet masters" behind politicians, this is the book for you. This is one of those books where the first few chapters alternate between two different situations, then by the middle of the book you figure out how the two are linked. It's not much of a thriller, rather a thinker. Makes you think about what our politicians really believe in versus what they are told to believe in. Makes you think just how involved our government can get in your life if they want to. Makes you think about what inmates can do from behind cell bars...
I give it 3 out of 5 stars.
Friday, February 20, 2009
The Recycling Bug has hit!
We'll see how long the sting will last...
Don't get me wrong, I'm hoping for a cleaner environment just like the next guy. But also just like the next guy, I have no time for all of the required separating of the glass, paper and plastics (and the subcatagory of about 50 types of plastic). Believe me, one of my best friends has hired a recycling collection company, and I don't think its really saving him any time with all the hoops he has to jump through, and I happen to think he's good at jumping. :)
Leave it to your fearless crocheter to find a way to blend love with environmental responsibility. I had seen project patterns for "Plarn bags" on ravelry.com for a while now, but today I finally dove into actually considering making one. You can check out how cool these bags look here. I think they are very cool and maybe I'll actually start taking my own bags to the store if I can put my personal touch on them!
So now you know exactly how ridiculous I am and I'm okay with that.
Don't get me wrong, I'm hoping for a cleaner environment just like the next guy. But also just like the next guy, I have no time for all of the required separating of the glass, paper and plastics (and the subcatagory of about 50 types of plastic). Believe me, one of my best friends has hired a recycling collection company, and I don't think its really saving him any time with all the hoops he has to jump through, and I happen to think he's good at jumping. :)
Leave it to your fearless crocheter to find a way to blend love with environmental responsibility. I had seen project patterns for "Plarn bags" on ravelry.com for a while now, but today I finally dove into actually considering making one. You can check out how cool these bags look here. I think they are very cool and maybe I'll actually start taking my own bags to the store if I can put my personal touch on them!
So now you know exactly how ridiculous I am and I'm okay with that.
Monday, February 16, 2009
While I have the time...
I have been so busy lately with my schoolwork, but I have also been taking quite a few "me moments". Like all day yesterday, I sat in my beautiful cabin and finished Revolutionary Road and continued work on the (hopefully) adorable sweater that I am making for the soon-to-be-one year old Aidan. Late last night after watching some mind-numbing television and visiting my dad to swipe some of his Lemon Creme girl scout cookies, I started The Brethren by John Grisham which has so far turned out to be an interesting book. I'm hoping it will keep me more engaged than Revolutionary Road , which I have heard was a very boring movie.
So other than those books and the crocheting and the schoolwork, nothing much else has happened, which doesn't make for good blogging. I do enjoy reading others blogs though, so keep it coming Karabeth and Karen!
So other than those books and the crocheting and the schoolwork, nothing much else has happened, which doesn't make for good blogging. I do enjoy reading others blogs though, so keep it coming Karabeth and Karen!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
I got an award!!!
Thank you Karabeth!!
I will have to post links of all the blogs that I read tomorrow, just wanted everyone to see my little piece of happiness.
Talk to you tomorrow!
Allyson
Friday, January 16, 2009
Pictures from the last Month or so
Just thought I would share the pictures I just uploaded!
Posted for you Karabeth: Brent, Dad, Me and Mom. Please ignore the faces, we weren't all ready for the camera!
Proof of my masterwork! Nick, Clay and Alex with their new hats
Alex and I at his birthday dinner
Alex and I sitting on the couch with G-Daddy (his paternal grandfather who shares Alex's birthday as well) and his Step-Grandmother Katherine
Posted for you Karabeth: Brent, Dad, Me and Mom. Please ignore the faces, we weren't all ready for the camera!
Proof of my masterwork! Nick, Clay and Alex with their new hats
Alex and I at his birthday dinner
Alex and I sitting on the couch with G-Daddy (his paternal grandfather who shares Alex's birthday as well) and his Step-Grandmother Katherine
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)