Reverb 2010- Moment

Moment. Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors).

For some reason I was stressing over this blog prompt all day.  I couldn't figure out which moment I wanted to write about.  But I just reread the prompt, and it was which moment did I feel most alive this year.  For me, that moment would have to be walking through the finish line for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, and participating in the closing ceremonies.  The last half mile of the walk, was so exciting.  People were cheering us on, saying "only a few more steps!!", and there were signs saying mile 39, which meant we were done.  Walking onto the pier was insane.  There were people hugging their friends and family, people registering for next years walk, people sitting and resting their feet, and lots of beer being drank.  I remember thinking "where can I get beer" and "note to self: next year bring drinks for the end of the walk" (maybe alcoholic should have been my word for 2010).  

After sitting for about thirty minutes, the closing ceremonies started.  There were hundreds of us lining up, getting ready to walk down the pier.  At the front of the line were all the women who have survived Breast Cancer.  Their shirts were pink, and it had "survivor" on the back of it.  When I saw how many women there were, wearing these survivor shirts, I had chills all over my body.  Seeing all of the women reminded me about why I was doing the walk.

All the walkers walked towards the end of the pier, where there was a large stage.  There were a few speakers, giving their stories about how they overcame Breast Cancer.  We were standing on concrete, bunched together.  The sun was beating down on us.  It was so hot, and all I could think about was drinking lots and lots of water to cool down.  I think one of the girls standing next to me felt the same way, she ended up fainting.  Thankfully she was fine.  Everyone helped her up, and people were giving her water to drink.  

After a few survivors spoke, Avon showed us where all the money was going.  We were able to see the checks, and hear how much money each hospital or clinic was receiving.  While listening to how much each place got, I realized that my money was going somewhere important.  In that instant, I knew I was going to be doing this walk again next year, as well as the year after that and the year after that.  I have been sucked into the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer.  Once the ceremony was done, I started walking back towards my aunt and uncle with my mom.  I ended up loosing her, but I knew where I was headed.  I walked straight over to the registration table, and signed up for next year.  They gave me a pretty purple shirt, and a sticker saying that I was number 786 to sign up for 2011.  

For those of you wondering, there is 289 days left until the next walk!!!

Reverb 2010- Writing

Writing. What do you do each day that doesn’t contribute to your writing — and can you eliminate it? 

I had a really tough time trying to come up with an answer to this question, what do I do each day that doesn't contribute to my writing?  At first I was going to write about watching trashy TV shows, but some of them do give me ideas for my writing.  I kept thinking, and I finally came up with shopping.  I don't do this everyday, but I think I shop often enough to put me in debt at the age of 23.  Every few weeks I will buy myself a new pair of shoes.  After the shoes come the new dresses or shirts or leggings.  At the moment of purchase, I always have a great reason to spend money, but looking at my bank account has proven me wrong. 

During the summer, I was trying to organize my closet.  I have absolutely no more room for new shoes, but there is no way I can stop buying them.  I began to think about starting a blog about my shoes.  You may be laughing, but I have some pretty shoes that should be shown off!  I wasn't really sure how I was going to write my shoe blog, but I have a feeling it would have been mostly filled with pictures.  In the end I decided against it, thinking that I would be buying more shoes just for the blog, and ending up with negative numbers in my bank account.  So now here comes the real question, can I eliminate this in 2011?  I know that there is no way I will stop buying shoes, but I should try to shop for designer shoes at discount prices or wait until some of my obsessions go on sale.  The other day I walked through the 8th floor in Saks Fifth Avenue, and I realized that some of the shoes were amazing enough for me to spend up to $500.  I promise that in 2011 I will control my shopping, and hopefully save money instead of spending it so quickly.  

Reverb 2010- One Word

My good friend and blogger, Sara, sent me a link, http://www.reverb10.com/.  She sent me the link a few weeks ago, but with the end of the semester, I did not have much time to actually see what it was.  The website began in December of 2009.  Each day of December, the creator and a few other bloggers, post a prompt to make other bloggers think about the past year.  Some of the questions are easy to answer, and some of the questions make you really think about what happened in the past twelve months.  For the next 31 days I will be answering the questions that have been posted on this website.  I am hoping you will share your answers with me too!!

One Word. Encapsulate the year 2010 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word. Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2011 for you?

Busy.  The year of 2010 was a very busy one for me.  The year was consumed with my grad program, working for my parents, babysitting, parties and socializing.  It felt like almost every night I had something to do, and my weekends got booked up weeks in advance.  As hectic as it was, I loved every minute of it.  I spent an insane amount of time with best friends, being silly and drinking wine (I guess another word I could use to describe 2010 was wino).  Before this year, I loved splitting my time between going out to see friends and staying in, watching movies, especially in the winter.  Now if I have a few hours of free time, I have no idea what to do with myself.  I get bored sitting around watching movies and T.V.  Hopefully I will relearn how to relax, and enjoy my downtime again.

As for 2011, the one word that will capture the year will be "celebration".  I will be attending three weddings next year, and I am excited for everyone of them.  The first wedding I have, in June, is for one of my best friends from college.  I am going to be a bridesmaid along with nine other amazing girls.  The second wedding I have is for my cousin, and he is getting married in Narragansett, Rhode Island.  As most of you know, Narragansett is 5 minutes from URI.  It will be great to be around all my family in a place that is so beautiful and homey to me.  The wedding is also the day before my birthday, so I will be able to celebrate turning 24 will my family.  My third wedding that I will be attending is for a good friend from Camp Lindenmere.  I remember the summer she first started dating her now fiance, and eight years later they are getting married.  Congratulations to all of my friends and family who are getting married in 2011.  It will be the year to celebrate, so enjoy every minute of it.  

Another reason why 2011 will be a celebration is because I will be graduating from Montclair University.  Anyone who has spoken to me about grad school knows that I absolutely hate my school, and I cannot wait to be done!!  I have one semester left student teaching, and then I will be graduated.  I will receive my Masters in Teaching for preschool through third grade, and special education.  Let the job search begin!! (Hopefully I will be able to celebrate finding a big-girl job).

So what is the one word that summarizes 2010 for you?  Why did you choose that word, and what is the one word you hope describes 2011? 

The Life of a Quiet Person

I've always been a quiet person.  I am always nervous of saying something and offending people, or saying something and having people think I'm crazy.  Because of this, I have learned to bite my tongue.  When there is something I want to say, I usually swallow the information, and forget about it.  Sometimes I do put my "two cents" in, but only if I find it really important of if I know it will make someone laugh.  This has usually worked for me.  I have learned that if you are quiet enough, people will forget you're there, and just talk freely.  They will also say what is on their mind, and not ask for input.  I used to pride myself on being able to blend in so well.  People would never remember I was there, and they usually didn't ask for my opinion.  I was able to think about my comments and keep them to myself.

Sometimes this is all fine and dandy for me, but sometimes it sucks.  There are the few occasions when I have something to say, and for some reason people will always talk over me.  They won't realize I'm talking, or they will think that their news/information is more important.  Or maybe they want to talk to someone else besides me.  I find this happening more and more with my friends.  I am not sure why, but I feel like I get ignored a lot.  When this happens, I become even more quiet, and just stop talking all together.  What is the point of talking if no one is going to listen?  So in 2011, my resolution is to do more listening, and do less talking.  

Riding The Bull

I have five more months left in graduate school, and I honestly have NO idea what I want to do afterwards.  All my friends know what they want to do with their lives, and are moving ahead.  Most of them are in long term relationships, getting married, finishing graduate school, and have permanent jobs.  The only thing I know about my life is that I am definitely graduating in May.  After that everything is up in the air.  It would be perfect if I could get paid to buy shoes and clothes all day.

Whenever I hang out with my friends, I always feel like I have no exciting stories to tell.  Most of the time my friends do most of the talking, and I love to listen.  But I do know that throughout my life, I have not taken many chances.  It is either because I get too scared or because I am busy second guessing myself, that I just give up.  A few weeks ago I had a girls weekend, and we went out to a country bar.  Some of us attempted to do country dancing, and some of us drank a lot of beer.  Later in the night, some of the girls decided to ride the bull.  All night I had been thinking about the bull, and if I would attempt to ride it.   I really wanted to try, but I was scared of embarrassing myself.  I was able to watch a few people go, including two of my friends.  Some people did not last a long time, some people did go flying off, some people stopped when they were uncomfortable, and everyone had a great time riding.  I was still hesitant until one of my friends started talking about how she wasn't sure if she wanted to ride the bull.  She had done it before, and wasn't sure if she wanted to go again.  I told her that if she went on, I would go after her.  So she went on the bull.  And then I went on the bull.  And then another friend of mine went on the bull.

I can honestly tell you that I had a blast riding the bull, and would totally do it again.  The same weekend I came home and built a desk for my room.  I was originally going to have my brother help me, but I did not have that much time to see him, and I did not want to wait another two weeks for it to built. So I decided to take charge.  I dragged the 50 + pounds of desk up the stairs.  I then figured out how to open the box (which took about 10 minutes alone), and then started working on the desk.  The whole time I was building, I just kept repeating the words my mom said to me, "Are you sure you can do this?  Don't screw up".  I am a very stubborn person.  When I set my mind to something, I usually go through with it (unless I get scared or second guess myself).  I knew I was going to get this desk built.  It took me a few hours, but I succeeded.

After realizing that I was able to ride the bull and build my own desk, I realized that I should stop second guessing everything.  I miss out on life when I'm busy thinking way to much about what it is I want to do.  I also end up regretting things that I don't do.  I've decided I'm going to start going with my gut feeling.  If there is something I really want to do, I will do it.  And if there is something that seems a little challenging, I will remind myself that I can do whatever I put my mind to, and I will succeed.  With this new mentality, I started my application for the Peace Corp two days ago.  I get freaked out thinking about having to leave my friends and family for two years, but then I think about how badly I want to travel.  Cross your fingers everyone, and pray that I get accepted into the Peace Corp!!!

Attempting to Cook

Last Sunday night, I made dinner with two of my friends.  Anyone who has had a two minute conversation with me knows I do not cook.  I don't know how to cook, and I never really thought it was necessary for me to learn.  However, while pretending to make dinner last week, I realized that cooking can be somewhat fun.  The whole idea of putting all the ingredients together, and then getting to eat it afterwards.  Very exciting and yummy.

During dinner, my friend and I discussed how much fun cooking was, and how we should do it more often.  In the spirit of Julie and Julia, we decided that we will cook one day a week.  Within the excitement, someone threw out blogging.  And since we all know how much I love to blog, we decided that this would be our new hobby for the next year!

We have been looking on line for recipes and I bought one of Bethanny Frankel's cookbooks.  At the moment we have found three or four recipes that we would like to try, but we are still trying to find more.  If you know of any dishes that are not too hard to make, and taste very good, please send them my way!  Also, keep your eyes open for my postings on our cooking experiments.