Comparisons

Do you find yourself comparing your own life to someone else's? I didn't need to ask. You do. We all do. Some do it more than others—some do it way too much. It's human. Disney wouldn't write a song about it if it weren't true (Under the Sea).

Facebook is a really great way to do this haha. I find myself fishing through Facebook profiles of people I barely know anymore comparing their lives to my own and deciding whether I like theirs better. Well it dawned on me today as I perused three very different profiles just how warped this practice is. Usually, these comparisons only encompass one aspect of life. I'll look at the supermodel friend and think, "Wow, I wish I could dress like that all the time." or the hippie-adventurer friend and say "Wow, I wish I could live out in nature all the time with such a carefree attitude." or the successful business-tycoon friend and think, "Wouldn't it be nice to have so much money?" But what I forget is that each of these people can look at the others and think the same damn thing. That girl who looks like a supermodel everyday probably doesn't have the time or interest to do grungy things like hike through a rainforest in a Central American country or serve on a ship in Africa. Those adventurers probably have limited knowledge of the ever evolving corporate metropolises that the business-tycoon-friend has. The business tycoon with all the money probably has too much stress and pollution pumping through his veins to consider building a modest family. The very young single mothers have little idea of what it's like to be rich and relaxed but they have a greater understanding of responsibility and survival than others.

I'm not really trying to make a point here. Just observing. The grass is always greener... Personally, I think I'd like to try a little of everything. How will you know if "their" life is cooler than yours if you don't try it? Maybe it is cooler and you discover that you've been sitting around wasting your time living in a way that you hate. Maybe it's more glamorous than it looks and you'll be glad to go back to your own life. Well-roundedness is under-appreciated these days. I think it starts when society forces 17 year olds to choose what they want to do for the rest of their lives by telling them to choose a major in college right away. Until that point, kids have had no time or independence to do things on their own. Why pigeonhole them the second they have the opportunity to step out on their own? Where is the grace period in which you can try things out and discover what you want out of life?

I'm Going to Learn French

The single reason I am not working for Cirque du Soleil is that I don't speak fluent French. The design aesthetic of Cirque du Soleil is the culmination of everything I find beautiful. It's quirky, elegant, and powerful all at once. Every time Cirque pushes its way back into the forefront of my memory, I flirt with the idea of designing for them in some way. And then life gets in the way. That is always my excuse though. Life gets in the way. I'm going to keep making excuses until I'm dead if I don't get off my ass and do something. I have a good, solid job now. There is no deadline for this project—so I should have enough time to complete it to PERFECTION.

I'm saving up for a Rosetta Stone starting now—I'm going to go home and budget for it. Also, all artwork I do for myself from here on out will be in order to build a portfolio that will get my foot in the door.

It's about time I added another goal to my To-Do List. Eventually, I'd love to have a job that satisfies my creative self. Otherwise, I should have studied science. I'd be making a hell of a lot more money.

Even if this whole thing doesn't work out and I never work for Cirque (that rhymes), I'll still be bilingual. And that is completely fine with me. More of an excuse to go to France.

Any ideas on how to get really good at speaking another language? I hear nothing but good things about Rosetta Stone and while it does carry a hefty price tag, it's got to be less expensive than its equivalent in college courses, right?

I'm Magic

I find that strange coincidences happen to me fairly often—more often than the average person. I like to refer to it as a magical power. It's not. But I'm going to continue to call it magic, ok? So deal.

Recently they've been all about music. Three have happened within like 2 weeks. Let me elaborate.

1) I enjoy that new song by Gavin DeGraw "Not Over You" so I was singing it in my head all day a few weeks ago. One day it was PARTICULARLY stuck in my head—like to the point of it being annoying. On my way home from Aikido, I was again singing it in my head and decided once I got into my car to start singing it out loud. I started from the beginning of the song while turning the key to the ignition. When the radio kicked in, the song was playing in the EXACT same place I was currently singing—to the word! I don't think it was that odd that the song was playing on the radio in the first place because it's popular at the moment but the same word!? Magic.

2) This weekend, Jason and I went out with his brother and some friends for St. Patrick's Day and proceeded to get beer spilled all over us (to be expected). Jason was wearing a white shirt, however, and was sad to find when he got home that there were nasty beer stains all over it. So I asked him the next morning if he had any Shout because it's good to put on if you can't wash the shirt right away and he said no. So I starting singing that Tears for Fears song "Shout. Shout. Let it all ouuut." When was the last time you heard that song? If your answer wasn't "years ago," then clearly you are a Tears for Fears freak because no one has heard that song in forever. Well, we were walking around in antique stores a few hours later and it came on the radio!!! WHAT?! Magic.

3) Grooveshark introduced me to Birdy last week and since then I've been listening to her a lot. She's 15 and British and awesome. So I told my dad about her because I thought he'd like her music. Well don't ya know, my dad called me to tell me she was on Ellen yesterday while he was watching! Now, mind you, her first CD made its US debut yesterday so it's not weird that she was here, but of all the shows to be on, it was Ellen!! The only talk show my dad watches! A day or 2 after I told him to listen to her! Slightly less magic—but still magic.

Ok maybe I'm making mountains out of molehills here but I think this pretty much means that I should quit my day-job and become a pop star. Basically, that's what I think this is telling me.

Accomplishments

In reading about Blythe's accomplishments, I thought I'd share a few of mine own (I read too much GRRM; I have been speaking in Lords and Ladies far too much to be considered sane - for the record, I do not have a twin brother with whom I am in love).

That aside - back on topic..

Work has been... interesting...as of late. We are a tiny tiny company with, dare I say, a bit too much ambition for the mental sanity of our employees. In an effort to keep those employees who seem as though they would be valuable to have around, my employers have found it in their hearts and wallets to grant us 2 consecutive Fridays off. For this, I am EXTREMELY grateful. February was tough - this is a very nice way to start March and the beautiful weather. It certainly feels like a rebirth - a chance to start over - leave shitty February behind and move on to March. A new month. New weather. A new Aikido rank (hopefully) at the end of the month. Things are lookin' up!

So, that being said, I thought perhaps it was time to start editing my website. It's old, elementarily coded by myself (not a web virtuoso), and sorely neglected. So I thought maybe I'd just try to get something going with a WordPress theme. So far so good - I've made decent progress. I wish that some things were a bit more customizable than they currently are or that I knew enough about code to override it. But as a means of getting my work online and having an outlet for professional blogging, I think it's a good start. I'll post it here and on Facebook when I feel as though it's sophisticated enough to be seen by other eyes.

ALSO - I finally got a MD license (not to completely copy Blythe's accomplishments). Dealing with DMVs (or MVAs if you're in MD - different letters do not make you any less irritating) is a maddening task. Maddening. I'm glad it's over. Although, personally, I think PA licenses are much more aesthetically pleasing. The only cool thing about a MD license is the crab in the corner.

Overall I feel like things are going well for the time being. Sunny weather, things to do, job to pay the bills, some well-deserved time off—I really can't complain. Time to use this positive energy to get something done and to do something for me. The problem is that I have SO MANY ideas of things I want to do that I have to prioritize or I'll get nothing done. I'll just sit around starting everything without considering the time it takes to finish something. AH!

I'm gonna make a list.

Yes.