Lucky

While recently trying to convince a friend that she has lots of good things in her life despite the current challenges she is dealing with, I was reminded that I might not always be vocal enough about realizing how lucky I am.  I'm good at bitching.  Hell, I'm great at bitching.  I should be clear, though, that I do know I have it good.

I went to Europe in May and had a great natural disaster free time.  Several times during what has become an annual trip I thought to myself "is this really my life?  How did I get so lucky?"

As usual, there were different tones to these questions throughout the trip. 

The glass wall I walked into head first.
Lesson learned - never underestimate
the importance of a morning coffee.

The bus on top of which I perched for a great
view of Dublin.  Until I was hit in the face by a tree.

Me...heels...alcohol...cobblestone.
You do the math.

Why does the world think Americans are dumb?
Oh yeah...

And my tone changes
while walking through Angels and Demons.

The second set of Spanish Steps we found...
subway shortcuts should be used with caution.

Keats and I in the same place?  The Republicans loved it!

One of my favorite moments ever.

Maybe my business casual dress code isn't so bad after all.

Three countries in two days.  Magnets!

Impressive.
Doubles as a no-holds-barred mosh pit Sundays at noon.

Behind the scenes of Vatican City.

Maybe I hit a beggar with an umbrella here.
It was totally not intentional.
Really.

Dublin is awesome.  Best weekend of the year.

Who doesn't love a musical pub crawl?

Temple Bar in Temple Bar.

Some awesome Irish musicians.
I wanted to take them home with me.
Should have at least bought the cd.

The Dublin Spire...aka The Spike,
The Binge Syringe, The Stiletto in the Ghetto,
The Nail in the Pale, The Pin in the Bin,
 The Stiffy at the Liffey,
The Erection in the Intersection,
The Rod to God, and the end of Liberal Boy.
(Buh-Bye LB)

Brugges

The small beer...
The waiter laughed at me for ordering it!

Not a bad place for after work happy hour.

Who doesn't love a year-round
Christmas-ish tree with scary birds on it?
Every hotel should have one.

So yeah, in conclusion, I know I'm damn lucky.  Watch out, though, the bitching will resume tomorrow.

Best Day Ever

Well, today has actually been a rather shitty one, with me having to admit to some of my biggest insecurities, challenges, and fears.  However, it has also been pretty great in a splendidly dorky fashion.

If you know me at all, you know I'm Tristan Prettyman's biggest fan.  No, I am not a stalker.  I totally don't have a restraining order or anything like that.  A friend drug me, kicking and screaming, to a Jason Mraz show 10-ish years ago and who was opening for him?  A girl who sang about smitten kittens...and being void...and evaporated...and kinda just wanting your kiss.  While I'm pretty void and evaporated these days, the last one was totally me back then.  I was a serial make-out-er and kind of miss those days.  Anyway, it was a great EP and I listened to it non-stop after the show for months.  Fast forward 10-ish years and I've lost it.  It's not available on iTunes, her website, or in stores.

Well...guess who found it?  That would be me.  While reading her blog today...aka avoiding work...I found a post from months ago about having extra cd's for sale.  I flew out of my comfort zone and emailed her (gasp!) to see if she had any left.  She does!  Yay!  My copy (one of the last two she has) will be on its way shortly!  AND - the dorkiest part?  She responded back to my last email to tell me that my email signature is amazing.  Yeah, yeah, yeah...I stole the inspiration for my signature from my brother, but he doesn't read this - or email her - so I'll be taking credit this time.

Yes, that's super dorky, I know...but it's also nice to know that Crystal and I aren't the only two people in the country that think Socialists are sexy.

Also amazing - her new song.  Check it out.

Say Anything - Tristan Prettyman

Why Not?

Until recently, I would have described things in my personal life as terrible.  Last year I ended a disastrous relationship and lost the majority of my social network, threw myself into work, let my job become entirely too much of my life, pulled away from the few friends that stuck with me through the breakup, and generally became a bitchy, mean girl.  Oh - and I dealt with it all by gaining more weight that I care to admit.  Hello, pity party!

Then, as in all good stories, something amazing happened!  Not winning the lottery amazing, unfortunately, but in the long run, maybe the emotional equivalent of finding a lottery ticket with almost all the numbers.  Now I just have to find the missing pieces and I'll get to cash it in for a life I truly appreciate and enjoy.  

What happened, you ask?  I found a blog that put my whiny ass right in its place.  Big Girl + Little Girl  If Kate's story of figuring out how to triumph over a tragedy of such magnitude doesn't make my "troubles" seem insignificant, I don't know what could.  I have never met Kate, nor do I have much in common with her, but she has inspired me to appreciate every minute because you never know when things will go completely off track and change forever.  So now I just have to figure out how to do that.  Unfortunately, it's not as easy as just making the decision.

What keeps me from enjoying every minute?  Am I the person I want to be?  Do I want to share my world with anyone?  Why not leave my comfort zone?  How do I get to happy?  

The obvious answers include working less, finding more time for fun, and re-introducing myself to the gym.  The less expected answer to the questions of stepping outside of my comfort zone and sharing my world with someone else became "why not try online dating?"  This is completely out of my character and I expect it may be my ticket to a Lifetime movie.  However, my rule for the year is try (most) anything once.  This should be interesting...