by Joey | Feb 13, 2015 | Throwback
OPI Can’t Find My Czechbook
Color Club Harp On It (heart)
This week…I mean…can we not? The good news is it freaking flew right by! Let’s hope for a better week next week! And y’all, it’s Friday the 13th. Maybe we’ll actually have some good luck today since our luck on normal days seems to have run out haha!
Anyway, because I’ve been captain complainer lately, here are some things that made me happy this week:
- Counting Crows station on Pandora
- Quick runs in nice weather
- Long walks with the pup
- Being in bed by 8PM on Wednesday night with many episodes of The Good Wife.
- The husband cooking dinner (and cleaning it up). He’s a great cook (and actually likes to cook) but is rarely home to cook, so yay for that!
- Starbucks bacon and gouda sandwiches
- Ha, my remote office at Starbucks for that matter…I spent many hours there this week.
- Lots of dreaming. Lots and lots of dreaming.
- Reading a book that made me smile from the inside out! And reading 70% of it in one evening.
Okay friends, so maybe this week wasn’t all bad. What are some things that made you happy this week?
Happy Friday!
by Joey | Feb 12, 2015 | Throwback
++ This has been one of those weeks where there just aren’t enough hours in the day. I had myself completely stressed out on Tuesday, and at the end of the day I just had a startling realization that I was putting the pressure on myself. It was hugely relieving to take a step back, reevaluate, and breathe.
++ On Monday, Kristina came by for a lunch date which was a fun way to break up a Monday! Of course, when we snagged the hubs’ car to run up to Subway really quickly, I then couldn’t get the car to start (it’s a finicky British car, ugh). So that was entertaining. Anyway, it’ll definitely be nice to have her on campus some this semester! (and before anyone asks, no, family, there’s nothing wrong with J’s car. It was an operator error ;))
++ Like everywhere else, it seems, the weather here in NC is totally bipolar. We started the week with gorgeous 70 degree weather and now our high is like 30. I just don’t get it. My body isn’t a fan of the whiplash, either. I’ve woken up feeling like I got hit by a bus nearly every day this week.
++ I watch The Bachelor. I know, I know. But I do. And I really only have Mia to blame (who convinced me all those years ago–we’re talking way back in Ben’s season). But anyway–does anyone feel like all of a sudden we’re down to The Women Tell All and hometown dates? Like, how the heck did that happen? I have many, many opinions. I don’t want to spoil it for anyone who isn’t up to date (and don’t spoil it for me–I don’t read spoilers–so I only know up to the latest episode) but if YOU opinions, let’s chat!
++ If I dominated and kicked ass in January, February has already been one giant failure. I didn’t go into this month with much direction or any specific goals, and I’m regretting that. The first half of the month is pretty much over, I think I need to take the second half by the nads and turn it around.
This might be the most boring edition of Stuff & Things to date, but you know what? Sometimes life is just kind of boring. Am I right?
Now it’s your turn! Hopefully you have more fun things to share this week than I do!
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by Joey | Feb 11, 2015 | Throwback
Sinful Shine: your’s truly
Essie: jazzy jubilent
An arrow can only be shot by pulling it backward.
So when life is pulling you back with difficulties,
It means you are going to launch into something great.
So just focus and keep aiming.
We’ve all seen hard times. It’s just how life goes. There’s a season for all things. It’s what you do with those hard times that matters. It’s what you learn. It’s how you grow. It’s about where you choose to put your focus.
You can sit in the corner and have a pity party for yourself. Or you can praise God for the storm he’s given you. Are you dealing with something really hard right now? My guess is yes, you probably are. I am. And it’s easy to want to curl in, go fetal. But what I’ve learned is to praise Jesus for this storm. He is changing my life. He is changing me. And while it’s painful and scary…
It is good.
by Joey | Feb 10, 2015 | Throwback
This has been floating around blogland for a while, and I made a mental note to hold on to it for a day I was feeling particularly uninspired. And it looks like today is that day! Here are some things you probably never needed to know about me!
4 names people call me other than my real name:
- Jo
- Babe
- Gush
- Mrs. Hodges
4 jobs I’ve had:
- Nanny
- Advertising Account Executive
- Cupcake baker, decorator, seller
- Apartment Complex Assistant Manager
4 movies I’ve seen more than once:
- Romy & Michele’s High School Reunion
- Clueless
- 10 Things I Hate About You
- The Notebook
4 books I’d recommend:
- Unbreak My Heart Melissa Walker
- Slammed Colleen Hoover
- The Sea of Tranquility Katja Millay
- On The Island Tracey Gavis Graves
4 places I’ve lived:
- Raleigh, NC
- Athens, GA
- Charlotte, NC
- Canoga Park, CA
4 places I’d rather be right now:
- On a beach
- In Charleston
- Uptown Charlotte with friends
- In Pakistan with Myrtle
4 things I don’t eat:
- Peppers
- Greek yogurt
- Coconut
- Cranberries
4 of my favorite foods:
- SUSHI!
- French fries
- Pizza
- Dessert (mainly, chocolate)
4 TV shows I watch:
- FRIENDS
- Last Man Standing
- Shark Tank
- 2 Broke Girls
4 things I’m looking forward to this year:
- Amber’s wedding in Charleston!
- Finishing book #2
- Diving head first into my career
- Spending time with new & old friends
4 things I’m always saying:
- Are you a pretty girl? (To Bailey)
- Where are you going? (driving J insane)
- What do you want, Bubbie? (to Cam)
- Are you hot? (My way of asking J if we can turn off the fan)
by Joey | Feb 9, 2015 | Throwback
This isn’t revolutionary. You’ve all seen it pinned on pinterest. But let’s take a second and really talk about this.
If I’m being honest, the number one thing that stops me from starting something is knowing that I won’t be as good at it as others are. At least not right away. I’m embarrassed, shy. Take the couch to 5k program for example:
I started that program three times, starting in 2010, before I actually committed to it last year. I wasn’t a runner. And I would inevitably get inside my head and talk myself out of trying again. I couldn’t see past where I was. It seemed impossible. And I hated struggling out there in the open where everyone could see me. Every person I saw, I would assume they were judging me. And that would be that. My ego would get hurt, and the running shoes would go back into the closet where they’d stay for months, maybe even years.
It was the same thing with the book. Writing the book was a piece of cake. Okay, that isn’t exactly true, but it felt… natural. Maybe that’s a better way to describe it. I’m comfortable writing. I mean it’s me, a computer, and an empty room. That part I could handle. But when it came to actually doing anything with that book? Ha, yeah. That was a different story. To move forward meant I had to show it to people. I had to get help. I had to pass it over to editors…people whose job it was to tell me all the things I did wrong. That’s a harsh way to describe it, but that’s what was inside my head. I finished writing the book in 2010. I didn’t get the courage to do anything with it until 2014.
Because friends?
I was embarrassed to be a beginner.
In this social media saturated world, it’s so damn easy to compare ourselves to everyone else. All we see is the final product. All we see are the perfectly crafted and edited snapshots of success. And I don’t know how it goes for you–but a lot of times that stops me from even bothering. I’m never going to get there I’d think.
The fact that I’m not good at things stops me from doing them. All the time. And how stupid is that when you really think about it? In order to get better at something, you have to keep doing it. And all of those people you’re seeing? The ones you think are better than you? Guess what? They started somewhere, too.
When I’d see other runners out during my C25K training (and heck, even now) I would repeat over and over again in my mind this is your beginning. You don’t know what their beginning looked like.
It is always okay to be a beginner. It’s okay not to be the best of something. It’s okay to fail. It’s okay to try again. And again. And again. Life would be painfully boring if none of us ever bothered to learn anything new for fear of being a beginner.
Is there something you’re afraid to do because you’re not great at it yet?
Let this be a challenge to you…
Go!
Let yourself be a beginner!
We can be beginners together.
