Walking With Nora

* InItToGymIt. An awesome new group started by the fabulous Livit, Luvit. It’s designed to keep us motivated, give us a place to whine, moan, encourage one another and above all, stay strong. I debuted on the blog today with my “Why I Workout,” list (check it out here) and am loving the other contributors so far! Hope you’ll join us for the journey. I have a feeling the best is yet to come with this group!

* Sadly and occasionally to the detriment of my workout efforts, Easter Candy. Who can say no to a Reese’s Peanut Butter cup when it’s in the shape of an egg!? Not I.

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* Parenthood. Darling and I decided to watch the pilot because it has Lauren Graham in it, who is one of our favorites thanks to her role in Gilmore Girls. (Darling = is Lorelai, I’m Rory, even though we look nothing like them.  We sometimes talk that fast and collapse into a heap of laughter for no apparent reason. If you want proof as to how Gilmore we can be, read Darling’s post about our Saturday morning escapade.)  Anyway, I knew I loved the show when I missed one espiode and promptly watched it on Hulu, something I rarely do.

* My Wireless Mouse (for my computer, of course). Gifted to me at Christmas time, it’s become my new best friend. Makes using a laptop oodles easier. Not sure how I survived without it for the last five years.

* Books, but I suppose this is nothing new. Confession: I went through the books I own but have not yet read and it’s a lot higher than I thought. I’m officially on a book spending freeze until further notice. The *only* books I can purchase will be those for a book club. Everything else will have to wait or be borrowed from the library.

* Twist Ice Cream, in a cup, with sprinkles. It’s a comfort food. It’s a guilty pleasure. It’s a bit of an obsession.

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What about you? Any new finds or obsessions?

“I know you can be overwhelmed, and you can be underwhelmed, but can you ever just be whelmed?”- Chastity from 10 Things I Hate About You

It’s how I live my life. I’m either underwhelmed, searching for things to do, worrying over every little detail of my life or crazy overwhelmed, mind racing 100 miles a minute, always moving to the next thing, the next task, the next thought. There are things I can’t give up: work, friends, family, the elusive Nora time, but other things are extras, bonuses.

Times like these- the overwhelmed times- I force myself to step back and remember why I’m doing this in the first place.

Why I’m going to graduate school with full force? Someday I plan to take over the family business and that someday is fast approaching. I’ll be just shy of 29 when that day comes. The industry I work in is predominantly men; rude, snide, doubting women kind of men. I’ve had experience (five years and counting), I have my bachelors degree and I decided about two years ago that an MBA would be the way to go. I want to be able to point the naysayers to my experience and my degree, letting them know I’ve rounded out my knowledge with an actual degree. Will it work? I have no idea, but at least I’ll feel a bit more prepared.  

Why am I training for this 10 mile race? To say that I can. To say that I did. Because running makes me feel amazing and free. The stress melts away, the music pumps through my ears and into my veins and I become one with the pavement. I’ve always thought about running a long race and now that I’m 26, why the heck shouldn’t I just go for it? Nothing to lose by trying, nothing to gain by waiting. Everything that comes with it: the commradery from other runners, the weight loss, the feel-goodness, those are all just extra perks.

Some days it’s admittedly too much. Some days I can’t be the Superwoman I want to be at work, on the track, in the online discussion boards for school, as a friend and daughter/sister or mom to my darling dog Jack. Some days I have to choose which one gets my full attention and which will have to fall by the wayside. It feels like a race agains the clock, the daylight hours, the number of minutes before my eyes give up for the evening.

Other days it’s like a gust of wind is carrying me through the day, allowing me to multitask and smile, check things off the list and even leave some time to spare. Nothing stands in my way and nothing can’t be done.

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I know myself; I hate not being busy. I thrive on time management and adding things to my calendar. To-do lists and Post-Its. It fulfills me. Reminds me that I can do anything. Is ultimately part of who I am.  But sometimes, I wonder what it’s like to just be whelmed. Or, furthermore to give myself permission to just be whelmed. It’s probably more of the latter. Maybe someday I’ll get there.

      “I’d rather have a moment of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special.” – Unknown

There are those moments when you’re curled up on your Gram’s couch, red shoes kicked off, feet tucked up underneath you on a rainy Thursday night and you’re talking. Really talking… about health insurance options. Finances. Budgets. Full disclosure. No cloak and dagger disguises or hiding things from one another. Really talking about relationships and what your dreams are for the future. Really talking about family and love. Those are the moments you realize how truly blessed you are to have your Gram in the same town as you, to have a family that’s close, to be surrounded by love.

There are those moments where you’re wrestling with a finance amortiziation problem and you know the answer and you’ve double-checked your work. Then your dad comes along and points *one* typo that when fixed, solves the whole issue. Those the are the moments you realize that yes, you can do this finance business and that if you had any doubts about your dad being a hero before? They are gone.

There are those moments where you call your best college friend on your way home from work and the traffic-filled highways aren’t so terrible anymore. You laugh. You share. You discuss. Above all, you make plans to go see one another in three weeks. Giddy with excitement and plans, the entire night is improved tenfold. Those are the moments you’re thankful for staying in touch with her for she’s one of the few people that really gets you. Those are the moments you know she’s a true friend.

There are those moments when the difficult client you’ve been trying to please for the last three weeks finally says “thank you,” in an email, the first time in over a month of communication. Those are the moments where you realize it’s not all for naught, that you are good at what you do, and that some people take time to trust a 26 year old. While it’s frustrating, it’s also ok.

There are those moments where you can disclose your feelings to a close inner circle of friends and get more support, perspective, guidance and love than you ever thought possible. Those moments remind me you why you continue to try, continue to share, continue to be you.

There are those moments when you see your life and the woman you’ve become for who you are: Everchanging but alwasy fascinating.

Sometimes we have to live for the small moments while we are busy with the mundane tasks of work or being a graduate student because these are the moments that make every ounce of stress, confusion, pain, doubt and frustration you’ve ever had about your purpose in life melt away.

These are the moments. This is your life.

Any moments that you’d like to share that remind of you have wonderful/great/amazing life is?

Dear Customer who is making my life crazy,

If you aren’t careful, I will fly out to see you just to do this:

Sincerely,
A Young Professional who can’t seem to do anything right for you
Dear Graduate Level Finance,

Yours,
I’m-so-not-a-numbers-person

Attention: Spring
From: Nora & her Allegra Prescription
I admit, I’m excited for your return. April Showers. May Flowers. All that jazz. I’m not stoked about the prospect of having to carry around a box of tissues for the next two months while sneezing and wheezing. I guess it’s all worth it in the end if it means I can wear flip-flops though. Just try to be kind this year and don’t let everything bloom all at once?

Fried Food,

I’ve missed you these past twenty-something days during Lent. However, come Easter morning, I don’t think I’ll be letting you back in my diet much. It was fun, but I feel much better without you.

See you around,
The girl who likes it when her pants are too big for her

Barnes & Noble,
Thank you for being such a hospitable studying environment.
I’ve managed to learn to study with you a few times and leave without having purchased a new book. I wish I could say the same for the delicious drinks you sell. I don’t stand a chance when I see that you offer the Blended Creme Double Chocolate Chip beverage.

- The girl who loves all things chocolate

Dear Johnny (Depp),
I’ve always been a big fan. I’ve loved you when you’re playing a crazy, drunken pirate, a guy with scissors for hands, gangster or a mad hatter who wears more make-up than I’ve ever put on in my life. However, I have to express my displeasure with the fact that you’re doing a movie with Angelina Jolie. Please don’t let her steal you away from your fabulous longtime girlfriend, children and French Chateau. She seems to turn everything she touches into drama and problems.  And don’t be surprised if you don’t see me there during opening weekend.

With Love,
One of your biggest fans

Dear World,
I still want to open up a free hugs store.  There’s too much heartbreak and sadness in the world and sometimes I like to think that with a little Dave Matthews Band music and a lot more hugs, things could be better. I know, I’m a huge hippie. Deal with it.

Peace & Love,
Nora

Any letters you’d like to write today?

Remember that game, MASH? Mansion-Apartment-Shack-House? This post has nothing to do with it whatsoever other than the fact it’s a complete and total Monday mish-mash of randomness. But if you want to play MASH now that I’ve brought up, evidently you can play it online. I’m sure it’s not nearly as much fun as when you used to scribble all over notebooks using fancy ink pens with your friends though.  

Moving on…

Bop-It. I first heard this song courtesy of Doni and every time I hear it on the radio I put the windows down, turn the radio up and bop around like a teenager because it just makes me feel good. I have no idea what the words are but I pretend I do. Doni also introduced me to the fabulous mash-up to this song and because it’s kind of energetic (and most of us need energy on a Monday) watch it and thank me later:

Head of the Class. So taking off six months from grad school? Perhaps not my finest idea or moment but I did and so here I am. As you know I’m back in the saddle again up to my ears and eyes with economic graphs and charts, finance equations and meaningless interest rates, answering discussion question after discussion question online. The good news: I’m pretty sure I’ve identified a study pattern that will work for me for the rest of these classes until the end of the July when I finally accept my graduate diploma. Just thinking about it makes me giddy. As does all the free time I’ll have for the rest of my life to read, run, meet people, travel, be a lazy bum, volunteer. And I promise I’ll stop talking about grad school now.

Mall Madness. Spring is here, or at least it’s supposed to be. We’ll just ignore the 35 degree temps with snow flurries we had to endure on Saturday night. With spring comes my desire to shop for flops, capris, skirts, dresses, new jewelry, new haircuts. This year before I head out to the store I’m going to make myself try on everything I have in my wardrobe and make a “keep or toss,” decsion. If it’s toss, I’m donating. If it’s keep I will make sure I wear it. From there, I’ll fill in any holes I may have. Hopefully I’ll pare down on the waste in the closet, brighten the wardrobe a bit and do some good in the process.

Life. It just happens to you and before you know it things are good. Different. Better. In the last few months running three months has gone from ominous to “Oh my God, Yes!” because I can do it. I am doing it. I had my seven-mile run this past weekend and while I was worried, the run was amazing. Probably one of my best yet, save for a moment where I stopped midway through to stretch out my hip flexors. In the last few months I’ve made strong, “big girl” decisions that I never thought I’d be making. Emotional. Financial. Political. In the last few months I’ve embraced new friendships, new routines, new surroundings, new patterns. More changes to come, more adjustments to be made, more life to live.

What would your Monday Mish-Mash list have on it?

Previous for installments:  here , here ,  here ,here and here.

Sometimes when I get home from work, I’ll reach into the cheese drawer and eat a handful of shredded cheese while looking out the back window, while standing flamingo style.

I worked at a restaurant for a brief time in college. Naive Nora 19 year old had no idea that drugs were being sold from the back of the restaurant until I walked in on a “transcation.” It suddenly made sense why everyone I worked with dropped out college, seemed endlessly hungry and a listless look on their face 80% of the time.

I have no idea how to change a flat tire.

I’ve been housesitting in a super giant house this week for two cats and a tiny dog and there are moments where I want nothing more than to be able to afford a huge house, fancy car, and awesome designer clothes and at the same time a part of me wants to run away from the manicured lawns, private school flags hanging on everyone’s flag poles and be all indie-hippie and shabby chic. I have a feeling I’ll be the later.

I’ve never been to a Mardi Gras or St. Patrick’s Day parade despite the big hoopla StL puts on for each of them.

For the past year or so I’ve been mentally planning certain aspects of my wedding which I know is kind of crazy since there is no one on the horizon. All I can say is that the first dance will be pretty freakin’ spectacular if all goes to plan.

I believe I’ve seen the penguins at our zoo about 12 times.

I went to Barnes & Noble last week and didn’t buy a new book. This is *huge* for me.

Back in “the day” (meaning sophmore/junior year in college) I loved Jessica Simpson’s music and so when I saw a preview for her show “The Price Of Beauty,” I both freaked out because we all know she comes across rather… thick and applauded her for introducing non-traditional beauty concepts and ideas (by U.S. standards) to the young and impressionable.

I often wish that I had dated my best guy friend in college. We were always admittedly attracted to one another and yet it never happened. Last time we spoke, more than two years ago, he said he was getting married but sometimes thought about what could have been between us. I’ll never forget that.

Earlier this year I said I’d read three books a month and so far, I’ve been on pace! In an effort to keep myself honest and perhaps inspire you to pick up a new book, I thought I’d post the list of books read so far in 2010:

January 2010

Dear John, by Nicholas Sparks. I read this book because of my commitment to read books before I see the movie. I don’t read a lot of Sparks books because I kind of hate to give into his popularity and sometimes the books are formulaic to me, but the movie has Channing Tatum in it which is incentive enough for me. That and the book was on sale for $5.98 at Barnes & Noble, in hardback! Once I started the book, I couldn’t put it down. I cried a few times while reading this book and thus made the executive decision to not go see it in theaters. No need to have a repeat of the time I went to see “P.S. I Love You,” and come out of the theater with bright red, swollen eyes from bawling for two hours. The book, however, was intriguing but I didn’t like the end. It seemed rushed, forced, and not the outcome I had hoped for.

Italian Fever: A Novel, by Valerie Martin. The book started off promising, a mix of love and ghost story but quickly turned into one run-on sentence after another, the ghost story element seemed forgotten and the air of the book overall was depressing. Not one to stop reading a book once it’s started, I saw it through but was disappointed. 

Disney After Dark: Kingdom Keepers #1 by Ridley Pearson. So maybe this is young adult fiction but oh my goodness is it amazing! I think I loved this book as much as I do because I spent several of my younger years in Orlando, FL with season passes to Disney so my family and I grew to know the park inside and out. The premise of the book is pretty cool and I can see what younger children would love it. I have to admit there were a few chapters in the book that gave me goosebumps which I attribute to Pearson’s excellent story weaving. He also writes mysteries for adults; I highly recommend you check his stuff out.  

February 2010

Mating Rituals of the North American WASP by Lauren Lipton. Definite chick-lit though the vocabulary and themes weren’t entirely chick-lit-ish. The characters are all loveable in their own way (except for one) and I found myself talking out loud to the characters as I read the book, as if they could hear me. A few parts of the book reminded me of “What Happens in Vegas,” but overall I really enjoyed this book, most likely because it appealed to the hopeless romantic in me.

All Together Dead, by Charlaine Harris. Feeding my vampire addiction. Enough said.

The Help by Katheryn Stockett. I’ve always found civil rights and American history fascinating so this book was right up my alley. Told from the points of view of several different characters the entire book, plot, characters, history is intriguing to me and kept me reaching for the book any moment I could. Which was a lot. I finished the book in a week. I didn’t want it to end and found myself wondering what happens to the characters after the book ends. I’m secretly hoping for a sequel.

Disney at Dawn: Kingdom Keepers #2, by Ridley Pearson. The second book in the Kingdom Keepers series is just as a good as the first. Maybe one of my favorite things about young adult fiction is that stuff actually happens in these books; they move along quickly but still including detail, “showing” not telling, and a surprisingly complicated plot. I met Pearson in February at a writer’s conference type thing and he revealed the news that the third book is coming out in April so I felt the need to make sure I have it read before the next book comes out. There are also rumors of a movie which would be pretty freakin’ sweet, at least if you’re a dork like me.

What I’m reading now:

The Dirt: Confessions of the World’s Most Notorious Rock Band, Motley Crue
Me: Stories of my Life by Katharine Hepburn
The Frong King by Adam Davies
… and two textbooks. Does that count?

Not sure if I’ll finish these three books this month considering I have about seven chapters of school reading to do a week (plus those pesky things called assignments) but I’m sure as heck going to try!

Tell me, what have you been reading lately? Anything I must add to my “to be read,” list?

Today we celebrate my mom’s birthday.

She’s 25 again, you know.

For as long as I can remember, Darling has been my best friend.
We have inside jokes, rituals, pacts, memories.
My mother has been my cheerleader, best friend, advisor, tutor, teacher, voice of reason, staunch supporter.
I wouldn’t have been able to make it through some of worst, or best days if it hadn’t been for Darling.
She’s introduced me to Sex and the City and the amazing world of writing to express yourself, including the blogging idea.
She taught me how to drive, how to put on make-up, how to shave my legs without cutting myself to pieces, the importance of a little black dress, how to throw a party, how to love unconditionally.
She’s been there to chronicle my life, to laugh and cry with me, offer hugs and a shoulder to lean on.
We divide and conquer. We inspire each other. We can sit and talk for hours or sit and not talk at all. We are travel pals, shopping buddies, secret-ice-cream-eating girls.
Without her, I know I’d be lost.

Happy Birthday, Mom. I love you.

Some weeks are spent with family, others running around from party to party, others still trying to fit in all the errands and people-pleasing tasks you’ve neglected. Then there are other weekends where you have just a few commitments and everything else is just left to chance and spontaneity. If you ask me, the best kind of weekends.

I spent the weekend chatting with some of my favorite people ever, running mile after mile at the gym (4 miles on Friday, 6 miles on Saturday making a grand total of 14 miles for the week… a little bit short of where I wanted to be), taking pictures of my parents before they headed out to their Black Tie event, cuddling with Jack while reading books, glued to the TV watching Boston Legal and possibly developing a crush on James Spader, picking up a package from FedEx which included these amazing surprise gifts from Brand About Town* to help me “further my personal growth and fitness goals” which I blogged about in early 2010:

My very own Wii & Wii Fit Plus!

A workout towel that says it all

Recipes, Fiction & a jump rope!

 … the weekend continued with excitement over this awesome package, much needed bonding with my dad over burritos before shopping for Darling’s birthday, indulging in a double chocolate chip blended cream drink from Starbucks while studying at Barnes & Noble, scheduling out the coming weeks with all the assignments, quizzes and papers due, savoring my dad’s famous baked macaroni and cheese, packing for my housesitting adventure, enjoying every moment of Johnny Depp in “Alice in Wonderland,” and of course, relaxing.

Of everything that happened this weekend I’d say maybe 10% of it was planned, the rest just happened. It was bliss.

* Disclosure: All products and books mentioned in this post were  sent to me by Brand About Town and Nintendo as gifts to assist me in my personal growth and fitness goals for 2010. I am not being compensated to write about these products, nor was I asked to write about these products; I am choosing to do so by my own accord.

It’s funny how much things can change.

Five years ago (well, five years ago and four months, more or less), I graduated with my B.A. in International Studies. It was one of those “special,” degree programs where I got to choose my area of study, take the classes that interested me, and learned my little heart. (Seriously, I was a dork in college. I mean, a fun dork, but still… each class had it’s own notebook and highlighter. My planner was color coded. One of my best guy friends made fun of me for years because I was so organized and color coordinated.)

I finished college in three and a half years because little Miss Ambitious Me stayed during the summers to work random jobs, enjoy the town and take classes. Some days I think it was a great decision to finish early, others I wish I had stayed the last semester.

Turning in my final exam in my rural sociology class, an eye-opening, intriguing class, my professor asked my plans post-graduation. They were to: work for Bank of America as a teller, get them to pay for my grad school, save up for a house, and take it from there. I wanted to move to D.C. to work for non-profits or as a lobbyist. (You wouldn’t know it from my blog but I love politcal science, history, and making a difference.)

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None of that ever happened. I didn’t want to work at a bank, so when my dad said that his new business needed an administrative assistant, I took the job. Salary, benefits and my dad as my boss? Sign me up. Within six months I created my own position, pitched it to my dad and his business partner and landed myself the role of Event Coordinator. Two years later, Event Manager. Now I manage to many different things to even put it on a business card (Event, Marketing, Contract Management, Client Relations, Teacher sometimes, and the girl who makes the coffee seems a bit excessive).

When I graduated I was dating a loyal, quiet, country boy. We had grand plans to get engaged and get married but hit a speed bump when he decided he didn’t want to move away from his small town and I wasn’t going to give up what little city life I had.

When I graduated I was going to live at home and save, save, save. After six months of working for my dad, I thought it best if I moved out on my own. So I did, for the past four years, anyway. I apartment hopped mostly because my roommates changed due to marriages, babies and fiances. I’m back at home again and so thrilled for the opportunity to save up money for my very own place. I’ve started perusing the houses and townhomes for sale, all with a yard of course so that Jack can play fetch. (And maybe I’ll get a second dog because Lord knows I’ve wanted one for awhile now!)

If you had asked me five years ago what I’d be doing today, I wouldn’t have said that I’d be a blogger, living in St. Louis, finishing my masters, a book fiend, single,  working for the family business with the likely intent to take it over or training for a 10 mile race. I also wouldn’t have guessed that I would be happy with everything I just described, but I am. It feels like home, like me, like what I’m supposed to be doing. Even if there are days where I have my doubts, I know I’m on the right path.

I’ve also decided that my next five year plan is to have no plan. It just seems better that way.

Are you a believer in the five-year plan?