September!?

Does anyone else know where the summer went? I'm still trying to figure it out...

Well, I figure that since there's only four more months left in the year, I'd better see where I'm at with my resolutions and get caught up!

1) My posture - I was getting a lot better with my posture, and yes the Shape ups did help! But now that I don't have to sit at a desk and am not stressed out about my (former) job, my posture has been just fine!

2) I quit my job! I have a part time serving job now and I've got some interviews for other positions, but I'm optimistic and think things will work themselves out sooner rather than later :)

3) My apartment! I now have a crib of my own (along with my roommate!) It's so wonderful being an adult with a place of my own! Although, once my lease is up, I'm going to have to find a place in a better neighborhood. The glass on the front door of my building was shattered yesterday when I got home....awesome. Generally, the new place has been fabulous and I can hardly believe I've been here for 5 months!

4) Now that I work at a restaurant, I've been around quite a few Spanish speaking people - so that sort of counts as brushing up on my Spanish, right? Si!

Unfortunately, that's about it. I did not get to travel to any new places yet, but I did have the opportunity to go back to the Keys for a much needed trip. I have also not knit any socks, but I have knit a purse and scarf! I will not have the opportunity to snowboard - it's just not in the budget anymore. And I need to volunteer at some point in the next 4 months. While I finish up on my resolutions in 2010, the next four months will be filled with excitement! I'm going to visit my dad and brother at the end of September for an extended weekend, I've got tickets to one more Cardinals game (SCORE!), I'm in the musical Annie Get Your Gun
(and I actually have a speaking role!), and then the holidays will be right around the corner!

I hope you enjoyed your Labor Day weekend!

Maybe 2010 won't suck...

Welcome to 2010!

[The most majestic sea lion in Newport, OR. He welcomes 2010, too.]

Hope everyone had a wonderful 2009. We're in a new year and a new decade, so it's that time again for resolutions, brand new starts, and blah, blah, blah. But before one looks ahead, one should look back and see what was accomplished and what still needs work. From last year's New Year post, I've actually accomplished quite a few of my goals. I got to see Christen, made it back to STL (for more than just a visit!), got a "grown up paycheck" (although I've left much room for improvement), and didn't get too many sunburns. I didn't do nearly as much volunteering as I could or should have, but then again, who does? And though I accomplished these goals, 2009 could have been much better. MUCH better. I got in LOADS of traveling, which is wonderful and one of my passions, but it's also been a hard year. I spent way too much apart from Aaron, my dad, and my friends who are spread around this great country. And I feel like I've wasted a lot of time trying to figure out what to do next. I still don't have a solution for what I should do next, but I have to figure it out soon before I lose my mind.

Anyway, so what needs work in 2010?
-My posture. I'm going to the store this weekend to get a pair of the Sketcher Shape-up's so I can improve my posture and work out my legs! I don't want to be a hunchback with celluite when I'm old.
-Getting a place of my own. As nice as it is to live with friends and family, I'm totally over it. I'm 23 and have too much crap to not have my own place. Even a tiny 1 bedroom apartment will do. I just need to get out on my own for a while.
-Getting a new job. I hate customer service with an undying passion. Undying. I also hate monotony, especially when it comes to my job. I clean bathrooms, I file files, I listen to the same people bitch about the same stuff and I'm going to lose it if I have to keep doing this much longer.
-Traveling to new places. Like I previously stated, traveling is a passion of mine, but I am tired of traveling to the same places over and over again. I need new horizons to follow!
-Knitting a pair of socks. Now that I've knitted my fair share of hats, scarves and such, it's time to move onto SOCKS. I've been wanting to knit a pair since I first learned how to knit last year and for Christmas this year I got a sock-knitting book, new needles and some other knitting books to help me along the way! Speaking of Christmas, I'll post a blog of Christmas adventures soon...
-Brushing up on Spanish. I'd like to say that I'll be proficient by the end of 2010, but that's a little far-fetched. I would love to be able to go to Spain at some point in the near future and acutally understand what people are saying and be able to communicate with the locals on a higher level than, "Where is the bathroom?".
-Learning to snowboard. I've been wanting to learn ever since I learned to ski and I think 2010 is a good year for it.
-Volunteering more. This will probably be on my list from now until I die. Everyone can use more help all the time.

Good luck to all of you with your resolutions and hopefully 2010 won't suck.

Party like its 2009

I hate making New Years Resolutions. Most people, including myself, forget about the resolution by mid-February and find a new reason (spring break, Lent, a vacation) to follow up with their broken resolution. Because of this, I have never made a New Year's Resolution, until this year. And this year is the only exception! I have learned to knit and almost made an entire scarf until I messed the stitching up beyond belief and tore the whole thing apart. Now it is once again a lump of yarn sitting on my shelf. I enjoy knitting and would love to be able to knit things for my friends and family AND myself (I got a sweet book for Christmas with knitting tips and cool patterns. I have my eye on some wicked cool socks...) so I have come up with this resolution to get myself rolling. If I can finish at least ONE thing, it will surely provide the accomplishment and confidence that I need to become a knitting fiend! 

My New Year's Resolution: To start and finish knitting an entire something (sock, scarf, blanket, etc.).

Things I'm hoping to see in 2009:

-A "grown up" paycheck

-No sunburns

-Christen

-STL

-Myself volunteering more 

-Getting rid of stuff I don't use (clothes, books, etc.) and not buy more stuff I don't need

-Living simply so others can simply live

-Keeping off the 10 lbs. I lost in 2008

Good luck with you and your resolutions! I'm gonna go start on mine. Until next time...