Signed, Sealed, Delivered...

I've noticed a little trend in the past month or two. Homemade stationery! A coworker received a set of these as a birthday gift from her grandmother last week:

(Handmade stationery)

Aren't they adorable? I think that is such a creative gift idea! It shows thoughtfulness and skill, but is very affordable. Any person who isn't quite as crafty would appreciate a set of handmade stationery.

Don't have time or an occasion to make a whole set of cards for someone? Why not just send them a card you made yourself! They are just as pleasant to receive in the mail, like these homemade Christmas cards my roommate and I received in December:

(Handmade Christmas cards, courtesy of Misadventures in My Life and Southern Charm in the City)

They are crafty, adorable, personal and one-of-a-kind! And if I'm not mistaken, all the supplies can be picked up at the local craft store. I, personally, absolutely love them and hope to try to make my own set sometime in the future.

Simply,
MJ

Gettin' My Groove Back

So I decided a while back that I need to get involved with some new groups or get a hobby or something...anything really. A girl I grew up with has consistently sent me invitations to events hosted by the Young Adults in the Catholic Diocese of Lexington. Last night I worked up the urge to go to my first event! The event was called "Theology on Tap." It's a seven week series (last night was week number 2, but my first time going) that covers a different topic with a guest speaker each week. It's held at a sports bar and grill, so the atmosphere was very comfortable. I ended up really enjoying myself and meeting a few new people! The speaker this week was Fr. Britto from Chicago who spoke on "Catholic Identity." My favorite point in his talk was about how Americans are very individualistic and pragmatic compared to past generations. Americans have a "shopper" attitude. We are always shopping for new cars, new shoes and new clothes even before the ones we have are worn out. They can still be perfectly good items, but we will shop around for something else we think we want or need. Fr. Britto said that there are two key areas in life where this "shopper" mentality doesn't work - faith and marriage. In those two areas it is important to commit and say, "This is all I need." It was really a valid point and something to think about! I think I will try to go again next Monday. It makes me feel like I'm getting my groove back a little bit. (I also have a Fayette Co. UK Young Alumni event...which is another good networking activity and group to get involved with, but it tends to still feel like I'm working instead of just enjoying.)

On a totally unrelated note, I accidentally killed a tree today. Mother Earth is probably mad at me. But it isn't my fault! I told the computer to print pages 1 & 2 and it decided not to listen! I hit cancel on the printer and on the computer...but when the next person sent something to the printer, it started printing my document again. All 118 pages of it. Oops.

Hope the week is off to a good start for everyone else!

Simply,
MJ

It's Friday Night

"Even my emotional baggage is Coach." - Unknown

I came across that quote today and liked it. Not that this post is about emotional baggage or anything. It was just a quote-worthy quote. But on a semi-related note:

A. I came across this guest post on Corporette today on what entry-level professionals should wear to work. I thought it was interesting. As a new grad, I don't have an extensive work-appropriate wardrobe yet. (Okay, maybe I have more to wear to work than I let on...but still...). I work in a fairly laid-back office when it comes to dress code...as in I have never seen a dress code...so I often try to buy pieces that will be appropriate as I climb the corporate ladder. I thought this lady's advice was helpful. I actually was pleased with my outfit today - a black button down, berry colored straight skirt (looks like a wool blend, but it's acrylic), sheer black hose and black pumps. I wish I had thought to take a picture to share.

B. I've decided that being single is going to lead to a well-stocked kitchen and a very clean house. Because it is Friday night and I cleaned, went to the grocery, and stopped in the liquor store. In sweatpants and an old, sloppy, faded hooded sweatshirt. And pink plaid rainboots. With VPL (aka visible panty line). Don't be jealous. (I think I dress sloppy to run errands these days because of the man that I am almost certain took my picture with his cell phone in the Wal-Mart parking lot last fall.)

You might ask, "Why, MJ, are you at home cleaning on a Friday night? Don't you have friends?" The answer is simple. I have to work tomorrow because of a Board of Directors meeting. And that leads to my next point...

C. My best friend from home is coming in tomorrow! After the board meeting, she is coming to the UK vs. Arkansas game. I'm very excited to see her. I think this is the first time she has visited me in Lexington. And she is also the driving factor behind the cleaning, grocery shopping, and liquor store. I had nothing to offer her except water and tortillas. (That may be a slight exaggeration, but not by much.) I picked up some wine, some beer, and made a corn and black bean salsa tonight so that I can be a good hostess! I'm very excited for her to come. While I don't miss the boy necessarily, I miss the companionship. Having friends in town is a pleasant distraction.

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!

Simply,
MJ

Break Up Therapy = Retail Therapy

I forgot how expensive being single is...or maybe I'll admit that I just used the break up excuse to go all out this weekend. Either way, I spent a pretty penny. But, I'd say it was well worth it! (Especially since I'll get a little overtime this weekend!)

Saturday: Went out to dinner with two friends. Ordered filet mignon for myself and finished off 2 bottles of wine between the 3 of us. Proceeded to go downtown afterwards, which always results in the $15 cab ride back to the house.

Sunday: Last minute road trip to the Cincinnati Premium Outlets. With 6 friends from 4 cities getting together, it was a fun day. I ended up coming home with 2 shirts from J.Crew, 1 shirt and 1 dress from Banana Republic and 1 cardigan from Gap. Ate out for 2 meals, then rented a DVD. Already started putting together outfits for work this week.

Monday: (No work today!) Ran errands. Which results in some shopping. I did finally find pegboard hooks for a little craft project I had. All my costume jewelry is now neatly displayed on the wall! I also bought a poster frame for my 2000th win poster. A few side trips and wandering off the path resulted in a couple extra purchases. But they were all on SALE! I got 2 pairs of jeans from The Loft (BOGO sale item 50% off, so I paid $30 total...they were final sale $19.99 each), and 1 cream cardigan ($9.98), 1 skirt ($13.98...its berry colored and work appropriate!) and 1 kelly green sports bra ($3.74) from Target. I can never resist a good bargain...

On the bright side, I didn't have to pay anything for copies of my shoulder MRI and x-rays, and the guy at the watch stand in the mall fixed the loose pin in my watch band for free!!! They were the ones to originally take the extra links out, so he said it was just a store repair.

I still think I'll wait until payday to check my bank statement.

Simpy,
MJ

Got That New "I'm a Single Girl" Swag

My big news update for the week: the boy and I are no more. (Is it ironic that I made a comparison to "breaking up" in my last post?!?) While he often did nice things for me, I think there were too many petty disagreements and points of contention, mostly due to the age difference between us. (He was younger.) I wasn't being irrational. It was something I had been thinking over for the last few weeks. I think the "honeymoon" phase of the relationship had ended, at which point we needed to find more solid ground to connect on. I don't think we found that. I told him I just felt we were in two different places right now and that these issues weren't going to work themselves out in the foreseeable future. It was a very one-sided decision, but I hope that we can eventually continue to be friends.

On that note, I'm a little relieved that the pressure of working on a relationship is off. I'm also a little excited about being single again. The boy and I began seeing each other just a month or so after graduation, so I hadn't really had the opportunity to experience this new phase of my life on my own yet. (It was also difficult to talk to him about this phase because he wasn't able to relate at all.) I already have several things I want to do and work on that I had trouble finding the time to do since I was balancing his schedule and mine and trying to spend time with him. We'll see how it all goes. Heck, maybe this will even leave more time for updating my blog!

Luckily, my roommate's boyfriend is in New York this weekend and another friend drove in for the weekend, so I've had some good company and good girl time. :) We may go out tonight, so it'll be interesting to be strutting my new single girl swag again!

Simply,

MJ

(P.S. I would really like to have a signature for my posts, but I'm not sure how to do that. Anyone have any ideas???)

Random Acts of Kindness

First off, I am so sorry for leaving you hanging for a week. I've been busy with work (and will be through next week), so I haven't had time to think of interesting things to write. Keyword: interesting. It's strange that since I've started this little blog project I'll think of things randomly throughout the day that I could blog about. And then ultimately decide that A. It isn't interesting enough B. It's a stupid idea or C. I don't have enough to say about it.

But I will say this....

Random acts of kindness make me happy. Seriously. Even if they aren't directed at me. It's something about knowing that there are good, thoughtful people in the world still. That humans are still capable of caring about one another, when all we seem to be told is that people are selfish. The news is filled with terrible things -- death, adultery, greed. It's so refreshing to be reminded that the other end of the spectrum still exists. For example: Last week, I left work on Thursday after it had been snowing the entire afternoon only to find that the boy had brushed all the snow off my car already. (I was extremely grateful! Being practical, I wore flats. Being unpractical, didn't think that 2 inches of snow + drifts = snow in my shoes.) When I got home I found that someone had moved the trashcan from the curb back up against the house before all the snow. (Again, I was wearing flats. And it was COLD. Seeing that kind of thoughtfulness made me feel warm inside.) And as if that all wasn't enough, I came home Friday to find the front walk shoveled. (Did I mention that I couldn't find a snow shovel anywhere in the garage???)

People will never cease to amaze you if you just let them. You just need to have a little faith.

---

On another note, I've made a good start on at least one of my resolutions! I made an appointment with an orthopedist to have my shoulder looked at again. I won't lie, I hung up the first time I called. I had to work up a bit of nerve. I'm just annoyed with still having to go to the doctor for the same issue, but circumstances haven't allowed for me to get it taken care of before now. I joked (or was it really a joke?) with my dad that I'm just going to type out a list of symptoms and a timeline of doctors, medications, shots and treatments to hand over. It has to be easier than rehashing the last 2 years. Of course I had to also call the last orthopedist and request copies of my X-rays and MRI's to provide the new doctor...

Awkward.

It felt a little bit like breaking up. The lady on the phone didn't seem to believe me when I said that my new insurance didn't cover them, almost like the typical, "It's not you, it's me" speech or the "I want us to be together, but we just can't be together right now." The next step is to go by and pick up my things...

Hope you all find a kind act to do for another person and are staying on track with your resolutions!

Simply,
MJ

Dinner for One

I got a little more adventurous than my usual microwave dinners tonight!



Yum!
Cheese and spinach tortellini and italian sausage in marinara.
Served with baby brussel sprouts, garlic bread, and a nice glass of Reisling.
Eaten at the coffee table, in front of the TV. Basically the ultimate dinner for one.

And after I loaded up on my carbs, I watched the Biggest Loser. (I love doing conflicting things like that!) Hope everyone has a great day tomorrow! Stay warm!!!

Simply,
MJ

Act Your Age

You know that feeling you get when you first open the mailbox and see something inside? That fleeting moment of happiness and glimmer of hope that someone wanted to send you something. What could it be? Who is it from? And then you realized that 9 times out of 10 it's either junk or someone you owe money to and that feeling quickly fades away? I had that experience this afternoon.

Since it was first day back at work since the holidays, I stayed a little later to tie up a few ends while I was focused. And when I got home, as usual, I checked the mailbox. (Usually it is either totally empty or full of junk mail addressed to people who no longer live here.) Today, there was only one piece of mail. In the last little bit of daylight I could see that it was for me. I hurried inside where it was warm and there was light and looked again. Yep, there was my name! So I quickly study the envelope, which says rather boldly "Act Your Age." I'm thinking at this point that it's another one of those resume builder or career services or go back to school type offers. After all, each letter of that phrase was blocked out in bold, bright colors. Orange and blue and green and golden rod. A little fuschia and purple. Then I read, in a smaller, less obnoxious print, "Welcome to the one magazine for women over 40 who love to act their age."

(pause here for dramatic effect)

WhAt?!?!?! Seriously??? So I flip it over. In same bold, mismatched font, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" Followed by the less attention grabbing, "If you're 40, 50, 60 or beyond, it's your time to shine...."

Well, that certainly grabbed my attention. Apparently someone somewhere thinks I am a middle-aged woman. Or something that I filled out somewhere matched the profile of a middle-aged woman. I am an unmarried, financial struggling, 40-something year old woman without a real career yet, stuck in the body of an early-20's girl. Fantastic. My life makes so much more sense now.

So I guess the moral of the story is that the world has tricked us. We are told to enjoy high school because it will fly by. That college year are the best years of our life. That being in your 20's is wonderful because you are finally independent and making money and getting your own place and on real path. And now you are telling me I have to wait another 20 years to shine??? I thought this was my time to shine?

My self-esteem is through the roof right now. I've magically aged 20+ years in the matter of a day. Yep, I feel great about myself. (And for those who can't tell, I'm being totally sarcastic. I found the whole situation to be quite hilarious for about 10 minutes, or long enough to write this post, then promptly threw the mail in the trash.)

So on that note, I'll end with a favorite quote: "Growing old is mandatory. Growing up is optional." Age is only a number - it's how you feel inside that really counts!

Simply,
MJ

Maybe THIS Year...

It's 2010....a new year is upon us! I was lucky enough to spend NYE celebrating with dinner and a night out with a group of good friends and the boy. It's so hard to believe how quickly this last year has flown by. Ironically I rang in 2009 and 2010 in the same bar, in the same LBD...ok, well I guess it's not really ironic, but it's strange to think of the parallels between the two nights and how much has changed inbetween. The year 2009 was one for growth and change. I'd say I've learned more in the last few months than I have in the last few years of college. I won't lie...it's been tough and I've struggled through the better part of the year. But I feel like I'm starting to get my feet back on solid ground and starting to find my way. So, maybe THIS year, I'll do the following:

1. Get my shoulder fixed. I've been diagnosed with a torn labrum in my shoulder, which bothers me from time to time. Due to circumstances (and all the changes this year) I haven't had the opportunity for either physical therapy and/or surgery to get it fixed.
2. Take the GMAT.
3. Work on career advancement - either begin grad school, advance in my job, or find a new position.

Those are my top three new year's resolutions. I have a tendency to make too many resolutions and not keep them, so this year I pinpointed my top priorities to work on. Cross your fingers that I can get all these accomplished!

My reminder to myself as we enter the next decade, as Taylor Swift would put it (more lyrically than I am able to) -- "This is life before you know who you're gonna be." I know that God isn't finished with me yet, and that I still have a lot of growing and changing to do. This is just the next step!

Simply,
MJ