A Fresh Start, Part Two & Birthday Cake!

Change #2: Take More Pictures AND Journal/Blog More Often

Nothing exactly life changing here, but throughout the last few years, I feel like I often think back on events or memories and could kick myself for not taking enough (or any) pictures. I’m always too concerned with being that girl, you know, the annoying one who asks random strangers to take a million pictures. But ya know what? I’d rather have those memories documented. So this year, I’m setting a goal to take more pictures when the mood strikes.

Speaking of taking more pictures, here’s a perfect example: this past weekend, my friend Crystal celebrated her birthday. Here’s how the day started (gotta love day drinking on a Saturday!):

{Birthday Girl!}

{Lookin' alright...this was fairly early in the day}

I WISH I had thought to whip out my camera (or at the least, my phone) and document the latter part of the evening. It included several rounds of Stoli Dolis  at Capital Grille and an encounter with a guy  gentleman old man in a beaver-fur coat. And crocodile boots. I know. He sure liked the birthday girl! Who wouldn’t want to see pics of this? Next time, friends. Next time.

The journal/blogging effort is truly indulgent, a reminder just for me. I used to love to write. I kept a journal; I wrote creative pieces and academic pieces. Even in college and grad school, I enjoyed putting papers together. When I first started this blog a while ago, I would write longgggg entries that probably no one else read, but I had a place to record my thoughts and musings. I’ve let this go lately. I would skip writing because I felt like what I was doing wasn’t worthy to write about. However, I’ve been discovering other blogs, and I’m truly enjoying reading what these people are up to. Sometimes, it’s just a record of their day or weekend, but it’s intriguing to see what their lives are like. If anything, jotting something down every day (being honest, here) once a week will keep my writing skills in shape. Who knows? Maybe someday, I’ll write a tell-all about my teaching experiences. Now THAT would be a funny read!

So here we go. Now that the blogging world can see my "changes," I hope I will hold myself accountable. Looking forward to you, 2013. As my friend Julie told me on the phone a couple nights ago, "Mo, I think 2013 is gonna be your year." Thanks, Jules! I hope so, too.

(On a side note, one more big "change" I set for myself this year is to drink more water and to eat one more fruit or veggie every day. You know, trying to think all healthy. Ha! Do ya see that yummy, truffled-chocolate cake up there, covered in candles? Yeah. It was delicious. I may or may not have also had a cake-pop that night, too. Obviously, this last "change" started this week, after the party.)