The Blogging Gap

As a newcomer to the production of the blogosphere, I have dived head first into analyzing the place. A few trends have stood out.

Striating Differences Between Males and Females
As a female, I closely identify with fashion bloggers, and the whimsical delicate touches of crafts bloggers. I devour personal development blogs, but these are mainly run by men. Now, I'm not trying to say that the market is forcefully weeding out exceptions to stereotypes. On the contrary, the internet makes it apparent that the most creative tend to do the best. And it's not like anyone is forcing these bloggers to write about certain topics. They just naturally gravitate in that direction. And I'm no exception to the rule.

Rule-breakers
Of course, I do see wonderful rule-breakers. A couple of women who've I've taken note of in the past week are Sacha and Allie. Sacha rules. She is one of the most intelligent and constantly growing people that I can think of. Her curiosity is fueled by her motivation to help others by creating value. Allie is awesome because she uses a (sometimes vulgar) sense of humor to brighten up people's days. Her art is all done on a program similar to MS Paint. She is just plain funny.

These women are exceptional in their blogging content and approach because they pop out like striped octopi in a tank full of goldfish.

My hope is that one day I'll be blogging and run across the perfect type of post topic, one that will break a trend, or inspire someone and then become my focus. I will find my niche and it will be epic.

Networking and the Danger of "Invisible"

There are so many invisible things that we are fighting, creating, and absorbing.

When you know a person’s name you feel more of an affinity towards them. I say that it’s ridiculously important to learn other peoples’ names. When you can use that information, they are instantly in your web. Your networking web, that is. You can ask them questions; shout their name when you see them in dangerous situations; invite them to things. The world grows by one more link.

Physical representations of others are only first impressions, and they say little to nothing about how developed one’s internal characteristics are. People walking past us can be severely ignorant, or perhaps know more languages than we can ever hope to learn in a lifetime. As such, how do we ever find the limits of their knowledge?

We don’t.

All we can do is spend time with them and see if there is any growth or enjoyment to be gained from the relationship. If there is, benefits will come to you in time. If there’s not, then the relationship may not be a healthy one for either of you. But to find out, taking risks by choosing friends outside of your comfort zone is essential.

A Little Encouragement Goes a Long Way

It feels so great to encourage others and give out rewards to those who are deserving. It's even more special when that person was never looking for recognition or gifts in the first place. I think that's what makes a strong leader or contributor. It also doesn't hurt when that person is supported by people who have been personally affected by said person's work.

I positively love my work team and the support network within my organization. I can't thank them enough for the love and selfless advice I have received. In my fleeting second year of college, I can honestly say that I've grown significantly thanks to the encouragement of others.

Constant Goals

For the last couple of weeks, I've been taking it easy. I haven't had much success in the way of goal-setting because I was trying my hand at living spontaneously and freely (all of this was done before finals week). Well, it didn't really work out.

Surprisingly, there wasn't a day where I went to bed truly satisfied with my day's work. Without self-education goals, I refrained from extending my mental capacity. I read others' blogs, and found inspiration, but on a low-level, meandering sort of way. I had room and time for dreaming, but didn't find myself to be imaginative. Without exercising discipline in my day, I wasn't able to produce much. Without that, it's impossible to record achievements and spur myself to do better.

I desperately need inspiration and motivation in my life. I do get more accomplished when I've packed my day full of activities, but that doesn't mean that I must let someone else dictate my day. I can self-implement my goals which are usually based self-education about interesting topics.

Here are some things that I'm currently interested in finding out about/working on:

• Finances (including investment strategies, etc)
• Autism (learned partially about this in class today, want to know more)
• Sewing (got started with one of my appreciation projects, want to make my own fashion line)
• Art/Design (how forms come together, how to draw fantastic backgrounds, digital art, web design)
• Increase my reading speed (read about this in Tim Ferriss's 4-hour Work Week, but need to put it into practice more often)
• Exercise (how to stretch the right way, how to work more muscles in a workout)
  

I will soon come out with a more refined idea about how each of these elements will work their way into my life in a patterned manner. As for now, any suggestions on how to further my expertise in any of these areas is much appreciated!

How I deal with Stress

Whenever I have too much work to do, I naturally become stressed. I use one main technique to deal with it all. I plan.

Even when I have way too much to do for the allotted amount of time that I have to complete the tasks, I tend to organize everything into bite-sized pieces and time blocks to complete them by. I give myself generous breaks and time to refresh (e.g., showers, bathroom breaks, eating meals). This helps me to prioritize. If I'm late for class, I don't wash my oatmeal cup.

Robotically planning out a couple of stressful days helps me to de-stress. But when I imagine planning out every single day, minute by minute, I feel suffocated. A cherished part of my life is having the flexibility to do spontaneous things, but when I'm overburdened, I like having a plan.

What's your tool for de-stressing?

Write it Down and You're More Likely to Do It

I've noted - on more than one occasion - that when I write something down I tend to gravitate towards getting it done in one form or another.

During my freshman year in college we were told to write ourselves a one-page reflection at the beginning of the year, outlining our goals, dreams, expectations, whatever. I got it back at the beginning of my sophomore year. Lo and behold I had completed all of the things that I'd set out to do. I was so happy, and I almost couldn't believe it. This was the first realization of the workings of the Law of Attraction.

When I was in Ecuador, reminiscing over my days in the U.S. and missing my freedom to cook, be with friends and family, and learn certain skills, I wrote myself a checklist. I created quite a long list of many activities that I wished to pursue when I got back to the U.S. The funny thing was that I looked over my list again today and found that I had not completed all of the things I'd set out to do. Instead, I found that I've been taking subtle steps to begin achieving those tasks/goals. For example, one of the items on my checklist was to learn how to play soccer. I remember asking one of my friends who plays soccer every weekend to teach me. I didn't even remember that it was on my checklist.

I suppose that a written copy of my goals didn't necessarily draw them closer to my grubby hands, but instead reinforced the fact that I wanted to achieve them sometime. Perhaps writing things down makes me more aware of what I want on a subconscious level.

Try it out!
And let me know what happens.

You can:

• Make checklists
• Write prose
• Put pictures together and create a vision board
• Tell a friend (or beloved pet)
  

I personally prefer something written because I can look back on it to see the context surrounding the goal, and perhaps if I missed any subtleties in the process. It actually comes as a big shocker when you can read over something and it's true to what is actually happening in your life. Whichever way you do it, recording your goals is bound to help you actively seek more ways to conquer your dreams and make them a reality.

A Photo a Day Challenge

My goal is to take at least one photo each day and showcase it on my Flickr to gain an eye for composition, color, and possibly develop a photographic genius. It's been challenging so far in terms of capturing just the right clips of reality, and leaving out the elements that don't seem to add any value to the photo.

Photography for impact is no easy business, but it's a fun one.

What I like about photography
Sometimes I look at a photo and am overwhelmed with feeling. I think images are such a strong form of communication in that it can provoke emotions from an audience. The effect might be different for every person, but I believe that certain images have intrinsic value as expression pieces.

Random Fun: Hand Animals

These hand animals can be made just about anywhere. Who knows, you might be able to impress someone with these little creatures!

The Snake

The Camel

The Frog

All hand animals courtesy of Samson Lam.

Empowerment Vs. Devaluation

The question of today is: Are you empowering or devaluing?

Empowerment is finding the best in people and helping them pursue their goals without questioning their abilities.

Devaluation is writing a person off because you might believe they are too young, inexperienced, or otherwise unable to achieve their dreams.

If you can help a young person become something great, why not do it?

Here are some ways to empower those around you:

• Teach someone a skill you know
• Provide your services anywhere that they are valuable
  
• Be enthusiastic
• Encourage others in their pursuits
  

Wardrobe Thursday

Short-sleeved cardigan ($15, Nordstrom Rack), Sandals with slight wedge ($25, Payless), Pink custom-made earrings (gift), Lace tank (<$5, Wet Seal), Black skinnies ($25, Wet Seal)

I went for an airy look today with creams and pinks since it was such a warm day. I think I need a professional photographer to take pictures of my outfits because this mirror-self-picture-taking isn't going to work much longer!

Fashion Cravings

I first saw this Nike Yoga Cover Up in black on Fashion Style Advice's article: 3 Ways To Look Good While Working Out. I'm digging the extra-long length and the collar, but I think I'll need to try it on in person before I make the purchase.


Another item that I've been keeping my eye on since last summer when I saw it on sale (half a size too big!) at Marshall's is this Clarks dusky hill sandal. It would be a perfect walking shoe because the padded insole makes it quite comfortable.

These two items have little to do with each other, but they would both fill in gaps of my wardrobe. I'm sad to say that I probably won't find these items at my local Goodwill or Buffalo Exchange, so I'm going to be buying them new.

How I Organize My Closet (and why you should too)

Ever since I had a closet to call my own I've been organizing my closet this way. Every now and then I'll change up the order and reverse it, but for the most part this is how it usually looks.

I organize my clothes by sleeve length. Tanks on the left, jackets on the right, tees, cardis, and everything in between in the middle. Formal wear and purses on the very right. My pants are folded and stacked below the hanging clothes. It feels good to have all of my clothes in their determined spot so that I can easily locate pieces in a hurry. I have less grief because of it, and I think most people would benefit from some sort of similar organizational method.



My scarves live on their own hanger. I find this method easy to use because whenever I'm looking to spice up my wardrobe with a zing of color I tend to go to my scarves. It's easy to match colors this way.

For my jewelry, I use a desk organizer that is meant to hold pencils, pens, paperclips, binder clips and such. It's a handy tool for storing earrings, bracelets, and a few necklaces.

How do you organize your clothes and accessories? Is there a method to the madness?

Why DIY (Do It Yourself)?

The mall is a nightmare. It looks glamorous until you have to fight your way through crowds, wait in the long lines of the dressing room, pay outrageously high prices for lunch at the food court, and leave with two items and zero cash in your wallet. A great thrift store diva to check out is Ms. Shopping Golightly from The Thrifty Chicks -- she explains how our consumer society is a wasteful entity, and what to do about it (thrift!). After a day of shopping at the mall, I usually leave stressed, with more than my fair share of fights with loved ones having occurred there.

Pictured above: A fabric sunflower planted on the wall at a Mother's Day brunch from last Sunday.

I want to escape from that. However, I don't shop online because I don't like being surprised by poor quality. So, to nurture my unique sense of style, save some cash, and unleash my creativity (so to speak), I think I'll start DIYing some of my clothes, and other craftsy stuff around the house and my room. I would love to work with colors and textures of fabrics because they brighten rooms up.

A couple of sites that have amazed me upon my research of DIY fashion are:

• Giannyl features creations by a woman named Gianny who sews up fun and simple projects that are presented in video-format.
  
• Threadbanger is a site that I came across on Youtube by chance one day and have kept coming back since. I first watched their tutorial on making a Duct Tape Dress Form, and have found their collection of DIY fashion advice to be a must for people aspiring to keep DIY in their lives.
  

The internet is brimming with craft projects that focus on decor. These tend to excite me since I love a cheerful ambiance that holds uniqueness. It inspires and motivates. Yee haw!

Responsibility in Planning

I'm in charge of a few things this quarter.

1) Mother's Day Dinner May 9th.
Despite the seeming simplicity of the event, it is proving hard to plan for. On Sunday we'll be feeding the largest amount of people we've ever fed in the history of our young lives. I think the total came out to approximately 11 persons. What fun! What horror!

2) Relay for Life on May 22nd.
I'm getting my Jumpstart team together to participate in this event that raises money for cancer research. We'll be walking nonstop for 24hrs in shifts, and it should be great fun. However, it requires me to take over the leadership of a team and coordinate the food, tents, and other necessities that we will need in 24hrs.

3) Old Team Leader and New Team Leader Gathering after May 28th.
I think the most challenging piece of this event will be that the date will coincide with many peoples' finals. I might not get a great turnout. Anyways, it will be wonderful experience to learn how to gather a bunch of people with a variety of backgrounds and differences, into a common space to socialize. It will be a new challenge, but an exciting one.

As for my summer plans, I had it in my mind that I should have taken a fellowship that would give me chances to showcase my leadership and organizing abilities, but maybe I'm already getting there without a formal institution to tell me that I've learned such practices.

Artistic Endeavors

This week I've spent a bunch of time digging around in other peoples' lives and gaining inspiration for myself for blogging and creativity.

A site that I've been frequenting is Geninne.com, the blog of a woman who watercolors birds and other delightful pieces of nature. She is a wonderful artist, and it turns out that her sons are as well. I think the most inspiring part of her whole journey is that she has grown as a blogger in her professionalism. It's nice to be able to track back to the times of her beginnings and see how far she's come.

This week I also joined a place called Doodle Club. Every week there is a themed assignment, and we commit to putting out one piece of art that we can say encompasses the theme. This week we are drawing our own super heroes. As practice, I've been doodling in my notebooks and doing some character sketches of my superhero before the deadline for this week's doodle.

As far as trying my own hand at art, I was recently inspired by a post on Letting Out the Creative Beast by Betsy Streeter. She uses a creative technique for many of her posts by taking pictures of her drawings as she tells us the best way to let our beast shine. It also helps that her drawings are adorable!

Another "artistic" idea that I've been playing around with is the idea that composing Polyvore sets can also be creative. It's a site where you can put together your own outfits based on the clothing items from popular stores. Here are some of my Polyvore sets. If you've ever been to CollegeFashion.net, then you already know what I'm talking about. I think I'll try my hand at it one day soon when I have some extra time.

Inconsideracy is a Disease

So please, don't catch it.

If you do someone wrong, but have at least thought about it and feel guilty, then maybe I still like you. However, if you don't even recognize and assess your wrongdoings, then I don't know if we can be friends. (And that would be a shame.)

Appreciation

I've been thinking a lot lately about the people in my life who've helped me to become the person that I am today, and I want to thank them. Many of you might be reading this right now, but others don't even speak English (like my host mom from Ecuador).

I have a list of people that could go on for days, but I think it's high time that I actually did something to show my appreciation for them. I'm going to make cards, gifts, homemade crafts, and send them all out in hopes that these people understand their wonderful mark on my life.

Wardrobe Monday

Cardi, Nordstrom. Boots, H&M. Scarf, Wet Seal. Nails, courtesy of bf's little sister.

It was a spring-like day today so I went to class without a jacket. That wasn't a very smart move however because as soon as I walked out of my two-hour lecture, the skies looked like they were about to spite me for being so optimistic about the weather.

In a recent wardrobe inventory, I've decided that I am in major need of staple pieces that I can wear during the summer. But, there's an easy solution to that trouble! I'll be going shopping on Friday with the sis.

Festival for Literacy

What I love about working with kids is I get myself in situations like this, and I don't feel embarrassed at all.

We had our Festival for Literacy today and although there were less children than expected, we still had a great time setting up for the event and encouraging bonding time between Corps Members.

There were fifteen booths in total, and each one had its own theme based on a popular children's book. I was stationed at the "Reading Corner" but actually just bounced around from booth to booth, helping out wherever I was needed, and taking photographs to document the event.

Yay for early childhood literacy!

Mayday May Day!

As I sit here reflecting upon my current life situation, I've realized that things are coming to an end. The end of this school year is 5 weeks away. I'll be parting ways with my beloved coworkers. These have been the main elements of my life for the past year.

There are also many beginnings that are yet to come. The beginning of my (possibly) summer fellowship, my junior year in college, and my third year at my job that will be implementing a new curriculum.

In essence, this spring is a time for goodbyes but also a time for a refreshing perspective -- the kind that I only see once a year.