8.13.2013

sometimes friends are the best.

i was super bummed when i received news that i didn't win tickets to see james taylor and the mormon tabernacle choir. i was even more bummed when i found out that not a single one of my out-of-state family members won tickets either. i love james taylor with all my heart and i couldn't imagine him coming to utah and me not seeing him. (except that it did happen once, but i went and saw him in portland instead...i mean, that counts.) i was planning on standing in the standby line but kept having visions of not being allowed inside. so sad.

so you will understand the sheer excitement i experienced when i received correspondence (mind you, in two forms...texts and instagram comments) from the bestest friend ever stating that she had tickets and was asking me if i wanted them. i mean, i can't even express in human words how excited i was...i could "eek" it to you, or screech it to you, but not words. i made her promise she wasn't playing a joke on me, i was so excited. she definitely made my day...my year, even. james taylor, people...james taylor. i just can't get enough.

anyhow, after i calmed down a bunch, her generosity got me to thinking. i am blessed to know someone as kind and generous as she is, besides the fact that she is talented in every way you could possibly think. i love that i know her and that she is someone that i get to call friend. i am truly grateful for her friendship. but the part that really got me to thinking is how i should be more generous in my own life.

i'm not going to lie...i feel like, as of late, that i haven't been very focused on others. i can even admit that i have been pretty selfish. i don't like that about me right now. but i don't know how i got to this place. i can see where i steered the wrong direction on occasions and where i should have and could have done some things differently, but there wasn't an outright decision to be this way. and now i realize that i am going to have to step outside of a comfort zone to change things. and i really dislike stepping outside of comfort zones...i mean, it's so uncomfortable...but it must be done.

and so i am challenging myself...be more generous. or be less selfish. how ever i need to frame it to help myself change. because i do need to change. and i'm glad that on top of being gifted james taylor tickets, my friend could also gift me with this realization about myself.

this picture is old...like, over 10 years old...and i love that it exists. that is my dear friend, the gift giver, on the left. my baby sister in the middle. and me on the right. i don't know where we were or why we were taking this photo, but believe, i love it. (and that is a scanned-from-a-print-never-been-edited photo for your viewing pleasure...keepin' it real.)

do you struggle with generosity?
are you grateful for delightful friends?


that's all.

8.10.2013

i was thinking.

this is a random list of things i have been thinking about or have thought about in the last little while. we all know how i love a list. enjoy.
  • i don't mind a well crafted tattoo. in the past i have even considered getting tattoos. several different ideas on several different occasions, but i never followed through. i was looking at some pictures of tattoos on a fellow blogger's blog and i have come to a conclusion...tattoos should never, ever, ever, never be on the face, neck or hands. they just scream "i don't give a crap" and sometimes look dirty. and i feel the strongest about hand tattoos. not cool. not cool at all.
  • i have officially not written a thing for this blog in over a year. i think about starting it all back up all the time, but then get overwhelmed with the thoughts of all the posts i could have written, maybe should have written or would have written if i would have stayed at it. and then i do nothing. i was reading some old posts the other day and couldn't stop laughing at myself. i mean, not to toot my own horn, but i think i am pretty funny. so no more thinking about it. i'm just going to do it. i'm going to start writing again. and we'll see where it takes me.
  • i've been contemplating a possible advancement opportunity at work a lot lately. there is a very low turnover at my work and so when advancement opportunities arise, everyone is excited to and sometimes expected to jump at the opportunity. but right now, it is the very last thing i want to do. it is weird to think about the work dynamics and how one person can change the way the whole ship is run. and i cannot foresee myself even attempting to right the ship. and i fear that the expectation to throw my hat in the ring is going to be so overwhelming to me and it is going to cause me great anxiety. blah. i'm over it. (and sorry for the super lame, non-descriptive description...it is just the nature of the beast.)
  • this past christmas i was fortunate enough to be gifted a delightful dslr camera. it is something that i have wanted for a long, long time. but over the last couple of years, i stopped taking as many photos as i used to. i'm not really sure why. it makes me sad. i love looking at old photos. i really need to start packing around the camera and practice. and then i need to practice editing them in photoshop. i am not sure what i think i have to do that is more important, but apparently i find it and i do it instead. here is to changing that, i guess.
  • i found a small box of old mixed tapes from the late 1990s. i borrowed a tape player from a friend and went through all the tapes. it was the greatest trip down memory lane, i couldn't get enough of it. it was so fun to listen to the songs that were my favorites at the time. it was also hilarious to check out the playlists...some of the combinations were hysterical. i did make special effort to save them as playlists in my itunes and i am for sure going to burn them to cds to listen to in my car. i mean, i can't imagine anything more hilarious than listening to a "mixed tape" from circa 1997 while i drive around town. memory trigger, for sure.
  • one of the greatest moments of my life was being able to see james taylor live. i've been to plenty of concerts, but nothing will compare to the anticipation and excitement of james taylor. he is hands-down, my all-time favorite. so you can only imagine how blasted excited i was to learn that he was going to be performing with the mormon tabernacle choir in september. i made special effort to remember to sign up for the lottery. i also made sure that all my family members signed up, too. i figured between all of us, we should have been able to get at least two tickets. well, wouldn't you know...not a single one of us "won" the lottery. it makes me super sad to think about. i mean, it is james taylor. i am for sure going to plan on standing in the standby line. hopefully i can talk my seester into standing in it with me. i mean, if all else fails, we will get to spend some quality time together in downtown salt lake. and we can probably go somewhere fun for dinner. here is to hoping that the concert happens for us, though.
  • i went to the "corn store" in logan today. i don't know why i call it that, but i do. it is a produce "stand" in a garage on 400 north and about 50 west in logan. there is a sign that says corn and it is the only thing that i remember about the outside of the building. i started going there last year and loved getting garden fresh produce, locally grown for way cheap. so, while i was running errands this morning i decided to stop by. it wasn't great, but i got some nice corn (of course), zucchini, onions, tomatoes and peaches. i can't wait to make my mom's classic zucchini and corn. such a summer staple.
  • a friend got married today and as i was thinking about what to get her, i decided that i was going to make something for her. and then i saw a lovely crafty-craftiness on another blog and an idea came to me. and now i can't wait to make her something. and maybe i'll make something else. i feel a crafty streak coming on.
what have you been thinking about?
did you miss me?

that's all.