Dispatches from a go-gettin journalist. Because not all Army wives live behind the lines...

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Confessions of a Workaholic

Confession: I am a workaholic.

Lately I have:
  • forgone a personal social life and enveloped myself in a purely work-related social life.
  • invited friends to hang out at my office instead of one of the bajilion hot spots in the Apple.
  • neglected posting about the fun holiday "goings on's" because I've been working.
  • spent more time drafting to-do lists, business plans, and contracts than taking my new tennis shoes to the gym. 
  • contemplated turning one wall of our home into a white board.
  • convinced Gatto to be my assistant.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Keep In Touch

One of the great things about this city is that people who say they'll visit, actually visit.

Yes, the city is tough to navigate, but many are enamored by Apple living, and every so often they need to get their overwhelming big city fix.

Lucky for us, we're here to receive.

Being in this city has given me the opportunity to reconnect with friends and colleagues that I haven't seen in a long time. Like, Jenny... a former coworker turned friend who I met when I started the job I'm in now 4 years ago.


In the four years since we worked together -- while I've been planting my feet in my career -- Jenny has moved to a different state, almost wrapped up her Master's, spent time in Bangladesh, and in a few months will be country hopping for a new position she recently accepted. 

Amazing. Meeting with her definitely reinforced that "adventure fever" I'm having.  

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Sing It

Most Appleites feel like their life is set to a soundtrack. Every reserved moment on the subway, every honk of the horn and rush of the crowd. Every date spot. 

Every walk around leftover dog poop on the sidewalk (or as I call them, the sh* and run). These moments are epic and require background grandeur.

Sometimes, in broad daylight and among the strangers of street, you'll see some of them sing their song. Out loud. Sometimes, you'll see them sway, and shake, and leap onto oncoming traffic.

There are no weird looks given to these folks. It's like the people around them are totally oblivious to how not normal that is. 

I was asked to pick mine this week.  And it got me thinking that maybe I should embrace the new normal, and appreciate that sometimes we need to sing to the tune of our own songs. 

So for all of you who are convinced your life is a movie...  





Love is the answer, 
At least for most of the questions in my heart
Like why are we here? And where do we go? 
And how come it's so hard? 
It's not always easy and
Sometimes life can be deceiving
I'll tell you one thing, 
It's always better when we're together.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Sick Day

I've been quiet lately. No Apple anecdotes. No photos of the 'goings ons'.

Trust me, there's been 'goings ons.'

While I'm grateful for all things that have come my way so far, there have been a few disappointments lately that have really knocked the wind out of my sails.

I'm not one to entertain at the pity party, so let's skip the deets.

Let's just think of this lull as a workaholic's sick leave. Meaning, I've been excusing out of fun, so I can work. A lot. All day. Every day. Sometimes I'm late to work because I'm working.

Bare with me while I pick myself back up and remember what fun means again. With a photo or two. Soon. I promise.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

I'm Ready

Dear God,

I know I have mentioned to You numerous times that because of my inherent fear of failure I have a fear of success. And I know that You have responded many times -- often in unsuspecting ways -- that when the moment is right, I will not be afraid.

But I wonder whether not being afraid means the moment is right. Because I'm ready.

A new adventure, a new opportunity, a 'yes' instead of a 'no,' a door just barely staying open to close and a new one to open -- something that will totally sweep me out of my comfort zone and into a wild new world. I'm ready.

I'm ready. I'm ready. I'm ready.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

A Holiday Gift Idea: Armenia

The holiday season is here!

I'm already conjuring gift ideas in my head. I tend to over think gifts. I want to stay within our budget, but also want to get gifts that are meaningful and in the spirit of the holidays. I know that there's a way to do both -- I just have to over think it until my head explodes.

We've started fundraising for our home building trip to Armenia next year. Along with asking for your support, we'd love for you to consider making a contribution to our trip as part of the charities you'll be donating to this season. You can have the donation be a part of the "gift" you will be giving to your friends or family this year. To me, nothing is more in the "spirit" of the holidays than to give to those in need.

Your donation WON'T be going to pay an organization's overhead. It WON'T be going to pay people's salaries. It WON'T be going to the oblivion of a person or place far far away... never to know what happened.

It WILL be going towards necessary transportation and handyman materials needed for Superman and I to -- with our own two hands -- build homes for families devastated by the earthquake in Armenia, and for those who are in need.  We'll be documenting through photos and video to prove it! You'll know where to find us. ;)

Learn more HERE -- and I really hope that you'll consider supporting our efforts!

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Baba

Don't mind me, I'm just tripping on my dress...
One of the greatest gifts that I believe God has given me so far has been my dad being there on my wedding day. It's really every daughter's dream, and I am really close to my dad. He has a moral compass unlike anyone whom I have ever known. One of the real "seal the deal" moments in mine and Superman's relationship was the incredible relationship he built with my father.. my Baba...

Growing up, Baba was always a bit hard of hearing, and over the past few years his hearing has grown progressively worse. In fact, if I'm not looking right at him when I speak, he wouldn't be able to hear me. So phone calls have been few and far between. It's been harder since I moved away from home and for most of the year, phone calls are all we have to keep in touch.

But a few weeks ago Baba underwent a cochlear implant in the ear that had no hearing at all. Just the other day, he called me. Incessantly. Six times in a row.

I thought something was wrong, but when I called him back he started talking, and talking, and talking. And when I asked questions. He understood me. And he replied correctly to all of my questions. And I didn't have to yell into the phone. I spoke softly. And I spoke fast. And he spoke faster.



For the first time in a long time I had a real conversation with Baba. No lip reading. No yelling. No repeating.

It was an incredibly emotional moment. I am completely shaken by God's blessings.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Let's Move

I hardly ever talk about work here. Ever. I talk about writing. But that's not work. That's love. 

But tonight, let's talk shop. Apple style. 

In the Apple, a job can kill. Honest to goodness. Only here have I heard the phrase, "heart attack job." You get it -- the stress,the stakes, the 24/7 of it all.  Sometimes, we forget why we came to this city in the first place: to succeed by doing what we love! 

I don't believe in success, in the sense that it doesn't just happen. I believe in calculated success. At some point, we have to pave our own way. If there are no hard decisions, if there are no crossroads, there can be no success. But it can be so easy to lose track of that and instead jump on the rat wheel of come what may -- a slow, painful crise cardiaque of the soul.

Over the past month and a half, as I've been shifting into a different role at work, I realized I was feeling some work/life "chest pains." What I felt I loved felt more like work - and not in the good way. As a successful woman who truly believes that you are your own CEO, I needed to make an executive decision. Fast. 

So I did. I chose my life and love over an opportunity that would have landed me an angioplasty before age 30.

And I am all the more happy for it. Don't get me wrong, I'm certainly not slowing down. In fact, stepping off the nonsense wheel and stripping away the "busy work" has set me on a faster, more productive, path. The truth is: sometimes saying No to the things you don't want will make it easier to say Yes to the things you do. 

Besides my full-time work, I sealed two new project contracts that will challenge me in positive ways. I worked really hard to get them, and I'm glad to see my efforts pay off. Now the real work -- the work that matters to me -- starts. 

In the Apple, if you ain't movin, you're standing still.