'is it worth it, let me work it....' (a.k.a. thoughts on the coming year)

it's the last day of 2009 and i'm resisting the urge to review. of course it's natural to think back on the year and ponder all the good, the bad, and the ugly, but really, this new year's eve, my heart is looking forward. i'm actually just ready for 2009 to become a series of memories so that i can forge ahead into what's next.

here are (some of) the reasons why....

1. i have some fitness and weight loss goals that i want to bring about. no time like the present to get moving!
2. i have a stack of books that are calling my name, just waiting to be read.
3. i have fun plans on the horizon in less than a month.
4. i have lots of new cookbooks to peruse and use as inspiration to create fun, healthful meals.
5. there's always the possibility of professional growth and new opportunities. at the very least, i still have a great job, and i'm super thankful for that.
6. i have some beautiful people in my life, and some of the ones who are far away, i may even get to see this year. that makes me sublimely happy.

there are probably a million more reasons, but the bottom line is this: tomorrow holds promises that today could not fulfill, and i'm ready for what lies ahead...not just what will come to me but what i can and will bring about by my hard work and dedication.

i'm well aware that some of my dreams may not come easily, but where's the satisfaction in having life handed to you like some type of freebie? putting in hard work means that, at the end of the journey, you understand the worth of what you have.

and me? i'm ready to have it all. so let's get to work!

happy 2010, everyone. may this year knock your socks off!

where was i again?

okay, so now that i'm back in my 'real life,' i have an announcement: i need another vacation. a longer one. perhaps permanent this time.

as is often the case when you go away, your life continues to pile up right where you left it and gives you no mercy from the deluge upon your return. i am, quite frankly, swamped with projects, e-mails, issues and a girl can't always take it. sure, i've had a week away, but see, i let myself breathe a little during that time and i was hoping to keep breathing even now.

oh well.

the good news is that i'm apparently moving forward and kicking butt even though i feel like i'm drowning half the time. if that's not grace, then i don't know what is.

and tomorrow is wednesday, the day of the hump. it might be a small silver lining, but i'll take it. at this point, i'd be a fool not to.

'august, die she must'*

happy (belated) month before september (a.k.a. the month for beginning again, for buying school supplies, for getting new clothes and realizing that fall is right around the corner). this will be a short check-in, since i'm pretty much in serious need of dinner (grilled salmon from wf) and some work catching up. methinks i shall be up late tonight.

just a recap of my day: i got a cortisone shot in my foot that was long overdue. here's hoping it takes its hold. i also had a random bout of cute hair. i'm not going to question it. sometimes the magic just happens. lunch was a boring roast beef sandwich that gave me phanton heartburn (which i almost never get). weird. after work (and the doctor), i stopped at whole foods (the source of the aforementioned salmon) to pick up a few things. nearly had an altercation with an older gentleman who was trying to get all up in my grille in the parking lot. i beat a hasty retreat before we had words. it was only a matter of time.

i also realized again today that my life would be a tiny bit frightening to some people who knew me back in college. i'm okay with that, though. some times things are not what they once were...and nor should they be. and, like forrest gump, that's all i have to say about that....

off to dine and try to stay awake till bedtime. busy week ahead. much homework and goings on. still smiling, though. not too shabby for a monday.

(*my apologies to art garfunkel for associating his rather beautiful lyric with my crap blog post.)

comfort me

as of sunday, i've been reading this book, and i have to say - i love it. so much, in fact, that i almost don't want to finish reading it, because then i won't be able to look forward to the next page, and the page after that, and so on. i hate the thought of endings, sometimes.

what i also can say is that now i want to own all of ruth reichl's books, and i'm quite sure that i will delight in each page of those memoirs as i have with this one.

i've realized that delicious words satisfy a hunger like nothing else can. perhaps that's why i like blogs so much. the ones that are well-crafted give me a hit....a little something to munch on as i go about the business of my life. and even if i don't know the person first-hand, his or her life somehow becomes a part of mine in the way that a character in a good book squeezes itself into the crevices of my heart and mind.

writing opens us up; it teaches us; it connects us in our humanity. this is partly why i chose to work in a field that allows me to spend my day with words on a page (or a screen, as the case may be). i am comforted in the midst of the chaos by the apt turn-of-phrase, the clear exposition, the question or statement that makes you think to yourself yes, that's it exactly!

today one of my bosses asked me what i love most about my job. there are several things, actually - the opportunity to impact others' educational experiences, the chance to learn almost constantly. but the best thing for me are those moments where true collaboration takes place...where i can sit with a colleague and tease the meaning out of a convoluted paragraph or awkwardly written phrase, figure out how to make it flow (AND capture the statement's true intent), and then sit back and enjoy what we've created together. when it works well, it's a beautiful thing.

enough about work, though. tonight, after slogging through some homework and watching another addictive reality tv program, i shall return to my little book, sink under the covers, and let the words take me where they will. i'm all too happy to follow along for as long as i can.