Recognition where it's due

Little by little I'm going to catch up. And so, I shall start by recognizing these lovely ladies that shared some lovely awards with me over the past month. I know I received a couple of others but can't for the life of me remember who/what/when/where I was given them.

Julie Flanders over at What Else Is Possible? was kind enough to share this with me.

And this beaut was sent over by Dafeenah many moons ago! And here I am, finally sharing it as well :)

The rules state to share 7 things and pass it on to 10-15 others. I've noticed a lot of these are flying around blogosphere so I'm not going to be specific and designate the award to the blogger. So, for the sake of cheating feel free to pick whichever you prefer :)

So! Here we go.......

1. I am one of those cat-people that consider my cat my "child".
2. I am more of a salty than sweet person. Though the past two years with my boyfriend have me leaning towards sweet.
3. I'm about to graduate with two Masters degrees for Mental Health Counseling to become a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (thank cheeze!)
4. I originally wanted to be a photojournalist and an interior designer before I choose the "safe" path. I went to a high school spefically for photography at one point.
5. My personality is essentially, a set of contradictions.
6.  Big fan of breakfast foods. Big. (at any time of the day)
7. I am genuinely in awe of how other bloggers can sustain regular working lives and have time to blog! (Share your tips please!!!!!!)

And therefore I choose to pass these on to some fellow lovelies I've had the opportunity to meet along the way:

-Judy @ Raising Reizo
-Yvonne @ Welcome to my world of poetry
-Dafeenah @ Dafeenah [for the stylish blogger :) ]
-Beverly @ Writing in flow
-Su @ Cheekyness
-Sarah Allen @ No Write or Wrong
- Christine @ The Imagination Station
- Sharlene @ Mainstream solar cooking
- Doreen @ Doreen McGettigan
- Siv Maria
- Suzanne @ Blue Sand Studio
-Gina @ A Muse in my pocket

Z's zZzZ's

**So. I just realized my posts for Y & Z did not "automatically post" like blogger promised. So here they are for the heck of it**


I'm not going to lie. All I can think of is catching some Z's. Grad school is just about over as is this challenge. The job hunt is full on. My focus for the next month is to......become a grown up. Maybe.............

On a more positive note, hallelujah for the end of this challenge! It's been fun, but very badly timed and thought out on my own behalf. Woulda-coulda-shoulda.

This week I'll actually have time (knock on wood) to dedicate some time to writing and blogging. Here's hoping.

Good riddance A-Z! Until next year!

Generation Y's Y

***So. I just realized my posts for Y & Z did not "automatically post" like blogger promised. So here they are for the heck of it**

If I understand the terminology correctly, my friends and I are part of the "generation Y" movement. I don't know- because I have two older brothers I feel a stronger kinship to the "x-er's".

I mean, I don't think I can fit neatly into either box. If anything, I'm a combination of the two. I grew up with the emergence of computers' accessibility. I remember we had a "computer period" in grade school once a week where we were allowed to play math games and Amazon Rainforest and Oregon Trail. Memories.

Now I'll admit I'm fond of my iPhone. But I could live without it. Sure the internet makes life easier (does it?), but I can live without it- for periods of time.

I don't know. And I don't really care. Just. trying. to. make. it. through. these. next. few. days!

Xeroxing X

Xerox |ˈzi(ə)rˌäks|noun trademarka xerographic copying process.• a copy made using such a process.• a machine for copying by xerography.
Can I breathe yet? I am completely dumb-struck and in awe that the end of April is here, not to mention my boyfriend's birthday tomorrow! These past couple of weeks have made me almost resent writing and blogging for that matter thanks to the ridiculous amount of added-on papers, cover letters, and thank you letter's I've had to make up. Not to mention all the running around the city in between class breaks. Note to self: do not sign up for writing challenges when trying to simultaneously graduate from graduate school and find a job within my career!
It's too soon to tell what is going on in my life. Or is it? 
I don't know, but I can sure as diddly say that I wish I could xerox myself to get through this next week and a half!
Can I get an a-men?

Well-being Wants W

Being a holistically, humanistic oriented counselor always has me thinking about my own well-being. Not to mention that ever since I moved to the Big Apple my being it self has been all over the place, despite incorporating and focusing all these positive adjustments.

But I'm starting to wonder if I'm going about it all wrong.

Maybe, after all, it is not in my body's best interest to become wholly aligned. Maybe, I should stop focusing on achieving internal harmony and proudly help myself to that medium serving of french fries. Maybe, I should listen to what I want instead of believing what scientists and often-sued doctors have "proven" I should want.

Maybe, I should just let my body, mind, and spirit have whatever it wants- whatever that may be.

How do you live your life? Do you believe in moderation and/or alignment or do you "do what you want when you want!"?

V's Variability

variable |ˈve(ə)rēəbəl|adjective1 not consistent or having a fixed pattern; liable to change 
Before taking the billions of research oriented classes I've taken, I never really understood the term variable.
Now I do. Oh how I do. And it has come to be one of my favorite words.
I like the fact it can be easily applied to several situations- taken out of scientific context and variably used. (hah!) I like that its soft sounding and includes the word "able" making it sound positive. 
And, most importantly, I like the fact that it describes a loyal aspect of my own nature: having a fixed pattern of inconsistency. (More or less). I like to pretend that I'm consistent. Heck sometimes I even thoroughly believe myself. But then something happens and I'm back at it all over the place. Changing plans, making big moves. Delusional with dreamy expectations.
And I (sometimes) love it. After all, what is life without a bit of variability?

Do you have any particularly favorite words? Or do you have a habit of taking words out of their original context and applying them generously?

Unicorn-ly U

Thanks to Lisa Frank, I grew up an avid believer in unicorns. She also had me under the impression that cats and dogs could, in fact, get married and have puppies and kittens together.

Random?

No. My point is, despite never actually seeing a unicorn I believed in them. And that their shiny iridescent horns held some magical powers.

I'm taking it back to the age old saying/ thought process/ state of mind that seeing isn't always believing.

Is it?

I don't think so. I've been blessed with getting practically every thing I've ever wanted- eventually. Now I'm not saying I've been given handouts. But one way or another my life has worked itself out to give me the things that I need and want at one point or another. Maybe not immediately, but eventually things work out.

I need a job. I need to decide where to live. What do to with my future.

And I need to remember to believe... that things will work themselves out... like they always do.

Sometimes we just have to believe in unicorns.


Are you a believer? Or do you at least believe in unicorns?

T's Tolerating Time's Temperamentally

Is it just me or has time been spiraling at a ridiculous pace? Most days I feel as if the day itself is never ending but come nightfall I wonder where the time went. Not to mention I still can't believe it's the end of April. Wasn't I just on winter break in January whining about tearing my ligament?

I remember complaining about the seemingly endless summer breaks during grade school: too hot to play outside, pools too crowded to enjoy the urine infested water, and butt imprint firmly mapped on the living room sofa. Now I have a hard time holding on to the few moments I have to relax between days.

And why is it that when you want time to speed up it it thrives on slow motion? And when you need a few extra minutes you just can't seem to catch a break?

Father Time, I know you want us all to our existence in this whirlwind clock. But can't you just give a sistah a break someTIMES?



How do you feel about the Time's Tempermental-ness? Can you enjoy each moment or do you find yourself wondering where the last 24 hours, year, decade went?

S's Smiley face

Smile.

This is a main motto in my life. Even if it's not a completely genuine smile, just displaying that grin will gradually help it grow into authenticity. Like sneezes, smiles are contagious.

Smiling, I believe (and has been "proven"), makes others likely to smile in reciprocity. And simply smiling at someone who gazes your way may have such a positive impact on their day: you never know when someone else desperately needs a friendly twinkle.

Even in my current state of on the verge of being swallowed by work and others irresponsibility. I'm trying to grin and bear in. Move forward through the next two weeks of intensity.

As Vitamin C once sang, "put a smile on your face, make the world a better place".

"Story of my life", Custom shirt, Downtown Disney April 2011-

Side note: I'd also like to come back and revisit this topic when I have a chance to breathe and properly articulate my thoughts.

R's Resilience (risking resistance for resting relaxation)

Deer goodness. I am quite literally drowning in work and angry group members- talk about a major case of resistance of trying to cooperate together to finish a stinking silly paper.

I haven't had the chance to adequately think about this topic because of said silly group, difficult professors, and running on 2-3 hours of sleep per night. But, this is a topic I really want to delve into at a later date- when I have been a bit rested and relaxed and far far away from the negative resistant attitudes of stubborn group members.

This is me being resilient to the silly situation. Bouncing back to try to completely my own goals in the best way possible that I can manage right now. Operative term being "right now".

Questioning q's quintessence

quin·tes·sence

[kwin-tes-uhns]–noun

1. the pure and concentrated essence of a substance.

2. the most perfect embodiment of something.

It seems like forever ago when I posted this, though it is still relevant. Especially after this weekend's play-cation.

What characteristics compose me? What desires? What needs? Some people can rattle off a laundry list by memory of what defines them. But me? Not so much. Like my moods, my necessities tend to fluctuate around the ideas of love, laughter, family, nature, and comfort.

But this weekend rattled what I had thought had become a somewhat stable mentality.

You see, I'm a native Miami-an. I skipped town in 2005 to embark on collegiate wonders renouncing the state of Florida with its perpetual heat. Here I am, six years later wondering if Florida really is so bad. This weekend I was reminded how much I miss the simplicity of being able to see grass, the remarkable difference that an ocean breeze has on rising temperatures and in turn my sanity.

Maybe it's because I'm still partially in a playcation-coma, and maybe it's partially due to the overwhelming anxiety about if I'll be able to land a job in NYC. (And I'm not going to lie, a BIG part is because I have been absolutely miserable the past two completely unbearable NYC summers.)

So what is my quintessence at this point in my life? I guess I'll have to see....

What is the "pure essence of you"? Or what would be the "perfect embodiment of something" for you?

Playful P

I thought I had managed to post yesterday from my phone. But apparently I'm not that crafty yet. Here are a few quick flicks taken from my fancy phone. 

We got home late last night and I'm still in a vacation coma. Hopefully I'll be able to write and visit everyone within the next day. Who knew a mini 3-day play-cation could leave you totally pooped?

Quick point being, play is a necessity in life! Despite being totally exhausted, we had a blast and definitely needed the chance to play around :)

Butterbeer is better, Harry Potter World, IOA, April 2011

Story of my life, Downtown Disney, April 2011

Ohana means family <3, Epcot, April 2011

Day 2 beginnings, IOA, April 2011

Opportunistic O

I love to use the word "opportunity". Not because I'm necessarily an adamant go-getting, but because it is realistic euphemism for anything.

"Why are you going for a walk Michelle?"
"Oh you know, give my bones an opportunity to stretch and brain some room to jiggle!"

"Why do you want this job?"
"Oh because it would be an amazing opportunity for clients to have someone to really listen to, and for myself to learn from their strengths"
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Yes, this is a weak post and I could do so much more with it. But, I "auto-tuned" it because I'm having a blast in Disneyworld!!!

Nice nilly-nally, N

Why is it so hard to come by genuine niceness?

Maybe it's just me, but I seem to encounter all kinds of not-really-niceness all over the place. In Miami, there was a sense of pride, a feeling of obligation to be nice to elders and those in your inner circle- but if an outsider came sniffing by your territory they were often barked at. In Pennsylvania, people seemed genuinely nice to your face but often gossiped and lied behind your back. And New York? Well, here people don't even pretend to be nice. Chivalry and respect seem to be non-existant and the few times someone may tentatively hold a door for you, you have to run to make it because within seconds that moment of niceness is right down the sewers.

I'm a generally nice person, but sharing and compromise aren't exactly part of my nature. Though I do put forth considerable effort to extend my hand to close friends when they need it. Mostly, not thinking of expecting anything in return.

But. The few times where I have been in dire need of their open hands, I reach out only to find a clenched fist. I can't help but wonder why this keeps happening and beyond that, why do I keep putting forth the effort to contradict my own nature?

I guess this is part of growing up.

M is for Michelle's mother Mabel

Thanksgiving 2009, Camp Hill, PA

My mom is a bit bananas. And significantly older than me (she had me at 39 in the 80s!) Now that I'm older and not constantly surrounded by her, I can appreciate her level of looniness.

Like many mother and daughters, we had quite the rough patch during my teen years. Partly I attribute to her menopause, partly to my hormonal teenage-ary, partly because a lot of anger I had in me from their divorce came out. She kicked me out of the house so many times I ran out of friends to stay with.

But, for the most part we have overcome these bouts of emotional lunacy. Again, I believe this is mainly because we don't live in the same immediate radius. (If I were, I'm positive she would randomly burst into my house whenever she wants without notice, because thats her nature...and thats what she does to my brother.)

Now that I'm a bit older and very slightly wiser, I can understand my mom better when she hits her lows or becomes too needy. I can also tolerate my temper enough to not yell at her for silly things: I can pick our battles.

And interestingly enough, my mom now regards me as an "expert" and often asks me my opinion on psychologically or any brain-sciency oriented things. (Oh how the tables have turned!) My mom is NOT a dumb lady. I might have been a latch-key kid out of necessity, but she did the best she could to satisfy my wants beyond my needs. I look at some of my friends that grew up in dual-parent households and I see the difference of how growing up with a single mom had a positive effect on my sense of self.

For better or worse, I've inherited her: mood swings, sense of independence, strength, smile, sense of humor, cleanliness...and that's about it. When I think about it, we are far more different than similar. But we get along. And she's always by my side when I need her.

Every year I write her a nice letter for mothers day and her birthday. I'm (almost) 24 and I usually make her a cheesy present instead of buying one- and she always loves it because she's that kind of mom. And I know I don't say it much aloud, but I love her for being my mom, being herself, and teaching me how to become a strong woman.

Thanks, mom.

New Years 2007, Jojo's, Camp Hill, PA

New Years 2008, Jojo's, Camp Hill, PA

Life with L

Is it really April 14??? Talk about an eventful week. Lack of time is leading me to loosely post my life in pictures from the week. I guess there really are only so many hours in a day....

Subway Art, 6 train, April 2011

Sunnyside and the livin ain't too sunny, April 2011

Chelsea Drear, Chelsea, April 2011
(no filters)

Melanie & Andrea & May, Hospital Part Deux, April 2011

PB&J Doughnut, Doughnut Plan LES, April 2011

Bird Skull?, SoHo, April 2011

If only... (LOLCats)

Kidding around with K

Crazy Rafiki, Disneyworld May 15 ,2009

I am not a serious person. I can be serious for a while. I can act like a grown up. But my nature is to laugh, hysterically. I kid around like nobody's business. I find terribly corny jokes hilarious. I live for fun.

I get this sense of juvenile joy from my mom. My mom is all about embracing the humor in life. It's also part of the reason why I want to work with kids. So much fun, so innocent, so exciting.

This weekend we're going to Disneyworld- honestly my favorite place in the world tied with the beach. We planned it last month and I have had this overwhelming sense of joy ever since. It feels like I have a nebula in my chest ready to explode with fun and excitement.

Don't wanna, Disneyworld May 16, 2009

Do you like to kid around? Do you think those that do are childish? What do you find fun?

J is to joie de vivre

Joie de vivre (French pronunciation: [ʒwa də vivʁ], joy of living) is a French phrase often used in English to express a cheerful enjoyment of life; an exultation of spirit. Joie de vivre


joie de vivrenounif there is one symbol that represents French society and its joie de vivre, it is theParis café: joyfulness, cheerfulness, cheeriness, lightheartedness,happiness, joy, gaiety, high spirits, élan, jollity, joviality, exuberance,ebullience, liveliness, vivacity, verve, effervescence, buoyancy, zest,zestfulness; informal pep, zing; literary blitheness. ANTONYMS sobriety,depression.
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I first heard this phrase not too long ago and fell in love. Those French- always so clever with their abstract concepts-turned phrases. Then I thought about it. Why don't Americans have a translatable phrase for this? Oh that's right, because the American way is to live to work, not work to live.


Right now I can't say I'm much different, stuck balancing all these different identities in my life like many others. (Why do we create so many identities for ourselves? That's a whole other topic).


But it seems so obvious: the joy of living. How often do we fall ill and pronounce life-altering changes like, "when I feel better I'm going to be on top of the world..." and then end up reverting back to our old, over-consumed, preoccupied, stressed ways?


I know I can be guilty of this. Which is why I made one of my life-resolutions to start enjoying more, stressing less. After all, our life is composed of many "too beautiful a day not to share it with the flowers".




How often do you genuinely feel joie de vivre?




**And thank you everyone who sent well-wishes for my friend. She was just released from the hospital and sends her thanks as well!*

I's Insight versus Ignorance?

**My best friend who has been living with us was admitted to the hospital yesterday morning and will most likely be there through tomorrow. Point being I have barely left the hospital which has no service. Again, sorry for not having the chance to visit blogs but I’m running on 3 hours of sleep and all over Manhattan/Queens**

My belief as a therapist is that insight will enable individuals to overcome adversity and achieve progress towards their self-actualizing process.

But this article brings about a good point. Does insight always help? Sure, ignorance can be blissful but it depends your philosophy on life, I suppose. If you’re looking for a quick fix and purposely avoiding the intricacies of life as you know it then gaining insight will probably have a negative impact (at first) if you’re not quite ready to delve into that arena. Though working through it can help.

Life, as I’ve learned, is all about timing.

Are you for insight or “ignorance”? I like to think I’m insightful but there are certainly times when I choose ignorance over awareness.

H's Happiness Health

There are flowers everywhere for those who look- Matisse

Over the past decade or so, the field of positive psychology has flourished thanks to researchers such as Martin Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihaly among several others. And it's just about everywhere we look in pop culture. It's all about making yourself happy, what's wrong with you that you're not like people in commercials with giant smiles running through a grassy field with dogs.

But happiness is particularly important to me. Not necessarily because I strive to avoid unhappiness- that's not healthy. My family has a long, long history of "mental health issues". Enough so that my main priority as of recent years is to keep track of my happiness meter to evade the scary shadow of emotional catastrophe.

So what do I do? I'm far from figuring out what makes me tick and a part of me doesn't even want to know that much. But I try to eat well, observe my emotional characteristics, and semi- recently took up actively exercising.

After all, it's not about just knowing. It's about learning and living.

Luke: What's in there?

Yoda: Only what you take

What makes you happy?