Tomorrow I start my tip down to Florida for two weeks. Here's my horoscope for today. Sometimes the Universe knows me so well.

You have only one thing to do before you settle down for some serious recreation with your favorite playmates: Make sure all your business is taken care of. You wouldn't want to be in the middle of a wonderful evening, and then suddenly remember you left the computer on, would you? And you'll want to leave the cell phone at home, right? Well then, be sure to double check on your way out the door.

Scardy dog

This is what happens when it's thundering outside.

An ambitious weekend

It's an ugly, rainy Saturday that's supposed to be crappy all weekend. I don't really mind as long as I have a good book, internet access and a well-stocked kitchen.

In anticipation of my sloth-like existence today, I prepared a yummy raspberry-topped plate of french toast.

Be jealous. It's only 9:30 and I'm ready for my morning nap.

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My MOMA trip

Wednesday was an adventure day. I was meeting @vivzan at the Museum of Modern Art to see the Tim Burton exhibit.

I started my day in Jersey City as I waited for the Path train to take me to midtown Manhattan.


It was a nice day so I walked the 20 blocks from Herald Square up to 53rd Street.

I often forget that New York is a tourist spot. To me, it's just an extension of my neighborhood. So when I walked into the museum lobby at 10:30 on a Wednesday morning, I was a little shocked to see it to packed and humming with a dozen different languages.

I was thankful that I ordered and printed out my entry ticket last night because the lines were just too much to bare. I found a spot on a comfy ottoman and waited for @vivzan as I watched the people take pictures.

There were two things that caught my eye in the lobby. The first was this inflatable Tim Burton creature with many eyes. Even though he has a grotesque style, this thing seemed friendly and cuddly.

The second thing was a large painting hanging above an information desk.

At first glance, it looked like a silly painting of sailors with big noses. But upon closer look, I realized. Those weren't noses.

Viviane arrived and we set out immediately to the exhibit space for Tim Burton.

I really had no idea how talented he was as an illustrator and painter. I was even more floored when I learned that he was an animator for Disney. But the detail and shading in even his notepad doodles were so amazing.

Soon we were hungry and tired and needed a break. We went to the cafeteria on the 3rd floor and MOMA even made the meals another art instillation.

Each plate was presented as beautifully as it tasted. I had a tender chicken pannini and Viv had the yummiest pollenta I ever tasted. Then dessert... I had a rich, chocolate torte that could only be enjoyed with a glass of cold milk.

After lunch, we forced our tired and full bodies to the rest of the museum. I loved the Monets and Van Gogh, the Seurat and Cézanne. I can even appreciate Picasso, Warhol and Pollock. I loved the photography exhibit where everyday, mundane pictures made the cut. Some, no more impressive than a candid shot of my dog chasing a squirrel outside.

But then we got to the strange stuff and I just have to wonder, what makes it art? There was an instillation of a chair, and another of four pushpins stuck in a wall with string all around them.
Then my favorites are the canvases painted one solid color with a line of white running down the side.

Seriously? WTF?!

But then we'd come across something interesting again.

It was a long day and by 4:30 we were all tired out. Damn, we were getting old.

I walked back down from 53rd through Times Square and came upon a little NYC drama.

I have no idea what happened. But 7th Ave was blocked off with tons of fire trucks, cop cars and a couple of stretchers. There were lines of people taking photos and videos but no one had a clue what happened. Typical. Just another day in New York City.

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Time to spring into action

Things on the job front has begun to slow down considerably. Only temporarily, mind you. I start my new job April 5. But between now and then will be a glorious month of just...being.

I started my Tuesday laying in bed for about an hour reading a collaboration with Sue Monk Kidd and her daughter Ann Kidd Taylor in the book "Traveling with Pomegranates: A Mother-Daughter Story". I've loved her books since I read "Dance of the Dissident Daughter" and started my own personal journey searching for myself and the sacred feminine.

Traveling with Pomegranates starts with the mother-daughter team traveling together in Greece. They are both on a journey to find themselves: Sue as she enters her 50's and Ann as she graduates college; as women coming to terms with their new role in life. As the story describes the incredible heat of the Athens streets and the spiritual connectedness they felt at the Acropolis, I was taken back to my own pilgrimage to Greece last summer.

Sue mentioned a quote that she inscribed in her own red leather journal that resonated with me.

"Pilgrims are poets who create by taking journeys." -Richard Neibhur

I am a poet to the core. I find myself by traveling. I am especially looking forward to this month off because it provides me with an opportunity to recharge my batteries. I will be driving down to Florida to attend the Learning Solutions Conference and Expo in Orlando. I loved it last year and I'm sure I will get as much out of it this year. After the conference, I'll be catching up with sorority sisters and finally meeting up with family and hopefully scuba diving in the Keys. Like any of my travels, there is a lot of room for change of plans so each day I will have to answer the question "What do I want to do today?"

Like Sue and Ann, I also feel like I'm at an important point in my life. I have finally found a career that I enjoy, I found an opportunity to give back through coaching and mentoring the women of my sorority, I can live a comfortable (and not extravagant) lifestyle, and I'm enjoying the skin I'm in. I'm in a really good place right now and I have to constantly remind myself to stop and appreciate it.

Better than coffee as a pick-me-up

Stage mom

There are moments, in hindsight, where you reconsider your actions.

This weekend I was asked by my sorority chapter that I advise to be a judge in their fund raising event, Karaoke for the Cure. All proceeds were to benefit the group Autism Speaks.

I had a lot of fun with the two other judges getting all Simon, Paula and Randy-like in critiquing the competition portion of the evening. There were some shining stars and some duds, but overall it was a fun-filled night.

After the competition portion of the night was over, it turned back to open karaoke. After watching everyone, meaning the college students who this event was for, have their turn on stage, I felt left out and wanted to give it a go.

I am no stranger to karaoke. My family has been having karaoke nights for several years. When the family gets together, its a ridiculum of hats, wigs, glasses, props and many, many drinks. We turn on our inner rockstar and give the most outlandish rendition of Aretha Franklin, Guns 'N Roses or Queen that we can muster. Embarrassment has no place with us.

So that night, completely sober among people who were toddlers when I frequented the Rider Pub as an undergrad, I grabbed the mic, took the stage and belted out Madonna's 'Express Yourself".

I didn't suck. And I hope I didn't embarrass the women of my chapter. But I had fun and there was dancing on the floor.

But looking back now, all I can think of is someone in the back probably asking one of the women "Gee, who brought your mom?"

*Sigh*

Life update, part 1

I've been radio silent for a long time. But don't think that I've been lounging around in my pj's on the couch. At least, not all the time.

I have had quite the amazing few weeks; it's been hard to keep up with writing it down. Even my journal has been feeling neglected and I do feel a little bit bad about that.

For the most part I've been keeping up with the 365 Project. It has been easy since I always have my iPhone on me. The more difficult part is finding shots that I think are interesting or that I haven't taken before.

First on the job front.

I have been loving my job lately. I finally feel like I know what I'm talking about, that I'm taken seriously and that I can see actual positive results of the work that I'm doing. After putting in a few hours work, I can stop and having something to show for it. And I'm proud of it!

The first project that I finished last month was the writing and development of 6 online courses. They weren't life-changing or the most creative things in the world, but I built them on time, with little to no issues and the client was pleased. So much so that they asked me to stick around for another 6 weeks to work on developing a classroom workshop that will be delivered to 150 people in 5 breakout sessions.

Again, working with the client and my project manager has been wonderful and actually inspiring! Brainstorm sessions to determine what the goal of the classroom session will be turned into great collaborations; and I got to draw all over the whiteboard to help pull together all the ideas into something spectacular. It's moments like that where I feel great. Everyone on the team was pleased and excited about the work that we were now all required to do.

Already, all my preparations have been spot-on and I can write all my documents and practice for upcoming train-the-trainer sessions without panic because I'm ahead of schedule. I have such a sense of calm about this that it's almost frightening.

Also job related... I got a new job!

A few weeks ago I applied for a contract instructional design job. I had a phone interview with Cammie, the recruiter, that turned into a wonderful 45 minute conversation. I completely geeked-out talking about training and elearning and the challenges of clients 'not knowing what they don't know' and the additional job of trying to explain better training options rather than showing them 100 PowerPoint slides of fluff.

It was so exhilarating to speak with someone else who 'got it' about adult learning. It reminded me about all the little things I've done to bring me to this point and how it all ties together. Project Management, web development, graphic design, audio/video production,... even the skills I picked up while in a sorority is valuable -- but that's another posting.

She suggested that I speak with Stacie, the Director of Instructional Design for a full-time position with the company that she works for. That turned into an interview the next Friday where I traveled to King of Prussia, PA. It's over an hour away from my house, but the great part is that the job is mainly virtual.

The interview was more of a meet & greet. It was easy and interesting. I showed some of the projects that I worked on and spoke intelligently about my experience. It was just fun! I was asked to come back the following Friday for my 2nd interview which went equally well. Before I left I was given a verbal offer and just a few days ago I received my official offer letter. Granted, it's a bit of sticker shock to go from a consultant salary to a full-time salary, but I think the opportunities this job will provide will be invaluable and I am really excited to start this new gig in April.

Also career related is an opportunity I have developing a workshop for my local ASTD chapter. ASTD is the American Society for Training and Development of which I'm not a paying member, but I attend local meetings.

At the last meeting was a presentation about the useful of social media to develop your personal brand. I was excited about it because I'm all about social media! I blogged about the presentation which then led to a conversation with one of the local chapter officers about creating a hands-on workshop for members who want to know how to set up their own social media accounts.

W00t! Game on! I meet with the group this Saturday to discuss a plan for creating this hands-on workshop. I am so excited!

Phew, that's enough for now. There's still plenty of stuff going on, but I'll save that for another post.

365 project: snooze

Sometimes it's just not worth fighting it.

365 project: Rainbow!

My gas gauge was blinking at me with its furious orange light. I pulled into a gas station and was annoyed with the attendant (yes, it's Jersey. We don't pump our own gas) because he couldn't make up his mind as to which pump he wanted me to park in front of.

After I handed over my credit card I noticed the trickle of rain had stopped and the once gray sky had turned golden. I immediately looked up and there in front of me was a huge rainbow that arched from one side of Route 1 over to the other side of town.

That's when the attendant pointed and shouted, "Rainbow! Look!"

And that made me smile.

Today's Horoscope

You really do want to go out and play and it has (almost) nothing to do with the fact that it's your day to goof off. What you're really after is socializing -- but not on a lighthearted level. You're in the mood for intense, penetrating conversations, late into the night, about the big issues -- politics, religion and education, for example. All the topics that no one would usually dare to bring up at the dinner table. Good luck!

I love when my horoscope seems to align with my life. This is exactly how I'm feeling lately. I feel involved. I feel like I want to do stuff, to discuss stuff.

Sorority Nerd

Image by bearclau via Flickr

I have become obsessed.

Since I have been asked to serve as the Chapter Advisor for my sorority at my school, I have charged at this responsibility full steam ahead.

First, I am a sorority geek. As an undergrad, I was my chapter president, house manager (our version of a RA), and was heavily involved in the recruitment of new members. As an alumnae, I was the Recruitment Advisor for 2 years and worked on several iterations of a chapter/alumnae website.

But now I've taken on this reaction that I can only describe as passionate. For the first time, I find myself doing something that just seems so incredibly fun, and professionally relevant. All the things I've done career-wise is coming together: project management, technology stuff, training & development. And matching it up with the joy I received out of being in a sorority: the sense of belonging, natural leadership, relationship building -- has turned into the perfect blend for me.

Within the two weeks since I agreed to take on this role, I have already formed a relationship with my 'mentee', met both the Greek Advisor and House Director, contacted most of my fellow alumnae advisors and created a website for the Advisors to communicate with each other. I've gone through the manuals and the electronic file-sharing site. I'm even preparing a 4-hour officer retreat program from scratch to be delivered next weekend.

I am overwhelmed with information which will take time for me to process, but all these great ideas are coming to me like lightning strikes and I have to record then when it happens, on paper, in a file, or even a voice memo on the iPhone.

I haven't been this charged in I don't know how long. It feels pretty good.

Things I like: Super Mario Jesus

A marker, a post it note cube, and a little bit of creativity is apparently all I need to smile. Oh, and a ass-kicking Jesus.

Things I like: Edible Art

This is the coolest thing I've seen. And its making me hungry.

100 Games Cupcake Game
100 cupcakes were decorated like board/video games. They are amazing!




(found this from my geek-lover Wil Wheaton)

things I like: Animals bombing photos

This seal looks like one cool dude that I'd like to hang out with!

I bet he knows this guy.

365 project: floppys

I opened a seldom used drawer at work and found a bunch of 3.5" floppy disks hiding in the back. I wonder how long they've been in there. I wonder what's on them. It's not like I can find out since none of my computers even have a floppy drive anymore.

Hey. 1997 called and it wants its floppys back.

Did You Know?

The higher a patient's body-mass index, the less respect he or she gets from doctors.

Well, crap. Doctors must think I'm Rodney Dangerfield.

See this and 49 other things that was learned in 2009.

WTF? People of Wal-Mart

I'm convinced that there is a different breed of people who frequent Wal-Mart. And that Wal-Mart obviously does not sell mirrors.

See more at People of Wal-Mart.

365 Project: Found buttons

I found these buttons sitting all alone in a tray in the mailroom waiting to be thrown out. I rescued them and gave them a new home on my cube wall.

I love them.

The bright, cheery colors, the sayings. I feel like they were made just for me.

365 Project: Cover me

I've been thinking a lot about health care lately, especially since I'll have to be paying a lot more for it soon when I have to get it through COBRA.

I consider myself pretty lucky that I could get bloodwork done, talk with my primary physician and get x-rays without an appointment all for a $20 copay.

I thought about letting my health insurance lapse when I go unemployed, but decided against that. While I'm all for living spontaneously, I'm not about to get irresponsible. Even if it means shelling out about $350 a month when no income is coming in.

I sure hope Congress figures out this health care bill soon.