Dream, List, Act: 101 Goals in 1001 Days

She works hard for the money

2010-02-10T08:37:00.034-06:00

I have been slacking on this blog thing. I suppose it was a better idea when I had all the time in the world to do it (like over Christmas break). But now I feel like I can't quit. My blog is holding me accountable.

Danny showed me an article last night entitled Teens think blogging is about as cool as Rick Astley hits. First, I have no clue who the hell Rick Astley is. Second, I don't really care if teens think I'm uncool. The majority of them are probably way less cool than me anyway. So there. It does make me feel older, though, because I'm starting to feel a little disconnected from today's youth. Oh well. I guess that's part of life! I'd rather be uncool than in denial.

For your daily dose of humor- The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks. I saw this on a message board. We were discussing our biggest annoyances related to grammar, and the inappropriate use of quotation marks was mentioned. Here are some of my favorites from the blog:

I'm not sure I want to use the back "lot". Sounds shady, as does this park:

The park is "closed" (wink, wink) over night. Maybe you have to know the secret handshake to get in the park between 9pm and 6am.

I saved the best for last:

Right. You'll send me to "Vegas" for "free"? Sounds like I might have to work for it... No details needed. "Thank you".

"Out on the edge of darkness, there rides a peace train"

2010-01-28T19:55:00.003-06:00

Do you know about the origin of the peace symbol? Neither did I, until earlier today. The symbol itself is a combination of the semaphoric signals (semaphore is a system of communicating at a distance by visual signs like flags or gloved hands) for the letters "N" and "D", standing for Nuclear Disarmament. The peace symbol was developed by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) in 1958 and was first adopted in the 1960s by those involved with the anti-war movement.

Semaphore "N" for Nuclear...

Semaphore "D" for Disarmament...

When the signs are superimposed and encircled, the shape of a peace symbol is made.

Not to be confused with the Mercedes-Benz symbol. I hate when that happens.

Anyway, why do I even care? Well, I care because earlier this week I was able to take part in an activity with one of my favorite professors at school. We were leading a Journal Club meeting related to stress and anger reduction in nursing students, and we discussed the idea of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) strategies. These strategies are about self-reflection and acceptance, development of resources to care for oneself and others, and openness to difficulties rather than avoidance. The MBSR strategies help people to reframe situations in order to clearly analyze them and to avoid irrational stress and anger.

She led us in a short relaxation/reflection activity in which we had to close our eyes, let our tension fade away, and come up with one word that would describe our feelings about our impending graduation. We then said our word out loud and discussed, linking our different feelings together. At the end of the activity, she gave us each a metal peace symbol on a chain.

I put mine on and thought about what it could mean to me. Some people wear things on their bodies to remind them of something- a rubber band on the wrist to stop swearing, a tattoo of a special family member. I think I'll use my necklace as a reminder of the importance of positive thinking and of the following quote- "Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it." If you do one thing for yourself today (which you should do every day, no matter how many kids you have or how long your to-do list is), take five minutes to close your eyes, relax every muscle in your body, think of a word that describes how you are feeling, and try to appreciate that you are ALIVE to feel that way, whether good or bad. I know that it's hard a lot of the time, but as my mom says, it's better than the alternative.

"Stop having a boring tuna. Stop having a boring life."

2010-01-26T11:30:00.001-06:00

One reason I started this blog was because I noticed that I have quite a boring life these days. I'm busy, that's for sure, but Danny and I don't take time to do fun, spontaneous things anymore. It seems like there is constantly something I need to work on, especially on the weekends when I don't have work or clinicals. I've come to the realization that this probably won't ever change, even after I graduate, so I've decided to reorganize my priorities a bit. While studying is definitely still up there on the list, I need to make time for fun stuff, too, even if that means just going out to dinner or a movie, or hanging out with friends. I was proud of myself last week when I agreed to go to a basketball game OUT OF TOWN ON A SCHOOL NIGHT! That was pretty big for me, and...

...I have my first completed goal! We went to the Purdue/Illinois game at U of I on the 19th.

As you can see, we were surrounded by a sea of orange. The fans were surprisingly subdued. Only one Illinois fan heckled me- a boy that looked to be about 10 years old yelled, "Purdue sucks!" in my general direction, then quickly walked away. I'm used to the rabid fans in the state of Indiana. They are usually pleasant but VERY loud in support of their teams. Of course, since Purdue won, we HAD to stick around until the end of the game to take a picture of the scoreboard.

Sweet victory! We had so much fun that we're planning a trip to West Lafayette to watch the rematch at Mackey Arena on February 20th.

And speaking of my love of sports...HOW ABOUT THOSE COLTS! Super Bowl bound! And playing the Saints? It doesn't get any better. I wish I was spontaneous (and rich) enough to hop on a plane and head down to Miami for the game next month... I'm attempting to add a small amount of spontaneity to my life, not craziness. As a matter of fact, I rather like my boring life. I just need to add a little spice. :)

A Sucker for the Singer-Songwriters

2010-01-15T09:47:00.014-06:00

I love singer-songwriters- Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, Jim Croce, Carol King, Dan Fogelberg, Sara Bareilles... This is a list that is even too long for me to write. What I appreciate so much about singer-songwriters is the immense amount of talent that they have. I am amazed by these artists who write, compose, and sing their own songs, and who often play an instrument at the same time. The new artist I found this month (#15, #16) can be added to my long list of loves, and her name is Missy Higgins. I honestly have not found one song by her that I don't like; some of my favorites are "Forgive Me", "Where I Stood", "The Special Two", and "Scar". If you have a second, please check her out! Yes, she plays piano.

And guitar...

AWESOME! Let me know what you think. I'm personally going to keep an eye out for tour dates! And maybe I'll go down to the basement, dust off my keyboard, learn to play, and realize my long-held dream of becoming a singer-songwriter!!! Yeah...totally not gonna happen. That's what I have Missy Higgins for. I'll just sing along in my car.

Today was a good day

2010-01-10T21:14:00.030-06:00

Tomorrow is my birthday (yay), so Danny and I decided to celebrate today. I thought as long as I was celebrating I might as well start a few more of my goals! I killed several birds with a couple stones today, and I had fun doing it.

Our "date" (#72) began with a trip to see "Youth in Revolt" (#69). It was great! Michael Cera's dry, understated humor is HILARIOUS to me. For example, when asked who the man with his mom is, Cera (playing a sexually-frustrated 16 year-old) says, "That's my mother's latest consort." Consort? WTF. Who says that? Classic. It was also surprisingly star-studded- Steve Buscemi, Jean Smart, Fred Willard, Ray Liotta, Justin Long, Zack Galifianakis... Well worth the money, plus I got a student discount. Woot! I think I'll read the book next.

After the movie, we headed to Destihl, a local (#98) microbrewery, for dinner and a few beers. The restaurant is one of our faves. After our meal this evening, we decided that we need to go there more often, especially on Sundays, because the beer is half price. And it's DAMN good, too!

After dinner, we headed home. I baked myself a birthday cake and opened my gift from Danny.

A digital picture frame! Just what I wanted! It's really beautiful and easy to use. I've already uploaded some pics! I plan to put the frame on my desk in my future office. Speaking of the office, I need to get to bed. Tomorrow I start my FINAL semester of clinical in the LAST semester of my program. Wow. As the song says, "I've been aware of the time going by. They say in the end, it's the wink of an eye." That's the truth.

"One love, one blood, one life you got to do what you should..."

2010-01-06T08:59:00.021-06:00

Day 1/Week 1

Starbucks: check
Tunes: check (Jackson Browne...acoustic)

I will most definitely NOT be blogging every day, but I wanted to get started. I have a few goals in progress already!

A few notables:
#52- Learn one new techie thing a month. Hello, blogging! I even borrowed a book from the library.

#56- Stay on track with studying for FNP certification. I actually started this one last month, but I really want to stay with my plan. I've broken the content down into more manageable sections by topic/body system. I plan to go to a formal review course in June and take the exam in late June/early July.

#64- Find an NP job. Started this one last month, too. I had an initial interview, and I expect to hear back from them some time this month. The position is at a Family Practice here in town with four physicians. In the meantime, I'm continuing to look for other opportunities.

On another note, I have a random story to share:
This morning, while adding my cream and sweetener to my coffee at Starbucks, a woman tried to steal the lid to my cup. "I think that's mine," I said. Looking at the lid in her hand she said, "Oh, I think you're right. I must've thrown mine in the trash." She handed the lid back to me and proceeded to reach INTO the trash (she had to move a cup and a couple napkins out of the way first) to retrieve her lid, which she then placed back onto her cup. "At least I know there aren't any cigarette butts in there," she said. Ewwwwwww! Gross, lady! A little ash would be the least of your problems. I hope you got your flu shots this year...

The Sun'll Come Out Tomorrow

2010-01-05T22:43:00.001-06:00

I've always been a planner and a goal setter. In fact, I'm so close to realizing two of my long-term goals (earning my Master's in Nursing and becoming a Nurse Practitioner) that I can taste it! I graduate in four months! But I'm not gonna wait until those goals are complete to make new ones. That would just be silly.

Also, lately I feel like I've had tunnel vision. I've been obsessing about one or two areas of my life, and I am very good at obsessing. I need a kick in the ass to get me out of this rut, and I've found my motivation.

The project is called Day Zero (www.dayzeroproject.com), and the challenge is to complete 101 goals in 1,001 days.

Tomorrow I begin.

This project should work well for me because:
1. I've always wanted to blog, but I never had the right inspiration
2. I loooooove making and checking off lists
3. I really like to learn and do new things
4. I strongly believe in the power of setting goals

To support #4, here is some information from Dave Kohl, a professor at Virginia Tech:
*People who write out their goals earn NINE TIMES as much over their lifetime as people who don't
*80% of Americans say they don't have goals
*16% do have goals but don't write them down
*Less than 4% write down their goals
*Fewer than 1% actually review them on an ongoing basis

I've decided to be part of the "fewer than 1%"! Here goes!