Just a Quick Update

I have been lagging behind on my blog for a few reasons. Let's go through them, shall we?

I went on vacation with my parents, brother, and sister-in-law. It was great. I love my family and miss them very much.

Joey and I are no longer in a relationship. It was for the best, but it is always hard losing someone. I wish him well.

School started, I started seeing clients (I'm training to get my MFT hours at a domestic violence shelter), and I am still working part time which barley leaves me any down time.

But I will make some, even if it means just blogging once or twice a week :)

xoxo
djg

Shoe therapy

One of my favorite words of wisdom is from my mama.
She told me that I need to do something nice for myself everyday.
Whether that means watch a good movie, buy a candy bar, do my nails, go window shopping, bake a cake, etc...just do something nice for yourself everyday and that way at least you'll know one part of your day made you happy.

I got paid recently, and I love a good deal, so I got 2 pairs of cute shoes for $40 at the JustFabulous website.

I love wedges. And since I live in California I can wear them, even in the winter time with a cute pair of pants.

I also love earth tones, especially olive green.
I can't wait to try these babies on!

xoxo
djg

Falling behind...

...but will be catching up either after work today or before work tomorrow :] Hope your weekend was fabulous

xoxo
djg

Today, I will...

Words of wisdom Wednesdays:

Since I like to take the good advice that 12 step programs provide, I take some words of wisdom, and remind myself that 1. I only have control over my life and 2. I should only try and promise myself something for today. I may not be able to promise myself something for 20 years, but I know I can do it today.

And I know, I know, these little quotes are kind of stupid and not very intelligent, but sometimes it’s the everyday words of wisdom that we forget to live by.

Today I will remember that I am worthy of a partner who does not hurt me.

Today I will try to be more loving than hating.

Today I will not feel bad for the things I believe in or the things I do, because they make a lot of sense to me.

Today I will try and give others a chance.

Today I will embrace my curves :]

Xoxo
djg

Celebrate how beautiful life is

Tunes Tuesdays

Today someone very close to me lost someone close to them.

It is never easy losing someone you love.
Today is a great day to celebrate life.
Surround yourself with the people you love
and the beauty in this world (like beautiful songs).

The song I picked today is by one of my most
favorite artists, Sufjan Stevens. I used to open up
the hymnal, and sing this song in church. I love the
way Sufjan does it. Enjoy.



xoxo
djg

Less crappy more happy

Today has been extra crappy, so it is definitely a good day for a gratitude list.

Gratitude List



1. My mama. Who is always there for me, extremely supportive, funny, and inspirational.




2. Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream with oreo cookies crumbled on top. It looks pretty and tastes delicious. Perfect snack for an OC marathon...



3. That's right, I said OC marathon. When I was in high school I never missed a Thursday night episode of The OC. I have Season's 1,2,3 on dvd and they are perfect to watch on days off that are not exactly going my way. Right now I'm watching the first season when Oliver comes into the picture. I love it when Oliver comes in, because so many crazy things happen. Seth becomes a bad friend, Luke becomes awesome and a great friend, Marissa is stupid and clueless that when a straight guy wants to hang out with you alone all the time- that probably mean he likes you more than a friend. And Sandy Cohen is just the bomb. Great great episodes.




4. Old wooden houses, tall trees, and fog. True, I probably should have gone somewhere in northern California for school rather than southern, but I am happy where I ended up, I just get tired of the sun all the time :]




5. The space above my bookshelf by my front door. I love looking at it. It makes me happy.


xoxo
djg

Starting young

boo-hoo



It's hard to write blogs when you are upset because I want all of my blogs to be happy and chipper and a breath of fresh air!

I have been quite busy lately with my part time job and other things going on in between that I barely have any down time.

I wanted to make my Friday blog posts feminist related, so, for last Friday that I missed, I wanted to take time to talk about a great article I read called How to Talk to Little Girls by Lisa Bloom.

I have now made it an effort whenever little girls come into the pet store that I work at, to not talk to them about appearances. We all know how much the pressures of our culture affect girls when it comes to how to look and how to act; rarely do we focus on intelligence and self esteem.




But it is OH SO EASY to start a conversation off with, "I love your dress!" I caught myself today almost starting a conversation with a girl by asking her about the feathers in their hair. So I stopped myself. Instead, I asked them (in a normal voice; I have no idea why people talk to 5 year olds like they are babies; their parents and teachers don't talk to them like that, so why should you?) "What is your dogs name?" from there, I learned that she was interested in different kinds of dog breeds and told me what her favorite breed is a Pug, and all sorts of facts about dogs.




Let's encourage our young girls to be smart and not worry so much about what kind of nail polish she has on. We can talk about that later when they're older in the club being fabulous because she can work it since she has that positive intelligence confidence.

My favorite suggestion from this article?
Ask her what book she is currently reading, or what her favorite book is.

Here is the article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-bloom/how-to-talk-to-little-gir_b_882510.html

Hope everyone had a great weekend!
xoxo
djg

poo

most of this day was poo and does not deserve a post.
but I will leave you with a great life lesson I learned from my stylist yesterday:

Don't invite your freegan friend to a potluck.
You will end up eating trash.

xoxo
djg

Meeting halfway

Whatever Wednesdays

Today I am going to meet my boyfriend in Valencia for dinner and a movie (he let me pick and of course I’m picking Crazy Stupid Love with Ryan Gosling).



We officially became partners on December 10th only after a few weeks of meeting and dating. Almost 8 months later, we are still dating, but we have only lived near each other for about 1.5 of those months.

For those of you who did not know, a month after we got together, he left to study abroad in Italy for 4 months and immediately moved to Bakersfield (which is about a 2.5 hour drive) when he came back to intern for the summer.



I do not recommend long distance relationships.
They are oh-so hard.

I attempted once before, but I was not in the right place to carry on a serious relationship.

Miscommunications happen often, and not being able to hug, kiss, or hold your partner starts to weigh on you. It is particularly hard when your friends and their partners are all coupled up. Luckily I am pretty independent and introverted, so time alone does not get me down.

I’m not going to make any suggestions on how to make long distance work because I believe all couples have different ways of connecting and showing each other they love each other.



What I can say for sure though, is:
He is on my mind every day
I look forward to talking to him every day
I miss him every day
And I can’t wait for him to get back,
Probably a lot more than him, since he loves Bakersfield so much!
These little trips help a lot though.



xoxo
djg

Claymation

Happy Tuesday Tunes to you all.

Today I'm posting a music video by the Fleet Foxes with their song White Winter Hymnal.

It obviously has a very wintery feel
(If you didn't know by now, I'm tired of summer.
I have always been a bigger fan of autumn and winter.
I miss fires in the fire place and scarves and cuddling).

Plus it is claymation. And claymation is always amazing.
Remember Large Marge from Pee Wee's Big Adventure?
Claymation never lets you down.

This is a song that I would probably play for
my young children instead of an annoying "for babies" band.
Can't you picture my hipster son or daughter singing
along with these lyrics?

I was following the pack
All swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads
From fallin' in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go

xoxo
djg

Baby come back

So I have not been blogging for almost a year and decided to start it up again for funzies.

Mondays are usually my days off and I'm always very grateful for days off.
I have decided to make Monday's my gratitude list days.
Usually people hate Mondays.
I'm going to try and start my week off right.

Things I am grateful for this Monday:


1. Friends with mustaches



2. My two new succulent additions to my plant family



3. A romantic dinner alone with 2buck Chuck and tacos



4. Listening to recorded songs by my friends with lyrics that actually mean something. "I met a girl. She loved me too. I used to say, "Not as much as I love you". Well you know, she never disagreed. That always seemed to bother me. My insecure frame came crashing down. So I decided to jump town. Now, I've found myself". A trip down memory lane always puts a smile on my face.


5. And of course, the most beautiful beauty in the world, Eleanor Rigby. I do not know what I would do without her everyday.

What are you grateful for on Mondays?


Have a wonderful rest of the week!
xoxo
djg