Leaving on a jet plane...or not, please smack me!

This morning I went out to drop off a piece of mail, overheard the low rumblings of a plane and cringed. My eyes rolled and I grumbled all of the way to Starbucks praying to God that someone would either pinch me, I’d find some kind of courage to quit my ‘job’ or hop on a plane myself.

It’s Fashion Week in New York, so the big question is, where are you? Stuck at home … me too. For the past week I have avoided Facebook because over the next couple of days I know it will be flooded. Dammit, I broke down and checked it. It’s beginning to blow up.

{Courtesy of...}

I got invited to spend a couple of days taking in the high fashions, view gorgeous and intricately made garments and see all of it glide down a runway. And I sit in Chicago…waiting for text messages, pictures, anything as if it were the damn Grammys. Who says no to that!?! Tonight a talented man who is probably one of the more humble people you will meet is having his works showcased. If you are not aware of Raul Penaranda, you are missing out. He is amazingly gifted, hopeful of his fashions and sense of elegant style and a true beauty with Latin charm.

In all fairness, I did not say no at first and basically said ‘I will MAKE it work.’ The tickets had just about been purchased for the flights to get to New York, but I hesitated. When in the hell do I ever hesitate? Something in the back of my mind said double check with work. The adult speaking. There was a conflict, someone needed coverage…. I could not go. My heart breaks for missing this opportunity, but everything happens for a reason. For the next several hours I’m living vicariously through everyone who is there, thanking them as the texts roll in and the updates go up. Sorry Facebook...but I am going to be 'liking' a lot of pictures today!

All in all, it’s really me being stubborn and saying—you should have just walked out of your job to go. But the far more responsible (and annoyingly sensible) adult in me says it is okay. There will be another season and another invite to go. So for this morning, I’ll save face. Truthfully I am taking a break from my desk during the lunch hour to down a perfectly cheap bottle of chardonnay, chase it with Trident and getting on craiglist to either sell my soul or get some additional freelance work so there is no worry over additional 'work coverage'! The next trip will not get put off.

Okay, maybe not craigslist!

Ways to catch up with Raul:

Official website; Facebook; Twitter

Spreading a little love….

...one heart at a time. A day early, but seeing as it will be a busy week, I will keep this one quiet where a picture can say more than words spoken aloud.

{Courtesy of...}

Happy Valentine’s Day to you and yours

A splash of ass and bit of sass

With spring right around the corner, you can almost smell it in the air. That shift in pressure, the soil softening…the trees budding for new growth. To say that fall and winter were dull, would be an understatement. There have been get togethers, wine nights, shopping excursions, dates and detoxes, trips to unknown cities and a little bit of writing in between. That time fell together into a slight blur, but a miniature and very powerful message behind everything got forgotten.

A little bit of sass and a fresh dab of lip gloss needed to be taken out on the town. In more ways than one. No, that’s not just in terms of men. I’d like to think that, at this point, I’m living a free life and whatever happens--happens. Not just men at all. Hibernation mode fully kicked in this year; something that generally creeps up and finds a wonderful perch somewhere from October through January. Rather than ice skating around a park in the city, I sat bar-side sipping martinis with friends in town. Shopping in the city for flowers was turned to a local merchant around the corner from work. The all too familiar outgoing and go-to mentality was lessened and quieted.

Admitting this need to get out and blame only being cooped up would be a false statement. After trying to get over someone, we all do this. Vent to our friends, delete every message and every number. Cry our eyes out, avoid food because it took too much effort to eat, and then go out. We take an extra hour to get ready, blasting club hits while drinking bubbly champagne. Slap on the all too high heels that make us wobble, but make our legs look damn good. We go out, to get out. To get out and get back to feeling like our confident selves. Or maybe that’s just me.

Several friends were away for a weekend, or busy with their families. I figured, there was a rut and I needed to get out of it. So I dipped into the closet and looked at the oh-so-typical dresses to wear, and stumbled on something I forgot was even hanging in the sea of fabric. A knitted dress that had been purchased to wear--if and when I needed a splash of sass. Always thinking proactively.

That night called for more than a splash of sass; it required a wealthy vodka drink and a whole lot of tanned skin to get the job done. A job that is highly laughable now, but was needed to snap a smile in place and bring the ever present laugh back into my throat.

What started at one bar and a simple drink, turned into a full night out of networking and letting loose. At the first bar, a bartender and I talked about his girlfriend and my manly woes. Out of nowhere, or maybe it was the liquid haze, I bit the bullet and went to another place and that’s when it all happened. Put me next to someone, we will talk. It’s a given. Every wallflower must sing at some point in their lifetime. Fortunately, I am not a wallflower and just sing. In this case, talk to a group of people who are within a given industry that I am pursuing.

Random happening or magnetic pull? Nobody will ever know, nor do I want to analyze it. Turned out that one of the many groups I ended up talking with, in between sipping sparkling champagne, was indeed part of a marketing firm. For a local magazine. I had been sitting at the bar and overheard publishing and honed in. Awful, terrible; but in all seriousness who does not eaves drop? I turned and introduced myself casually, not mentioning anything about writing. I was merely someone meeting a group at a bar. After an hour of talking, we ended up chatting about writing, publishing, marketing; the works. By bar close, one of the men I had been talking to walked me out to my car several blocks away. He was sweet and nice, it was late.

As I drove home and the next morning, and even now I still shake my head at things. All it took was a snappy dress and a shift in my mind to get back to me and where does that lead? To writing. Here I thought that night was going to be a confidence booster over fully letting go of a guy, but it was so much more than that. It was a confidence booster in following exactly what everyone including a psychic has been saying for months and I have been shying away for unknown reasons.

We can run and hide from things for a short while, but in the end—everything always comes back to us. For this, it took an unexpected night out to restore that missed feeling. So with that, I am working on getting back into the swing of this blog that is way out of touch. It is a place where I can free-write the whatever (s) of a day or week. I’m wrapping a short story for a website and finalizing a publishing deal that isn’t much, but it is something.

I have started writing and publishing on the ups and downs of relationships, the single life of a thirty-something. God knows I’ve experienced enough of this, but will keep experiencing it because it’s life. Who knew all it took was stepping out and flashing a little ass to admit things are okay where they are and go with it. Documenting it all along the way.

So it's another round, only this one should be leading in a fun direction; and to that I say...I am ready, are you?

Cheers

There are times when all it takes is faith

With all of the commotion in the greater United States and mostly within the National Football League about faith, the subject matter is bound to creep up into your mind. Consider the formalities and the justifications of all of the actions that we as people go through. Not normally am I one to sit down with a cup of coffee and begin a conversation regarding politics or religion. This is a topic that has been quite absent for this space and for the most part I would like to keep it that way. It’s not that I do not pay close attention to politics, but there is a time and a place; and this is not that place.

However, there are grey areas to every single situation. Every argument, every celebration. Many choose to rant about having an open and optimistic view on faith; while others curse it and say that it is entirely just a fad for close attention. When I think about the latter, it only makes me wonder about what is going on with that individual to say such a comment.

Having faith is something that lies within every single person. Whether you like it or not, there is an ounce or a pound of it somewhere in the depth of your being. In times of dire need or desperation, many people close their eyes and wish for something great and wonderful to help them out. They have faith in the form of a positive outlook that something is coming their way. That something could come their way if they were susceptible.

I was talking with a friend the other day and she was so hopeful about an instance in her life, once someone else posed a statement questioning her belief; her confidence dissipated. It was as if the light faded and her hopes and excitement washed away in the chilled river rush. Almost carrying her wants and desire out to sea. My heart went out to her because we have all had those moments where we lose sight of that ‘faith,’ so to speak in those times.

Not only thinking about her, but it brought that natural urge deep down in my own body to keep the faith about many things that are potentially breaking through. Despite the raging economy, and the fact that I am constantly frustrated over work that is underrated—it is merely a small piece to the puzzle in the grander scale of life. If keeping the faith about the hopes and wants gives us a little gratification or independent support that we need to get by, where is the harm?

There is no harm, and that is the whole point. By showing your allegiance, it proves that you believe that you can achieve something. You can achieve whatever it is you are seeking in that moment or day, week, year, etc. All because you know deep down, by believing in yourself and the people around you—there will always be a sort of reward. Whether it be in the form of a thank you or a new house, that falls into what it is you are thinking about. There is no category to directly link each label into.

While this all started out with more never ending ramblings that are a constant within me, it’s really just about keeping the faith that I will eventually get out of this hell hole that I am currently stuck in. Which, sooner rather than later would be much appreciated. But in all seriousness, I am keeping true to my own inner beliefs and staying positive to what good can come of this day. A phone call from the planetarium in the city possibly? An email from an agent in regards to a potential contract? Or maybe, just maybe another gorgeous snowfall that reminds me to appreciate every single morning-day-and night.

Only time will tell. Even so, between now and forever, I choose to still keep the faith.