My Outdoor Oasis

I never really understood why my parents loved to garden when I was growing up. I always liked being outside but pulling weeds and raking leaves were not at all intriguing. Well, since I bought my townhouse, it all finally makes since. It gives me a sense of pride & accomplishment when I finish a little project & my yard looks a little better. It definitely takes some patience and work, but it all seems worth it when the results show up. I put in some solar lights to lead the path to my front door recently & I just love the warm, inviting affect it gives my front yard. Raking the leaves in the front and back made it feel more organized & neat. But, nothing has been like my most recent accomplishment.  My Calla Lilies that I planted a over a month ago are finally starting to sprout! More updates to come but for now the picture below will have to suffice.

The Color of our Eyes

I just have to get out my thoughts today. I'm deeply sadden by the recent case of Trayvon Martin. It brings up feelings of  despair, confusion and defeat. I have managed to surround myself by people who are kind, open-minded, tolerant and fair and can almost ignore racism; I can brush it off as something only ignorant people embrace. But, alas, this case has me shaken because, unfortunately, the fight isn't over.

While I was brought up to be "color-blind" in a sense, I would actually say I taught myself to see all colors, appreciate all colors, and these days those colors are as significant as eye or hair color. Traveling, living in other places and education made that happen. But, after living Tampa for a few years, I was in shock when I moved back to my typical southern town of Florida. I had never noticed just how prejudice and racist my town could be. I went to a high school that was prominently white and I never heard even as much as a whispered ethnic slur leave my parents lips, so race was just never an issue. Sure it was there, but it never seemed negative, just obvious when someone who wasn't white came to our school. I actually had a huge crush on one of our black football players in high school, but never pursued him because I was always in a relationship. But, I digress...

What did I do? I continued to live my life as I had before moving back. Just because an area has a certain culture doesn't mean you have to adopt it. I continued to spend time with my variety of friends, dated a variety of races and only made judgments based on how they treated me and others around us. I let the shock wear off and reminded myself that the majority of people are not racist or prejudice and are good people. I ended up in a wonderful relationship with a black man who couldn't make me happier.

We have our discussions about race, equality, prejudice, etc. but in general we agree that we all have our battles based on gender and race and the key is knowing how and when to fight them. We also agree that things are getting better, things are changing and that people are truly beginning to embrace race as just another part of personality or character.

However, this case just bursts my little idealistic bubble. It reminds me that there are still a lot of issues that need to be solved and worked through when it comes to race. Prejudging somebody based on the color of their skin has to disappear, but until it does, we will all have to continue to fight it, which brings me back to the sadness I feel from this case because while I am surrounded by like-minded individuals, there are so many out there who are not of that mindset.

But what makes me smile is that it is now so publicized. Back in the day, this issue would not have made the papers. White American would have ignored it because of the races of both parties. Now, however, things are different. People care. People want justice. People want fairness. People want equality. That,  my friends, is a good sign. It feeds my idealistic bubble, that maybe one day, as Bob Marley said, racism will disappear when "the color of a man's skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes." Today, this makes me sad but I can't help but think this is only going to strengthen our society in the long run. One can hope...

The "War on Women"

Let me first state that I readily admit I am on the fence about many political debates. Coming from a female dominated family (immediate and extended) where my mother has always been the bread winner, with no brothers, and never ever having the thought cross my mind I couldn't do what "the boys do," I'm pretty passionate about equality and fairness and you'd think I'd swing to left. Yet, while my family is predominately focused in the healthcare and science fields (two of my aunts always traveling to some distant country to do a presentation/talk/conference/research, etc.)  I took a very different route, obtaining my undergrad degree in marketing and my master's in business. That being said, the majority of the time I can just see both sides. However, when it comes to women's healthcare I have a very strong opinion of choice, but what really frustrates me is that I don't even think this whole debate will go anywhere after the election. 

At first I was really angry and appalled by the whole "War on Women" debate. I wanted to write a blog titled Keep Your Nose Out of My Uterus!, but seeing as how I'm a believer in "don't post when you're angry" I decided to wait a few weeks; not sure anything positive can come out of a blog with that title, ha! But, the more I listened, the more upset I was getting. I just think prevention is so incredibly important. We can say all day what people should and shouldn't do, but realistically, teens are going to have sex and do you really want more of them on TV shows, in the clinic, on food stamps, etc., not to mention our taxes are constantly being given to single mothers. Why would we want to create more? Without prevention measures for females, that is exactly what is going to happen. No offense to my male friends, but in general, they do not consider the risks the way females do; I think we can all agree on that. 

Besides that, I just think fair is fair. If health insurance companies are going to cover vasectomies and condoms, they should also cover laparoscopies and birth control and not drugs for ED. That's really all I have to say about that. 

Now to my real point- after getting past the emotional aspects of this debate, I realized that it is all just political propaganda to swing voters one way or another, and that's it. The republicans are trying to get the conservative vote using this debate and the democrats are using it to get the liberal and female vote. Let's be serious, men will always want to sleep with women without the consequences. Not saying women don't feel the same way, but what I am saying is that this debate will go nowhere after this election. Birth control will still be available, just as it has been and it's truly frustrating to me that there is so much time, effort and money being spent on this debate right now. That is my opinion on the "War on Women."

At the end of the day, society will continue to progress and I have the same belief that my good friend Ashley has that "women will find some justice in this." I will leave you with this funny little cartoon so that maybe we can all see the humor/ridiculousness in this and move on.  

Help

Sometimes people take the words right out of your mouth.

I felt the need to post this blog because it really made me think for a second about what it really means to ask someone for help.

http://sassafrashill.wordpress.com/2012/01/30/help-i-need-somebody/

Thanks for the words, sassafrashill.

We Are Just Not That Organized

Ok, I will readily admit, I am a conspiracy theory fan. I find it fascinating that maybe we really didn't land on the moon or that the government keeps cigarettes legal in the pursuit of population control or that there is this mysterious group of individuals called "free-masons" or "illuminati" who have sold their souls to the devil and are sex slaves in return for money and fame. But, honestly, I just don't think humanity is that organized. Do I believe there are plots behind the scenes and conspiracies that we don't have any control over? Yes. Do I think that there are people out there that use others to get ahead or pretend to be your ally, when in reality they are your enemy? Of course! But do I think that there is a specific group of people in this world whose sole purpose is to keep us all, for a lack of better words, "in our place"? No, I really don't.

Working for a government entity whose main priority is the betterment of a specific area of the city has really opened my eyes to the reality of the unorganized professional and public world. To properly describe what I mean, I will have to digress a bit.

An older man said to me the first month I was working full-time,"When you work for the public, you can give them a $100 bill and they will complain about the wrinkle." That comment has stuck with me and rang true over and over again. Add 92 free parking spaces, and the public complains about the placement of them. Add hours to an extremely successful event, and the businesses refuse to stay open as late as required. Pull a very small amount of money together to fund a contract to clean portions of the streets, those who are missed are "unappreciated." Really and truly, you can't win. I'm not getting on a soapbox today (though, expect one in the near future), my point is that no matter how many public meetings, how many discussions, how many bids, how many emails, how many phone calls, how many memos, how many fliers or how much research, you will never, ever be able to communicate every detail to everyone because, honestly, we are just not that organized!

Technology has given us amazing tools for communication, yet I still find myself hearing, "Well I never knew about that," or, "why didn't anyone tell me?" WE DID! You just didn't read your email. My favorite people are the ones who call 45 minutes before an event that has been scheduled for months, upset that they aren't a part of it. "Did you read the email I sent you every single day in the past two weeks? Or the contract I hand-delivered to your business twice?" People, no one is out to "get you." This is not "the man" laying down the hammer. This is a civilized society that goes by certain rules and if you aren't aware of something so close to home, it's probably because you weren't paying attention. All organizations are constantly trying to get out certain messages and information and if you if think there is one group controlling it all, you have too much faith in humanity's organizational skills and error prevention.

All the being said, I do think there are some unexplained coincidences and unresolved problems out there that could be the result of certain conspiracies, but at the end of the day, I think we only have pockets of true organization. A good example could be a national champion athletic team with one message, one goal and one job for each player. Simplicity encourages organization, not secret societies. Think about it.

And in honor of the our most recent "revolution" (who I'm pretty sure are convinced in the existence of the illuminati) a chart on "Who is Occupy Wall Street."

Purpose

I suppose I should begin this blog with a little info on what I plan to accomplish. Well, I consider myself a positive realist- I think that would  make me an opportunist. I don't settle, I never give up (some may call me overly persistent at times). But, overall I am just a hard/smart worker who wants to make a difference and I just don't believe in wishing for things- I believe in making things happen and knowing when the right time to do so is. Therefore, this blog will be inspiring at least half the time.

That being said  sometimes I just need to rant. It is almost never personal, just normal frustrations with technology, humanity, education, etc. Our society is so incredibly unorganized, misinformed and cruel sometimes I can't help but get on a soapbox about it all. These rants will usually possess a hint of humor because if I don't laugh I'll cry, and laughing just feels better. And they will almost always have a silver lining. 

Some of the topics I will be addressing will be: my battle with procrastination, fear of ignorance, need for exercise, belief in athletics, power in planning, obsession with wine, love of children, recent cooking disasters/successes, reality versus the media, random acts of kindness, learned resourcefulness and any other topic that peaks my interest.

On a personal note, while I believe in the goodness of people, at the end of the day we all serve our own self-interests first. I will readily admit one of my goals in life is to be financially secure enough to travel when and where ever I want, volunteer regularly, send my kids (or my nephews and niece) to college and not have to worry about financial burdens. Therefore, don't be surprised if my topics touch on financial interests occasionally. 

My first inspiring share is a "pin" I found on pinterest recently that made my heart swell. Enjoy. 

 

A couple and their one-year-old went to 

dinner and this is what was on their check.