Month: August 2009

>I’ve been thinking about where I’ve lived a lot lately and how it’s shaped me as a person. It takes some explaining! Here goes:

I was born in Atlanta, Ga., at Northside Hospital. At the time, my parents lived in a home in Roswell, Ga.

Around the time I turned 1, my parents moved to Franklin, Tenn. They lived there for less than 2 years. Had we continued living there, I would have gone to Franklin High School (I think).

Then, shortly after I turned 3, we moved back to Georgia and this time settled in Marietta, Ga. for another year and a half. Had we continued living there, I would have attended Pope High School, the high school next door to the one I actually DID attend.

When I was 4, we moved to Irvine, Calif. I attended my last year of preschool and kindergarten there. I went to Bonita Canyon Elementary School and had we not moved, I would have attended University High School, right next to the UC-Irvine campus. I have a lot of great memories from this time.

When I was 6, we moved to Katy, Texas. I attended first grade at Pattison Elementary School. Had we not moved, I would have gone to Taylor High School.

Finally, we moved back to Marietta, Ga., where I attended Timber Ridge Elementary starting in second grade. We stayed put there. My dad had to change jobs a couple times to make it happen (he worked in the managed care industry, there were always a lot of changes about) but I was able to stay in one spot until I graduated from Walton High School in 2001.

2001 was the year I set out for The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Ala. I spent 4 great years there. Best time of my life.

After graduation in 2005, I headed back home to Marietta, Ga. to work at the local paper. That lasted all of about 3 months. I was living at home and so stir-crazy!

So, I set off to West Palm Beach, Fla., to join the now-hubby who left Tuscaloosa to work at the famed Mar-A-Lago resort (owned by Donald Trump) on Palm Beach. We were there for a year. I was just too homesick for my friends and family in Georgia and Alabama.

So in 2006, we moved back and settled in the Birmingham, Ala., area, where we’ve been ever since.

So, all in all, I have lived in 6 states and 8 cities!

Where have you lived? Just one place all your life or frequent moves like myself?

Have y’all seen the Myers-Brigg Type Indicator test that’s been floating around Facebook?

I am an INFJ. Introvert, intuitive, feeling, judging. One of my coworkers spent 10 minutes trying to convince me that I am an ENFJ, but he’s seeing me in a work environment… I HAVE to have “recharge” time at home in order to function correctly! But he’s nearly right because I’m only about 55% introvert.

From Kiersey.com:

Idealist Portrait of the Counselor (INFJ)

Counselors have an exceptionally strong desire to contribute to the welfare of others, and find great personal fulfillment interacting with people, nurturing their personal development, guiding them to realize their human potential. Although they are happy working at jobs (such as writing) that require solitude and close attention, Counselors do quite well with individuals or groups of people, provided that the personal interactions are not superficial, and that they find some quiet, private time every now and then to recharge their batteries. Counselors are both kind and positive in their handling of others; they are great listeners and seem naturally interested in helping people with their personal problems. Not usually visible leaders, Counselors prefer to work intensely with those close to them, especially on a one-to-one basis, quietly exerting their influence behind the scenes.

Counselors are scarce, little more than one percent of the population, and can be hard to get to know, since they tend not to share their innermost thoughts or their powerful emotional reactions except with their loved ones. They are highly private people, with an unusually rich, complicated inner life. Friends or colleagues who have known them for years may find sides emerging which come as a surprise. Not that Counselors are flighty or scattered; they value their integrity a great deal, but they have mysterious, intricately woven personalities which sometimes puzzle even them.

Counselors tend to work effectively in organizations. They value staff harmony and make every effort to help an organization run smoothly and pleasantly. They understand and use human systems creatively, and are good at consulting and cooperating with others. As employees or employers, Counselors are concerned with people’s feelings and are able to act as a barometer of the feelings within the organization.

Blessed with vivid imaginations, Counselors are often seen as the most poetical of all the types, and in fact they use a lot of poetic imagery in their everyday language. Their great talent for language-both written and spoken-is usually directed toward communicating with people in a personalized way. Counselors are highly intuitive and can recognize another’s emotions or intentions – good or evil – even before that person is aware of them. Counselors themselves can seldom tell how they came to read others’ feelings so keenly. This extreme sensitivity to others could very well be the basis of the Counselor’s remarkable ability to experience a whole array of psychic phenomena.

The Counselor (INFJ) is a more private person than the Teacher. They, too, can be found in the field of education as a professor , teacher, counselor, or educational consultant. Sometimes they feel a strong calling toward the religious life as clergy, nun, or director of religious education. Social service jobs, such as social worker, social scientist, or mediator can fit their needs. Some Counselors work in human services, marketing, or as a job analyst. Others are drawn to the arts as a novelist, designer, or artist. Says Benito, “My art is very personal. It expresses who I am at the same time reaching out to draw the viewer in. My art changes the viewer’s perspective of reality.”

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That is all ME to a T! Sometimes I’m so intuitive and caring more of others’ feelings that I really start to neglect myself. And I never give myself the credit for good work and good ideas…something I am trying to do more of at work.

>Well… I suppose you could say I’ve been in a bit of a blogging slump.

I keep promising more wedding recaps, but it seems when I’ve posted those in the past, I got no feedback. But then I remember that this is really for my benefit, to document our wedding day so I don’t forget everything!

Part of the reason I’ve been stalling is because I am really anxious about receiving our wedding video from Superium Productions. I think having the video would help bring back some of the details that I’ve forgotten or may have never even seen. So I am debating on whether I want to hold off on more wedding recaps until I get the video or not.

However, I did get the other thing I’ve been waiting on in the mail via UPS the other day….my preserved wedding bouquet!

I apologize for the poor photo quality…I took it on my cell phone!

I am really, really pleased with the final product, even though it cost upward of $500. Ladies, if you are thinking of doing this, do know that most will cost $500+, so be sure to factor that into your budget!

I chose Keepsake Floral to do my bouquet preservation. I opted for an 11×14 shadowbox, which is priced at $466 on their Web site now. Add in $25 for silk dupioni fabric background, $50 for embroidered monogram, $25 for bouquet resemblance fee and we’re already at $566 plus shipping! So you get the idea.

The background fabric I chose is the taupe silk dupioni, the monogram was done in cinder blue in the master circle font style, and while I opted for the antique silver frame, I think they might have actually given me the the antique gold frame…probably because it looked better with the taupe background and my ribbon and flowers. Originally I wanted one of the “weathered” shadowbox styles, but the upcharge for those type of frames is $50, and I think the antique gold/silver (whatever it is) is a more classic look anyhow.

So while the bouquet preservation cost a great deal, I am VERY happy with the result and I plan to keep it in my family for generations!

>Just a quick note to let y’all know that I am still alive, haha!

I spent nearly 72 hours straight inside my sorority house last weekend, and as a result I contracted “the crud.” It felt like flu for a couple days, but luckily I did not test positive. I stayed out of work Monday and Tuesday and have been in meetings and trying to catch up ever since I returned on Wednesday! I also have that hacking cough thing going on, so sexy huh?

Stay tuned for more details on Alabama’s sorority recruitment!

>I suppose after getting married I am taking stock of my life, and our life together and what we want. We’re thinking about where we want to be in a career sense and in a geographic sense.

My family moved often when I was growing up. My sister is a military wife and will swap coasts in January. My parents are here with us in Alabama, but they have expressed a desire to go elsewhere in a couple years.

So… I’m taking stock. Thinking about what is best for us financially. Thinking about what I want to do, and what he wants to do, and about what we want to accomplish as a married couple. About where we should be. And about what I like.

• Animals. I have a big thing for animals, especially dogs, and especially retrievers like my lovable Mango. I know most of the breeds by heart and I’ve often wondered what sort of jobs I could get working with animals in a less-obvious way. As a child I wanted to be a veterinarian.
• Words. This one is more obvious. I majored in journalism and minored in creative writing. I’ve had a blog since 2004 on Livejournal. I have worked as a copy editor. I suppose you could say reading goes hand-in-hand with words. I’m a big reader.
• The Web. I have a genuine interest in the Web beyond my job description as a Web editor. I was the fourth person to join facebook at my alma mater. I Google everything. But a lot of people enjoy the Web and want to know how it works. So where do I fit in?
• Planning. I like planning things. I really, truly enjoyed planning my wedding. I think I could plan larger events. I’m detail-oriented and I think I could work well with vendors, clients, etc.
• Travel. I really enjoy traveling. Brian and I have a lot of favorite places. I would love to travel and not be chained to a desk all time time. Or to have a job where you get the summer off!
• Beauty. I am a makeup maven. There are certain brands I really like and the notion of playing with cosmetics all day, writing about them, etc. is exciting to me. You could also put shoes and handbags in this category. (c;
• The beach. I love the beach and coastal decor. This one is pretty obvious as I got married on the beach and all, but seriously! I love the beach. having a job that would allow be to travel there or write about the beach would be heavenly.
• Greek Life. I’m a sorority alum (Gamma Phi Beta, if you haven’t figured that out by now, ha.) and I know a lot about sorority and fraternity history and lots of neat facts. My cousin works in student affairs and he has told me that he thinks working in Greek Life might be my second calling. But of course that requires graduate school. Bleh.

While I know that I would enjoy a teaching career, or a job in university Greek Life (or even for my sorority itself), or working with animals, I think what I’m most interested in doing is continuing down my current career path. What I’m tired of is “the news” — the hard, breaking, continuous news that I work with on a daily basis. It’s too unpredictable and depressing for me.

But I do love content and the Web. So I’m thinking that my career goal will be to work at an e-commerce or lifestyles-focused Web site. Sites like Amazon, Google, Zappos, eBay and several other interactive marketing and media companies are what excite me as hopeful, possible, eventual employers. (A girl can dream, right?) I want to continue learning the marketing, design and tech sides of the Web and align those skills with my content skills. I think the process of getting where I want to be will take a while, but I can definitely see it happening if I put my mind to it.

>
Just a quick GOOD LUCK to my sorority as they begin Recruitment 2009! I’ll be down there to volunteer for the last 2 rounds on Friday and Saturday.

1,479 girls are going through Recruitment at Alabama, and I predict pledge classes of 70-75 girls for each sorority! According to the head of Greek Affairs, 5 girls have already passed out due to the heat. Yowza!

>Wow, it has been a busy week! I know I promised more wedding recaps a couple posts back, but I have yet to be able to sit down and upload photos and gather my thoughts just yet.

Instead, I’ve been busy at work, with my freelance side job, and with things around the house. And it looks like things are going to continue to be busy for me.

This weekend my MOH is coming into town and so we’ll be meeting up. Also, Brian and I are visiting his great aunt who is in rehab after breaking her ankle. And lastly, I am getting a tall pine cabinet with a pull-down secretary door from my parents and we’re planning on painting it a glossy dark red (I prefer to call it crimson, haha) and rehabbing it to put in our entryway as I posted about recently. It’s literally just been sitting in their garage and my mom remembered it the other day. I’ll be sure to post some before and after photos. Oh, and I have a much-needed eye doctor appointment on Saturday morning.

The weekend after this I will be helping out my Alabama Gamma Phis with Recruitment 2009! I’ll be there for the last two rounds doing what sorority advisors do. I’m actually taking Friday off work to help — what can I say? I’m a devoted volunteer. I have heard nothing but FABULOUS things about their preparation for this year and I know they’re going to get an excellent pledge class! They have been in Recruitment workshop since Monday — at Alabama, Recruitment is a weeklong affair and workshop is another week on top of that. There are 1,500 girls signed up to go through this year, which is down about 5 percent from last year due to the economy. But honestly… the pledge classes were getting SO large so I think it’s a bit of a relief to everyone.

I hope everyone’s week is going great!