Twenty Thirteen: The First Post

NYE 2012/13

And just like that, it was gone. 2012 rolled in and rolled out like the evening tide, and here we are. What this year holds in store for each of us is yet to discover, but one thing is certain - we're at least partly responsible for where the times take us. So, on that note and without further ado, here it is - my new year resolution: "Work to live, not live to work." 

Plainly. Simply. Resolved.

One thing that was very conspicuously missing from my last post's Notable Moments of 2012 was my brand baby new job! After just over a year pimping insurance for State Farm, I landed a job doing logistics for an ocean forwarder with a myriad of perks. Otherwise stated, I deliver the goods. ;) My experience at State Farm was invaluable, and it served a very worthwhile purpose, but this latest opportunity is just jam-packed with exciting possibilities. It's 10 minutes from home, I'm learning an entirely new field to me (which keeps me engaged at a very high level), and I get to leave work earlier (and be home much earlier). For this reason, there couldn't be a more perfect time to resolve to dedicate this extra time to doing things that I love to do.

I've always had a tendancy to Take Care of Biz rather than set aside time to do what I enjoy - like writing, for example. And I recognize that an extra 30 minutes to an hour of free time gained every evening can easily disappear into nothingness - kind of like a dollar-an-hour raise... it just sorta... vanishes... unless you're intentional with it and invest it apart from your spending money. So, that's what I'm doing. I'm investing my extra time each day to me. :D TCB-ing is necessary (TCB - Y? Because somebody's gotta. Ooo... I want some FroYo...), but so is doing what I want to do. Here's to life. *Cheers* :)

2012: My Year in Review

Whew! We survived the Mayan Apocalypse... that was a close one! It's a good thing the weathermen are always wrong...

2012 was full of its ups and downs, but I am happy to report that there were far more ups, and with 5 days left in the year, I've been reflecting on all that has gone down. Here is a summary of the highlights:

Tune Ice

The month of December has brought forth the most posts here at my humble blog since June, exactly half a year ago. I suppose there are a few reasons for this, one of which being that I started a new job that allows me a little more free time in the evening than I once had. Another is that, while many of us get really contemplative closer to the start of a new year, this is the time I usually find myself looking back over the one we're about to put behind us... and whether related to what I'm thinking or not, writing is my outlet.

The Hook

Keeping up with new TV shows or staying interested in a particular series enough to watch it every week has never really been my thing. I'm more inclined to get into a random documentary on Netflix, like Happy - as a sidebar, definitely one I'd have to recommend, as a friend recommended it to me, and I loved it. If the nerd inside you appreciates quantum physics and the search for what happiness really is, you will also love it.

That said, there has been a time or two... or five... when I've had someone tell me I just have to see this show or that, so I check it out, and - lo and behold - after a lil bit I'm hooked. Of course, I usually find out about these shows about 2 or 3 seasons in on average, so I end up catching up to the current season via a marathon episode-watching event - complete with lots of wine, snacks, and pjs. It's exhilarating, trust me. :D

So, recently it happened again with a series called The Walking Dead, and by the first half of episode one, I was hopelessly hooked. This show had thrown out the bait, left me looking at it kind of sideways and squinty-eyed, made me nibble, slowly reeled me in, and then ~*¡WHAM!*~... hooked was I.  Rather than having me pondering a zombie apocalypse, however, I immediately appreciated how smart these producers were in the way that they grabbed my attention. They got it. And now they had me. That was Phase 1...