Reverb10: Community

Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011?

Hmm… I discovered Tumblr, with the help of others, does that count? I have a wonderful community of friends and such on facebook that I connect with on a constant basis! It connects me with friends I have in other states, that I otherwise wouldn’t be able to stay in contact with! and of course, my personal community of close friends and family around me, is the best of all!

In 2011, I would like to expand my social media community, and now that i’ve found Tumblr, track my journeys with my friends in a fun, easy to follow way!

Reverb10: Make

What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it?

Besides lots of cakes?! ha! The last thing I made was a Christmas present for Josh’s lil sister, Bethany. It was kinda cheesy, but it’s a sign, of sorts, for her door.  I used paint, and glitter, and wood, and premade wood decorations, and stickers! Its cute!!

I will be making a home made “Drinking Battleship” game set up tonight and tomorrow for our 2nd Annual Xmas Eve Party!! and in addition to that, I bought some colored duct tape so that I can make a Duct tape wallet, and a belt too!! I think duct tape crafts are awesome!!

Reverb10: Let Go

What (or whom) did you let go of this year? Why?
Oh wow, this is a pretty deep question. Just like with any other year, I let go of fears, and worries. Tried to release the stresses that cling to me, and tried to move forward with cleansing myself with all the impurities in my life.
This year, I let go of one of the longest friendships I had. For nearly 11 years, I had a wonderful friendship with someone. We shared nearly everything. We knew eachother favorite colors, favorite songs, favorite quotes. We had inside jokes and dozens and dozens of memories together. We went to Senior prom together, we walked together at graduation, and we even spent a whole summer together before I left for college making our friendship, our bond, even stronger.

Reverb10: Wonder

How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year?

Won-der [wuhn-der] -noun: the emotion excited by what is strange and surprising; a feeling of surprised or puzzled interest, sometimes tinged with admiration.

Personally? How did I cultivate wonder in my own life? To be honest, i didn’t know it was possible for a person to cultivate wonder on their own. This year was so full of disappoinment, let downs, struggles, hardships, and bad days, that to feel excited, cultivate wonder, well, I just don’t think I did that this year. I lived my days, and fought through, and at the end of the day, I’m here, I’m happy, and I’m alive! Not much else I could ask for!

Reverb10: Moment

Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors).

March 26th, 2010. Standing in a warm room with the sun gleaming through the windows, wearing clothing designed for colder weather, while sheathed in a black robe and cap, I prepared to embark on the greatest accomplishment of my life.
Trying to withstand the Itchy fabric, the overcrowded lobby, and the sweaty guys, family, friends, and acquaintances all huddled together to gain entrance to the auditorium. but first, pictures! first picture was inside, individually. standing in all black against a grey background, i became a washed out face in a dark landscape! next, group photos. we all piled together by height, which of course meant I would be up front. not only was I one of the shortest in the whole group, but also the only girl. after our photo was done, other groups lined up for theirs. we were impatient and starting to get cranky. tired, hungry, some of us hungover, and standing in itchy robes in this crazy spring heat was not our idea of spending a saturday afternoon. Just aqs we all thought it was time to begin, a HUGE group photo must be done, only this time, outside, in the heat, dressed in all black!

Reverb10: Writing

What do you do each day that doesn’t contribute to your writing — and can you eliminate it?
Oh Boy, do you know how much time I spend on my iPhone? it's like my life line!! games, chat, random browsing, looking at new apps, sports game check, texting, calls, and so on. The amount of mindless time I spend with my phone in my hand, I sure could be doing something more constructive. I could be writing more, using my creative outlets, actually accomplishing the things I have told myself I should do. I let my blog slack, I let my youtube channel be delayed, I let my emotions build up inside me without releasing them on paper to help me internally! I think I am going to set a goal to slowly start eliminating how much time I spend with my iPhone. and should I be spending time on it, I will use the time to write in the Notepad or post to my Tumblr so as to keep my writing skills improving and my mindless phone playing to a minimum.

Reverb10: One Word

Reverb 10 is an annual event and online initiative to reflect on your year and manifest what’s next. Each day is a different prompt to reflect on. I'm starting pretty late in the month, but oh well, i figure I can do more than one a day! Here goes nothing!!

One Word. Encapsulate the year 2010 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word. Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2011 for you?

I beleive that one word that can sum up 2010 would be Obstacles.

2010 held many obstacles for me. It was a difficult time, and a time to learn many truths about who I am and who I have in my life. One of the largest obstacles that I overcame was school. After a constant battle to finish my education, while still having to work full time to survive day to day, I managed to Graduate, with honors, as Graduate of the Quarter. It was an amazing accomplishment, and while the hurdles to get there were not easy, it was a great feeling when I finally finished!

The one word I would like to capture how 2011 will be, would have to be Adventurous.

I hope to go to places i've never been, see things i've never seen before, and accomplish tasks I would not normally have ever aspired to. I hope to enjoy the days, cherish the nights, and constantly relive the adventure that is in every day!

Dear Santa...

Dear Santa,

I figured since you know when I'm naughty or nice, you might also have the internet to read my blog, so I thought I'd be unconventional in sending my Christmas Letter to you and post it here. Hoping that you get this in time, and if not, well, there is always next year.

Santa, we've always had a good relationship! I've kept up the Santa stories with my siblings and my nieces and nephews! I've never let the magic of Christmas and of Santa leave my heart. Christmas is a time of giving and of sharing! Its always been a time to reflect on all the things that have happened in the past year and move forward.

Santa, I've faced many struggles this year, some of the most difficult things i've had to face yet, but in the end, I've come out a strong and happy woman! I successfully graduated college, and not only did I receive Honors, but I was elected as Graduate of the Quarter in my class. I had the opportunity to spend time with some of my closest and dearest friends, and re-cement our friendship for years to come. I was able to visit my family and celebrate my little brothers High School Graduation! An amazing day for the whole family.

This year, above all, I have had the most amazing love in my life. A Love that has healed all my internal wounds. A Love that has helped me face some dark times. A Love that makes me smile and laugh, regardless of how I'm feeling. The man I'm with has made me feel like I am such an important person in this world, even when I feel like there is nothing else left for me! He has helped me, hurt me, cared for me, pushed me, made me grow as a person, and helped me discover why I am here. Without him, I feel as if my world would have ended long ago.

My Christmas list is not very big this year, Santa. Just keep my Love in my life! Every day, I fall in love with him all over again. And although things get "stale" and so routine for us, everyday is an adventure as long as I'm with him! Above all, I just want him to be happy! If you could maybe find him a new job for xmas, one he is HAPPY with, that would be awesome :)

Thanx for listening Santa! Hope the gift giving this year goes great for you!! I'll make sure to leave you some extra cake from our Christmas Eve Party!!

Sincerely,
Holly

Tis the Season...

To feel all alone!

I know, i shouldn't feel like that. and truly, i'm not alone at all, but Christmas is a time wtih Family, and My family lives to far away for me to be able to visit. it involves taking time off work and affording a plane ticket to get over there, and making sure someone can pick me up and take me back to the airport, from the crazy mountains of Idaho. I wish it were easier to visit my family. I miss them SO MUCH!! I haven't seen them since my brothers graduationin May, and that's SO LONG ago!! before this economy tanked, I was able to visit them 3-4 times a year.. and now, i'm lucky if I make it over there once!

Christmas is a holdiay i LOVED when I lived at home. every year, I would always pull a small branch from the tree, usually one of the one's my step-dad cut off, and I would put it in my room. I would add tinsel, and a lil tree skirt around it, and i had my own personal christmas tree. around 15 years old, I got a 12" fake tree from Michaels crafts and some mini ornaments and set it up in my room for the whole Christmas season!!

My brother would sleep in my room and in the morning when we woke up, it would still be dark outside and we would race out into the living room, so excited to see the tree FILLED with presents!! my parents never even put out their presents to us until christmas night, so it was always a beautiful sight to see!! One year, my brother and I even found a small present for each of us, under the tiny tree in my room!! the rule in our house, and still is the rule, is that you can open your stocking, but absolutely NO presents until mom and dad are both up, and awake and have their coffee!! that year, there was a note saying we could open the lil presents before they were awake, and boy was my little brother thrilled!!

I still remember the first christmas after I went away to college. I came home from college for a month at Christmas time. My lil sister was about 2 and a half, and all three of us kids piled together in one room to sleep for the night. Caleb and I woke up first, of course, and like usual, it was still super dark outside, but morning time nonetheless. We peeked out the bedroom down the hall and could see the lights from the tree reflected off the walls in the living room. I remember Caleb trying to be quite, but wake Marra up at the same time. and all three of us ran out to the living room! the look on my little sisters face was amazing!! it was innocent and precious!! just the way it should be!!

the last few years, not being home for christmas, have been extremely rough. I miss my family, I miss seeing my brother and sister, I miss the tree, the breakfast, the wrapping paper everywhere.. most of all, I miss the super quite time I got to spend in the dark part of the morning with my brother and sister, opening our stockings and just hanging together!

This year, i'm trying to make the most of what I have!! I have a fantastic boyfriend and will be spending the day with him and his family. Christmas eve, we are having our second annual Christmas Party, and i'm super excited to spend the time with friends and just relax for the holidays!! it will be an awesome time, and I will enjoy every minute of it. at the end of the day, i will still miss my family, but I will see them soon!!

That's all for today...
Peace and Good JuJu to You,
Holly

The Pros and Cons!

So, I read this awesome book called "The Nonrunners Marathon Guide For Women" and I loved it. The woman who wrote it, Dawn Dais, is a very funny woman and she puts a realistic aspect on training for a marathon when you already don't exercise very often!! Each chapter has some sort of project to work on and help prepare you for a marathon. I thought I'd do one of the exercises she has in the book, which is a Pros and Cons list! This should be fun!!!

Pro: I will challenge myself.
Con: I could potentially injure myself BADLY!!

Pro: I will finally be in great shape!
Con: I will most likely be in extreme pain from all that damn running!!

Pro: I will gain respect (my own and other people's)
Con: I will gain blisters (and more than likely in not so comfortable places!!

Pro: I'll get to shop for all new clothes.
Con: I'll go broke shopping for all new clothes!! :)

Pro: I will be raising money for a great cause (Girls on the Run)
Con: I'll probably be hospitalized for being clutzy and tripping over myself!! haha!

Okay, so most of my Cons are all in good fun. There are mostly all Pros for doing this half marathon! One thing I must remember, is that I can not be overambitious. I need to WAIT for results and not become so impatient that I give up at the slightest sight of struggle! 28 days until I officially start training. 203 days until the actual run!! fun fun fun!!

Until Next Time...
Holly

Which way do you go.....

When you face a fork in the road of life??

March 26th, 2010... I finally graduated college with the degree I've dreamed of for years. 8 years of hard work and dedication, of homework and tests, of all nighters and huge projects, all while working a full time job. It had finally all culminated in that one day, that walk across a small stage to collect the piece of paper saying i was done! It was by far my biggest accomplishment! But in the weeks that followed, I felt that I was at my lowest point. I had accomplished an amazing thing, but at what cost? For what sacrifices?

I had wasted too many years in a damaging relationship. I moved multiple times, hoping to find happiness and stability. I plummeted myself into unmanageable debt in an effort to accomplish "great things" and to do more with my life than others before me, to keep others happy but not myself. I lost my heart, my health, my sense of self... my humor, my personality, my life! My dreams had faded to almost nothing. My hopes and wishes for the future, seemed unattainable.

I finally realized that I just kept falling down and not a lot was going up for me. I finally have a few strings in my life that are going the right way, and everyday I feared that those good things would suddenly disappear. I realized that if I didn't pull myself up out of whatever hole I was in, I would lose the only good things I still had in my life; my job and Josh. No one can pull me out of this hole, but myself, and I knew I had to change.

My first year of college, I made a list of things I wanted to do in my life, things I wanted to accomplish. I finally decided that I needed to finish this list, to finish the things I told my self that I would accomplish in my life. I'm taking the little steps now, to accomplish the big things later on. And of all the things on the list, the first one I am facing is: Running a Marathon.

Now, I've decided to start small and just run a half marathon. I've chosen to run the Rock n Roll Seattle Half Marathon that takes place on June 25, 2011. In addition to running, I have decided to help raise money for a program called Girls on the Run. Girls On The Run is a learning program for ages ranging thirteen to eighteen, it educates as well as promotes positive development and enhances self-esteem through working out. Their goal is to reduce the number of potential at-risk activities among that particular demographic. I think this is a great organizatin and their mission and goals is absolutely outstanding.

This is going to be a tough experience for me, but in the end, I hope it helps me acheive some great things, like losing weight, finding myself, becoming more comfortable in my own skin, and finally opening up to people again, and not keeping things bottled up inside. I'm hoping this journey will help me become the person I know I am on the inside.

Care to join me on this adventure??

Holly

What are you Thankful for.....

As I sit here on my couch, still full from Turkey dinner, I've been thinking about all the things I'm thankful for this year. Its been a rough year for me. But at the end of the day, I'm still here.

In todays rough economy, I am thankful to have a job. And not just job, but a career, doing what I went to school for and doing something that I love! Having this job allows me to have a roof over my head and food in my fridge.

I am thankful for my family. My parents are great people who faced a lot of struggles but were always there for us kids. My brother is like my best friend and my sister is the most adorable kid ever with the biggest heart ever!

I am thankful for the friends I have in my life. I've lost some friends this year, but in the end, it only proved to me who my real friends are. Who I can and can't trust. The friends I have in my life, are some of the best there are. They are understanding, straightforward and supportive!! I am so happy to have each of them in my life.

 I am thankful for having my boyfriend, Josh. There hasn't been an obstacle we haven't been able to overcome together. He is loving and extremely supportive. I am so happy to have been able to find a love like I have with him. It makes every day more exciting!

What were you thankful for this Thanksgiving? Think deep down about what it is you are thankful for and share!!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day.

Until next time,
Holly

Making Changes!

Hello Universe!

I'm finally taking action and getting things in order. My website is being redesigned, I am finally getting my video stuff edited for my youtube channel, and also, I've started my personal Blog. In addition to the joint blog I do with my Bestie Mia, this is my personal space. follow me around the Web and we'll go on wonderful adventures together!! Stay Tuned....

Peace and Good JuJu to You,
Holly