Gals In Blue
Saturday, May 20, 2023
One Way to Get a Helicopter Ride
Sunday, March 19, 2023
Eat the Frog First
Wednesday, March 8, 2023
I'm Not the Last
Monday, January 23, 2023
It's All Good
I guess collecting awesome mantras I what I am all about these days. What can I say - I love words. When someone puts them together in a way that makes me think, I want to share with everyone.
These sage words are from Stacy London, queen icon of favorite show What Not to Wear in a recent Fast Company article, "Stacy London's Post-Pandemic Pivot Was Inspired By a Mistake She Made."
I'll bottom line it for you: her mistake was staying in a job too long because it was comfortable, and it took getting fired to get to a place that was actually right for her.
Here's the kicker, the advice that my younger self needed: "We cannot look at life as this trajectory where you choose one career path and then you’re stuck. I’m going into my fifth career. That does not mean that I was not successful in the other four, it means that I am allowing myself to evolve to what gives me meaning and purpose and a reason to get up every morning...If you play it safe because you’re uncomfortable with change, you will never know what else you are capable of."
This sounds impossible for someone in the military, who often receive a one sheet "career pyramid" when they are a lieutenant (do THIS and you will have a successful career). The secret they don't tell you is that there's far more wiggle room than you think.
Friday, January 13, 2023
Messy
Funny that the quote says "dad" even though all of the examples in the article were of women. But I digress. The article's steps to take when messiness happens were on point:
1. Pause. Take three breaths.
2. Reach out to a peer first (so you are not constantly bringing crises to your boss); then bring your boss some possible solutions.
3. Try and find the silver lining.
What's hard in the moment is feeling like you are the only one that doesn't have their shit together. I wish I had figured out when I was much younger that I wasn't the only one on the struggle bus from time to time.
I can certainly appreciate now how often a shared eye roll, a kind word, or a helping hand made all the difference -- fellow moms and battle buddies that provided invaluable support. Not to discount my awesome husband, but sometimes we needed more than the two of us to keep the plates spinning. That's what makes those messy times good stories to laugh about now.
Thursday, December 22, 2022
Holiday Mantra
Monday, December 5, 2022
Beauty Advice I Can Get Behind
I did not say this. I have a beauty routine. My routine is getting sucked into Instagram ads and their ridiculous promises, which then floods my feed with even more ads, and buying whatever "no more wrinkles ever" face lotion catches my eye at Costco.
The entire quote is "I do not have a beauty routine. My life is too inconsistent and I have authority issues. Life changes. We change. That's OK. We don't have to be so strict about things."
Who said it? Can you guess?
Jared Leto.
Bet you didn't guess that.
To be honest I think he's a bit of a weirdo (See: accent he used in House of Gucci and also every red carpet appearance since then). But I do agree with this sentiment. We don't have to be so strict about any kind of routine thing.
Last March I decided, after going to an Anne Lamott reading, where she extolled the virtues of pen and paper over writing on a computer, to start a daily journal. I've always thought those that journaled daily for a lifetime were sooooo cool. Consistency when establishing a habit is tough for me, so this would be a good challenge on a couple fronts. I've been pretty good, but lately it has been more of an every-three-days habit of journalling. Gah!
This goofy quote was a great reminder to not be so strict sometimes. I am still writing more days than I am not. Giving myself a little leeway is a good idea, especially because being strict is the best way to abandon things altogether.
Side note - did you know Jared Leto played Jordan Catalano on "My So Called Life?" Mind. Blown.