Friday

I've been trying to convince my boss that I just need to go to Epcot for the International Flower and Garden Show in April.

So far it hasn't worked, but in forming a strong argument, I've found some great pictures (thanks flickr) and wanted to share them.

Just some eye candy for a GRAY Friday.

Decisions

Life is made up of decisions and consequences. If you've ever seen the movie Sliding Doors, you've seen how little decisions (even subconscious) can have significant consequences. It's strange to think about how a small decision, such as stopping at a yellow light, could down the road have prevented (or caused) a car accident (just an example).

Last May I made a conscious decision to shake things up a bit. I purposely chose to leave my comfortable (yet insanely annoying/frustrating) job and move out of state for something new.

I'm of the firm belief that everything happens for a reason and we should have no regrets about the decisions we make. However, now that I've been in CT for about ten months some doubts are creeping in.

I don't doubt that I made the correct decision job wise. However, I have come to feel some regret about leaving the great comfortable life that I had in NY. Sometime I think about my old town and actually get pangs of longing in my stomach. Pangs!

Overall, I'm not a fan of Long Island. However, I happen to think that I lived in the greatest town on the island (Huntington). I lived within walking distance of everything I could ever need and after two years there had finally made some local friends. Aside from the centipedes in my apartment, I had no complaints.

My town was fun. It was a hot spot and people wanted to visit me. We could go out to lots of bars and never have to worry about driving (similar to in the city). Norwalk doesn't evoke quite the same feelings. I like my apartment and having a pool in the summer kicks ass, but I have to drive everywhere and it just isn't the same.

I've always considered myself a career driven girl, which is perhaps why I didn't think much of leaving my established life behind for something new. But now that it's been almost a year I can't help but wish for the past (although not my job of the past).

Perhaps I'm learning what so many people have learned before me, that your personal life should come first with the job in the background. I never thought like this and always tended to let my job define who I was.

Maybe the purpose of me moving to CT was to learn things about myself, in which case I guess it's been successful. But what happens when the things you learn aren't what you expected?

Not to mention, I miss my family and friends.

It's easier to apologize than ask permission.

Last week a coworker and I were driving to a conference. After some of the normal chatting and complaining about various things, he mentioned the above quote.

I had never heard it before but it stuck with me.

Especially at my job, getting the green light on anything new and different is like climbing mount everest, time consuming and dangerous and most people just give up. This quote just put a different spin on things.

I haven't used it yet, but am keeping it ready in the back of my mind.

What do you think?

Me, a runner?

If you know me, you'll likely know that running is something I have ALWAYS struggled with.

In my eyes, being a runner was the definition of being in shape. I'd see people run at the gym and be envious of them. No matter how much I worked out, no matter how in-shape I was, running was always something that eluded me.

A little over a year ago I was determined and gave it another try. I was probably in my best shape ever and felt that if not then, when. I did ok. I hit a mile last January and then slowly increased my distance, although I don't think I ever made it past 1.75 without a walking break.

Shortly after I moved to CT in June I ran 2.0 miles and was PSYCHED. Unfortunately, it never happened again. Whether it was running out of breath, stomach pains or leg pains, I just couldn't push through. I was beyond disappointed at my lack of progress so I gave up on running for a while.

While at the gym in NY a couple months ago I was feeling energetic so I gave it a go. However this time I ran at a slower speed and found that it wasn't so bad. This gave me a small boost of confidence and the motivation to try again.

Once back in CT I did just that. First I made it a mile, then I did 1.5, then 1.75 and then on Wednesday I just kept going until the pain in my side caused me to stop. I hit 2.6 miles! While I'm totally excited, i'm also nervous that I'll never be able to repeat this feat. I really hope that's not the case because my dream is to reach 3 miles and one day be able to do a 5k. We'll see.

And I think I finally got a runner's high and it was pretty darn nice.

I can only hope that this is just the beginning. I'll keep you posted.

Pearl!

I don't really have a whole lot to talk about, it's been an uneventful few days (although I suppose that's a good thing).

Here's something that ALWAYS makes me smile, the Landlord video!

If you've never seen it, go for it.

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/74

Where's Spring?

Just a little sunshine for your Friday.

Words can't really express how ready I am for spring. Granted, i'm happy with the milder weather as of late, but I'm ready for the full-on warmth.

I was in Philadelphia on Wednesday for the Philadelphia Flower Show and took a bunch of pictures. To me, flowers equal spring.

Check them out at http://www.flickr.com/photos/24185562@N07/.

If these don't make you long for springtime, nothing will.

As seen on tv

Don't laugh, but I've really been meaning to post about this since I started this blog.

I just wanted to promote two As Seen on TV items that really are quite handy.

In an attempt to be somewhat funny/clever, I bought both of these for Joe. As it turns out, they're both quite effective and really do what they said they would.


The Clapper

Joe used to complain about having to get out of bed to turn off the light (he didn't have a light on his night stand). We would frequently joke that if he had the clapper this issue would be resolved. So thinking I was clever, I got it for him for Christmas.

For the $20 or so that it cost, it's made things so much easier. You can plug two items in and one responds to two claps, the other to three. There is a clap indicator light so you can see if your claps have "registered" on the device.

It is so easy to use and it's great to not have to get out of bed to shut the light. However, when I walk on the hardwood floors in heels, I have a tendency to inadvertently turn on the bedroom light. It's silly, but hardly a reason to not give the clapper a try.

The Handy Switch

Here's another product that would normally have me rolling my eyes at the commercial.

Like many apartments, Joe's living room has plenty of outlets, but no light switches or overhead lighting. As a result, he has two halogen lamps in the room. The problem was that you had to walk all the way in to the dark room to turn them on. Enter the Handy Switch.

According to the commercial, you could plug an item in to this outlet base and then use a remote switch to turn it on from up to 30 feet away. Joe cleverly plugged both of the lamps in to an extension cord and then plugged the extension cord in to the Handy Switch plug. From there he was able to mount the switch by the entrance to the room. Walk in, flip the switch, and light up the room. It's quite clever.

So while I do still roll my eyes at many of the As Seen on TV commercials, I have to say that some of them are actually sound ideas.

Speaking of which, has anyone seen the one for the convertible purse? While not my style, I think it's a clever idea.

Any other As Seen on TV product recommendations?