Monday, January 3, 2011

Compare where you are to where you want to be and you'll get nowhere.

So... it's been a while. A year to be exact.  How time flies... it's kinda strange to think where I was in life when I wrote that last post. Life is significantly different than it was a year ago.  I was having fun, but holding on for dear life to the "college life" that had become so comfortable. I'm pretty sure my life mantra at the time was "Change is scary, so why do it?  Things are okay just as they are."  But here's the thing: they were just okay. I wasn't getting much fulfillment out of my life as a glorified shop girl in happy valley (go figure), but I had the lovely recession to blame for my lack of progression and, believe me, I milked that excuse until the cow ran dry.  (It was some what legitimate...right?)

Thank heaven July came around, and with it, a shiny new job with all the bells and whistles of a real career. People ask me how I did it, and I'll tell you right now, I didn't.  Well, I did post a resume on Monster.com and applied for about half a million jobs without getting so much as an interview, and then gave up, but that's not really helpful is it?  I had resigned myself to an eternity making business cards and working retail hours when I got a call from a guy at some construction company I'd never heard of (He had found me on monster, go figure). Two interviews and a few weeks later, I was finally kissing Kinko's goodbye and saying hello to my new 8-5 job and a pay check that was almost double what it was before.  Suddenly I could afford crazy things, like... well, my bills. 

I moved into an apartment in the basement of my parent's place, which has the benefits of being closer to my work, not in Provo, and rent free.  I hired a personal trainer and started kicking the trash out of my fat butt, which is now significantly less fat than it was six months ago. I started taking piano lessons so I can finally stop giving my mom crap for never putting me in them as a child. I died my hair red, like I've always wanted to. And yeah, I'm still single (not even single again, just single), but I'm living my life. I'm not sitting around on some uncomfortable couch in some uncomfortable college apartment, waiting for prince charming to magically knock down my door, brush the Oreo crumbs off my face and kiss me soundly.  I run. I sing. I aspire. I live, and that makes my life the kind of life that "Mr. Driven-Fun-Handsome" will want to share with me... just as soon as he shows up. 

I was originally going to make this post another list of resolutions, but I think I finally understand the line from Sara Bareilles' song Uncharted: "Compare where you are to where you want to be and you'll get nowhere." I know the person I want to become, and the things I need to work on to get there.  I know that every day of my life, I don't need to waste time making a list.  So here's a new tradition: instead of making resolutions, I'm gonna take a minute and see how far I've come in the last year. It's a lot less depressing/overwhelming, and it might just get me inspired enough to actually do some of the things I was going to resolve anyway.

P.S. If you haven't heard Sara Bareilles' new album yet, I require that you check it out here.

5 comments:

Scarehaircare said...

I'm cheering for you right now! A better paycheck, a healthy body, AND you dyed your hair RED! This year I: am graduating (finally) with a B.S., am aiming to find the healthy body I had during my first time through college, and I am going back to dyeing my hair RED (after a year of being blonde). Feeling pretty good about myself and opportunities, too. :) Sending you a cyber hug.

Natalie said...

Love this! You have accomplished a lot this year and I love your new tradition :)

jansan said...

Awesome sauce. Love you to death. Proud of you.
ps- well written, too!

Debbie said...

That post was extremely well written; I really enjoyed reading it. I'm glad things are going so well for you; you deserve it!

C. C. Fawson said...

You know I love your guts and am proud to death of you. So super proud.

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