Bet My Cloud Is Bigger Than Your Cloud!

"I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights." ~ Maya Angelou

HELLO BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE!!! I feel as if it's been so long since we've spoken.  Comcast finally caught on to my illegal internet usage and locked the connection.   This is why I've been m.i.a. from blogging.  Today, I strapped up with my laptop at hand, found free wifi, a quiet corner (well, it was quiet sometimes), a plug, a desk, and inspiration to write.  It's another manic Monday, which we all like to call the dreaded first day of the official work week.  On top of it being Monday, it's gloomy out, warm, but gloomy.  It's been raining for majority of the day and the sky has been filled with these huge black clouds that appear as if they're going to release a vicious storm anytime now.  For me, today was supposed to be a day of relaxation.  Life gets so busy and hectic that I'm hardly ever able to truly take a moment to myself.  So I decided to make today that day, gloomy or not.  I don't have track with the kiddies, and I decided to cancel class today seeing that my students just took a quiz on Friday.  Of course there were still a few errands to run and things to be tended to, but ultimately I have most of today to do as I please.

Late this morning, prior to the rain falling, I made a Walmart trip (Walmart always seems to find a way into my day).  As I pulled into the parking lot, I noticed this huge, dark, highly intimidating cloud hovering over my current space.  It was very humid outside and to my knowledge, humidity plus rain clouds equal horrible thunderstorms... tornados even.  I immediately started to hurry and try to park, grab my things, and frantically scurry into the Walmart.  I watched as everyone else in the parking lot had the same idea.  Folks were running to their cars and to the inside of the store as if we were on the verge of a hurricane of some sort... all trying to avoid a storm that hadn't even approached yet.  Regardless of the weather, I had things that I needed to do.  I refused to spend a good part of my morning aimlessly roaming around Walmart waiting for a storm to pass.  If it were going to rain, then so be it.  I had an umbrella, and legs to keep me moving, so as far as I was concerned I was good to go. 

While carrying out my errands amidst this imminent storm, it made me think about something interesting.  As human beings, we are always trying to out run, hide from, or avoid a storm.  As soon as we see a cloud approaching, we suddenly go into a state of panic and shock, losing our head, focus, and sense of how to continue carrying out things in our lives.  We become so worried that it's going to rain on our head that we give up on tasks that we originally intended to complete and that we know we need to.  This applies to a storm in every sense... from an actual rain storm to life's trials and tribulations also known as storms.  Just as with an actual rain storm, no matter how much we try to run and avoid the storm it stills comes if it's supposed to.  And if we are in its path, then we will have to deal with it and attempt to continue our schedule as planned.  Putting your life on hold just because the sky gets cloudy makes absolutely no sense to me, and shouldn't make any sense to you either.  Why  is it that we do this with life storms?  Put our life on hold ya know.  But then once the storm has passed and the sun is shining, we can not truly enjoy the sunlight because we are now having to still carry out the remainder of the task and obligations that we put on hold when the dark cloud showed up.

To make matters worse, we act as if when it rains that the dark cloud is solely hanging over our head and no one else's.  As if everyone is supposed to give us pass after pass for being bitchy, cranky, moody, or melancholy because it's our particular forecast is gloomy at the moment.  Now this is not necessarily a bad thing.  Sometimes people do simply need their space when it's raining where they are, allow them to deal with their storm how they please... but my pass has a limit.  Go ahead and offer an umbrella.  Rihanna actually had a point when she offered her umbrella-ella-eh-eh to a friend in a rain storm.  Wouldn't you in real life?  In a real storm?  However, don't use your friend and family's understanding heart and hand to capitalize on your "oh woe is me" moments.  Meaning don't take advantage of others' empathy for you or next time when your storm approaches, they won't be so keen to offering you their umbrellas.  Whether intentionally or intentionally, we have a tendency to put what it is that we are dealing with on others as if they could possibly not be facing a storm themselves.  We do this not knowing that we could potentially be adding another cloud to someone else's rain storm.   

Besides, rain can be a beautiful thing. 

It provides food and nourishment to the crops we eat and the flowers us females yearn for on special occasions.  It keeps our reservoirs and lakes filled to provide our drain systems with the water that we cook, clean, and bathe with.  Rain cools us off on those ridiculously humid and hot Summer days when nothing else seems to be working.  Water is what makes our beaches beautiful that we like to visit during spring breaks and other vacations.  Right now, as I type, it is still rainy... still cloudy... still dark and gloomy... but my day must go on.  While walking across the parking lot, I realized the goodness of my day despite the weather.  It's still warm out. I'm still off from work. I still have transportation and good health to even carry out these errands of mine.  And the cloud that rested above my head earlier, actually brought with it a nice breeze that blew from time to time... cooling me off when I got a little overheated from rushing for no reason.

The moral of the story is to embrace the stormy weather when it comes.  You know eventually the sun will shine and the clouds will past.  No matter how you deal with stormy weather, it is inevitable.  It's going to come from time to time whether you like or not.  Instead of always trying to run from the storm and rain, learn how to embrace it.  When dealing with a storm, you want to look at your life for the pluses that still remain.  Look at the light that is still there and try to see God's lesson in living and reason for the rain in the midst of it all.

I have seen quite a few rainy days... but looking at the bigger picture, my life has seen and will continue to see sunshine that is more powerful than any rain storm.  I have full trust in God's plan, whatever it may be.  Yes, at times it is hard to deal with the journey.  Yes, there's a lot that we don't understand, that we shouldn't expect to while the lesson is still in the works.  As long as you know that one day you will.  The sooner you embrace yourself and your forecast, the sooner that day will come.  Look at all that you've overcome thus far, the storms that you have successfully rode out.  You have survived, so there's no need to keep running from storms.  You simply can not outrun them or believe that you can go into hiding with hopes that they'll disappear.  It just won't happen.  That's not how God's forecast works.  There's no need walking around as if the storm cloud is only over your head.  It's raining up and down the east coast as I sit here.  So I challenge you, to grab an umbrella, put on your rain boots, and embrace the rain.  We wouldn't appreciate sunlight like we do if it were always here.  Oddly, there's a peace in the clouds.  Your day will go on with or without you.  Today, I'm turning off my cell phone and embracing the rain storm. 

"Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass... it's about learning to dance in the rain."

A MUST READ !!!
~quoted from Maya Angelou

"I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.  I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.  I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life.  I've learned that making a "living" is not the same thing as making a "life."  I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.  I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.  I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision.  I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one.  I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.  I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.  I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."

Get down girl, Go 'head get down

 Pretty college girls want to be sponsored these days!  The degree is just an accessory I'm learning, like the latest D&G bag.

Last night... while playing around on the usual social networks, I found myself dissecting the pages of a few friends from high school... female friends.  It feels weird calling some of them friends, when we haven't really spoken since high school/our early college years.  Some I'm not sure if we have ever spoken at all.  Regardless, I'm always game for a good photo album... especially when it comes to folks I rarely run across.  It heightens my curiosity of "where are they now?"  I looked through photos of these young ladies in very high-end and fabulous clothing, Gucci and Loub shoes (from sneakers to stilettos), overpriced Indian remy extensions and faces completely beat with make-up products.  All of whom carried a different Louis V, Marc Jacobs', or Dolce & Gabanna bag in every pic, posing with the "who's who" of make-up artists, hair stylists, promoters, photographers, etc.  But what sparked a blog entry was the absence of employment...  the "Five Star", "Baddest Bitch" captions... the stuck up behavior from people who weren't this way prior.  Fashion lovers?  Hmm, probably. 

But there lies a thin line between loving fashion and trying to be someone you're not.

Oddly enough, none of these young ladies are or have ever been runway models, Hollywood actresses, or celebrities of any kind.  They don't work in the fashion and/or entertainment industry where they have easy access to the hottest commodities.  They don't have six-figure corporate or government jobs, or own their own REAL businesses.  And sadly, most proudly admit to living this seemingly luxurious lifestyle while being unemployed, bragging about it as if they want the world to know or believe that these things are just being given to them for no reason at all.  These ladies die for exclusivity, even down to their new found circle of friends who serve as carbon copies and play things.  These ladies don't come from wealthy families where they're deemed a mini-socialite.  Not all, but most come from  families who are more mediocre than average... all chasing this "it girl" lifestyle clueless and inhibited.  This crazy hoopla of taking being fancy to the furthest extreme, led me to ask myself a few questions...

One, who is paying for these ridiculously expensive things?  
Two, who is paying for these ridiculously expensive things?  
Three, who is paying for these ridiculously expensive things?  
And Four, what are you doing/giving up for them to be paying for these ridiculously expensive things?  

The weekly weekend trips, the frequent international travel, the bags and shoes priced over $1000... there is not enough saving that one person can do per month where living jobless on his or her's own can afford this lifestyle.  I love seeing young and successful, black urban professionals... I do.  And I'm trying my best to stay away from hating and away from the assumptions floating around in my head that suggest foul play and demeaning activity.  Honestly, I hope that what I think is the case is completely not true.  I understand the love and desire for a luxurious, travel and fashion frenzied lifestyle.  I too love those things... love, love, love.  I have two big closets overflowing with clothes and shoes, drawers and cabinets full of jewelry, and a dresser and chest about to burst because of the amount of clothing stuffed in them.  I am also a lover of travel and fine things, and a bonafide fashion junkie from the root of my salon styled hair to my manicured cuticles.  But I work, proudly.  Two jobs, on top of grad school, volunteering and tutoring.  I'm not at that luxurious lifestyle just yet, but I'm pretty happy with where I am as far as longevity is concerned at 25.  Oh the luxury is imminent.  I know many females who are my age already indulging in this sought-after lifestyle, but they are employed, being paid well, saving religiously, getting family support, and creating this life for themselves through their own career and/or academic means.  But for these ladies who are participating in this lifestyle through game-participation, I don't understand your plan.  What purpose are you bringing to your life, allegedly top-notch while serving as someone else's accessory for the time being?

Why is it so important that you appear to be "that girl" living "that lifestyle" anyway?   And then you have the nerve to be flaky to folks?

I look at these girls, and I automatically think "video something".  My brain can not understand how someone who is allegedly self-employed or making the same amount of money as my friends and I, is able to maintain this lifestyle that she's portraying via social networks.  Is having a college degree not enough towards believing in your own abilities, aside from getting all dolled up?  The insecurity that's there is evident, even in the most seemingly confident female yearning for this lifestyle.  Using material things to fill in a hole where something of substance needs to be is what triggers the "I'm better than you" attitude in the first place.  This is what truly makes this whole situation get under my skin, the fact that most of these ladies walk around as if no one else in the world matters.  I've run into and have had encounters with a few former classmates of mine, some who I once considered friends, now barely speaking in passing.  The worst thing a person can do is become brand new when they feel as if they're on top.  Why?  Because life/God will eventually step in, pull you off of your high horse and bring you back to reality.  Do these women honestly believe that they will always have things handed to them?  That it's okay to treat people any kind of way?  Most of these ladies even, are one cookie away from being overweight, obese, robust... not average, just how they like it (sarcasm alert!).  The day that happens, these guys will no longer want to take them on trips, and will move on to another accessory trying to get chose.  And when that happens, these ladies will be starting from scratch... trying to make something happen for themselves while everyone else around them is already on the up and up. 

Instead of trying to acquire and maintain a status that is not applicable to the state of your life, why not try to acquire and maintain ends that will have you living this life by your own means?  Instead of living off of someone else's brand, i.e. a wealthy man or homegirl, why not work on building your own brand?  If you're traveling the world, then take the time to become fluent in a language and make something more of yourself.  Instead of living life recklessly for the short-run, why not continue your education and build your funds to be living this lifestyle in the long run?  If you have all of this free time to be lounging and randomly traveling, why not volunteer and do something for you community from time to time?  Why do all of the wrong things to be v.i.p, when honestly, it's really not that hard to be v.i.p. on any given night if you are a pretty female... the personal invitations will come, yes.  But where you go from there depends on where you're classified amidst this blog entry.  

The truth is, as women society has taught us that we have "to use what we got, to get what we want".  And realistically, attractiveness goes a long way but there's always going to be someone pretty.  You have to have something else to back it up, especially if you claim to be a "Five Star" or a "Dime"... points come from all facets.  Choose your poison.  I personally prefer wit and being deemed a sweetheart.  And that is not to be confused with pretending to be America's sweetheart for the sake of your image when you barely speak to anyone who you consider out of your circle... that's called being flaky my dear.  BUT as we all know, to each it's own or I wouldn't have written this blog.  In the words of Kanye West, "get down girl, go 'head get down"... just hopefully not in the literal sense. #imjustsaying

"Happiness blooms in the presence of self-respect and the absence of ego." ~Anonymous

...Still On My Poetry Tip.

My journal trips brought me to more poetry... my flow from the past.  I DIG IT, as will you ;)

Not Like Any Other

by Alicia Williams

You see,

I don't wanna classify you as any other male...

because I don't think that you are any other male.

I don't wanna curse you out as if you were here standing in front of me, practicing my non-existent voo-doo skills on the one picture of you that I have by sticking push pins through your face... 

hoping that somehow you'd feel my pain.

I don't wanna X your name out of my life completely before you even become a complete part of my life, completely magnifying or belittling my womanhood.

I don't wanna mistaken my unanswered phone calls and your misleading words of "I'll call you back" as a way of you avoiding or ignoring me.

I don't wanna assume that this is all a game of yours... and I, I am just one of many females, pawns caught up in your chess match.

Well, check mate... you see, I don't wanna have to keep checking mates to see who's real and who's authentic.

Keep checking mates for past and current loves, a trifling history or a f*cked up reputation.

I don't wanna have to keep checking mates at the door before they enter my atmosphere, my spectrum, my personal space.

Before I get caught up in drama over kings and queens in your game of chess... because I, I am about real life.

I don't wanna stereotype you... saying that you are just another squirrel trying to get a nut, screaming "niggas ain't shit!"  Singing bitter love songs relating to sad stories and broken hearts, vowing to myself to never get caught up again.

I don't wanna foresee my future, knowing that you won't call me, that you'll probably stand me up.

I don't wanna lose a pre-existing friendship because of a failed relationship... while trying to lose your friend's ship at the same time, giving you and your homeboys the finger as you cruise away from this paradise.

I don't wanna think that for one minute you were just a waste of my time... another hopeless romantic moment of my life spent daydreaming about a male who was destined to do nothing for me besides more harm than good.

I don't wanna cry endless nights... better yet mornings, evenings or afternoons over you... reminiscing on what we used to be, wishing that you were still mine, feeling dumb because I allowed you to get away with murder.

I don't wanna have to go to my friends to gain moral support... get tips on how to forget about you, or to find out the scoop on the latest girl that you have been spotted with.

I don't wanna have to lie to folks, telling them that we just didn't work out in order to hide the fact that I got played... because pretty educated girls shouldn't get played... 

so I hear.

The point is, 

I don't wanna hurt. I don't wanna hate. I don't wanna believe that you are just like the rest of them... the rest of the millions of males out here in this world, ready to be players and heartbreakers instead of providers and lovemakers.

I don't wanna fall victim to your alleged "excellence".

I wanna know that what I witness and see as potential goodness is genuine... so I can come from behind the wall that past failures have caused me to run behind whenever the going gets tough.

I don't wanna be as hard as the bricks that I hide behind... I want to be vulnerable again and open my heart to a newness that I have yet to experience.
 

I don't wanna make it this far for nothing, because I have a feeling that we maybe onto something.

My intuition keeps telling me not to give up on you, even though my heart, which has been broken more than once is afraid to proceed... willing to stop at any error of yours.

I don't wanna be disappointed.

I don't wanna have to run away.

I just wanna know that this time will be different.

Together we can show other men and women that this f*cked up way of that we have of befriending and being unfriendly, which leads to passion and playing, then loving and leaving has got to stop.

I want you to respect my wishes and not be like any other man...

and I'll make a promise to you to not be like any other woman.

Journal tripping on my poetry tip...

Sitting in my house going through old journals again... Enjoy me while I'm on my poetry tip.

Mr. Right 4Me

by Alicia Williams 

The right man for you is the one who makes your heart skip beats.

The one who yearns to take you out just to show you off in the streets.

The one who does everything for you without even asking.

The one who knows what buttons make you angry, and which ones keep you laughing.

The right man for you is the one who holds you tight after making love.

The one who is plus 10, times 2, and 110% of the man you dreamed of.

The right man is the one who calls your phone as often as he can.

The one who knows that telling you when he misses you doesn't make him any less of a man.

The one who showers you with hugs and kisses with any chance that he gets.

The one who confesses to you how much he loves you as if you'd ever forget.

The right man for you is the one who doesn't mind putting his woman first.

The one who understands Alicia Keys when she describes a "woman's worth".

The right man for you is the one who tries his best to listen to and take care of your most important needs.

The one who one day plans to ask for your hand in marriage and yearns for you to bear his seed.

The one who has no problem saying that he adores you for who you are and fills the inner you with praise.

The one who's quick to remind you of your beauty whether on your best or worst days.

The right man for who is the one who God sends just when the wrong man has brought you to the end of your nerve.

The one who will fit your own criteria and be just who you deserve. 

The one who is respected and cherished by your family and friends.

The one who would never voluntarily leave you because you're the right woman for him.

 The right man for you, you'll love indefinitely and be completely infatuated with.

The one who you will appreciate even more the day you realize that he does exist.

Bandwagoners... They do exist!

Oprah at my college graduation... HOWARD UNIV C/O 2007

"Failure is God's way of pointing you into another direction!"  Spokenly beautifully by Miss Oprah Winfrey herself at my college graduation.  Makes you want to re-evaluate the age-old question, "what do you want to be when you grow up?'  The question we're asked constantly growing up, or at least it was in my household.  Most little kid answers are always typical.  They all want to be doctors, lawyers, teachers, policemen, singers... you know, the usual.  All great professions but generic nonetheless.  I too went through the list of generic professions.  All throughout elementary and middle school I wanted to be a pediatrician, mostly because I was sick a lot with ear infections and such, so I paid my pediatrician (Dr. Lena Parikh) visits very often.  She was this sweet little Indian lady who always knew how to make me feel better and make the pain go away.   Then when I realized how much I despised science, I changed and wanted to be a teacher.  My mother and aunt were both teachers, two women who I admired and looked up to greatly.  I loved going to work with my mother prior to the start of the school year to help her decorate her classroom, and I used to beg her to let me assist with grading the piles and piles of papers she used to have stacked on the dining room table every Sunday.  But when I discovered how the pay scale for teachers actually worked my senior year of high school, I said never mind to teaching English and hello to being a lawyer.

Most of us who attend/attended college, enter college with big dreams of where we want to be in our lives and our profession.  Many of us even believe early on that we already know how we're going to get there... but then something happens.  The area of study that you thought you loved starts kicking your ass and dropping your g.p.a.  Internships or the non-existence of them make you question the path you're supposed to take to get to where you want to be.  Guest speakers brought in by your professors speak on more minuses than pluses.  You watch friends of yours who had the balls and money to switch their majors finally start to hum a happy tune... making you tamper with the idea of switching your major even though you know you'd never really do it this late in the game.  These type of things lead to us having that bit of doubt and uncertainty sitting in our subconscious even after we have landed the job we thought we wanted or a graduate school seat.

I see so many proclaimed experts writing blogs and telling the world what it is that they want to do, and I feel as if half of us are taking the cop out.  Most of the blogs I come across and actually take the time to read talk about fashion, or the author is somehow trying to be the next Necole Bitchie or spawn another YBF site.  Everyone swears "fashion is their passion" and they deem themselves PR specialists and publicity geniuses but can barely write a proper press release or have no idea what I'm talking about.  The majority of us have a passion for fashion, what budding 20 something year old doesn't?  Then we have those who are striving for entrepreneurship.  I admire you, I do.  But if I see another link to a website that contains 5 articles of clothing and 1 piece of jewelry that you want me to "add to my cart" when it should really read "add to my bite-sized basket" because there's not much to choose from... I'm going to scream.  Is this why you don't mind being unemployed?  Clearly someone else is either paying their bills, helping them pay the bills, or their family is wealthy enough anyway where it really doesn't matter.

The killer, is the law school phenomenon.  Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE is/have/or will be applying to law school amidst post graduation.  Most of whom probably never really considered it but like any other "trend", jumped on the bandwagon.  I will admit, that once was my own aspiration.  The difference is, I actually went to Howard for law, studying the ins and outs of what it would take to be a lawyer.  I remember the weekends spent in the law library with my classmates writing memos and appellate briefs, as our teacher called himself getting us ready for our first year of law school.  I was really good at it according to my professors.  The pre-law teacher who made us write these weekly briefs applauded me on my work, making me one of his few A students.  My business law teacher wrote a note on one of my exams about how excellent my case analysis was and that I should definitely pursue a legal career.  All of these instances somehow weren't enough for me.  I lost my excitement mid-first semester of my senior year.  I was no longer completely sure that I saw myself as a lawyer.

As a result, I never took the LSAT and I didn't apply to any law schools.  Instead, I applied to a graduate Communications Master's program in order to give myself more time to figure out what I want to be.  I tapped into my athletic side and gave the sports world a try.  I interned with the Baltimore Ravens, and I was only 1 of 2 graduate students.  Everyone else was just barely entering undergrad.  I ended up hating the internship and decided to give Towson's marketing department a try, again as an assistant/intern.  The marketing part was interesting but what I fell in love with was higher-education itself.  Higher-ed was where I saw myself, whether in admissions, compliance, advising/teaching, or athletics... I wanted to have a career within the university world.  Not your average generic career aspiration.  A want that comes with explanation whenever someone ask me what is it that I wish to do.

My little cousin London and I at his High School graduation.

I yearned to be in a position of helping young adults.  Young adults who have already made it this far to pursue their education after high school but aren't sure where to go next.  Society does so much to get us to college and know the importance of it, yet we are forgotten about once we get there.  Here we are, 18 years old, entering a degree program that could determine the rest of our lives... and they honestly expect us to already be sure that this is the field we want to spend the rest of our lives working in?  Why not allow students not to pick up a major until their sophomore year?  Yes, the undecided major exists, but we all know that it's frowned upon.  The freshman year at most colleges/universities are full of core and basic classes anyway.  Why not for that first semester have freshmen take their core classes with the addition of a career class on resume building/etiquette, and another class that explores the different fields that are out there.  Then their second semester or so they can begin to choose a major of study.  It's like showing them what's really out there and truly giving them more time to think or even be just a little bit more sure with the field they've selected.

I'll never forgot the college journey of one of my teammates at Howard.  In high school she ran track and danced.  She wasn't sure what career path she wanted to choose but because Howard had an exceptional fine arts program she chose to major in dance.  When she got into the program, she was absolutely miserable.  Each day in freshmen orientation, another teammate of mine would come into the classroom in her Howard Track & Field gear.  And each day, the dancer, envied the athlete... reflecting back on her days of running in high school.  She cried every night, confused.  Then one day, she said f*ck it and elected out of the dance program and into advertising.  She walked onto the track team, not knowing anyone.  We, the track team, all already knew one another and wondered who this girl was who hurdled as if she were doing ballet.  Eventually, we fell in love with her sweet spirit and remarkable talent.  She ended up being such a crucial part to our team, winning All-MEAC honors in her first outdoor championship collegiate meet, running on two relays that qualified for the NCAA regionals, and most importantly earning her way into a full track scholarship.  And as far as her career goes, she got herself a job in advertising right out of college with a big time corporation.  None of this would've been possible if she had remained miserable as a dance major.

I say all of this because this young lady/former teammate of mine was able to have enough courage to go against the norm.  There are so many people, of all ages, who feel stuck in a career, a field, a job, or a study.  You know, life is funny about the direction it takes us in.  It has the power to show us that just when we think we have it all figured out, we're wrong.  I'm trying my best to stay away from the norm and officially put my once law school dreams behind me, because the reality is that law school is no longer my dream.  The reality is that now, I have a sight on my higher-ed career dreams, the completion of my MS degree, and the studying of my Doctorate in the next 5 years.  I feel comfortable and assured when I say this.  I don't feel forced.  There's no bandwagon that I'm apart of.  And if I had to go back to school to get another certificate or certification in a different field, I would.  Anything to avoid being an old person who hates going to work, feeling as if something is missing, awaiting my retirement for a chance at my passion.  We are going to be working for the rest of our lives, or for the majority of it anyway.  That is a long time to be waking every morning dreading going to work.  It's time to figure something out now people.  Today ask yourself, "what do you want to be NOW that you are grown up?"  Your answer, these days, might just surprise you.

"This is Jay everyday, no compromise.  No compass comes with this life, just eyes.  So to map it out, you must look inside.  Sure books can guide you, but your heart defines you." ~JayZ, Beach Chair