Pay it Forward

This morning on my way to work, I finally did something I've been wanting to do for quite some time. I paid it forward.

When I was a student at Benedictine College, one of the fun (and only) things to do was visit Daylight Donuts, a doughnut shop that opened at 2:00am.  I'm not exaggerating when I tell you that it was one of the only things to do, the college is located in a very small town. Wal-Mart was the mecca of entertainment for those too young to get into the bar, it's that small of a town.

Anyway, it was I not unusual for Daylight Donuts to be filled to capacity at this unusual hour, even during the week. One night during finals week, I headed there with a friend since we were still awake studying for our Chemistry exam at 2:00am. Naturally, most of campus was still awake studying as well and the place was packed.

We must have looked like we could use a break, because two very cute guys had already paid for our doughnuts by the time we'd reached the front of the line. Or, we'd prefer to think it was because they thought we were pretty. Not that it matters, since I was already dating my husband to-be at that time. We were an hour apart, at two separate colleges, but we saw each other every other weekend (sometimes every weekend).

Anyway, that was my first experience with the kindness of strangers. Since that time, I have heard several stories of people experiencing the kindness of others, particularly during the holiday season. So, I wanted to do something nice, but I didn't want to be cliche either.

So, on this random Monday morning in February, I asked the drive-thru attendant if I could pay for the order behind me as well. She seemed a little surprised, but not terribly so, which leads me to think that people have done things like this in the past. And that is great! I liked the idea of making someone's Monday morning just a little bit brighter.

Not only did it make that woman's day brighter (I'm hoping that it did anyway!), it made me much happier as well. It felt very good to do something nice for someone without expecting anything in return. If I had a larger budget, I would do things like that more often!

I have been crossing all kinds of things of the list in the last few days! I'm liking this forward momentum I have been building, I hope it continues in this direction!

As you already know, my Saturday got off to a lazy start.
The rest of the day, however, was actually incredibly productive.

After Joey got home from helping his sister move, we decided we'd like to go to lunch and run a few errands. We waited it line (somewhat) patiently for some Oklahoma Joe's barbecue, the delicious restaurant located in a gas station, which has been discussed in a previous post.

Then, we headed off to run our errands. We started at Hobby Lobby, where we purchased silk flowers to put into a vase we were given as a wedding gift. The vase is lovely, and has our names and wedding date engraved on the front of the vase - but it's not in our budget to constantly purchase fresh flowers and it's a shame to not being able to display it all the time. So, I tried to get back some of my skills from working at the flower shop, and made an arrangement using silk flowers.  I'm fairly happy with the outcome, but keep in mind that I haven't worked in the floral industry in almost four years! I'm a little rusty, but glad to finally have this project completed.

After leaving Hobby Lobby, we decided to cash in an unused groupon we had purchased a few months ago at the Three Dog Bakery. If you've never been to the bakery, it's an adorable small shop on the Country Club Plaza that sells baked goods for dogs including cakes, brownies, treats, bones/bully sticks, and their own line of homemade dog food. They use all natural ingredients, and we've always had a great experience. The groupon was for $25, so we now have one spoiled pup! We came home with a brownie, a bully stick, and some grilled cheese and tomato soup flavored treats. We chose the boxer brownie, since Draco is a boxer - and he loves it! Here is a photo I snapped of all his goodies before he proceeded to demolish them. 

And, since we were already on the Plaza, we decided to go on over to the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art. While we've been to the museum on several different occasions, our last trip was for Valentine's Day a few years ago. It was snowing that day, in fact I remember the roads were terrible and it had resulted in a 20 car pile-up on the other end of the city. As a result, we didn't brave the weather to go outside and walk the sculpture garden, which is really the heart of the museum in my opinion. It turns out there is a brand new edition of the sculpture garden, and we choose a warm (for the season) February day to check in out. It is made entirely of stainless steel, and really quite beautiful. We talked the museum for a few hours, focusing mainly on the newer section which houses the contemporary art and photography collections. 

Then, we ended our day with a trip to the grocery store. For dinner, we still weren't terribly hungry since our lunch was so amazing, so we made a snack recipe from Pinterest. We made low-carb pizza bites, which I've had at a work pot-luck, but I had never made them myself. Since I also had a goal of trying 10 new recipes, I guess this can kick off the start of researching that particular goal! 

So, all-in-all, it was a busy (but fun) Saturday! Today, I did a lot more lounging around to make up for it. Now the Oscars are over, and it's time to go to bed! 

Lazy Luxury

It is finally Saturday morning. I'm propped up in bed by several pillows, have a hot cup of coffee, and an incredibly cute doggie laying on my feet. The only thing missing is my husband, and he woke up entirely too early to help his sister and her boyfriend move into an apartment. If I had been able to drag myself out of bed, I would have been helping as well. Instead, I am having a morning of lazy luxury.

I like my idea better.

In 2012, I have read 10 books. The extended winter break (my class doesn't really begin until we leave for Italy) has been a huge help with the reading goal since I haven't had to read any textbooks or do any homework yet.

While I'm well on my way to reaching my goal of 75 books in one year - I haven't tackled the more specific reading goals. Until today.

I have always had a huge level or admiration and respect for Nelson Mandela. His character and lifetime achievements are beyond words. I've written a few papers about him, both in undergraduate and graduate courses, but I've only read excerpts of his autobiography and memoir. This makes Mandela the perfect choice to complete the item on my list that requires me to read an autobiography. The book I've started reading is titled Conversations with Myself.

Conversations with Myself is a collection of personal documents of

Mandela's, which mostly includes letters written to friends and family while in person, his personal journal, and portions of an unpublished sequel to his autobiography.

I've only started reading, but it's quite obvious from the start the Nelson Mandela is a remarkable man. Even in his private communications, he maintains such a level of morality and character it is truly amazing. At 93 years old, he is lived a more fulfilling life than most people can even imagine.

You know the question - if you could meet any famous person, dead or alive, who would you meet? I would meet Nelson Mandela.

Stay tuned - more items on the list will be completed very soon!

Quarter Life Crisis

Well, we're almost two months into 2012. I've got both good and not so good updates.

I turned 25 last month. It was a fairly uneventful birthday, and since the first three weeks in January are one of the busiest times at work, I wanted it low key! I just wanted to relax. I didn't have a "quarter life" crisis, which is apparently a thing now. From what I've read, it exists because many people use 25 as an arbitrary age by which they hoped to have achieved certain life milestones - marriage, career, education, etc. I have a job I really like, I'm over halfway done with a masters degree, and I'm happily married. Although I didn't expect to be married at 25, so I was way ahead of the curve on that particular milestone, considering I actually got married super young (21 years old). But he's pretty great, and when you've known someone since you were twelve, you pretty much know what you're getting into by marrying them. :)

I suppose I can see why people may get down on themselves if they aren't where they expected to be at age 25, but it is still so young! Please, kids, don't freak out until you're 30. I think that's when I'll start getting disappointed in myself. I'd like to own a home and be back to healthy weight, so if I have not done those things by 30, I imagine I'll find myself disappointed. Luckily, I have 5 years before any such meltdown will occur. :)

Did anyone have a quarter life crisis? Or maybe you at least did some reflecting on your life and goals? Let's hear about it.

In other news, we finally get a second car! We've been a one car household for quite some time now, and while it was nice only having expenses for one vehicle, it just wasn't sustainable in the long term. Especially since Joey is getting some additional responsibilities at work, he will be working extra hours. And my hours will be changing as soon as I'm out of training for my new position.

That's right - I got a new position at work! I am currently on the first floor of the building I work in, and I'll be moving to the second floor - so I'm making a HUGE move. :) I'll be doing similar work to what I've been doing, but assisting a different student population. I've been training for past week, but I won't fully transition until I get back from Italy.

Which brings me to...Italy! I leave in less than a month (March 10th). I've known about the trip since last summer, and back then it seemed entirely too far away. Now, it's practically here! I can't believe how the time has flown.

So - new car, new job, and a trip to Europe. So far, 2012 has been fairly good to me.

We've also had our share of not-so-great things happen this year. My cousin Vernon was diagnosed with liver cancer, and while he fought bravely, he lost the battle with cancer only a month after his diagnosis. While I am sad to have lost him, it is a comfort to know he did not suffer long and he is now pain-free.

Joey's paternal grandfather was also diagnosed with prostate cancer, and while it was quite scary, he is doing very well and at this point the prognosis looks good. His maternal grandfather is in the hospital with pneumonia, but doing well.

So, as you can tell, we've had a lot of things crammed into these last two months!! I haven't done very much at all as far as the list is concerned, but I bet I can get some of my reading goals accomplished over the very long flights to Europe!

I've dumped lots of information on you (as if anyone actually read this thing!), and I know I should just blog more often - then you wouldn't be subjected to these super long posts and maybe some people would actually read about my life and my list.

I think I will really start trying to accomplish some of my movie related items of the list next - any suggestions? I'm not counting anything I've already seen, so sadly, The Wizard of Oz is off limits.

For those that don't know, this is sad because The Wizard of Oz is my favorite film of all time.

Now, we're off the hospital. Leave some comments!

2011: A Year in Review

It's New Year's Eve.

I have never been a huge fan of the holiday. It's not that I don't like it, but I don't understand the overwhelming need most people seem to have to spend the evening in the most perfect way possible. It never lives up to their expectations. I prefer a low key evening or if I'm going out, I just want to have a good time and don't feel the pressure to have so much fun that this night is distinguishable from all the rest.

I do, however, love the idea of a fresh start. I like to look back on the previous year and set goals for the year to come. Obviously, as evidenced by this blog, I love setting goals.

So, 2011. It wasn't a great year, but it wasn't a terrible one either. Here are some highlights:

1. I went to Boston/Salem for the first time.

2. We moved to Missouri.

3. I ran my first 5K!

And, there were some not so great things that happened this year. An old friend passed away entirely too young, when she and her daughter were murdered. I can't even type those words without crying. We didn't talk often since we had grown apart as we'd gotten older, but she was a large part of my youth and her loss is quite painful.

Joe's grandmother had to go into a nursing home, which was difficult for the family. But she is still with us, and we are grateful for each day we have with her.

I do have high hopes for 2012, as I suppose I do for every new year, but there are a few things in the works that will make 2012 pretty awesome.

1. I'm going to Italy!

2. I should (hopefully) earn my master's degree!

I plan to examine the list and choose a few items to really focus on accomplishing this year. There are quite a few that are easy to accomplish, I just need to remember to do them!

I'm baacccckkk!

It's been way too long since my last post. While life has been busy, I don't really have an excuse. I've done several things on my list since my last post, which include the following items:

• Run a 5k (Warrior Dash Missouri, 10-15-2011)
• Volunteer at a local non-profit (City Union Mission, Thanksgiving Day)
• Change my name on my passport
• Create a realistic budget
• Go to Chief's game
• Go to a Wizard's (Sporting KC) match
• Maintain at least a 3.75 GPA (I still have a 4.0!)

So, while I haven't been posting, I've still been working toward accomplishing all the items on my list. I did, however, remove an item from the list. I once had a strong desire to become a pescetarian. I felt it would lower my cholesterol and make me an overall healthier person. As I've done more and more research on healthy eating, I have come and believe that red meat is a part of a healthy diet. Therefore, I decided to remove the goal of eliminating read meat from the list. I am in the process of choosing a goal to fill its place. It will probably still be something health and fitness related, potentially revolving around lowering my carb intake.

But If I'm going to lower my carb intake, it won't be until tomorrow. That's because tonight, we are going to the Power and Light district for dinner with my cousin and his fiancee. We're going to the Flying Saucer, which is famous for having 225 different beers from around the world. Beers that aren't exactly low carb. :)

We also have tickets to the Trans Siberian Orchestra concert tonight. This will be our third year with tickets and we always have a good time. It doesn't hurt that I can cross going to the Power and Light district off my list!

I hope to update again over the holidays, but I'm not promising anything. I do hope to get some more items crossed off the list now that I'm on winter break!

Run, Kayla, Run!

I have some good news. I have a few good items to report, actually.

First, I have finally started the C25k program! I'm in the middle of the second week of the nine week program, and can already see a small improvement. Unfortunately, I have also
been introduced to shin splints. They have limited the amount of runs I'm able to do per week, but I'm being careful not to over-do anything because I want to be able to continue the program without having to skip any weeks or anything because.....

I also signed up for my first 5k! Not just any 5k either, I registered for the Warrior Dash, which is a 5k complete with several obstacles that must be conquered along the way. There are so many emotions that run through me every time I think about this race - fear, excitement, anticipation, dread, anxiety, motivation, determination - just to name a few! The only goal I've set at this point is to finish the race, no particular time frame in mind, and then I'll start to think about time goals for future races.

If you want to learn more about the race check out www.warriordash.com.

Joe actually ran the same race here in Kansas City a few weeks ago, and the one we're registered for this time around is in St. Louis. I'll continue the C25k program and in the later weeks, as I get stronger, I hope to add some strength training as well to give my legs more power to push through a difficult obstacle or just finish the race.

In other news, we're going to be staying in Springfield for a few days next month so that Joe can help set up a new store that is being built there. I am just tagging along because I have the vacation time and like the idea of relaxing in a hotel for 3 days! In doing some research on things to do while there, I discovered that the local Y has a three-story rock wall, making it possible for me to scratch yet another item off the list! Since we have a Y membership here, I can go use the Y while I'm down there for no charge, other than the monthly membership fee was already pay. It seems like such a silly thing to be excited about, but it is one of the things I'm most looking forward to about the trip.

Fall Classes have begun, and this term my class is off to a great start. The topic of the course is leadership, and we are reading The Leadership Challenge, which is something I've read before and really enjoyed. Part of the course will include an assessment of our own leadership abilities and designing a plan to improve them, and since I tend to really like self-improvement type stuff, this is going to be a great class for me!

Up next - I think I'll talk about the 3 documentaries I watched to complete that item on the list and what I thought of them/what I learned.