Email Etiquette

Like many people these days, I write and receive a lot of email.  It has become the go-to communication source because of its speed and convenience, and it's a pretty easy communication medium to use.  So yea, email is great.  But some of the people writing emails?  Not so great. 

I've been writing letters, notes, cards, all sorts of different messages for a long time.  And regardless of the purpose of the message or who I am writing to, I always try to adhere to a certain amount of etiquette in each one.  Maybe it's just my personality style, maybe it's just an inborn habit at this point, but I feel like that's just the right thing to do.  There are just certain things that you should and should not do, in emails especially, because they are either inappropriate or they just downright annoying.  Allow me, please, to elaborate. 

Email Response--do it in a timely manner

I usually give myself 24 hours to respond to an email, or to at least acknowledge that I have received the message and am working on an appropriate response.  Obviously there are some instances where this rule doesn't apply, but as a general guideline I think 24 hours is acceptable.  I truly cannot stand people who like to make you wait, and wait, and wait for an email response.  I understand that things come up.  I understand that people go out of town (which, subsequently, are what out of office replies are for).  But I don't think it's asking too much for at least an acknowledgement, a quick reply of "I'll get back with more detail on such and such a date."  Sure, they probably won't get back to you on that date, but at least you know they received your message and are (you hope) working on a reply.  This is a little something I like to call "good manners."  

Carbon Copy--use wisely.  No really, use WISELY

There is nothing more annoying than being involved in an email chain of communication that has absolutely nothing to do with you.  I will sometimes get copied on messages that I spend a full five minutes looking at, wondering why the hell someone felt I needed to be involved with a topic that doesn't apply to me.  Then of course comes the internal struggle.  Do I respond to this message?  Do they expect me to respond?  Should I save this for future reference?  And the one question that really gets to me....Did I forget about something really important?

Reply All--it's pretty self explanatory.  So think before you click. 

This one kind of ties in with the carbon copy issue.  Nobody wants to get a million and one replies to a message that was sent to a million and one people.  Especially with the responses are all directed at one person in the group.  This comes into play a lot with List Servs....and with people who just don't think before clicking that "reply all" button.  Seriously folks, unless your question or thought is directed at the entire group, stick to a one-on-one response. 

Niceties--don't be afraid to use them

I'm not saying your email needs to be overflowing with compliments and kiss ass phrasing, but is it really so hard to close with a "Thank you!"  Or "Have a nice day!"  Something....you know, nice??  It always rubs me the wrong way when I receive a message that doesn't contain anything like this.  It's just so clinical, and reading emails like this make people sound a bit rude, which I'm sure isn't the tone they were going for.  I try to keep this in mind and not take it personal, but it always makes me feel better when there is some kind of pleasantry either at the beginning or the end of a message.  I don't care if it's genuine or just going through the motions.  It's email, for goodness sake.  I can't tell the difference. 

Use A Signature--it sounds silly, but it makes such a difference

Want to have a phone conversation with the person you have been emailing the past couple weeks?  Need to fax them something, or send something in the mail?  All these things are so much easier to do if the information is included in the email signature.  It saves so much time and frustration, especially if you have to go back and contact someone months after the fact.  That email signature can sometimes be a saving grace.  

Double Check Your Recipients--it could save your job

This is more of a guideline than an annoyance.  I use Outlook for my work email, which is handy because it remembers the email addresses of anyone I have ever, ever sent a message to.  Of course, if you aren't paying attention you could end up inserting an email address that is similar to the person you meant to message.....but is actually a completely different person.  Do yourself a favor and double check who you are sending something to.  Even if it's something small, it can still be rather embarrassing.  Also, depending on what and whom you are emailing, it could be detrimental to your job.     

On that first cup of coffee

When I first started drinking coffee I had no idea what I was doing.  I was living out of my parent's house for the first time, I was in college, so I just kind of figured drinking coffee was something I should start doing.  I had a cute little Mr. Coffee One Cup that I thought I knew how to use, and while I had no idea exactly what kind of coffee I liked, I was ready to start getting caffeinated.  I can even remember my first experience buying creamer.....I bought the powder stuff because I didn't know any better and quickly realized that I needed to head to the refrigerated section for the really good stuff.  My first home brewed cup was.....interesting to say the least.  It was also short lived, because soon after one of my friends introduced me to mocha frappachinos at Starbucks and that was all she wrote. 

Flash forward to present day, and I am most definitely a coffee drinker, and a coffee lover.  Coffee is as much a part of my morning routine as brushing my teeth, and if there's anything to take the edge off of waking up at 5 a.m. it's a nice hot cup of strong coffee.  No matter what day of the week, no matter what time I get up, that very first cup of coffee is something I savor and look forward to.  The second (and sometimes third) are still good, but they aren't nearly as good as the first go round.  Maybe it's a psychological thing, maybe it's a taste bud thing, but hands down, you just can't beat that first cup. 

While I love coffee, I can't drink it all day long.  In fact, my coffee intake is down from it's normal levels.  Only slightly down, but lower nonetheless.  I used to consume a cup of jo before getting on the treadmill every morning, which maybe sounds silly but I thought it was a good way to try and wake up my brain before the sweat started pouring.  Since the first of the year, however, I've cut out that first cup before exercising and instead fill up my travel mug to bring with me to work.  It's like delayed gratification, and there is something to be said for spending that first hour or so at work sipping on my coffee while perusing through emails.  It helps take the edge off.  Helps me ease into the day ahead. 

On a normal day (which is just about every single day), that is all the coffee I will drink.  As much as I love coffee, I find that as the day progresses the appeal of having a cup goes down for me.....it just doesn't sound good.  Maybe a lot of people are like this, but judging from the large number of cars I always see at Starbucks there's also quite a few out there who are not.  I don't think one is necessarily better than the other.....just a personal observation. 

Coffee has become part of my morning ritual, and one that I look forward to in order to get the day started right.  The smell, the taste, the warmth when it hits your stomach and immediately procures that "ahhh" sensation.  Coffee brings a bit of solace to my world, however short lived and fleeting it might be.  And in this increasingly imperfect world, that's truly something to be thankful for.

Alone time

All marriages consist of give and take.  And compromise.  Lots and lots of compromise.  One of the truths I have come to accept about my marriage is that Dean will not eat tuna and noodles.  It's not a dish he enjoys, and anytime I even mention the words "tuna" and "noodles" in the same sentence a discernible scowl takes over his face.  Let's just say the food brings back some childhood memories in which he ate way too much Tuna Helper.  Apparently it scarred him for life. 

So.  I have a husband who hates tuna and noodles, while I on the other hand love this meal.  Maybe I love it now more than I used to because I never get to eat it, but it pains me every time I get a craving and realize that the other person in the house whom I'm feeding won't even touch the stuff.  So to keep the peace and avoid cooking two dinners, this is a meal we generally never have. 

Now, a slight switch in topic that is still related to the tuna and noodles.  I'm sure that most people in most marriages look forward to that ever elusive alone time.  This is that special treat that comes when you don't necessarily want to be separated from your spouse, but because you are you may as well make the best of it.  This is what I will be faced with this weekend, when my husband leaves for one night to go ice fishing.  Because my idea of fun does not involve standing on a frozen lake in the middle of winter waiting hours for a fish to bite, I will be staying home with my beagles, and taking full advantage of my alone time. 

Number one thing at the top of my list, you may ask?  Cooking up a batch of tuna and noodles.  With Dean off playing in the ice, I have free reign of the kitchen and can cook my tuna and noodles without any judgements or complaints.  I can also finally start watching the third season of Downton Abbey and have a marathon reading session without any interruptions, or requests to change the channel because somewhere on some station a sports program is probably playing. 

Please don't mistake my words for complaining.  I'm simply pointing out the wonderfulness of alone time, and how even when we love our husbands/wives, it's still nice to have some time that is strictly for us, when we don't have to compromise or worry about giving and taking, but instead can just focus on ourselves and have that third helping of tuna and noodles while we wait to find out whether Bates is going to be released from prison (which, my sources tell me, has not happened yet.....)

Every now and then, everyone needs a tiny morsel of alone time.  For me, one night is just enough time to start missing my husband and start getting excited for his return home.  It's also just enough time to gorge on tuna and noodles before I'm ready to again start cooking husband approved dinners. 

It's the little things like this that make life grand.  

How much stuff is too much?

How much stuff do two people really need?  This weekend during the great storage closet remodel and mini-mud room creation, I was faced with that question numerous times.  When the project was complete and it was finally time to move all our boxes and bins back into the closet, I realized that we are literally overflowing with "stuff."

My husband and I are only two people.  We have a four bedroom house and each closet in our house, even the newly remodeled one, are filled to more or less max capacity.  How is this possible?  How can two people need that many items?

The truth is we absolutely don't need that many things, and while we did make quite the haul to Good Will in an effort to create more space, that doesn't change the fact that a lot got left behind.  A lot of "stuff."  We have certainly accumulated a staggering number of possessions since we moved into our first apartment together, a 2-bedroom 1-bathroom summertime sauna apartment with a measly two closets and a living room window that didn't open.  I'd say we have definitely upgraded, and our stockpile has absolutely multiplied. 

I'm not even sure how it happens, this stockpiling of things and random items that you store away and forget about for years on end.  I'm sure we're not the only ones faced with this dilemma.  And I'm sure at some point down the road we'll do another overhaul and get rid of more and more things, only to replace them with seemingly newer and better things.  This seems to be the process, doesn't it?  The sad part is I've always considered myself to be a minimalist, but looking at my closets this past weekend painted an entirely different story.

So in the back of my mind, I'm going to think very carefully from now on before I store something away in the closet.  It's time to start being proactive, and honest, in assessing which items should be kept and which should find a home somewhere else.  On the bright side, our storage closet looks amazing and our new mini-mud room is simply lovely.  And for the time being, all the "stuff" is more or less in order.        

Chit chat

Aside from how much it costs, I love getting my hair cut.  I especially love a good cut and color, one where you can really notice the difference from the before to the after.  I embrace change (most of the time) and find changing my outward appearance to be something of a cathartic experience.  

I have been frequenting the same salon for about six years now and have pretty much gotten the whole hair cut routine down pat.  I'm comfortable with my stylist and the environment of the salon, I know what to expect when I go in for an appointment, and I have always been pleased with the results and the service I receive.  However, there is one aspect of the whole hair cut ritual that I always struggle with, and that is the chit chatting. 

Now remember, I'm a self-proclaimed introvert so this obviously contributes to my struggle, but the whole chat bit involved with getting my hair done usually drains me.  Not to say that my stylist isn't a lovely person who is hard to talk to because that definitely isn't the case, it's just that chatting for the sake of chatting isn't really my thing.  It is, however, part of the whole haircut thing, meaning that like it or not, I have to participate.  Or at least attempt to participate. 

I've only been seeing this stylist for my last four or five appointments, so while we are definitely past the basic get to know you stage, we haven't quite hit the groove that I had with my last stylist, who did my hair for a good four years or more.  I know that talking to clients and keeping up conversation is practically a requirement for any beautician, so I myself feel obligated to talk and ask questions, sometimes more for their sake than for mine.  The crappy thing about that is that most of the time, I'm not the best conversationalist with people I don't know that well.  I always feel like I come off sounding awkward, like my silence might be interpreted as disinterest.   Sometimes I surprise myself and do great at small talk, other times I just don't have it in me.  I rack my brain for things to say, questions to ask, and some days I come up blank.  Maybe my stylist doesn't care or think it's a big deal, but it causes me some stress.  I mean, I don't want to come off as rude, but I also don't want to say something totally off the wall and sound like an idiot.  So you see, it's a fine line to walk successfully. 

I used to watch my mom at the hairdresser and be totally in awe.  She is such a pro at the talking stuff, she could probably list it as a skill on her resume.  She could keep up conversation not through one, but three haircuts.  These were the days when she, my sister and I would all go to our appointments together, and she and our hairdresser would just rattle on and on from one topic to the other.  Of course, it probably helped that they knew a lot of the same people, had known each other for many years, all that kind of stuff.  Regardless of the reasons, it sure made me a happy camper to just sit there in the chair, stare at myself in the mirror, and listen to them talk back and forth.  When I got older and started going to appointments on my own, during lulls in the conversation I would think back on those images of my mom and her effortless ability to carry on a conversation while getting her hair cut.  I realized it was definitely a lot harder than it looked (and sounded), and that I'd better start practicing. 

While conversation in the hair styling chair still isn't one of my strong suits, I do my best to partake in this ritual of the salon.  And if worse comes to worse, maybe I'll just start bringing my mom with me to hair appointments.....just to take the edge off.        

Scent fixation

It's really no big surprise that I ended up with two beagles.  Not only are they absolutely adorable (like me), a bit stubborn (also like me), but they are above all else obsessed with scents and smelling.....which is 100% absolutely like me.  

When I say I am obsessed with scents I don't just mean that I like things that smell pretty, which I do, but I also mean that I have the ability to weed out certain smells with what I like to think is comparable to the skills of a drug sniffing dog.  (On a side note, I feel somewhat strange and possibly a little dorky comparing myself to dogs.  Please don't take this comparison too literally).  But for reals, I have a great smelling ability and am, shall we say, sensitive to the various odors that are often in the air.

Consequently, my obsession with scents kind of drives my husband nuts.  I buy Febreze and other room deodorizers like they're going out of style, in fact I usually have at least one bottle in all the major rooms of the house.  But my real weakness comes with Wallflowers and I have a different one plugged in in all but a few rooms of my house.  I love these things, even though one time some spilled oil from one of these devices ate through some of the varnish on my kitchen table.  Whatever.  That's why we have tablecloths, right?

Candles are another fave.  Sometimes Dean will actually count how many candles I have out just in the upstairs of our house, and at certain times of the year the number is a bit staggering.  Of course the only candles I buy are scented ones, and of course I don't see the silliness of burning a scented candle on top of having a Wallflower scent plugged in.  It creates this wonderful mesh mash potpourri of delectable fragrances, and puts my nose on sensory overload.  Seriously, it's like a drug.   

Yes, I am a scentaholic (yet another made up word).  Much like my dogs I live by my nose and if you ever come to visit my house I hope the different smells that prevail from room to room aren't too much for you to handle.  At times I feel like some kind of scent mixologist.....I'm constantly looking for and experimenting with the perfect blend between all the smells.  And by the way, don't they pay people to do that sort of thing?  I fear my talents are being wasted.         

Not everyone is going to like you....

When I started writing for my college newspaper I learned something very important. 

Not everyone is going to like you. 

I remember opening up the paper one day and reading the first negative Letter to the Editor about one of my columns.  It was a pretty crushing experience, and all day long as I saw people strolling around with their newspapers I just knew that they had seen that letter, and even worse, that they knew it was about me and what I had written. 

This of course is most likely a gross exaggeration.....except for the crushing experience part.  I don't care who you are, criticism hurts.  Especially public criticism.  For me, seeing that letter and reading about how much they disliked my article made me feel no bigger than a grain of sand.  This of course is the risk one runs in having their words published.  Unfortunately, most people don't feel the need to chime in with positive accolades, but instead only want to send in feedback when they read something they ultimately dislike or don't agree with.  That's just the way it is, and over the years I came around to accepting this hard truth, even though those negative letters still touched a nerve.  Still do, by the way.

Not everyone is going to like you.

I'm not afraid to admit that I usually try to win people over and get them to like me.  I don't enjoy being disliked, and while I don't go out of my way to be everyone's best friend I do want people's overall view of me to be a positive one.  Don't we all more or less go that route?  

Many times I have expressed not caring what people think about me or the things I write.  I talk tough, but the truth is it only takes one comment, one bad letter to the editor, to make me feel like I don't know what the hell I'm talking about and why don't I just throw in the towel before even more people join in on the public bashing.  My mind has a way of taking an idea and running with it....things tend to spiral out of control sometimes.   And let's face it, sometimes it can be extremely difficult to stay sure of yourself when faced with an audience that isn't so sure of you.

Not everyone is going to like you.

So, what is the point?  Because as we learned in high school English one must always have a point, a main idea, a theme, you get the gist.  Whether it's writing, debating social issues, or even just your overall demeanor, not everyone out there is going to agree or like what you have to say.  Not everyone is going to sing your praises, and there are a lot of people out there who will try and make themselves feel better by tearing you down.  It's vicious, but it's true.  I constantly need to remind myself not to take things personally, not to internalize everything and make it into more than it really is.  I have a hard time accepting and facing criticism, but if I want to be a writer it's just something I'll have to get used to.  I know this, and yet I haven't quite adopted the tough exterior quite yet.  

Not everyone is going to like you. 

But that doesn't mean that others out there will follow suit.  It doesn't mean that all hope is lost, or that there is something fundamentally wrong with you.  Again, things I have to remind myself of all the time, and not just in regards to my writing.  I have never been the best at standing up for myself, of speaking my mind and believing in myself.  I can be easily intimidated and on more than one occasion have chosen to stay silent for fear of having my thoughts challenged.  I'm not proud of these admissions, but it's the truth.

Not everyone is going to like you. 

I realize that wanting to be a writer, fiction or otherwise, is going to require some toughening up on my part.  I can't be afraid of the general public, of negative feedback, of not being loved by everyone out there.  I also can't be afraid to stand behind my writing, my thoughts and ideas.  Because I am so averse to criticism I will often accept the negative that is pointed out by others and readily agree with it, rather than challenge them with an argument defending my work.

Not everyone is going to like you. 

But a few will.  Much better to focus on that truth.     

Anxiety at 2 a.m.

Fact: I don't do very well with getting waken up in the middle of the night.  I will probably be a horrible mother because of this. 

Early this morning one of my adorable beagles woke me up at 2 a.m. because, apparently, he had to go to the bathroom.  I know, I know, he's quite the responsible dog for actually waking me up and not just relieving himself on the floor, but being startled awake out of a dead sleep kind of made me oblivious to this line of thinking.

Being the responsible pet owner that I am, I dragged myself out of bed, let the dogs out to do their business, and after about 10 minutes settled back into bed to hopefully get a few more hours of sleep.  But there was one tiny (and by tiny I mean big) obstacle standing in my way.  Suddenly, for no reason at all, I was incredibly anxious.  My mind was spinning, I was tossing and turning, and my body temperature was rising right along with my anxiety level.  Sleep could not have been farther away.

Why does every little facet of one's life seem so much more stressful in the early hours of the morning?  What is it about the middle of the night that makes all those buried worries suddenly rise to the surface?

With the help of some Seinfeld reruns, I was finally able to shut my mind down and get maybe an hour and a half more of sleep.  Once I was up and lacing up my shoes to get on the treadmill, I realized that I felt fine.  My stomach wasn't in knots, my head felt clear, and I thought I was somewhat ready to take on the day.  Why hadn't I felt this way a few hours ago?  Where was the clarity I so desperately needed as I lay in bed and watched the minutes on the clock continue to tick by?

This is nothing new for me.  I'm prone to anxiety first thing in the morning, and often any time I am woken up in the middle of the night.  I'm used to it by now, but lately.....lately I feel that my anxiety is becoming a bit too commonplace for my liking.  While this in itself has more than caught my attention, there's still something about the early morning hours that causes my mind to jump from one thing to the next, finding new things to worry about with each transition. 

And now?  I feel fine.  I feel more or less in control of everything I have going on, and more or less confident in my ability to handle everything to varying degrees of success.  It's easy for me to take this stance at 10:13 a.m., but turn the clock back about eight hours and I would be a complete mess.  A giant ball of anxiety.  Unable to stand up straight because of the tight knot continuing to twist in my stomach. 

All I can say is it's a good thing I have plenty of Seinfeld DVD's on hand.  If these late night anxiety sessions continue those reruns could be the only thing that save me.  

Habits

A couple weeks before going on vacation for the holidays, my husband and I started working on a puzzle.  I was thrilled.  I like puzzles. They stimulate and simultaneously frustrate me, and finding that one piece that fits in that one spot after searching for nearly an hour is what I imagine it feels like to discover gold.  Another great thing about the puzzle?  It was a new evening activity we could do together that didn't involve staring at the TV, which was essentially how we spent most of our evenings. 

Since getting back from vacation and setting back into the everyday routine that poor puzzle has sat on our card table, neglected for weeks.  We talk about going downstairs and working on it, until we realize that it's just easier to stay curled up on the couch and watch another episode of Breaking Bad on Netflix.  Every morning as I hurry out the door to work I walk by the puzzle, the edge pieces and a small section of the top all connected together, and I think how badly I want to connect the rest of the pieces and see the finished product.  But by the time evening rolls around and I swear I can feel a headache approaching because I've been staring at a computer screen for five hours straight, I decide I just need to put on my glasses and dish up some ice cream. 

The point of my story is not that I'm a crappy puzzle put togetherer (yes, I made up that word), my point is that habits are hard to break.  They don't even have to be good or bad habits, just habits in general.  Habits of your general routine become so ingrained that the simple act of spending the evening in a different room of your house sometimes seems too foreign to contemplate.  

Everyday routine, the habits we develop because we just get used to doing things a certain way, at a certain time, at a certain place, these are the ones that can be tough for us to recognize and also tough to amend.  My first year after college was very odd to me, because when I got home in the evenings I didn't have papers to write or chapters to read.  I didn't have, well, anything to do that needed to be done, and that just wasn't what I was used to.  

I know for me it's extremely hard to break these everyday routines.  This is why I have such a hard time writing in the evenings, as silly as that sounds.  My evenings are generally spent cooking, eating, talking with Dean, watching TV, and usually reading and snuggling with my dogs.  It is actually hard for me to go downstairs, sit at my computer, and type.  Even when I feel like writing, when I have words that need to get on paper, this is still hard for me to do.  Doesn't that make absolutely no sense??  At first I attributed this phenomenon to laziness, but I think there's more to it than that because I can see this pattern in other aspects of my life, in my day-to-day routine that show me it isn't just writing in the evenings where I notice this aversion. 

Sometimes I get too caught up in looking at the big picture that I miss the small details.  These everyday habits go by unnoticed because, well, we go through them everyday and before long they are just "the way things are."  Which is why my puzzle sits on that card table and the computer in my office hasn't been turned on in weeks.  Trying to break with what is normal, expected, and comfortable can be hard, even if the "break" is something we really want to do.

I'm always classifying my habits as either good or bad, never giving much thought to everything that falls in the middle.  Maybe it's time to readjust my view.      

Yay for introverts!

One of my friends posted this video on Facebook today (link is below), and it naturally got me thinking about my self-proclaimed status as an introvert.  I felt so empowered listening to this woman talk about introverts, their qualities, and how our society shouldn't be discouraging these traits but should instead embrace the people who possess them because they are, in fact, quite valuable.  

I guess watching this got me all excited because I could 100% relate to what she was saying.  I found myself nodding along and in my head thinking, "Yes, yes, YES!!"  It was like she knew me and my personality without ever meeting me.  I find that very refreshing.  I also find it refreshing to hear someone talking about being an introvert as a positive thing.  As in not negative.  As in not something that needs to be changed.  I can't count how many times in my life I have been told I'm too quiet, too withdrawn, too much of a reader, not social enough, and so on and so forth.  And the thing is, I'm never these things all the time.  Sometimes I am loud and obnoxious.  Sometimes I crave a night out with friends and interesting strangers.  But the majority of the time I happen to be perfectly content with my solitude, and that is not a bad thing. 

Whether you are an extrovert or an introvert, I think you should watch the video and give the speaker's words some thought.  I could go on and on about the great points that were made in the video, but since I've posted the link below you can go ahead and check them out for yourself.  

And let me just say again how happy I was to watch this.  I feel completely inspired to embrace my introversion and not feel ashamed by its qualities.  They do not diminish me in any way, in fact they should be seen as strengths and not weaknesses.  So from now on, that's exactly how I plan to treat them.  

Here's the link to the video:  http://www.ted.com/talks/susan_cain_the_power_of_introverts.html

Getting organized

If you know me at all, then what I say (okay, type) next is going to be a most obvious statement.  

I love getting organized. 

The whole process, while sometimes draining and oftentimes frustrating, ultimately leaves me feeling like a rock star.  Sit me down in front of a messy closet with some empty storage tubs by my side and before long I'll be feeling like a million bucks.  And my closet will be looking much better, too. 

I use the closet analogy because that's exactly the next project Dean and I are tackling.  We have a fairly large storage closet down in our den that is in desperate need of some TLC.  So we are mudding the seams on the walls, painting said walls a nice bright color, installing some laminate flooring (because the cold cement just isn't doing it for me), and putting up some nice, wide shelves for storage.  I. Can't. Wait.  But hold onto your pants ladies and gents because the fun doesn't stop there!  To add even more excitement and an added level of challenge to the project, we are also going to simultaneously reorganize and restructure yet another storage closet that is located under our stairs. 

What?  Yes, you heard me correctly.  Two closets in one fell swoop.  We think we are super heroes, and hopefully when it's all said and done we will be feeling like super organized super heroes.

I have this thing about closets in that I love them, and am sometimes intimidated by them.  An empty closet is my playground because if it's empty, you can fill it with.....stuff.  Of course, this has led us to the situation we currently are in, meaning that both closets look like a tornado has swept through.  There is no rhyme or reason to the way items are stored, and aside from a few very specific decoration bins, everything else is loose and just plain in the way.

I am very excited to tackle these projects, and even more excited to see the finished products.  I can already feel the peace of mind that will wash over me when I open the door to either closet and see cleanliness and order instead of chaos and free for all.  

It really doesn't take much to make me happy.  And since I'm trying more and more to focus on the little, everyday things that bring me happiness, I figure a couple of well organized closets is a great place to start.    

Another new year, but not much new

Welcome to 2013!  Yes, I realize I'm four days late on that sentiment, but since we're still in the first week of the new year I figure it still counts. 

I am on vacation until Monday and have definitely started to grow a bit sad by my impending return to work.  Here's an extremely obvious statement: it's very, very hard to willingly go back to work after two weeks off and I can already tell my stomach muscles will be tightened to the extreme when my alarm goes off Monday morning.  Vacations are great in the beginning, but after a few days one definitely falls into a "I'm never going back to work ever again" mindset, which really makes the end of vacation and the inevitable return to work even harder to deal with. 

Not to be a total downer with this post, but I was taking down my Christmas decorations a couple days ago, and the whole process left me feeling incredibly melancholy.  It was depressing having to take apart the Christmas tree (yes, it's fake, and no, I do not approve), take down my Christmas countdown calendar, my Santa Clauses, the garland, not to mention all the lights that were strung around our windows.  The more items I boxed up, the more depressed I became.  My house looks so bare now, and I figure that if the holidays are now officially over it may as well be summertime again, right?

I didn't make any New Year's resolutions this year, mainly because I am continuing to focus on the same items that I've posted about on this site time and time again.  Writing is still at the top of the list, as well as happiness in general.  I've been very focused lately on little ways to improve my personal happiness, and I'm trying to hone in on the small, everyday things I either do or don't do that play a part on my mental attitude.  I don't mean to suggest that I'm an unhappy person, but there are always improvements that can be made and I want to continue to focus on how to make that happen.  One gift that I received which I am particularly excited to start writing in is a Gratitude Journal.  Each day gives you a different writing exercise to complete which focuses on the things in your life you are grateful for, or the things that make you happy about your life.  I love this idea oh so very much and think it will really help to adjust my perception on things when I'm feeling particularly negative.  I'm a firm believer in perception altering any given situation, and having a daily reminder to focus on the good things and people in my life will be refreshing. 

On that note, here's a few wonderful things I was fortunate to enjoy over my two week hiatus.  Dog walks with my husband and my mom, a most enjoyable Christmas evening with the Plucker family up at the ranch, visiting with my cousin who just returned home from Afghanistan, a New Year's Eve dance party in the living room with my husband and our two very good friends, catching up on some reading, and visiting my sister and a couple other close friends in Seattle this weekend.  And these were just a few of my favorite things.