Saturday, September 25, 2010

Purposeful living

I decided to shake things up and try some new things. Wanting to squeeze the best out of life and "suck out the marrow of life," I chose to work on a couple of projects in the next year to keep things fresh.

Both projects really scare me - but I'm really excited too. The goals that I chose seem far from my reach and surreal, but I'm glad for the challenge.

The first project involves Aaron - we're going to participate in the mini marathon next May! We may not run the entire race, and we're not really racing for time. We just want to finish ; 0 I'm scared because I'm afraid of how painful it may be and because I'm afraid of not finishing and feeling like a failure.

This is Aaron's parents 4th or 5th year of doing the mini, and a friend of mine completed it last year (way to go Emily!), so knowing a few others who've successfully finished gives me some confidence!

The second project is not a physical challenge but still ulcer inducing in its own way. I'm working on writing a short comedy sketch for an open mic night at a local comedy club. You see, I have never considered myself to be a funny person. Any laughs caused by me are usually not on purpose, so this one's going to be really tough for me.

Usually, a first time comic gets about 3 minutes of time, so I'm confident that I can conjure up some laughter. I can at least survive 3 minutes! I'm actually pretty happy with the initial material that I've come up with. I'm talking about a topic that I feel extremely comfortable discussing - animals.

So there they are! Two big, scary projects that will hopefully be fun and fulfilling. I'll provide updates!

Monday, September 13, 2010

Old married lady


Nothing really has changed for us since we got married, and neither of us feel any differently. But the important thing is, we've committed our love publicly, and we had a fantastic time.

Looking back on some of the pictures from some of the guests, I am so glad that I don't look saturated in stress. I look happy, and at times during the ceremony and reception, I closed my eyes and determined to cherish the moment.

I spent quality time with my family and friends, and it did not matter whether or not all of the details matched the "signature colors" exactly. Nobody cared whether or not my invitations were hand calligraphied, or that we didn't have fresh flowers at the tables, or that instead of giving out favors, we chose to donate money to needy animals.

I'm not saying that if you want a white lace and roses that you're somehow having an unauthentic wedding, (in fact, I carried red roses, and I wore a lacy veil), but my point is that as we plan our weddings, we should all carefully consider whether or not the choices we make are a true reflection of ourselves or if we just feel pressured to conform

Yes, our wedding was a bit quirky with a pit bull in a dress, a magician at the reception, and a vegan menu, but the connection, sincerity, and time together were the only things that really mattered.