The best pep-talk ever from Kid President

"Nothing good ever happens after 2 am..."

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I'm proud to report that several days after reading this great/inspiring/amusing list I had a chance to put to action what I had learned.

Important life lesson #1: nothing good ever happens after 2 am. So true. Go home and go to bed. Think about it: if you're up that late and the opportunity for adventure arises 1) you've probably been drinking and 2) no one who really likes or respects you is going to be longing to see you at that hour (and I'm talking come over, I miss you type thing. Not the "we've been hanging out all evening and whoa look at the time it's 2 am!").

My story: last night we go to a local place. We thought it'd be a cool/chiller bar, not the bass pumping pitch black dancing sort of thing. Imagine my dismay when we walk in and the place is packed with undergrads. I'm just way too above that and sophisticated now. But eventually my friends and I get to talking with this group of guys (A+ on my mingling skills). Come to find out that they are all 35 and are having a mini college reunion (to be fair they did not look that old!). Starved for male attention and any y chromosome we can get our hands on we talk to them until, lo and behold, it's last call. They want us to all continue this hangout elsewhere, and we consider it, but ultimately decide that we should call it a night.

We made the right choice not to hang out late night with these fellas for several reasons:
1. apparently 3 out of the 5 had girlfriends (umm if that was my boyfriend flirting and asking for girls' numbers and buying them drinks... well he wouldn't be my boyfriend).

2. what are 35 year olds doing at a bar frequented by undergrads?

3. 35 is a bit old, even for me (I actually did over the course of the night look over at a guy who was eyeing me and flat out said I was too old for him).

and 4. because nothing good happens after 2 am.

Friday Feel Goods

Wild sperm whales adopt dolphin with crooked spine via

Inspired by the picture above, which seriously warmed my heart yesterday, I've decided to draw everybody's attention to the following awesome animal pairings. Here's a taste of some interspecies friendships to put a smile on your face (all courtesy of NBCnews.com)

Takes his dog out on walks. 

Male tortoise has adopted a baby hippo. 

Monkeys love their puppies as much as I do!

Some serious interspecies lovin. 

You can share my pouch any day!

Dolphin and seal have been bff since they were 2 months old. 

Those faces...

Seriously, why can't humans get along this well?!

So all's actually not fair in love and war

I've been a little uninspired as of late, but not because I'm going through some funk or an existential crisis, quite the opposite. Things are just fine and dandy, and I'm starting to finally feel like I'm getting back into the school/Atlanta/social groove (coming back from winter break is always difficult because I have to adjust from being my homebody self to being back in the presence of people my age).

I say things are fine and dandy mostly because I've stopped stressing out about the types of things that used to keep me up at night: will I ever find a job? ugh how do I meet someone at a bar? Ya, I don't really care about those things (I mean obviously I still do but I've taken on more of a "if it happens it happens" sort of attitude).

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I can't really pin-point an exact moment that caused me to change how I think; it just happened. But I will say that I have come to realize and accept something: sometimes bad things happen to good people,  but I've also found that the opposite is also true--sometimes good things happen to people who may not really deserve it. Somewhere down the line we've all met this person (or people): the one who gets a kickass job/internship/significant other/opportunity that for some reason or other you know they don't really deserve, whether it be because they don't really like what they are studying, are stupid/an idiot/asshole/you name it. Come on, I can't be the only one who's felt jipped out of something right?

If I had a dollar for every job I applied to I'd have $60. What I'm saying is that many times I think I'm deserving; I've gotten to the point where I'm confident enough in myself and my abilities to say that I am a hard worker and I deserve a job. But hey, sometimes things don't happen for us good guys. I've seen my fair share of people, who for whatever reason, are lucky enough to find themselves handed opportunities that I would love to have. It's a fact I've accepted (with a big, regretful sigh): sometimes most of the time it's about who you know, rather than who you are, that gets you ahead in life.

Or an internship at the CDC... via

The Blind Leading the Blind?

So I've just started this semester (ish) long peer mentor program through the Good Samaritan House. I know what you're thinking: you a mentor? Seriously could be the blind leading the blind here, right? And indeed, the idea of giving an impressionably young Atlantian advice does seem a bit daunting (what if I saw the wrong thing?!) but all in all I think I've amassed a nice cache of wisdom during my 22 years. After all, I've managed to keep myself alive this long, and hey, if my own little sister won't come to me for advice, well I might as well share my lifetime of knowledge with someone.

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A little more about the program: each of the mentors have been matched with a mentee, a local Atlanta high school kid (they're coming primarily from the area in which Good Sam is located so not necessarily the most privileged of kids) and are running sessions teaching them about nutrition, healthy relationships, substance abuse, etc. so that they can take what they have learned and become community health ambassadors at their own schools.

Overall it's gonna be good, and I'm excited to make even a marginal difference in someone's life. I guess I'm semi-nervous because... well maybe about half of the mentors are (seemingly) privileged white girls, while all of the mentees are young African-American girls. So I'm wondering how this will go. On the one hand everything seems so far so good, but I have to wonder if skin color makes relating to someone a little more difficult. I like to think that I am good at looking past skin color and seeing just the person within, but hell, even I will start to bristle if a rich white person starts telling me what's what. I think it all boils down to being nice and treating a person like a person (perhaps I've just laid out the foundation for peace on Earth?).

How technology is ruining your love life

**The stats show that people like to read posts about love and relationship mishaps. Gotta give the people what they want! It's the start of a new semester so slow going on any sort of relationship front, but as we prepare to dive in to this brand new year's dating pool adventures, here's an article that got me thinking:

"Technology Killed Courtship. Good Riddance" by Amanda Hess (full article here).

Let me start off by saying that I'm not sure I'm interpreting this article completely correctly. Sometimes authors try and make themselves sound really smart (though I know I'd never be accused of this) and all they end up doing is using a bunch of big words and confusing their readers. That being said, I think this author is a feminist (not that there's anything wrong with that) who is saying that the use of technology in today's dating world has broken down the gender barriers and the need to conform to said barriers that existed back in the day of the rotary phone and pager. Which she thinks is a good thing.

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But I'm going to disagree with her a bit here. I think that technology has killed off a lot of courtship and romance because it allows us to distance ourselves from people. We can send a quick text asking someone out and no longer have to worry about being rejected in person. We can construct whole relationships that are based around text messaging, with no real face to face communication (believe me, I'm guilty of this). And I think all of this is a bit of a bummer. There's less accountability for our actions; it's easier to make excuses/be excused for not texting or calling back than it is having to justify not showing up to a dinner date. It's easier to claim that things really aren't as serious, and it's a hell of a lot easier to hurt someone's feelings. This obviously isn't a new idea; I feel like I've been seeing articles like this for years, but for the longest time I think I just scoffed at them. Now I think there really might be some truth to it all.

I'm not sad to see the whole "guy ordering dinner for a girl" sort of sexist thing disappear, but I am sad to see how there's generally such a lack of effort on everybody's part nowadays. It's sad when you start to feel special because someone sent you a text message; it's a text for crying out loud, not that hard to do! Is courtship dead? Feels like it to me; then again I do know how to pick some winners... but hey maybe I, with my attachment to text messages, have also served as an enabler?

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It's the final countdown...

Less than 24 hrs until race day. And when I say race I don't really mean I'm going to be racing; I'm going to be jogging with the hopes that I can jog until I finish. The fact that Forrest Gump ran for 3 years always serves as inspiration (yes, I know he is a fictional character!).

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The Hot Chocolate 15k is almost upon me... and I've felt better. As a souvenir from home my family has gotten me sick (prob. has something to do with the fact that my dad was a cesspool of germs, constantly hacking and sneezing and not covering his mouth). I swore that if I was too sick to run that he would owe me $65, the cost of my entry fee. But I woke up feeling much better today, still a little congested but without the fuzzy/pounding sinus pressure feeling in my face that I had yesterday; oh what a night that NyQuil induced sleep/coma will do to a person!

Health aside I think I'm ready to do this damn thing. I've been running religiously all throughout winter break, making sure that once a week I go for a long run (that being about 6 miles--because apparently when training you don't need to run the whole distance of the race you're preparing for), got some new kicks which will hopefully prevent my arches from blistering, and I even brought back some of my Under Armor cold gear (which looks to be completely unnecessary as the temp for tomorrow is forecasted to be around 70). All I need now is to make up a running playlist on my ipod that will last me at least an hour and a half and I think I'll be good to go! It's been good to have something to work for over break; the fact that I knew the day was fast approaching served as excellent motivation when I felt too cold/tired to go running.

My second pair of Nike frees (I wish I was a paid spokesperson)

Crap, nevermind. What have I gotten myself into....?! (cue that weird trumpeting/inspirational music from Forrest Gump).

Dr. Pat Allen: she's got a lifetime of knowledge

I'm currently watching the Millionare Matchmaker on Bravo; matchmaker Patti Stanger likes to bring in Dr. Pat Allen for her particularly emotionally stunted client. Dr. Pat Allen is a sex therapist, she's also as old as my grandmother. Hearing this lady talk about sex, vaginas, and rock n roll about kills me, so I'd thought I'd share some of her particularly juicy gems:

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• A vagina is something you play with, not something you marry
• Real men marry virtue, not vaginas (which I think she will be writing a book about)
• Men want to get laid first and they want it as cheap as they can get it
• Vaginas don't talk (referring to the fact that guys who are just looking for some nookie end up bouncing around from lady to lady because they get bored-- vaginas don't really talk back). 

In a previous episode she also attempted to explain to a playboy why he shouldn't have sex before monogamy but that there were others ways to express interest... it got graphic and just weird hearing those words come out of grandma. 

Beautiful, I'm just learning so much. 

Just thought I'd share

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I resolve to...

I'm not one for making New Years resolutions. First, because I'm awesome already (har har) and second, because oftentimes they are way too hard to keep (remember my stint at not eating wheat/gluton?). I exercise often enough already, and eat marginally well as it is so I don't think any resolution I would make would involve the health and fitness arena (I'm already well beyond the point of having any sort of goal weight or anything like that because I don't own a scale and can't diet to save my life).

Some choice UVa graffiti I came across years ago. Seems appropriate?

Laying in bed the other night, thinking about this same subject, I came up with something: more horses. I'm a horse nut, have been ever since I can remember. As luck would I have I do not come from a horse family so I had to push and prod and plead to get my mom to sign me up for horse riding lessons. And saint that she is my mom has been a great sport about it all, I can't even begin to add up the countless hours she's spent driving me around and hanging out at horse barns while I ride. I've never been a phenomenal rider, never competed in any shows or won any ribbons; I haven't jumped in years, and it takes a lot of nerve for me to ease a horse into a canter (I blame my timidness on the fact that the first-and only-time that I've fallen off was when I happened to be getting on the horse I was thinking about leasing. He took that moment to take off and start bucking, and I found myself skidding to a halt under a fence with my arm broken. Now I cling like a monkey and don't really do anything fancy). But for the past 10 years I've ridden on and off, and I love it; I just wish I had the opportunity to do it more. Unfortunately for me Atlanta isn't the most conducive city for this type of hobby, and I, being the poor unemployed grad student that I am, really can't afford to pay $60 a lesson at the barn I currently volunteer at.

In 2013 I want more horses in my life. I want to ride them more than a few times a year, and I want to stop being jealous of the kids I help teach to ride. That's my silly little resolution, but I'm also going to really try and attempt to stop worrying so much, especially about things I can't control. Looks like I've got my work cut out for me...

Gus!

Who wouldn't want more ponies in their life?!