"You can't stay in your corner of the forest, waiting for others to come to you; you have to go to them sometimes." --Winnie the Pooh

Oh Pooh, you are so intelligent and so simplistic, which is honestly the best kind of intelligence. There are a lot of going ons in the family right now and it's made me stop and remember what it felt like when I decided to accept my current position in Oklahoma City and move to a whole new place. Not come here for a semester, or 8, but actually pick up and move here. Establish my life here. It still gets to me.

What is it that suddenly gives us the courage to embark on a new adventure? And maybe not even suddenly, maybe it's something you've wanted your whole life, but at the same time, that moment you realize that everything is going to change...it was one of the scariest of my life. But Pooh is right. You can't just stay where you are and expect things to happen, or change. They say you can't rest on your laurels and they're right. If you become complacent with "the norm" it can't get better. It was always only ever be the same. And, coming from a person who has hated change these past few weeks, I think I would hate a stagnant life even more.

I wanted to write a post about the things in my new life that I love and couldn't live without, as it seems most of my posts of late have consisted of my whining (sorry about that, but what is a blog really for?!). So here we go.

1) Income. Having a way to pay for the things I need and not have to pull it from my savings.

2) Having my own place. I am loving coming home to my place and doing whatever I want to do. Eating whatever I want for dinner. Knowing I can laze on the couch and answer to no one.

3) The boyfriend. Let's be honest, it's been great being able to see him more than once or twice a month. I'll leave it at that ;-)

4) The weather. Oh my do I love Oklahoma weather, especially considering the fact that back in Texas I'd probably be swimming everytime I walked outside.

5) A cold beer on a ________ night. This is similar to #2 but I can't help giving bud light it's own spot on my list. Coming home and knowing I can sip a brewski after a rather hard day (or even an easy one).

Granted there are more, but these are the top (okay, first) five that came to mind when writing. I'm sure more will come as my time here continues.

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Hair dye gone awry

Well, it's happened and this is my story of the hair dye gone awry. I am lucky to be able to say that up to this point, I have never had a truly horrendous hair dye mishap but honestly, tonight's takes the cake.

Let's be honest. I bought the dye because A) I have wanted red hair since, oh the first episode of Alias back in 8th grade and B) the ends of my hair had lost the color I put it them two months ago. So my thought process was, why not? I did the ends per usual, making sure it wasn't just two separate shades of brown then this red. After I washed that out and blow-dried it, I realized I loved the color and wanted to go for it, use the rest on the rest of my hair and try to get a BOOM red.

Well, apparently BOOM red literally means BOOM THIS PART IS RED. That's right, the top of my head has two very distinct sections of red against the brown. It's my own fault for not applying it evenly. I was trying to be "creative" and "weave" the color in like highlights but now I just feel like a 6th grade girl who had chunks of highlights.

I love Revlon Colorsilk. For someone who loves to dye her hair, the $2.99 price tag is awesome. The Luminista pictured above, the color I used, was about a dollar more expensive and in all honesty, I didn't read the box. Had I, I would have know that the Luminista brand is intended to color darker shades of hair i.e. me. But again, who really thinks that all hair dye is not created equal? Apparently, they aren't.

Let me just say that I will absolutely be using this brand again, probably Sunday when I pick out a brown to try and cover up the mess I made tonight. Unless it fades and looks blended at which point I'll probably keep it. So, to any ladies (or gents) out there thinking about this hair dye, be wary! This stuff delivers regardless of the darkness of your hair! With that in mind, I definitely recommend it.

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(One of) My Best Friend's Wedding

I will be the first to admit that I am so incredibly lucky to have to distinguish between "one of" and "my" best friend's wedding. On top of that, I'm so lucky and blessed to be able to be apart from my best friends for days, weeks, months at a time and have it feel like no time has passed when we come together again. That's what I got to experience this weekend.

My dear friend Kristen finally married her long time beau and honorary member of our club, Brady. It was a beautiful wedding, she was a beautiful bride and I know all in attendance had a wonderful time. The weirdest part? Watching one of my best friends, whom I have grown and shared so much with since high school, marry her soulmate and truly take that step from youth to adult. I knew we were "adults" now, but it's the wedding and marriage that makes it all real, makes it official to me. Not the working an 8-5 job or having a college degree, but knowing she's got that ring on her finger and has found the man she's going to spend the rest of her life with. When did this happen?!

There was a plethora of emotions floating around this weekend. Excitement, happiness, relief, sadness, but not all were due to the wedding. Going home, back to the place I grew up and finding my room essentially gutted was an intense onslaught of feelings. I knew it would happen but I don't think there's anyway to prepare for it. That room was my sanctuary for so long, that game room filled with memories, those stairs run down from the laps I made everyday. It was weird being back and knowing, even though it will always be a home, the place I grew up, it wasn't the same. It wasn't even the same as it was in college, when I would venture home for Christmas and Summer break. Of course, even then it took a lot of time to get used to the change. I remember crying every time I drove back to school freshman year, back when I would make the 800 mile trek one way every month. I would cry as my parents waved goodbye when I pulled out of the driveway and be on my way. Then, as school went on, I went home less frequently and found myself being more excited and ready to get back to school. Back to where my life was happening. It's the time thing that I need and we all know, you can't rush time when you want to.

I'll say it time and time again, knowing full well that saying and believing are two very different things, time fixes things, heals all wounds and generally makes things better. But there's that double edged sword again because time changes things.

I never had an idea for what this blog would end up being. It was only ever intended to be an outlet for me to get thoughts off my chest and possibly provide a different view to the life after college. To vent about the frustrations of being unable to secure a job after graduating and now, the frustrations of that first, full-time position. But today, I realized the only thing I want people to get out of this is to enjoy where you are or what you're doing.

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But look at who's right beside you

When you're alone barely holding on

You leave your worries behind you

You're not alone in the dark

--Alexz Johnson

I love Alexz Johnson's voice. It is incredible so if you're needing new music, go check out her newest single Look At Those Eyes off her soon to be re-released album, Voodoo. The lyrics above ring true and I encourage you to think about your last moment of sadness or your last few days of upset. The ones that stuck beside you, even when you were whining about the same thing, unable to see the light at the end of the tunnel? They're the ones this blog post is dedicated to.

I have an incredible support group and I thank God for it everyday. Sometimes, i.e. lately, I get annoyed because they're not around and I count on them and need them as much as I do. These are the people that will tell me the same thing over and over in different ways, or listen to me rant and vent over and over about the same thing and still be at the other end of the line.

And these are the people that you don't realize are in your support circle until you find your way to each other again. When they send you a random text to hang out on a Saturday night or help you narrow down your desires and goals in the workplace and what kind of a job you're really looking for. They're the ones that make you realize you're not really as alone as you feel.

I wish there was more time in the day. 26 hours would do it. I feel like I could get a lot done with an extra two hours in the evening, finish the dishes and get some of my thoughts down on paper with some guitar chords to accompany them. I miss having time to do that. I suppose I still need to settle into a routine and once that happens, I'll find some extra time at night to write a quick song or chapter in a book. I leave you with a link to the incredible song quoted above....

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Belvedere makes the world a better place

No quote today and no rambling about how I can't seem to deal with what's happening to my life. Nope, today is something different. Today, I am going to express my undying love and devotion to Belvedere.

I am a vodka girl through and through. I've had occasional flings with other alcoholic beverages, smirnoff coolers or that needy pest tequila but vodka and I have been together now for a while. It essentially goes with anything and still tastes amazing. Plus, vodka has fewer calories when compared to other liquors AND Belvedere only has 64 in 1 ounce.

But I'm not just in this relationship for the low(er) calorie count. I'm in it for the taste and the enjoyment I get out of spending time with good ole Belvedere. As a connoisseur of vodka/waters, I've had my fair share with various vodkas. First there was Smirnoff, then I progressed to Sky then, when I was feeling rich I would splurge on Absolut. All of these are great, although Absolut always gave me the worst hangover, regardless of how much I drank, but then I discovered the greatness that is Belvedere.

There is something about it that makes it blend perfectly with whatever you choose. My first vodka/water with this heavenly gift was like drinking lemon lime water with a taste that you can't put your finger on but love nonetheless. In fact, I have had to force myself to stop drinking them in a night because I don't want to become intoxicated. They just taste so good that I want more. I suppose I could say the same thing about chocolate...

And now I must ask due to burning curiosity, what is your favorite drink? Why?

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