101 in 1001: Checking In

I am working on completing a list of 101 things to do in 1001 days.  I have 941 days remaining.   It has been a few weeks since I have updated my list so I decided that a blog entry would be a good way to keep myself accountable and good motivation to keep working.  So without further ado... the updates and changes to the list: (Something is up with blogger spacing today so its very strangely spaced, my apologies)   


 In Progress     Completed

5. Have a ladies night 4x/year.  1/12 Two good friends and I got together for dinner and drinks.  It was great to catch up and spend some quality time together :)
10. Make a list of 101 things that make me happy. 40/101 If you are following along you know that I have 40 of my 101 things listed.  Find the full list here.
16. Wash makeup off every night, consecutively, for 2 weeks.  I am in the process of this one.  I think I am on 3 days in a row.  I really dislike washing my face at night so this is exciting for me.
21. Complete a spiritual strength quiz.  Completed: check.  Out of prophet, lover, mystic and sage.  I am a sage.  Pretty cool stuff.  Find the quiz here.
37. Try 6 new restaurants a year.  3/18  In addition to checking out Fuddrucker's I have also now been to Milano's and Carbone's in the Twin Cities.
40. Build savings account.  Now that I am subbing I am making money and am adding as much as I can spare to my savings account.
48. Get a full-time job.  Well, I am trying.  I have filled out over 35 applications in 16 different states.  I am beginning to get discouraged, but I have hope that someday soon I will get a call for an interview and then a job. Then I will have my own classroom!
53. Organize job applications and materials.  It feels so good to have these organized.
62. Visit 10 tourist/popular spots in the Twin Cities.  1/10 I have now been to Lake Nokomis.  Woo Hoo!
68. Read 50 new books per year.  23/50 in 2010 (as of 4/29/2010)  I am up to 23 books.  Although I think there have been more and I just can't remember.
74. Watch 26 movies I've never seen starting with each letter of the alphabet.  Australia and Four Christmases can now be added to the list.
75. Find a new musical artist every month.  The Band Perry (4/2010) can be added to the list.
82. Comment on 10 different blogs.   I have loved visiting many different blogs and being able to leave comments for the authors!
93. Blog at least twice a week.  So far, so good.


It feels good to be making progress.  I like crossing things off and seeing things being done.  I feel more productive.  And its a good reminder for me to do more than I normally would.  It pushes me towards the edge of my bubble.  If you are working on the 101 in 1001 Challenge, or another list of some sort please leave a link in the comments below.  I would love to check it out.  Have a wonderful day!  Remember to live your life the best you can.  Love as much as you can.  Little things can wait, the sunset won't.

Seriously? Video Time.

I have written two different posts for today.  But something is seriously wrong with the spacing/formatting of my blogger today.  And because I am so anal about some things I can't post either of them.  It's driving me too crazy.  So instead enjoy these videos which are among my personal favorites:

Getting to Know You... Well, Me

I found this from Angela at Lariats and Lavender.  It looked fun, so I thought I would give it a shot.  (The spacing on my blog is so weird today.  Forgive me.)

1. The strangest thing I've ever eaten was calamari.  I don't tend to eat strange things so trying calamari was strange for me.
2. My best friends are great.  I have 3 girls whom I would consider my best friends.  The friendships have had crazy ups and downs, but I have know these ladies the past few years and they are wonderful.
3. If I could live in a different era it would be the late 1800's.  I am a traditional girl and I think that era would gel best with my personality.  You still have the feel of expansion and the west, but there is indoor plumbing :)
4. If you only know one thing about me it should be that I crave order.  I think its because its one thing I can control.
5. My favorite book of all time is impossible to choose.  I have to pick just one?  I love Bamboo and Lace by Lori Wick.  I can read that one over and over.
6. The one beauty product I cannot live without is foundation.
7. Blogging is a neat way to meet and exchange ideas with people from all around the world.
8. If I could star in a movie with one actor/actress, it would be Sandra Bullock.  She seem so nice!
9. One of the best feelings in the world is laughing.  Really laughing.
10. My current obsession is job hunting.  35+ applications in 16 states.  Find me a job please :)
11. What's for dinner tonight? I have absolutely no idea.
12. The last thing I bought was three books from Barnes and Noble.  The 3rd book in the Bride Quartet Series from Nora Roberts, The Book of Awesome, and a random inexpensive 3rd book so I could get free shipping.
13. I am currently listening to a playlist that I made called "The Story of Life."  It's pretty sweet if I do say so myself.  And I do :)
14. If I could have a home, totally paid for, totally furnished anywhere in the world it would be in the eastern part of the US in a historically significant area.  A colonial type or victorian house would be cool.  Outside the US I think the English countryside would be pretty fantastic as well.
15. The one thing I would change about myself is on the outside my weight, on the inside my confidence.
16. If you could go anywhere in the world in the next hour, where would you go?  Sign me up for a trip to Western Europe.  Specifically I would love to be able to explore France.  I was only able to see a couple places when I was there years ago.
17. The languages I would love to learn are Spanish, French and American Sign Language.
18. My favorite quote is "God does not call the qualified.  He qualifies the called."
19. I am most afraid of failing, never finding love, never finding who I am meant to be.
20. My favorite color is blue.  Any shade any hue.
21. My dream job is owning a book store or teaching.
22. The one thing that brings a smile to my face instantaneously is seeing little kids playing.  They are so unaware of the crazy world around them.
23. The one word I use a lot is seriously.  It is very versatile.  When you are questioning something, surprised, frustrated, excited... it fits.
24. When I'm feeling blue I listen to music or curl up with a book and read.
25. What inspires me is music, beautiful scenery, family, books.
26. My favorite season is fall.  Hands down.  Days are still relatively warm but at night its cool enough that you can curl up under a quilt.  I love drinking tea or coffee and watching the leaves change colors and fall to the ground knowing in a few months there will be new leaves.  I love the sound of leaves crunching under my feet.
27. My favorite dessert has to be ice cream.  Or chocolate.  But not chocolate ice cream.
28. How many tabs are open on your browser right now? There are 4 tabs open.
29. What was the first thought that crossed your mind this morning when you looked in the mirror? "Ugh. Really?"
30. The best piece of advice I was ever given was "Treat others like you would like to be treated."
31. If I had millions of dollars to give to one charity, I would give it to one that I would start.  I would like to start a charity for the siblings of children with Autism.
32. If at first you don't succeed, "destroy all the evidence you tried" ... and "then try and try again."

So there you are.  I am sure after reading that you have learned something new about me.  I think its helpful to know the person behind the blog you read.  Especially when the blog tries to have an overall message behind it.  I would love to hear what your answers would be.  So if you fill this out please come back and leave the link to your blog so I can stop by and check it out.  Have a wonderful day!

Remember to live life the best you can.  Love life as much as you can.  Little things can wait, but the sunset won't.

Wordy Wednesday

It's Wednesday.  For many, it's one of the busier days of the week.  You realize all the work that must be done before Friday.  Maybe you have commitments in the evening that tie you up.  Maybe you are just tired after a couple long days at work.  

Regardless, Wordy Wednesday here at 'The Sunset Won't' is a quote, short passage or verse that I enjoy and I want to pass along to you.  So here is this week's Wordy Wednesday installment:

Criminal Minds is one of my favorite shows on television.  Here is one of my favorite quotes from that show:

Penelope Garcia: You've got a problem. Deadbolt's the number one password crack-resistant software out there. You're gonna have to get inside this guy's head to get the password.

Derek Morgan: I thought I was calling the office of Supreme Genius.

Penelope Garcia: Well, gorgeous, you've been re-routed to the office of Too Frickin' Bad.

Happy Town

It's time for me to add to my list of 101 Things That Make Me Happy.  As always you can check out my full list of things that make me happy or just check out the new ones :)  Some of these come from ideas on other blogs, or websites, suggestions from other bloggers and the world around me.  Enjoy!


33. Waking up before the alarm.  It's the middle of the night, or early in the morning and you are half asleep.  You think 'surely it is almost time to get up' so you roll over to check out your alarm clock.  And to your amazement you still have lots of time to sleep before your alarm goes off.  Having more time to sleep makes me happy.


34. The moment the lights go out at a concert.  You know that moment.  You are at a concert of one of your favorite bands.  The lights go out and in that moment the audience collectively goes silent for a split second before going crazy.  You know you are seconds away from one of your favorite songs.  That moment of pure anticipation at a concert makes me happy.


35. Watching little kids at a fireworks show.  I love watching little kids watch a fireworks show.  The innocent amazement on their face.  That sense of awe and wonder at the pretty designs in the night sky.  The look on kids faces when they see fireworks at night makes me happy.


36. Absolute, perfectly still silence.  Sometimes noise is great.  But there is once in awhile where absolute serene silence just makes me happy.


37.  Baking cookies.  I really enjoy baking.  Especially sugar cookies from scratch and then making homemade frosting in different colors.  It can be calming for me.  Mixing the dough, rolling it, cutting it, frosting it.  It's an activity where if my mind wanders it's okay, and I still get a wonderful result.  Baking cookies from scratch makes me happy.


38. Ice cream sundaes.  Let me be more specific.  My favorite sundae is light vanilla ice cream with hot caramel and hot fudge on top.  Delicious.  Eating ice cream sundaes makes me happy.


39. The smell of lilacs in the air.  There are a few weeks in spring when lilacs are blooming when the air smells sweet.  The slight hint of lilac in the air makes me happy.


40. Flashback Music.  A recurring theme on this list will be music.  When I have iTunes on shuffle, or I just get in that certain mood, flashback music is awesome.  It could be 80's music classics.  A great theme song to a old movie (a la 'Highway to the Danger Zone' and Top Gun).  Or, I am slightly embarrassed to admit my love for the boy band O-town.  They are flashback songs.  Flashback music that reminds me of good times makes me happy.


What makes you happy?
    

Reading a Dictionary?

Yesterday I was a substitute teacher in a middle school reading class.  One part of the class period was dedicated to Silent Reading time.  I decided that I too would read (to set a good example of course).  So I pulled out my book and began reading.

Back to the middle school.  One student was talking and decided he did not want to read.  So I told him, "well if you can't find something to read I can find a dictionary for you and you can read that."  To which he said, "No one reads a dictionary.  It's too boring."  I then showed him the cover of my book, "Well (little irritating, non-direction following child)(no I did not really say that) I am reading a dictionary and I think its actually pretty funny."

Yes, I am reading a dictionary.  It's only 183 pages.  There are lots of pictures and its wonderful.  It's funny, witty, entertaining and educational.  I was using it as a reference for a discussion in a HS youth group I work with.  It's called "Crazy Talk:  A Not-So-Stuffy Dictionary of Theological Terms" and its way awesome.  It's hip and modern and keeps your attention.  It describes and depicts things in a way that connects to people in the 21st century.  At one point under the definition of ATONEMENT after some explanation about the fact that "for all of you are one in Christ Jesus" they try to explain how Jesus does this.  They describe thee metaphors that are found in the New Testament: Jesus as Money, Jesus as Hermione Granger and Jesus as the Terminator.  How cool is that!  It makes more sense once you read it.

I just wanted to pass along, for anyone interested in Christian Theology and learning a bit more about all the terms that we sometimes hear and have no idea what they mean, that this is a great resource.

I am also reading some books that have been on my shelf for awhile but have not been read.  Several Nora Roberts novels, a Debbie Macomber novel and then I will go back to some old favorites.


Have you read any good books recently?  


Remember the sunset won't wait.  Go out and enjoy life.  Live it.  Love it.

        

Sunshine Time

I am a lucky blogger.  I haven't been around long and I have encountered some wonderful blogs with wonderful authors.  One such blogger, Magpie at Dazzled by Life, has given The Sunset Won't the Sunshine Award!

First, thank you so much Magpie for this award, it truly made my day.  The Sunshine Award from what I understand is for people and blogs who shine.  I am passing the Sunshine Award on to...

1. Hema P. from Wading Through Words.  This blog is consistently enjoyable to read and always adds a little sunshine to my day.

2. Stacy from Stacy Says.  She has an uncanny ability to find the funniest things online and share them with her readers.

3. Tricia from Through My Eyes.  Tricia shares fantastic quotes and verses pairing each post with an image.  As a person who loves reading and loves quotes this blog is wonderful.

4. Neil at 1000 Awesome Things.  This blog was one of the first that I started reading.  I am a huge fan and am thrilled with the success that Neil has found.  When a blog makes you stop and think you can't ask for anything more.  His list is fantastic and makes you appreciate the awesome things that we see every day.

Blogging is a community.  Sometimes it can be hard to dig through all the blogs to find the pearls.  I must also recommend the blogs on my blog roll to the right.  They are all fantastic reads.  Please check them out.  If I could give an award to all of them I think I would.

Remember, little things can wait, the sunset won't!

          

Wordy Wednesday

It's Wednesday.  For many, it's one of the busier days of the week.  You realize all the work that must be done before Friday.  Maybe you have commitments in the evening that tie you up.  Maybe you are just tired after a couple long days at work.  

Regardless, Wordy Wednesday here at 'The Sunset Won't' is a quote, short passage or verse that I enjoy and I want to pass along to you.  So here is this week's Wordy Wednesday installment:

A couple of hundred years ago, Benjamin Franklin shared with the world the secret of his success. 

Never leave that till tomorrow, he said, which you can do today. 

This is the man who discovered electricity. 

You think more people would listen to what he had to say. 

I don't know why we put things off, but if I had to guess, 

I'd have to say it has a lot to do with fear. 

Fear of failure, fear of rejection, sometimes the fear is just of making a decision, 

because what if you're wrong? 

What if you're making a mistake you can't undo? 

The early bird catches the worm. 

A stitch in time saves nine. 

He who hesitates is lost. 

We can't pretend we hadn't been told. 

We've all heard the proverbs, heard the philosophers, 

heard our grandparents warning us about wasted time, 

heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day. 

Still sometimes we have to see for ourselves. 

We have to make our own mistakes. We have to learn our own lessons. 

We have to sweep today's possibility under tomorrow's rug until we can't anymore. 

Until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant. 

That knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, 

and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beat the hell out of never trying.

- Grey's Anatomy -

Happily Ever After or Just Ever After

Growing up 99% of children watch at least one Disney movie.  Okay, I am making that statistic up, but needless to say most kids have seen at least one Disney movie. Snow White, Mulan, Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Hercules, Princess and the Frog... the list goes on.  And what do they all have in common?


Happily Ever After.


But is there really such a thing?  The quotes from my last post were meant to tie into this whole idea of a Happily Ever After.  Does it exist?  As a child raised on Disney I would like to think so.  But what happens after "Happily Ever After" rolls across the screen and the credits roll.  Does Cinderella take to the drastic change in lifestyle?  Does Ariel, who marries at the age of 16, ever regret her decision to leave all she's ever known?  Does the love Beauty has for the Beast still exist for the Prince that he is?  Questions, Questions...


Many of Disney's movies are based on other writings, often much darker, like the Ogre that is the Prince's mother in the tale of Sleeping Beatuy who's daughters name is L'Arore.  They have often prettied up the story, changing it to fit their mold.  From a historical standpoint Pocahontas is atrocious.  First, that isn't even her original name.  When she met John Smith she was about 10 years old.  They never married.  She married a dude named John Rolfe when she was 19.  


So what are we learning from disney?

Well apparently we are to marry the perfect man.  He is strong, smart, brave, he is wealthy and handsome.  He can dance, fight off evil dragons, captain a ship, and give a kiss that makes time seemingly stand still.  He can sing.  AND he just happens to be a prince.

I found this online and couldn't help but laugh.  And you know you have the song in your head now (provided you have seen Mulan). 

We are also learning that animals are our best friends.  They can dance with us, sing with us and make us a dress for pete's sake.  I mean.  Who needs real friends when you can have tons of creepy mice that talk and wear clothes be with you all day.  Not to mention if you wander around in the woods you might stumble onto a cute cottage with 7 little men with ridiculous names and horrendous cleaning skills that can take you in.  

If we were to live solely on what fairy tales tell us then all boys and girls would believe that "Glass slippers and pumpkin carriages are comfortable.  Swapping your voice and family for a pair of legs is a good deal.  Love transforms haughty beasts into Princes.  Pretty girls fall for hunchbacks.  Kissing a Princess with 100 years of morning breath is pleasant.  All boys grow up, stop fighting pirates and fall in love.  Gods give up their hard earned immortality for commoners.  Princesses fall for street urchins.  And that falling in love with an explorer does not risk a nasty smallpox infection." (I found this on a FB group and laughed out loud.)

Now don't get me wrong.  I love my Disney just as much as the next girl.  But has Disney put unrealistic expectations in the minds of little girls?  Unless you have a mental health issue or are Dr. Doolittle I highly doubt a talking animal will be your friend.  Is it even possible to find a good-looking, dancing, singing, strong, enemy-fighting man that believes what you do and has the same hopes for the future?  Every girls is looking for that happy ever after.  That perfect man.  Because thats what we think is out there for us.  But is it really?  Is there a Prince Perfect?

I am a firm believer that somewhere out there, there has to be a Prince Perfect-For-Me.  A girl's gotta have hope right?  Fun fact: I am 22 and have never dated.  Never had a boyfriend.  Never been on a date.  I'm not saying this to get sympathy I am simply saying this because it's tough out there for a Christian girl with traditional values to find that 'perfect' person.  But I have to believe that there is a bigger plan at work.  

I stumbled across this quote from the women who make up the Christian group Barlow Girl: "We believe that God has one perfect man already chosen for us; therefore we have no need to worry ourselves in searching for him. When the time is right, we know God will bring us together. In the mean time, we are not hiding in a closet avoiding all males, we are still living our lives, just without the pressure of having to have a boyfriend."

So back to the quotes on my last post.  We are all Cinderella.  We all have an inner beauty and must go out and find our happiness.  (Something that I have yet to put into action).  While perhaps a happily forever after doesn't exist, what about the now?  What about taking pictures of happy moments to make sure they are ever after?  It's hard to let go of that fairy tale.  We all want a happy ending with our own prince or princess.  So while Disney may give us unrealistic expectations, maybe those very expectations are actually Disney's way of giving us a gift.  A way to keep the kid inside of us alive.  That childlike wish, hope, faith, that someday our Prince (or Princess) will come.  That we will get our happily ever after before the credits roll and the storybook closes.

Side note:  I used to work at a video rental store and had a dad tell me he would not allow his children to watch Disney movies.  "Why?" I asked.  His response was that almost all Disney movies portray one of the parents dying, as already dead, or as absent.  Have you ever noticed that?  Cinderella, Snow White, Aladdin, Little Mermaid, 101 Dalmations, Pocahontas... crazy, right!?

We're All Searching for Something

Yes indeed.  We are all searching for something.  That perfect companion.  A job.  A place to call home.  Searching for who we are.  Who we want to be.  Searching for the light in the dark.  The joy in the sadness.  The right in the wrong.  Hope.  Love.  Faith.  We are all searching.

Enjoy these Happily Ever After inspired quotes that will pair with an upcoming blog post.

Nora Roberts in Vision in White writes: 

"Maybe happy ever after was bull, but she knew she wanted to take more pictures of the moments that were happy.  Because then they were ever after." 

Meredith Grey in Grey's Anatomy said: 

"You know how when you were a little kid and you believed in fairy tales, that fantasy of what your life would be, white dress, prince charming who would carry you away to a castle on a hill. You would lie in bed at night and close your eyes and you had complete and utter faith. Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, Prince Charming, they were so close you could taste them, but eventually you grow up, one day you open your eyes and the fairy tale disappears. Most people turn to the things and people they can trust. But the thing is its hard to let go of that fairy tale entirely cause almost everyone has that smallest bit of hope, of faith, that one day they will open their eyes and it will come true."

Nola Devlin in Lying to Be Perfect said:

We are all Cinderella.  No matter what our size.  Within each one of us there is a unique beauty and grace.  Finding that beauty however isn’t easy.  See Cinderella had to first recognize that her problem wasn’t her evil step mother.  Her problem was that it was easier to hide out cleaning the house that it was to go out and find happiness.

Wordy Wednesday

It's Wednesday.  For many, it's one of the busier days of the week.  You realize all the work that must be done before Friday.  Maybe you have commitments in the evening that tie you up.  Maybe you are just tired after a couple long days at work.  

Regardless, Wordy Wednesday here at 'The Sunset Won't' is a quote, short passage or verse that I enjoy and I want to pass along to you.  So here is this week's Wordy Wednesday installment:

Kindergartens over.  

Training wheels are off.  

Nobody's going to catch you if you fall.  

If you don't like your life you do something about it.  

You reach down, you pull one foot out the mud then the other.  

You walk away from it.  

You can't walk, you crawl.  

You do something.  

Join a gym.  Join a club.  Join a cult.  

Do something.  

Anything.  

What you don't do, is whine to me about it.

[TV Show Private Practice character, Charlotte King]

Happy!

After my last, semi-serious, post I think it's time for me to once again add to my happy.  As always you can check out my full list of things that make me happy or just check out the new ones :)

22. Ice Cold Beer.  I have a confession.  I am a beer girl.  I love me some Golden Light, Select 55 or MGD 60, Shock Top or Blue Moon.  Cracking open a cold beer after a long day or to be the perfect drink to go with my hot pizza.  Drinking ice cold beer makes me happy.


23. Sunshine.  Does this really need an explanation? :)  Today I am sitting outside, in the sunshine as I write. (To make it better I am drinking an ice cold beer as I write)  Sitting in the sunshine, seeing the sunshine, just sunshine, makes me happy.


24. Random Text Messages.  It's been a long day and you're tired.  Then your phone beeps.  Its a random message.  It might be a 'hey what are you up to.'  Or a 'hope you're having a good day.'  Maybe its a holiday and you are getting holiday wishes.  But regardless, you weren't expecting the message.  Admit it.  You smile when you get it.  Getting and sending random text messages makes me happy.


25. Good News.  Good news is always good.  Well there are exceptions but generally... Good news makes me happy.


26. Watching something with my whole family.  It's rare that my parents, sibling and I all sit together to watch a tv show or a movie.  But when we do (and no one talks ) it's great.  It's nice to just be able to spend time in the same room together.  With crazy schedules, and necessary 'alone time' sometimes its hard just to grab an hour together.  But watching something with my whole family makes me happy.


27. My sibling's excited laugh/strange sound.  My sibling makes this funny laugh/'ooo' sound when he is excited or thinks something is super funny.  And every time I hear it I laugh.  My siblings excited laugh makes me happy.


28. Learning about my heritage. I think that my families heritage has an amazing story.  I find it more and more interesting the more I learn or hear.  Being a history lover doesn't hurt.  Learning about my heritage makes me happy.


29. Getting pictures of Mr. Man.  No it's not a significant other.  It's my nephew.  Well, really not, he's my cousin's son.  But she and her hubby are only children so I get to be an honorary aunt.  Mr. Man and his family live on a completely different side of the country, so I don't see him.In fact, I have only met him once.  But I send gifts and I get pictures.  Getting pictures of Mr. Man makes me happy.


30. Memories involving family.  I am getting pretty specific with this one.  Because memories of family are completely different than memories of other things.  I don't have the greatest memory which makes the things I do remember all the more special.  Memories involving family make me happy.


31. The first night in fresh, clean sheets.  Love it!  Hard to explain why.  Sleeping that first night in clean sheets makes me happy.


32. Long showers.  The kind of shower where you have nowhere to be and can take as much time as you want to just stand in the shower.  You don't have to worry about getting to work, or getting out of the bathroom for the next person.  Long showers make me happy.  

That's what makes me happy!

        

Take a minute and think about what makes you happy?