Me, Myself & I - Link Up Party!

1) What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?

Pursue a life of art and travel. Specifically, photography - with National Geographic. Dream job right there folks.

2) If you had only six months left to live, what would you do with the time?

Quit my job, ha. No, but seriously. Quit my job and spend 3-4 months travelling and seeing the world and spend the last couple months at home with my family. [assuming I could afford it, but in this hypothetical I CAN! ha!]

3) If a front page news article was written on you, what would the headline be?

"LOCAL REDHEAD RIDES GIRAFFE OUT OF ZOO" hahahahaha! Idk, but that would be sweet.

4) What is your biggest pet peeve?

People not actually listening, when they say they are. {ahem, most boyfriends/husbands out there} Generally, I don’t interrupt while someone is watching tv or doing something else, but if if I do it’s because I have something that you need to know for whatever reason. When said person tells me or implies that they are aware of my presence and voice and are listening to me...and then just don’t. GAR. I hate repeating myself.

5) What is your favorite chick flick movie?

Oooo, good one. How ever can I choose? I own several movies that could be put in the chick flick category, but could also be put in other categories. SO, I’m going strictly Chick-FlicksThat-ONLY-Girls-Would-Ever-Want-To-See Category.

Okay, here it is... 

Legally Blonde.

Don’t judge me, I’m allowed guilty pleasures.

xo, kass 

Taboo Topics?

So, last week I was on that 20 Something Bloggers site. I haven’t been super active on it, but I am being a bit more so. Anyway, I was just skimming the forums and I found one thread about wanting to blog about certain things, but not being able to for various reasons. I found many of the responses very interesting and I have felt that way about certain topics (as I’m sure most other bloggers have as well).

Honestly, I think when you write a lifestyle blog...as opposed to a fashion or craft blog, you can “get away” with writing and talking about a lot more stuff, especially in the personal realm. But really, it all just depends on the person. Many of the people who responded to the thread didn’t write about certain topics because of who reads their blog - and this makes total sense to me. If you have family and friends reading your blog, then you definitely wouldn’t want to write a rant after having an argument with one of them or something. {and besides most people probably don't want to read that...unless it's awkwardly humorous somehow, lol} And..it also may make you not want to share too personal of topics. When it comes to sharing personal stuff, well...a) my family that reads this probably already know about it and b)the rest of my readers I have never met and thus don’t feel very shy about sharing (if that makes any sense). I feel like my Things I’m Afraid to Tell You post really comes into play with all this. Anyway, I guess it’s all about comfort level.

For example, I try really hard not to write about work too much [and by write I mean gripe]. I’d never know if a co-worker stumbled upon this blog and if I had a vent sesh about my job, well that could be bad news. I suppose also sharing personal information could end up badly/awkward if someone from my professional world read, but I’m not going to censor myself completely, so come what may! I also think that sometimes, I, and many other bloggers may put the kabosh on blogging about personal opinions about the state of our world, among other things.  I don't know why I censor myself there, because I feel pretty passionate about somethings - so I'm going to let my opinions out, in a kind and respectful manner (I hope!), because regardless I don't want to or intend to offend anyone.

Frankly, I like when bloggers share personal opinions or details about their life - even when they aren’t so happy details or opinions. When you read most blogs you get a very happy, very perfect looking snap shot of their life. While I don’t want to read 10 paragraphs of depression shit every day - I enjoy when bloggers are honest and “real” about their feelings and what’s going down in their lives. Because the truth is, our lives aren’t perfect and we all have bad days or crazy shit happening at one point or another, so I think it’s fine to share that. Plus, when I do read more intimate posts like that I feel like I actually know the writer a bit and I make more of a personal connection.

And why else do you blog if not to connect with people?

So what do you think - any topics that are too taboo for a blogger to tackle?

Overwhelmed

Artwork: Annie Preece Website/Facebook

I have to be honest, I’m feeling overwhelmed lately. For lots of reasons, but it’s mostly because I’m trying to make some pretty significant changes in my personal life {which I will elaborate on more when/if they happen}. I also have tons of other things I want to do - some projects, focus on photography, play my guitar more, KEEP MY HOUSE CLEAN, and keep this blog. Put that on top of the whole boyfriend-living-an-hour-away and I’m just out time. I’m not getting to do all the things I want and it’s obvious to me now that I need to cut some things back {or out} and make some priorities.

To start, I’m going to cut back my blog posts. I generally post 5 times a week, but it’s just too much for me to keep up with. I think I’m probably going to cut back to 3 times a week, which also means I probably won’t do the Recipe and Friday Favorites posts every week, but I’ll still do them. I think doing this will help me feel less overwhelmed and provide you with better quality posts. Plus, I will actually be able to get some of my DIY projects done, so that I can share them with you! If you just have to have you daily fix of Ginger {lol}, then be sure to follow my twitter. I will be posting more of my daily tidbits there. Also, I think I need to trim down my daily blog reading, seriously! There are just soooo many amazing blogs out there...and my list just keeps getting longer and longer. Sigh.

Like I said above, I really want to focus on my photography. I have all these books and never any time to read them. I want to learn the ins and outs of the equipment and all the technical jargon, because I believe that will help me become a better photography. And, of course, I want to practice it more. Blogging less will allow me to do that and focus on taking better photos for the blog {hopefully!}.

One of the most important things on my plate right now is getting my damn house clean! Excuse my language, haha! That’s just how frustrating it is too me. I do little spot pick ups...or just throw it all in my spare room. WHICH, is supposed to be my craft room as well. SIGH. This weekend I did make a lot of progress on my spare room, but it still needs more work as does the rest of my home.

I could always use an extra pair of hands, any takers?! :)

xo, kassie

30 for 30!?

Okay, it’s official. I have decided to do Kendi’s 30 for 30 Challenge. It’s quite possible that I won’t follow through with it, very possible in fact, but I’m going to try. I’ve thought about doing it for awhile now and I’ve decided I have enough good reasons to go for it.

Basically, I know I have enough cute clothes that I shouldn’t be wearing the same outfit every other day. I’m getting lazy. I think this challenge will definitely help me learn to work with what I have, which is super important since I’m on a strict budget. I think it will also help me choose a few nice pieces I’d like to add to my closet [especially since Christmas AND my birthday are around the corner!] as well as help me purge my closet a bit. Finally, I think this challenge will help me be braver. Too many times I have planned out an outfit in my head...or literally, and then not worn it out of fear. Fear of what others would think of me, fear of the unwanted attention, fear that I in fact do not look cute, but rather quite ridiculous. I’m tired of that!

I know the “rules” for 30 fo 30 are pretty lax, so here are the guidelines I’ll be going by.

• The shopping ban - I rarely shop anyway, so I’m not too worried about this. However, I will say that if I find the perfect brown boots that I’m looking for I will be purchasing them guilt free. Also, if it gets chilly, I may not have enough tights to get me through, so I reserve the right to buy a couple pairs if needed! 

• Weekends off - for the most part. If I have somewhere to go, of course I’ll try to include it in the 30 for 30. Otherwise, the weekends are freebies, so obviously this will take me longer than a month to finish. 

• Friend’s Wedding - another freebie! I am going to try to include the rehearsal dinner in the 30 for 30, but the wedding is a no go! I’m pretty sure I can’t/don’t want to restyle that bridesmaid dress for a month. :P 

• Jeans - When you see jeans listed below...it means whatever pair I feel like wearing that day! I have like 3 pairs I rotate, so I’m going to let them count as 1. This is one place my wardrobe needs a little help! 

• I will not be counting cami’s I wear under stuff, tights, leggings, scarves or jewelery. Maybe I should count camis if they are showing, but meh. The others are all accessories, so they are freebies.

I’ve actually already been doing this for a couple of days....so here are my 30 choices!

Yikes! I’m a bit nervous about this...

peace, kassie