Dallas Career Day

So many firsts happened last weekend:

• My first time to fly by myself
• My first time to stay in a hotel by myself
• My first time to walk on a runway as a designer
• My first time to win a scholarship because of something I designed

Success in any amount is delicious. It makes me want to keep working, to finish, to do even better. If I could win a first place category like this, what could I do if I worked really hard?

Money Management Fun

I'm not always organized, but with money I am. Super-organized. I actually enjoy making a budget and balancing it... particularly on payday. But I'll do it any day, especially when I have a big school deadline to procrastinate! These are some of the strategies I've learned from my own experience in keeping track of money.

 

• Note every little thing you spend (or make) money on. I take all my receipts, and I even carry a small sticky note pad and a pen inside my wallet for writing down those transactions that don't have a receipt- like loading cash onto my Metro card or getting paid for babysitting. I store them in a couple manila envelopes. For most purchases, I throw out the receipt after a month or two.

 

• Record your transactions in your personal budget software or paper ledger every single evening. That's when it's easiest to remember what I spent and where, particularly when I paid with cash. It's not a big job; usually I don't have more than 1 or 2 transactions a day. This ritual also reminds me of how much I have left to spend in my budget categories; if it's been 2 weeks since I last entered any data, I may not have as much to spend at Starbucks as I thought I did.
• Have a $1000 minimum emergency fund, and keep adding to it. Especially if you drive. When I was 19, I hit another car at very low speed in the parking lot and left scratches on two of his side panels. Rather than have my insurance premium take a hit for the next several years, I paid the owner out of pocket. Actually, I wrote him a check, not a cashier's check, just a normal check. If I were him, I'm not sure I would have accepted that; after all, I was really young, and at the time of the accident I was wearing a fast food uniform! I had the funds in my account though, and while it wasn't fun to see my hard-earned money go to that, it was a blessing to realize I had the money and this wasn't going to hurt me.

• Adjust your budget percentages if they aren't working. I have done this countless times. I don't like constantly borrowing from one category to pay for another; it makes no sense. Sometimes it hurts to see what percentage of your paycheck is needed to pay for a bill or a spending habit you have, but a budget has to work. Make your percentages work for what's going on in your life right now, and if you find a way to cut expenses or kick your indulgent habits, you can readjust then. I'm kind of extreme; if one of my budget categories dips below zero, I'll often rewrite it to zero and pull the rest of the funds from non-essential categories or categories where I've built up excess. For example, I just paid my dad for my portion of the auto insurance. I knew this was the time of year to pay, but I expected that only 6 months' insurance would be due; actually, the premium for the entire next year was due all at once. I paid what I could out of the insurance category and stole the rest from my gifts and spending categories.

My Favorite Healthy Grab-n-Go Snacks

I'm often in a rush when I leave for school or work or even for an emergency trip to the store. I appreciate a snack that is already prepared, packaged, and contained so that I can literally pick it up as I walk by without missing a beat and drop it in my bag without worrying that it will spill everywhere. If I don't bring a snack with me, I frequently buy something far less healthy and more expensive than anything I would have bought at the grocery store and made at home.

Here is what I've been eating recently:

• Baby carrots (I like the ones that come in single serving size bags. Someone once told me that baby carrots are washed with Clorox, so I buy the organic ones. I don't know if they're any better, but I feel safer.)
• Red bell pepper (Needs to be cut open and seeded at home, but at least it's not as sticky and juicy as most other fruits. My sister told me it is the most nutritious fruit there is! I don't know whether that lofty statement is true, but any produce with deep color usually is packed with vitamins.)

• Roasted chickpeas (A great substitute for crunchy, salty, and spicy junk food, because they're all that, minus the junk. I once ate a whole batch in one day. The recipe is here.)
• Almonds (I toasted them once, and they tasted like popcorn, but they're delicious raw)

• Chickpea cookie dough balls (I've made up a few variations of these: almond butter, cocoa powder...The original recipe is here. They're a little less clean, but I toss them in a small Pyrex bowl with a lid and take a napkin. They're best when they're chilled too. OK, so these are not really a good grab-n-go snack, but I keep making them anyway!)
• Dates (I love the bulk Medjool dates that contain the pit. The pit preserves the freshness, so they're sweeter and moister than the pitted ones. I really don't understand people who don't like dates. This is my ultimate sweet tooth satisfier.)

Sometimes (when I've not been managing my time very well) I will bring everything on this list and call it lunch!

The Penny: My Thoughts

The Penny tells the tales of several characters, most of them strangers to the others, but who make choices that bring them to one place on one pivotal night that will change each of their lives, for better or for worse.

OK, I feel as though I'm repeating a promotional blurb, so I might as well quote the description on the back of the DVD case:

"Ten years after a tragic accident, former detective Jack Carter wants nothing more than to be a good father and husband, but his life begins to unravel through the actions of people he hasn't even met. Rebellious teens, a gas station owner, criminals, and a washed up cop all have plans of their own. Suddenly , these six lives begin to fit together in a completely unexpected way. Some would call it fate or destiny, others just bad luck or even coincidence. But is there more to it? The answer lies in a penny."

The film is rather emotional at times. My mom couldn't stand to watch it, but the rest of us enjoyed it, though I'll admit I got moist eyes. I thought I knew in general where the plot was going, but there were surprises thrown in along the way. The acting was not great but good (I'm comparing it to other small-budget indie Christian film projects). The father character impressed me, and I'll talk more about him below.

Title // The Penny
Studio // Filmweavers LLC
Year // 2010

Themes:

No event is insignificant. There are ramifications to everything. Everything and everyone is interconnected. Our own futures are being concocted right now out of people we have never met and events we have no clue are happening. What I do right now will impact someone else another day in ways I can't imagine.

God has a reason in letting bad things happen. Good will come of it later, perhaps in the life of the same person or a different person. We forget that our own life is not the full story of the world; a relatively minor inconvenience to us could be the circumstance that saves someone else's life. We don't even realize how many times our own lives have been saved from dangers we were completely unaware of, precisely because God prevented them from happening.

The old fathers-need-to-be-present-in-their-children's-lives theme was there. It's not that I don't agree with it; I do, but it comes up in almost every "Christian" film, and it's so obvious and preachy. I'm glad I'm not a man; I don't think I'd be able to stand it that every Christian film was trying to teach me a lesson!

With that rant over, I will say the theme was presented a little differently here. The dad really wanted to be involved in his teenage daughter's life, but he misunderstood her. She was pretty spiteful, and even though deep down she wanted her dad to do things with her, she always rejected his invitations when he suggested that they go somewhere fun or work on a school project together. The father didn't realize that she was testing him and he wasn't insistent. Both of them failed to communicate truthfully to each other. While they both wanted a deeper relationship, they seemed to think that it would happen without any effort on their part. It took a near tragedy for the daughter's heart to open up to her dad.

The father was a surprisingly strong actor in a part that must have been very hard to play. We meet him in the first scene as a courageous police detective, the leader who is tough on criminals but who knows how to boost the morale of his nervous comrade. When his plans go wrong and he finds his comrade shot to death, his display of raw grief is just overwhelming. He retires from the police force, and the film jumps forward several years, where we find him working a quiet job as a mailman to provide for his family, then coming home every evening to take care of his wife, who has an undiagnosed, debilitating illness, and his three children. He takes care of the cooking and cleaning and still makes time to play with his kids and tuck the younger ones in bed. There are so many emotions that he feels- weariness, tenderness for his wife, concern for his daughter- yet he handles it in a manly way. He's incredibly selfless and sacrificial. He's the rock for his family.

On another positive note, I was happy to see that the teenage girls dressed modestly, even when wearing their volleyball uniforms. The daughter's friends were portrayed as out-of-control, but in their physical appearance that only manifested itself in heavy make-up and brightly colored clothing.

The Art of Procrastination: My Thoughts

This is a tongue-in-cheek book by a lifelong procrastinator, who, it seems, has come to accept himself as he is and wants to encourage other procrastinators not to waste time trying to change themselves, but to use their natural tendency toward procrastination to get stuff done.

The book is short and conversational and full of funny, relatable anecdotes. It's so nice to know that there are lots of other procrastinators, and they have the same thoughts and habits I do.

Title // The Art of Procrastination: A Guide to Effective Dawdling, Lollygagging, and Postponing
Author // John Perry, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, Stanford University
Year Published // 2012

I'll summarize each chapter and the wisdom I gleaned from it. So far, I have not implemented any of it, but I hope it will become part of my psyche.

INTRODUCTION : The Paradox of Procrastination // A "structured procrastinator" is someone who accomplishes a lot while they are busy avoiding doing something else. Procrastinators, just get rid of the guilt and feel better about yourselves!

I : Structured Procrastination // Often, what we think are the top priorities are not the most important things in life; procrastinating is a roundabout way of doing things that should be done. Procrastinators shouldn't minimize their commitments. Doing moderately important things is a lot better than doing nothing.

II : Procrastination and Perfectionism // Procrastinators want to be perfect, but, like anyone else, they usually do only an adequate job- right at the deadline. Avoid the emotional turmoil by giving yourself permission to do a less-than-perfect job from the very beginning.

III : To-Do Lists // Procrastinators need a constant sense of accomplishment during long projects. Break down your job into a series of small steps. Try to foresee distractions and include things that you should NOT do, so that you can check them off when you avoid procrastinating! Make your daily list the night before and fall asleep imagining yourself getting stuff done.

IV : Get Rhythm // Make playlists of upbeat songs and play them whenever you need to get a job done. It is easier to start a task when you tell yourself that you'll work just for the duration of the playlist.

V : The Computer and the Procrastinator // The internet and TV can create a false sense of accomplishment. Start your session soon before a natural interruption will take place. Decide what a decent amount of time on the internet would be, and set an alarm to interrupt you then.

VI : A Plea for the Horizontally Organized // Procrastinators function best when they can see everything spread out before them, and they have a difficult time putting their things away in the middle of a project; if they do so, they aren't likely to take it out again.

VII : Collaborating With the Enemy? // Partner with Type-A get-'er-done varieties. They will inspire you to be more like them, but they will also take away your power to decide to procrastinate.

VIII : Fringe Benefits // While you're sitting on a task, it will sometimes get done by someone else. Or become simpler or irrelevant. Or you'll learn something new pertaining to how it should be done. Just be aware that it is a flaw.

IX : Do Procrastinators Have to Be Annoying? // Procrastinators annoy non-procrastinators. Non-procrastinators should know that we really do feel guilty about it. The author theorizes that childish spite is at the root of a lot of "structured procrastination;" we want others to know they can't control us.

X : Deep Concluding Thoughts // We are a big bundle of disparate desires; for some of us the desire to be rational is not very strong, and we end up as procrastinators. However, thinking and dreaming is the structured procrastinator's gift, and spontaneity is the only way to do it.

Appendix : How to Kick the Habit - Read at Your Own Risk // If you realize that procrastination is making you unhappy, attack it from the other end and just work on being happy. The author suggests using Google Calendar (and putting in events such as "Quit wasting time and get to work") and LazyMeter.com's to-do lists, but he advises against searching out too many tools or reading materials on procrastination. That will really only be another way of procrastinating.

Banana-Mango Breakfast Milkshake

It's really just a smoothie, but you can almost believe that there's ice cream in it.

Ingredients:

• 1 mango
• 1 pear
• 1/2 banana
• 2/3 c. milk
• 1/4 t. vanilla extract
• 1/2 t. honey

Freeze the fruit for about half an hour, and then whip it together in the blender.

The best thing about smoothies is that your fruit can and should be overripe. The bananas and pears are bruised, and the pit of the mango is splitting open, but once it's blended up and you can't see the blemishes, the fruit tastes sweeter than ever!

Little Black Dress 2014

I entered the Little Black Dress Designer competition on Saturday. Fifty beautiful dresses walked down this runway, and only sixteen were chosen to move on to round two. Mine wasn't one, which was a relief in a way. Losing is less work, and I have a collection to finish!

This is the first time I've competed against students from other schools. It is a tough crowd in which to stand out. Even among my classmates in collections class this year, I've been feeling less talented, less skilled, and less professional than I have in previous years. The closer I move to the top, the more the field narrows. Of the hundreds of students that take the beginner design classes, only a handful go all the way to the end and design a complete collection. When I started, my professors were quite impressed with how neat my work was and how tasteful my designs were. It seemed that no matter what I did, I would always get an A, and I started taking that for granted. I had somewhat of a prideful attitude when I compared myself to 90% of the other students. Now only that top 10% are left at my level, and I'm not the best. That's been a good thing for me to realize. I'm not the most self-disciplined or industrious. I'm certainly not the most creative or innovative. I'm not even the most technical or clean. I'm really kind of average.

I have room for improvement. I like the way that sounds.

I would, however, like to know where the judges thought I fell short. There were some shoddy construction details for sure. Was it that? Was the fit not quite right, or that the darts were too pointy? It was a rather simple design and didn't put on the show that some other dresses did. (But this is the Little Black Dress, for crying out loud. You know, classic. Chanel. Audrey Hepburn. I don't want to sound like a sore loser, but I thought my dress channeled those iconic ladies more than most of the other entries.)

I learned a big lesson that I failed to heed at Career Day. Work and work up until the last second, if that's what it takes to finish, and don't give up until you either submit your work or get turned down. I showed up two minutes after the drop-off window was supposed to close, and there were still several students in line, so I just stepped in behind them. I wasn't turned away. I'm so glad I put in the effort to get there, rather than sitting at home feeling sorry for myself and assuming I had no hope.