When I grow up...

Oh, the glamorous life of a soybean.

Don't you wish it were really that easy?

T.G.I.F!!

-V

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Songs:

"Change the World" Eric Clapton

photo credit

mantra for the new year

“Life is either a daring adventure, or it is nothing.”
~ Helen Keller

For some, 2010 may be a year of settling and settling down...

But as for me;

I will run full speed ahead, with reckless abandon.

I will be brazen, bold, and fearless.

I will sing at the top of my lungs, no matter the company.

I choose to laugh; unabashedly and smile from the heart.

I choose to dance and live and breathe deeply.

I will love with everything in me and risk it all.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Let's make 2010 a year to remember!

-V

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Songs:

"Sink or Swim" Tyrone Wells

"My Dear Acquaintance (A Happy New Year)" Regina Spektor

Blog Action Day '09- Climate Control

Climate Change. Global Warming. The Greenhouse Effect. What's the big deal?

Webster's Dictionary defines Global Warming as an increase in the earth's atmospheric and oceanic temperatures widely predicted to occur due to an increase in the greenhouse effect resulting especially from pollution. This definition is circa 1969, so why is it only making headlines in recent years? Obviously Climate Change is not a new concept, scientists have been warning us about it for years. The reason it is becoming such a hot topic lately is not because "going green" is trendy, but because the rate at which we are putting harmful gasses into the air is growing at an alarming rate.

In honor of Blog Action Day 2009, I calculated my carbon footprint via The Nature Conservancy's website. According to The Nature Conservancy, the average person in the United States emits 27 tons of CO2 eq/year taking into account Home Energy, Driving and Flying, Food and Diet, and Recycling and Waste. So, when I found out my estimated emissions was 'only' 13 tons of CO2 eq/year, I was feeling pretty good about myself. I unplug my appliances when they're not being used, don't eat red meat, and have relocated so that I'm not driving as many miles to work each day. Yep, I'm 'only' emitting 13 tons of ozone-depleting gas into the atmosphere every year. No big deal.

I was feeling pretty good, that is until I scrolled a little further down the page. The world average per person is 5.5 tons of CO2 eq/year. I am more than double that amount, and I hate to break it to you, average resident of the good ole U.S. of A, but you're nearly five times that amount! This is kind of a big deal, folks. Simply put, if this earth was our landlord, we would be the suckiest tenants ever. Can you say, eviction?

Clearly something needs to change, and instead of just talking about it, I am going to make the change start with me. On this Blog Action Day, October 15, 2009, I am making a pledge. Nothing drastic, just everyday things that I can commit to.

I pledge to:

• Always recycle my soda cans, even if the recycling bin is full and the trash can is so much closer....
• Start using a reusable water bottle instead of buying packages of them each month.
• Do all of my laundry in cold water and use the dryer sparingly.
• Not let the water run while I brush my teeth. I'm really bad about this one, guys.
• Buy a bike for Eco-friendly warm-weather transportation.
• Replace my light bulbs with the neat twisty ones. [very technical terms, I know.]
• Unplug my phone charger when I'm not using it. Did you know that still uses electricity?
• Get rid of my old clunker as soon as fiscally possible.
• Shop Organic. I buy mostly organic food, but I definitley have some beauty products that could be traded in.
• Donate my time to an organization, plant a tree, pick up trash, something!

What will YOU do?

-V. O'Neel

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Song:
"Global Warming" Vermillion Lies

Making Strides

I have signed up to walk in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk on October 18th. I am currently collecting donations and would appreciate any help you can give. Feel free to share this link with your friends, family, co-workers, or anyone else you think might be interested. Any amount will help, and I know that together we can make a difference to fight this disease which affects so many women and their families across our country.

My Grandmother is a Breast Cancer survivor. I was so young when they found her cancer, I don't even remember it. She was lucky enough to have it detected on a regular mammogram, the cancer was the size of the head of a pin. She was one of the lucky ones, and I am so grateful to organizations like the American Cancer Society for being such strong advocates for education and fundraising. Events like Making Strides are invaluable, they help bring awareness and much needed funds to support research and treatment.

I have had the same best friend since I moved next door to her over 14 years ago. Her mom, Beth, has been like a second mother to me, and I can't imagine my life without her. When I was a senior in high school, Beth was diagnosed with Breast Cancer for the first time. She went through chemotherapy and a very painful surgery to remove nearly half of her right breast, but her treatments were successful, and she was in remission for the next few years. Last summer, Beth went in for her check-up. Unfortunately the doctors found that she had Breast Cancer in her left breast this time, and worse, it had spread to her lymph nodes. She made the bold decision to have a double mastectomy and is now going through chemotherapy for the second time.

I will always admire her for her strength and courage. She has been so incredibly tough throughout this whole ordeal, because she has to be. Beth Loper is the glue that holds her family together, and she knows it. I have seen the way it affects her entire family and the way it has affected mine as well. Right now, the Loper family is fighting for more than just Beth. Her mother and mother-in-law are also currently in treatment for Breast Cancer. My best friend, Allison, is considering preemptive mastectomy to prevent her from getting the cancer which has plagued all generations of her family thus far. We will all continue to pray and have faith that these very important, very strong women, will win their fight.

A little over four years ago, I lost someone very close to me from Breast Cancer. A client of my Mother's, and a close family friend, was diagnosed with breast cancer in her early thirties. She had a toddler son whom I would often babysit. She and her husband were very active in a local church in my hometown, and Julie had a smile that lit up the room. I watched this vibrant, young woman go through chemotherapy and lose her hair and eventually, her breasts. Throughout the entire ordeal, I never once saw Julie without a smile on her face. She was the epitome of strength to me. Sadly, she lost her fight with Breast Cancer, but she will never stop inspiring me and the others whose lives she touched with her positivity. I oftentimes wonder if her son, Luke, who was only three when she passed away, will ever know just how hard his mother fought to stay with him.

As I write this I am furious. I have been so blessed in my life, and I live in such a time of technology, money, and progress, I can't rationalize to myself that there is no cure for Cancer. Treatment is great, and certainly there are many success stories, for which I am grateful. Treatment, however, is not enough. I will not be satisfied until there is a cure for this disease, and there are no more women dying, no more broken families, and no more fear.

Please click on the link below to view my personal page on the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer website. I would greatly appreciate any gift you can give, and you truly will be helping make a difference in the lives of women across the country.

-V.O'Neel

The American Cancer Society
Shared via AddThis

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not.”

-Dr. Seuss

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Songs:

"Praise You in this Storm" Casting Crowns

Calling All Heroes!

“We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another.”
-Lucretius

I have a lot on my mind this evening, although I'm afraid I haven't got much to say. I'm kind of getting to a point, at least with certain topics, where there are no more words. In short, I want a lot of things for my life. I have often had the internal dialogue; where do I want to be in 5 years? 10? and it usually comes down to the same basic outline; finish my Bachelor's, Master's, get married, raise some kiddos. Hopefully a brilliant career will find it's way in there, somewhere.

I do not believe in taking a passive stance in life. Having goals is useless unless you are willing to do the work it takes to achieve them. I have a hard time not knowing, and an even harder time admitting that there are some things I can't do much about. I can do my best to put myself in a position to be successful in school, and at my workplace, and I can achieve those goals.

I can not however, simply say to myself; Okay. This month, I'm going to find myself a husband. At least, I don't think that's how it works. I'm fine being single for now, mostly. I am just growing tired of it. I oftentimes feel like I'm stuck in a cycle of bad dates, failed relationships, and if I'm honest, one jackass after another-an endless string of letdowns.

So where's this "white knight" my Mother (and Walt Disney) told me about when I was a little girl? Isn't there supposed to be some perfectly chiseled, well spoken, handsome young man around here somewhere? Well, if there is, I certainly haven't found him yet. I'm [still] waiting for my hero. I realize there is not much I can do, so I will have faith and wait patiently until my Prince comes along to save me from this unending chain of frogs.

Now, I don't expect to be literally swept off my feet by some square-jawed Dream Man, but I wouldn't pass up the opportunity, should it pull up to my house in a horse-drawn carriage; that's all I'm saying.

-V.O'Neel

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Note: before you all die of a cliché overload; I'm only half-serious with this post. =)

Songs:
"Holding out for a Hero" Frou Frou
"Dreams" The Cranberries

Image: I took this at my cousin's wedding ceremony.

Cutest flower girl ever, right?

Edited using Picnik.

Remembering 9/11/2001.

I will NEVER:

Give up on something/one I believe in.
Go to sleep with anger in my heart.
Leave relationships unresolved.
Let pride keep me from making amends.
Hold grudges- it's just NOT worth it.
Waste time on a lost cause.
Obsess over the past- live it, learn from it, move on.
Take my failures too seriously, or my rejections too personally.
Let my first impression dictate my opinion of a person.



I will ALWAYS:

Follow my heart.
Tell loved ones how much they mean to me.
Be honest with myself.
Live with purpose.
Forgive.
Know the difference between a good investment, and a waste of time.
Live in the moment.
Love deeply and whole-heartedly.
Find time to laugh and enjoy.

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Songs:
"Use Well the Days" Howard Shore