Life is short... drink the damn Champagne!

Here are little tidbits from outfits that I have worn to work recently. Nothing too interesting, I admit. Black. White. Stripes. Animal Jewelry. Animal Print. 1 pair of pants for every 4 skirts. Pretty Standard.

So, on a completely unrelated note, I've been thinking a lot about "waiting" lately. I'm kind of an instant gratification kind of girl as it relates to most things, but in other areas I "save" things to use or enjoy at a later, "more special"time. This can be practical in some cases. Like... it is okay to "wait" to wear a sequins cocktail dress til New Year's Eve, but why wait to drink a good bottle of champagne? I held on a an expensive bottle of champagne for 2 years for no apparent reason. Then, I decided to open it up while I was wearing sweatpants randomly last Saturday night. Why after 2 years did I open it up then? At 2am with a couple of girlfriends on an average weekend? Why? Because this is my life, and it is worth celebrating. If that sounds hokey, I don't give a damn.

"Waiting"... it's a theme that has been very present in my life lately. Everywhere I turn, people (including myself) are "waiting" to live.
1. One of the girls I talk to every time I go to the bank complimented me on my bright colored outfit earlier in the week and informed me that she is "waiting" to lose some weight before she does the same.
2. I have a girlfriend who wants a child SO badly, and she would be an AWESOME mom, and she is almost 40, but she is "waiting" to meet a guy, date, fall in love, get engaged, get married, and banking on the fact that that will all happen relatively soon (not to mention with a man who wants the exact same things).
3. I know a guy who has a very stressful career.  He wakes up every day looking 2-3 years down the road, when he will be making more money, when things will be "easier". Then he says he will relax... enjoy his life.
4. I actually know a person who claims to want to eat better, but he is going to "wait" to see if he gets sick. That is a true story. (I had someone tell me that if their lifestyle leads them to Type II Diabetes, THEN they will eat more veggies and less meat, but until then..."Hey, what the hell").
5. A girl I know has lived like a hermit for years (literally years) while she saved up to get plastic surgery on her face. She is waiting to get surgery before she will be social (and I am not talking about someone with a deformity, I am talking about a for realzzzz beautiful chick). She will go NO WHERE except work until she gets her nose, cheeks, and chin done.
6. Another friend of mine is dating a completely controlling, son of a bitch, asshole. He is a real piece of work and he has broken her spirit and self esteem in every way one person can do that to another. She is not REALLY breaking up with him though. Why? Because she is "waiting" for her  Prince Charming to notice her, find out where she lives, walk up to her door, knock on it, and swoop her off her feet to live happily ever after. "Waiting" for a mystery man to give her a reason to leave the complete waste of flesh that she is with now. As if she is not reason enough.

News flash... maybe sitting stagnant is somehow mentally blocking us from all of the things we are "waiting" for. Waiting, although necessary in some cases, kind of robs us of today. I mean... these are our lives. We work, we get stressed out, we fall in love, we get our hearts broken, we want to lose weight, gain weight, make more money, get engaged, get married, have a kid, travel to Europe, go on a mission trip,  get a divorce, become a runner, find a girl/boyfriend, find God, get a Master's Degree, buy an Italian sports car, etc. All of that is well and good, but every today is the next day's yesterday and that is a pretty effin' wild concept, right? Anyway... I am working on this in my life, and it wasn't until it hit me like a ton of bricks that I became more aware of it. So... maybe you stopped reading this rant by now, or maybe... this was your proverbial "ton of bricks".

I'll leave you with a couple of quotes that have had a powerful impact on me in the last 2 days. Enjoy, Mamacitas.. and CHEERS(with 2 year old champagne) to really "living" your life!

"People wait. They wait for the elusive day when they'll finally have enough time (guess what? - you never will), enough education (there's always more to know), enough money (no matter how much you make, someone will always have more) . . . People wait until that fateful day when they wake up and realize that while they were sitting around paying dues, earning their keep, waiting for that elusive 'perfect time' their entire life has passed them by." Serve, Thank, Ask, Receive, Trust. —Richie Norton (thanks for that, B.D)



This is the night we busted open the champagne. But that was looooong after this picture was taken. So yeah, there is no excuse for the face biting.

"If you're feeling frightened about what comes next... don't. Embrace the uncertainty. Allow it to lead you places. Be brave as it challenges you to exercise both your heart and your mind as you create your own path towards happiness. Don't waste time with regret. Spin wildly into your next action. Enjoy the present - each moment as it comes - because you'll never get another one quite like it. And if you should ever look up and find yourself lost, simply take a breath and start over. Retrace your steps and go back to the purest place in your heart, where your hope lives. You'll find your way again..." -Julia Brown Everwood