REMEMBERING TO BREATH (UNIT 7)

"Peace.  It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work.  It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart."  -unknown

Having recently gone through a bit of a chaotic month (and because I created my blog theme with ‘organization and simplicity’ in mind), I thought it would be a great idea to have my newest blog post be about helpful tips and ways to keep life organized, stay stress free and remember to not sweat the small things!

"That's the music - when you never know what's gonna happen."  

- unknown

While I like to think of myself as an organized person (I am in certain areas), there are a lot of moments in my life where I wish I was a tad more coordinated (and I’m speaking in terms of homework, work, etc., not clumsiness!).  It’s always been a goal of mine to master this for more than a few days, ie. make it a permanent ‘lifestyle’ that comes without thinking, like eating healthy.  

"All great changes are preceded by chaos."

- Deepak Chopra

Although I haven’t mastered it 100% yet (since I seem to be organized for 24-48 hours and then become very disorganized and have to re-organize once again...yikes, it even sounds chaotic typing it out!), here are some of the main tips that seem to truly help me in my moments of disarray (and hopefully they can help those of you in need, too!):

1. Have everything ready the night before: on the rare occasion that I'm able to have my lunch packed and ready to grab from the fridge, my car keys hanging by my door, my outfit for the day chosen and laid out (and little things like setting the coffee timer to go off before I wake up or having enough gas to get to work), I've realized how much smoother my mornings go.
2. Visually mapping out my week: when I say visually I mean literally drawing out my week; sometimes I like to buy one of those big blank calendars to hang on my wall so I can sharpie in the week tasks ahead of me, while other times I'll just use my day planner and fill out things I need to remember before the week begins and map out a general 'game plan.'
3. Chalkboard door: this is one of my favorite tips; if your apartment or home allows, I highly suggest going to a craft store and picking up some chalkboard/blackboard paint (it's cheap!) - a few months ago I painted the entire back of my bedroom door with it, and it now serves as my massive "reminder" of tidbits I would normally forget...I'll write down important stuff on it so that I literally can't miss seeing it as I'm walking out the door!
4. Purging clutter: every once in a while (or during the 'Spring Cleaning Season' or after a horribly awesome episode of Hoarders), I think everyone enjoys getting rid of some clutter; no matter what it is - old, duplicate bathroom products, expired food, random junk in our desk drawers or purses, clothing we haven't worn in 2 years (or 6 months for that matter)), when you can get yourself to let go of things that are truly unnecessary (also known just as 'stuff'), it always feels as if you can start the next day with a clean slate.
5. Remembering to breathe: I think in today's world where everything moves so fast and we're constantly updating our Twitter, Facebook, Blogss, etc. while simultaneously following all of our friends updates as well, a lot of us forget how important it is to breathe; even in the middle of the day, I'll make five minutes to get some fresh air or take a break and do a few deep breaths; it can be surprisingly calming.
6. Taking a step back - don't sweat the small stuff!  This is one of the utmost important things I try to remember and channel as much as possible, and it's helped me in more situations - big and small, serious and petty - than I can count.  Like with forgetting to breathe, it is so easy to lose ourselves in the chaos and stress of our everyday lives, where we end up 'zoning in' too much but never 'zoning out;' ie. things that actually aren't as important, worrisome or stressful as we believe them to be at the moment get blown out of proportion.  It never fails to alleviate a cluttered day or make me feel better in general to remember to zone out, take a step back and remember that I shouldn't be wasting my time or energy sweating the small stuff!

"You need chaos in your soul to give birth to a dancing star."

- Friedrich Nietzsche

What are some things you guys do to stay organized and stress free?  

Cheers, 

K.

BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG CITY: HELLO LA

Touched down in LaLa Land last night!  My stepsister picked me up from the airport and we went and had an awesome dinner somewhere in Silver Lake (the name is escaping me at the moment); jalapeño mac & cheese, croque monsieurs and some good wine...

I didn't realize how big Los Angeles is.  I haven't been here for years, and the last time I was it was on the freeway booking it to Arizona with a jam-packed car full of my stuff.  It's very 'gridlock-looking,' especially flying in at night, but also so pretty - like coming down on a massive Christmas tree or something - everything sparkled.

Looks much different in the day now - woke up to 'wild parrots' (which literally scream; I didn't mind it - I'm used to the seagulls in the morning in Seattle so bird noises don't bother me) and palm trees.  I enjoy the scenery and environment much more than I anticipated, although I haven't had to experience any of the infamous traffic yet.  The hills dip up and down and have a city-jungle feel to them, with small, very narrow, winding roads, mexican-ish casas that still have a retro feel.  All the houses are packed together but not in a claustrophobic way because each one is different from the next...almost has a 'Capital Hill in LA' vibe to it.

Has anyone else ever been to LA or lived here?  I would love to get some insight on good restaurants, cool parks or fun things to do here!

Cheers,

K.

OFF TO LALA LAND!

I'm headed to LA this afternoon to visit my step-sister, see some friends and to do a few job interviews - so excited to get out of Seattle for a little while (as much as I love this city).  It'll be nice to - fingers crossed - wake up to some warm[er] weather for a change.

I've spent the last few days trying to get ahead in my online classes (doing school work when you're on vacation is never fun or as easy as you plan it to be), so I'm not feeling as overwhelmed leaving town.  I do still have homework and tests coming up this week considering midterms are already here (how did that happen so fast?!), so I'm planning on bringing my laptop and iPad.  I downloaded Your Life, Uploaded into my 'library' on my iPad, which I've been meaning to use more.  I also have the hard copy of the book (I still enjoy physically turning a page), but I'm actually enjoying reading some of the chapters on my iPad, at least more so than I anticipated.  It allows me to access certain features that the hard copy doesn't, like being able to search for specific terms or phrases.

I have the first version of the iPad, so unfortunately it doesn't have 3G or internet roaming capabilities, but it can at least latch on wherever wireless is available.  I always forget that this is accessible almost everywhere now, including airplanes!  Considering I've only been on one trip - that involved flying - since moving back to Seattle from Honduras (my parents took my brother and I to Las Vegas for his 21st birthday last year), I haven't had a chance to use my iPad for educational purposes while traveling - I'm looking forward to making my discussion posts, a few blog posts (especially seeing how capable it is with my fashion blog posts that require a lot of photo editing and specifics in order to make them perfect) and writing emails on it.

Also excited to report back on my experiences in LA; I've been to/drive through Los Angeles tons of times, but not since many of my friends moved down there/I've had a step-sister that lives there.  Especially anticipating the trip considering I'll be moving there by the end of the summer!  Oddly enough, job interviews sound challenging in a fun way...

Still need to pack up a few things - I've always been a procrastinator when it comes to that.  Time to get moving...

Cheers,

K.

Welcome!

Hey everyone,

I'm excited to start the blogging portion of CMST 275!  As I mentioned in my WEEK 5 SOCIAL ACTIVITY post, my blog will contain much more writing than my already-established fashion blog, W by HARRIS.

I plan on writing entries as they come to me (in addition to our assigned posts), focusing on my daily experiences, random thoughts and opinions and life in general in regards to being an online student at South Seattle Community College, social media manager, marketer and enthusiast and a blogger looking forward to gaining more experience!

Feel free to check out my related social media sites (links can be found at the top of my blog in the 'menu' as well as on the right-hand sidebar).  I'm always looking for advice, tips, criticisms, comments, etc. when it comes to my social media presence and blog especially, so please don't hesitate to drop me a comment, send a message, shoot me a tweet (I think you get the picture!)...

Cheers,

Kate