My values ladder

These values will lead me to make the right financial decisions with my money and the path towards making that connection work for me.
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Smart Women Finish Rich

I've just reading this book and I recommend it to any and all women interested in this topic. Fortunately I've been saving/investing for a few years now but this book will help me to diversify and improve the quality of my approach. There is also a great section on how to teach kids (whether you have any or not) about money and investing. The authors approach towards finances is values based which I truly admire because really, what is money if it isn't in line with what matters to you most in life?
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Hit and run romance spotted

This morning when I parked at work I saw this guy run out and put something under the windshield wiper of a car. At first I thought someone was getting a ticket for parking in a reserved space, but what I discovered was that "ticket" was in fact a single white rose. (I'm assuming the car belongs to someone special to him, obviously!) Wow, that girl is going to be so touched. It's not every day, especially on this day and age, that acts of romance and small gestures of thoughtfulness are given freely.

Nice to know that, however small, it still does exist for some.
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Sleepless in the Valley

For the past few days I've been plagued with restless nights; too much occupying the grey matter.

I sit, toss, turn, and repeat for hours on end. 2 a.m., 3 a.m., toss, turn, 4! I try to stay away from drug induced assistance so if anyone has any good tactics do tell.
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MOSTE culture-Geffen Playhouse

Saturday I took my mentee to a comedic play called "School for Wives", written over 300 years ago at the Geffen in Westwood. The interesting thing about this is that much of today's comedy is derived from situations and characters from plays such as this. The girls enjoyed the playas much as the adults. The story took place in Paris; it was about a wealthy old man who took an orphan in and plotted to keep her uneducated and shielded from the world. In other words just teach her to be a good wife. Of course, as the story unfolds, his plan blows up in his face at the end. Overall it was a great day of culture, comedic history, and even a backstage tour for a MOSTE memorable day.
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President's Day

Yipee!! 3 day weekend! In tribute, here is a great quote of the day from our 3rd U.S. President:

"I'm a great believer in luck and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it."--Thomas Jefferson
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Quote of the day

"Defeat is not defeat unless accepted as a reality in your own mind." --Bruce Lee
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You rude muthaf*#!$r

Stand back..I need to release some steam right about now..

Intentional rudeness for the sake of being rude..this is something that gets under my skin and claws at my gray matter. I will never understand the motivation behind it.

I got a nasty taste of that today, from a loved one of all people. This person, for whatever reason, was compelled to say rude things to me out of the blue as though he was engaging in commonplace convo.

There is this tendency to have a scenario where we are having a perfectly nice time...until (fill in the blank). All I know, is there is no good reason to be rude for no good reason! I am the type of person who will care deeply for you, yet just as quickly "X" you out of my circle when I am on the receiving end of such behavior.

I hate that it bothers me when I know I shouldn't be bothered by such bullshit. Sometimes I find it appaling that people think there is no limit to what they can get away with.

In my eyes, your status, income, possessions, appearance (or apparent lack thereof) mean nothing if, when all is said and done, you're just an asshole in the end. An asshole is still an asshole no matter how you dress it up, isn't it?

For me, if someone puffs up in the chest and begins to think their shit don't stink, thereby convincing themselves that it is okay to be rude to the people in their lives who are willing to put up with their shit (within reasonable limits), I will still say the same thing now that I've said in the past...

It's who you are as a person, the character under the skin, that makes you or breaks you. Everything else is extra credit. But without that "A", without a solid foundation, your extra credit is no good to anyone. Let's face it-good things come and go, but it's the relationships you have with a loved one that keep you warm at night. Sure, compiling a bunch of consumer shit is fine and dandy, but its not what you have that matters most. It's who you have. You can lose one, both, or none. Choose wisely.

Sometimes when people get a good break they get cocky and suddenly forget that "manners" is even a word. They shit on people who have been there for them during their lowest of times; People who believed in the good in that person, only to be revisited by the ugly in that person, just when you thought it had vanished for good.

Now, wouldn't that loyalty be in vain if all that led to were more shitty times? And wouldn't the giver of rude then be shit out of luck when all that really mattered is lost for good one of these days?

After all, frosting without a cake, is just frosting. You can try to substitute the cake with another, but nothing goes better than the cake it was originally intended for.

Moral of the story: Think first..speak after, not vice versa. It'll do wonders for the relationship.

Be intentional about how you treat the people who helped you achieve things in your life that you would have otherwise not had access to.
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Weekend of firsts

This weekend's theme was all about stepping out of routine comfort zones and trying new things. Saturday was a beautiful spring like day. We took the metro red line (a small gesture to travel green) to Hollywood. Our destination was a shabu shabu restaurant we've never ate at before. It turned out to be great and our subway fare was less than a gallon of gas roundtrip.

I'm happy with my $15 haircut-my mane always looks so much healthier after a cut. Problem is I go for months at a time before my next appointment is made. But at this budget price, I may consider more punctual upkeep!

Sunday I missed my regular super sculpt class so instead I tried an entirely new class- afro brazilian dance. Live drummers orchestrated the class which was very high energy. I felt like I caught on pretty good and worked up a good sweat!

I walked ten because I couldn't resist being out under the sun-I sat with him in the park for a while and then came home and finished reading Joel Osteen's 2nd book. If you haven't yet discovered this man and his work google him and get to know him! A great quote was written in one of the last chapters- it was said by his father and his pursuit of goals and it grabbed me. He said, "I'd rather shoot high and miss it than shoot low and make it."

I intentionally pursue unexplored territory; I want to always grow and be better as a person.
I know I'm rejecting complacency whenever I look my "UN"-comfort zone in the face, welcome the challenge, and win. But even if I don't, at least I can say I tried, which at the end of the day, is more than half the battle!

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Paul Mitchell me

The secret to a pro salon haircut at fantastic sams prices are hair academy schools, such as "Paul Mitchell: The School" in Sherman Oaks, CA. For a mere $15 I get a haircut and blowout. Most times the teacher completes the finishing touches with her $150+ rate expertise. Another tip: Ask for a tier 2 (read: more experienced) student. I'm here in my chair now so results to follow in the next post!
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My addiction? SCDL-ez whip

Skinny cinnamon dolce deliciousness..$3.95 gives me 10 minutes of joy in a cup during busy work days. I'm craving one right about now..
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Learn something new every day

I'm all about exercising the mind-after all a fit body can't function without a healthy mind. Here are 2 nuggets I learned this week:

"DINK": the demographic profile I fit under-"double income no kids".

"Diurnation" (Dy-uhr-nay-shuhn): The habit of sleeping or being dormant during the day.
Used in a sentence: "Har often naps through the day-an adaptation known as diurnation. ;)

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Daylight!

Another beautiful day. I was welcomed with day light for the first time in a while at 5:35 p.m. which was nice! Made me happy to think the signs of Spring is on its way. Yippee!
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Old dog's new tricks

Today I started teaching Tenzo a new trick that took him less than an hour to understand. He seems to really enjoy learning new things (although the treats don't seem to hurt either)! The trick is him picking up his toy and putting it away inside his toy basket. Once he gets it down perfect, he can pick up after himself :). Teaching involves lots of treats, so we'll continue practicing for another day.

My lil' boy is so smart- he can sit,lie down,shake hands,high five,roll over,show his belly,speak,"get shot" and play dead,stay, wait to eat on command,fetch, and soon to be added to the list-put his toys away. If I can catch him on video I'll try to upload it. Stay tuned for updates on my furry boy wonder...
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Bridesmaid bowl

Super bowl shmuper bowl! Don't ask me who played or won because I was busy with my fellow bridesmaids doing our bridesmaidly duties by helping our bride-to-be girlfriend with her wedding projects. Kat and I super glued our fingers on more than one occasion. We also decided that we would never want to be professional bow makers in this (or any lifetime!) Afterwards, we played rock band with the kids before I had to leave for my hot date with Har. PS the food at minx is delish!
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Gorgeous L.A. Skies

As I left my office today to go home I noticed how pretty the sky looked.All the rain we've had in the past weeks have cleared out all the smog and left nothing but crisp blue skies and purple pink dusks as I've just now discovered. How lucky am I (and all Southern Californians for that matter) to be surrounded by so much natural beauty.
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