Welcome!

When I was in college, I envisioned a career working as a freelance writer for a variety of publications, or working as an editorial assistant at a publishing company like the one I interned for.

When I graduated, I never imagined I’d end up working for Lowe’s Home Improvement. Now I’m one of the top live nursery specialist in the northeastern region, and instead of scheming of how I’m going to get out of working for Lowe’s, I’m looking for other ways to grow within the company.

It’s a cliche to say this, but life is funny. Even events that seem formed from bad choices have a purpose.

Two years ago, I was working for a publishing company as a paid intern. I loved my job, and I knew that the company was happy with my work. I stayed working for them for six months, the longest amount of time they allow interns to stay on staff. When my time was up, they wanted to keep me but simply did not have an open position in the company.

There was no reason for me to stay in Albany, so I moved home to Rochester to live with my parents and make money as a freelance writer. I love writing, and for nearly a year, that was all I did. Unfortunately, writing wasn’t making me that much money on its own, especially not enough money to move out into a place of my own. I love my parents, but independence is important to me.

I was hired at Lowe’s as a temporary worker for the spring. In two months, I was promoted. After my promotion, something happened that I could never have dreamed of: I fell in love with my job.

Now I’m back on my own, living with my boyfriend, working a full time job and I’m happy. No. I’m not just happy, I am “obliviously” happy, because happiness isn’t something that is on my mind. I’m never thinking about things I would rather be doing, I’m never thinking about the things that are stressing me out. Whenever I do take the time to stop and think about anything that could be making me unhappy right now, I can’t think of a single thing.

For months now, the only time it has occurred to me that I may be on the wrong path is whenever my mom asks me whether I have sent any resumes out recently, or when one of my old high school teachers stop into the store and say to me, “How did you end up here?”

Well they can scoff all they want. I have an entire lifetime ahead of me to create a successful career. It doesn’t matter, because the job I work has no influence on the quality of my life. Working at Lowe’s does not determine whether my dreams will come true. I could work on a pig farm and still accomplish everything I want to accomplish in life. I can still become a mother, write a novel and perform in musicals.

I forget that I also have something to give the world. So many young people who write self-help blogs seem to live an ideal, magical life. What they portray on their blogs is a dream that so few of us feel we will ever accomplish. But that’s just it, they are portraying themselves that way. Nubby Twiglet took the words right out of my mouth when she said,

Because social media has become so polished over the last few years, from the outside, it can seem like everyone else has already achieved the so-called dream life that you aspire to. It’s not quite that simple though. Beneath the facade, we all struggle. It’s just that for varying reasons (some personal, some professional), not everyone chooses to share those struggles publicly.I do not have a glamorous career. I always come home covered in dirt. My job is to keep the flowers alive and selling. I also am always loading and moving bags of top soil, mulch, fencing and patio stones and when I’m bored, I build displays using those same materials. I help people make their lawns and gardens look beautiful. Its a trade that exists deep in my blood. I love doing it, but it is certainly not glamourous.

So I work at a little nothing job in a small city. I still think I am living a glamours life.

I used to have such a hard time blogging because I felt I had no business giving anyone advice. After all, I do not have hundreds of followers (I have about 5 loyal readers) and I do not work for a publishing company/fashion designer/internet start up.

But my life is still something very special. I still have a lot to share.

Here’s the thing: Your life is special too. You also have so much wonderful advice to share. You too can inspire people.

We learn from our experiences. We learn pain and joy from every event in our life. We should all work to share those life lessons with one another. I do not want to help you grow and I am not looking to anyone else to help me grow either. Gala Darling, Jenny Blake, Danielle La Porte and their like are all super women, but I am a superwoman as well. I want us to help one another. Only by helping one another can we then help ourselves, and after all, that is all self-help is anyway.

So that is what I want to blog about from now on. I no longer want to ramble endlessly about writer’s block as I try to make my life appear like anything its not. I just want to share my experiences with you. I’ve learned a lot in the past two years, since I graduated college. I’ve learned how to cook, how to decorate and how to run a business. I’ve learned what true commitment in a relationship means, how to forgive my parents and how to live on my own (all on my own). I have learned so much from all the blogs I read, both large and small.

Now it’s my turn to share something with you. I have some great articles planned. Tentative titles include:

1. Why I’ve Only Ever Dated One Man
2. Finding and Caring for the Perfect House Plant
3. How to Get Over Stage Fright
4. Making Peace With Religion
5. Exercise Techniques You’ve Never Tried
6. Geocaching In Snowbanks
7. Thoughts When Flying Somewhere Above North Carolina
8. College Memories From a Girl Who Never Drank in College
9. Why I Got My First Apartment at 19
10. Writing On Walls Is the Best Cure for Writer’s Block
11. Chalkboard Creation How-To
12. Talking to Trees Will Make You a Better Writer
13. Why Anne of Green Gables is My Hero
14. Becoming the Perfect House Wife
15. When Faeries Attack

All of these will be articles by my birthday. I wish I had time to write them all tonight!