Vacation Part Two and Three

Day: 323

Goal: Make the vacation feeling last

Similar (although not as intense) to the feeling of coming home from camp, coming home from vacation always makes me feel a little renewed. Soul cleansing… check. R&R… check. Over consumption of carbs and alcohols… double check. The problem always becomes how to make these great feeling last once you come home. I want to jump right into life refreshed and willing when I get home, but instead I always find myself just a little bit behind. Like I left half of me on vacation still. Suitcase… half unpacked. Makeup… nah. Work… not-so-much. Mentally I want to be in the right place, but I think I’m still physically lying on a the beach in South Carolina.

Part two of my vacation was so awesome! I absolutely love the new tradition of traveling to our Myrtle Beach condo with my cousins and just being completely worthless! Best. Feeling. Ever. I didn’t bring my computer… big step for me, although I do have an iPhone, so it’s kind of the same… but I was able to feel somewhat released from work and Facebook. We spent everyday at the beach for hours… just soaking up the beautiful sun. I needed the Vitamin D sooo bad! It felt so good to just get completely roasted and sandy and salty and sweat… and just not care at all. And nothing is more therapeutic than building a sand castle. Slightly more physically involved than I remember it being when I was 8, but still mindless and organic in the best way.

One night we went out to a dueling piano bar… so awesome! We had such a blast, and Sarah and Matt definitely got to celebrate their anniversary in a “special” way. We also went back and visited our friend at Margaritaville… sadly he fell in love with a different girl last summer and is not moving to NY. But who knows, maybe we’ll run into him up there someday. We also did a repeat performance at the Myrtle Beach Pelican game. Classic fun as always! The best part was definitely the sweet suite that we got hooked up with again! So much fun to act like high-rollers! All-in-all it was another fantastic trip with the gang. It really has become a tradition that will last for a long time! Good news is, none of us are expecting any rug-rats anytime soon to ruin the fun!

Part three of my vacation was the perfect ending to a great trip! I got to go up and spend a little time with pops. The trip was super short, but great none-the-less. We took in some Yankees (first time at the new stadium) and just enjoyed each others company!

So while I’m glad to be home (because it always feels good to come home from a trip), I can’t seem to get the vacation feeling to last in the right way. I think I’m a little backwards right now… I need to be in the mind at the beach, body working hard mode… sadly not the case right now.

Just want to end with a big huge shout out to all the amazing family that shared my vacation with me!! Love you all sooo much!

Vacation part 1

Day: 32?

Goal: try to figure out why I don't visit family more...


So i left for vacation on Friday and I can not tell you how much it came "just in time". Work hasn't been inspiring in a while, I'm burnt out from shows, and the weather at home was getting to be ridiculous.... Cloudy all day everyday. It even rained a couple of mornings last week! Anyway, I'd been planning the second half of this vacation since last years same trip. My Maisonet cousins and I all went to my dad's condo in Myrtle beach just to spend some time together sans parentals. We had an amazing time and knew right away, we had to make it an annual event. The first part of my trip was planned just recently when my Inky cousins decided to throw an anniversary party for my aunt and uncle. I was on board knowing that I was already planning to take the time off work, plus my mom and my grandparents were making the trek too, so that made it even more of a total family affair!
Well I only got to spend 48 hours in Sioux Falls, but it was so much fun! Getting to see so many family members that I haven't seen in years and years that I have convinced myself that I "see" because I know the ins and outs of their daily lives via facebook was so great! There is nothing better in the world then some good family love!
I think some people take for granted that they are near their families all the time... It's easy to get used to seeing everyones faces and that unconditional love that is shared between family members probably becomes a little.... Common. I love the feeling of being with family because there is no pressure to look a certain way, be impressive for some reason, or hold anything back because the time spent is so short and few and far between. I wish it weren't the case, but it's hard to get together sometimes... But when we do, I think we make the most of our time!

To my Inky family and the rest of the crazy midwest crew...
Thank you for patios and beautiful landscaping.
Thank you for pooches young and old.
Thank you for Losers.
Thank you for perfect surprises.
Thank you for Uncle Corys.
Thank you for grandpa-bunny-bunny sunsets.
Thank you for real weather.
Thank you for lemon drop shots shots shots shots-shots shots shots shots shots-shots.
Thank you for grandma and grandpa airport.
Thank you for speaking whale.
Thank you for wedding videos.
Thank you for future plans to see each other again in October.
Thank you for the newlywed game.
Thank you for 40 years of love.
Thank you for 11.
Thank you for just married signs.
Thank you for Gilly.
Thank you for always making us California Maisonets feel at home when we come... As few and far between as it is.

Location:Unnamed Rd,Grapevine,United States

Thank You notes!

Day: 331

Goal: Finish thank you notes!

So number 9 on the 30 Bucket is to finish all my Thank You notes. Past, present, and future. Tonight I finally sat down and wrote the Thank You notes for my birthday. Yes, my birthday was over a month ago and I’m just now getting around to writing them, but I have to say this is a HUGE step for me. I NEVER write thank you notes. It’s incredibly painful for me… not that I am not very thankful for the gifts and gestures of my friends and family, it’s just that for some reason I have associated writing Thank You notes with being a very tedious chore. Anyway… I know that it is extremely important to thank people in this fashion and so I’m trying really hard to get back in the good graces of the Thank You note gods. It may take awhile and a lot of cheesy, environmentally friendly stationary, but I’m ready!

So tonight I finished at least the notes for my recent birthday… it actually felt really good to do them. I wish there was a more fun spin that I could put on Thank You notes, so as to note become some bored with saying, “Thank you so much for the ______! I really love it!” Maybe on the next set of thank you notes I will try to include a picture of my with whatever it is I’m thanking the person for? Or maybe a small gift as a gesture of my thanks? Or does that just complete the circle of doom… forcing that person to now feel obligated to thank me for something? It can become a vicious cycle sometimes. Maybe I can create some kind of personal Thank You staple… something that is very unique to me, Tiffany, thanking someone. Hmmmm…. Always sending a yoga pass? No, I don’t like that… too corporate (and I’m not even that invested in the Loft). Maybe something like my grandma? She always sends cute little homemade bookmarks… that could be cute. Or something similar, like having a recipe printed on the back of my Thank You stationary? (If I was a chef, maybe people would think that was cool). I guess I’ll have to think about that a little more. In the meantime, I have a LOT more thank you notes to write before I can completely cross number 9 off of the 30 Bucket. I finished the most recent notes, but now I need to mail them AND go back and make a list of all the people in my life that I just feel that I owe a huge thank you too… then write those notes and mail them as well. I have a feeling that the U.S. Postal service, their expensive postage and dysfunctional accessibility, is going to be my demise!

Good thoughts, good talk, good Tuesday!

Day: 332

Goal: Enjoy a fresh start to the week… Especially since my Monday is a Tuesday!

So, I have to say I got some great feedback from the “Catch-up” blog. Thank you everyone for your support, enthusiasm, and suggestions. I got some really good thoughts from people about a new number #21 (for those of you that didn’t get to read about it yet, my neighbors have moved and I can no longer “get to know them” as I was hoping to have accomplished for my 30 bucket). Here are some of the suggestions as replacements for the current #21:

1. Choreograph and autobiographical piece

2. Go to a concert I’ve been meaning to

3. Learn a second language

4. Just be happy with whatever the outcome of the 30 Bucket is…

I think one of these four could definitely have potential for the 30 Bucket, but I’d love to hear any more thoughts or suggests before I make anything final. I’ll give it until Friday.

Glee was fantastic tonight! My little Kasey was sick so I made a ridiculous garlic dinner to help… Leslie was amazed. I don’t think she knew about my culinary expertise… well, I showed her how it’s done in old Italia!

Got a chance to talk to Sean recently. Sometimes we go too few and far between. Surprisingly he brought up his brother’s wedding… Now this is a really long story, which I don’t want to get into in this blog, because really it’s no ones business, but let me just say that my relationship with Sean’s family has not been great in the past few years. The situation has brought me a lot of pain and the fact the Sean and I have been able to remain friends through everything that’s happened is a true testament to what an amazing person he is. Anyway, we never talk about the situation, and we have yet to talk about the fact that his brother is getting married this weekend… until the other day. It was actually really nice that he took the time to ask me how I was feeling about it since it has been on my mind for a few weeks now. I know he understands both sides to the situation and really can offer a neutral ear to talk to. He’s amazingly appreciative of my views and honestly compassionate. It was a good talk that I needed to have. I might have driven myself a little crazy with thoughts this week had he not thought to ask me how I was doing… Anyway, I’m sure this makes zero-to-no sense to 99% of my followers, so I digress. Point is: My friend Sean is a good friend (especially when he’s not trying to act too sexy for the ladies *wink*).

Congratualtions Kasey!

Day: 333

Goal: Give all my love to my bestie!! Congratulations Kasey!

So today my best friend Kasey graduated from college! Hurray!! Such an exciting event for so many reasons. One, Kasey graduated from the same college I went to, Mount Saint Mary’s College in Brentwood. Two, she graduated with the same degree I did (but with a much better GPA). Three, we were in the same research group… Stemp Lab. Four, we got to celebrate with another fellow Mount grad, Leslie (Beaker). Five, Kasey is the first college graduate in her family (better work!). Six, we ate dinner at Rock Sugar in Beverly Hills (probably the best kept secret… sshhh, don’t tell anyone). Seven, Kasey got to celebrate with great friends and family. And Eight, it was just flat out amazing!! I am so proud of my girl… she is so wonderful… as the airport security guy that semi-verbally assaulted her on Sunday, “You have proven that there really are woman out there that are smart and beautiful”. So true, creepy guy, so true!

Just wanted to say that I love you Kasey, you are my soul mate, and I’m so lucky to have such an awesome friend in my life Congratulations on such a deserving achievement!