37 posts tagged “qotd”
- You don't really hate me. You're just jealous of me and pissed off that you have to be you instead.
- Screw my relationship with you. I'm too good for you anyway, and you should feel lucky I even give you the time of day.
- I don't have to accept your criticism because I'm way more intelligent/talented/successful/attractive than you are. Call me when we're equals andthen we'll talk.
- I didn't get that job/date/opportunity because I'm too pretty/smart/talented for my own good. They were just afraid I won't stick around or allow myself to be taken advantage of.
- I'm not going to bother talking this problem out. Instead I'm just going to storm off in a huff and never speak to you again because the best way to punish you is to simply deprive you of my presence in your life.
- I'll commit to a friendship/relationship/traditional job position once and for all when I find one that's actually worthy of me. In the meantime... whatever.
See how that works? Every time something bad happens or life doesn't work out the way you wanted it to, you just blame it on how jealous people are of your innate superiority over them. It's really actually quite effective and you almost never have to waste time or energy actually crying or feeling depressed.
No... I'm never sarcastic! What would make you ask such a question?
The Internet, of course, has changed many things for the good. But is it all good? What is the biggest problem the Internet has created for you or the world?
I'm rarely a die-hard "hey look the glass is half full" type of person, but when it comes to the topic of the internet, I am. I have met people, had experiences, and found opportunities via the internet that I wouldnot have gotten any other way. I personally don't feel it's true that the internet cuts you off from the rest of the world. I've always been a very shy, very introverted person, so in my case it actually got me to the point where I was making more connections with others as opposed to fewer.
The People I've Met
As I mentioned above, I am incredibly introverted and always have been. I just never have been, and very likely never will be, the type of person that goes out of their way to be friendly or make friends in real life. I have always kept to myself and disliked a lot of interaction or attention, especially if it's totally uninvited. As a result, I often didn't wind up building any close relationships with others at all or going very far out of my way to pursue job opportunities. My extreme introversion was kind of holding me back in life and probably always would have.
The internet has actually done a lot to open me up to new possibilities. For one thing, I get to express myself through writing here, and I've always been confident in my abilities as a writer. It took awhile for me to realize it, but I actually felt quite comfortable talking to people or approaching others when I was allowed to do it that way. As a result, I've met a lot of people from all over the world that my life literally wouldn't be the same without. My fiancé, for instance, and his awesome family, not mention any number of friends, fans, clients, and so forth that have made a huge difference in my quality of life over the past few years.
The Business Opportunities
I've always wanted to be someone who actually did my art and writing for an actual living on a freelance basis. However, because of my shyness and discomfort when it comes to pounding the pavement looking for clients, I know it's something I never would have actually done without the internet. The potential pay-off just would not have outweighed the horror involved with actually making cold calls or knocking on doors. Yes, it's still a lot of work to find clients, advertise myself, and prove myself to prospective buyers, but I'm able to do it within my comfort zone now. As a result, I've learned to have fun with it. I love that side of freelancing, actually.
Plus, I'm able to reach people all over the world when I utilize the internet. I have fans and clients from all over the globe. Sometimes I'm still caught by surprise in regards to the number of people I'm able to reach just by doing my own thing. That's something I wouldn't have been able to accomplish nearly as easily if I decided the internet was evil and that I was only going to try to market my services locally.
Oddly enough, having so much of my life and my career directly connected to the internet like this has helped me become more outgoing in real life. Don't get me wrong. I'll always kind of be shy and anti-social, but the additional confidence I've gained because of the things I've been able to achieve professionally and socially online has carried over into real life as well. I find it easier to talk to and approach people than I used to, so no... definitely no downside for me when it comes to the internet. I'm living proof that it can be used as a productive force that can really enhance your life and make it everything it can be.
Some people find Eeyore's gloomy outlook charming. Others prefer the bouncy enthusiasm of Tigger. Who would you rather be trapped in an elevator with: Eeyore or Tigger?
Definitely Tigger. I'd probably wind up strangling Eeyore to death out of sheer annoyance.
Although I sometimes tend to be very cynical and pessimistic myself, I don't generally care to spend too much time around people that are too depressive or gloomy if I can help it. I like to surround myself with people, things, and situations that help elevate my mood and inspire me to think more positively more of the time. Gloomy, negative people usually just bring me down and wind up making me feel worse.
However, while I don't know that I like it when people are positive to the point of being completely unrealistic, I do enjoy being around people who have sunny outlooks and know how to look on the bright side more often than not. I've always wished I could be more like them, but I find that the more positive my friends are, the easier I find it to be positive myself.
I really am something of a human sponge. It's so easy for me to absorb and reflect the emotions and outlooks of those around me that it's scary. It's been both a great thing and a horrible thing at various points in my life depending on the company I was keeping at the time.
Knowing beforehand that you wouldn't fail, what would you attempt to do?
I really like this question, so I decided to sit here and try to think of a good answer for it, but I can't. If you've been reading me a while, you know that pretty much the one thing I truly consider myself to be afraid of is failure, yet although I can think of plenty of instances where I was afraid I would fail at something because it was just that important to me, I can't actually recall a time when fear of failure actually stopped me from eventually trying to do it anyway. It may take me a while to build up the nerve, but I always try sooner or later.
Maybe I really am the stubborn ass my birth chart says I am, or maybe my over-sized ego really does inwardly insist that I'm entitled to absolutely anything in life that I want, so long as I'm willing to earn it. All I know is that whatever the reason, I've at least attempted to make every dream I've ever had into a reality at some point in my lifetime, and that even where things didn't work out as planned, I have yet to actually give up trying altogether.
I'm sure it probably helps that I have a real listening problem when it comes to criticism from other people. I may consider it if it comes from someone that actually knows what they're talking about, but other people's criticism has never lowered my own opinion of myself or stopped me from trying to achieve goals that are important to me. I never have, and never will, let anyone or anything stand in the way of being the person I want to be, so the day I actually learn to take "no" for an answer is pretty much the day I die.
The older I get, the more I think failure is a relative term. It probably means something different to everyone, but after giving it some thought, this is what it really means to me. In my opinion, the only true failure is in either not trying at all, or in giving up. There's always another avenue to try or another option yet to consider, so when it really matters -- at least if you subscribe to the Shannon Hilson School of Thought -- failure really is optional.
What is a "charmed life"?
Easy answer... a complete and total myth. I have sincerely never met another person who led such a life. Even people with many blessings and tons going for them can usually tell you all about other areas of their life that are complete disasters. Well... maybe "complete disaster" is too strong an expression in most cases, but you probably catch my drift anyway. All lives are a combination of good and bad, up and down. Anyone who claims otherwise is pulling your leg and trying to make you jealous.
In my experience, a charmed life is usually something other people assume someone has, usually based on totally superficial reasons, as opposed to something someone is claiming as his own. Actually a lot of people have assumed that I must lead a "charmed life" because I'm fairly easy on the eyes and have a talent or two to my credit, and it really annoys the piss out of me. I have a lot to be thankful for, but I've also been through things in my lifetime I don't even like to talk about anymore. That's how horrible some of it was.
My face and my talent didn't save me from any of that, and I personally feel I deserve credit for coming out the other side of some of those experiences a better person. I'm not even really what you would call sorry for even those times in my life, because they helped make me into someone I'm very proud to be. However, every time some random woman in a grocery store that I've never even laid eyes on before gives me a once over and a dirty look for no apparent reason, I still sometimes get the urge to slap some sense into her. I hate thinking she thinks I have no problems, no worries, and no hardships just because I look a certain way.
All people have life stories beneath their packaging, or even what they choose to show you or tell you, that you can't even begin to fathom or assume. I suppose that's one reason why I make it a point never to do so myself. I'd honestly be willing to bet my soul that there's not one textbook definition of a charmed life behind any of them.
What do you do for fun when you're broke?
Pretty much the same things I do for fun when I have money... heh. I'm pretty easily and simply amused. My favorite things to do with my spare time are honestly just read, surf the net, listen to music, and lie around watching movies. I might work out, sketch, paint, or write a little bit if I'm feeling a little more industrious. I'm not all that social, so I don't really do the bar and party scenes like a lot of people do. I love to cook, so I don't go to restaurants to get away from having to make dinner myself all that often. Trips anywhere else are more of a once-in-a-while treat for us than they are a routine anyway.
What was your major or field of study in college? Did you wind up working in that field or using that degree? If not, what field have you wound up in?
Oddly enough, I actually spent a good portion of my college years studying psychology, as well as human physiology. I did it all. The studies. The dissections. The extensive reading, cramming, and testing. It shocks a lot of people sometimes how much I understand about those subjects, since for most people they're not really common knowledge -- especially for someone who's in the creative arts field -- but that's actually the reason why. I almost became a psychiatrist.
Eventually I decided to switch my major though. Psychiatry was something that looked good to me on paper and seemed to be a wiser choice than the arts at the time, and although I still have a great interest in those subjects for their own sake, I will always be an artist at heart. I just didn't see myself writing prescriptions and psychoanalyzing anyone for a living when it came right down to it, and I still don't. That's why I'm the proud owner of a degree in art with an emphasis on painting instead.
Obviously I'm not working as a psychiatrist or any other medical professional, although I did do a stint as a vet tech not that long ago. Most of you probably know that I'm a homemaker for the most part, but I'm still very much into my art. My writing as well. I do quite a bit of freelance work as far as both of those are concerned, as well as produce a lot of personal art and writing of my own.
Which foods do you eat a lot of? Too much of?
Heh.... what's "a lot"? That phrase has a totally different meaning to me now than it did a few weeks ago. Not that many people actually read this particular blog, but those of you who are also on my main blog's friends list at Live Journal (the only one I update with any real consistency or detail) probably know that Seth and I have been making some changes in our diet lately... controlling portions better, losing a little weight, getting in shape... all that good stuff.
Before that, I definitely could be said to eat a lot of cheese, bread, potatoes, hamburgers, pasta, pizza... all that stuff that's really delicious but not so good for you in large quantities. Now I probably reach most often for things like fruits and vegetables to fill up on and then make healthier choices when it comes to meats and carbs and all that. I eat a lot of vegetarian burgers, since I actually like them as much as regular burgers. I also like portobello mushroom caps grilled and substituted for the patty altogether sometimes. I eat a lot of spinach greens, watermelon, parsnips... those are just some of the fresh produce that I like a lot right now. I also eat a lot of chicken, shrimp, and tuna in wraps and such.
Still "a lot" just means "often" to me now. I can't remember the last time I overate or fixed myself a meal that didn't fit on a saucer-sized plate. It's really paying off, too! I look and feel wonderful.
Where do you consider home? Is it the place you grew up; the place you're currently living? Why is it home?
Home is an interesting concept. It can mean lots of things. On one hand, I have come to understand what people mean when they say they have found home in another person and that it is wherever they are. I can feel at least somewhat "at home" anywhere as long as Seth is there as well. It helps that I grew up an Army brat. It's made me really adaptable to changes in environment. I've lived many places by now.
As far as location is concerned, I suppose that when I think of "home" currently, it's where I spent most of my childhood and all but the last couple of years of my adult life... Monterey, CA and the surrounding area. I loved California, and Monterey is an exceptionally beautiful area even for California. I'm proud to refer to myself as being "from" there. I also still have very fond memories of when I lived in Germany before that as a little girl. It was also where I was born and had my earliest experiences, so Germany will always have a special place in my heart. However, Europe in general is quite simply a fit where I'm concerned. Ultimately, I would love to have a permanant home in England or Ireland.
Home is defintely not here in Connecticut... not for me and not for Seth. My apologies to those who might be from New England and have a real love for it, but we hate it here. The mentality of most of the people is just not a fit with ours at all, and that's the main reason... but we also just don't like the area for much of any reason. The weather. The culture. It just isn't for us.
What are three things you want to learn, and three things you can teach others to do?
Three things I want to learn? Just three? Well, I've always wanted to be able to fluently speak another language, so that would be number one. In the near future, I'd love to learn to speak something practical like French or Spanish, and then learn to speak a classical language once I've got the practical one mastered. Probably Latin. I'd also like to learn to play the harp, so that would be number two. Number three would probably be theater acting. I was really shy growing up, so I was afraid to even give it a try. I'm definitely confident enough as an adult though, but I would want to take drama classes first.
Three things I can teach others to do? Well, I actually have some experience teaching piano, so that would be the first one. I could also probably teach someone to paint or draw pretty well, as well as help them figure out what their ideal personal artistic style is. Third, I could definitely teach someone the basics of how to cook and present their meals in a way that is artistic and attractive as well.
