Mosiah 2:41

...I would desire that ye should consider on the 

blessed and happy state of those that

keep the commandments of God.  For behold, 

they are blessed in all things,

both temporal and spiritual; 

and if they hold out faithful to the end

they are received into heaven,

that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of 

never-ending happiness...

A new favorite.

How 'bout it?!

Any chance I could be a dog lady instead of a cat lady?

Pretty PLEASE?!

I can't get enough of these cute goldendoodles!  One day....

Images via Google

Bring it on 2014

This year my theme is: 

-Annette Funicello

I'm hoping it will remind me to keep life in perspective.  To help me avoid getting so caught up in the daily worries and help me remember how fantastically wonderful my life is.  I'm going to work on being better at going with the flow; to relax a bit.  Life holds a lot of amazing adventures just waiting for us to find and I don't want to miss a single one! I'm still working on my list of resolutions but I can't wait to get started!  The New Year is one of my favorites because we have a fresh start, endless possibilities and a renewed vigor for life.  It's contagious! 

Who knows where 2014 will take me, but I have a feeling this year will be a good one.  :]  

Let's do this!

Things Aren't Always As They Appear....

I've thought about this a lot lately.  It's something that I'm having a hard time grasping.  However, I've come to the conclusion that our identity and what things we define ourselves with or put out to the world CHANGES.

I've always liked that I knew who I was:
-Child of God, athletic, blonde haired, dumb humored, sarcastic, competitive, dominant human being. ;]

I've always had confidence in who I was and was excited to share pieces of me with ANYONE who was interested.

Interestingly enough, with all this growing up and stuff, I've changed.  Not sure how I didn't realize it, or why I feel in denial about it.

Most of the time I surround myself with people I've known for quite some time, so they know the whole Hailey.  However with dating or meeting new friends, the only things these new people know about Hailey are the things I tell them/show them about myself. Sometimes I catch myself trying to explain or incorporate the old me and I have to stop and think if that is who I am currently.

An easy example: I don't really use the word DOMINATION as much as I used to.   It hardly comes up in my conversations anymore, where as in high school (and even sometime after high school.....) I was OBSESSED with the word domination.  Why? No particular reason really.  I liked building off the implied confidence that carried with the word DOMINATION.  I tried to dominate everything in my life, and it certainly helped grow my bad habit of trash talking.... #oops.

So when I go bowling and I am asked what I want my bowling name to be, and I automatically type DOMINATION, people laugh in the "not entirely sure what that's about, but it's kinda funny, but you're dead serious so I don't really know how to react so I'll keep chuckling" sort of way, but have no idea the history and feelings I have behind that word.  Part of me feels sad that these new people won't know that side of me, because I sure did have a lot of fun with it.   However, I've changed and in this instance, grown up.

I understand this is a small, insignificant change in my life which may not be the best example to illustrate my feelings toward these new-founded life/personality changes.  However, for the most part I am really happy with how I've changed and I'm excited for some future changes.

Random Musings

I was going through my old draft blog posts and feeling grateful I didn't press publish on a lot of them.  Mostly they were heat of the moment posts which in these instances, were better left unsaid.  I had a rant on my pet peeve of mean and nasty comments on the Internet (still a pet peeve), a post titled "Look who's legit!" with nothing written..... and a list of things I would never buy at a yard sale (including but not limited to: a hot tub, used socks, deodorant and hats).  Like I said, good thing they were left as drafts. :]

Since I rarely post anymore, I wanted to do a weekly domination update, so here it goes!

•  Karlie had her babies!!  Two adorable baby girls that have stolen my heart. I feel such an overwhelming love for them.  I feel like I'm their Auntie and I plan to brain wash them to believe that!  It is so strange but ultimately so awesome to watch the first one of the group have babies.  My little friend is all grown up!  I couldn't be more excited for their little family and I'm glad I can watch the twins grow up for a little while before Kar & Jake leave for med school. 

• I have..... an online shopping addiction.  Most people have their little guilty pleasures or addictions (Diet Coke, Hershey Kisses, real-life kisses, crafting, thrifting, sleeping, Parks & Recreation, etc) and mine just happens to be online shopping. I'm so lucky to have found my addiction so early on in life! ;) I LOVE Jane.com right now, I get so many awesome things on there for such good prices! 
• I got a record in bowling recently! A whopping 76.  You read that right, 76.  I know... believe me, I know what you're thinking.  I am ashamed.  To make myself feel better I played Wii bowling the next night and got a 171.

• I went out on a limb and got new glasses.

• We've been rock climbing like crazy which means I'm getting muscles in places I didn't expect and that I get to see this handsome man and his awesome parents every week! 

• We went to the chalk festival which blew my mind!  These people are sooo talented!  I think it would be awesome to enter one year just to do it, I LOVE chalk. 

• I have made it my mission to introduce everyone to Waffle Love.  Hands down the best waffles I've EVER eaten.  They hooked me in and now I'm a stalker of their traveling waffle truck. 

• I started sewing my quilt and it is coming along sooooo great! It's been a lot of work, but I love doing it.  I think quilts might be my "thing" because they are usually just sewing straight lines, fairly easy and so stinkin' cute!  Pictures to come.... can't ruin the surprise! 
• I found "my spot."  Okay there are actually two of them, but one is for sitting and taking in how beautiful this wonderful State is and the other is a tucked away trail I found close to my house. I've always wanted a "spot" and now I've found two!  The other one I didn't get pictures of, but I will eventually! 

• PK has his farewell on Sunday and then leaves for London a week and a half after that.  I don't want him to go...we just got Jordan back!  I'm really going to miss that guy, but I'm so excited for him because I know he's going to dominate. 
• We had family pictures last weekend and they turned out soooo good! Man I love family. 
• I ride the train to and from work as often as I can.  I LOVE it.  It is not financially feasible, nor does it take less time than driving (it's actually more of a pain to get places outside of the station), but I feel so relaxed and wonderful when I ride the train.  All these years driving quite a distance to work I've developed a small case of road rage and I end up at work feeling frazzled. When I ride the train I get to work refreshed, happy to be around people and ready to get the day started.  I HIGHLY recommend it. 

Well, that's all for now, see you in another 4 months when I blog again! ;) 

Life is good.

Speak Up Already!

I've come to the conclusion that people who do not make a noise or saying anything when a clothing store worker has knocked on their dressing room to see if it's free, causing the door to be opened on an embarrassing, half-dressed situation, are those who turn out to be flashers.

What other logical reason could there be?  They must enjoy getting caught with their pants down literally or something because when I'm changing in a fitting room and I hear the knock on the door and the "Is anybody in here?" I instantly panic and blurt out some noise to stop them from coming in.  On a few rare occasions I'm able to form them into words like "STOP" or "I'm in here!" but usually I'm just so worried about being walked in on that I figure any noise is better than nothing.  And, to this day I have yet to be walked in on at a public dressing room.

I've walked in on plenty of people though, and it's uncomfortable, and would have never happen if people would just answer the warnings.

Side note: 

I almost googled videos for dressing room pranks

but luckily my brain kicked in before I did. 

That could have been bad....

Adventure Is Out There

"When ye are in the service of your fellow beings

ye are only in the service of your God."

Mosiah 2:17

Work has been crazy busy as one co-worker is out on maternity leave and will continue to be busy throughout the rest of the year with what our cases have in store for us and with another leaving on maternity leave. there is something in the water up here... ;)  Yesterday I decided I would plan a vacation for sometime in the Spring or Summer next year after all of this craziness settles down. This vacation would be something to look forward to, keep me motivated, plus it will be to celebrate my 5 year mark of working here!  So, I starting thinking about Greece.... Italy.... Spain.... London..... Hawaii... and quickly realized my limitations as I would be traveling by myself.  I could try to come up with people to come with me, but the only person I could count on to make this trip happen was myself.  Then I realized that I have a great opportunity to still see the world, but for a different purpose; to go on a service/humanitarian trip.  

I have always wanted to go on one of these to give back, to embrace and learn about a new culture, to better understand life outside of this Utah bubble and ultimately to serve where I am needed.  I am in an interesting spot in my life, but one that is ideal for a trip like this one.  I don't want to pass up this opportunity just because I'm scared out of my mind to do it alone.  This is bigger than me.  I can get over myself and dedicate some time to someone or a group of people who need the help I am able to give.  It would be a lot easier if I were a nurse or had something I could offer, but oh well, my time is still something right??      

The next question is: Now what? 

I've found websites that match people up with organizations and basically provide the link to exactly what I'm looking for.  Some of these websites are VolunteerForever, VolunteerMatch, and then you can find Humanitarian trips for LDS singles... nice. hahaha  One thing I know for sure is that I want to go with a big company/organization that has "been there done that" many times so to reduce the risk of getting into a bad situation or being scammed.  

So..... if anyone knows of any good opportunities coming up for the early part of next year, or any reputable organizations you've had experiences with then let me know!  Also, if anyone wants to join me, please do!  Once I figure out where I want to go it'll be easier to try and recruit friends, but for now I will be spending all my time researching the world and all it has to offer.   :]

"Service to others is an important characteristic of a disciple of Jesus Christ. A disciple is willing to bear other people’s burdens and to comfort those who need comfort. Often Heavenly Father will meet the needs of others through you."

Liebster Award

Karlito nominated me to answer some sweet questions and pass on the awesomeness of the Liebster Award to other nominees.  Karlie is one of my very best friends.  We've been friends for at least 13 years (holy cow Kar that's awesome!), she's currently prego with twin baby girls, she's such a sweet, caring, smart and beautiful wonder woman.  Check out her blog!

"Liebster" means dearest in German, and it's awarded, blogger to blogger, to up-and-coming blogs with less than 200 followers.  The rules for accepting and giving the award are pretty simple.  Once you accept the award, you just have to do the following in a blog entry:

Answer the 11 questions posted by the nominator on her blog

Give 11 facts about yourself

Nominate 5-11 other new, up-and-coming blogs with less than 200 followers

Make up 11 more questions to pass on to the bloggers you choose to nominate

Thank your nominator by linking back to her blog

Upon your post going live, contact your nominees about your nomination for them

Kar's Questions:

1. How do you deal with nerves/anxiety? 
Unfortunately it takes me a little bit longer than I'd like to realize that I'm "freaking out" from anxiety or nerves but once I'm able to realize it I feel like I am able to deal with it better if I talk to friends/family about what is stressing me out.  The longer I keep it in the worse I feel.  Usually while voicing what is bothering me I can see how I'm being ridiculous and I can usually calm myself down and then my friends help validate my anxieties.
2. When something totally awesome happens, who are the top 5 people you want to tell? 

My Mom, Dad, Karlie, Anisa and Kaylyn
3. When you are having a rough day, what is the one thing you can always do that will cheer you up?
Listen to the song Red Red Wine by UB40.  For some reason that song ALWAYS makes me feel good.  Perfect vacation on the beach song.  If only I drank red wine.

4. What is your favorite memory from Elementary School years? 

Honestly, one of my favorite memories from elementary school is when we would play SLAM during lunch.  Eventually we got to be good enough to play against a teacher and that was a huge victory in and of itself.
5. If you could get paid to do absolutely anything, what would you want to get paid for doing? 

I would love to get paid to do crafts or creative projects all day.  I love making things, sewing, cooking, creating, etc.  Or I'd love to have a business with my mom where we fix up houses and sell them. HGTV here we come!
6. What is one item that is always found in your purse that you always need?  

My wallet. :) Other than that, I'm always searching for a hair elastic or bobby pin.  I always seem to lose them and I can only last so long with my hair down in my face.
7. What do you do when you have absolutely nothing to do and are bored out of your mind?
Watch Netflix.  I never thought I'd be such a Netflix junkie but I'm obsessed.  I love watching random documentaries and trying out new TV shows.
8. What is your favorite month of the year?
July is tied with December.  July is full of summer, corn on the cob, BBQ, family and fireworks which I can never get enough of.  December is full of snow, scarves, sweaters, charity, selflessness, family and hot chocolate - a month full of warm fuzzies.
9. What are 3 words that describe you perfectly and why?
I'll describe myself physically because that's self explanatory and less awkward: blonde, white and mediumlyaverage (totally one word)
10. If you had to decorate one room and live in it for the rest of your life, what colors and theme would you give the room?
I would choose my bedroom which is connected to my bathroom.... does that count? haha and I would decorate it with a Beachy feel.  Blues, lots of white, tan, flowy, light, relaxing and awesome.
11. If  you were to go on a road trip where would you go and what would you do?
It is on my bucket list to visit each state in the United States.  I don't want to just drive through each state and stop at their gas station, I want to visit something special and unique to that state. Amusement park, national park, crazy diners, historical landmark, infamous gems and movie scenes.

Facts About Me: 

• I'm a scaredy cat when it comes to changing my hair color/cut.  I have a slight panic attack after a bad hair cut and feel as if the world is over. I'm not sure why, but it is what it is. 
• I have a hard time finishing projects. 
• I love coupons and getting a killer deal. 
• I like to be the center of attention if I am putting myself there, otherwise I hate it. 
• My favorite flowers are Sunflowers and Daisies.
• I really like going shopping by myself.
• I'm terrible at gardening and don't care much for it. 
• I don't like taking medication. I like to believe that my body can usually take care of itself. 
• I have the potential to be a hoarder.  Luckily I received my mom's joy of organizing so it doesn't get out of hand. 
• I laugh at my own jokes.  (because they are funny... duh)
• I don't like dealing with car issues, which I happen to have a lot of. I should probably date a mechanic.

So now I get to pass the Liebster Award torch to some new people and I choose..... 

Amy Allen, Jessie & Sean and Erin Fleming. (Yeah I know it's only 3 people, but that's all I've got!)  

Alright, here are your questions to answer:

1. What's your favorite flavor of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream? (Or just favorite in general)

2. What has been your favorite vacation so far? 

3. What would be your dream vacation? 

4. What is your favorite perfume and favorite cologne?

5. How many kids do you hope to have? (If any) 

6. I've always wanted to have my own secret spot that few people know about that I visit to be alone to think, but haven't found the perfect one yet. (The last one had too many bugs....) Do you have a "special spot" you like to escape to? 

7. Name a band/singer that you have always loved that most people may not know.

8. What is your favorite workout class you've been to? 

9. Do you have any dating advise for me??  

10. Share/describe a moment in your life when you have truly been HAPPY, something other than a grand occassion.

11. In what way(s) have you turned out just like your parents?

Alright, go for it guys!!

Negativity

Yesterday I made the goal to "free your[my]self from negative people."  This seemed a little difficult because the ideal situation I guess would be to just rid my life of any negative people.  Literally.  Maybe even Physically.  jokes. :)  Since that isn't very realistic, I figured I'd look up ways to deal with negative people.   A lot of times if I am around someone who is very negative it is very emotionally draining...as if they are sucking the life and energy right out of me.  I need to keep in mind that there are times when I get on negative, hate-the-world kicks, as much as I hate to admit it, so I was hoping to find ways to quickly turn those days around.

I decided to focus on the first part: dealing with negative people.  I hopped on google and up pops: 7 Simple Tips to Deal with Negative People how great is that?!

1. Don't Engage in the Negativity
2. Hang Out in Groups
3. Objectify the Comments Made
4. Go With Lighter Topics
5. Be Mindful of the Time You Spend With Them
6. Identify Areas You Can Make a Positive Change
7. Drop Them From Your Life

I suggest you read the post (see link above) if you're interested, because the opinions expressed therein are really great.  #7 gave me a start because the rest of the tips were encouraging that these people can change.  However, sometimes I guess we just have to realize that some people are emotionally destructive and we have to take care of ourselves first before we can help others.  aka drop it like it's hot. 

Well, I'll give it a try!  Bring on the negativity!

New Goals

I found this lovely on Pinterest and it made me think that I really want to make a few changes in my interactions with people.

Anyone else want to join?  I'm going to take one each week to work on/be aware of and see what happens! Why not?! So far my favorite one on this list is "Give people you don't know a fair chance."  I really need to be better at that so I'm excited to make that change!

This week: "Free yourself from negative people."  Interesting...

Reality Check

Every once and awhile I need a good wake up call.  Thankfully this one didn't have to come in the form of a terrible event happening.  Whew.  With my fantastic weekend with my best friends (post to come shortly), many prayers answered after a rough day, Austen's post HERE, Sierra's post HERE and the sun shining outside my window I'm overwhelmed with gratitude and perspective.  Know that feeling?

I'm going to share the video that Sierra posted because it had such an impact on me.  

WARNING: If you're feeling slightly emotional make sure you watch this in private... thankfully I watched it in my office and had a second to regain composure before I had to go back to work, because there were some serious waterfalls happening over here.  

 Side note: I'd like to think that if

I were to watch it under different circumstances

 I wouldn't have been such a cry baby.... hopefully.

We can never know what other people are dealing with in their lives and so this was a great reminder to me to be kind and slow to be annoyed or impatient with people.   To be grateful for what I do have.  To be grateful for my own trials because I know I couldn't deal with some things others have placed in their laps.  I'm grateful for the power each of us has inside of us to overcome any trial we are given, especially with a little help from our best friend. To be grateful for and realize the little things in life that make us TRULY happy. 

You know what, I think it's going to be a good day. :] I hope you can make yours just as great!

All My Single Ladies!

Unfortunately I don't have a man to sing me KC & Jojo this Valentines Day - Baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby..... - so Holli and I are going Beyonce style (her old style I guess, since now she's married) this year!  I write about this to let all my single ladies know that they are more than welcome to join us to watch the new movie Safe Haven this Thursday evening.  In addition to watching the epitome of a chick flick, we will probably also fill our time creating dialogue for all those first daters (like in the movie Date Night) and maybe even make a Coldstone run afterwards.  Who's with me!

Plus I'll be doorbell ditching some Valentines gifts to randoms that night to keep my tradition alive.  This year I really had a struggle trying to figure out what to get.  I planned on making some delicious sugar cookies but then my mom mentioned awhile back that she wouldn't eat anything homemade that some random person dropped off on her doorstep for fear of contamination.  Although this was after we received two sketchy looking cupcakes on our doorstep.... understandable.  Also one time when I thought about dropping off a plate of homemade cookies to a police officer in my neighborhood for letting me off a ticket my mom said that even if he knew who they were from he probably wouldn't be able to eat them and would end up throwing them away.  Sad.

Don't get me wrong, I completely understand the need to be realistic about potential poisons or the unsanitary kitchens that the homemade goods could have come from, but it's still a little sad that I feel like we can't drop off homemade cookies anymore without the motives being questioned.  Even with this secret Valentines tradition I have, this year I wondered, what if I give some person a Valentine and they think it's from their boyfriend/girlfriend.  When they thank their bf/gf for getting them a Valentine... then find out that their significant other did NOT in fact get them a gift..... that could cause a problem for both of them.  Jealousy could creep in and then one thinks that the other has been cheating.  Oh man it could be more problems than it's worth!

So I almost stopped this tradition and gave up.  Almost.

Then I thought of the reason I started this weird tradition in the first place.  I thought of a person who maybe really needs to know that someone out there is thinking about them.  Maybe there is someone out there that just needs a little chocolate (because don't we all?!) and a nice note.  So I bought two big heart shaped boxes of chocolates and I'm going to try to write non-creepy notes to go with them.

I plan on praying a ton to know who's car I can leave them on that will cause the least amount of problems.
Any suggestions on where to drop them?? :)

Woops

So today is Friday.... and yesterday was Thursday.... which means I missed my Weekly Domination post because I was too lazy to do anything.... fail. I'm already re-thinking my frail commitment of doing this post every week, but I'll give it another go for now.

So without further ado... Here's a list of a few awesome things that dominated my week!

• Mom & Me time on Saturday
• I love my mom. :)  Plus I bought myself my first infinity scarf!!
• Holli and I researching my new singles ward.  
• Conclusion: sexy men, they don't discriminate against us "old folk," really friendly and welcoming, great vibe and fantastic bishopric! Score!
• Jazz v. Heat game with a super cool date! 
• Finally met baby Jensen!
• Katie and Dave sure do know how to make one cute kid
• Bailed on my soccer game so that I could go out to eat with my parentals and PK.  
• Worth it! 
• Had a minor breakdown about my living situation/options. 
• Thank heavens I have the smartest parents on the planet.  My dad listened to me and helped me think logically about the situation.  My mom pegged me real good.  She observed that I was stressing out just like I am now when I was trying to decide if I wanted to go back to school or not. I tend to get caught up in what the 'smart' or 'right' thing to do is, but those things are what everyone else thinks or says is the 'smart' or the 'right' thing to do.  I'm wired a little differently, and I know when I'm not ready for something.  Unfortunately I try to fight it and convince myself to follow what is 'smart' and 'right' and it ends up stressing me out of my mind.  Thankfully I have great friends and family to help me wallow in my indecisiveness.  I'm not ready yet, but one day I will be, and I'm finally content with that. :)

Looking forward to this weekend and next week, but also learning to be happy where I'm at (sitting in my office and happily working).  

P.S. I did research the saying "without further ado" just to make sure I was saying it right.  Look at this golden nugget I found: 

Now you know! 

Street Names and Blonde Hair

Street Names.

I've always envied people who live on these fancy street names like Paradise Lane, Friendship Circle, Daisy Drive, etc.  Alright most street names aren't that cheesy, but I did see the Friendship Circle one this week.  True story.  I'm not entirely sure where this desire came from, but nevertheless, eventually I will live on Wallaby Way!  I should start taking pictures of awesome street names..... yup I'm now going to start doing that!  So, if any of you see an awesome street name take a picture and send it to me!  Maybe I'll make a sweet collage out of all of them.  Now the wheels are turning....oh the possibilities! 

Blonde Hair.

Yeah, I have that.  I also act like a blonde sometimes.  Shocking?  Not really.  Well yesterday I had the awesome opportunity to go to the Jazz v. Miami Heat game!!  It was a freaking awesome game and so cool to see Lebron and D-Wade (even if they looked like little ants from our seats).  In order to score the sweet tickets, we had to attend a little IT presentation about "Big Data" before the game.   What is Big Data you ask?  I couldn't tell you, I was able to follow along for about, oh, ..................that long.  The information I did understand was fairly interesting, but for the most part I felt pretty stupid sitting there with a bunch of IT guys.

Well one guy on our table was being polite and asked us where we were from.  Of course I have no manners and pipped right up and said, "I'm from Mapleton!" with a big grin on my face.  The guy looked at me for a second, raised his eyebrows then turned to my date and said, "Oh, I meant what company are you from."

Duh.

Wow I felt like such an idiot.  Of course he didn't care where I was residing, he wanted to know why we were there at an IT presentation and what company we were representing.  Oh yeah and did I mention I was on a blind date with someone I met on LDS singles?  Yeah.... That was a big golden start for me.  Thankfully  the presentation started shortly thereafter and I was able to occupy myself with the delicious potatoes, asparagus and steak.  I should be 500 pounds for how often I have to use food as my awkward out in embarrassing situations.

Sheesh, sometimes...... I tell ya, I don't know whether my brain randomly short circuits or if deep down I'm just a bubbling idiot just waiting to surface.  Hopefully it's not the latter. Still crossing my fingers on that one.

Oh hey there 2013!

I am loving all the New Years resolution blog posts.  Can I hop on the bandwagon??  I love that everyone is feeling motivated, reflective and excited about all the possibilities this year could have for each of us.  For me, this year is going to be the bomb.com.  I can just feel it.  Also maybe because I can't stop finding reasons to use 'the bomb.com' to describe things in my life.... can't be a bad sign. 

I too made some New Years resolutions that I'm particularly stoked about:

1. Learn Spanish....again.
2. Complete my Vans collection (only 3 more to go!)
3. Read 12 books
4. Go on a road trip
5. Buy my own place

I have a few others, but those will be kept to my journal only. :)  For the past few years I've tried to have a theme for the year.  One year it was "Weightless."  Originally it stemmed from the All Time Low song entitled, Weightless, and it seemed so fitting. 

"Maybe it's not my weekend, but it's gonna be my year.  

I'm so sick of watching all the minutes pass as I go nowhere." 

I even typed out my resolutions along with what I felt my definition of Weightless meant to me. 

P.S. If you haven't heard of All Time Low.....

palm smacking forehead 

Try them out! They are one of the best live performers I've seen.

 Plus it's a great song to run too. 

This year I've been struggling with what my theme should be... Quotes, Songs, a single Word, anything can qualify. Maybe I'll just go back to my roots and have DOMINATION be my theme for this year.  (Not Dominatrix.... don't worry Mom)  Who knows, but I'll figure it out. I'll probably be blowing up Pinterest searching for some adorable and inspiring quotes.

Well, here's to a fantastic new year that I'm soo excited for! 

A Different Perspective

Meet my friend Austen.  He's a mastermind entrepreneur and a brilliant business-man.  He shares his thoughts and insights over here at www.austenallred.com  (most of which go straight over my head).  Austen and I have been friends for awhile now and I certainly think the world of him.  He's definitely someone that I think everyone should have the opportunity to meet, or at least watch out for because his biography will be a best seller one day.

In hearing about all the tragedy surrounding the recent Connecticut incident I found myself having a hard time wanting to watch or read up on all the news reports.  It was such a horrible thing, and I just felt terrible inside thinking about all the loss many people have suffered and will continue to suffer.  After reading Austen's blog post (see below), I believe that he hit the nail on the head.   My dad read it and said,

"That was very well written and spot on." 

-Dad

So read this.  Or don't.
But......you probably should.
Just sayin'.
_________________________________________________________________________________

Media Responsibility During Tragedies

I’ve had a rather unique opportunity over the past few months; as Garrett and I have been building and testing GrassWire, we haven’t been required to operate according to traditional journalistic rules and ethics. We are breaking ground and exposing news in a new way (or at least we hope to be), and as such, the journalism world is our playground.

And as I watch and read the coverage of the shootings in Colorado and Connecticut, I have to say: I think we’re doing it all wrong.

The Streaker Rule

It’s standard in sporting events that should an unauthorized individual enter the field of play, cameras should look away. Commonly called “the streaker rule,” this rule applies to those that are clothed as well. The purpose of doing so is to not draw attention to the individual at fault. Naturally, if every streaker had a few minutes of airtime on natural TV, the number of people streaking would increase.

Of course we are curious. Everyone wants to know what is happening, whether they think that streaking is funny or they see it as a serious distraction. But the cameras are responsible enough to divert their attention so as to not provoke more incidents.

Why, then, when an armed individual enters a school and massacres children, do we profile the suspect as intensely as we can? With this most recent example, multiple reputable news sources even found the Facebook profile of the wrong person, instantly plastering it all over the news and social media channels. Later, full hour-long episodes will be dedicated to the shooter, just as they have in the past.

For Columbine, it took a few people that were absolutely diabolical. Now all it takes is someone willing to sacrifice their lives and the lives of others for a little notoriety. That’s dangerous.

We are all morbidly fascinated. What would drive a person to enter a school full of children and begin murdering them is beyond our comprehension and boggles our minds a little bit. But should there not be a “streaker rule” for a tragedy like this? Wouldn’t it be better for all of us, in the long run, to turn the proverbial cameras away?

Sandy Hill Coverage

A lot of unethical things were done during this coverage for the sake of ratings and page views: 6-year-old children were harassed by reporters immediately following the shooting, essentially trying to get them to break down for the rest of the world to see. Somehow a reporter got the phone number of a woman who lost both a child and a grandchild in the shooting, and remarked that when they called to question her she became “silent” and “despondent.” Of course she was!

You would never approach a family member at a funeral and interrogate them as to how they’re feeling. Of course we want to sympathize. We want to understand a tiny portion of what it must feel like to be in the shoes of those people. But doing so needn’t require us to harrow up the most painful of memories from those that badly need to grieve.

There are times when those involved want to tell their story; for some this comes quicker than for others. Give them the option to come forward, give them an outlet through which they can share their thoughts and feelings with us, but don’t prod them.

Media

Those in the journalism industry understand that they will often be asked to make a decision between ethics and profit. The line between tabloid and respected publication seems to be wearing thin. But especially in cases like these, in which so much is at stake, we need to take the high road. As the national media and journalistic institutions of this country, we can do better.

Side Effect of Facebook likes

Facebook has the option to 'like' practically anything.  Photos, a status, a page, a comment, etc.  Not to mention it is so easy to 'like' something.  Tap my finger and I've just stamped my opinion on that picture of your 4 month old pretending to be a dinosaur.  After awhile, the more you like things, the more I feel I need to like more things.  For example:

I post "Happy Birthday ______!!!!" on a friends wall.  The next day I get a notification that he 'liked' my post on his wall.  Sweet, recognition!  Then I get another notification with his response, "Thanks Hailey!"  So, to acknowledge that I received this response, I like his comment.    The sole purpose was so that I didn't have to comment back, but that I could acknowledge what had happened.  Interesting... 

For some reason I feel like I need to 'like' people's comments or photos to validate their feelings or their exciting news.  But when I think about it, it really doesn't mean a whole lot that I 'like' something they said or did.  So maybe I'll make a conscious effort to comment on more things instead of just 'liking' them.  Because what's more personal than a typed out expression and emoticon?!  ;)

Soon enough I will be 'liking' everything, and when I don't  'like' something, everyone will know and I'll feel really bad that I don't 'like' it.  So then maybe I'll 'like' it just to not give myself away that I truly don't 'like' it.  Then everything will be filled with my 'liking.'  It's a dangerous road I tell you.   

Great, Grand Gratitude

Do you ever have those days when you just feel grateful for EVERYTHING?!  Honestly I have been feeling so grateful yesterday and today, and so I'm going to share a few things with you.  Someone should make a holiday where we talk about all the things we're thankful for..... hmm.... oh yeah there is one, and I was too busy eating pretzel jello salad and mashed potatoes to think of these things.

I'm grateful for:

1. Spending time with family I don't get to see every day (not that I don't love my mom, pops and pk.... shoot that sounded bad)
2. Work
3. Working with people that are fantastically intelligent and fantastically wonderful
4. Loving my job, and being truly invested in our cases
5. People who listen
6. People who don't listen - to remind me that I need to make sure I'm a person who listens
7. Music
8. Good movies that make me laugh (PITCH PERFECT - go see it. right now.)
9. Good health, and the ability to exercise
10. Patience
11. Inspirational Quotes
12. T-O-Double
13. Craft Projects
14. Heating blankets and car heaters.

I'm thinking about trying to make this a weekly thing - listing the specific things I'm grateful for, for that day/week.  Maybe I'll do it on Thursdays and call it: Thanks Thursday.  Eh? Or Thanktitude Thursday?  Gobs of Gratitude?  We'll see.

Good Reads

Found this post last week and I think it's one that will be re-visited quite often.  I felt awkward sharing this with my parents and friends because I'm not married, but I really do think that this has a lot of great advise for ANY relationship.  So read it..... go HERE.  I'm now following his blog too because I think he writes so well, and could have a lot of good insight.  When I find things like this it really makes me feel sooo grateful for the Internet and for the raw honesty people put into their blogs.  We all go through our own lives, but to be able to share experiences and learn from others mistakes is a true gift in my opinion. Of course this all doesn't have to happen on the Internet with complete strangers, I've learned a lot from my parents and other family members/friends.  Keep on keepin' on people!  We can dominate life together! :)

LOL

If you need a good laugh for your Friday morning, go here:

http://www.nicegirlnotes.com/inanimate-objects

I'd like to add corners and cheese graters to that list.  No matter how wide I swing, the corner always jumps out and tags me.  Cheese graters, don't like fingers.  Enough said.

Have a great weekend!