First of the Year Wisdom

Whoa! Where did January go?

Between failing at the Whole30, traveling home to Georgia for my grandfather’s 80th birthday party, and getting some super exciting news at work, the last three weeks have flown by. I wish I could say I’ve already accomplished major things in 2016, but that would be a big fat lie. Aside from finishing The Fellowship of the Ring last week, I haven’t done much outside of the workday. There are still boxes of Christmas decorations on our living room floor, I have written zero words of my novel, and we didn’t shovel all the snow off of our driveway because it’s so much more fun to slide down it than drive.

However, that does not mean that I haven’t gained any important wisdom in the last 24 days. In fact, I’m going to share it with you all because it’s obviously all very need-to-know stuff.

Buying a house means you want to have kids. Like stat.

Spencer and I had a lovely time at my grandfather’s birthday bash. I chatted with family members who I hadn’t seen in years, Facetimed my cousin from advanced training, and looked through some wonderful old photos of my grandfather’s life.We also had our first dose of the “when are you having kids?” phenomenon. I always thought people were overreacting about it, but I guess it’s just that we don’t live in the same state as our families.

Any conversation about our house immediately turned to the subject of children: “How many did we want to have?” “Weren’t we trying yet?” “Wasn’t it about time?” I got pretty good at dodging the question, but after a few hours (and glasses of wine), I was tempted to counter with something equally personal like an anecdote about our sex life or a detailed description about how messed up my bowels felt after going off the Whole30. Luckily for everyone involved, the Packers were on, and I got distracted.

I don’t want to be “that blogger,” but then I kind of do.

I drifted away from this blog in October because 1) I had absolutely no time, and 2) I was getting a little apathetic. I wasn’t sure what kind of blogger I wanted to be, and I was trying too hard to imitate the odd “gold standard” of lifestyle bloggers. When I decided to start back up with the new year, I had no specific goals in mind. I was simply going to take things as they came.

But now that I’m back, I realize that I really do want to make something of this little space, and sometimes the “things all bloggers do” look too fun to pass up. Case in point: Stitch Fix. In case you aren’t familiar, Stitch Fix is an online style service where you fill out a form with your sizes, style preferences, etc., and a personal stylist sends you a box full of clothing and accessories, handpicked just for you.

Normally you pay a $20 styling fee, but if you use promo code YESPLEASE1716 before February 5, it’s waived! If this sounds like something up your alley, do me a solid and use my referral link? I get $25 for every person who signs up for a fix with my code. And look out for my first Stitch Fix post coming your way in early February. It will be such a cliché, but I’m okay with that.

My passport still has my maiden name on it, and that probably won’t fly at border patrol.

The anxiety whenever I remember this is intense. I love to travel and have consistently been able to (at least as far as the government is concerned) since I turned 12 and got my first passport. I must get my passport renewed. Why is it so difficult to remember?

The campaign hasn’t gotten any more bearable now that we’re actually in an election year.

I wrote this whole long blog post back in November about how I was already over the presidential campaign… and then I never published it. I hate people who complain about things without bringing other viable options to the table, and since there are no real options (besides straight-up anarchy, and I’m not there yet), I decided to just be quiet about the whole thing.

I think my problem is that I don’t like any of them. Republicans or Democrats, men or women, career politicians or workforce veterans, I don’t feel strongly about any of them. Well, that’s a lie. I have strong feelings against a few of them, but I could care less about the rest of them. Sad, I know. Here’s hoping something good comes out of Iowa.

The year hasn’t begun until you’ve Tyler-cried.

I’m sorry, did you say you aren’t familiar with “Tyler-crying?” Then let me fill you in. “Tyler-crying” is my work department’s special word for laughing until you cry. It’s basically my specialty, and it happens at least once a week. Last Thursday, I had a particularly intense bout of it after a coworker messaged something to me, and we all had a nice little chat about the first “Tyler-cry” of the year.

If you aren’t in a work environment where the people make you laugh until you cry and then laugh along with you, you might want to reconsider your professional priorities.

Earl grey shortbread cookies are the best, but the little tea leaves will get stuck between your teeth.

And that’s what I’ve learned so far in 2016! Check back here on Thursday for a book club review of Gloria Steinem’s My Life on the Road, and I might have even more nuggets of wisdom to bestow.