inspirations

So, I've been kind of obsessing over 18th century decor. Maybe it has a little something to do with my recent trip to Versailles. :) Anyway, today I'm in a blue/white mood, so here are some pictures that caught my eye today...

goo goo for Gaga

Just a quick post while I wait for my tea to steep and go to bed. I just finished watching an old interview with Lady Gaga and I just adore this girl! You have to love someone who totally lives their life for art. So gutless. :)

Speaking of guts, mine haven't been feeling too hot lately (I'm hoping this tea will help). It may have something to do with how badly I've eaten lately or my recent lack of exercise. So, I started redirecting myself by hitting the gym tonight and tomorrow will be the start of some much overdue healthy eating. We'll see how that works. :)

Bonne nuit!

OMG! - 2

Found this one too! Love!

OMG!

Oh...my...gosh! I happened to come across this Marie Antoinette Collector Barbie tonight and about died! I'm not a Barbie collector by any stretch of the imagination, but a Marie Antoinette Barbie? I had to research further. Which is when I found out that the going price is about $2000. Boo. But I still kinda want one.

Who is crazier - the attorneys or the defendants?

Bonjour!

People crack me up. Today consisted of sitting in a courtroom with my jaw constantly dropped at the shenanigans taking place. I have to applaud our new attorney for standing her ground and not letting even the judge bully her around. I was never so happy for 5:00 to roll around so we could get the heck out of there.

Unfortunately, going home meant crazy clean up time around the house - the one downside to having house guests. :) But, such a good scrubbing was long overdue and now the house is looking (and smelling) fab! I need some major organization ideas, though. Probably the first thing to do is to decide what to keep and what to throw away, but I have a really hard time with the throw away part. My sweetie insists that there are several pairs of shoes that I could donate, but I put my foot down on that one! He has a hard time understanding that there are some shoes you wear on a regular basis and some that you wear only once in a while. But both are equally important. Boys...

So, I've been working on a new project for a couple of weeks now - a scrapbook of my trip to Paris. The last time I put together a real scrapbook was in high school, but doing this project has reminded me of how fun paper, glitter, glue, and stickie letters can be. I'm also reminded of how loooong the process can take. I've only done a day and a half of my 6 day trip, so it may be quite some time before I finish, but I will definitely post pictures because some of my pages I'm really loving! Yea for creativity!

lazy day

Bonjour!

Today has been a much needed lazy day. It started early, though, with a drive downtown to the federal courthouse for my swearing in ceremony. This federal district does things so much more intimately and personally than other federal districts. Only 6 of us were sworn in today, each of us was required to have a "sponsor" (an attorney already sworn into this district) introduce us to the judge, and after the ceremony we got to sign "the book" (a book of signatures of every attorney sworn into this federal district since 1878). My supervisor was my sponsor and our District Attorney even attended and said a few good words about me to the judge. It was one of those ceremonies that makes me excited to be in the legal profession.

Afterwards, my sweetheart and I decided to have brunch and then I was off to a work conference, which ended earlier than anticipated but late enough to make returning to the office unnecessary. So, home I went and caught up on blogs, found some new ones that I'm already loving, and generally just had a lazy evening. Don't you love when you get a surprise lazy day?

My Return to the Blogosphere

I just realized that it has been almost 6 months since my last post. It's ridiculous how insane my life has been, particularly at work. But, as its starting to slow back down to a tolerable pace, I'm drawn back to my little blog. So, what's been happening to me these past 6 months? Well, I've been doing the work of 2 attorneys (literally - like had a couple of minor breakdowns too), I was elected president of the board of directors of a non-profit I'm part of (which opened up a whole other door of problems, to-dos, etc), I took my first international vacation to PARIS; I turned 32 (boo); and I've been keeping up with each of my fav blogs quietly in the midst of all my chaos.

So, after 6 months of stress and a fab vacay to my dream city, I've been in a kind of "me time" mood. Don't get me wrong, I still give it my all at the office and make sure all my work is done, but I definitely have been doing some mental health recovery, if you will. I generally leave the office before 6:00 and I spend my evenings catching up on six months of back issues of Yoga Journal and InStyle magazines. And I dream...still...about a perfect life, with more creativity and sans other peoples problems, politics, and all the unnecessary meanness that I see everyday. But, I suppose that's better left for another post, another day. Here are some things that are making me tres joyeux right now:

1. Victoria Beckham - I never paid much attention to Victoria during the Spice Girls years, but I must say that I've been paying attention to her for the past few years. Not only do I think she's ubber-stylish, but her fashion line is FAB! If only I was a small as she is so I would actually be willing to spend $2k on one of her dresses.

2. Meeting Kimberly Wilson for the first time during her Texas book tour! After following her blog, podcasts, books, etc. for over 4 years, I finally get to meet someone that I truly look up to this August!

3. My new short haircut that looks surprising similar to this pic of Victoria B. (shock!). After years of growing up believing that only long hair is beautiful, I had a sudden urge to chop it off (it was gradually getting shorter with each visit to the hair stylist, so it really wasn't THAT big of a change) right before my Paris trip and I absolutely LOVE it! This sounds sad, but for well over a year I was in a style rut. I was more inclined to just pull my wet hair in a bun and wear glasses every day with minimal makeup than actually make an effort. I don't know if it's the haircut, the trip to Paris, or both, but I've been quite inspired lately and it's fun that people are noticing. It definitely takes my mind off the things that I'm tired of thinking about.

4. And last, but not least, Paris! I've been in love with Paris longer than I can remember. Maybe it started with my first subscription to Vogue magazine in high school or after years of cute Paris overkill at every Hobby Lobby I encounter, but who cares, my facination is here to stay. I was slightly concerned that actually visiting Paris might be underwhelming since I had built it up for so many years, but nothing could be further from the truth. Paris was amazing, life changing, and is definitely a place I want to spend much, much more time.

Anyway, that's me for now. I hope the few readers I did have will find their way back here and I hope everyone is well! :)

shannon

monday

after yet another day of insanity at the office, i'm finally in a place i want to be - lounging in my little pink room in my comfy jammy pants with my little space heater right next to me. sigh...

ugh, but work has been hard lately and i'm feeling it. i'm tired, my body feels heavy, and i just feel like i'm struggling to make it to the next deadline, trial, whatever. i know in my head that if i just start moving, it will help make me feel better, but i'm having a really hard time getting motivated. yesterday, i looked around my house and in my car and realized that i had checked out big time. old mail and papers scattered around, dishes needing to be cleaned, old coke bottles and trash in my car. i'm not a crazy germ-a-phobe, mind you, but i do keep my house and car neat. or i did, at least. anyway, it was a good eye-opener that i need to re-focus. so, i spent last night attacking all the paper stacks around the house and filing or shredding documents. that alone lifted a big weight off my shoulders.

fortunately, i have some fabulous news to help get me through the rough spots - my bestie and i are going to paris this summer!!! i'm super duper excited (it's still kind of hard to believe it). so, in the next couple of weeks i have to get my passport and maybe some cute luggage. aaagh!!!

this and that

where have i been??? unfortunately, i have not been on vacation, but rather at the office...a lot. 2010 is off and rolling for me at work. unfortunately, a co-worker was fired this past friday and, in a very unfortunate turn of events, she attempted to take her life this weekend and is now committed to a mental health facility. i can't even begin to explain the incredible sadness that i feel over this. on one hand, she was very difficult to work with, work around, talk to...everything. on the other hand, i know she is all alone. her family doesn't live nearby and the man that she called her boyfriend lived hours away and was obviously not a regular part of her life. she's well into her 40s and has never been married, never had children. i can totally understand how, after losing her job after 6 months, she would be ready to check out. really makes you understand how valuable your health, family, and friends are. they aren't just words you use when you toast; they have really meaning. frankly, they are the only things truly valuable in life.

but, because we are 1 attorney short again, it has fallen on me to take on the work. i pray that i can handle it and don't totally lose my mind.

in much lighter news, i've taken a break from my french tip acrylics in lieu of simple short nails and super fun nail polish. makes me feel so high school/college again. :) tonight i went on a little nail polish shopping spree and found this fun color - Essie Wicked.






I also got OPI Vodka & Caviar and Aphrodite's Pink Nightie. lol! I forgot how fun the OPI color names are.

2010 - redirection

2009 in review:

1. Became vice-president of the non-profit that I have been a board member on for 2 years. Many wonderful things happened this year for that organization.

2. Helped create a new non-profit organization and hosted our first major fundraising event on Thanksgiving Day - it was an unbelievable success.

3. Made so many local community connections and am getting some significant face recognition from others - very important in a community that values community service as much as my town does.

4. Celebrated my 2 year anniversary at my current job (sadly, the longest I've been at a job since graduating from law school).

5. Turned 31 (yeah, not everything this year was good ;) )

6. Testified at my state legislature during the summer legislative session about an issue that I'm very passionate about. So proud that I faced that fear (and, yes, it was scary even for a lawyer).

What I look forward to in 2010:

1. Training for and riding in the Tour de Gruene in October.

2. Spending more time with my 2 non-profits and making them grow.

3. Brainstorming future career plans - research non-profit jobs, etc.

4. Reading Tranquilista (just more reading in general).

5. Seeing Pink Martini in Houston on May 1.

6. Cooking more, eating out less.

7. Spending more time on life outside of work (yoga, personal growth, etc.) - I say this every single year, especially since I graduated from school and had to join the working world, but this year I'm going to do everything in my power to make it happen.

Word of the Year:

Kimberly Wilson and several other bloggers out there have written about a word of the year - just one word that puts their goals into perspective. My word for the year is going to be redirection. Like I said above, I'm looking more into the future as it pertains to both career and personal life. I want certain changes in my life, so hopefully this word will help keep me focused on that.

2009 was a great year - lots of interesting things happened to me and, when I look back, I realize that I accomplished so much. But I still want more. The end of 2010 will possibly be a major career transition for me. As my current supervisor hopefully moves up leaving her current position available, my first desire is to be promoted. That alone will create new responsibilities, a different type of law practive, and all the things that go along with changing job positions. If the promotion doesn't happen, then I'm going to have to make some pretty significant decisions about where to go from there, which will likely mean that I will move on. Where, I don't know yet, but that is what I plan to spend the year contemplating. Being a trial lawyer, even a prosecutor, is not how I want to spend my entire career. It's too stressful and too often I do not feel that I'm doing something directly beneficial to others. Being a traditional lawyer period may not even be for me. One of the foremost benefits of my current job is that I have been opened up to the joys of non-profit work. Yes, the pay is low, but as someone who now sits on 2 non-profit boards, I know without a doubt that the benefits are absolutely priceless. Regardless, I have a lot of thinking and exploring to do. Exciting, frustrating, and scary, but so necessary for me now. Here's to 2010!

joyeux noel!

i hope everyone had a fabulous Christmas holiday. while the best part of the holiday season is time with family and friends, i do want to share a few of my favorite prezzies that i received:

1. tiffany's! my bff has made it a tradition, so to speak, to always buy me something from tiffany for Christmas and my birthday. check out the pretty box complete with red ribbon:

here's what was inside - a beautiful amethyst necklace!

2. a cafe frappe - now i can make frappachinos at home anytime! love it!

3. iDog - too cute!



4. fun coffee mug - cute for the office!

hope everyone had a happy holiday. here's to 2010!!!

bonjour! it has been forever since i've been on here. seems facebook and, now, twitter are taking up more of my time. oh, and also that thing called work! i finally saw new moon over the thanksgiving holidays and l-o-v-e-d it! granted, there were very cheesy bits and i felt more than a bit guilty making my boyfriend sit through so much sap, but i guess even after all my education i'm still just a teenage girl at heart. :) i really do wish there were vampires and werewolves in the world and they were both in love with me. lol!

anyway, don't know about anyone ele, but time since thanksgiving break has flown, as usual. i know i say this all the time, but i really can't believe that 2009 is practically over. there was so much i wanted to do, but didn't. i'm really trying not to be too negative about that. what i am happy for is the holidays - time off work, visiting my family in houston, seeing old friends, . . . hopefully, i can get through the next week until then!

eclipse

my mind is aswirl! so many things going on and not enough time to sit and think (probably the reason why i have been sick now 2 times in 2 weeks, no bueno). being involved in 2 non-profits while trying to put myself in a position to be promoted at work by this time next year is trying. the good thing about being sick and having to stay home is that i can finally take the time to catch up on some much needed reading. can you believe i finally started reading eclipse, the 3rd book in the twilight saga? i didn't take long to get hooked again in the whole vampire vs. werewolf drama. :) it's sad that reading a book is my only release from an overly stressful time, but there it is...happy reading!

the rest of the story

so, my friend survived! on sunday, he jumped out of a plane in san marcos and made it to the ground safe and sound - even with a smooth landing. after lunch at a tacky place called bikinis (he picked), his wife and i visited a local winery we passed by called three dudes winery. the name sounds a little sketchy, but it was actually a nice little niche on the river. it might possibly become a refuge after a long day. i love finding places like that.

is everybody sick these days?

sick...again. i ended up leaving work at lunch on friday because i couldn't take it anymore. today, though, i was a trooper and did a bit of do gooding promoting my non-profit organization at a local health fair. it amazing the people you meet at events like that...always learning something new and unexpected and always leave loving the non-profit work i do. with a full time job, it's hard to juggle the time, but i make it work and love it. someday down the road, i'd love to be an executive director of a non-profit. it's a tough job, but one of the most rewarding.

anyway, tomorrow i'm watching a friend jump to his death, or, as he calls it, skydiving. eesh, i don't know if i'll be able to watch.

a new week.

while there is so much going on that is causing stress, frustration, etc. (esp. at work), i'm trying to spend more time focusing on the good things that are going on because that's what matters, right? so, since i'm a visual person, i have to write things down so i can see them (and, hence, remember them!). here are some that immediately come to mind:

1. i FINALLY finished a book, in the time of the butterflies by julia alvarez. sadly, i have had the worst attention span for like a year, but i'm hoping that is coming to a close because reading is one of my favorite hobbies.

2. the movie Coco Before Chanel will be coming to my town in less than a month - CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!!!!!!!

3. another week means more lunchtime pilates. totally my new favorite thing to do.

4. my fav yoga studio is moving into a new, fabulous building. can't wait to take class there.

5. this week i'm chopping off my hair! time for something short and cute for the fall. may even go lighter with the color.

anyway, just a few things to keep my mind positive while work is overwhelming.

le weekend

after a whirl-wind week of too much work and too much sickness (boo), i started my weekend at a local community resource & health fair. it's events like these that make me feel so blessed that i do the work that i do and have the opportunity to participate in things such as this. this fair was at a local church in the less affluent part of town. local vendors, doctors, dentists, etc. participate and do free screenings of this and that. just an awesome do-gooding thing. i, along with two other ladies, were there on behalf of a local non-profit that we belong to. finally, a truly beneficial way to start a weekend (plus it got me up at 8:30 in the morning on a saturday rather than noon or 1:00). afterward, i holed myself away at a starbucks while much needed rain poured down and made my way through the joy diet. just a good and lazy day.

today, my sweetie and i ventured to Gruene and had yummy mexican food and then stopped by a new, totally adorable coffee shop. we also drove by the new home of my local yoga studio. it's so amazing seeing young entrepreneurs grow, especially when they do something i support so much. then again, it starts making me feel like i did when i first stumbled onto kimberly wilson's blog oh so long ago. on one hand, i absolutely loved everything she was doing and i was immediately hooked. on the other hand, i was sad that someone else was doing all the things i had thought of doing myself but just never took the leap. it makes me feel like i'm wasting my life doing something that i'm not 100% committed to. UGH - this is my daily struggle.

victory!

after searching through literally every bookstore in my town, i finally found a copy of the joy diet! i'm so glad because i'm not a big fan of ordering online (i think it's that instant gratification need). so, i'm well into chapter 1 and am loving it, but i have some catching up to do. tomorrow will be my first foray into doing nothing (i may just decide to do it in court - ha!). we shall see how it goes.

nothing - literally

when it comes to participating in the joy diet's first chapter - nothing, this past week was an utter failure.

problem 1: no book - i've literally been to every bookstore in my city and the book cannot be found. looks like i'm resigned to ordering online.

problem 2: the past week was chock full of problems, stress, and chaos. while it was certainly the most needed week to take a few minutes to do nothing, i have to admit that i spent it enjoying a few cocktails instead. sigh...

last week was supposed to be a little break away from life while our entire office went to corpus christi for a work conference. i had planned to leave for the coast on tuesday, but for some reason i decided to work in the morning and then leave in the afternoon. thank goodness i did! while i was doing some prep work on a huge case that is quickly approaching trial, i discovered that the detective had not sent extremely important dna evidence to the crime lab to be tested. i cannot begin to express how big of an error that is, so i got to spend tuesday writing memos (aka - hate mail) to the officers on the case and contacting the defense attorney about the mistake. the silver lining is that i discovered this before trial and not during. can you even imagine how stupid all of us would look when the jury learned that the evidence was just sitting there, never tested??? UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! needless to say, the trial will have to be reset and i have the distinct joy of explaining this to the victim. anyway, this situation was the biggest impetus for me to head to the bar rather than do nothing. probably not the best reaction. breathe in...breathe out...

the rest of the trip was nothing to complain about, but i ended up leaving on friday completely exhausted and so happy to be home. so, my first entry is way too negative. next week will be better!

when can i slow down?

so i finally joined 2009 and converted my page to the new layout feature. thank god! it's now so much easier to pretty up my page. unfortunately, my old template is no more and instead of a pink space it's become more of a peach and brown, but whatever. it's all pink in my head. :)

seriously, though, september has been a month of sheer craziness for me. hence, my absence from blogging or tweeting or just communicating in general. i already posted about our SANE room cutting ceremony at the beginning of the month (complete with paintings done by moi!). my artistic inclinations were put to the test again when i volunteered to participate on one of the judge's bbq cook off teams. i'm not particularly fond of bbq, but it was good to socialize with work peeps and i delegated myself to the booth decoration committee rather than actually cook any meat. so, me and two other girls spent all our after work hours last week literally creating a ring of fire. check out the picture - an entire fence of plywood that we sawed flames out of and painted. out of 80-ish teams, ours was one of four that received a showmanship award. holla!

in other news, i also got to be on stage with george strait last week! he was emceeing at a local fundraiser (for the love of kids and harleys) and i not only got a free VIP ticket, but i also got to stand on stage while he did his thing. like 2 feet away from him! eek! didn't get to actually meet him though, which bummed me out, but oh well.

with all the craziness that has been going on this month (including prepping for 4 upcoming jury trials and getting sick) i haven't been to good to myself physically. but today i finally went to a lunchtime pilates class and ate a healthy lunch, but boy am i sore now. better get it together because tomorrow i'm heading down to corpus christi for the rest of the week for a work conference. a much needed break!