Jun

22

Chi-town to the Big Apple

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Last Thursday I left for Chicago. Two of my best friends got married back-to-back, so it was quite the fun and action packed tour de illinois. First up was Janel, who got married in Bloomington. Then on to Stacy’s extravaganza in Chicago. A good time had by all. Headed to the Chicago ‘burbs to spend time with Dad on Father’s Day, and we were out like trout first thing Monday morning to NYC. I attended a trade show at the Javits Center for GFB related stuff, and met some really awesome (and famous) people. Pictured above is me with Amanda Beard, the olympic gold medalist in swimming. She was a cool chick.

After the trade show, I headed to Times Square to meet with my web designer at a Starbucks. When lo and behold, my Swedish best friend from second grade who I hadn’t seen since grade school tapped me on the shoulder! Her name is Jenny Hammar, and she is living in NYC for just one year before heading back to her home of Stockholm, Sweden. How crazy is that? She’s a photographer…check out her great stuff: www.jennyhammar.com I love randomness.

Jun

21

Happy Birthday Shannon

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Today would have been the 28th birthday of my A-phi sister, friend and inspiration of Girls Fight Back. So I raise a glass to my CEO in heaven…happy birthday Shannon Mac.

Let’s celebrate by checking out her new memorial website which was launched today…

www.shannonmcnamara.com

Jun

13

Calling all 20 Somethings…

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Christine Hassler (www.christinehassler.com) is teaming up with Jack Canfield and Mark Hansen to co-author Chicken Soup for the Twenty Something Soul and she is looking for stories about the twenty-something experience! You do NOT have to be a twenty-something to submit, the story just has to be about something that happened to you in your twenties. Stories about people twenty-something people you know are also welcome.

Chicken Soup for the Twenty-Something Soul will cater to the soul of a twenty-something and ease readers during this time of decisions and transitions. We’re looking for true stories that will touch the souls of the readers and make them laugh, cry, sigh or just say, “Wow!” Stories may be about any aspect of a twenty-something’s life such as career, relationships, health, finances, family, and self identity. Stories of twenty-something’s who have incredible lessons to share will inspire twenty-something’s to learn how to lay the foundation of their own life with integrity, faith, and even a sense of humor. Heart-warming stories of simple acts of kindness or fate are also welcomed.

This is a great opportunity to touch another person’s life and have your story published in a national brand. For each story selected to be published in the book, a 50-word biography will be included about the author and a permission fee of $200 will be paid. Before submitting your story, please visit www.chickensoup.com and read the “Story Guidelines.” Christine is taking submissions NOW via the chickensoup.com website, click on “Submit a Story” and be sure to select Twenty Something as the book title. Please contact Christine at christine@christinehassler.com with any questions or for more information.

Jun

12

The Moment

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So this morning I went for a two-mile run around my neighborhood, and I was confronted with a classic creepy van. I was running behind an elementary school, and from behind me this red and black van with black tinted windows drives past me. Of course, it slows down as it passes. (Insert creepy movie scene here.) It keeps driving, and proceeds to make two large circles in the parking lot where I’m headed. After the second loop, he drives back towards me and parks in a spot farthest from the school door, and closest to where I will have to pass him. All this goes down in seconds, and I’m thinking to myself, “This is the moment.” It was the moment where some women turn around and get the hell outta there, and where some refuse to seem scared, refuse to insult the person and pretend they are not freaked out as they keep running on course.

Every woman I’ve ever met knows about that moment. All the possibilities that flood your brain, every horrible story you’ve ever heard on the news…yet at the same time, feelings of empowerment make you mad to feel this way and outraged to consider anything else but carrying on with your jog as planned. Sometimes women just don’t know how to choose, how to react in that moment. So they just keep going…

I propose we get conscious about “the moments” we have in our lives. You can do this by asking yourself this simple question – why is this situation making me uncomfortable? I asked myself this question today, and here’s what I came up with:
1. He’s driving a very creepy van. Who would willingly drive that?
2. He just made two loops in a huge parking lot, only to come back to me. Why?
3. School is out for summer. What is he doing here?
4. Why did he park farthest from the front door and closest to me?

In doing this, I had a major realization into why women don’t trust their intuition. In this case, I was clearly being contacted by it. Only issue is that all I felt I was given in regards to safety signals were not answers, they were questions! Rarely does intution say, “Hey you. See that van over there? Well that guy is gonna toss you in the trunk.” Intuition doesn’t roll like that. It gives YOU the power to assess and decide. And often we must decide not on what we do know, but those unanswered questions.

So if you find yourself in “the moment” and you ask yourself why you’re uncomfortable, and all you can come up with is a million questions, it’s time to go. Without skipping a step, I did a total 180 turn and got back on the path. When I looked back, he was standing outside of his creepy van looking at me. The best fight is the fight never fought…it’s the one avoided.

Jun

11

Read Ross on Huffington

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My good friend Ross Szabo wrote a blog posting for the Huffington Post today about the Soprano’s coverage of mental health issues. Ross is the youth outreach director for the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign, but more importantly, is the record holder for the amount of GFB programs that he served as my Scary Bad Guy. Gotta love a man who keeps coming back for more! (Pic above – me and Ross in Venice Beach, CA)

Click here to read Ross’s Blog