The Girls From Ames

My heart goes out to everyone that lost a loved one this week. Several people around the world are grieving and I can't help but be reminded of how precious life really is. I could keep going and blog about all the death that touched my life last week, but I am not going to.

Instead I want to tell you about this amazing novel I discovered this weekend.

It's called The Girls From Ames and it's by journalist Jeffrey Zaslow. This book tells the story of a forty year friendship between eleven women. The women (or "girls") are from Ames, Iowa which is the home of my alma mater, Iowa State University. They all met as children and to this day are still close friends although they are now into their mid-forties.

The book was given to a good friend of mine for her birthday, and after hearing about it I knew I had to go buy it. I bought it Saturday morning and am already almost halfway through it.

On several levels these girls remind me of my own circle of girlfriends, but on several other levels it reminds me of how different we are from these women. I can only hope that our bond withstands all of the struggles we are going through, like the girls from the book, but sometimes it's hard to be optimistic.

From what I have read so far it seems that the girls struggled the most through their twenties. During this time they are figuring out who they are, what they want and where they are going. This is the time where we, as women, are most selfish and put ourselves first. Maybe because we know that this may be the only time in our lives to do so, being as after marriage and children your own personal well-being isn't the most important thing in your life anymore.

Regardless, during this selfish phase we call our twenties the relationships with our close girlfriends tend to suffer. Hurtful words are thrown and unconditional love is taken for granted.

It's difficult moving down the totem people on the level of importance you are to someone else. Being replaced with husbands and children can be heartbreaking and confusing, but so far this book is teaching me that we're not being replaced in our girlfriends eyes. We still fill a place in their lives that can only be filled by the women in your life called your friends.

I am the youngest of my group of friends, and many times it is very evident. I'm not ready to give up our carefree ways and I'm definitely not ready to take a step down. This book has come along at the perfect time for me.

Summer Swap and other goodies!

Awhile back Angela over at Sweet Tea Diaries very graciously hosted a Summer Swap for her readers! I eagerly signed up and was really excited to have received Ashley from Perfectly Pleasant as my Swap partner!

Here is what she spoiled me with! :)

Ashley sent an amazing package of fabulous summer goodies! Super cute pink and green plaid plates, a Battle of the Sexes card game, an ADORABLE beach towel, a watermelon notepad, a blow up cup holder in the shape of a flamingo, a bag of Goldfish crackers and a bag of sour watermelon gummies. This was so adorable, I loved every bit of it!! :) I wish I would have taken a picture of what I sent her, but you can see it here! Thank you so much Ashley!! :)

I also won this contest on Amber's blog! She sent me this fabulous assortment of Cliff Bars, Larabars and a little jar of honey that is SO AMAZINGLY good! I love honey and haven't had it in probably years, so it was a nice surprise! :) Thank you so much Amber! I'm totally hooked on Cliff Bars now! Here's a pic:

Here's Libby sniffing around. Of course the queen of the household had to inspect it first!

Hope you all have a great weekend! :)

Sunday Funday Quiz!

I completely agree with She Wears a Red Sox Cap about these surveys, I love doing them but not exactly sure why. I don't think I like talking about myself, but maybe I really do? Hmmm... anyhoo, hope everyone is having a lovely Sunday and an even lovelier Father's Day! :)


What is your current obsession? Books. I have been checking out/buying more books than I can keep up with. Seriously, I should just become a hermit and stay home reading all day, everyday.

What is your weirdest obsession? Ok, this is strange (well, at least I think it's strange), I like to listen to the audio books of my favorite novels in the car. Not just on long car rides either. Sometimes I will start them and listen to them during my normal daily commutes. Weird, right? (I may or may not take the long way home if we're at a good point of the book)

Starbucks or Caribou? Actually, neither. I'm happiest with my own coffee from home in my pretty pink travel mug! If I get coffee somewhere else I will usually go to the gas station, Kum and Go (yes, we have gas stations called Kum and Go) and get their hazelnut coffee, it's SO good!

What’s for dinner? Today we went out to Texas Roadhouse for Father's Day (yum!) and last night I had a taco salad. Has anyone tried the ready made salads in a bag from Dole? They have Caesar, Asian and Southwestern options and I LOVE them. They are so yummy!

What would you eat for your last meal? Oooh, goodness. My last meal. This requires some thought. I would start with a nice garden salad that has tomatoes, carrots, black olives shredded cheese and croutons with ranch dressing. Then I would eat half my weight in crab legs dipped in melted butter (mmmm....) with maybe a nice loaded baked potato on the side. For dessert, cheesecake topped with strawberries... heaven! :)

What was the last thing you bought? A Father's Day card! Happy Dad Day! :)

What are you listening to right now? Keeping up with the Kardashian's is on... sort of watching.

What is your favorite ice cream flavor? I love Bunny Tracks or any Cake Batter ice cream

What do you think of the person(s) who tagged you? Nobody tagged me, but I got the survey from She Wears a Red Sox Cap who I found via Amber!

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? Definitely the beach!

Which language do you want to learn? I would love to know Spanish. I regret not pursuing it further in school when I had the chance.

What is your favorite quote (for now)? "Sometimes you have to forget what you want and remember what you deserve."

What is your favorite color? Pink!

What is your favorite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe? A pair of black wedges that have silver/blue detail on the front. I wish I could find a picture of me wearing them, but here they are. They actually need to get repaired because the middle part that goes between your toes broke off! I hope someone can fix it for me!

What is your dream job? A writer. I would love to be creative enough to come up with great tales about people like Harry Potter, Bella and Edward or Becky Bloomwood. When I was younger I had such a wild imagination and would write "books" all the time, now that I'm older my imagination has calmed down quite a bit and it kind of makes me sad!

What is your worst habit? Eating at night. It's awful! I can't resist the urge to snack after the sun goes down and it's usually sweets I want!

If you had $100 now, what would you spend it on? Some new summer clothes! I'm in desperate need of cute clothes good enough for work (and play!)

Do you admire any one’s style? Yep, I love Londyn's style, it's timeless and always chic. If you haven't checked out her daily wardrobe blog, you should!

Describe your personal style. Casual and sweet. I love anything trimmed in lace. Anything pink, but not a lot of it at once. I like things that are classic and versatile. Things that I would wear for years and years. My favorite places to shop are Von Maur, Express, Forever 21 and American Eagle.

What are you going to do after this? Probably a little reading then off to bed!

What are your favorite movies? Almost Famous, Across the Universe, Miracle, The Parent Trap (random, eh?) and Elizabethtown. Clearly I love movies with good music! :)

What is your favorite fruit? I looooove fruit and I cannot pick just one! I like strawberries, pineapple, oranges and mango the best. The only fruits I don't like are melons. Yes, I do not like watermelon. Strange, right?

What inspires you? I feel like I'm inspired daily. Sometimes it's the oddest things too, like last week I was the musical Mama Mia! with my mom and grandma and was totally inspired by the finale. It was so extravagant and well done, it had me almost in tears! I can't pinpoint what it was exactly that inspired me or what it inspired me to do, I was just inspired!

What is your favorite book? Again, I can't pick just one! I love books way too much. My favorites are the Harry Potter books, My Sister's Keeper, the Shopaholic series, Summer Sisters, American Wife and Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld and The Shack by WM Paul Young.

Do you collect something? Not really, unless you count books, bags and shoes!

What is your favorite smell? Lemon! It smells so clean and fresh!

What are you most proud of? Being young and successful. I have finished school, have my degree and am in a career that I love and get paid well to do.

How many times do you press the snooze button before you get up? Too many times to admit! Ha!

Cats or dogs? I love them both! I have Libby, my cat, but would love to have a dog too! Maybe this year I will get one! :)


Complete the following: Love is… when you feel like family together. When you can't imagine your life without that other person.

What do you like best about yourself (can be a physical characteristic and/or a personality trait)? I am a very loyal person, especially in my career. There are very few jobs I have had that I didn't have for a long time. Even when I was younger!

What do you dislike about yourself? I'm extremely sensitive and am constantly worrying about what others think of me. I know I need to stop it, but by now I don't think I'm going to change!

I'm tagging anyone that wants to do this quiz! :)

The Time Travelers Wife

I am about a hundred pages into this book, and so far it is absolutely phenomenal. The story is so intriguing and unique!

I know that a movie based on the book is coming out soon (with Rachel McAdams as Clare!) and I can't stop imagining each scene in my head. It's going to be a great movie, I can't wait to see it.

Has anyone else read this book? What did you think?

Twilight, recommended ages?

Almost daily I have tween girls in my store drooling over magazines with the Twilight stars on the covers or picking up the Twilight dvd and staring longingly at it while her mother snatches it out of her hands exclaiming, "No! You're too young!"

Each time it gets me thinking and I can't help but wonder. Would I let my tween daughter read Twilight? Would I just let her watch the movie? Would I let her read the books and watch the movie? Would I read the books first?

It seems like each time I have girls in the store talking about Twilight, they are younger and younger. Maybe it's my imagination, but they just seem so young! Perhaps it's because I likethe books and I feel ashamed? Although, on the other hand, I loved Harry Potter (more than Twilight) and never felt one ounce of embarrassment over obsessing about Harry and his adventures at Hogwarts.

Back to the point though. Why would I not let my daughter read Twilight? There are several reasons why, 1.) It starts out young and innocent, but quickly morphs into a more adult relationship, which leads me to my second point, 2) The subject of pre-marital sex is there in the "will they, or won't they" sense, and 3.) What kind of message are we sending to young girls? To give their lives to a boy?

Now for the reasons I would let her read Twilight... 1.) It's just fantasy, and as long as she understands that, I am fine with it, 2.) I would rather her be reading then watching tv or worse, messing around on the internet, and 3.) Knowing myself, I would be reading it right along with her so it would be great mother/daughter bonding time! Oh wait, and one more (SPOILER! Stop now if you haven't read it!) 4.) The fact that Bella and Edward waited until they were married to have sex sends such a positive message to young girls.

So, my conclusion is I would let my tween daughter read Twilight, although I would want to read it first and perhaps restrict the final installment, Breaking Dawn for when I felt she is mature enough for the sex scenes.

How about you? What age is too young? There are girls aged 8 and 9 currently reading the series, do you think that is too young?

Facebook... at work?

I'm kind of on a roll on the subject of work, so let's keep it going, shall we? ;)

The women in my company are all on Facebook. My boss, my boss's boss, my colleagues, and my staff. They're all friends on the site (well, most of them) and I think it's weird. The only people I will make friends with on FB is my management, just because we're already so close. We kind of have to be, we're together 40 hours a week!

I'm 99% sure I DO NOT want to be friends with my boss on Facebook.

It's not that I'm "hiding" anything or that I put on a sort of false facade when around my boss, colleagues or higher ups. I am always myself and my Facebook is page is very... me. It just strikes me as borderline unprofessional to befriend them on social networking sites.

Today we were in meetings all day, and my regional manager shouted out something regarding pictures on Facebook (I think it was during lunch) and I just sort of pretended I didn't hear here and ducked out of the conversation.

There's just something about it that strikes me as odd. Am I behind in the times? Is Facebook more than just a social networking site for your friends? Have colleagues and employers joined the bunch? Is it appropriate? Thoughts?

Oh you know, just the typical office gossip...

Awhile back I stumbled upon a a rumor circulating my "office" that was partially targeted at me.

Let me start with how much I do not tolerate gossip. The company I am working for is 99% women and the company I worked before that was also 99% women. In those circumstances, gossip is unfortunately unavoidable, but I believe there is a proper way to handle such distaste.

The proper way is to not contribute, period.

Now, don't get me wrong. I am female. I like to talk. I like to gossip about Heidi and Spencer, Angelina and Brad and ohmygod I can't believe she said that! Although, I'm very careful with who I confide in and make sure to never say anything that I would not say directly to someone. I've traveled this road before and I know that following this rainbow does not lead to a pot of gold. It only makes the gossiper look like a busybody with nothing better to do, and almost always ends with someone's feelings being unnecessarily hurt.

Well, this rumor is something that our boss (a district manager) allegedly said in regards to my staff and I. My instincts are telling me it's not true. If it were true, things would be very different right now. I know it. There are certain parameters in place right now that would not exist if these thirteen words were stated.

There's still that tiny voice in the back of my head that says, "What if it is true? What do you do then?"

Well, if it is true then all I can do is my job, right? If it was said, I will only let this fuel my fire to prove them all wrong. Although, bottom line, I will probably never know if it was truly said because I wasn't there. Not knowing is probably the healthiest alternative.

All I know is I am capable and strong in my position, otherwise I would not be in it. I will continue to do my job and do it well. Tolerating this nonsense is a waste of time and I will not condone this behavior in my "office" nor will I give anyone the satisfaction of a response.

Well, except for my smug smile when I continue to do what I'm doing and sit on top.

The day I go 8 hours without my crackberry....

What a wild weekend at the lake! I'm planning on a long post soon about all the shenanigans we got ourselves into - I promise! I twittered pretty much the entire time until my phone died early this morning and I didn't have my charger. I went 8 hours without cell phone or internet access.... oh, the horror! It was traumatic, and I might need therapy but I survived....

It was actually a blessing in disguise because once I did turn it on I had a not-so-nice text from a certain someone. Grrrr...

For now, I'm off to bed, but I'm going to leave you with this quote that completely sums up how I'm feeling right now... Ya'll know where this is headed, right? Mmmm, hmmm....

“I’m selfish, impatient & a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control & at times hard to handle. But if you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best.”

- Marilyn Monroe

Setting a new record...

Last night at work we set a record with the biggest sale in my store! A little girl around the age of 10 and her mom were shopping for this her summer wardrobe. Her mom kept calling it "Molly's shopping spree". Immediately our ears perked up and we knew we were in for a big sale. We got to work pulling outfits and showing Molly's mom.

What came next was unusual.

As soon as I started showing Molly's mom items she looks at me and goes, "show her, not me!" It was straight out of Pretty Woman (although I felt about this big) but it cracked me up. That NEVER happens. Usually moms want to have say about EVERYTHING their daughters are picking out.

Then we started showing Molly our favorite items. Everything we showed her, she loved. Of course, me being practical, I'm trying to make outfits and I keep asking her if she needs more of this or that. She didn't care if she needed it, she just wanted it! Everything she liked she would go, "I'll take one in every color! Size 10 on top, size 8 on bottom. I know! I'm weird!"

Hilarious, right?!

I was so sure her mom would go through all the items she picked out and make Molly narrow it down, but nope! She bought IT ALL.

The total ended up being a whopping $2500 and was over 150 items of clothing including hair accessories, shoes and scarves. With our average dollar sale usually being around $50, was extremely extraordinary! It was awesome!

I have set the new record for the biggest sale at my store. I've gotta set the example right?! :) The record was $1600 and all my girls are SO competitive. Today I told the girl that had the old highest record and her face was priceless! I think she's going to have a tough time beating $2500... luckily it's all friendly competition! Just a little incentive. :)

Theeeeeeeen, earlier this week I found out a colleague of mine (who I'm not extremely fond of) was running her mouth and bragging about her salary (which is a huge no-no and I assume it's the same with most companies) and if this figure is correct I make a significant amount more than her... Hmm.. pat on the back to me, right? ;) Fortunately for me, neither her or anyone else will be made aware of mine. I keep my lips zipped about that stuff... it's the only way! ;)

I hope everyone's week is going well! I'm headed to the lake this weekend and I can't wait to have some fun in the sun!

The last text message post... promise.

So, the shit really hit the fan Sunday night. Things are over, and I can officially say I do not want them to ever start back up again with "the boy". I know I didn't properly give him a nickname and "the boy" has kind of stuck. In the end, it has proved to be very fitting.

Sunday night I had a floorset organized for my store. We're starting to get back to school merchandise and cycling out a lot of summer merchandise (crazy, right?) so we're getting ready to get started and it starts storming really bad out. Then there are reports of tornados on the ground in neighboring suburbs to where I am. I'm a midwest girl, so it doesn't phase me. We keep working.

Well, the storms got worse and the news starts advising people to head to the basements. The mall evacuated everyone into the tornado shelters, which is where I ended up spending the next 30 minutes. I had no idea what it was doing out there, and it was kind of freaking me out.

I text "the boy" that I'm stuck in a tornado shelter, unsure of what it's like outside and said that I was freaked out.

No response.

Now, I'm a big girl. I don't need a guy to protect me, but I do need to know if the guy I'm seeing cares about my safety. Clearly, he didn't. Now, you might be wondering, was I worried about him? Yes, which is why I wanted to start up a conversation with him while I was sitting in a tornado shelter.

So later, after I canceled the floorset, my assistant and I were sitting in my living room talking and he said I should text him and tell him I'm fine (sarcastically, of course), so I did.

Here's how it went....

Me: I'm fine in case you were wondering
Him: Sorry. Sister and brother in law came by and we grilled out
Me: You're lucky the tornado didn't get your grill. I'll see you around

I know, I'm a sarcastic b**** when I'm mad

Him: Are you mad?
Me: Yes

I finally fessed up, usually I say no

Him: Wow, what the f*** did I do?
Me: It's more like a lack of what you didn't do
Him: Guess I didn't get the memo that I had a girlfriend and sudden obligations now
Me: Wow, you're a real a** hole, you know I have not expected a relationship but I expected to at least be treated like a friend.
Him: I'm an a** hole? Why? Cause I didn't text you back because I was with family? Exactly why we aren't together...EXACTLY.
Me:No, forget the night you made movie plans and stood me up? Forget all the times you flat out ignored me and I let it slide? Don't turn this around on me. That's why you're an a** hole.
Him: What the f*** ever, the world doesn't revolve around you
Me: Lose my number, _________. I don't ever want to hear from you again
Him: Fine
Me It's funny that the world revolves around me when I expect someone to follow through. Thanks for the lesson.
Him: You get pissed off cause I didn't text you back about a tornado that didn't even touch down
Me: No, it's not about the f***** tornado! It's everything! I don't deserve to be blown off by anyone, how do you not see how rude you have been to me?
Him:I don't deal with anyone else's drama and you're no different. Peace.
Him: I don't have anything else to say because unlike you I don't want to get into saying harsh things. I already made that mistake with someone else.
Me: Your words were just as harsh.
Him: I'm done

That was it.

Want to know my first thoughts afterwards?

I just got into a fight via TEXT MESSAGE!

What is this? Seriously? Seventh grade? What would have made it even better if it was on AOL Instant Messenger.

I don't think I was wrong here... I was pretty much bound to blow up at some point. I truly do not want to hear from ever again. I know I'm not self centered as he implied nor dramatic. (Well, obviously a little dramatic, I mean come on, I'm posting this on the internet! Ha!) This has definitely taught me to not put up with anything, especially in the beginning.
I truly do not want to hear from him ever again. If he really thinks those things about me, then I definitely don't want to be around him.

Ahhh well, you live and learn. Right?

Link back contest...

Laura over at Under the Sheets-Shhh... posted this survey on her blog and I'm in one of those survey moods, so here goes! :)

If you're interested post these five questions with your answers on your blog and link back to Laura!

The Five Questions Are:
1) What topic would you write your book about?

This is something I have struggled with for a long time. I definitely want to write a book someday and have wanted to since I was a little girl. I just don't have a story. I envy authors like J.K. Rowling or Stephenie Meyer that come up with these amazing stories that become a phenomenon. Hopefully, someday I think of something just as worthy to be printed! One of the only things I almost sure of is it would probably be in the chic lit genre!
2) What is one of your guilty pleasures?

Just one? Seriously? I have several... One of my biggest guilty pleasures are regular manicures. I have added up how much I spend a year on my nails and it's ridiculous. I've tried to give it up but I just can't!
3) What are some of the things you do to get yourself out of a bad mood?

Sleep!
4) How long do you think it will take to get the U.S. economy back on track?

I think it's going to take a long time, obviously not in this decade since it's almost over. I definitely think it will take a few years, I'm thankful we have Obama in office working on those changes.
5) Do you think there is a fine line between creepy and romantic?

Depending on the person, yeah!

Resistant to change...

Wow, Amber was right.

Wordpress is confusing and so far very different from Blogger! At least to me it seems pretty different. I'm sure I will get used to it and love it, but right now I am not loving it. I have the set up of my new site ready to go, but it's just the basics. I need to spruce it up before I start using it. I just need to figure out how to go about that...

I'm a little sad to give up my blog name, but I can't use the same one because it's too obvious if there is any IRL people reading this current blog. I have a new blog title that I think is just as cute!

I haven't really touched on why I'm switching, but I plan on letting you all in on the news once I make the move. There's so much I want to write about, but I just can't until I am absolutely sure I'm completely anonymous. I'm a little angry with myself for giving out the URL or posting my blog on Facebook for a little while, but what's done is done and everything happens for a reason.

On to other news...

Last night the boy and I were texting after I got off work (around 10:30) and things were fine but I was getting ready to go to bed so I knew if he asked me to do something I was going to say no. I must have ESP (or I'm just on to him...) because he asked me what I was doing around 12am and I said just watching tv and getting ready to go to bed.

He texted back with just, "ok." Then a couple minutes after that he texted again and said, "Well I was going to see if you wanted to stop out."

I texted back and said, "Ahh, I wish you would have asked earlier because I would have if I wasn't already in bed :( next time?"

He didn't reply. At all.

I know, he's not used to me turning him down but I really was in bed. Clean face, pajama's on and contacts out. There was no way I was getting up and making myself presentable to meet people. It's not that I didn't want to see him, I really did want to I just wish he would ask me earlier and make plans with me. I don't see why that is so hard.

Hopefully, doing things like I did last night will teach him? I'm not expecting that to happen but if it does I would be very happy! :)

Thoughts?

Well, anyway I hope you all are having a great Friday and have an absolutely fabulous weekend! Don't forget to leave me your email address so I can send you all the link to the new home...

Making the switcheroo!

Good evening blogosphere!

I'm thinking of making the switch but it definitely won't be for awhile. Instead of just posting the new URL on this site I was thinking I could send a mass email out to you all with the link. That way if anyone is reading this that I don't want reading it they can't follow...

Soooooo, please leave me your email address in a comment or email me at alittlepinkinthecornfields (at) gmail (dot) com with your email address.

Again, it probably won't be for a long while as this summer is already getting crazy for me but I'm definitely going to make the switch sometime in the summer. (fingers crossed)

Thanks guys!

He's baaaaaaack...

It has been awhile since I have brought up this guy on here. A couple of weeks ago we had a not-so-pleasant conversation and since then I have ignored him. Until the middle of last week (yes, I lasted 12 days) when he texted me and asked me if we still weren't speaking.

I'm not sure what to do. I was kind of hoping I would hear from him, but why? I honestly don't know.

My reply to him was pretty simple and since then we have been texting as normal. Sometimes flirty, sometimes not. Sometimes daily, sometimes not at all. I'm not sure what he wants from me, but I'm pretty sure he knows what I want from him.

It's obvious we have feelings for each other and I'm hoping that my ignoring him did some good and now he knows that I'm not going to put up with anything.

For now, I'm just going with the flow. I'm not initiating any plans with him and I'm not texting or calling him first. If he wants something with me he will have to make the effort because I have been making most if not all the effort for the past three months.

I don't know what it is about this guy but I keep getting reeled back in.

Pay It Forward contest winner!

It's Tuesday and that means I get to draw names for the winner of my Pay It Forward contest!!

I put all the entries on post its and drew from a bowl and the name I drew was...

SassyGirl from SassyGirl and the City!

Congratulations! Please email me at alittlepinkinthecornfields (at) gmail (dot) com with your address and I will get your fun summer goodies sent out to you!

Thank you to everyone that participated!