Hear me roar

I've been in a musical funk lately.

I've been listening to the same stuff for a while now. While that's all fine and dandy, I've been needing some different tunes in my life.

Enter Arcade Fire, Jack Johnson, and a few other songs into the mix, and I've been pretty content the past few days.

This is annoyingly poppy, but I'm digging Katy Perry's Roar lately. It's catchy! It's upbeat! It screams, 'I am woman!'

It's perfect.

On another positive note, I felt my future nieces move for the first time on Friday night. Someone kicked me when I put my hand on their momma's belly.

Hooray babies!

Back to my original point, now.

Roar

I used to bite my tongue and hold my breath
Scared to rock the boat and make a mess
So I sit quietly, agreed politely
I guess that I forgot I had a choice
I let you push me past the breaking point
I stood for nothing, so I fell for everything

You held me down, but I got up
Already brushing off the dust
You hear my voice, your hear that sound
Like thunder, gonna shake the ground
You held me down, but I got up
Get ready cause I’ve had enough
I see it all, I see it now

Chorus:
I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter, dancing through the fire
Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar
Louder, louder than a lion
Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
You’re gonna hear me roar

Now I’m floatin like a butterfly
Stinging like a bee I earned my stripes
I went from zero, to my own hero

You held me down, but I got up
Already brushing off the dust
You hear my voice, your hear that sound
Like thunder, gonna shake the ground
You held me down, but I got up
Get ready ’cause I’ve had enough
I see it all, I see it now

Chorus:
I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter, dancing through the fire
Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar
Louder, louder than a lion
Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
You’re gonna hear me roar
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
You’re gonna hear me roar
Roar-or, roar-or, roar-or

I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter, dancing through the fire
Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar
Louder, louder than a lion
Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
You’re gonna hear me roar
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh
You’re gonna hear me roar

It can't ever be simple.

Did you hear the joke about the person who has been excited for her Christmas vacation for about six months?

The funny part of that joke is that a vacation isn't really a vacation when you have a sinus infection and bronchitis.

Cough, sniffle, moan.

Come to think of it, that's not really that funny. Sigh.

All of this started a couple weeks ago. I got sick when everyone else got sick - my co-workers, my family- only everyone else got over it in a few days.

Of course, not me. My life can't ever be that simple. The last time I had this stuff, I remember it lasted for more than a month.

Lucky me!

On a more positive note, I've actually put on something other than my pajamas for three days in a row now.

I'm proud of that.

Cough, sniffle, moan.

I'd like a Christmas vacation do-over, please.

Great Reads

I love journalism.

It's the only thing I ever wanted to do. It's the only thing I was ever really good at doing.

Even though I don't work in journalism anymore, I still freelance every once in a while. When I do, it makes me realize why I got into the business in the first place.

It's addicting. Being on deadline is the best feeling in the world. It's the best high and surpasses the best buzz in the world.

On that note, I read a couple of great things today.

The first is from Buzzfeed. That story takes you to a link from The Boston Globe.

You should read both. This is why I love journalism.

From Buzzfeed: The Incredible Story of How a Reporter Followed an At-Risk Teenager's Journey All the Way to Yale

From The Boston Globe: Brothers seek a way up and out

#NotWinning

My life has been comical lately. Like, ironic comical.

Take this week, for instance. Earlier this week I got a phone call that I won a prize through a contest I entered a couple of months ago.

Sweet. A prize! Maybe something positive is finally happening to me. Maybe my luck is turning around!

Fast forward to today, when I sat, er, stood through an almost hour-long ordeal involving a radio station celebrating its birthday.

There's nothing wrong with that. It's cool they gave out prizes, cake, and goodies to people. Kudos to them. Being in business that long is something to celebrate.

But I'm not really a fan of standing in a room of more than 60 people for an hour and socializing. It was my own personal nightmare. I wanted to turn around and introvert my way out of the building, back into my car and go home.

But I'm no quitter, so I stood through the unnecessary stuff in order to get my prize.

When the chanting and singing was over (I wish I was kidding), they finally handed us our gift bags and told us we could open them.

I was excited. What was in the bag? It could have been something cool - a queen size mattress (I don't have a spare bed, so that would have been cool), a golf cart (I don't really need a golf cart), free pizza for a year (lactose intolerant, here, that would have been a stupid prize) - but it wasn't.

I opened my prize to discover it was a six-month free family membership to a local gym. That in itself is a sweet deal, because that's worth quite a bit of money.

Here's the kicker, though. The fine print of the certificate said it's only valid for new members. And I'm a stickler for following the fine print in life.

I've been a member of this gym for nearly a year now. And technically, this is the third free membership I've won through this gym that's totally useless to me.

Folks, you read that right. I won a prize for something I can't use. The irony is great, here. I mean, it takes some serious talent to win a useless prize. My luck isn't changing one bit...but at least it makes a good story.

"Monica, what did you do today?"

"Oh, you know. I won a non-prize."

I hope everyone who reads this had a more productive Saturday morning then I did.

On Curveballs

To break my terrible habit of not blogging, I'm going to post a link to a column I wrote for my alma mater a couple of months ago.

I love this column. I'm insanely proud of it.

As it turns out, I don't always follow my own advice. In the two months since I wrote this, I've freaked out at every single curveball thrown my way.

I have nothing to say but...oops.

Here's a link to the column.

And just in case that doesn't work, I'll copy and paste it below.

I also have a paper copy hanging up in my office at work. Eventually, it will be framed.

-----

Alumna shares advice with Southwestern students

I had my life planned out seven years ago.

I was finishing up at a community college and I was planning to transfer to a state university. I was set.

Then, life threw me a wonderful curveball. Once I made a campus visit to Southwestern and saw that beautiful building on top of the hill, that was it.

I knew I had to change my plans and go to school in Winfield.

If you’re a Southwestern student reading this, I need to talk to you. I have some advice that, if given to me a few years ago, could have saved me a few dollars, some sleepless nights and some heartache.

Here’s my advice to you.

You’re going to spend the rest of your life dodging those curveballs. It doesn’t matter what you have planned out, life will take you in another direction.

Let it.

I think you need to know that in the end, it’s all worth it. One day, a few years from now, you’ll look back and realize that you went through everything you did for a reason. If you try really hard and put your degree to good use, one day you’ll have a wonderful life.

You’ll have Southwestern to thank for that wonderful life that you love.

Tonight at sunset, sit on top of the 77 and watch the sun in all its glory. You’ll miss that and wish you did it more often when you move away from Winfield.

I also have some job advice for you. Don’t be afraid to ask for what you want. And don’t be afraid to leave a situation if you don’t like it. The best decisions I’ve ever made in my professional life have been leaving situations I’ve been unhappy with.

If you’re brave enough to leave, life will greet you with a wonderful new hello.

You have a wonderful gift. You get to decide how your life will go. You get to decide who to spend the rest of your life with, what city to live in, and what career you want to have.

Those are all big decisions to make. Time your time.

It’s been five years since my class finished college. We’ve gotten married, had children, advanced in our careers and have had some wonderful things happen in our lives.

Achieving all of those things is not easy.

It’s my hope that every single one of my classmates knows this, and I want to pass it onto you.

You might not know that sometimes life doesn’t work out. Sometimes you’ll break, and it’s okay if you do. Before that happens, surround yourself with people who don’t mind putting the pieces back together for you.

Sometimes you can’t do it yourself.

And the next time you’re walking around the Southwestern campus, take a look around. You have an amazing network of people who want to help you achieve your goals. Talk to professors after class. Ask about internships, jobs and part-time jobs. Ask students, too.

Jobs fizzle out, cities can change and friendships you make can fade. Don’t let go of your friends from home or your friends from college – they’ll be there when jobs and cities change.

And that student sitting next to you in class? That person could someday be your boss. Be nice to other students, and don’t be afraid to network with them if you’re looking for a job.

Trust me.

The most important piece of advice I can give you is this: Be confident. Aggressively seek what you want in life, and don’t ever settle until you get it.

You deserve it.

Monica Springer

Southwestern College, class of 2008