Styles by Disa

I have been playing around with different styles since my locs have been growing. Check out a few!

flat twisted on the sides. braided up the middle. some twisting and pinning on top.

french braided on both sides, pinned by the right ear. loc bang in the front.

braidout: washed and retwisted, braided about 6 locs together and held with rubber bands at the ends. sat under head dryer for 30 mins. took out braids in the morning.

Sunday Best

This weeks' church outfit:

Light pink button up: courtesy mom

Olive green skirt: Unique Thirift Store, $3

Grey sweater tights: cant remember

Peach wedge loafers: Urban Outfitters, $15

Pearl earrings, necklace, and bracelets to accessorize.

Love is a two-way street

I've been turning down a lot of one-way streets the wrong way in the past few days. I'm not sure what that is a sign of but my mind is clearly distracted.

I've realized through dating that I don't like being forced to share. My food, space, time, etc. Now don't get me wrong, I will share, but I need to feel like I want to. It shouldn't be just due to circumstances. I guess it's really like I don't think anyone is entitled to me sharing with them. All this to say, I do realize when you enter any relationship with another person there are things you need to share to make it work. This definitely takes some time to get used to especially if you've been doing your own thing for a while.

With being in a relationship you must never lose your true self. Now I've seen it happen to friends who didn't seem to get it, but I guess it is harder to see when it is yourself. If you're a sarcastic person, continue to be that way but just not to the extreme. If you like to be out and about, continue to do so. If you follow all the rules, breaking one for your partner will go against your morals. If you like to partake in certain activities and your partner is against it, then you won't be able to be comfortably you which will case further problems. Ultimately your partner will notice you aren't you and these will not be happy times.

I also haven't been to church in a month and have felt spiritually disconnected. I was neglecting my faith due to a number of thoughts in my head. Hopefully after today's mass (yes I am Catholic) I can gain some clarity and stop driving down one-way streets the wrong way.

Go with your GUT!

So lately I have been learning that it is best to go with your gut feeling when it comes to making decisions. I mean the feeling wouldn't be there if there wasn't a valid reason right? Our bodies tell us how we feel even before our mind realizes it, so why not listen? Whatever it is, do it. Got something to say? Speak up! It only ends up happening the way it should have anyway. Like that night I really wanted pizza for dinner. I fought the urge and made some soup that ended up tasting TERRIBLE! I then went out and bought a slice that made me feel wonderful, but wasted 2 hours trying to decide. I should have literally gone with my gut! From now on I am NOT going to ignore that feeling!

Day ONE

Well Day one went well. I resisted the brownies and cookies that were right next to my desk at work and drank some water and ate an orange instead. It was NOT easy. I tried to justify at one point and say "well...brownies aren't a snack that comes in a bag like chips." LOL. I am going grocery shopping this weekend to stock up on fruits, veggies, and healthy snacks so that if I do get the urge to eat, I'll have a good healthy option.

My middle school team won our game yesterday, 20-14, to make our record 8-0. The most frustrating thing about coaching is that no matter what you teach or tell the players to do, you cannot go out there on the court and do it for them. I definitely see progress in most of them though since the beginning of our season (November) and know that my time and energy has not been wasted. **pats myself on the back**

It was also Valentine's Day today and though I was not sure how the day would go, let's just say I was happily surprised by the end. :-)

Sacrifices and Commitments

So today marked the beginning of Lent; the period of fasting, meditation, and prayer before Easter. Every year Lent seems to sneak up on me and I have to rush and think of what I will choose to give up during that time. Sometimes I pick things that aren't really much of a sacrifice or I end up slipping up and breaking my promise. This year I am committed to making a change and actually sticking to what I decide.

I decided to give up alcohol and snacks (chips, cookies, wafers, etc.). Having a desk job it is easy to munch on multiple bags of snacks every day. Sometimes I am not even hungry, but decide I need a snack along with doing my work. Giving up these things will also hopefully help me to lose a few pounds (yes I think I need to get more fit).

Along with giving these things up, I have decided to commit to some actions as well. I will write a blog post every day during Lent. I have been frustrated with different parts of my life lately and forgot that I have outlets to let it all out (I haven't posted here in almost 2 months). Thoughts have been consuming my mind and I need to free up some space for positivity and innovation. So you can look forward to my frustrated rants, outfits of the day, hairstyles or just random things that happen in my life (I really think it is a movie!).

The second action I will commit to is based on this Under Armor ad I remember seeing a few months ago:

I will commit to being active every day. I pretty much do this now between running practice with my basketball team, refereeing at night, and playing on an intramural team at Penn, but I want to step it up and continue this even on Fridays when all I can think of is what party/gathering I am going to for the night. I will also be recording what activity I choose to do during my daily posts.

This is not going to be easy, but I am committed to making it happen so that I can improve my spiritual, mental, and physical health. So you can follow me along my journey here and give me some words of encouragement if you wish. :-)

Fresh, Fly, and 25!!

"I'm the type to say a prayer and go get what I just prayed for" - Meek Millz

My 25th birthday was last Wednesday and I am already feeling like this is going to be a great year. Here is an update of what was left of my 25 goals:

25 things before 25:

1. begin a healthy romantic relationship/cut off meaningless male relationships
9. figure out career plan

10. see asthma specialist

15. talk to financial advisor about loans/savings

18. help out with dad's business (ad campaign, sales)
19. learn to be on time!!
22. buy a car
23. apply to grad programs/grants/scholarships/fellowships

25. make/stick to a budget

I completed 22/25 goals before turning 25! I missed a few, but at least for those last 3 I have been taking some steps towards them. I plan on making an appointment to see an allergist/asthma specialist when I get back to Philly in January. While I am home for the holidays I will put together a business plan with my dad and about this whole being on time thing...we'll have to see about that. :-)

I have begun what I consider to be a healthy relationship and have a really good feeling about this. I did have to break a few hearts which was not easy, but in the end I have to do what works for me. It is still very new and fresh, but I am looking forward to seeing where this can go. :-) I have realized that I am not satisfied with my career if I am not directly impacting youth. The desk life is not what I am about and need that interaction with young people to feel happy and satisfied. In that frame of mind, I have applied for another position within my organization that is supporting a number of our students. I find out next month if I have been chosen, but I am confident that I am the perfect candidate for the job.

I BOUGHT A CAR!!! After so many months of just talking about wanting one and complaining about public transportation in Philly, I decided to actually just go and see what this whole car thing is about. I went in to the dealership just curious and ended up driving off the lot with my new baby! My life has been so much easier this past week now that I don't have to run for trains, wait in the cold for buses, or worry about getting home if it gets late. The investment is definitely worth it. Along with this new investment, I researched some information about money and loans so I would know what I was getting myself into with this car/insurance/gas/registration thing. I decided to put together a budget since I now have a ton more expenses. Hopefully I will stick to it so I won't be Broke Betty at the end of each month.

I finished all of my grad school applications and am just waiting for my recommendation letters and transcripts to arrive at the schools. This definitely was not the most difficult process, but did take some motivation on my part to complete everything while working 2 jobs and coaching. The next step once I hear back from the schools is to figure out how the heck I am going to pay for this next degree. 

All in all 25 has been great to me so far and I can't wait to see what more is in store for me! I am thankful for life, health, family, and love and no one can take this happiness away from me!