The Wife and I have some really wonderful friends in our lives. One of them is our BFF Sugar who we met back in the day… about 18 years ago… when we worked at Disneyland as ride operators together. (College days!)
We spent the day at Disneyland and the first thing they did when they entered the Park…
Vadering at Disneyland
… and this is why we’re friends.
I’ve been building up and working on my new business and what’s been keeping me going has been the strength and loyalty of my network of friends and colleagues. This past week, I attended the SMCLA event on B2B and social media, and my fellow board members came up to me and asked how I was doing and how they could help with my business. It threw me back for a second. It finally occurred to me that my network is strong and not full of superficial types. Sure there are those in the periphery, but the core remains strong and caring. The network of my network is strong and while this sounds so hippie-ish, it’s true – they have my back, and I’m lucky.
For my Friday Five, here are the lessons of the week:
1. It is OK to take time off and read books.
2. It is OK to take more time off and read more books.
3. Your mind and body need to remove itself from trauma and exhaustion.
4. When you are generous with your time and friendship, your circle is generous with their time and friendship.
5. It is OK to take time off.
It’s ok.
It’s not over til the fat lady sings, and I haven’t started singing yet.
It’s still International Women’s Day today, and I asked some of my friends to name a woman who is/was influential to them. Like true friends, they gave me honest answers. Read on…
Q: Who’s an influential woman in your life? How did she inspire you?
Wife: Did you want me to answer? [He ended up dodging the question and asked his coworker.]
Ariel of KenAndAriel.com: Maya Angelou. I read all of her books about her life in the span of two months when i was 18 and was blown away by her quiet courage and her incredible journey to become a famous poet. Her poem “Still I Rise” is taped to my fridge.
LwtSH: A family friend and my former boss from college. She introduced me to the world of IT when she hired me to work at her computer lab. As a minority and female in a male dominated field, my mentor showed me that a woman can make it and be successful no matter what gender or race.
Mary at Running Green Girl: Angela Tripp Lindig – Angela’s strong will and tenacity are an inspiration to me. She works tirelessly to spread awareness and advocate for those who are unable to speak for themselves. Through her actions, she demonstrated the power and influence of grassroots movements to me.
AJ at Confessions of a Fat Girl: In fifth grade, I played Hannah Szenes, a Hungarian Jew who trained with the British Army and parachuted into Nazi-run Yugoslavia during WWII. She was captured and tortured – even more so than “normal” because she was a Jew – executed, but never revealed anything to the enemy. The poetry she wrote during the war has been published and acclaimed. She had unwavering spirit, tenacity and warmth – despite unimaginable adversity. I doubt I’ll ever have to be that brave but sometimes I sing one of her more famous poems to myself for comfort when I am sad. Since I was 10 — it always cheers me up.
[alias] Adorkable: An influential woman in my life is Zooey Deschanel. Because of her, I am no longer odd, but quirky!
Jane: My mom. She always made sure she was presentable. So I try to remind myself, “don’t slouch, suck in the stomach, & do the eyebrows” because you want to be presentable at all times. 
[edit! a late entry!] Mr. A of Tales Daily: My Mother – She made me who I am today – a proud gay man. Even in birth, I was so afraid of female genitalia that my mother had to have a cesarean. It’s the last time I would ever get that close to vagina again in my life. I would say that was pretty influential. Love you Mom! Thanks!
Is there a woman who has influenced you?
Here’s another installment of This Week in Photos! Not familiar with TWiP? These are things I run into during the week. In an effort to complete Project 365, I decided to take a photo of what I ran into every day.
This packaging can be taken in different ways, don't you think? Trader Joe's.
Introducing Lucy, my new dogniece!
One of my best friends Daisy flew in for the week, and we took a walk around Brea while waiting for other friends to meet us at Bruxie. We stepped into the Rite-Aid and the Thrifty logo reminded me of my elementary school days. I used to walk to Thrifty’s for 15-cent ice cream. 15-cents!
Thrifty Ice Cream, Rite-Aid, Brea, CA.
Daisy said she’d never had ramen in So Cal – WTF. So it was duty to take her some place for ramen. I found a new place in Stanton called Gomen which was delicious. After ramen, we strolled over next door and found an ice cream shop! Neveria la Flor de Mexico is a small family-run shop with a ton of flavors to choose from. They’ve got scooped ice cream as well as bars. Totally recommend this place.
Neveria la Flor de Mexico - Awesome ice cream found in Stanton, CA
The Wife, Jen, Tina and I went to see Bring It On: The Musical at the Ahmanson. It was a fun show with a lot of acrobatics. I applaud the singing, dancing and tumbling – it’s hard to do all three at the same time.
Bring It On - Ahmanson Theater, Los Angeles, CA
What, more ice cream? Yes. The Wife brought home some fancy ice cream by Neveux Artisan Creamery for me. What a sweetie. He got Salted Caramel and Creme Fraiche – these are pretty amazing.
Neveux Artisan Creamery ice cream
