I resolve to not be mean in two thousand thirteen.

Seriously, what rhymes with thirteen?
mean
spleen
Codine
keen
seen
dean
clean
magazine

clearly, my new years rhyme is much better than the aforementioned garbage; but anyway...

I love lists (not a secret) I love things that are organized, and I really love memories. I think I've created the best way to create an organized list of memories from each year!

Firstly, please don't tell me that you say this on pinterest first, because I'm sure that's true, but I didn't. I had to wait until my own gray matter could come up with this one until it was implemented.

I give you my .... (as yet untitled way to keep track of memories)

In this vase I write myself little notes from what happened each day, pretty much like a tweet but less pressure to be witty and more factual. Its like a no pressure journal.
Sometimes I write down really mundane things, other days I write down really amazing things- I mean that's life, right?
 Here's my 12 favorite from 2012 

• Made an $800 payment on my credit card
• Lost my voice. #sucked 
• Sasha came over for dinner
• my favorite grandmotherly student from work said, "you so pretty, girl."
• Saw my next door neighbor washing the dishes in her underwear
• Work conference, fantastic conversation with coworkers about faith
• I'm so damn lucky to have my life.
• Walked from Centro Romero to HACC and back!
• Saw a man smoking weed on Wellington, toddler in tow. 
• A stranger on the bus asked me what I was reading, Harry Potter #1, oddly satisfying
• Looked at Sierra and Matt's wedding pictures. I suppose I don't completely hate myself. 
• Changed my own windshield wipers
• Walked home from a work meeting with Annie, ran into Kendra. I love when Chicago feels like a small town.

Ok, that was 13. Deal with it. 

Is it weird that I just laid this puppies down
on whatever happened to be close by?
That's an ESL grammar textbook, FYI.

No Shame November has come and gone again

Somehow. I missed November. Between 50 hour work weeks, Friendsgiving, Thanksgiving and a road trip. I just didn't get around to this post. Also, it's been sitting in my drafts folder since November 10th. I really am ashamed of the following, which is why I think I held back on it for so long...
_____________________________________________________________
No Shame November is Back! Last year, in it's inauguration,  I embarked on an adventure that brought me back to blogging and made life seem a little better.(you can check out the original No Shame November here. All the credit in the world to the amazingly talented Kathleen Leahy for developing this project last year.)

For starters, we'll talk about a new no-shame characteristic I've developed: being clean and organized.

So this November finds me in a totally different stage of life than my first try at NSN... I'm living in an apartment on Chicago's northwest side with two of my girlfriends instead of the dorms. Of course it's awesome, but it has dragged out of me a compulsive clean streak.

Seriously. I'm verging on Danny Tanner here (but really just in the Full House way, never in the weird Bob Saget stand up way.) I suddenly find my mood is better when things are cleaned and organized, and I just can't deal with mess and clutter like I used to. I know it doesn't sound like a problem, but when you live with two relatively 'normal' people, expecting things to be spic-n-span 24/7 just isn't going to happen.

My Friday night consisted of cleaning the kitchen for over an hour (it needed it...) and doing laundry. The fact that I admitted that here is shameful in and of it's self, but I digress. When I was done I couldn't help but feel better in every way. I felt accomplished, I felt downright happy.

I've taken to organizing almost every aspect of my life. Everything (seriously EVERYTHING) in my life has a designated place now. It's amazing. I feel like I'm in control of the details of my life and can have an insta-mood boost when I walk into my room with a made bed and a well organized desk. Things get done in my life.

WHO AM I? 

I remember telling my mom "the floor is one big shelf!" in high school. That mantra is unwelcome here... i don't want anything on the floor that isn't furniture.

But if i'm being honest about why this is shameful, then things get real. Monica from friends or, people like me, are always are kind of always pains in the asses. They're bossy and particular, not to mention controlling, in the all the wrong ways.

...and there before the grace of God goes I. Bossy and controlling, a kind of ugly proud monster rises and falls in me when I try to keep things perfectly in order. It gives too much room to judge others, to claim a 'right way' of being (that is not an assent to universalism ... most succinctly,  my foray into the world of tidiness has made me more of a jerk then ever.

so for NSN... I am ashamed and how sorry I am.
For how judgmental I am.
For how bossy I am.
For how much dust has already accumulated on the tops of the kitchen shelves.

books are a better way of being

** This has nothing to do with the what's or how's or why's of my life, but sometimes you just finna blog and have some feelings and hope that someone feels something too.**

"The truth." Dumbledore sighed. "It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution. However, I shall answer your questions unless I have a very good reason not to, in which case I beg you'll forgive me. I shall not, of course, lie."
Rowling, J.K.(1997). Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Scholastic: New York. p.298


"It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." 
Rowling, J.K.(1999). Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Scholastic: New York. p.333
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I admire Albus Dumbledore very much, fictitious or factual I think it's safe to say he played a large and formative role in my childhood. I'm aware that says something about me... For the record, I've never read Lord of the Rings and I finished the Chronicles of Narnia as an adult; so don't get any ideas.

I started re-reading the Harry Potter series a few days ago, as a fun undertaking to occupy my seemingly endless time spent on public transit. Did I forget how much I loved these books? Did I not remember how wise Dumbledore is? I must have, because I've been consumed. I just finished book one in two days (which isn't saying much. it's a pithy little pamphlet in comparison to the other six) and already I'm sucked back in. These books are so many good things in one.

They are memories. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was first read to me the summer of 1999 as a fourth grader spending a week at her family's lake house in Wisconsin's northwoods.  I remember the gripping fear of finishing the book late at night in my bedroom, and thinking Voldemort's shriveled, white face would be behind the book as soon as I put it down.

They are life lessons. The idea that Love is more powerful than evil, and that Love is incomprehensible to those who do evil? I'm sure I thought it sounded good when I was 10, but as an adult I'm struck by what it means. When Harry asks Dumbledore why Quirrell couldn't stand to touch his skin, Dumbledore says, "...to have been loved so deeply, even though the person who loved us is gone, will give us some protection forever. It is in your very skin. Quirrell, so full of hatred, greed and ambition... could not touch you for this reason. It was agony to touch a person marked by something so good." (p.299)

I know that people are able to touch my skin burn free (which is too bad, as I I love personal space), but there is some incredibly beautiful imagery here. That I am loved so deeply that I am marked by it, even if  the bestower of that love is gone, is fantastic. Obviously we all have an indelible mark of love on us because of Christ's love for us, but think of the amazing mark of love many of us carry from other places? My mom, for example, was so deeply loved by my Grandparents that I know she carries that with her, in her, she is positive and joyful and courageous because she was loved fiercely by these people. Some long dead, she still carries a mark in her deepest being that displays how amazing she is.

They are inspirational. Let's get real here (as real as we're going to get in talking about a children's fantasy series...) Harry, Ron and Hermione are 11 freaking years old when they're battling old Voldy. I wore overalls when I was 11 and got in really intense fights with my girl friends. These kids are good battling evil. For shame, 11 y.o. LB, for shame.

"So light a fire!" Harry choked. "Yes- of course- but there's no wood!" Hermione cried, wringing her hands. "HAVE YOU GONE MAD?" Ron bellowed. "ARE YOU A WITCH OR NOT?"
Love it.
Call your friends on who they really are. 
Dream big. 
Burn that Devil's Snare.

This has been sufficiently nerdy.
I think books are fantastic. Every child should read things that entertain them and scare them and challenge them and make them laugh. Every adult should also read things that entertain them and scare them and challenge them and make them laugh. Both groups should learn from these books.


over and out. Currently soliciting advice about what to do when I inevitably get to book four and I can no longer fit my leisure reading in my backpack.

saying 'peace' to the people you meet and getting hot shit off your hands

Alright. So this summer I've barely blogged (that's right. I haven't at all.)
I've been coordinating day camp for preschoolers at the YMCA. When I thought that it wouldn't be stressful, I must have been a few beers in. I couldn't be any happier this summer is over.

Don't get me wrong. Life is good at Y, kids are fun (and often funny) and I work with people that for the most part, aren't so bad. It just gets old after ten weeks (heck, it got old after about three weeks.) I've been waiting for week 10 (this week) since about the fourth of July and I couldn't be happier that it's finally here.

But. Leaving the Y means moving onto something different. (and hopefully out of abject poverty). I'm movin' right on into (abject poverty) a year of service as an AmeriCorps volunteer. I'll be doing some ESL tutor advising and actual ESL instruction (!!!) as well as working with native English speakers preparing for their GED test or working on their basic literacy skills. Freaking yes. Working with adults. Working with adults that might not speak English. Working with adults that already do speak English. Did I mention that I'LL BE WORKING WITH ADULTS?

That means...
not one soul will call me 'miss liz' repeatedly until I'm certain that my ear drums will bleed.
not one soul will ask me to open their pretentious organic 'fruit masher' (fancy pants apple sauce).
not one soul will look at me, panic in their eyes, and tell me, "I have to go potty."
not one soul will have to be told to remove their hand from their pants in my presence (at least I hope not)
most importantly, 
not one soul will produce hot shit directly into my hand. ever again. (This happened after swimming one day when I discovered our youngest three year old had an accident. Apparently, I was thinking in the wrong tense. As I pulled down his trunks the accident continued right into my hand.) ...and you thought things at work were getting crappy! (come on, poop joke!)...

cue the hallelujah chorus.

Of course, there is also an entirely separate part of my life that is not comprised of anything YMCA related. Since my last post, I've moved into a beautiful apartment, cooked risotto for the first time, celebrated a few weddings , and generally just settled in to life in the 60618 since then.
It's beautiful, but let's be honest, my life doesn't look anything like I thought it would. Thank God for that. I have this interesting little patchwork life, with people and places sewn together in a way that's a little tacky, certainly crafty and decidedly & distinctively handmade. My life doesn't make sense to me. I live less than a mile in either direction from four of my best buds from college (one of them lives in the room next door- I counted her.) I still live less than an hour from my parents and a big chunk of my extended family. I drive, I take the bus, I walk a lot. I found a church that I think is fantastic (and Kayla will walk to with me). Things are strangely perfect in a way that I never even knew I wanted. 

But my life isn't all sunshine filled walks to friend's houses. I'm still depressed by pinterest (get real 'rock hard abs' pins alongside 'dark chocolate mocha brownies'.. who are you, singular person with six pack  abs, and why is your picture all over? LET ME PERUSE DESSERT RECIPES IN PEACE.) I still get completely unhinged over the most trivial things, and I still obsess about cleaning.

Suffice it all to say. I'm back, blogsosphere. That is, if you'll have me. 

PGL [post grad life]

well.
have I been a busy bee or what?
(the answer is busy bee, I have  nothing prepared for 'or what')
...it's time to fill the blogosphere in on what my PGL is like.

I'm back in the city. Back at the teeny- tiny, sweat-your-freckles-off, third floor apartment on Addison. That's kind of big news... but bigger news still...

I signed my very first lease last Wednesday. Our new apartment is a three bedroom (and there's only three of us!) so I'll have my very own room for the first time in years, it also has a dishwasher and a functioning bathroom- so it was basically love-at-first-sight. It's in Avondale, the dowdy cousin of Logan Square, and it's not exactly glamorous- but it's mine. I will have to work my can off to pay rent every month- but it's mine.

Guys are you hearing this? BGB is growing up! It's kind of strange just how accomplished I feel. It's the moments just after the lease signing that really should be entered into some kind of "Grown Up Log"...

I lost my wallet. As in, I'm pretty sure I left it on top of my car (after locking my keys in the car) and drove away. It was a banner day to say the least... and I didn't notice until I woke up for work the next morning.... uh, oh. But, adult that I am, I remained calm and drove (license-less) to work and proceeded to panic. I sobbed in the bathroom to my dad (who was positive I was being held up at gun point based on my hideous wailing) and made a plan to figure it all out. First order of business was cancelling the debit and credit cards and then getting a new CTA transit card. I called too may 1-800 numbers and got that stuff squared away. Then, I prayed in the name of Jesus that my day would go smoothly and no body planned on trying to rob me at gun point (all of Tom's worst fears come true) and I hopped on the red line and got downtown. New Chicago Card in hand, I braced myself for the DMV.... a new driver's license without any identifying information? (Props to Jason at the bank for getting me a 'signature document' to prove who I am!) I was in and out of the Thompson Center in 30 minutes! In total, cancelling my credit and debit cards, replacing my Chicago Card, getting a new Driver's License and buying a really cute new wallet at Target only took me 3 hours. 


I'm sickeningly proud of myself. I think the 'lost-my-wallet' scenario is always one of my worst-case scenario's, so I was amazed at how quickly I could face this challenge head-on.

I don't know why, but I think I have always expected I would hit some kind of glass ceiling of every day successes, like something would just happen and I wouldn't know what to do and I'd end up like Ben Stiller (Uncle Tony Perkis) at the end of Heavy Weights... really creepy and in the back of a hired town car. All my adventures last week point to the contrary, I can do this! I've found and apartment and my wallet. God is faithful, that's for sure.

So that was last week... this week, I've been doing 12 hour days at the YMCA to prep for summer camp. It's miserable and making me sick (really, I can't breathe out of my nose) but today is Friday and I've got a weekend full of DIY projects to keep me busy. 


... that's my PGL.

i've been everywhere, man.

My dad has taken to referring to me as a 'female Jack Kerouac', because in the past 15 days I've been in 10 states,  Traveled about 3500 miles via airplane and 1750 miles by car to see friends and family, and had one heck of an adventure to start my summer.

state one: Illinois- I graduated from Trninity... but you knew that already.
state two: Indiana- fish lake long weekend with my Trin crew... but you knew that already too.
state three: Oregon- I got to enjoy the beautiful Northwest with my aunt and uncle. Seriously, send the toaster and the blender. I'm sold. It was the most beautiful place I've seen. The Oregon coast is like an adult jungle gym (romping around on huge lava rocks with my uncle was the most fun I've had all year!) It also helps that the views were breath taking and the weather was perfect. Uh. I can't say it enough, amazing.

state four: Las Vegas, Nevada. This is where things start to get interesting... I was supposed to fly back to Chicago on Thursday, but on a whim (and a good amount of coaxing) I changed my flight and left for Tucson Arizona (more that later).That flight change brought me to the Las Vegas airport for two hours. I'm pretty sure the architects of the air port used Dante's Inferno as their inspiration. It's the grossest air port ever, and has slot machines. literally the worst.

state five: Tucson, Arizona. So much fun. The flight change was fueled by my friend, Calob. He convinced me to change my flight, come hang out with him, and then drive 28 hours across the country with him to Chicago. Basically, it was great. We had some fun with his friends on Wednesday night,  lounged with Annie, the family dog who i just loooooooove (...and i pretty much hate animals, so that's saying something) and we hung out with his mom on Thursday for her birthday and then headed off onto the open road.


state six: New Mexico. We  (by 'we' I mean Calob, he's a trooper and drove the first seven hours!) drove through New Mexico all night, it's basically the Indiana of the Southwest. We saw a stray dog at the gas station and a stray drunk man soliciting beer from Calob. Terrible. 

state seven: Texas. We just had to drive through the pan handle, and Calob got to watch the sun come up while I was snoozin' and letting out cute little 'Annie Snores'

state Eight: Oklahoma! Sadly, I didn't get to stop and see my friends in Oklahoma City- but it was sweet just see familiar sights. We also had to take Oklahoma's John Kilpatrick Turnpike- home of the $4.00 toll. It was also hot. Nothing new there.

state Nine: Missouri. I love Missouri, and I really don't know why. The drive is pretty and the people are always friendly. The bill boards are also laughable, the state is home to the World's Largest Rocking Chair, the Meramac Cavarns and the Jesse James Hideout Musuem- what's not to love?

state ten: Absolute Bliss. Seriously guys, can you believe how blessed I am? My family is fantastic, my friends are the best and I got to spend one lovely afternoon with Annie. Unreal.

double whammy bonus fun- last night, 'Triple Threat' graduation party for my cousins Kelly, Emily and me.  Mexican Theme (or just cactus poster) and raucous fun. See what I mean by blessed?!

Trollin' Out

What's below has been sitting in my drafts folder for three weeks. I thought maybe if I didn't post it, it would all go away. Of course, that awful logic failed. So here it is world.
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Yep. back at the blog for a little more self reflection. As the year is winding down (and I'm slowly reverting back to acting like I'm 17 in hopes that it will give me a chance to do college again...) I've been thinking alot about the future- duh- and what things I'm leaving behind.

basically, this is a week of good byes.

It hurts, it's hard, it's scary- I'm really bad at it. I want nothing more than to act like life will always been like this- dinner in the caf, friends just around the corner and a community of believers who make me feel at home. I've defined myself in this place for the past four years, I'm not sure how to shape a new identity for myself away from Trinity.

...in short, I really, really, REALLY, don't feel ready to say good bye.

There's this great idea in Ecuador. Ecuadorians rarely use adios to say good bye. Adios literally translates "to God," and so, using it is very final- like you won't see someone again. Friends use ciao with one another, rather than sending their friends to God after every encounter. I like this idea that it's not over..

ciao TCC, adios to papers and tests and visiting hours. : )
 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

this ciao business really did happen,

...I spoke at our Social Work Senior Celebration about department memories and the collective experience the class of 2012 had within the department.

please note fabulous shoes and my favorite dress in the world.
oh yeah. and my friends. Aren't they cute!?

...Went to Honors convocation and thought I would die in the shoes I was wearing.
...Ate my last picnic dinner on the grassy knoll with KB.
...went to the Baccalaurate Service and heard from some of my  class mates what their Trinity experience was like. I got to 'give some remarks' about Trinity's community.
...then it was Saturday...
& I walked across a stage.
& moved my tassel
& took pictures
& shook hands
& had lunch with my family
& took Calob to the airport.
& cried. like a baby.

... and then I pulled it together to spend a few days at the lake with some of my best buds from TCC. We had a great time, and it was a nice way to cap off four years of the best years of my life.

Basically, none of this crap feels real. I'm writing this from the sunny yellow and blue plaid sectional that takes up half my mothers living room. There is an unruly pile of 'school stuff' sitting in front of the fire place, and I know I have to deal with it today. Only this time, I'm sorting the boxes into real life categories for my real life apartment with a real life lease. Away and onward, I'm just starting the journey.

hellow from my hiatus

It's been over a month since I last posted anything here.

...and it was kind of intentional. I've been fake busy and everything. 
I might be too lazy to have a blog. [the truth hurts]. Regardless, BGB marks milestones with lists, and last time I was here, I was 21. 
I've had a birthday since then and I follow the gregorian calendar...  Yes, I'm now 22. 
So we can call this one, 


"Happy Birthday BGB: what 22 things have you learned in your 22nd year?"


1.I am loved by a great big God. -- that's a safety net I can't outgrown. Even if I don't get a killer job May 13th, even when I am an absolute shit head to all of my friends, He still says, "your sins are forgiven." Grace is so good.
2. How to laugh at my self- There are few things more entertaining than a self assured fat girl. We might not be hot, but we're at least accepted in female comedy. 
3. I'm really selfish- i'm like a perpetual six year old.
4. I wasn't meant to wear any type of stretchy club dress from Discovery, ever.- can't drive that one home enough. At 22 I've got cellulite I didn't have at 16, and I'm a good five inches taller than the population the stretch dresses are marketed to. [the female cast of Jersey Shore] It's not a pretty picture folks. 
5. IF you ever think it's a good time to drink straight from the bottle, you are very, very wrong.- protip: there is fun to be had without alcoholic beverages on board. who knew'?! 
6.  How to write a rockstar resume- I have yet to see this yield real results, but on paper I look sooooo employable. 
7. Even though my family is comprised by a bunch of wack-a-doodles [my 8 year old cousin Kevin used the term first], they're the only family I've got so I need to love them the best I can.
8. The wack-a-doodles don't define me, even if it's easier that way. Culture is a cause and a then a choice... 
9.it's ok to have feelings- your friends are the people that ask about them and listen to the response. Good friends ask back, and listen too. who knew?
10. It's so not about me- see #3
11. not every adult is a "grown up" & college doesn't make you one- and I don't have to be a complete "grown up" right away either, but I need to be working my way there.
12. I am perpetually five minutes late- I am who I am, but I should probably start making an effort. 
13. I am beautiful-  you are too!
14. It's kind of stupid how easy my life is/has been. -seriously... always fed, clothed and housed. College wasn't even a question. #iluckedout. 
15. stop waiting for the arrow at Justamere and Oak Park- take the long way. It still saves time.
16. greek yogurt exists- & it's stupid-change-your-life-good!
17. "Don't sweat the small stuff, and it's all small stuff." thanks Dad.
18. It's still not about me- see #10
19. Pinterest- serious life changer. Roasted vegetables, the no- heat curl, glass cutting with yarn, how did I live without it?!
20. I need to be single for a hot minute... even if I don' t like it.
21. College is a farce- anyone that tells you this is real life must not like you. Life doesn't start at 11am, dinner isn't always ready at 4:45 and no one is going to offer to "flex" that for you. You also don't get extensions or the option to "pass/fail" in real life.
 22. oh yeah.. it's not about me. I'm along for the ride because God saw his little world, and knew we needed a savior. His son moved in with us and taught us how to live, how to look outside of ourselves and back at Him. If it's about me, then it's not about Him. And if it's not about Him, then it doesn't matter.






See that? Self- reflection all neat and tidy. What did you learn this year?
Make lists, feel good. 

Maybe its just me...

but I'm pretty sure I lied when I said "March blogging starts Monday"

but anyway...

Maybe it's just me, but being critical is one of my most consistent personality traits.
I'm not saying that's always a good thing. It can certainly tear people and their ideas down. It makes me seem picky, or that I don't like anything.
But. I think a healthy amount of criticism keeps us on our toes. If we are critically engaged in what we're reading, watching, saying, hearing and doing- we're at aware. We are holding others to awareness. We are then responsible for what we say and do, because we're so much more than mindless. But like anything true in life, it's a dance. There has to be give and take, somethings we examine and tear apart- other things we gently dismantle... but we deconstruct things if they're not true. If we're dancing with someone and they're doing it all wrong and stepping on your feet [her name is liz brice.] you correct them, right?

Friends, I love activism. I love a well done social media campaign that engages youth. I love when American kids start talking about other people's problems [but not in a high school cafeteria way.]

All of that brings me to KONY 2012. 

It was so well done, Jason's son is the cutest, and Invisible Children is just so great!
Why am I being critical of Kony 2012?
I've got a few reasons that are stupid.
 it's too shiny and polished and popular. [hello, that's stupid. you want awareness- you'd like something to be  popular.], it over simplified a really huge foreign policy issue, that whole bracelet business just seems silly.
I've got at least one reason that is less stupid.
it's my opinion [as an entitled white American who has been told she's entitled to an opinion.] that military involvement may not be the way to solve this. Of course, I don't know what is. Just the idea of fighting guns with more guns makes me sick. [not to mention US defense spending is through the roof. but that's another conversation.]
...but i'm not the expert. 
The guys over at Invisible Children have big hearts for Africa. I really think they are in this for the right reasons. And if we're being honest, they're freaking social media geniuses.

I didn't think before I re posted the Kony 2012 video. I didn't listen to what other people in the conversation had to say. I had a fairly critical conversation with myself (not out loud, relax) about the film, but didn't want to seem like a heartless jerk to my friends.

But this is a safe space. So here's what I've been reading. Just think for yourself. 

the original KONY 2012 video
one of the most talked about responses (this blogger also does a really terrific job of posting scholarly research on the issue.)
Read "We Got Trouble" first, then "Not Alone" -Visible Children
IC's response- Critiques


What do you think? What have you heard about it? Join the conversation.
According to Jason, the "Revolution has already begun!"

el Fin por Febulous

2012 means we got an extra day of Febulous this year. 
[it actually means we all got an extra day of February, only the poor shmucks that read this blog got an extra day of Febulous.]

My leap day was jam packed with fun (that seems to be a theme for Febulous.) I had the day off from work and I checked off everything from my to-do list (maybe that doesn't make you as happy as me. but it's a big, big deal to me. )

so to impart my last nugget of Febulous into 2012, I'd like to introduce you to the Mom Hang. Mom Hangs are the best. Different than hanging out with your biological mother- this is a hang with women who happen to be moms (or old enough to be your mother), but also happen to be your friends. I don't know where you can pick up a mom to hang with- I found mine at church. : )

Jenny is the coolest person I know. She's got an amazing husband, sweet kids, a beautiful house and at one time she owned the world's fattest cat (no joke, Buster the 30 pound-furried wonder had legitamate sleep apnea. Gross.) Anyway, she had dinner with me on a Wednesday. Too much food and good wine later, we met up with her best Tinley Park girlfriend and mine... it got mom-tastic. Two generations of Tinley Park in one teeny, tiny bar [duh, Teehans.] Couldn't have asked for more. They shared great stories about their kids, and baseball uniforms. We talked about the perils of dating [both online and off] and how we're still not sure we're grown ups. Turns out these "grown ups" don't feel so grown up either. [mom hang magic!]

Hanging out with a mom that's not yours is just the best. You get all the wisdom, insight and ability to pay for dinner but less harsh criticism and weird, over protective crap. There's also the weird piece of me that deep down is a mom. [seriously, i came out of the womb acting about 45.]

Short and sweet today- but go get yo self a mom friend!









**March blogging will start Monday. This month the theme will be "Mabye it's just me..." or "Maury Povich would be an ideal husband because..." [guest posts by Connie Chung]. Thoughts?!**

Febulous Finds & Fun.

Everyone that reads this blog knows me, I think, or at least I hope.
...and if you know me, you must know that I'm a girl that loves fun.

Not-frisbee-in-the-park fun, rockclimbing-excursions-until-you-bleed fun, nor Magic: The Gathering fun; not even, drink-beer-watch-sports fun.
I like my fun served straight up.

I want to laugh until I cry with my best friends and make some mems.
I also want to find great outfits for real cheeep.
oh yeah, and I like Fun. too.
[click that link and hear snippets of their new album. Sasha & I have been lovin' it. Baby boy Lostotter says it's "unimpressive." #hipsters #snob]

So we'll start from the beginning, because this weekend was full of freaking Febulous Fun.

The "vacation buddies"

Friday I hung out with my childhood best buds. We are second generation girlfriends- because our moms go way back. Basically, I've known some of them since the womb. [which is just weird to say]. We sat around and ate pizza (with the moms!) and laughed, until beer came out of my nose, about all the hijinks we got away with that they are just learning about now. I love sitting at a table surrounded by old school pals that knew me when...
I had braces
I had the Kate Gosselin haircut
I thought I would marry Lance Bass
I screamed "JACKPOT!" at a bag of potato chips
I was judgmental
I was scared to swim in the lake "all the way to the booies"

from granny to "all gravy baby"

Saturday was chock full of Febulous Friend Time [FFT!] thrifting with the lizard [what's better than friends that share your name!?] She just returned stateside from three weeks in New Zealand. To welcome her back we visited my all time favorite Salvation Army store [87th & Harlem]. She helped me hem a dress, and respected the nun-esque shoes I purchased.

Let's talk about this dress. Seriously looks like something someone's Great Aunt Mildred would wear. But the pattern is so great. Basically, a little snip snip, scarf and sweater later... I was lookin' Febulous. It was also a sweet deal- $2.50 [only half a lincoln!?].

I left the lizard to help Kim & Adam celebrate their wedding at Blokes & Birds in Lincoln Park and saw some of my other best gal pals-- the high school ones.

...then I landed in Rogers Park for a night of raucous laughter with the one and only Kathleen  Leahy and her lovah boy [& my friend in real life], Bill.

I woke up, sped from the northside, dictating texts to Bill, to have brunch with Tinley Park's #1 stunnah- Tom Brice. [that guy knows how to have fun, breakfast is never before 10am.]

To round out this FFT... The [former/future] roomies + me + Kelsey + Jeanette watched the 84th annaul Academy Awards. [srsly. Billy Crystal? GET THE HOOK!]


...Oh, you wanted details? pues, Baby Girl's tired.
 I'll spare ya. We laughed, we drank, we ate. [push repeat]. There was minimal dancing, good-natured needling, and just a lil craftin' : )

[i don't say this enough] I love my life. [I'm so blessed]

Don't say you don't love it. 

Febulous Fat Tuesday

So it's Fat Tuesday.
Or Mardis Gras.
Or Paczki Day.
... or a day where some people eat pancakes.
.... or a day where some people decide to what to give up for lent.

That's just cute, righ? And mildly reminiscent of the ads in the
St.Stephen's bulletin. 

I live a life steeped in tradition. For better or for worse I am acutely aware that who I am is largely a prodcut of who I come from and what they do. [see my thoughts on the Southside Irish]. Well. I grew up Catholic, and we "did" lent. [I say "do" lent because apparently some people don't do lent... whatever that means.] During the entirety of my childhood, today was the last day to get your fill [of whatever you were giving up for lent...pop, gum, swears, beer, baked goods- you name it we gave it up] and tomorrow was Ash Wednesday,  it was meatless, solemn and devoid of vices [which one is not like the other?].



...what does that mean for me as an adult? What does my Lent look like?

... and isn't Lent just for Catholics and Hipsters?

Please Google "Lent", you won't be disappointed.

Some people give things up for lent, others try to add something new into their routine to get closer to God and form new habits in anticipation of the Resurrection. There are people who go to fish frys, start bible studies and some who fast [i call them super human, i like to eat].

Then there's me. I used to give up pop every year, I've tried to give up smoking, and freshman year of college I even gave up Facebook. This year for lent, Baby Girl Brice [BGB] is giving up swear words. [kind of a big deal. you can read about "the other f word in my life" here] Not because it makes me holy, or because my mom made me [true story: giving up something for lent was  required as a kid] ... just because. It will be like a fast for my mouth. Maybe I'll learn to think before I speak, maybe I'll say kinder words. Maybe I'll come up with less profane, more creative insults. who knows.

I hope that going swear free for forty days will make me aware of the rich tradition that I'm a part of by following Jesus, and the part of that tradition that prepares for Easter [which i've equated to Jesus' debutant ball] in an intentional way. The tradition that believes Jesus is here and His work is ongoing- and that our Hope arrived on this earth and brought a new way. The tradition that believes He brought the kingdom of God to a bunch of ragamuffins who were totally clueless [and my guess- totally swear-ful] by eradicating sin and death from life as we know it, by laying down his life on a cross.
There is nothing I could do to truly grasp what the resurrection means, that this love came and moved in with us, took the trash out for us and said, "there's a better way to live." 

 I hope this little tiny thing [no swears] will make me feel a little more connected to that big thing [death and Resurrection] by a change of consciousness, not because there's no room for swears in the kingdom of God. 





What about you, how do you "do" or "don't do" lent? Are you giving something up this year?

FEBULOUS FOOD

my pinterest board "chow for now" has been getting some serious play lately. we've been eatin' good in the neighborhood (but better than applebee's) in East 28...

I may have posted this already. Roasted veggies, with  chickpeas and feta over quinoa. Delicious, but pretty  much the same thing I eat every day. Sasha told me that my cooking is just "variations on a theme." it's called hobo vegetarian, and I like it. 

These cookies held so much promise, but they were so bad. Nutella chocolate chip cookies- you are the absolute worst. I made four dozen- I'm also an idiot. 

Hareem Masala. Best.Idea.I've.Ever.Had. So spicy and so good. Seriously gang, get yourself the 19 cent masala packet and go nuts.I used yellow pepper, wild rice and a little extra salsa to flavor this (sounds gross but it works- except maybe the wild rice but I finna be healthy.) mmm. just remembering this big smelly pot makes me really happy. (whatever I'm a weirdo.)

Bruschetta. 

Roasted veggies & Gnocchi in a lemon garlic aioli. (plus too much cheese) real good, real fatty. oops. 

Hope you're feeling febulous!

Febulous in the most unlikely places...

Working from home today. Which is great for so many reasons [most all of those reasons involve me in sweat pants drinking coffee] seriously, hook yourself up with an internship that can give you work-from-home-days. I'm lucky my apartment is so small because my commute is under 60 seconds on such days- I wake up and I can lunge to my computer [I don't, but it's nice to know that I could.]

that's what we call a tangent..
...let's get down to all that classy/fabulousness [remember that thinly veiled new year's resolution?]


I'm going to let you in on one of the best  parts of being a commuter/working stiff, The Midway Park Saver.

That's what the sign looks like when I leave work [except it's been lighter the past few weeks] and I don't have an AM picture [it's the same sign, but the sun is there, duh.]

The Midway Park Saver, to the uninitiated looks like a run down, roach motel of parking lots. In fact, it is a bit run down, but it's got hella character and I haven't seen a cockroach yet. This narrow lot is about two blocks long and is really cheap. The staff is so friendly and there is a wee little shuttle bus to wisk you up to the front of the lot on cold January/fabulous February [FEBulous] mornings. I love this parking lot.


My internship is great and everything, but I really look forward to checking out at the Midway Parksaver.

I look forward to giving the kind old man in that booth my $6.45, and him kindly sending me on my way. Yes, the cheaper chicken that I am- I look forward to giving someone else my money.  Maybe i'm naive, maybe my internship makes me miserable, maybe they're pumping mood-altering drugs into my car while I'm working, maybe I'm just weird.
I'm serious. I love the Midway Park Saver. I think it's a joint operation between the Polish and Irish mafia [basically there's about a dozen old white men who are so full of perogies and mashed potatoes that they are pastier than me and probably have type two diabetes], it's like a glue factory for old bookies [no idea what means.]. These guys aren't taking their parking lot gig too seriously, and they kind of remind me of the pictures I've seen from my Grandpa's graduation from the Police Academy. They're real happy, real nice and drive a shuttle bus faster than is legal in the continental US. They're so nice that once I lost my parking ticket, and the man didn't charge me the usual $50 fine [get real] because I started crying and he said, "don't do this to me, I have three daughters." That's real life. That's old school. That's Chicago. That's my favorite. [I also wasn't supposed to tell anyone that story... so you didn't hear it from me.- see what I mean bout the mafia?!]

...so that's what makes me FEBulous lately. 




also! check it out- I'M PUBLISHED. [i'm the intern. this is pretty cool.] http://www.chicagohomeless.org/speakers-bureau-mobilizes-students-at-tilden/

Fabulous February (&Food!)

Thanks for putting up with the three measly posts I managed for January. I'm hopeful that February will better. Unfortunately, I couldn't think of any decent alliteration for February or Leap Year (Leap Year Lolz is probably only funny in my head.) SO. I'm doing Fabulous February (& Food!) [it is neither fabulous nor contingent on February...] pretty much, it's going to be just like any other blog around here. I'll post pictures of the fabulous food i'm eating [recipes from the pinterest. duh.], the outfits that make me look fabulous [i don't know how to photoshop though, so I'll have to really be lookin' fabulous.] and other warm fuzzy things that come my way.

Today, February 1, I'll gonna give you the scoop on my fabulous internship. 

For my Social Work Practicum, I am interning with the Community Organizing division of the Chicago Coalition  for the the Homeless (CCH). Sweet. My main responsibilities are to organize and escort our homeless leaders to Speaker's Bureau Event [these awesome adults talk to students about their experiences with homelessness. so powerful.], and organize students on campuses across the city to take action on issues surrounding homelessness [if you go to college in Chicago or the burbs and you want to participate-lemme know.]  So that's that. But what made yesterday fabulous was phantom, faux Father Ben (pffb). 

pfFB is never in the office, I met him for the first time yesterday... He's halfway through the 11 year process to become a Jesuit Preist. He's been at CCH for going on three years and he's a phenomenal organizer. Yesterday, we had coffee. ...we had what organizers call "a one-on-one." Those are meetings between organizers and leaders, it's a conversation where you get to the bottom of what makes you angry, what makes you want to work for change and then you dream about how to make changes together. Had pfFB not taken pity on me and invited me to have a one-on-one at Einstein Bros Bagels. I would have completely missed the point. I was just starting to hate organizing, thinking it was just a series of sales pitches to get someone on your team. That's not true, that's not it, and that's not all. pfFB put me in a different head space, he told his story and asked mine. He listened well, he asked thoughfult questions. He told me to do the same, and just relate to people [duh.] ...It was a beautiful vision, it was fabulous. 


Now, onto Fabulous food...

Homemade queso. oringal recipe (as in, i made it up.)

Homemade pizza crust. Rosemary olive oil with Zucchini and
purple onion. topped with "good cheese" #pinterest.

vegan chocolate banana cake. stupid good. (half me/half
vegan baking website.)

oh yeah. me and these psychos made our own bread. EFF YES. 

so not the same.

366 days ago I woke up for the first time in Quito, Ecuador. 

Honestly, I can't believe it's been a year. I started one of the biggest adventures of my life scared, anxious and kind of at a weird place in my college career. I came back with an ability to habla, a new love for diverse peoples of the world and a deeper understanding of what life is all about. (here's a blog post from this day last year http://lizhitsecuador.blogspot.com/2011/01/when-in-quito.html. Not my finest work, but the rest of the blog was less crappy, read that too!)

I'm pretty this pictures was taken around this day last year-

These weirdos became my family while I was in Quito. So much togetherness. I miss them a more than i'm comfortable admitting. Just a lil context.... starting from behind me we have Alyse, Ben, Stacy, Sharon, Chelsea, Megan and Caleb. 

In true LB fashion, when life calls for real reflection or emotion, I make lists instead of full sentences. 

Things I miss about Ecuador... 

1. The people (the other SAers, Chelsey, Chirsty & Bryan, Matt & Marlo, all of the Youth World people, my host family, the kids at the orphanage, my Ecua friends- Joes Luis, Mario, Guz y Vero, Mika, Roberto, Joe, The Cuban (even the cuban with the uni!), i could go on and on....)

2. The language (I learned how to talk with passion, I learned to speak but really say nothing at all, I learned to never say no, I learned that yo soy una aninada, but it's whatever.)
3. The food- ALMUERZOS.

4. The dependable mountain weather. (well, the mountains too)

5. The trole, the sights of Quito on the way to class
6. Cultural weirdness

7. Santa Maria market y Inyaquito open air produce market 

8. that apartment on Villalengua the cold floors, cold water and warm laughter.
9. the bus

10. Hugs from Lilli every  morning
11. Walking every where
12. Pan de Vida y the orphanage

13. having a new adventure every day.
14. Cafe con leche y pancitos en las mananas. 

The real things I miss are completely intangible, its all familiar smells and bus stops. I learned who I was in that beautiful city, I learned that out of my own context here, I still exist. I learned that the world is a big, big place- but that people are, well, people.  I hope with all my ability to hope that I can go back one day. I might get weird and cry about it if the opportunity does arise. 

So that's it. I left pieces of my heart in Quito, it was the wildest adventure I've gone on thus far, and I think it was one of the best ideas God's ever had for my life. : ) 

Pinchincha in the background, Santa maria market next store to
Inyaquito.

i'm not dead.

holla at ya internet!

i've been busy. i worked at the YMCA/moved back to da heights/saw some great improv/ drank fancy beer/settled into the villagio/ got asked to be in Jacqui's wedding, said yes and bought the dress/did some crafts/hung out with my friends/started my internship/read some books/made a lot of really good dinners/ pretended i was a grown up. so like i said, I've been busy. 


here's what i've been up to... 

had this for dinner....

bought these great sunglasses for only a dollar! [every
one tells me they're hideous. don't care.]

Just Gettin' Crafty

Oh hi there.
As promised we're doing a Just the Same January- More DIY December stuff coming your way...

So I really, really liked [ok truth be told, kind of loved/acted compulsive about it] DIY December. It was a great chance for me to get my craft on and create some killer Christmas presents this year.

This is cute. Don't lie. Just one of what felt like dozens of

Christmas cards.This particular card went to my spanish

Prof, in hopes of raising my grade. It accompanied some 

homemade cookies. [whoami!?]

This kind of ugly. Whatever. 

This is the back, and its cute. 

                               

This was cute when it wasn't surrounded by crafty mess. 

This was for KB, obvi. 

As usual, the photo quality is not the best. But I made 

this notebook Sophomore year of college and it was a 

trusty companion for the past two years. It's a little ratty

now, but i am really proud of it.  The quote at the top reads:

"If you have a dream, you should chase it with a passion."

oh hell yes. 

This was a set of six notecards for my aunt. They were beautiful, hand

sewn and took forever; but yeah, they were worth it. 

I'm so bummed I didn't take more pictures while 

I was churnin' out these fabulous frames. They're 

adorable and, in my opinion, great gifts! I made some

fabric covered ones [much like you've seen on pinterest]

for some friends and then make these versions with a 

homemade flower for others. The flowers are made from

tee shirts. I'm a craft goddess. 

Homemade pepper mint sugar scrub. Looks like I got on the pinterest

at just the right time. This was easy to make, felt fabulous on my freckled skin,

and was all in all a good choice. 

This is my most recent crafting venture. Crocheting- I 

will conquer you. Just wait. Also, enjoy the super chipped

nails. I totally look like ke$ha after a two day binge or 

something. Got off work at the Y and just needed to unwind 

I guess.

It's a labor of love, ya'll.