November came in with a vengeance. Windy, cold, and grey. What better way to celebrate Día de los Muertos? (Day of the Dead). This is a celebration of the dead, a joyous time to remember and celebrate the lives of our loved ones that have passed on. It is often associated with the sugar skulls we tend to see around Halloween. Recently I have had a handful of friends lose their parents. It reminds us that life is precious and we need to cherish the ones we love because we never know what tomorrow will bring.  Dia de los Muertos is just what I needed to find comfort in tragedy.


A friend had a small gathering to remember the loved ones we have lost. It was hosted in her beautiful library in her home. A fire was cracking as the focal point and we all sat and talked and laughed, making the hard times easier to pass. We drank chicha morada, which is a corn based drink with sweet spices mixed in. It is served warm to symbolize blood. It sounds odd, but is a very tasty. We feasted on apples, carrots, hummus, olives and cookies.


I really enjoyed having a few hours to just remember and be happy. I don't like thinking that we are all getting older and these things start to happen more frequently.

Have you ever celebrated Dia de los Muertos? How did you do it?

As I mentioned in Saturday's post, I want to use this month to talk about the things in life I am thankful for. Since I did not post yesterday I will post 2 things.

Sunday: I am thankful for patience. Sometimes this is needed and if people can't be patient with you, it makes for a worse outcome.

Today: I am thankful for my job. Even though it is hard on Monday's to get up and get going, I am thankful I am able to support myself thanks to my job.

What are you thankful for today?

Well hello there November 1st, AKA "buy all the leftover Halloween candy now that its 70% off" day! Now while we are out there ravishing all the Halloween bins, Christmas is being forced on us. That's right, as you're digging through a bin full of candy take a look around you. There's Santa mocking you. Or Frosty wiggling his ass in excitement. It's a little depressing to say the least. Some people even woke up today to a little winter snow. ICK! It's a sure sign that the magic of Fall is slowly diminishing and winter is creeping up on us.

If you're like me, winter is fun when we get up on Christmas morning and there is a nice coating of white on the ground. Then after that, it can go back to being in the 60's throughout winter. In a perfect world (or Florida?) this may happen. But sadly I live in Central NY, so that wish isn't coming true ANYTIME soon. Even as a child I was not a fan of snow. I blame this partially on being raised in the south and enjoying my mild winters. But as an adult there is no such thing as a "snow day". My job is open come hell or high water.

(Source)

Okay I do not want to turn this post into all the reason I do not like Winter, but it kind of went that way for a minute.. Following the breadcrumbs I laid for myself, I will get back on subject. November. November is a month of many things.I was surprised at how many great little quirky days November hosted. On top of having a month full of men (and some women) not shaving we also have:

National Vegan Month
National Novel Writing Month
American Diabetes Month
Aviation History Month
Peanut Butter Lovers Month ( I could get on board for this..)
Chemistry Week (First week of November)
Game and Puzzle Week (3rd week of November)
Book Lover's Day (November 1st)
Daylight's Saving Time (Don't forget to turn those clocks back tonight!)
Day of the Dead (November 2nd)
Marooned without a Compass Day (November 6th- For all your pirates out there!)
Chaos Never Dies Day (November 9th)
Sadie Hawkins Day (November 13th- Ladies ask those men out!)
Electronic Greeting Card Day (November 17)
World Hello Day (November 21)
Thanksgiving! (November 27th- Eat, Drink and Be Thankful!)

There you have it. Some fun days that are celebrated throughout November. I didn't list them all because there are tons of them, but these were some of my favorites. Now take a moment to think about something you are thankful for. I am going to list something everyday I am thankful for this month.

Today I am thankful for this blog. It gives me an outlet and lets me interact with all of you beautiful people. Make it a great Saturday!

I am super nervous right now. I have what I feel like is my first "big girl" assignment at work today. Remember back in August I told you guys I got promoted? If you are new here, check that out *here* and then check out my take on the "internal interview". Anyways since I haven't really given an update on how the new job is going, I figured I could give and update and tell you why I'm so darn nervous!


I officially took over my new position on August 21st. It has been a whirlwind of emotions and struggles. The position I was promoted to is a newly created position. I also mentioned somewhere along the way that my new counterpart was my supervisor. She is now my equal. If that isn't awkward, I don't know what is.

So I got an office, and a new desk (Like literally brand new guys! I got to order it and watch it be built...) and last but certainly not least I got a window. Office with a view. Yep.. Moving on up! So now that I'm all moved into my fancy new office and fancy new title, I started to wonder, what exactly was I supposed to be doing? Because the position is brand new, no one knew what I should actually be doing. Of course they all had ideas, dreams, wishes, and all that jazz, but no real structure.


I came from a pretty demanding position (Read my funny take on "What's my job again?") so sitting around twiddling my thumbs was not my idea of work. I spent a good portion of my time on Facebook because I honestly had nothing to do. I would get assignments that were meant to last a day, but seriously? Adding someone's name to a copy list for email was not my idea of an "all day project." That took me 2 seconds. Literally. I came home and questioned my choice of taking the new position.

So fast forward to today. My job has definitely picked up. I am constantly running and working for lots of different people. My priorities change daily, and I am still working on a schedule that works for me. I think I am doing a great job and have gotten numerous emails from my coworkers telling me the same. It feels good to know I am making a difference somewhere. People appreciate the work I am putting in. Things with the boss turned equal are going well too. We get along better then I had anticipated and we work together nicely to get stuff done.

All in all I am happy with there my position is headed.  It was really looking like a lost cause in the beginning but I am glad it has made a turn for the better. Now back to today. Yesterday the CEO of my company came into my office and gave me and my counterpart we were going on a walk through with him and a select few others. Our bosses didn't even know we were going to attend this walk through. I had to make sure I looked my best today so I can make a good impression. So here goes nothing!

Wish me luck and I'll fill you all in later on how it goes!

I am linking up with Treasure Tromp and the Grits Blog today!

This week I have really picked up the pace when making sure to get to the gym and eat better. On Monday I told you all that I had a REALLY bad week last week when it came to food. I managed to get myself to the gym 4 days last week which was great, however due to my carelessness to only eating bad stuff, I am paying now. The sugar alone has reaped havoc on my face. I have red blotches and under the skin breakouts that hurt a lot. I felt very sluggish and unmotivated on top of that. Not so much fun.

I am treating this as a public service announcement to all of you. Think next time you want to fall off the wagon with your fitness, remember this story. Now everyone is different on how they react to certain things, but I do remember a dietician telling me once that EVERYONE has a sugar intolerance to a point. It is not good for our systems in large quantities.

Do you ever have one of those weeks where nothings going right, and everything's a mess, and nobody like's to be alone. Woops quick Avril Lavigne break there. But seriously sometimes those weeks happen and there is really nothing we can do to make them better other than staying positive. For me, last week in my personal life was a complete hot mess. Blog wise I had an awesome week. I banged out some pretty great posts that I was really proud of. How does that seem to happen? Has that ever happened to you?

Because last week went so crappy I need to eliminate my negativity this week or else I will be back on the oreo and cheesecake diet. No kidding guys I had cheesecake and oreos everyday for breakfast and dinner last week. I was REALLY going for comfort food there. Because of it I feel absolutely horrible about my fitness and really need to step it up this week.

Here is some Monday Motivation to get us going for the week!