Step 33: Go to Yet Another Wedding

Dang, people are getting married left and right this year! Some key differences with this one, though: I wasn't in it (which was a nice change of pace), and it was family instead of friends. Congratulations to my cuz for finally tying the knot. :)

It's harder to write about a wedding that I wasn't actually in. I could write about how pretty the bride was and how dapper the groom looked. I could talk about the technological troubles they had (unity candles at an outside wedding on a windy day don't seem to work out so well). I could tell you guys about how fun the reception was (free drinks and lots of dancing!).

But that's all stuff that you hear about on a regular basis when it comes to weddings, and not being behind the scenes for this one, I can't give you a deeper look into the trials and joys of getting married.

What I can do is paint you a picture of the most magical moment of the night (and I suggest all brides make this a new tradition):

We didn't really have a chance to blow the bubbles as the bride and groom left, nor did we have any bubbles to blow until we got into the reception hall. Most of the attendees just let the little plastic bottles of soap sitting on the tables, undisturbed. A couple kids did start blowing their bubbles around the room, but were stopped when the bride and groom took to the floor for their first dance. Then the DJ asked us on behalf of the bride to circle around the happy couple and blow our bubbles while they danced. About a hundred people gathered and blew a hundred thousand bubbles to dance alongside my cousin and his new wife. It was like a scene from a dream. I can only imagine what it must have looked like from the center of the circle.

So my question to you: What's the most unique thing you've seen at a wedding. The bubbles being blown during the first dance come's pretty close, but I think the groom licking the bride when the pastor said "You may now kiss the bride" has to be the best. :)
And my challenge to you: Next time you're at a wedding, be sure to dance. Even if you're not a good dancer, even if no one else is up on the dance floor, you got all spiffied up for the night, so you might as well take advantage of it and have some fun!

Step 32: Volunteer

I know there's a potential that you could be burnt out on volunteering depending on how much emphasis was placed on it at your school (mine, eh, not so much - though I did have a few professors require a certain amount of volunteering if I wanted an A in the class, and we had a Sustainability Club that offered multiple opportunities to get involved with the community). But volunteering has so many benefits.

To quote an awesome song from the musical Avenue Q:
"When you help others, you can't help helping yourself."

You get experience any time you do work, and volunteering is no exception. It makes your resume look good. You have a chance to meet new people and expand your network. You feel better about yourself.

And most importantly, you're making other people feel better too. No matter what kind of volunteering you're doing, you're helping someone somehow. I'm currently volunteering at my mom's middle school library. As you may know, school libraries are having a rough time employing people. At my mom's school, my mom (who's the head librarian) teaches 6 classes out of a 7 period day, and then her assistant is only allowed to work 29 hours. That means she can only work 4 days a week, which means the library has to be closed for 1 day. I come in on the days that the assistant librarian's not allowed to come in and make sure the kids have access to the books. And as surprising as this may sound in the age of technology, the kids are actually really grateful. They like being able to come down to the library to check out a book for the weekend, and by me volunteering there, they're able to do that.

So my question to you: What do you care about? Where do you like to help out at?
And my challenge to you: Check out this site - http://www.volunteermatch.org/ - and find someplace to volunteer at!

Step 31: Get a Flat Tire

Ok, mine wasn't that bad, but no matter what situation you're in, a flat tire is never fun. It's always a hassle trying to figure out how you're going to drag your car to the mechanics, and if for some reason you have to leave your car there overnight you've got to find a ride to work the next morning.

Some tips to help you avoid a tiresome situation:

• The obvious first: if you know you have a flat tire, DON'T drive on it. In my case, I didn't realize I had a flat tire until halfway home from work when a helicopter noise started coming from the front right of my car. Probably should have pulled over, but work's not that far from my house, so I just kept on going, hoping it was a loose lug nut and not a flat.
• If you did drive on your flat and you made the mistake of not driving directly to a shop, your tire's probably pretty much wasted. In that case, you're cheapest bet is just to use Fix-a-Flat to get you to the nearest repair shop. I know! Fix-a-Flat is horrible and mechanic's hate it. But you're tire's going to be too chewed up to save anyways, so you might as well save $50+ and buy the $6 can of we'll-just-barely-get-you-there tire repair.
• If you DIDN'T drive on your flat like a good person's supposed to do, then you may be able to save the tire. In this case, I recommend NOT using the Fix-a-Flat and putting forth a little extra money on the tow. 
• And finally - you're probably all wondering why I just didn't put on the spare tire. Mechanics always put lug nuts on way too tight now-a-days. My dad and I working together were only able to get four of them off. The last one was completely stuck. So my last piece of advice, whenever you get your tires changed or rotated, ask your repair guy if he could only tighten the lug nuts to the legal limit. Otherwise, it could be one back-breaking afternoon.

The last thing I will mention before signing off - it's ok to ask for help. Especially if you're a girl. Guys (especially dads) have a thing for fixing broken things. But it's also important that you know how to handle the situation if you're by yourself. I was lucky that I got a flat in my hometown where my parents were right there to help me. If I had been driving on the highway back from school, I probably wouldn't have had any idea how to change a flat, and in today's world there's no guarantee that a nice guy will stop for you (emphasis on the "nice").

So my question to you: What's your worst break-down story? Mine was when my breaks gave out in Bloomington late at night. I had driven there from my school to celebrate a friend's Birthday, only to find out once I got there that the party was actually back in our hometown. As I started to make my way back home, stuck in traffic because of course there would be a football game just ending, my break pedal suddenly went all the way to the floor. I had to pull into a Deny's and wait for an hour for my mom to come down and pick me up!
And my challenge to you: If you've never had to change your tire before, do a practice round in your driveway, that way you'll know exactly what to do.

Step 30: Go to Your College's Homecoming

I haven't yet decided if your first year out of college is the best year to go back to Homecoming or not. One of the biggest upsides is that you get to see all your school buddies again.

Coming back to school after only one year (and technically not even that), you're going to know a lot more people than you will coming back in future years. You could get a free place to sleep if your friends are cool enough to let you crash in their rooms (which mine were), you can watch your old cross country team run and still know everyone's name (or at least only have to write down two of the freshmen's names on your hand), and you can meet up for a nice dinner to catch up with everyone.

The catching up part, though, could be the downside. Everyone's going to ask you how things are going, and if you're like me and are having a bit of a rough patch (and don't feel bad if you are - it's normal for recent grads), then trying to fake the happiness and\or telling  the boring truth get's really old really fast. Your first year out it's hard to have done much with your life, so for me I felt like I wasn't meeting peoples expectations when I told them I worked part time at the Humane Society while working on my writing. Have I finished my story? Ummm... no. Yeah, I know I had two full months were I wasn't picking up dog poop, but you know how things come up....

Yeah, that part's sort of a bummer when you realize you really haven't done much since leaving the safety of college life. But you've got to focus on the fun activities of Homecoming so you can keep your mood up, and what better way than to go into the crypts of your school's church?! (Hey, I went to an all girls Catholic school - there's not much else to do at Homecoming.)

So my question to you: Did you go to Homecoming this year, and if so, what was your favorite part?
And my challenge to you: Even if you don't go to Homecoming, try to meet up with your old college friends. It's the best part about going back to school.

Step 29: Get a New Job

That crazy urge to continually have something to do (particularly, but not necessarily, something that pays) is why you don't get a break between Step 28 and Step 29. Not everyone is compelled in such a way, and to those who can sit back and enjoy unemployment, I applaud you. I was given a free pass for this first year out of college - live at home rent free and work on my writing. No job required.

But all summer I felt weird not going to class or to work everyday, and though I did get some writing done, I still felt like I was doing things wrong. You're supposed to get a job after you graduate, that's what we've all been told, hasn't it?

So I got a part time job, and I hated it. Lasted only two weeks before I put in my two weeks resignation (no matter how much you hate a job, you should always leave on good terms). Less than a week later, I've got a new job.

It's still only part time (though the hours are much better so I'll have more time to write), and I am, in fact, still working with dogs, but I feel like I'm actually making a difference this go-around. I'm working at a Humane Society, so I'm helping dogs that actually need help instead of rich dogs that just need a place to hang out for a ridiculously long time. I've only been there two days now, but I'm enjoying it a lot more than the last job.

The important thing to remember, though, is to do what you love. I do love working with animals, but I also love writing. Working at a part time job is only supposed to help me and my writing career, not hinder it. Get a couple extra bucks for the week, wake me up early so I'm not wasting the whole day away, give me material to write about. That kind of help. If I can accomplish that with this particular part-time position, that would be wonderful because as I said, I do love working with animals, especially animals who are in need.

So my question to you: Which do you like more - cats or dogs. After these two jobs, I have a feeling that I'm going to become a cat person. ;)
And my challenge to you: Now that I work at a humane society, I've got to say - come and adopt a new family member!

Step 28: Quit Your New Job

Wow, I must seem like a horrible employee, only lasting one month at Happy Dogs. But I just wasn't happy there. I thought working with dogs would be a dream job (I loved working with the wolves up at Wolf Park during a summer practicum), but it turns out you've got to be a special kind of person to work at a dog daycare, and I'm just not that kind of person.

Everyone should experience a job they hate so that they can determine exactly what kind of person they are. For example, I found out I need to be doing different things throughout the day, and not just the same thing for hours on end. I prefer jobs with some order to them. And right now in my life, I need something with fewer hours (if you've noticed, this month hasn't been full of blog posts, and my creative writing hasn't been doing so hot either, though exciting news in an upcoming blog!).

There was nothing in particular that was horrible about Happy Dogs - the people were nice, the dogs were pretty good, and in all honesty, it was the easiest money I ever made. But it just didn't feel right there. And you've got to go and do what feels right for you.

So my question to you: What's the worst and best job that you've ever had? So far for me, doggie daycare's the worst and the movie theater biz has been the best.
And my challenge to you: If you're offered a type of job you've never had before, give it a shot. It might not be your doggie daycare, but you'll never know unless you give it  a try!

Step 27: Laugh at all Your Friends who Have to go Back to School

To all my Woodsie friends out there - Happy First Monday!

I thought it would feel strange not going back to school. That's when I was told that the shock of having actually graduated would hit me - when all my friends went back to school while I stayed at home. But really, my home friends and my school friends were always two separate groups, and though it's true that a lot of my home friends are going back to school this month it's still not that lonely because a lot of them were busy during the summer with extra classes or work. And I tried really hard to spend time with some of my school friends this summer (not to mention going to their weddings!). Maybe it'll hit me when everyone gets farther into the semester and are enjoying cramming for exams while I'm busy picking up dog poop (that's my new job, if you missed the post in How to Survive the Animals After College - working at a doggie daycare).

So my question to you: What do you miss most about college?
And my challenge to you (especially those going back to school):

Step 26: Go on a Final Summer Trip

Before you head back to your institution of choice (full time career, part time job, school, prison, ect.) you've got to go on one last adventure. And who would have thought my last adventure for the summer would have been a day trip up to Michigan? Lacking in the intense fear factor that can be found at Six Flags and the emotional experiences of two weddings, Michigan doesn't seem like it'd be all that fun as a final hurrah.

But you'd be surprised at how much fun you can have going on a car trip with your mom.

First off, I'm a terrible navigator. We didn't realize we had missed out exit until we were about 12 exits past. But because of my ineptitude at spotting the correct turn, we found a cute little place called The Chocolate Garden. Now, I'm a little let down when the flowers weren't made out of chocolate, but what we get is still pretty dang cool. They sell homemade truffles that are unlike any other truffles because they lack a hard chocolate coat. Mama bought a package of four: a white chocolate, a milk chocolate, a dark chocolate, and a darkest chocolate. Her and I split the darkest chocolate and milk chocolate, and some how we managed to go an entire week without eating the last two so that we could give them to my grandma for her Birthday.

After eating our desert, we finally got to our picnic spot on the shore of Lake Michigan at Warren Dunes State Park. We ate our lunches and then people watched for a while (despite the lack of people in this picture, the beach was actually pretty full farther down - Mama and I had a pretty nice view of some good looking young men. ;) ).

And we also had a pretty good view of all the doggies since we were on the dog beach. :3

After eating, I had to work off all those calories, so I climbed the dune behind me (it might not look that big in this picture, but you'll see in the next picture that it's no easy climb). It got to the point that I would take a step and sink back half the distance I'd just come. :P

This picture is proof of two things: 1) I indeed am still running and ran down that dune and 2) If you observe the young man behind me, he and his team (I'm guessing cross country, but I didn't ask) had been going up and down that hill for a while now - he's only at the base of the sand dune and he's already stopping to catch his breath. Proof that the hill was as big as I said it was!

After running off my lunch, it was only appropriate that my mom and I stop at the legendary Redamak's to get a burger. It was pretty good, but for a place that supposedly made Buffalo, Michigan famous, I was expecting a little more.

Then it was a clear shot to The Silver Dipper ice cream shop. Wow... this trip involved a lot of food. :) But we just had to stop there - they have this delicious ice cream made with Zanzibar chocolate and oreos called Zoreo. It's the only ice cream shop near my house that sells the stuff, but it's all the way up in Lafayette, so anytime I'm up at Wolf Park or going past the city, it's a law that I must stop.

Our final stop was back at home, and as much as I'd love to tell you that we ate some more when we got home, we were so full and tired from our long day that we went straight to bed.

So my question to you: Where's your favorite place to go on a day trip?

And my challenge to you: If you haven't been up to Warren Dunes State Park, check it out sometime - it's a very relaxing beach

Oh, and for all of you LOST fans out there - the town that Warren Dunes State Park is in is called Sawyer. ^_^

Step 25: Get a Job

Wow - it takes 25 steps just to get a job. And it's not even a job in my career field. And technically speaking, there are some other steps that should have gone before (go on a final summer trip, walk into potential job sites, get a LinkedIn account, etc) but I haven't had the time to write about them since I got the job (which I actually got last Thursday - today was my third day).

And I bet you're wondering what kind of job it is? Well, you'll just have to check out my How to Survive the Animals After College blog post tomorrow, 'Cause I'm exhausted!

So my question to you: What was your first ever job. Mine was working at a movie theater. There are some good stories there. :)
And my challenge to you: Get at least 8 hours of sleep before you go into work!

Step 24: Complete Your First Ridiculously Rough Draft

>>This post is geared more towards the writers out there, but if you can find a way to work it into your own life, more power to ya!<<

Rough drafts are like roller coasters. When you first get the idea for a story, you jump right on in that line regardless of how long the wait time is. You race between the metal bars, writing everything in your brain down as quickly as you can, thinking that things are going to go smoothly and you'll have an awesome experience in no time. Eventually though, you hit that wall, that end of the line, and you're stuck thinking and thinking and thinking, until finally the line moves a couple feet. You know what you want to write, and you scurry to write it down. Then you're stopped again, waiting and thinking.

Finally, you're up on the platform - you're next in line to get on the roller coaster. You can actually see the shape that your story's going to take, and it looks terrifying. There's a huge drop, twists and turns, parts where everything gets turned up side down and nothing makes sense anymore. Suddenly, you want out of that line, want to walk right on through when the gates swing forward and usher you to your designated seat. You don't want to get on that ride anymore - what if something malfunctions, and your story's not as good as you thought it was?

But your friends and family are dragging you onto the ride, some calling you chicken, others trying to convince you that you're more likely to be in a car accident than to die in an amusement park. The lap bar comes down, and now you're stuck with what you're doing.

Rereading that first ridiculously rough draft that you worked on while waiting in line - that's the part when you're going up that first big hill. It's horrible. You want to bail, but you can't, so you just keep reading. But that moment when the coaster slows for just a millisecond at the top as it crests the hill, in that moment you can see everything that your story could be. It's terrifying, but at the same time exhilarating.

I haven't started revising my own story yet, but I think it's going to be the fun part of the roller coaster (which is incidentally the things that terrify you from the platform - the drops, the twists and turns, the loop-de-loop). It'll be crazy, and parts of it you won't be able to remember, but in the end nothing will malfunction, and you'll hop off that roller coaster with a completed story and an itch to do it all over again.

So my question to you: How do you write stories? I've never done a ridiculously rough first draft before - I'm usually one of those perfectionists who makes sure the first paragraph is the best that it can be before moving on, so this go around I tried writing my rough draft like all of my creative writing teachers told me to.
And my challenge to you: If you've never done a ridiculously rough draft before, try it. It's horrible and I hated doing it, but I did feel good being able to say that I had the complete story basically done.

Step 23: Go to the Children's Museuem

With your little cousins, of course, not because you want to see the giant Bubmblebee statue that was actually used in the original Transformers movie or the new Avatar exhibit they just put in....

Seriously, though, the Indianapolis Children's Museum is a great place for kids and adults. My 17-year-old-cousin and I took the two oldest of our batch of younger cousins as a Birthday present to the oldest (trust me, we tried taking all four to Chuck-E-Cheese a few years back, and though the kids will tell you they had a great time, it was ridiculously tiring for us, so stick to taking children in pairs if you're in the high school/college age range yourself). It was pretty fun. The boys loved the science/water world on the top floor (what kid doesn't) and even got into a couple exhibits that I honestly didn't think would keep a 9- and 10-year-old's attention (apparently serving the older cousins plastic fruit in an Egyptian marketplace is exciting stuff now-a-days). It made me feel good to see them get into something other than videos games (though be careful because there's an exhibit that has old-school games, and apparently I'm old-school now because they had a few PS2s there that the kids could play demo games on), and it was nice to see them interacting well with one another and the other kids (granted, they're little kids, so there's going to be squabbles here and there).

So my question to you: What's your favorite exhibit at the Children's Museum. I thought it was pretty cool seeing Bumblebee. :)
And my challenge to you: If you've got younger cousins or little siblings, take them somewhere fun. They may not express in words how grateful they are that you spent the day with them, but through their actions you'll see how much fun they have and how much the day means to them.

Step 22: Get Stuck on a Roller Coaster!

Another amazing thing that I did instead of writing the past two weeks was get stuck on this bad boy!

As the coaster came to a jerky stop with half of the train still outside of the loading station and the smell of something burning, I saw my life flash before my eyes...

...actually, I saw my lil sis trying to see how far she could wiggle out of the harness, the whole of her left arm waving to the attendants. Laughing, I told her if the ride did go up in flames she'd have the best chance of getting free. We sat there swinging our legs and talking to cute ride attendant. He wouldn't tell us what had happened, but I'm pretty sure we broke the ride. We didn't see it run for the rest of the afternoon. And when I say we, I blame my lil sis - she was the one who's harness didn't fit quite right. ;)

We were only stuck there for maybe five minutes, but it was fun to finally hop off once maintenance got there and say we survived being stuck on a roller coaster. And it was even better when we got coupons good for a free drink! Six Flags Great America really knows how to handle tricky situations.

And that unique experience was only the best part of a pretty fun day. We went on a Tuesday, so the longest line that we had to wait in was about 45 minutes, and that was for the most popular roller coaster there; it was sunny, but there was a wonderful breeze so we didn't fry; and we arrived a half hour early because we forgot about the time change, but that ended up being a good thing because we hit traffic around Chicago.

My favorite ride of the day probably had to be the new X Flight (sorry, Batman: The Ride - even though you got me a free drink, I've never been on a roller coaster that has you hanging from the side of the track.... granted, I couldn't breath with the type of harnessing they used... but even at that, the Raging Bull would Still beat Batman, but only when sitting in the front seat where there's nothing blocking your view of that horrible first drop.... you're a close third, though Batman!).











So my question to you: What is your favorite roller coaster?
And my challenge to you: If you haven't been to an amusement park lately and you're within four hours of Six Flags Great America, take a trip up there!

Step 21: Be in Another Wedding!

One of the awesome things that I did during my writing hiatus that took place the past couple of weeks was celebrating the union of another dear friend.

I've known and ran with the bride since we were in eighth grade, but it wasn't until senior year of high school that we really started to connect. Our friendship truly blossomed  when we signed on for the first ever cross country team of our college, and since then we've pushed through some ruff races together. (And when I say together, I mean she was way ahead of me 'cause she's an amazing runner, but I always supported her and she always supported me.)

Well her she is, speeding towards the finish line of the single's race and about the enter the duathlon when things start to get rough (what good race doesn't have that "oh crap" moment?). It had started to storm, which in and of itself was a bit frustrating because the wedding was supposed to be outside, but they had a lovely banquet hall set up inside where the ceremony could take place, so we all were able to breath a little easier. The real tester, the moment where we all hit the wall and struggled, was when the power went out.

But this bride is a two-time USCAA National champ (not to mention second placer the two years before that), and her man's nothing to sneeze at in the running world either. They weren't going to let electricity beat them in their greatest race yet. So they crossed that beautiful naturally and candle lit finish/start line. They won their singles races and took the lead in the duathlon. And the bridesmaids and groomsmens and the families and friends all cheered as they sped past us.

So my question to you: Which side of the cake pictured below do you think I took a huge bite out of? :D
And my challenge to you: When you get married, if things don't go the way you planned, take it in strides and remember that you're not holding this ceremony to show off your decorating and planning skills - you're doing it because of the love that you share with your partner.

<3 Congratulations, you crazy squirrels! <3

Step 20: Fall off the Bandwagon, but get Right Back On

This blog post is really similar to "Step 11: Get Super Busy," except that I actually had excuses for not writing during that break. Granted, I had some really awesome things go on the past couple weeks (check out the next few blogs to hear about them), but there were several times that I thought "I should write a blog post" or "I should work on my story." Instead, I watched old cartoons I used to watch when I was kid.

Sometimes I get in funks like that, and if it happens towards the end of the month it can be really bad. Get your minds out of the gutters! It has nothing to do with me being a girl! It does, however, have everything to do with... well, not sure what you would call this: I have to start things at the beginning. 

It started out just with movies, tv shows, and books. I had to watch/read things in order. Heck, I couldn't even watch the original Star Wars movies until the three prequels came out so that I could see it all from  beginning to end (chronologically speaking). 
Then it went to homework - if I couldn't figure out the answer to question 1, there was no way I was moving on to question 2.
And now it's hit my entire life. If I wake up and am having a bad day, I really really really want to just go back to bed and wake up the next day and have a good morning that will lead to a good rest of the day. Sometimes it gets as bad as me waiting until the beginning of the next week to "hit the ground running," as my mom and I like to say. And in some worst case scenarios, I just throw away the last two weeks of a month, goof off, and tell myself that come the first of the next month I'll be productive and get stuff done just the way that I want to.

This method is all fine and dandy (as you can see, it's the beginning of the month and I'm back on the writing bandwagon), but I wasted a lot of time. So I'm going to try not to do that anymore. First off, I'm going to try not to fall of the bandwagon in the first place, but if I do, I'm going to try to hop right back on.

So my question to you: What do you do to get yourself back on the bandwagon?
And my challenge to you: If you are having a bad day (whether it's only that slight bad that's more annoying than sad or it's a truly awful day), try looking at the next day as a new, better day. You'll give yourself the rest of your bad day to sulk around, but then you'll have a fresh, productive start the next day.

Step 19: Feel Like a True Professional

Not going to lie, this post is way more geared towards future writers, but really the idea is the same for everyone. We all want to feel like we're all grown up the minute that we get that diploma in our hands. Some of us may, but a lot more of us still feel like a bunch of kids. And relatively speaking, we are, but I won't get into that right now (I'm sure there'll be other posts about how our 20's should be used to explore and have fun).

Anyways, the first time that you accomplish something professional (and when I say professional I mean something that has to o with your chosen career path - something that has to do with your dreams), it feels great! For a would-be-author, your first professional accomplishment probably was a long time ago - the first rough draft you ever finished or the first story that you ever had published in your school's magazine. But for me, what really made me feel like a true author, a true professional, was talking to someone I'd never met before and asking for their help with my story. Why? Because that's what true authors do, and I guess a part of me never thought I'd have the courage to do that (I'm a pretty shy person). If I can do what other authors can do, then I have a shot of being a true author too.

And this could go for any career field. You just have to find out what the successful people in your chosen line of work do and then do it yourself.

So my question to you: What was something that you did that made you feel like a true professional?
And my challenge to you: Do something that makes you feel like a true professional.

Step 18: Clean Your Room

I know! The lamest thing I could possibly tell you to do! And quite possibly one of the hardest steps, especially if you're like me and instead of neatly putting away everything the moment you got back from school you just threw it into piles in both your room AND the spare room. It's a disaster field that's just had more and more stuff piled on during the past two months, and after two days of pretty much nonstop cleaning I've still only got half of one room clean and 1/4 of the other room cleared out. Agghhhh!!!!

But, on the plus side, I found $200 dollars sitting on my dresser that had been buried there for God knows how long!

So my question to you: What's the coolest thing you've ever found when cleaning your room?
And my challenge to you: Clean your room while listening to random songs on YouTube - it makes the experience so much more fun, and if you're like me and only use YouTube to favorite songs that you like, maybe throw in a couple weird videos here and there, then playing through the older stuff that you favorited can be real crazy - why I favorited a guy dressed up as Sora from the video game Kingdom Hearts dancing to "Stand Out" from A Goofy Movie, I'll never know...

Step 17: Celebrate the 4th on the 5th

The 4th of July couldn't have fallen on a more perfect day. We've been getting a lot of rain recently, so that meant that there wasn't a burn ban like last year PLUS it wasn't ridiculously hot like it normally is. The only downside to this was the fact that it was so muggy that the smoke from the earlier fireworks hung in the air and completely blocked out the grand finale at the show that I went to. :(

But there was another upside to the date that the 4th fell on - it was a Thursday! I know, who care's about Thursdays? Thursday's are boring days. BUT, with the 4th falling on a Thursday, that meant that the next day all the firework shops would have their discounts just in time for the weekend! Yup, Friday and Saturday nights were blaring with the sounds of fireworks, and I'm happy to say that my friends and I contributed to the disturbance of the peace. :)

Some of the best new fireworks that we had were "The Desert at Night," this little rocket thing, and a Tiki fountain. Of course we had the classics - mortars, "Jumping Jelly Beans," the "Bees," and what we've lovingly named "Rememberalls" (they're actually called "Wonder Balls," but they reminded us of Rememberalls from Harry Potter ^-^). Sadly, we weren't able to get our favorite, "What?! No Beer?!" They were all out. :(

So my question to you: What's your favorite firework?
And my challenge to you: Go to your local firework shop and stock up now while the deals are good!

Step 16: Watch the Most American Superhero During the Most American Week

Today I went and saw Man of Steel with my mom and my grandma, and though I will admit I'm more of a Spiderman fan (1, 2, and re-boot - not that crappy third movie), the movie was pretty good. Maybe not good enough to pay ridiculous ticket prices... man I want my old job back at the theater - I can't handle $6.50 for every matinee I go to... but I digress, (plus my grandma payed this time, so thanks Grandma!). If ticket prices were just a little cheaper I'd say definitely go see the movie in theaters 'cause the big screen makes the fight sequences really cool. The story itself, I've been told it veers from the original Superman legend, though the way they use flashbacks to show us Clark Kent's childhood is cute (though the way they use it to show us his young adult-hood, eh, that's more a confusion of "are we in the present or the past?"), but being more of a Batman fan (the Christopher Nolan trilogy) and not knowing much of Superman's original story, I found this particular story interesting (if somewhat rushed).

Basically, as more of an Iron Man fan (you know which ones I'm talking about), this Superman movie did get me more interested in Superman's story, just like Spiderman 2, The Dark Knight, and Iron Man. And that should be the goal of ANY movie, let alone a superhero movie. 'Cause the more you can get people interested in the story, the more of the story people will want, and thus sequels and prequels and spinoffs and books can be made.

So my question to you: Who's you're favorite superhero?
And my challenge to you: Check out Man of Steel when you get a little extra dough (or when it comes to Redbox).
Bonus challenge! Not that I'm on a Starkid kick (see last post), but if you are a superhero fan or even if you're just a fan of musical parodies, check out Holy Musical B@man! on Starkids' YouTube channel. Not only do you get to see Batman and Superman duke it out, but you get to see them duke it out while singing!

Step 15: Have A Very Potter Musical Marathon

Warning all non-Harry-Potter-fans - you should probably stop reading this post because it's basically a geek-out fest. z8)  <--That was my poor attempt at doing a Harry Potter emoticon.

If you are a Harry Potter fan and you have never watched any of Starkids' Very Potter Musicals, you cannot call yourself a true fan. There are three of these musicals, and all of legit musical length (2 hours, if not longer): A Very Potter Musical, A Very Potter Sequel, and A Very Potter Senior Year. The best part - all three can be found on YouTube!

Below's Part 2 of Act 1 which gives you a great introduction to many of the hilarious characters and has a ridiculously catchy song! (Though I will sadly admit, you don't get to see Voldemort until Part 5 of Act 1 - so skip to that video to see how awesomely they pull that character off!)

The truly amazing part about these musicals, though, is the fact that these kids who put on this musical (and when I say "put on," I mean they literally wrote the script, music, and choreography; designed the costumes and sets; and put in hours of rehearsal) started out as regular college students. The first Very Potter Musical was created and performed while still in school (in fact, I believe it was created and performed as a school project). These performers created something so fun and formed such a bond with each other that they bought their own studio and continue to create and perform various musical parodies. And though some of them have gone on to other jobs (the young man playing Harry Potter is none other than Glee's Blaine, and if your as much of a fan of Ron as I am, you'd know that the young man who plays him in the musicals is... on the Disney channel... yeah don't judge! I love Joey Richter!), most of them managed to come back for the final Very Potter Musical. These guys are living the message that J.K. Rowling wrote in the Harry Potter series - with your friends and some hard work, you're able to accomplish great things.

So my CHALLENGE to you: Have A Very Potter Musical Marathon with your friends (with your friends is the key part - it makes it that much more fun)! Or, if you don't have time to watch all three (because it WILL take you all day), then at least watch the first one. 
And my question to you: What did you think of the musicals?

Bonus Challenge!
If you're a true Harry Potter fan and have already watched all three musicals, have another marathon with your friends and make a drinking game out of it! But be safe! Everyone spends the night, no one drives unless they haven't drank, if your under 21 don't drink alcohol (Kool-Aid with a crap ton of sugar can work just as well). Below are the rules (remember, you've got to start out slow - you've got three musicals to get through).

• A Very Potter Musical
• Whenever Ron has food - drink!
• Whenever Ron has a drink - drink!
• When Ron's eating his Hershey bar - drink!
• A Very Potter Sequel
• Whenever Red Vines are mentioned - drink!
• A Very Potter Senior Year
• Whenever they reference this being the last musical - drink!
• During the three songs about endings - chug!

Step14: Take Student Loan Exit Counseling

Oookkkk... this one should probably have been higher up on the to-do list, but guess what! You've got a six month grace period before you have to pay back any of your federal loans, so it's all good if you're a little late on your exit counseling.

Some tips when going through your counseling session:

• It's going to take way longer than what they say (I think I read that it would take 20 minutes). It took me 2 HOURS! Granted, it probably won't take most normal people that long - in fact, there may be some of you who finish it within the 20 minutes that they promise. But if you really take the time to read through the information and think about exactly how you're going to be able to afford to pay your student loans on top of your other monthly expenses, then it's going to take some time.
• Have a pen and paper so you can write down the important stuff. Duh.
• Don't freak out when you see how much you owe. Especially when you double check what you owe with what your school says they received and you get a different number. (This discrepancy is caused by a wonderful thing called a Loan Fee - the government charges us an extra amount, sort of like a processing fee, and it sucks balls. For me, it was 1% of each loan that I took out, but I hear that they're raising it to 2% - write to your Congress to stop the increase!)
• Know that there are different types of payment plans, the coolest one being Pay as You Earn. You have to qualify for this one, but if you do you only pay a small amount, and after 25 years anything that you haven't paid off is forgiven! Great for the unemployed and the starving artist. :)

The last thing to know is that the exit counseling doesn't actually do SQUAT in concerns for paying back your loans. It's literally just a short online class telling you what's going to happen and how to prepare for it. You want to actually deal with your loans, you've got to talk to your loan servicer (the people you're paying your loans to).

So my question to you: Do you have any questions? After two hours of dealing with this stuff, I've got a pretty good idea of what's going on, and though I'm no expert I'll try to help you or send you in the right direction to get help.
And my challenge to you: Go through the exit counseling and take your time with it. It'll help you understand things better.

Step 13: Watch Zombie Shows

If Canada's preparing for the Zombie Apocalypse (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueBZuZAoglE), then we need to be preparing too! (And no, I'm not just now hearing about this awesome video - I saw it when it first came out, it just goes really well with this blog. :) )

A great way to prepare is by watching informational videos. Some titles that I currently find very helpful are "World War Z," "The Walking Dead," and for all you girls out there, "Warm Bodies." Each have their own unique ways of staying one step ahead of the flesh-eating mob, and by watching all three you'll be prepared for any type of zombie that might pop up, whether they're the result of chemical warfare, an airborne virus, or an irate-radioactive-monkey (10 points to the person who can tell me which show that quote came from).

Then there's also the classics. The only ones I can really vouch for in the classic category are "Dawn of the Dead" (the original and the re-boot). There's also "Night of the Living Dead," "White Zombie" (starring the original Dracula), and "Army of Darkness." They've made some lists, so they must be pretty good.

And of course there's a whole slew of zombie flicks in between, with the stories running as serious as "Resident Evil" to as funny as "Shaun of the Dead" or "Zombieland." Heck, they've even got kid movies with zombies in them (though I wouldn't quite classify "Paranorman" as a zombie flick, the dead do rise in this film).

So my question to you: What's your favorite zombie movie?
And my challenge to you: Go see "World War Z." It was awesome! (I really really like "Warm Bodies" too, but that's definitely more of a chick flick, so boys, you've been warned!)

Step 12: Visit with Out-of-Town Family

I'm pretty fortunate to have most of my family living within driving distance, but there is a chunk on my mom's side who's all the way out in California (I guess you could say that's pretty lucky too - having family in the perfect vacation spot - but plane ticket prices can be a bit of bad luck). When they come back to their old stomping grounds in Indiana, my mom and I always make a point of spending some time with them. They rent a big white van to haul all the family around to various former homes and hangouts, as well as to their favorite local food joints (believe it or not, one of them is White Castle - bleh!). We talk about the past and catch up on plans for the future, and it's surprisingly a good time. I say surprisingly because you'd think a younger person like myself wouldn't really be in to looking at old buildings, hearing stories, and eating White Castle's (ok, maybe most young people wouldn't have a problem with the White Castles part, but I don't even like McDonalds) - most kids of my generation and lower are more interested in what's going on in their phones. But it was neat to see that my families' old homes were still standing, and it was nice to get caught up with people I hadn't seen since I was in high school, and dang it, even the White Castles wasn't awful.

So my question to you: What do you do when your family gets together?
And my challenge to you: If you've got family coming in from out of town, go spend some time with them, even if it means doing something you thinks going to be boring. They'll appreciate getting to spend time with you, and you might be surprised to find your self entertained.

Eating with the family at White Castle.

Step 11: Get Super Busy

This is probably the easiest step - I mean, you can get regular busy doing all kinds of different things, so getting SUPER busy just takes a little extra work.

The important thing is to remember to do those daily things that you told yourself you'd do now that you've graduated - eat healthier, exercise for an hour each day, read for fun a little each day, keep better track of your finances, feed and water your animals, KEEP YOUR BLOG UPDATED... >.>

But I'll show you just how busy I've been in the next few blogs, so stay tuned for some boring, some fun, and some just plain weird posts!

Step 10: Be in a Wedding!

Sorry I haven't posted much lately. There's no real reason - I've just been busy with MY FRIEND'S WEDDING! :) I would like to congratulate my former roommate, God, and her Sexy Mexy (who's actually not Mexican despite popular belief) for tying the knot this past Saturday.

It was a simple, yet beautiful ceremony filled with true love (cheesy, I know, but when you can lick your bride when the pastor says "You may now kiss the bride," then you know you've got true love). It was everything that I hope my own wedding will be (minus, perhaps, the licking), and I'm so thankful that my roommate asked me to be a part of it.

My one and only tip for those of you who are blessed enough to be a part of something so wonderful is to  do whatever makes the bride (or groom, if that's who you're friends with) happy. Though this is a momentously happy occasion in anyone's life, it's also a momentously stressful one. I was lucky enough to be friends with a bride who didn't go all "bridezilla" (at least not in front of me), and there were moments where she probably would have been justified in doing so (when the proper bridesmaid dresses don't come in until two days before the wedding and the bridal store owner gives you the roundabout, even the bridesmaids are threatening to beat someone up!).

It's the bridesmaids' (or groomsmens') job to help alleviate those stresses so that the happy couple can be just that - happy. 'Cause when they're happy, that joy spreads throughout the room and makes everyone happy (even that really drunk lady from the bar who thought she could crash the wedding).

So, my question to you: What's your dream wedding?
And my challenge to you: Crash a wedding, but be classy about it! Don't just grab some food and run (and return two minutes later for more food) - make up a story about being the groom's dog's second cousin by marriage and then hit on the hot bridesmaids/groomsmen while going crazy on the dance floor. And leave a nice card.
[Sorry, not a great challenge, but it's the only one I could think of besides getting married, and I don't want you doing that unless you've found "the one." But hey, it'll make a great story if you actually do it!]

<3 Congratulations, you two! <3

Step 9: Play Trivia with Your Old Man

Play trivia, eat dinner, grab a drink, watch a game, or don superhero costumes and save the world. Whatever you and your dad enjoy doing together, do it! As recent graduates, we may think that we're too busy searching for jobs and/or working to spend some quality time with our dads (or any family member, for that matter). But it really does mean a lot to them when you can find the time to be their little kid again. So start making some time! Stop reading this blog right now and call up your old man!

Step 8: Accept the Reject

You are going to get rejected at some point in your life, whether it's by a loved one, a publisher, a judge, your cat, or a potential employer. The important thing to remember is that there are so many other opportunities out there for you, so you can't just stay focused on what you can't have.

If it was something really important to you, like a long-term relationship coming to a regrettable end, then yes, take some time to curl up in your sock drawer, eating a giant Hershey bar as you cry yourself to sleep (and guys, not only girls are allowed to do this). You deserve one night to express your pain. But don't hold onto that pain - let it all out, and then look towards something new.

If it was something that was just meh to you, accept that you didn't get it and move on. There are plenty of other fish out there that I guarantee you are more tasty than just meh.

And if it's a repeat reject, maybe it's time to change something. (This doesn't mean change yourself! This is more if you're an artist or entrepreneur of some type and your work just can't seem to take off.) Look at stuff from a different angle. You may see some new potential that could change the rejects to accepts.

Most importantly, no matter what type of rejection it is, just remember:

So, my question to you: How do you handle rejection?
And my challenge to you: Get rejected! That sounds like a horrible challenge, but truly, the more you get rejected, the better you're able to handle it. The first time I got rejected, I cried like a baby in the bathroom for an hour. Now I write a blog about rejection. Much healthier, don't you think? :)

Step 7: Om Mani Pame Hum

I realized after I posted my last blog that many people won't know what was meant when my sister's boyfriend said "Om mani pame hum." It also makes a great step in surviving life after college, so here's your crash course on a great Buddhist mantra.

Yes, Buddhist. My sister and her boyfriend are both Buddhist (my sister's actually the teacher at the Dromtonpa Kadampa Meditation Center in Indianapolis - there are some great classes there and at other locations around Indy that you should check out sometime), and though I'm not a Buddhist myself I do like their peaceful, meditative lifestyles. And my favorite practice of theirs is by far the om mani pame hum mantra.

This mantra is associated with Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion (you'd have to ask my sister or another Buddhist to explain exactly what a bodhisattva is, but the best I can explain it is as a Buddha - there's the main guy, but then there are a bunch of different Buddhas who stand for different things). When you chant "om mani pame hum" it's supposed to help bring about an air of peacefulness and calm.

The best way I can describe it is with an example.

I'm TERRIFIED of needles. You know that Hepatitis B immunization that you're supposed to get before you go into high school, the one that's supposed to prevent you from being in horrible pain should you get Hepatitis. Yeah. Never got it. On the rare occasions when my school system would find out that I'd missed a vital vaccination and they forced me to go to the doctor, I would scream so loud that other nurses would come into my room to see if my doctor needed any help. Happy to say I never had to be held down.

Anyways, a person who's terrified of needles never wants to be told that they're anemic. Especially severely anemic. Especially when they have a cross country coach who will force them to get their blood checked on a regular basis. The first few times I had to get my blood drawn, I cried. I stopped myself from screaming the very first time because my coach and her four-year-old daughter were there with me - I didn't want to freak the little girl out more than I already had.

Then my sister suggest I try chanting om mani pame hum before I went into the doctors office and while I was getting my blood drawn. I didn't have to chant it very loud - in fact, I think most of the time I was just running it through my head over and over. But that was the first time in 21 years that I didn't cry while having a needle stuck in me.

Granted, I'm still terrified of needles, but that mantra has made it easier to get the necessary blood work done (still holding off on the shots, though). It's also helped in all kinds of other stressful situation (if you want to hear about an example with my dog, check out my very first post in How to Survive the Animals After College).

So, my question to you: What's something that you're terrified of?
And my challenge to you: The next time you know you're going to be in that terrifying situation, try chanting om mani pame hum beforehand. You'll be amazed at what it can do.

Step 6: Land a Job Interview

Job interviews are terrifying - especially if it's only your third one! But, to quote my sister's wise boyfriend;

"From my own experience being involved in the hiring process, it's just as nerve-wracking for the interviewer as it is for you. OM MANI PAME HUM."

Though it may not calm you down entirely to know that your potential employer is just as stressed out as you are, there are some things that you can do to help ease your worries.

1. Know the company. Simply checking out their webpage and seeing what they're all about can help you see that they're not so big and scary.
2. Write down some answers to potential questions that might be asked and practice them. I found 100 Potential Interview Questions to be a particularly helpful list (don't worry, you don't have to go through them all - though some are pretty funny --- check out the "Brainteaser Questions" at the bottom of the page).
3. Pick out what you're going to wear the night before (and make sure there's not cat pee on your white tank top because it's been sitting in a basket for the past two weeks and your cat decides that that basket full of once-clean clothes would make a nice litter box).
4. Make sure you set your alarm to wake you up in plenty of time. Double check that you're not setting it too late and not including drive time in your morning schedule. Wake up when your cat meows at you an hour before your alarm goes off because for some reason he knows that you set your alarm too late (or else he knows his food bowl is empty).
5. Take a nice relaxing shower in the morning because you still believe you have all the time in the world to get ready. Not only does that shower calm your nerves, it helps you wake up after only getting three hours of sleep because you were so nervous and/or you've been sleeping in until two in the afternoon.
6. Remember to breath while you're driving to the interview. Passing out and hitting a stop sign is no way to get the job. 

And the most important thing is just to remember that it does get easier with time. Even though this was only my third interview (and even though I made the steps to calming down sound like I had an awful morning - yes, my cat did pee on my tank top, but no I didn't pass out and hit a stop sign), it actually was a lot easier than my first one.

So, my question to you: What trick do you use to help calm you down before an interview (or any stressful situation for that matter)?
And my challenge to you: If you've got a basket full of clean clothes, put 'em up! It's no fun putting on a shirt and having it smell like urine...

Step 5: Watch a New Kids' Movie

 Kids' movies are the best! Especially some of the newest ones (*cough*howtotrainyourdragon*cough*). But seriously, some of the newer kid movies (just like the awesome ones we used to watch when we were kids ourselves) have really great stories, characters, and artwork in them. And the best ones have great messages behind them.

Sometimes as adults, we forget these messages - valuing our friends, believing in ourselves, doing the right thing even when it's hard. Somewhere along the way, we stop believing in the magic that makes it possible for us to believe in these messages taught to us by the Disney classics.

Sure, we can always go back and watch The Fox and the Hound, Pocahontas, and any number of our childhood favorites safely in the privacy of our own homes. We can re-live that childhood magic for 90 minutes and then pop back in to the adult world. But that's the magic from the past. As adults, we need to see some magic from the present to remind us that there's still a chance for good to win in today's world.

And as silly as you'll feel being one of the oldest people in that theater, you'll feel ten times happier knowing that you didn't care what others thought while you enjoyed a really good dang movie!

So, my question to you: What's your favorite recent kids' film?
And my challenge to you: If you haven't seen a good children's film recently, go see one! I recommend any pictured here (*cough*howtotrainyourdragon*cough*).

>>Note: I love talking about movies and books and television shows, so I may or may not create a new page where I talk about the stories that I've recently read or watched. I just put up the new page with the animals, though, so I'm not sure yet about this page. Keep an eye out! :)

Step 4: Save Baby Kittens!

Here's one I bet you weren't expecting. It's always good to do a good deed, especially when it involves animals (and especially when it involves BABY animals).

This is Snow White with two of her own babies and five of Tiger Mama's babies (her picture's down below). These guys as well as another orphan litter of five were in a little bit of a pickle, so my sister and I swooped in to help them. They're all pretty sick (an upper respiratory infection, AKA a kitty cold), so when the animal shelter near my sisters house insinuated that they'd be put down, we took them all to a cheap clinic where the vet was nice enough to only charge us $65 for the visit, and two different types of antibiotics (trust me, $65 might sound like a lot, especially to a kid straight out of college, but I've paid $65 for a single pet's visit to a clinic, and that wasn't even including the treatment that they needed).

My sister took the five orphan kittens (who are a little bit older than the ones in these pictures so they should be fine without a mama) and I took these two litters (and they chose to be in the same crate - originally we had them separated, but when we shut them in our garage and left the crate doors open Snow White hopped over to Tiger Mom's bigger crate, so we moved her babies with her). We're going to get them healthier and then try to find a shelter or loving families that will take them.

Moral of the story, even if you're a poor broke former-college student, you can still afford to save lives. I'm going to give away the state I live in by saying this, but Indy Feral is a great place to start looking for help if you live in the Indianapolis area, though they primarily catch feral cats, spay/neuter them, and then release them back into the wild. There are also all kinds of cheap spay/neuter clinics (FACE clinic charges only $20 to spay/neuter), and sometimes these clinics also have cheap vaccines and other medicines. And of course there's your local animal shelter. Even if these places can't help you with your specific problem, they can point you to someone who can (and they can also point you to various vouchers and discount coupons).

So, my question to you: What are some good places that help animals in the area where you live? Obviously, no exact address for your place (you guys will never know exactly where in Indy I live), but if you know of an awesome place that takes in hurt animals, gives out vouchers, finds animals homes, ect, I'm sure there are people all over the country who would be interested.
And my challenge to you: Do something nice for your local shelter. Donate money or items, volunteer your time, or even adopt a pet if you're looking for a new friend. :3

P.S. If you're in the Indy area and you're looking for a kitten, I've got plenty!

>>Note: I will be starting up a new page on my blog about life after college and the animal world (animal lover here, if you guys couldn't guess). It'll have stories of domestic, socialized, and probably even some wild animals that I come into contact with now that I'm done with college, so keep an eye out for the new page!

Step 3: Apply for Jobs

Hey, you guys knew this was going to be one of the steps. We might as well get it out of the way early. The basics that we've all heard a million times in college and possibly even high school:

• Make a resume and keep it updated (seriously, keep it updated - it'll save time)
• Be professional
• Visit your career center
• Sign up for professional networking web sites, career finders, ect.
• Go to career fairs, and follow the proper protocol for following up with potential employers
• Network, network, network.

 And here are some of my personal tips:

• Don't apply for something that you don't really want. It took me two hours to apply for a single position. It's not worth your time to fill out an application for a job that you know you won't be happy at, even if you'll get a lot of money or you're a shoe in for the position.
• About a week after you turn in your application, if it's a job that you really really want, don't be afraid to contact the company if you haven't heard back from them. Sometimes you've got to be a little bit pushy to get what you want (but be polite about it!)
• Have an ultra-resume that has a list of everything you've ever done. And I mean EVERYTHING. My ultra-resume goes all the way back to when I was a Brownie in Girl Scouts. You never know when those good deeds from your childhood are going to come in handy, and it's much easier to cut and paste than to try to remember and re-write it.
• Tweak your resume and cover letter for every application so that you're sure your resume will reflect specific skills that each position is looking for.
• Keep a copy of each resume and cover letter that you send in. This will allow you to have a base for different kinds of jobs that you might apply for in the future. For example, I have one resume that I sent in to Wolf Park that high lights my experience working with animals and the environment and another resume for a position in college relations that shows my abilities as a writer. Depending on the type of job I'm applying for, I can pull up the appropriate old resume, take out old stuff, and put in new stuff. Save and repeat.

Now, I've only applied for seven positions in my short life (and gotten three), so here's my question for you (especially older, more experienced readers): What do you do to get the job?
And my challenge for you: When you do start your job hunt, honestly and truly, search for something that you at least think you'll enjoy. Even your dream job can get tiresome. I can't imagine starting at someplace that I knew I was going to be miserable at.

Step 2: Get Sick Early and get Healthy Fast

Getting sick SUCKS! Especially at the beginning of summer break (it's weird - I'm a college graduate, but I still consider this time of year the beginning of summer break). Getting sick early on does have its advantages, though. First off, you can take that time as another excuse to rest and relax (thus extending Step 1). But you can also use it to think about ways to get healthier.

Graduation is sort of like New Years Eve - it's a time for you to make resolutions. One resolution that a lot of people tend to make (both on New Years Eve and at the beginning of life after college) is to get healthier. Unfortunately, this resolution always seems to fall by the wayside. When you get sick right after making (and possibly breaking) your health-kick-resolution, though, it reminds you just how important it is to live a healthy life.

There are all kinds of things that you can do to get and stay healthy, the obvious being eating better and getting more exercise. This doesn't mean that you should spend every spare minute that you have at the gym only surviving off of Gatorade and carrot sticks. Those types of people will get sick too. You need to have a good balance of doing some sort of physical activity that you enjoy (running, basketball, swimming, walking your dog, jump roping, yoga, horse back riding, karate, water polo, thumb wrestling, regular wrestling, dancing, hell even safe sex) while eating on the healthier side of things (anything that comes from the ground is good, but don't forget to get your proteins and healthy fats in too).

So, my question to you: What's your health resolution for this summer?
And my challenge to you: Try some new form of physical activity this summer and let me know what you think of it. I'm a runner personally, but I'd love to try some new stuff, work some new muscles!

Step 1: Relax and Refocus

You need to take AT LEAST a week off after graduation. Take that time to sleep late into the afternoon with your cat, celebrate with friends and family at an open house, watch hours upon hours of television shows that you missed during the school year, drive 3 hours to Kings Island with your friend only to turn right around when you realize that it's still closed during the week, sleep some more, drink, go to a casino, eat some decent food.

Take that time to answer the one question that almost everyone will ask you: What are you going to do now that you're done with school? Take that time to realize that whenever you answer that question, you're really just bullshitting. Sure, we've all got plans; dreams that we're reaching for. But no one really knows what they want to do, even if they think they do.

"I'm going on to grad school." "I'm going to get a job." "A part time job." "Maybe I'll take a year off." "Travel?" "I'm definitely going to work on my writing." "I'll start up a blog!" "My blog's going to be about surviving life after college. That's original!" (100 Inspirational Blogs for Life After College).

No matter what anyone says, it's alright not to know exactly what your future looks like the second that diploma's in your hand. That's why it's so important to take a break and give your brain a chance to relax before you hit it with the tough life questions.

So, my not-tough-life-question to you: If you had one week off where you could do whatever you wanted, what would it be?
My challenge for you: Regardless of if you'vejust graduated, your on summer vacation, or you've got a break coming your way at work, go spend one week however you want.