My Day Job

Work is hard.
I am tired.
Too tired to even go through my mail.
Or put my shoes anywhere other than right by the front door.
Or hang my jackets in the closet, instead of on the back of my kitchen chairs.
I even ALMOST paid my taxes a day late.  That's how bad I am these days.

I need to reevaluate my routine.  This new job - it takes a lot out of me.  More than I thought it would.  Which means other parts of my life are suffering , which doesn't really work for me.
So it's time to rethink.

Whenever there's a change in one aspect of your life, it's important to recognize the effect it has on the whole of your life.  And it is an ongoing process.
For example, in 6 weeks, my "training period" will be over and then my schedule, stress, anxiety will change again.  Which means I have to be open to making other changes at that time too.

If you're like me, you try really hard to keep your work-life and your personal-life separate.  But no matter what you do, they're undoubtedly connected...and a change in one often leads to a change in the other.

(Easier said than done, as always.)

Good Morning!

How about a quick tip for you early this Saturday morning?

Stop trying to change what works.  

Concentrate on fixing what doesn't.

Good advice for organizing, good advice for life in general.  And easier said than done.

The Worst Exam Ever

I should update you on where I am in my CPA exam saga...

I'm taking a break.
Maybe a forever break, I haven't decided for sure.

I have mixed feelings about this.  I feel like a failure; I mean, I planned on being finished with this exam by now.  Instead, I haven't managed to pass any of the 4 parts.  (Cue the violins!)  On the other hand, I feel like I'm finally taking control of the situation.  I've been seriously struggling and all but gave up on the last 2 exams.  How is that an effective strategy?
At the very least, I need to reevaluate my study plan (because what I'm doing OBVIOUSLY isn't working!) before I spend the money, time and effort on preparing for the next round.  But, more importantly, I need to reevaluate my career goals.  I decided to take the CPA exam because I thought I wanted to BE an certified public accountant.  But do I?
No.  Not really.
I mean, don't get me wrong - there are parts of accounting that I actually like (that statement earned me about a zillion nerd points).  But I don't want to be an accountant.
I want to be an organizer.  I want to help you organize your finances.
And people - I want to work with people.
So maybe this CPA exam isn't a necessary.  Maybe there's another (better?) way for me to get to my goals.  Like have I mentioned this graduate program I'm looking into?  Um, yeah...

Sometimes it's important to take a step back from a situation.  So that's what I'm doing.

And now if you'll excuse me, Extreme Couponing is on and I'm obsessed.

New Sport: X-Treme Couponing

I have a new TV obsession:
EXTREME COUPONING on TLC.

I am both in awe of these Coupon Queens...and terrified of them.  Their "stockpiles" - their word, not mine - are downright unnerving and spill over into virtually every room of their homes.  More toilet paper, cereal and hot dogs than any person will ever need, ever.  Is the end of the world really coming?  Because these ladies are totally prepared.

(I told you it was terrifying!)
But I'll be honest, even if I think they're borderline nuts-o, anyone who can get out of the supermarket with $600 worth of groceries for a mere $6 (!!!) has earned my respect.  Truth be told, I'm a crappy couponer; as in - I don't coupon beyond checking out the weekly specials as I'm shopping.  Oh well, I also don't have a stash of canned reserves under my bed or spend 5 freaking hours trudging the aisles of my local grocery store with a 3-ring binder in hand, ha.
Anyway, of the 4 women who have been featured so far (only 2 episodes have aired), my favorite is the woman who has the amazing can sorter; it rotates her canned goods so she's sure nothing spoils.  (Um and yes, I know canned goods take like 823227 years to spoil, but with the amount this woman has...its possible to get to that point.)

If you haven't seen it, please take the half hour and check it out.  It's worth it.  (Worth it?  Hm, I feel like there's a pun in that line somewhere.)

PS, while I was looking through the TLC website for the link to this show, I stumbled upon 2 interesting articles with coupon-related pointers:
10 Best Websites to Save You Money
5 Extreme Coupon Tips for Novice Couponers

Travel Size

I took some time off this week to visit my little brother in DC.  I am not a good traveler.  I'm anxious, stressed and I'm a TERRIBLE packer.  This time, I vowed to at least change my packing habits.

My problem is simple:  I pack too much.  Too many clothes, shoes, accessories, just too much of everything.  For example, this trip was only 2 full days.  The old me would have packed at least 3 pairs of shoes (options, people, options!) BUT the new me only brought 1!  My all purpose, green Chucks - in case you were wondering.  And guess what?  IT WAS FINE.  

I also gave my travel toiletry bag an overhaul.  Straying from my normal skincare routine is not an option.  And not because I'm so set in may ways!  Nope, I just have really fussy (read: bad like I'm still 14) skin.  So I normally travel with my normal-sized stuff.  But they take up so. much. space.  So I caved and invested in travel-sized versions of my regular skincare products.  Then I raided Target's travel-size bins too, for shampoo, conditioner, contact solution, etc.  The result?  A much lighter and more streamlined toiletry bag.

I'm still having a problem with my on-the-go make-up.  Again, I have fussy skin so I can't stray from my regular make-up.  I use Bare Escentuals, which I think is amazing.  However, it sucks to travel with.  It's messy and requires so many brushes.  It may take a couple more hotel-stays to find a solution to this!  I'll let you know what my trial-and-error turns up...