AMANDA SERFOZO *

Watching people age feels like playing a game of Jenga. At...

Wed, 30 May 2012 21:13:00 -0400

Watching people age feels like playing a game of Jenga.

At first, you subconsciously pick up on the sway. It’s nothing very serious; still salvageable. A few thoughtful minutes pass. One piece of wood awkwardly hangs over the edges. Placing a bar on the pile becomes a delicate balancing act. The structure hangs there, vulnerable on an invisible tightrope. There’s no going back now — gravity delivers a swift kick to the heap. Dumb hands dangle in the air, surprised, unsure of what to grasp next. “Awww,” everyone sighs, crowding the board to stuff the game back in its box. Game over.

It’s kind of like that. One day — all at once — you realize everyone is getting a little creaky, and there’s not a single thing to do about it.

There’s nothing in particular that defines the “aging” process. Crow’s feet and arthritis are side effects, but that’s not what I’m referring to. It’s the smoldering out of the young, neon-pop-fizzle, like aging embers crouching into their comfortable glow. Maybe we’ve gotten a little used to disappointment or heartache. “Them’s the breaks,” we say, stirring our coffee lackadaisically, pacing ourselves so as not to cause a splash. We know better. Maybe we’ve become a little more world weary, fought wars or bureaucracy, got in car accidents, played with fire and got burned.

Maybe we’re just a little out of breath.

Last week, I received an Emory University alumni coffee mug in the mail, a graduation gift. It was the first time I’d ever felt “old”, as “old” as I possibly can feel at 21. It’s the good, sturdy, oak wood kind of aging happening in myself. It’s confidence without training wheels. I know where my priorities are, and I’ve learned the art of politely saying ‘no’ when it’s called for. My muscles are at their prime, my eyes open each morning with a healthy sparkle. I know to eat my vegetables, sort my laundry, apologize when it’s called for.

I don’t want to fizzle out with “age”. I just want to get older. Like dogs with aching joints that go to pastures to enjoy a quiet patch of sun, I see people becoming content with slowing down, with under-the-table agreements between them and the world, that they can’t always get what they want. Maybe I too will come to understand this as making peace with my patch of sun. But, a tired “c’est la vie” shrug just seems like my version of the Jenga toppling.

If I’m not out of breath, then I’ve given up, and that’s about as good as dead to me.

I remember being seventeen and fearless, pulling up to the new apartment with my Mom. We used a...

Sat, 26 May 2012 00:16:00 -0400

I remember being seventeen and fearless, pulling up to the new apartment with my Mom. We used a dented shoebox as a makeshift coffee table, and slept on the floor for two weeks while the moving truck made the slow crawl from Philadelphia to Atlanta. I watched a ‘1776’ DVD every. single. day. while waiting for the cable to be installed. I lived out of a suitcase. My hair was highlighted blonde, fresh from prom. I had an LG Shine cell phone, pre-3G. I made it all work, miles away from home, without a map. That “do-what-you’ve-gotta-do” hustle is still there, more than ever.

I remember being wide-eyed and hungry for opportunity, even when all I had was an Internet connection and a few bare walls. Thank you, Oglethorpe, for getting me started. Thank you, Emory, for making the dream come true. I got what I came here for. It’s a beautiful feeling.

I remember how the air felt riding down Peachtree Road for the first time, the taste of sweet orange sauce that became my comfort food favorite at Tin Drum, how a Friday night show at Eddie’s Attic was the best outing there was — besides doing the Braves trademark “chop” with thousands of Atlanta’s best at Turner Field, or causing a hootenanny at a roadside Waffle House. I remember how I fell for a beautiful plantation house called Barrington Hall one summer night, at an outdoor Shakespeare play. I remember the ache in my muscles after carrying countless duffle bags into four different dorms over the years, and, just how good it felt to take in the Georgia sunset while hopping off the Cliff shuttles after an evening of Cox Hall studying. The most gorgeous golden hour around, I do declare.

I remember meeting Grace at an Apple store, my very first friend in Atlanta. Followed by Rebecca, Laura, Dallas, Erin, Lydia, and all the rest. Thank you for being beautiful women and sweet friends. Thank you for the Thanksgiving sleepovers and the Nada Surf singalongs. Thank you all for being my first rays of sunshine in this new land.

***

What happens when we grow out of place? When we move as part of a natural rhythm?

I firmly believe that we never really leave a place. You may take your things, but you most definitely leave you, in the most literal sense. Kind of like how every house smells a little different when you’re first invited inside (is that Indian food?), there’s a way that we work ourselves into the walls that becomes unmistakably us. Tiny wine stains on the carpet, smudges on the mirrors, stray hair bands. Your lint balls crowd the laundry room floor; your old hangers line the closet walls. You can always go back. That place will always be yours, for the sheer fact that you called it home once, no matter how long ago.

Because your bare feet walked those hardwood floors.
Because that land was your land once upon a time.

I’m moving to Washington, D.C. this fall, a dream I’ve incubated and nurtured for the past year through plenty of hard work, uphill battles, and sweet victories. I told the city I’d be back in 365 days. I’ll be there exactly then, to the day.

There will be new hardwood floors I get to call my own.
A suitcase that I live out of for a few weeks.
The feel of ridges and curves on a thick set of keys.

Just like I’m always good on my word, I’ll be back to Atlanta sooner than you think.

Thank you for everything. ♥

So you’ve got this big, hairy, audacious goal. And let’s be honest — it’s...

Sun, 20 May 2012 19:12:00 -0400

So you’ve got this big, hairy, audacious goal.

And let’s be honest — it’s fun to dream. We do it all the time, thanks to endless scrolling on image searches. We do it on Pinterest. On blogs. In Travel + Leisure. In our Moleskines. On our corkboards. Out our windows. It’s a beautiful thing, this type of limitless thinking. Money and time aren’t an issue. Everything flows.

What happens when you really want to make one of those dreams leap off the page? Like publish that piece of fiction you’ve been chipping away at for a few years? Or, land a gig in the city of your dreams in order to move there by the end of the year? Maybe it’s coming up with a toaster that also doubles as a television. Or, perhaps it’s getting funding for the three-person startup you’ve been leading?

I’ve seen it happen so many times before, in meetings, or big planning sessions. As someone that produces work — long articles on deadline, news copy, conferences, segment shooting — I’ve been first in line to bring things back down to Earth when the rest of the crew is floating sky high.

Typically, these big ideas go something like this: first, we’re going to take over the world. And when we’re done with that, we’re going to pave the streets with gold. We’ll buy the Dos Equis guy a boat, and woo him with our revolutionary spirits, and he’ll come hang out with our group on a weekend bonding jaunt out to La Jolla. After that, we’ll all go for ice cream sundaes, and do cartwheels into the sunset with his pal, Sean Connery!

Not exactly like that. But, similar. “We’ll catch the attention of a big-time executive and he’ll give us $10,000 to make this happen,” you say, wide-eyed. Or, “you guys, I bet we could get Donald Trump to come do a motivational series by Tweeting him!” (Is he even on Twitter?) A few weeks ago, I was thinking along the lines of, “I’ll hop on a one-way plane that’s flying 3,000 miles away from home, with literally peanuts to my name.” You ruminate on just how great it would be if you became best friends with a Silicon Valley hotshot, and little by little, on the walk back to your apartment, you realize that you’re going home to Ramen and a litterbox that hasn’t been changed in a week. This is reality.

Sure, you can hack it together by thinking all of it will come true overnight, but the result you’ve dreamt of all this time probably won’t be great. Far from it. Most likely, you’ll still be pining after a possibility that would push your project over the edge into excellent. I’m here to tell you that being the bubble burster, while sometimes a bit of a downer position, is necessary in the cadre of any successful team.

The truth is, dreams are work.

Here are some things to think about —

* Draft some blueprints for yourself, like a quality craftsman would. Because that’s what you are — an idea craftsman that’s birthing a concept into the world, moving from the theoretical to the tangible. Before you let your roller coaster of completely badass ideas take over the carnival that is your mind, step back and look at the project at hand. Is this something you can reasonably finish in a month? Over a summer? During the course of a year? Break it up into bits and pieces, like authors do — define the lead-up, the climax, the denouement, the resolution of your goal. What does each part look like? Is it physical or intellectual work? What are the elements within the project, that you can put on the calendar and keep yourself accountable for? (We’ll get to this in a minute.) Will you need to work on the side in order to fund the tools or ingredients necessary to make it happen? If so, what type of work do you want to do, and how can it add value to what it is you’re already scheming? For example, if you’re looking to turn your love of coffee into a corporate pursuit by climbing the ranks at Starbucks, can you do a little bit of insider research by starting as a Saturday morning barista, rather than quitting your current job? Can you come to understand the clientele, the management, and the business model from the ground up? Like any product developer, launcher, campaign manager, or producer will tell you: take a look at the whole picture, hack it into bite-sized pieces that you can get started on today, and start moving the chains from the bottom.

* Polish the front windows. Before you put your antennas out there, or start pitching your big idea, you should think about your first glance impressions. What do you look like to the person that can set your project on the fast track? Are you hosting your site on something that looks like an old Geocities page? Is your web page updated, with your most recent accomplishments, accolades, design work, or best writing? Is your Google search well-rounded, and is your email or Twitter handle displayed in a place that’s easy to see? Change your avatars to the image you want to reflect. Like they say, fake it until you make it. Spend time on the visuals that matter, like a sharp profile picture, or the first image your audience sees on your personal blog. Think about making use of sites like Squarespace, Tumblr, About.me, or Vistaprint, that can stamp your name, number, and personal logo on actual webpages or contact cards. Take ownership of these — they’ll be doing the work of representing you when you’re out of the room.

* Picture it. When you’re thinking of getting in front of somebody important to the well-being of your project (or goal), what does the encounter look like? Visualize the first meeting: what your handshake will feel like to them, and how you’ll make eye contact. Think about ways you can make a five-second impression, something that puts your own memorable fingerprint on your time together. Maybe it’s holding the door open, or doing a little bow when you hand them your business card, followed up with a story about Japanese business etiquette. Do something a little quirky and offbeat, like hand delivering a letter to the owner of a store you want to partner with, or make a personalized video ‘trailer’ for the film studio you’ve got your sights set on. Consider the elements of your elevator pitch — practice it, so it’s snappy, punchy, and above all, natural.

* Get in front of people. Once you’ve got a blueprint down, you’re ready to start making contact with folks who will add valuable dimensions to what you’ve got cooking. Say you’re working on a piece of art that you’re looking to submit to some national contests or galleries. While you’re totaling up how much paint, brushes, and canvases are going to cost, start thinking about who the top influencers are on the other side — who’s responsible for laying their eyes on your work? Who will decide whether your artwork is a fit for the gallery? How can you introduce yourself in a way that’s subtle, yet creative in the meantime? Can you meet them for coffee, for the sole purpose of asking for creative criticism? That said…

* Use degrees of separation to your advantage. If you can’t talk to the CEO, is the VP more accessible? How about the head sales guy? What about his assistant? A co-worker of a publisher you’ve been trying to get in front of? Work the ladder. Make use of social media, Tweetups, and conferences, not just to push out rambles about yourself (you’ve got to get people listening first), but to figure out who knows who.

Since you’ve already thought about your blueprints, your elevator pitch, and polished your front windows, you’re a project under construction — personified. Since the tools are there, and you’re actively biting off parts of your project within reasonable constraints by using accessible elements of both time and money, it means that you can talk about what you’ve got in the works. Literally! No more hot air, no more “wouldn’t it be cool if…?” statements. Your work is actually happening, and because it’s good work, it’s not happening at the snap of a finger, but in the correct amount of time it takes to produce anything meaningful.

* Start a chorus. Ever take a look at how Kickstarter projects get off the ground? Usually it’s not just the quality of the concept, but the ferocious word of mouth that ensues. Can your friends, professors, co-workers, or previous employers write you a recommendation? Can your ballet teacher provide a strong testimonial? Keep in mind that getting others to vouch for you goes a long, long way in many industries, where industry uncertainty is combatted by falling into the same routines of hiring the same types of people. Forego submitting a vanilla job application through Monster.com, and instead try to get eyes on you from within. Nine times out of ten, a verbal testament to you and your goals proves effective in at least getting people to come talk to you, or getting your foot in the door where it counts. (i.e. “I heard from a friend at another design firm that this guy Tim is doing some super impressive work that really fits with what we’re trying to accomplish”, or “I met this girl Jackie for coffee last week, and she’s got some things moving that could be a huge asset to our company.”)

* Go soft. Set what I like to call “soft deadlines” on your work. If you’re looking to move by the end of the year, what absolutely has to happen in the next month? Put a little star on the date one month from today, with a projection of where you’d like to be by then. Perhaps it means having three more chapters finished with your book. Maybe it means setting a date for coffee with a mentor that day. Whatever it is, setting guidelines and structure for yourself is the best possible thing you can do — it means that you don’t have to give up being a sky’s-the-limit dreamer in exchange for total practicality, but rather, that you’re holding yourself accountable to make it happen. Like quarterbacks that work yard for yard, the reward you’ll get is this: satisfaction from seeing your project take shape in visible parts, which spurns you onwards and upwards in continuum. It’s less likely that you’ll feel stagnation or panic, as more elements unfold from your own set to-do lists and appointments you’ve made, and things will feel like they’re coming together (even if it’s only miniscule progress).

* Confidence isn’t so cliché. It might be the most simple thing to say, but one of the hardest things in the world to exude. Even when it’s just you and a whiteboard, your best work is going to come from a place of total confidence in yourself. Take a look back on your past achievements if you have to. Look at old science fair medals. Read through your resume. Get the guys together and ask them for a little boost. Think about tiny victories you’ve had, or moments of exhilaration that you can call your own. Can you work on your people skills a little more? Are you comfortable with going out to dinner by yourself and striking up a conversation with the head chef about what it takes to open a restaurant? Do you have a sense of warmth, genuine curiosity, and a willingness to listen before you talk? Best of all, can you chuckle when you fall smack on your butt? These are all parts of your bigger picture, whether you realize it or not, that add up and make you a total package. Invest time in yourself, so that when the time comes, you don’t have to pause and wonder if you’re “good enough”.

* Follow up, and reel it in. Just like the first handshake or word out of your mouth is the most valuable asset in spreading those initial ideas, think about ways that you can let people linger long after you’ve brushed paths. When you work on a portfolio, what’s the last page going to leave the audience with? Does it feature your phone number, so that they can immediately dial it and jump on board with you? When it comes to cover letters, how about a one-sentence mission statement? Something along the lines of, “let’s make big ideas happen together”, maybe. Can you leave them with something that can help build their product, company, or service, while at the same time enhancing yours? Don’t be afraid to show your personality, too, and of course, never lose sight of the prize you had in mind when that first spark danced through your mind.

It all comes down to one phrase I’ve always loved:

“Bite off more than you can chew. Then chew it.”

(via The Groupon Approach to Public Transport in Cities | This...

Sat, 19 May 2012 22:51:00 -0400

(via The Groupon Approach to Public Transport in Cities | This Big City)

“What does that have to do with public transportation? Unless you’re riding Philadelphia’s SEPTA or some of the older systems in Europe and Asia, you now use a card, not a token, to pay your fare. Those cards produce time stamped records of riders and generate volume reports that feed into a central database. What if, instead of those ridership statistics going towards long-term demand models they were applied dynamically and geared towards deploying buses and subway cars where they were most needed any time of day? Instead of subway cars perpetually packed at 5 PM because of linear deployment schedules, there would be a smoothing of the deployment process coupled with real-time ridership numbers.”

(via The Electric Typewriter)This afternoon’s reading...

Thu, 17 May 2012 16:09:00 -0400

(via The Electric Typewriter)

This afternoon’s reading list.

As of Monday, I’m the proud owner of one of these bad...

Thu, 17 May 2012 13:24:00 -0400

As of Monday, I’m the proud owner of one of these bad boys. When I look at it, I’m reminded of just how much work and tireless effort I put into that gilded diploma — which, I think, means I did it right ;)

Not even two days into summer, and I’m already busy working on some really exciting projects. One for a major television network, ramping up to the premiere of a brand new show, another for an idea I had about creative collaboration, and another in the hopes of working with a few people starting several conferences around the country.

Just as I was taking stock of what life felt like before graduation, I’m noticing a few changes already:

* I’ve been stirring at around 9:30 each morning, which is when my first classes usually started during the semester. I’m not complaining about this, since it’s pretty much exactly the time I’d like to get up every day, allowing me to be both a night (and morning) owl.

* While I was moving out of my apartment in Atlanta, I must’ve dumped hundreds of items that’ve been following me around for years. Old shoes I never wear, sweaters that never did anything for me, perfume bottles with nothing in them, burnt out Christmas lights. I’d always wanted to downsize, and I told myself that this time, I’d be traveling light since making a permanent move to DC means more opportunity to buy the furniture and decor I need once I’m settled — which eliminates all the boxes, at least going in.

* Sunshine makes my day. As does working with the windows open and gobbling up fresh air. I’ll be filling my afternoons with yoga, running, and picnics with friends very soon, too!

* It’s already quite amazing to be able to dabble with all the things I want to be doing during the day. I’d been becoming increasingly envious of my friends who are out of school, that can pick up books at 2 p.m. on a random Tuesday afternoon, without having to get back to studying, or that can listen to a podcast at leisure, without having to save it for later in class. Now, I get to do all of those things when I want, and it’s AWESOME. It hit me last night that this is a certain type of freedom that comes with adulthood, and I’m looking forward to structuring my days as I please.

* I have a few book recommendations before I go: The Art of Non-Conformity by none other than Chris Guillebeau, The Great Sea by David Abulafia, and Mindfulness in Plain English, by the Venerable Henepola Gunaratana.

Now, off to do some biking :)

Cheers!

I took my first last final today. It went swimmingly. (That’s such a great word.) I went in...

Fri, 04 May 2012 18:12:00 -0400

I took my first last final today.

It went swimmingly. (That’s such a great word.)
I went in with a plan of attack and crushed it.
Said goodbye to my professor, and thanked her for the past nine months of pretty intensive Portuguese lessons.

Nine months.

She’s moving back to Brazil with her family.
I hope I’ll get to see her one last time at commencement.
I also hope that it doesn’t rain.
It hasn’t rained at an Emory commencement in 97 years or something.
We have records to set, people!

The Portuguese language is beautiful, the grammar is tough (eight conjugations, verb moods, endless irregular verbs!), but damn if it doesn’t make me want to keep getting better at it and someday be fluent. (Kind of an Emory theme.)

Learning the native language of Brasil isn’t a bad idea, you know, because it’s approaching the fifth largest GDP in the world. These are things you think about when you’re a political science major.

Now that that’s done, I have two more finals left.
I’ll be officially “done” at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, May 9th.
School’s out — forever.
Theoretically.

I’m not sure I’m ready to write my complete reflection post on college yet, since I’m still in the process of decompressing both mind and body. I’ve taken notice to a lot of the habits I’ve picked up over the past four years lately, which have become deeply embedded at this point. Things like always having to know what’s on my to-do list for the day, feeling rather bum-ish if I’m not up and dressed by 10 a.m., the deeply unsettled feeling when all my work is complete and I’m left with free time, noticing the absence of my backpack when I’m not wearing it. Little things.

But, I’m mainly waiting to write that post because I want to pay homage to the enormous intellectual evolution I’ve had during my undergraduate years too. Rife with themes like pushing my limits, overcoming the odds and pulling off the near impossible. Stories I want to tell about community, and individualism, and humming to my own beat. Anecdotes about the constant, daily, Sisyphus-like climb toward good, better, and then best.

I also want to talk about what’s next for me and what I want to create for myself in the next two years at Georgetown. What kinds of bars I’ll set for myself, how I want to organize and own my work, and what types of people I want to observe or get in front of in DC. I’ve seen small glimpses of what I’d like to make there, but this summer is going to be an excellent opportunity to clarify it.

And walk in with a plan of attack :]

Is this the part where I play that Vitamin C graduation song?
Hm.

Since I’m in a list-making mood, here are some things I am excited for in the very near future:

* Adding fun little plans to my Pinterest board, appropriately titled “Verão”.
* Leaving my exam on Wednesday in a stupor.
* Getting a new Macbook (thank you in advance, Mom and Dad!)
* Walking across the stage on graduation day.
* Going to the Sundial to celebrate and seeing the entire city from a bird’s eye view.
* The chocolate pretzels I’m going to destroy this weekend while studying for the last time ;)

Tchau,

Amanda

"The better you write, the higher you go; people who think well, write well."

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 14:47:00 -0400

“The better you write, the higher you go; people who think well, write well.”

- David Ogilvy (via wellandlighthouse)

graceyu: (via swissmiss | Philosophical Theories)

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 13:40:00 -0400

graceyu:

(via swissmiss | Philosophical Theories)

"Being a geek is all about your own personal level of enthusiasm, not how your level of enthusiasm..."

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:46:32 -0400

“Being a geek is all about your own personal level of enthusiasm, not how your level of enthusiasm measures up to others. If you like something so much that a casual mention of it makes your whole being light up like a halogen lamp, if hearing a stranger fondly mention your favorite book or game is instant grounds for friendship, if you have ever found yourself bouncing out of your chair because something you learned blew your mind so hard that you physically could not contain yourself — you are a geek”

- The Mary Sue defines what it means to be a geek, a beautiful definition that falls (un)surprisingly close to what it means to find purpose and do what you love.

(↬ It’s Okay To Be Smart)

girlsack: Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer...

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:43:00 -0400

girlsack:

Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race - H.G. Wells

There’s a phenomenal documentary on Bill Cunningham (“Bill Cunningham New York”), that I watched a few months ago. Go find it on Netflix!

(via City App Contest Won by a Tool for Those Who Make Apps -...

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 22:27:50 -0400

(via City App Contest Won by a Tool for Those Who Make Apps - NYTimes.com)

The city sees its contest both as a way to encourage government transparency and as a way to support New York’s burgeoning technology industry, which has been growing much faster than the city’s overall economy. Employment in the technology industry has grown 28 percent between 2005 and 2010, a period in which private sector employment has grown only 3.4 percent, according to the city’s Economic Development Corporation. Over the same period of time, the number of patents awarded to city residents has grown by 78 percent.

(via How To Sharpen Pencils | Melville House Books)This, along...

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 12:00:00 -0400

(via How To Sharpen Pencils | Melville House Books)

This, along with John Hodgman’s “That Is All” are #1 and #2 on my reading list, respectively. (Pencil references.)

(via Penelope Trunk Blog)I couldn’t pick just one Penelope...

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 11:45:00 -0400

(via Penelope Trunk Blog)

I couldn’t pick just one Penelope Trunk post to put here today — since I’ve been reading them all — but I love her no nonsense writing style and wanted to share.

It’s a joy when addictive reads are also practical, zesty morsels of advice. And, it’s my goal to evolve this blog into something very similar in the next few years.

#wisdom

thedailyfeed: Style is hitting the road! Mobile boutiques are a...

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 13:35:00 -0400

thedailyfeed:

Style is hitting the road! Mobile boutiques are a new movement in fashion — even veteran designer Cynthia Rowley created one — and they might be rolling into your town soon.

In her Fashion Truck, Emily Benson, 29, carries clothes and accessories for women — all under $100. “I buy what I like and would wear myself,” said Benson, who has been operating in Boston since June 2011. Favorite items include a Famous wrap sweatshirt and wild feather headbands.

“It seems like people are running the idea through their heads to try and figure out how it works,” she laughed. “Do I have to pack it all up when I drive off? (No!) Can I just park it anywhere I want? (No!) Do I really drive it? (Yes!)”

But inspiring countless questions has its advantages: “Here I’ve presented them with something they have never seen, or heard of, and they are enthralled,” said Benson.

I really love this idea. Then again, I love the idea of mobile anything.

Mobility = freedom.

Portrait of an INFJ

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 16:54:00 -0400

Portrait of an INFJ:

Have you ever taken a Meyers Briggs personality test? I did, *finally*.

INFJs are gentle, caring, complex and highly intuitive individuals. Artistic and creative, they live in a world of hidden meanings and possibilities. Only one percent of the population has an INFJ Personality Type, making it the most rare of all the types.

#INFJ

Space: “You can’t become playful, and therefore creative, if you’re under your usual...

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 23:31:37 -0400

Space: “You can’t become playful, and therefore creative, if you’re under your usual pressures.”

Time: “It’s not enough to create space; you have to create your space for a specific period of time.”

Time: “Giving your mind as long as possible to come up with something original,” and learning to tolerate the discomfort of pondering time and indecision.”

Confidence: “Nothing will stop you being creative so effectively as the fear of making a mistake.”

Humor: “The main evolutionary significance of humor is that it gets us from the closed mode to the open mode quicker than anything else.”

(via http://exp.lore.com/)

Dearest World Wide Web, I got lost in the Tumblr Garden tonight,...

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 21:21:00 -0400

Dearest World Wide Web,

I got lost in the Tumblr Garden tonight, and found this beautiful new theme (Travelogue). It’s light and airy in its responsive design, integrated with a cornucopia of third party application features and a Google Maps integration for geo-nerds. So, I had to have it. I hope you enjoy the new look.

Today I:

* Woke up to a laugh-fest :)
* Drank some raspberry macadamia nut coffee (Jazzman’s, you’re giving Starbucks a real run for its money, and I like it that way.)
* Earned a 98% on a recent key term analysis paper. Senioritis? Never heard of it.
* Went to the dentist and left with a face full of numbness. #cavity #wampwamp
* Decided to seriously pursue my fiction writing again this summer.
* Received my financial aid package from Georgetown (oh, yes, did I tell you about that, ahem?) And thus, submitted the application to a beautiful, pre-war, hardwood floored apartment in Washington. Ever forward :)
* Finished a wonderful book titled “Vaclav & Lena”, a story of two Russian immigrant children who grow together while apart. It’s so whimsical. Reading it in a hammock the past few days has been a joy.
* Realized there are eleven days left of my day-to-day college career. Time to start making that paper chain.

Love and drool,

Amanda

In the words of @hotdogsladies and @danbenjamin:...

Tue, 06 Mar 2012 22:27:00 -0500

In the words of @hotdogsladies and @danbenjamin: “biiiiiiiiiiig week, huuuuuuge week”.

Planning a few great blog posts over the next week, but in the meantime, here are some brain snacks:

(a) 5by5, the web’s prime real estate for useful podcasts. Comparable to walking into a coffee shop where there’s great conversation flowing: pull up a chair, and get ready to nerd out. (Don’t miss Merlin and Dan on Back To Work. Fifty-seven episodes faithful.)

(b) Explore, a Tumblr curation experiment from Maria Popova, featuring handpicked Brain Pickings ripe off the vine. A “discovery engine for meaningful knowledge fueled by cross-disciplinary curiosity”, with tags like Art & Design, Science & Technology, History & Literature, Creativity & Innovation. I <3 exploring.

(c) “Getting Things Done“ (GTD, as link-for-everything master @JosephRooks calls it) has undoubtedly changed the way I think, but more importantly, the way I work. I downloaded the book to my Kindle for iPad/iPhone this past November and never looked back. Read it on the bus, read it in traffic, read it on a Sunday evening — get more mileage out of your life with a few shifts in the way you approach your day, and you’ll be enjoying many more. (Key word: enjoying).

(d) “How Remarkable Women Lead”, an absolutely phenomenal read from Joanna Barsh and Susie Cranston. I’m a sponge for these types of books (see also: Deepak Chopra’s “The Soul of Leadership”) mostly because I’m drawn to them naturally, but also because of my major in political science, where we’ve studied figures and their strategies for effective constancy. I’m always digging for fresh new perspectives that can pivot my thoughts. Case in point. While writing a mission statement two weeks ago, I was able to whiteboard some ideas from a particular story about a nineteen year old female orchestra conductor that solidified the exact point I was attempting to make. Invaluable.

(e) This “ambient” game called Osmos for iPad. I call it “brain yoga”, since it requires lots of cerebral muscle in a gratifying way. The perfect method of decompressing after a long study session. Plus, the audio is AMAZING.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkPj9XVxqj8&feature=related

(f) This Moleskine. No explanation necessary. Well, actually, here’s a quick summary. I never used a notebook to jot down ideas. They lived in Evernote instead (all 218 of them), and for the most part, most of my production notes, school notes, and projects still take up space there. This month, I’m trying something new: even if I’m brushing my teeth with a mouthful of minty bubbles, my burning ideas, questions, or concepts go here. (Use the force!)

(g) I’ll be seeing the man, the myth, the legend, Bruce @Springsteen in twelve days. (Monumental.) I’ve listened to the Hammersmith Odeon London ‘75 album almost every night until 2 or 3 a.m. during my entire four years in college. He’s kept me up and fighting for so long, and now I get to enjoy his new album “Wrecking Ball” as a senior sendoff. Seeing him in the flesh is going to be crossing off Bucket List Item No. I for me.

(h) Speaking of…I graduate from Emory in sixty-eight days. Pinch me!

(i) So. Biiiiiiiiiig week. Huuuuuuge week. Especially for some major opportunities. Stay tuned :)

I love this page. Heads up to city planners, mayors, and...

Sun, 26 Feb 2012 17:27:00 -0500

I love this page.

Heads up to city planners, mayors, and concerned citizens - the bottom graph of emerging megaregions is what we need to be looking at if we want to become efficient at connecting this country with high-speed rail someday.

(Northeast Megalopolis, via Wikipedia)