Quote of the Day

"Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none."
~ William Shakespeare

Only At My Office....

A group of us were watching the webcast from the Dept. of Health and Human Services about the plans for health care reform. A few comments were made about the Secretary's beautiful choice of suit and choice in shoes (by me); there were some jokes about the strange lighting on one of the speakers; and repeated observations were made about another speakers failure to answer questions directly.

Some side conversations were held between members of the advocacy team and those of us who are less educated in some areas of Health Care Reform.

Then the Assistant Secretary said that the American health care system should be changed to one of "sick care" to one of prevention, which includes community health education. And that particular areas of concern included tobacco cessation and asthma education.

At that point, my coworkers and I were cheering at the TV, giving each other high-fives, and clapping. He'd just listed most of what our office is all about.

Nothing like health care dorks who love their jobs!

Quote of the Day

“There are two things to aim at in life; first to get what you want, and after that to enjoy it.”

~ Logan Pearsall Smith

Quote of the Day

"Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else."

~ Judy Garland

Quote(s) of the Day

"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody."

~Bill Cosby


"People may habitually turn to you for particular tasks because you have, in effect, trained them to do so."

~Alan Lakein

Finally Friday

My 30th birthday celebration was a success. Well, maybe I should say "celebrations" - I was terribly, wonderfully spoiled by my friends, family and coworkers over the course of several days. This has been a long, and very busy week, but if my 30's are going to be anything like the last week has been, then I'm fine with that!

(Minus the broken (but now fixed) air conditioning. Not fun in the DC early summer heat.)

I had the pleasure of caring for my friend's cat this past week. I was nervous about the responsibility, anxious that I might have lost my touch with cats in the years since my family's own furry beasties passed away, but ultimately, it was wonderful to have a cat in my home. Even if he does weigh just over 20 pounds. And woke me up by lying on my torso this morning, purring (and drooling, which he does when he's happy) kneading his claws into my chest, fur and pudge draped over my sides. (I emailed a terrible iPhone pic to my family and a friend, saying "I'm TRAPPED!")

Here's Gatsby, not looking quite so plump, in my bathroom:

His mom took him to another foster family this AM, as I'm off to a conference in Phoenix for a week and the cat can't quite be returned to his family -- they're waiting to find out if their kids are allergic -- but I might end up fostering him for a while upon my return. I hope he can go home soon, though.

So, I leave for Arizona on Sunday. I expect the conference will thoroughly exhaust me, but I expect it to be a great experience overall. I'm leading a discussion with a smaller group on one day, but the trip will be mostly be about attending different sessions and networking. And taking extensive notes on EVERYTHING.

I also have tentative plans to meet one of my boyfriend's sisters -- which, surprisingly, I'm not anxious about at all -- and hope to see some of my friends who live in the Phoenix area. There will be cocktail hours, receptions and meet-and-greets after the official sessions are over each day, but I do want to get out of the hotel and conference center at some point; those places can get tedious, as well as really cold. (Oh, note to self: pack a few more cardigans.)

I hope to have some interesting stories to tell after this trip, although, since it's a tobacco control conference, they may only be of interest to MOI.

I'm off to a National's game with some coworkers. Lets hope the game isn't too awful and that the seats aren't completely soaked!

Last Day in My Twenties

Tomorrow, I turn 30. As I've said before, I'm pretty excited about the next decade of my life.

In the past week, I've been told "30 is the new 17", "your 30's are the new 20's", as well as "are you SURE you're ready for 30?" (I realize, too late, that I should have responded to the last one with - "Do I have a choice?")

Seems like a lot of people (women, actually) found turning the big 3-0 traumatic. Brilliant public health professional that I am, it has only really begun to dawn on me that the emotional trauma that women experience with aging is a social and biological issue. But this hasn't been the case for me -- I had never been the kind of gal who needs to get-married-have-kids-settle-down-in-the-suburbs (although my mother and sister do remind me that I did have some strange baby angst towards the end of high school, which I really can't explain).

Edit - I realize that I did say "had".

Having spent most of my 20's in a difficult relationship and only really focusing on the whole "what I want to do with my life" issue for the past three (or is it four? man, how long was I in grad school?!) years, I feel that my life is much more focused now than it ever has been. One of those "growing up" things, I'm told.

I feel as though my achievements of the past two years are a big part of the reason why my 30's will be fantastic:
~ Started working at my current job, where I have flourished
~ Made the big move out of the parents house - and became acquainted with the true meaning of "personal fiscal responsibility"
~ Ended the aforementioned relationship and learned the joys and terrors of dating in DC
~ Finished my Masters thesis under extreme circumstances (and I've said it before and will say it again - I thoroughly believe that the broken foot was bestowed upon me in order to finish that thing)

All in all, I'm damn proud of myself.

Here's to my 30's being amazing!