Podcasts I Love

Since I have a one-hour commute each way to work, I use that time to listen to podcasts. Generally, I listen to them on my way to work because morning radio is terrible. The radio isn't so bad in the afternoon or evening. I only have six podcasts that I am currently flipping between. Please feel free to suggest some new ones!

1. Ear Biscuits - Rhett & Link have a morning show on YouTube that is really funny. They also create hysterical songs. In 2013, they started their podcast. They basically interview other YouTubers to find out how they got their start. Ear Biscuits is what inspired me to start my own YouTube channel.
2. WTF With Marc Maron - I came upon this one quite accidentally. I think he was on another podcast or something and he sounded very thoughtful so I decided to check out his podcast. He has some amazing conversations with some awesome people.
3. girl on guy - I have a bit of a girl crush on Aisha Tyler. She is funny and gorgeous and nerdy and all those things I wish I was. Girl on guy is basically Aisha geeking out with people. I like it.
4. Not Too Deep with Grace Helbig - I'm not a huge fan of Grace on YouTube. I do subscribe to her channel but I rarely watch any of the videos. Not Too Deep is a podcast/YouTube hybrid. She has silly conversations with YouTubers on the podcast then she makes them do some sort of goofy challenge on her YouTube channel. I like the challenges better than the conversation.
5. Bizarre States - My husband is a Jessica Chobot fan. As a result, I watch a lot of Nerdist News. I don't even know what made me check this out but it is all about ghosts and aliens and supernatural things. Even if you don't believe in this stuff, it is interesting to hear what other people think about it. 
6. The Nerdist - This is another one that I got dragged into somehow. I think Chris Hardwick was talking to someone I like and I wanted to hear that conversation. I don't listen to every single Nerdist podcast. I only tune in when the guest is someone I am interested in. 

And that is it. Those six are currently the only podcasts I am flipping through. Let me know if you have any podcasts you'd recommend. I have a lot of drive time and not a lot to listen to.

This also ends the 30 Days of Lists. I hope you enjoyed the lists and I hope they made you think about a few things yourself. Now it is time to actually welcome October and the inevitable oncoming of fall. Come back summer!

I Am Thankful For

Including this post, I have two more 30 Days of Lists prompts left to finish. I am doing these last two out of order because I really want to save the other prompt until the end. You won't regret it. It's a good one and I have a lot to say about it. Onto today's prompt!

1. I am thankful for my family. My husband is a great guy who always try to help others when he can. My daughter is an amazing kid and I have no idea how she turned out that way. The rest of my family have always been very supportive of everything I have done, even when I have done idiotically stupid things. It's nice to know that someone will have your back when you (inevitably) screw up.
2. I am thankful that my husband and I have finally gotten out of the living paycheck-to-paycheck lifestyle. We did that for a very long time and, while we aren't rich by far, we are at least comfortable. 
3. I am thankful for my writing skills. They aren't paying the bills yet but they do give me some extra cash. That alone lets me do a few things that otherwise would not be possible. 

I am sure there are many more things I could put on the list. After all, we live in a nice community, both my husband and I are employed full-time, and we have our health. These are all things that most people take for granted. However, they tend to end up on lists like this a lot. I am thankful for those things but I wanted to show some of the other things I am thankful for as well. 

Guilty Pleasures

Sadly, I do not have a new YouTube video for you today. I had some other commitments and I just ran out of time. On the good side of things, I hit 100 followers over on Instagram this morning! Yay! Just to round out the linkage, here are the other places you can find me: Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. 

Today's prompt is Guilty Pleasures. Most of my guilty pleasures are TV shows. They are so bad but I can't stop watching them...

1. Cheaters - My husband and I watch this together. We both like Clark Gable better than creepy Joey Greco. Definitely a guilty pleasure
2. Supernatural - This is one of those shows that isn't OMG!AWESOME but it isn't terrible either. My favorite character is Castiel and I have a fondness for Misha Collins' off-screen antics. 
3. The Dark Parables game series - Dark Parables is a series of hidden object video games that all revolve around fairy tales. Usually the fairy tale characters have gone wrong and you need to save them. Both my daughter and I love playing them.
4. World's Dumbest... - Yeah, it's that show on the Spike channel or whatever that has the washed up celebrities commenting on videos. It's kinda funny sometimes.

These are the guilty pleasures that I actively watch on a regular basis. Any other guilty pleasures are shows that I only turn on when nothing else is on. I don't think those count. There is just so much bad TV out there! 

Best Places To Find Inspiration

Lately, I have a difficult time finding inspiration. I feel super lazy most of the time and I have to force myself to do things. It's a result of having way too many things to do and not nearly enough time to do them. But there are a few places I find inspirational.

1. The beach. I don't get to the beach nearly enough. However, I do find the beach extremely relaxing, which gives me inspiration to do more things. 
2. Podcasts. This may sound weird but I have been listening to a lot of podcasts during my daily commute. A lot of those involve interviews with people who just DID things. They didn't ask for permission or wait for someone to tell them to do it. They wanted to do something so they did. That is one of the things that inspired me to do my YouTube channel. 
3. My daughter. She is involved in so many things. She inspires me to keep going. Not stop doing something because I'm too tired or anything. 

The Best Things About This Week

This week is pretty generic so there aren't a ton of good things and there aren't a ton of bad things. Let's see what I can cobble together:

1. My daughter got into the jazz band at her school. They started rehearsing this week.
2. My first craft show of the fall season is this Saturday. I'm not doing nearly as many this year as I did last night. I'm not sure if that is good or bad though.
3. It's October! On one hand, I hate it because it means winter is super close. On the other hand, HALLOWEEN! I love Halloween. 

Um, I think that is about it. Like I said, it's a pretty generic week. There will be some amazing things coming down the line. But not quite yet. 

On My Mind Today

I have quite a lot on my mind today but that is because I have a lot to do. Busy, busy!

1. Slight worries that things I need for my full time job will not work properly. I'm not going to go into detail about this though.

2. Pondering some items for my daughter's Halloween costume. Every year I try to get this started earlier and every year something stops us. I hope I can get everything together in time. 

3. Trying to figure out my writing schedule. I have 3 books I need to finish reading for reviews, I have 2 more iPad apps I need to play with to write those reviews, I have to record some more videos for the YouTube channel...there is a lot. I seriously need more time in a day. 

I think that might cover it all. It doesn't sound like a lot but all of those things swimming around in my brain might give me a headache! When will there be more hours in a day?

Accomplishments I Am Most Proud Of

This will probably be one of the weirder prompts but here goes:

While it is not actually MY accomplishment, I am super proud of my daughter. I know this will sound like one of those moms who over-exaggerates how awesome their kid is. Not only is my daughter super well-behaved (she knows there are consequences if she does not), she is also very active in a lot of extra-curricular groups and manages to get all As and Bs in her classes, some of which are honors classes. I am very proud of everything she accomplishes. And they are HER accomplishments.

I don't know that I have any accomplishments, myself, that I am particularly proud of. I guess I'm pretty proud that this blog is still going after 7 years. Yes, it has changed over time but I never gave up on it.

Yeah, I guess that is about it. Now this prompt has made me a little depressed. As if I haven't actually done anything with my life. This was a terrible writing prompt!

This Time Next Year

September is almost over but, don't worry, I'm not quite finished with the 30 Days of Lists yet. I know I have missed a few days this month due to some engagements so I will be posting the 'leftovers' during the first week of October. (I don't think I've missed more than a week's worth of prompts...I'll just post everything I have left until they are all completed. It may take more than a week.) Today's prompt is "This time next year." So let's see what I think I will be doing.

What I Hope I Will Be Doing

I hope that I will have gotten myself to a point where I will be working from home full time. This includes all of my writing gigs, blogging, vlogging, and whatever else comes my way. I would really like to not be working in my soul-crushing desk job. Instead, I can focus on the content for my various formats, giving you guys the interesting stuff. 

What I Will Most Likely Be Doing

Most likely, I will be doing the same thing I have been doing for the past 14 years. Spending way too much time commuting to a soul-crushing job while trying to find the time and energy to do the things I want to do: be a good mom and wife, write interesting content, connect with my readers and viewers, be a "real" person instead of someone who is exhausted all of the time.

I know, I know. That second one sounds awful. I am always super optimistic that the first one will happen one day. I just have to keep plugging away as hard as I can. Man, I didn't want these prompts to get so depressing. I hope tomorrow's is happier!  

Rules For Traveling With Me

I don't think I have all that many rules for traveling with me. I'm mostly a laid-back type of person. But there are a few things that need saying:

1. Please don't roll down one window in the car. Especially if we are on a highway of some sort. the resonating air makes me queasy.

2. Please don't blast the air conditioner. I get cold very easily. I understand that I am, generally, colder than the rest of the population so I don't mind when people have the A/C on. But when it on full blast and I have icicles forming on the end of my nose, it tends to be a problem.

3. Have fun! The best part of traveling is the massive amounts of fun. Be silly, eat a lot of sugar, drink a ton of caffeine. Just relax!

I'll fully admit that I don't get to travel as much as I would like. However, these same rules apply when taking a nice day trip in the car. Trips are for having fun so don't take it too seriously. Enjoy it!

What Balance Means To Me

This is kind of an interesting prompt. You can take "balance" in a couple of different directions. Something interesting to think about.

To me, "balance" is what you do when you are trying to fit everything you want or need to do into a 24-hour day.

For example, my Monday schedule is semi-balanced. I wake up around 6:00AM, shower, and get ready for the day. Then I have to put the dogs out and get my daughter's lunch ready so she can leave at 6:45AM for the bus. I slam some breakfast into my mouth and run out the door between 6:50AM and 7:00AM. Depending on the weather and traffic, I get to my full time job somewhere between 8:00AM and 8:30AM. I work until 4:30PM when I rush home. Again, depending on the traffic issues, I am home between 5:30PM and 5:45PM. I slam some more food into my face before jumping back in the car to take my daughter to her tennis lessons at 6:15PM. While she plays, I try to read one of the many books I have lined up for review or talk to some of the other parents. She is finished around 8:30PM, when we can go home and try to eat some sort of dinner. Finally, I try to finish up any writing projects I can before heading off to bed to start all over again.

"Balance" is definitely trying to make sure you can get everything done. A packed schedule requires balance. So does sleep. I would never be able to get enough rest otherwise.