Where Bloggers Live: My Favorite Things About Me

How are we in May already? I feel like this April was simultaneously the slowest and fastest month of my life. Work was crazy busy. I had the privilege of serving on an off-site reaccreditation committee for three community colleges and it was quite the learning experience. TLDR, the committee reads over documents to ensure that the college is meeting its responsibilities to its students by meeting educational standards, providing the services advertised, and ensuring that facilities are safe and appropriate for the course offerings. I’m responsible for the library section. This was my first time serving on an off-site committee, which means that my committee read over the documents provided by the college for clarity and determined the compliance of the college in meeting the required standard. If the college didn’t meet the standard, we made note and then the on-site committee meets with the appropriate college staff to ensure compliance. I’ve learned so much from serving on both on-site and off-site committees, like how the different parts of the college work {administrative, instructional, support, finance, facilities, etc.}. Some people think that their jobs don’t impact students because they may not have direct contact with students, but it all works together — like a machine.

And, on a personal note, I haven’t been sleeping well. I went to the doctor’s and they adjusted my Levothyroxine, so hopefully that will help. I’m telling you, not having a thyroid sucks. So much of my life is controlled by that absent gland. I had Thyroid Cancer a million years ago and, like many people, I’m dealing with the aftermath. You can read about my cancer story here.

Anyway, on to today’s post…

THE PROMPT: My Favorite Things About Me

My Sense of Fairness

I don’t know that “fairness” is the right word in so much as that I strive to do what is right and best for those in my circle, be they coworker, student, friend, or stranger. My goal is always to build a community of trust because I know what it feels like to:

• not have people around me that I can lean on
• be betrayed by someone you should be able to trust with your life

I want people to know they can talk to me without fear of ridicule or concern that their business will be spread. I firmly believe that everyone needs someone and it makes my heart happy when people tell others they can trust me.

My Style

I’ve always had a unique sense of style. I was heavily influenced by my life in Italy, Lisa Bonet {the person} and her character “Denise” on The Cosby Show, as well as my desire to just be “different.” Colors and patterns speak to me and play a key role in how my day plays out – if I’m having a good style day and feel comfortable in my outfit, I know it’s going to be a good day, but if my outfit doesn’t feel right, my day doesn’t go well. If you’d like to see my #OOTD posts, follow me on Instagram. Around town, I’m known as the librarian with a great sense of style. Coworkers, friends, and colleagues from other colleges are always asking me how much I’d charge to style them.

My Eye for Photography

One of my favorite books when I was a kid was Message from Nam by Danielle Steel. After reading that novel, I wanted to become a war correspondent — I wanted to tell stories that changed the world. I didn’t know about documentaries and such, but I knew the power of imagery {the Civil Rights Movement’s success can be traced back to the images that put America’s racism in full view} and I wanted that to be my legacy. Obviously, I never became a war correspondent or a documentarian, but I did become a photographer. I love that I get to tell people’s stories in images for both work and play. If you’d like to see my photography, feel free to follow my photography account on Instagram.

So, yeah, those are a few of things I like about me, but if I could change one thing about myself it’d be that I’m an overthinker. I analyze every conversation, look, gesture to the nth degree; and will make myself sick if I think I’ve hurt someone’s feelings. I like to think the positive side of my overthinking is that I own up to mistakes, and you can trust that if someone is slighted, it’s never intentional.

ABOUT WHERE BLOGGERS LIVE

Welcome to the monthly edition of Where Bloggers Live. It’s kind of like HGTV’s “Celebrities at Home,” but…Bloggers! Who doesn’t like to peek behind the scenes and see inside people’s homes? Over the next few months, we’ll share about our work spaces, home towns, and more!

I should note – because this is super important – the creative brain behind this project is Bettye at Fashion Schlub! Love her!

The Celebrity Bloggers

Bettye at Fashion Schlub
Daenel at Living Outside the Stacks
Em at Dust and Dog Hair
Jodie at Jodie’s Touch of Style
Leslie at Once Upon a Time & Happily Ever After
Sally at Within a World of My Own

Make sure you visit everyone to see where the magic happens!

IT’S YOUR TURN

What’s something you like about you?

BOOKISH THINGS

Bookshop.org – Shop for books selected by me, for you!

NetGalley Professional Reader – I receive free ARCs from NetGalley to review on my blog and share on Instagram.

The StoryGraph – A reading app that shares all the nerdy details of my bookish life.

THANK YOU

Thank you for stopping by my blog. I hope you enjoyed this post and learned something new. If you like what you read, please consider sharing this post on Facebook or Pinterest. While I pay for many of the items I share on this blog out of my own pocket, some items are gifted to me {I always disclose those items}. If you’d like to connect on a more regular basis, I’m on Facebook and Instagram.

Come back soon,

 

 

 

LET’S CONNECT

 

 

 

 

 

Click Here to See Where I Link Up

 

AFFILIATE INFORMATION

As the blogger and photographer behind Living Outside the Stacks, I independently select and write about stuff I love and things I think you’ll enjoy too. Living Outside the Stacks has affiliate and advertising partnerships so I get revenue from sharing this content and from your purchase. Thank you for your support.

Reading and reviewing books brings me a great deal of happiness. If you’re a reader, I’d love for you to visit my online bookstore, Living Outside the Stacks, to make your purchase. If you purchase from my shop, I’ll receive a small commission and you’ll also support indie bookstores. If you need help staying organized, but want to keep it pretty, I invite you to give Artful Agenda a try. It’s a digital planner inspired by paper planners. Use my code: RD1191716. Artful Agenda connects effortlessly to your Google and Outlook calendars and works across devices.