Foodie Pen Pal Reveal

The more I do this Foodie Pen Pal, the more it feel likes Christmas! This month is from Ashley who a sweet sweet girl and listened to my Woe is me story that there is no Trader Joe and hooked me up!! She bought me all Trader Joe's stuff and I am in love! I wish she had a blog so I can sing her praises more!

Trader Joe's Pesto!

Wil be Part of my Cinqo Recipes

Yum!! Great recipe on back!

How she knew I was addicted to these, I will never know! 

Can't wait to use this when my tummy hurts

More Cinqo Ammo!

This was so delicious! I ate it the minute it came! 

Cute Card!

Love Luna!  

How do you partake in such awesomeness?? From Lindsay from the Lean Green Bean herself: -on the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email.

it will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.

 -you will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. on the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!

 -the boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! the spending limit is $15. the box must also include something written. this can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!

 -you are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)

 -foodie penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. if you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. if two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month

If you’re interested in participating for May, please send an email to lindsayattheleangreenbean@gmail.com and include the following information:

 -your full name
 -your email address
 -your blog name/address (if applicable)
 -your twitter handle (if applicable)

 Lindsay needs to hear from you by May 4th as pairings will be emailed on the 5th. Can't wait till next month! Pin It

North Highland Company Tampa Gives Back

I was bit by the charitable bug a while ago when I started working at the radio station. My good friend Megan has really raised the bar with her and her company's charitable efforts and I wanted to share. 

Megan works for a management consultant company called the North Highland Company. She works for their Central Florida offices which consist of Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville. I’ve known Megan for 10 years and have always pushed her into community involvement. I was the first person she called when she was given the opportunity to be the Central Florida coordinator for a community day of involvement to give back to their local city. “The Day of Giving Back” took place on April 28^th and the theme was “Investing in Human Potential”. This took place in multiple locations throughout the US and their worldwide locations, everywhere from London to Shanghai.  

I have to say that I was a bit taken back when I saw Megan’s postings on Facebook the other day. The Tampa office volunteered at Metropolitan Ministries, an organization who helps serve the poor and homeless in Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas Counties. Since Tampa has the highest rate of homelessness per capita in the US, this is a very important organization to say the least. North Highland collected 200 pounds of food prior to the Day of Giving Back. On the day of, they chopped more zucchini than I have ever seen, rolled 1,000 plastic-ware sets for the 1700 food boxes the ministries hand out each day and volunteered in their dish room. It’s amazing how much North Highland was able to achieve in a 3 hour day but it is hard to grasps how much help this organization needs.

The reason I am writing this blog is to help Megan and her Tampa office raise money for Metropolitan Ministries. All you have to do is go on Facebook and like the photo by clicking here (you can also click on the actual photo below). Comments are also well appreciated! For every like Megan gets, she has a higher chance of getting that donation for Metropolitan Ministries as North Highland is hosting a competition to give a charitable gift to one of the selected charities. A major plus goes to the employee with the highest amount of social media interaction on the North Highland in the Community Facebook page.  Feel free to give  Megan and her team a shout out @northhighlandfl

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SOC Sunday-A Change Will Do You Good

Today’s (Optional) Writing Prompt: How do you feel about change? Do you like routine and predictability? Does it bring you comfort or discontent? Talk about it general or tell us a specific story about a big change in your life and how you feel about it.

I am not as scared of change as most people. It isn't that I like change necessarily but I do not like drama and the only way that I have a true sense of calm in my world is if I run things very smoothly and organized which entails me to change and make tweaks on how I run my day. I guess that sounds good on paper, but I promise you that I am not as organized as I would like to be. My personal life is very normal, simple and quiet and my professional life is very chaotic and busy, sprinkle in the fact that I can never say no, my volunteer efforts are a little hectic as well.

I am consistently on the lookout to change the way I do things to make my life easy. They are always minor changes but I know I am close to being in a zen state of mind without a ton of yoga, xannex or therapy. I am always reading how to and then tweaking another thing about my day to make it that much better.

Even on a Sunday when I should be relaxing I am trying to work on as much of Monday's tasks as I can to get that much ahead. Change is not scary, it can be good if you are in control of what is changing, and what the outcome of making the change will be. I would need another five minutes (or hours) to talk about when change isn't in your favor, but luckily I get to stop here.

Happy Sunday!

This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

Set a timer and write for 5 minutes.

Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.

Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.

Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.

Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

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The Nominees Are....Things that Move Me

Because I like to write and read, I am constantly on the look out for things that move me. It could be a song lyric, a movie quote or just something I read that resonates with me. I could very easily make this an ongoing feature but some of my very favorites:

You were wrong about the world, and you were wrong about me. –Rapunzel

How can you not take this to heart? It is powerful to hear when you need some motivation or inspiration to remind yourself why you do what you do. 

This phrase comes up every time my alarm goes off in the morning. It inspires me to think-Yes, I can do this!! 

Because that is what everyone is really looking for: to be validated, appreciated, heard. To be raised up by their interactions, and not put down. 

I was on the treadmill at the gym and this was in Oprah's magazine in her commentary. I swear to you that I almost fell off. It came at a time when I really needed it, I needed to read these words and it started the thought process that what I was doing professionally was not working anymore and some major changes needed to be made.  

What moves you?

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Putting the Oxygen Mask on Yourself

If you are like me, you look at up and think it is probably 11:30am and it is after 2p...HOW did  that happen?? It also gets a little monotonous and rat racy if you will, and all of the sudden the week flew by.  Then all of the sudden it is the middle of April...it was just New Year's Eve a minute ago! My point today is that with all the days, weeks and months that fly by-are you making time for yourself and your business? When it gets really nuts and you are go go go...where in your day do you make sure you have your website up to date, your business Facebook page is being posted regularly and all of the things you need to do for yourself to make You, Inc relative and successful?

Great tip from Manta today-

Dedicate Time to Promote Your Business 

It can be overwhelming trying to figure out a large-scale strategy to bring new customers to your business. Our advice? Set aside 1 hour per day to promote your business. During that time you can easily: make phone calls, update your Manta profile, add keywords to your website, ask for referrals, hand out fliers, or send a direct mailing. You might be surprised at how much visibility you can gain from 1 hour of focused promotion efforts each day. Pin It

Beauty in the Breakdown-A Week in Review

This is a little embarrassing, I have done next to little blogging this week. I am incredibly busy which I know is good, but I just need more time in the day..I just need to set higher goals and better time management. Self depreciating aside...it was a busy big week-

Personal

Finished Book for my first review for The Chick Lit Bee-I am real excited for this opportunity to review books of the chick lit genre! Stay tuned!

Kale Salad Obsession-so so so good I have ate and blogged about it twice this week!

Ran three time, Got new running shoes and a new PR 11 minutes

Our local Miller Beer distributer, S.R. Perrott turned fifty this week and I was so excited to be invited to their party to celebrate. I ran into a ton of people I knew and it was really fun!!

Professional

Owe a million dollars to the government...well $2,600...still can't talk about it yet...I am actually trying to avoid the whole situation all together, I have so much to learn.

Ormond Mainstreet Board Meeting-I love my involvement with the Junior League but my passion is to be involved with the city that I love so much. So worthwhile!

Political Season is starting to rev up and I have a new client! Really excited to work with him!

Although I am so busy, I am swimming...I have two really good prospects that I hope to conquer soon!

Attended a city tour for my Leadership class

Met a new local blogger-world domination!

In Pictures

Look at my gorgeous new running shoes!

My friend Diane and I at Leadership

Kate Spade Rain SHOES!!! 

A vision of awesome on my walk/run

In My Ears-
Kathleen Edwards-She has such a beautiful voice
Alabama Shakes-My friends are working this band...dig it!


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Skinny and Clean-Chickpea, Avocado and Kale Salad

Kale is a new mysterious vegetable to me...we have had much success with Kale chips and I found this recipe for a Kale Salad that I wanted to give it a run. The only bad about Kale is that it has a lot of water in it and you need to be careful how quickly it turns. Being that I made this recipe three times this week-we won't have a problem getting rid of any future batches. I learned that if you toss a vinaigrette that is lemon based on any bitter greens, bye bye bitter.

I found the recipe on Pinterest via I Talk To Food (great great blog!) and am surprised it was two years old! That is way too long not to have this in your arsenal for a healthy side dish or fo a nice lunch. This is also the first time I have ever used avocado other than in guacamole, as lame as that is! Enjoy! Pin It

Beauty in the Breakdown-The Week In Review

A complete narcissist move on my part, but I think I will start doing a review of my week on Sunday. Some of my favorite blogs do it, and I think, like any journaling it keeps you responsible and in check of what and how you spend your days. Ten bucks says I won't be regular about it but I will try. 

Personal

Ran three times this week! 

Got a massage (finally)

Blogged about Choosing wisely on who I choose to work with

Found a good subject to blog and practice the results that Pinterest will deliver 

Had a nice phone call with Beauty Mommy-always inspiring

Got closer to deciding about BlogHer 12 

Had a couple of bouts of headache issues...boo hoo

Caught up with a friend over a bottle of wine (and then some)

Had a brown bag lunch with a new JL member-fun!

Did a Tar-jay run and decided to redo our bathroom

Attended an annual festival, saw some old and made some new friends

Professional

Attended a Ormond Beach Chamber Leadership Class

Ran a New Member Meeting for the Daytona Beach Junior League

Attended a Ormond Mainstreet Promo Meeting

Made an important decision on what to do with a difficult client

FNALLY got a Facebook page name change approval-huge! 

Made a couple of appointments for next week-new business!

Attended my weekly Black Crow meeting-we covered a lot

Worked out of my office a ton this week

In Pictures

A lady paddleboarding I saw on my walk

Random Bunny during my run

Got yelled at for taking this picture by the artist, LOL, but I'll still give her a shoutout

My besterton and I at our finest!

My new BFF's -best perk of being in radio, meeting great people 

Target Run-New for Bathroom

In My Ears

Gotye-Someone I Used to Know-please tell me you saw them on SNL

Lowlife-Theory of a Deadman-because they are lovely

Blood Bank-Bon Iver-just love this song

Jack Johnson-Im convinced he is my Xannex while working

Lastly, LOVE Garth and Kat-and they were awesome on SNL this weekend...but have you ever tried to do it yourself? Promise you, you will laugh a lot.

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The Nominees are-Best Administrative Week Gifts

I used to get really mad when people used to not treat me as nice as they should because I was the receptionist at the radio station. Like most people in that gatekeeping position, there was more that met the eye as to what my job responsibilities were. In fact, the only time that I fully embraced my administrative duties was that week in April that I was celebrated. This week Administrative Week is April 22-28. You could get the standard old boring flowers (yawn)...or a gas card (timely) or take them out to lunch-but if it was me, I would want some cool accessories to make my work time more productive. Being that my administrative assistants could care less (see photo), I may just treat myself to some of these goodies. 

See Jane Work is a fun trendy place to get your office supplies and they do carry some of her stuff at Office Depot. Although, online is best! Some of my favorites! 

Bamboo Dry Erase Board

Skyline Desktop Organizer

Pink Blotter

Sorting with Style is my other favorite. 

There is not a thing on here that I wouldn't buy, very dangerous indeed.

Polka Dot File Folders

Red Lipstick Pen (comes in pink too!)

Diamond Ring Paperweight

My Two Administrative Assistants

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All Business is Not Good Business

In my inbox from Mantra today was this little pearl of wisdom:

While your product or service may be beneficial to the vast majority, not every client is worth the effort. A business filled with clients who are consistently looking for a "better deal" – or are otherwise causing you to lose sleep at night – is a clear sign that it’s time to redefine your target market. Start by creating a list of characteristics of your best customers and then research how best to reach them with your company message. 

I really resonate with this and it is very close to my unofficial mission statement stolen right from the mouth of Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman:

I say who, I say when and I say how much

I feel that sometimes we see the dollar signs before we see the cause and effect. Of course, you can't be incredibly arrogant and only work with people that think you are greatest, but on second thought...why can't you? Isn't it important as a business owner to control the amount of stress that enters your work environment? It seems to be the amount of chaos you conflict on yourself may be the only thing that you can control. 

There is no reason to look a gift horse in the mouth, but you can make an extra effort to choose wisely the people you work with in order to make it all sunflowers and daisies. If it is your own business and you are the one calling the shots, this choosing should be as important as any other business decision you make. 

My friend and I were talking about this the other day and she mentioned the monetary loss she has seen from setting the unruly free...but doesn't peace of mind overrule every cost? Why do you want extra anxiety with clients that get in the way of allowing you to take on more like minded individuals that actually pay their bills on time and are thankful for what you do (and actually take the time to tell you so)

Your lips to God's Ears, Sister

I wonder if I am being a pompous ass here? How dare I not take every little bit of business that comes my way and be thankful that anyone would want to work with me? Or do I have a point? Love to hear your thoughts in the comments below! 

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SOC Sunday-Anxiety My Old Friend

Today’s (Optional) Writing Prompt: What causes you anxiety? Not just stress but true anxiety. How does your body and mind generally deal with it? How do YOU deal with it***







Wow, I picked a good time to join this feature. The thing is, anxiety has always been a part of my being. It is lovingly a part of my bloodline and hereditary...some were born with iron clad metabolisms that has been handed down for generations...me, I have the loving gift of nerves. I get nervous and anxious on Sunday nights for example for no reason, I have a week ahead of me in a job that I created and love but sometimes my anxiety of not working for 2 whole days makes me nauseous. Even writing these words I see the problem of my working too much, trust me. In a life that I have created for myself that has stopped me working for the man, I still get hold on to old habits die hard feeling that it could all go away tomorrow. And it is always on Sunday nights!

Some things that help:

1. Going over my Remember the Milk agenda and clean up the weekend and Monday so I have a clear view of what lays ahead for the work.

2. Actually working on some of these tasks in the spirit of one less thing to do tomorrow (although, I have been trying to do this less and less)

3.Well, wine and an occasional Atavan does take the edge off (Note: NOT taken together, ever.)

***

This was my (a little over) 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

Set a timer and write for 5 minutes.
Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.
Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.
Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

Your turn! What makes you anxious!??

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The Joy Of Like Minded Individuals

I will be attending the BlogHer conference in August. The perks are obvious. It is in my favorite city in the world. I can go and stay for free with my family in Long Island but more importantly I have a chance to be around like minded individuals. 

As your business evolves so do your motives for networking...it is important to find organizations that bring you a good stream of referrals and new business, but how do you network for your passion? I feel like this is just as important. Because when you are a blogger, you teeter between having a hobby, making it a dream and it is endlessly tiring trying to explain it all to your non blogging peeps what and more importantly why you spend time blogging. Is it because you have something to say? You have dreams of being an official source on your blog topic? Do you have visions of money and fame? Is it the start of your book? Is the internet your only outlet for letting people hear what you have to say, or a combination of all of these? 

In Daytona where I live, it is interesting. I sum it up to the beach life mentality but the full scope of social media (blogging, Twitter, etc.) hasn't really caught on. The upside is that I sit in a very convenient position with many people to teach the joys of these tools. It is also kind of nice to learn as much as you can without really having the masses get in and ruin it. I can actually still use outlets like Twitter to vent my mean reds for the day and it isn't as personal. But it can get a little lonely...my friend BeautyMommy talk about trying to find out who in this town is an active blogger and is there a way we can get together and network? Initiating some support for one another on a local level could be very helpful. While I am all about blazing trails in this little town of mine...I feel like it would be of great benefit and consciously rewarding to find like minded local individuals. 

When you are in a city that isn't as social as you would like to be, how do you connect locally?  

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Instagram Come To Android-Angels are Singing

I love Instagram...love love love it. I spent great lengths babbling about it here last year. It is the only thing that I missed desperately when I left the iPhone land. Today, they announced the incredibly long wait was over and Instagram is being dowloaded 2K times a minute! Initially, I had some issues finding it initially but the Instagram for Android download is here. 

May I also make another suggestion? Please sign up for Morning Pics! This fun app indexes your Instagrams and sends you one at random each morning. Some mornings it is a nice pick me up! Some mornings it is maddening because you realize with much sadness it has been 211 days since you have been in your most city in all the world. 

Let me see some of your favorite Instagrams! Here are some of mine.

me and my besterton at a Yankee Game (Spring Training)

This picture was taken the day after a really tough situation

Pre Race Pedi

Supermodel Kitty

The most important thing to me.

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What Matters Most

I have been thinking a lot about philanthropy lately. I wonder how people catch the helping bug. Is it something that is instilled in you at an early age? Do you have to have something happen to you before it forces you to give back? Is it a combination of all these factors? I hate to get all Carrie Bradshaw on you, but this got me to thinking...What does it take to make you remember What Matters Most? I do a lot of volunteering and I don't really know how this came to be. If I think of how I grew up, my dad would give the shirt off his back, but we didn't spend a lot of time walking for cancer, or building houses for Habitat. 

Starting in a career in radio gave me a great platform to champion a cause. I have done it for animal rights, and for Veterans, and St. Jude. I then moved on to becoming involved with my downtown organization, the local American Cancer Society and the Junior League. I don't know if this is enough, even for someone who always says yes to a volunteer opportunity. I feel like I am searching for something I can take a stronger hold of, wanting to wake up and say THIS is how I can help and THIS is what I want to do for THIS cause. 

I think all my whimsicalness has to do with my time last week with old friends that I visited in Orlando. They were doing a show with Hard Rock and I had the pleasure of hanging again with an as-old (in friendship years only!) friend of theirs who is the Director of Philanthropy for the Hard Rock...isn't that the most amazing title ever? This girl is the salt of the Earth and works hard hard hard doing good for others, it is quite inspiring. 

The Hard Rock as a whole is pretty impressive for all the work that it does. Yes, it has amazing concert venues all over the world, but the work they do for others is really something I dont feel many people are fully aware of. Maybe that is the silent beauty of doing things for others is not to be so gregarious while doing so. In a social media world of look at me, look at me...quietly changing the world one step at a time is something I think we can all strive to do a little bit more. 

For more of what the Hard Rock does, click here. 

What are things you can do to quietly, eloquently change the world?

YAY! Promo Poster-FUN Show, OLD picture!! 

Soundcheck at the Hard Rock

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