It’s been quite some time since my last Friday Questions post – five months, in fact! So I am overdue in going through some of the terrific questions that Nicole asks her guests on her Real Talk Radio podcast. Below are five more questions, some of which required a lot of thought in coming up with an answer. Enjoy!
1) What’s a habit you’d like to break? What’s a habit you’d like to build?
I’d love to break my habit of needing chocolate after lunch and dinner. It’s not a craving, but an ingrained habit that I have found so hard to give up. My body just… like… expects it, or something. I’d like to save chocolate as something special a few times a week, not something I eat multiple times a day.
As for a habit I want to build, I’d like to work on implementing a skincare regimen on a regular basis. I have all of the products I need: cleanser, toner, moisturizer. Even a Clarisonic! But I struggle to get on a regular habit of morning and nighttime face washing. I use a makeup wipe every night to take off my makeup, but that’s about the extent of my face washing. Every now and then, I’ll get on a kick where I do the morning and nighttime skincare routine for a few days in a row, and then I fall off the wagon. It’s just… a lot of work? And sometimes it doesn’t feel like it’s helping much. (I swear I feel like I break out more when I’m regularly using my Clarisonic than when I’m not.)
2) When you look ahead to the next couple of months, what do you feel most excited about?
Getting a kitten! My goal is to adopt one in either September or October, once my living room is finally all put together. (Hoping to shop some Labor Day sales for my new couch.) I’ve been having a lot of bouts of loneliness lately, the kind of loneliness that comes with being completely alone in an apartment for hours on end. I never felt that way when I had Dutch around because he was my little buddy who kept me company. So, I know it’s time for me to adopt a cat and have a little four-legged friend with me again. I cannot wait to enter the world of being a cat lady! Bring it on.
3) What’s something you do to inspire or encourage yourself when you’re feeling defeated?
It helps to step away from whatever is making me feel defeated. Is it my dating life? Delete the apps. Is it my writing? Work on something else. Is it social media? Take a break. Is it work? Find things outside of work to bring me joy and fulfillment.
I also think actually talking about it and speaking truth to my feelings of defeat helps to lessen its impact. When I’m feeling defeated because my anxiety feels unmanageable, I’ll get on Instagram Stories to say so, and the responses I get always make me feel better. Like I’m not the only person feeling overwhelmed by my own thoughts. Sometimes, talking about my lack of dating prospects or diet struggles with my friends helps me to see that I’m getting too in my head about things and that I am a lovely person whether or not I’m dating or losing weight.
4) What’s something you really love about yourself?
I love how funny I am! I’m the girl who is always making my friends laugh and keeping things light-hearted with jokes and sarcastic comments. I feel like my humor doesn’t really come across in my writing, but basically, all I do with my friends is tell jokes and make them laugh.
5) What’s a time when you quit something and it was absolutely the right decision?
When I decided to change my major from elementary education to communications. I was nearly done with my education degree (just had to do a semester of student teaching), but after failing a student teaching internship, I realized that teaching was not where I was meant to be and I changed my major. It was a hard decision at the time because it meant another 2-3 years of schooling, but it was the right move for me. I was able to graduate with a major that was much more aligned with my skill set and now I have a job that I really love. I don’t think I would have ever been happy as a teacher.
Tell me something you really love about yourself!
I’m the same way with sweets after a meal, particularly chocolate. One thing that works is reduce my overall sugar/carb intake for a week. It helps tremendously – almost like a reset to my taste buds. And I notice other benefits, too, such as decreased water retention. My body tends to bloat over the course of the day so keeping processed sugar to a minimum helps reduce it. It doesn’t mean I give up sweets and chocolate entirely – I still allow myself a treat once a week. And I do fall off the wagon from time to time. But it helps to know that I can always get back to where I need to be.
A reset like that is probably so good for your body – plus, it probably gives you the confidence in knowing you CAN resist all the sweets when necessary. I love that, and may have to give it a try in the near future.
I need to do that with the chocolate too. Yesterday I didn’t have any and wa so proud, lol!
I’m so excited about your kitten!!!!! You may want to wait and get new furniture after they’ve learned not to claw it up 😉
I wish I could hang with you and hear your jokes!
I love that I’m thoughtful and remember things that makes people feel good (birthdays/events that are important to them). That sounds odd but I work hard at it!
Thoughtfulness is such a great trait in a friend! I love when a friend randomly checks in on me, remembering something important. I’m not great at that, and it reminds me to be better!
I’m so excited that you’re planning to adopt a kitty!
Yayyyy! I can’t wait and I’m hoping to be a new kitty mama by next month!
I’m so excited that you are going to get a kitten! I hope you find the right cat for you and find one that is super cuddly! Oscar is only super cuddly with Phil which kind of bums me out sometimes, but it makes me appreciate the times when she wants to cuddle with me (which is basically only when Phil isn’t around or when it’s winter and I have a heated blanket on my lap).
Something I love about myself is my love of numbers/finance. I got a degree in math and was such a minority in my program and now I work in financial services and am still a minority. But I totally own my love of math and numbers, so much so that my nickname in college was “the denominator.” When I was getting set up with Phil, one thing he found intriguing was learning from his co-worker that I majored in math in college (we were set up by his co-worker that I went to college with). So in a way, that degree in math kind of brought Phil into my life. Ha.
Yes – I really want a super cuddly cat! I’m hoping that by getting him or her as a kitten and being the sole caretaker will make sure the kitten loves me the most, haha. 😉 That’s always the goal, right?
I love that your love of math is what ultimately brought you and Phil together! (With a little help from a co-worker, I guess, haha) That’s such a fun story.
Oh, you’re getting a cat! That is so exciting…. I was wondering when you were going to adopt another pet (and I expected a dog), but I guess a cat is a little bit more work-friendly, because you don’t have to take them for walks in the middle of the day and such!
One thing I love about myself: I always see the glass half full and am always very optimistic (or so I was told). I can’t help it 🙂