Tag Archives: personal

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The Job You Really Want

I have a theory that we all have an idea of a job we’d do if money wasn’t a thing. A fun job, a meaningless job, a flexible job, or even a non-job — we’d take the role if offered. When I was younger (much younger), that job for me was living in a log cabin in the country with a lot of land. I grew up in the country and our home was far out from the city and suburbs. Big open areas and starry skies with quiet nights were a frequent occurrence. Plus, and most importantly, I read ALL the books in the Little House on the Prairie series. I was just convinced at the tender age of 7 that the way to go was living off the grid. I was enthralled with the stories of homesteaders and settlers who went West looking for new opportunities. It seemed like fun and I loved animals so riding horses all day sounded amazing. 

I wanted to travel and get paid for it. Once upon a time I was stuck in a (literal) cubicle job and had some down time on my hands. I knew that I needed something different and that office life wasn’t something I wanted long term. I was (surprisingly) able to find a whole other career field where I combined my education with my desire to travel and I spent four years on the road. It was a good experience overall and I got to see a part of the country I never anticipated visiting. “Yay” for trying something different.

The today version of me would like to be a stocker at my favorite candle store. It would (hypothetically) be very low stress filled with good smells and bright colors. I wouldn’t have to stress about where to put things and I’d just follow the pattern I’d been given. I could carefully organize the candles ensuring that each label is facing forward. It would be nice. I’d learn more about fragrances and would appreciate the routine of creating the displays. Now, because this is a purely hypothetical scenario, I’d want to be able to work whenever I wanted. Two hours, four hours, eight hours, whatever I wanted to do. It would be chill and I could use my employee discount to really create my own extensive candle collection. Then, when I had enough candles, I’d quietly submit my resignation thanking the company for the opportunity. Actually, I’d probably start thinking about what else I wanted to stock up on in my house. Maybe a furniture store. 

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Based on a True Story

Not too long ago, I started watching this television show and I love it so far. The first thing I like is that the plot is original and as a whole, the writers make fun of popular murder mystery culture. Basically, the show revolves around three people. A couple and their plumber. Now, the twist is that he has a big secret and once they figure out his secret, they enlist him to help. What follows is a crazy adventure that includes a trip for “promo” and a series of unfortunate events. The whole show is based on the couple’s decision to look the other way when faced with an opportunity to turn in a criminal to law enforcement. They decide that their own professional advancements are more important than providing the information necessary to solve a recent crime. As a result, a lot of people are impacted by their choices–including some innocent ones. But the show must go on. The couple is tasked with trying to figure out a plan of action without admitting any additional information about themselves.

I love that the show is unpredictable and keeps you guessing about what will happen next. To me, it’s a true thriller because there’s a lot that happens within each episode and each twist is shocking. It’s hard these days to find shows that keep your attention and this one definitely does. I’m glad that it was renewed and I’m looking forward to the second season. So many shows change between the first and second season and I hope that they keep the same energy all the way through. I’m interested in how they will expand the story line around the plumber and the progress of the episodes. I think I’ll wait until all the episodes air and then I’ll binge the second season over a weekend or two. Great show!

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From Student Anxiety to Professional Lessons: Embracing Change

It’s been a busy few days with the typical ups and downs of life. My social media account has been reminding me of how busy I was as a college student. I was SO nervous that I would get bad grades that I worked and studied like a crazy person (literally). While others went out and partied, I was in my room anxiously studying and hoping I’d be able to retain the information for the test. I started out majoring in biology but quickly realized that my science-less high school experience had not adequately prepared me for college. So, I went the path of the social sciences. Was I a giver upper?

Fast forward a few years later. I’m at the ripe old age of 22 and my workaholic self is anxiously searching for another pursuit so I decided to get a doctorate. I’m still on the fence as to whether it was worth it or not but at least I finished. I remember making the decision about whether I wanted to move again to go to school or if it was better to stay in the same place. I made my decision and chose against the process of getting an acceptance and a teaching assistant job in a (hopefully) good state school. It was a hard choice but I wanted to continue to get the hours I needed for my professional license. But was I a giver upper?

It’s interesting how there aren’t any do-overs in life. We all know stories of people who had a lot of potential but made poor choices and had unfavorable outcomes. Did these people give up on their dreams? Probably not; it’s just that other things interfered with the journey. I think giving up can be more of a state of mind than an action. It can be a philosophy that guides our decisions in a way that could be hindering to us. It’s the difference between do-ing and be-ing.

More recently, I changed career paths to see if there was a better work life balance available. However, the reality of it has not been as expected. I think there are just some things in life that we learn as we live. And while mistakes can be expensive, the lessons that you take from them can be priceless. Hopefully.

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My Favorite Meteorologist

Growing up in Alabama meant that I was always taught to take weather seriously. A lot could change in the blink of an eye and before you knew it, we could be in the midst of a tornado. There was many a night where my family and I would be awakened in the middle of the night by weather sirens. My dad would turn on the living room TV and we would watch my favorite meteorologist, James Spann with ABC 33/40. He was a calm voice in the midst of many chaotic late nights and early mornings.

There was something mesmerizing about watching the doppler radar on the television screen. All the television shows would immediately be suspended in order to show the ongoing weather coverage. Because the weather was so unpredictable we never knew how long the tornado warning or watch would last. We would hunker down and hope for the best as we saw the wind, rain, and thunder pick up outside. It’s weird, but typically right before a tornado (at least during the day), the sky starts to look green and there’s an eerie silence before you start to hear the rushing wind that mimics the sound of a freight train.

As soon as we would hear from James that the tornado was on the ground and approaching our direction, My siblings and I would all huddle together in an inside closet or in the bathtub with our helmets on our heads covered in blankets. My parents would then turn the tv volume up and we would listen to it until we heard the all clear or our power went out. It was an occurrence that happened fairly frequently in Alabama. Tornados often resulted in a lot of loss of life in ourarea and we were taught to take it all very seriously. 

Our local news station hosted an event one year around Christmas where the anchors came to introduce themselves and bring some holiday cheer to the community. I remember being so excited to finally meet him in person. I was able to get a picture and an autograph with him and as a kid it was a big deal. It was the highlight of my year. My family moved away from the area when I was 11 and location of our new home in Georgia drastically reduced the likelihood of seeking shelter in severe weather. I’ll always appreciate his dedication to his work and I’m glad he’s still doing it today. Thanks James Spann. 

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The book we can’t talk about

I’ve worked in the field of mental health for a long time. Or at least it feels like a long time. In reality, it’s been 13 years since I first started and ten years since I got my first independent clinical license. Through the years I’ve had at least 20 jobs (conservative guess). Some good, some not so good, and some that were off the chain. However, the job that was probably the wildest was working in the admissions department at a psychiatric hospital (technically a behavioral health hospital). It was my first job out of grad school and I wanted to do a good job. I was adjusting to what it was like to provide assistance to people who fit the diagnostic criteria for a mental health. Not just those who saw a video on social media and decided that they needed a cool new label.

eeded a cool new label.

The great thing about working in admissions (also known as intake) was that there was always something going on. People came in for mental health assessments and were also transferred to our hospital from some of the other hospitals in the state for mental health stabilization. We accepted adults and children as young as five. The nice thing was that the hospital never closed so there were constant opportunities to work. The tough thing was that the hospital never closed so things could get busy without any advanced warning. Kinda like a hospital emergency room. It was a job where you had to answer the phone, call insurance companies, admit patients, conduct assessments, and answer the emergency calls from the units.

Other than a discount on the cafeteria food, the job didn’t come with a lot of perks. One of the occasional downsides was getting physically assaulted by patients experiencing a mental health crisis or psychotic episode. When we would accept patients from other hospitals one of my tasks was to read the paperwork and determine if the individual was appropriate for an inpatient level of care. It usually didn’t take a long time to make a decision but the assessments were always eye opening to read. While we could never share the details of said assessments due to privacy, we created a scrapbook called “The Book that Doesn’t Exist.” In the book we would write down or share excerpts of the assessments we received that crossed the line on normal human behaviors and take out the identifiable details. 

One notable story that comes to mind was that of a poor soul who was having a rough time. He was struggling and made the decision that he wanted to experience the afterlife — or whatever came afterwards. However, he didn’t have the means or access to anything that would make his heart stop beating. So, this individual went into the woods of a state park known for black bears and covered himself from head to toe in deli meat in the hopes that a bear would see him as a source for food and his sacrifice would not be in vain. However, the implementation of his plan failed as no animals ventured near him as he sat in the woods covered in bologna. He was found by fellow hikers who became concerned and alerted local authorities who determined he was in need of mental health stabilization.

Stories like this were the ones that made it into the book. It was a reminder that the work we did was important and that everyone has a bad day sometimes. I don’t know if something like this exists in other hospitals but I am appreciative of those who still work in these settings providing care and intervening in times where someone just needs a reset and support. We don’t thank them enough. After all, who else has stories they can’t tell in a book that they can’t talk about?

CHECK OUT THIS SCRAPBOOK TO START YOUR OWN MEMORIES

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You should watch Black Cake

There’s nothing like a good series and Black Cake definitely fit the bill. I had heard good things about the show but I decided to wait until the hype and spoilers went down a bit. I was hooked from the first episode. First off, I didn’t read the book so I didn’t have any reference point for the plot. I came to it completely unaware of what exactly to expect and I was in for a treat. I won’t share too much, but if you don’t want any spoilers, this may not be the right place for you.

It’s rare to see shows that follow a person through their entire life. However, the show begins at the end of a woman’s life and then goes backwards. But it all begins with a secret that begins to take a life of its own as the series continues. It’s a story of resiliency and also regret because hindsight is 20/20. We follow a young girl through a series of unfortunate events and relocation to another country. She has to create a new life and eventually reconnects to a part of her past that integrates with her new identity. 

One underlying theme in the series is the importance of family and also friends who become family. Eleanor’s children are quickly thrust into the reality of the fact that their mother is different from who they’ve known her to be. They hear in her own words the story of her past as they deal with complicated grief and the arrival of a relative they didn’t know existed. The theme of the show is that secrets can do more harm than good. Shielding someone from the truth is only beneficial in specific situations.

The show was unpredictable and it held my attention. The storyline was unique and I thought the acting was good. The best thing about the series as a whole was that there was a happy ending. It’s one of those things that you don’t know you need until you have it. The series finale was satisfying and provided some closure to the questions that emerged in previous episodes. So, if you’re looking for a fulfilling one season show with a nice ending, check out Black Cake.

CHECK OUT THE BOOK