Something's Gotta Give

This was going to be a different post.  I was originally going to talk about my upcoming blogiversary and how to move forward after 8 years.

Also originally I was never going to talk about Parkland, I'm still not really going to,  but in light of events that happened at my job yesterday, I'm going to simply share my Facebook status from last night instead.

...

I was in the 1st grade when I decided I wanted to be a teacher.

I was in the 4th grade when Columbine happened.

I was in the 10th grade when Rocori happened.

I was in the 12th grade when VA Tech happened.

I was 23 when I got my first teaching job.

Despite the countless school shootings that have happened in my life time, never did I think that at 29 I would witness a student get arrested for making threats to shoot up the school I work in while having to escort other students out of their classes so their parents could take them home.

And luckily it was just that, a threat, a "joke" they thought would be a funny prank.  But something needs to give.  And I still say it's not so much gun laws as it is precautions in schools to prevent this, parenting, and the media.

Not What It Seems

"After going on a wild goose chase this morning to watch the sunrise, it's time for some tacos from El Paisa & Starbucks coffee!"

Reality: I drove all the way to Dallas trying to remember where a certain spot was I had passed to watch the sunrise, apparently went a different way, tried to double back, was close to a different spot but didn't realize it, the sun was up, & I drove all the way back home.  I was hungry, tired, & Nash was not amused.  So I stopped for Starbucks, got him a pup cup for putting up with my nonsense, & tacos for me.  I then sat on the couch watching Hawaii Five-0 most of the day trying to get Nash to cuddle with me.

"Mr. Nash & I took advantage of the warm weather and went for a little walk around the pond today. Can it stay in the 70s forever?"

Reality:  Because I had tried to force Nash to just cuddle & watch Hawaii Five-0 all day, I began feeling guilty.  Especially since I was going to a concert that night.  So I put on my big girl pants & we went to the park behind us to go for a little walk.

"Last night I went to my last concert of 2017. I'm sure if I sat down and really thought about it I could count them all out, but 2017 included dozens of concerts. I had so much fun seeing bands I love as well as going to shows for bands I had never even heard of before. I hope that 2018 holds more of the same."

Reality: The concert was a lot of fun but it was also freezing out.  Minnesota me would be so disappointed that I spent most of a 60 degree night standing by a space heater.  It also made my old heart happy that the concert was done by 10 pm because I am old ha.

"Today Nash is 8 months old. He's no longer the little 10 week 5 pound little baby I brought home. He's now a spunky 26 lb spoiled mama's boy."

Reality: He started out the morning all cute but by the end of the day he was acting like a brat.  I mean I still love him but this cute face didn't last forever.

"No bloody mary will ever be complete without a splash of hot sauce and pickle juice. Enjoying a bloody mary made from all Texas local ingredients, minus the pickles because no one does pickles like Minnesota."

Reality: Honestly I needed a picture for the splash prompt.  I mean I had all of the stuff but had gone back & forth between waiting until I got to MN to open the stuff or just opening it & leaving it in TX.  I opened it simply for this picture...and then ruined my supper because a bloody mary is a meal in a cup.

"Nash is both a big pain in my butt and a big cuddle bug. Unfortunately he's smart enough to realize that all he has to do to be forgiven is climb into my lap and lay down."

Reality:  Again with the acting like a brat.  He's going through his teen phase & is definitely seeing just how much he can get away with.

My Week In Snaps

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

The Things You Don't See

A million & a half years ago Alyssa & Pinky both wrote about the things you don't see on social media.  Okay so maybe it was just back in June, but that's still a long time.  I have had this post drafted with just a title since Alyssa did it back on June 1.  I have scheduled it probably 3 or 4 times since then without actually hitting post because I haven't taken the time to sit down & write anything.  I like to think I keep it pretty real on here but I also know there are things that I just don't write about or just haven't really gotten into lately because in all honesty I haven't been the best blogger at all this summer.  So here we go:

**Coaching sports actually stresses me out to no end not because it's so time consuming, but because it always comes with that possibility that I won't have a teaching job the following year if they choose to not bring me back as a coach.  I already left one job because of an athletic director & even though my new one seems a million times better, I can tell you right now until I have a contract for the following year in my hands I will be on edge (that's about 7-9 months from now)**

**I often feel like I have to choose between work & social media.  I already had a bleh summer when it came to blogging, although my IG was fairly poppin for awhile, but now that I'm back at work a)I have way less to take pictures of/write about b)I don't have the time to dedicate to reading/commenting/writing for blogs or all the hashtagging/liking/commenting on IG.**

**I don't care about it as much as I did even a couple months ago let alone 8 months ago when I signed up for Instagram for Success**

**I have a spending problem**

**My adorable dog sometimes makes me want to cry, or actually cry.  Okay so I haven't been so stressed out about him that I've actually cried since our first week together, but sometimes I still want to, especially now, because I feel like we aren't spending enough time together & he's not getting to run around/play with others enough**

**My adorable dog pisses me off some days**

**I don't know that I trust my own judgement when it comes to love because I've thought I've had that "when you know you know" feeling before & it turned out to be a complete disaster**

**I post so many pictures of my dog partly because he's adorable but mostly because I don't have time for a real social/love life so it's me & him**

**My apartment is often a disaster**

**When distance & real life get in the way I'm really bad at making an effort to reach out to people aka maintain friendships**

**Falling in love terrifies me for many reasons**

**I'm worse at being an adult now at almost 29 than I was at 24/25**

**I can be a real hot head**

**I will buy myself cheap ass store brand food & what not but my dog gets expensive dog food/treats**

**I don't like to ask for help/depend on people because I hate feeling like an inconvenience but also because I don't like the risk of being let down**

**I have trust issues**

Pimp My Social Media

Before I get into what this post is actually about, I have an interview this afternoon for a new job so if y'all could cross your fingers and say a little prayer I'd really appreciate it.

Moving on...

I have a shit ton of social media accounts.  That's right, a shit ton.  Some are run better than others for sure.  One of my running goals is to get better at using each of them in a more effective & efficient way.  At some point I need to sit down & write out actual goals for each account (some go together) & then begin to act on them.  Because I already have a long to do list for this weekend (I'm writing this early), & will be spending Thursday-Sunday back in Minnesota with wedding stuff (not mine!), I am hoping to start that process after I return on Monday.  For now though, I thought I'd start with pimping them all out to you.  Some accounts belong together however, I'm just going to give them to you based on social media type.

Blogs

North Star Girl Lone Star World: This one obviously.  I've had this blog for 6.5 years now & that is insane to me.  It started out so differently than it is now, & actually started out as "My Life As..."  I still don't know exactly what direction I want it to take, but it's so much closer to it now than it was when I started.

Country Music Hipsters: My friend Alicia & I started this blog this summer.  This one still has a long way to go.  As of right now there are only 2 consistent posts a week & they aren't the ones that require a whole lot of actual thought.  We have a few posts where we review songs, concerts, albums, artists, but I would like it to eventually have way more of that.  Currently our only 2 guaranteed posts each week are a list of upcoming concerts on Mondays & a playlist of new songs by new artists on Tuesdays.

Twitter

The one for North Star Girl Lone Star World: This is the one that needs the most work.  I'm going to be completely honest here.  I only set this one up in the beginning so that I could enter giveaways from other blogs & didn't want to clog up my personal twitter.  However, I want to actually start utilizing it for my blog, other than the auto tweets of my blog posts.  So on Friday when I woke up before my alarm, I laid in bed & unfollowed HUNDREDS of people.  I was following almost 400 people.  I wound up getting rid of anyone that either a)didn't live in Texas or b)I don't follow their blog.  Now that it's not so overwhelming with a feed full of stuff I don't actually care about, I can actually start interacting with others.

The one for grad school (Communications major): I'm not sure what I'd like out of this one, if anything.  It was required for one of my classes to set up a Google & Twitter account.  I obviously have multiples of these, & almost used one I already have, but in the end decided that this one would either exist simply for the purpose of class or could potentially wind up being a networking tool for my future career.  Because of the second part, I didn't want it attached to anything else because I wanted it to be as professional as possible.

The one for Country Music Hipsters: Much like the blog, this one needs some work.  For awhile over the summer I was using it to also tweet lyrics & occasionally communicate with artists, right now it basically just pimps out our posts from the blog.

The personal one: This one gets far more use than any of my other Twitter accounts, & I actually use it a whole lot less than I used to.  This account has allowed me to meet amazing people from around the country due to similar music tastes, it has allowed me to actually meet music artists & even do work for one at a show, it has allowed me to vent, it has allowed me to win free stuff.  This one will always be my baby & there's no doubt about that, but I would like to get my other ones more on this level.

Instagram

The personal one: I've had this one since 2012 & it's exactly what it is, it's my personal IG account.  There's a 99.9% chance I'll never create one for North Star Girl Lone Star World because it would include the same photos as this one.

Food Fun Fort Worth: Sarah actually is the one that convinced me to create this one.  I had been thinking about creating an IG account to keep track of all of the places I eat & fun things I do since I had been feeling like I hadn't fully taken advantage of my first year in Fort Worth.  Then she had a post about her IG account Dallas Love List & I knew I had to do it.  I only just started this one, & have so many more things that I want to do, so I'm hoping to continue growing it.

Country Music Hipsters: This one like the CMH Twitter, is pretty much just used to pimp out posts on the blog.  I think I'm ok with that actually.  As soon as we have more posts, the photos will be more extensive.

Snapchat

I don't snapchat near as much as I used to, & I can 99.9% guarantee I'll never create a SC for anything other than my own personal use.  But if you do wish to follow me, my account is nrthmeetssouthe

Facebook

I do have a personal FB account but for now, & probably forever, that will stay private.  I have it simply so that I can keep up with friends & family.  Someday I may or may not create a page for North Star Girl Lone Star World or maybe for Food Fun Fort Worth.  But for now it's just my private account & then a page for Country Music Hipsters.

I am 100% open to tips & suggestions on any & all of these accounts.  What has worked for you?  How do you manage having multiple accounts, or even just one?