Saving Goals

Just about everywhere there are bloggers giving out financial advice on how to save for the new year. Prices are inflating rapidly while pay is remaining quite stagnant, unfortunately. So saving is becoming more difficult since more of your hard earned money is going to pay for your commodities, but because of this, it is a time when saving is crucial. Saving for that rainy day when your windshield wipers stop working when it is pouring rain (true story, that happened to me, was not fun). Although I met a cute guy but that is besides the point. How should you save?

For me, I can only do small increments. There is that one saving tip where you put in a jar, the week of the year. So week 1 is one dollar, week 16 is 16 bucks, etc etc. You get the general idea. I called upon the math I learned while at university and calculated that if you do this method, you'll have saved over 1300 bucks. Whoa. I think I need to do that.

My savings route involves me only using cash and whatever ones and change I gain through spending, I put in a jar. I never know how much I truly would earn at the end of the year through this method, since I use it for emergencies. But, it helps me through emergencies so that means it is a good method, right?

Okay, we all have goals, saving money is for both rainy days and for non-rainy days (traveling). You know, whatever catches your fancy or necessity or both. I decided to make a list on what one should save for, I am not a financial adviser by any means, but it works for me.

1. Travel - I want to go to Savannah, GA. I'll start closer to home, ya know. I live a days trip away and I have never been out there. Have a separate jar for it.

2. New car - There's a jar for that.

You thought I was kidding, weren't you?

3. For those of you planning on signing for a student loan, behave like it is a mortgage. PUT . A. DOWN. PAYMENT. ON. IT. It isn't the same thing but if you save money for your education, your loan will be a lot smaller. I see  a lot of my friends struggling with theirs and they say they wish they saved money before signing for one. I cannot stress this enough, I have recommended it to all of my younger cousins and their friends. I did a thesis on this topic, I read a lot of sad stories of kids struggling with huge loans and the interest tacking on to the total. Save yourself some heartache, start saving for it or work in college and save to pay it off.

4. Do you need your tooth fixed?

5. Going to grow old eventually?

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10 things that I have realized about post-grad life

See lets talk about the life of a post-grad. My friends and I have talked about it and we came to the same conclusion. Life after college is not so fantastic, at least not what we expected.

1. It is boring, like really boring. I have answered the question, "So, what are you doing with your life now?" with "I am writing," which is not a lie, it's just editing old papers and making sure my little anecdotes are under 140 characters. Although I am learning how to write well, so that is a plus. Perhaps I can write the next great American novel. Maybe, don't hold your breath.

2. Finding a job is difficult, a real adult job. Either I am over or under qualified, I have yet to find a job that is in the middle of that. It makes me feel better that I am not the only one.

3. School was actually not too bad. Sure, I had sleepless nights and my brain sometimes hurt, but I felt like I had a purpose in life. It was just due at the end of the week.

4. I have enough freedom to do everything I want, I can see the world and go to concerts. Those things cost money, I now see the importance of a job.

5. You realize the world is not that fair, you just keep going.

6. There is such a thing as a hangover. I never had one until I graduated, now I really feel like an adult.

7. I am doing a lot of research, a lot. Since there is a lot of available information at the end of my fingertips, thanks to the Internet. I can research things I always wanted to learn about, that I never had time to do before. I can read the books I bought but never had enough time to read because I was reading textbooks. The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel.

8. I have begun to be thankful for the little things in life, I've become more appreciative to those in my life.

9. I've had more time to make videos and stuff, which is fun. Oh I am crafting and painting more now. Look for me on Etsy, soon. I'll be selling those things.

10. Okay, so I only had a few. I am new college graduate. I am still trying to figure everything out! With that being said, you can join me on my journey of figuring out my life by following me on twitter!

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St. Augustine - Fountain of Youth Part 2

Since the site is an archaeological site important to both European and Native American history, there is a mix of the two in the park. The front of the site is dedicated to the 'Fountain of Youth' and the lifestyle of the Timucuan Indians at the time of the Spaniards initial landing. Towards the back of the site, there is evidence of the excavation and the location of where the Spaniards had set up camp.

A canoe

The Timucuan village.

 Excavations of the area showed evidence about the lifestyles of the inhabitants. Archaeologists were able to tell which wood was used in the making of the huts, and how far apart they were by the stains left behind.

 This area is a reproduction of the original site.

This is the location of where the Spaniards had set up camp. Not too far from the Timucuan village.

The original location of  the mission of Nombre de Dios. This, of course, is a reproduction.

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St. Augustine - Fountain of Youth Part1

No trip to St. Augustine is complete without a visit to the Fountain of Youth. One of the main reasons Ponce de Leon first came to Florida, to search for this legendary spring that has been recounted in many legends for thousands of years. I first visited the site when I was 14, and I drank a cup of the 'miraculous' spring waters.  I no longer look adolescent -Thank the Lord - it is safe to say that the mythical Fountain of Youth is still undiscovered.

Anyways, the site is where the Spanish first landed in Florida, and where they came in contact with the Timucuan tribe. The site has been subject to archaeological excavations, these excavations found positive evidence that the park is the location of the 1565 Spanish settlement -St. Augustine. The Europeans came to find the fabled Fountain of Youth, and they never left. 

Peacocks roam free in these lands.

A look into the past

The excavations artifacts

Inside that little cup was a parchment written in Old Spanish. This is a photograph of said parchment. It says: "Sepase por esto que yo, Alonzo Soriano, vecino y residente del Brillar subscribo y certifico que estuve presente al principio de la fundacion, la cual es la religion, y es con la salida y la puesta del Sol. Por orden de la Real Corona de Aragon hizo su descripcion al Manantial el cual es bueno y dulce al gusto. Era en el ano 1513"

The 'miraculous' spring- it was salty. The the employee said something about sulfur. I am not too sure anymore. I wrote it down but cannot find that paper. 

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What is happiness?

I just watched this video and felt the need to share. This child named Logan is eloquent and is only 13 years old. His parents pulled him from the traditional school system to pursue an alternative kind of education: homeschooling.  Logan talks about the pursuit of happiness and how it is affecting his education. He studies the 3 R's - reading, writing, and arithmetic - and the rest of his curriculum is focused on being happy and healthy.

Now I want to talk about why this is important. I was also asked the question "What do you want to be when you grow up?". My answer was always "a transplant surgeon," mainly because I believed that financial success equates to happiness. I worked very hard through my studies to enter the medical field. This child is 13 years old and I am 10 years his senior. I am only realizing now what he has realized at his young age. 

The entirety of my college career was to 'find myself,' and find myself I did. I am now headed in a different direction than being a surgeon and I am much happier for it. I began to enjoy my classes for their content and not only study the materials for an 'A', so I can be competitive against the hundreds, if not thousands, of med school applications. I saw myself as a number and some nights I would cry before a big exam because I could not remember the structural formula or the molar mass  for Ethanol (that is an example, I remember it... still, 3 years later.) 

In case you were wondering

I am now headed now a different path,  one I should have been from the beginning. Although I am not alone because I have plenty of friends who did not figure out what they wanted to pursue until their senior year. 

For the first time in a long time, I am happy to learn instead of being stressed about a grade, because it is what I love. I am not going to tell you right now what I wish to pursue as a career. Just know that I am headed in the right direction now.

-Peace and Aloha y'all

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Resolutions

Ah, it is that time of year again. Everyone has a resolution and many people, come February, will give up on it -don't give up, prove those nay-sayers wrong. This is the time of year where the gyms are full and everyone has a gym membership (It makes me feel I should exercise more). The time of year people say they will start saving or be extra frugal. The ultimate goal is to grow as a person, to become better than you were last year.

Habits are hard to break. They say it take 21 days to create a habit, so one must be consistent and do their resolution everyday in hopes they do not give up. Changing yourself is difficult. One thing I do love about a new year is that people are trying to better themselves. That is noble to say the least.

In all honesty I do not have a resolution, I don't think I have ever had a resolution. Well, I suppose my resolution is to be a happier and to look at the bright side, but I have been trying to do that since last year. I do love a new year because it is a new beginning, a fresh start, new experiences. I even cut my hair!

That is about as much physical change I'll probably do at the beginning of the new year. What are your resolutions for 2014?

Here are some of my 'resolutions', these are things I have been working on since last year, but I resolve to keep working on them.

1. Continue learning to write. This blog and the papers I have written are all practice for me.

2. Stop procrastinating so much. I, like many of my cohorts are huge procrastinators.

3. Stop spending my money on so much clothes, I should also start selling some of mine.

4. Keep traveling and never stop learning.

5. Limit eating out to once a week (easier said than done for me). 

6. Perhaps I should really get back into ballet. It was the only type of exercise I ever liked.

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Welcoming 2014 and looking back on 2013

"Every expert was once a beginner" -President Rutherford B. Hayes

Today is New Year's Eve. All I can think about is new beginnings and starting fresh. 2013 has been quite the year for me. I hear from others how it was a horrible year but all I know that for me, 2013 has been one of the most memorable years of my life. I have been able to complete so many of my dreams and I feel 2014 is a fresh beginning. Good things will happen if you look on the bright side. That is what I attempted to do this year and just be thankful for the little things in life.

I am not sure what I should make this post about since I made a 'thankful post'. I was thinking of what 2013 taught me. I suppose that might be able to help. 

1. "Every champion finds a way. Every loser finds an excuse."-Nishan Panwar

I feel this is what 2013 was for me. I did many things and I refused to give up. Ask many of my friends on how many times I replied to their texts with 'I am too busy'. I found a way  to meet every deadline I had, even when everything looked bleak.

2.“History will be kind to me for I intend to write it.”  -Winston Churchill

I am writing my own story, whether or not I am remembered by history. I want to die knowing I had a great life. This was the year I learned to love and accept myself, and not in a narcissistic way. I learned to love myself in a way that I am confident in my abilities.

3.“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.”  -Stephen King

I have spent the majority of my life reading but never writing. This year I really began writing and trying to learn to write. 

4.“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” -Marcel Proust

I have had the great fortune to see some of the beautiful planet. I learned and experienced new things. My eyes were opened to new things, I have a better understanding and have been renewed with purpose. I was unsure with what I wanted for my future, that changed this year. I met new people and made new friends. I stepped out of my comfort zone and now feel unafraid as I begin a new chapter. I was always afraid of what laid beyond graduation but this was the year that I was excited for what the future held. 

5.“Not all those who wander are lost.” - J.R.R Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

I always loved traveling, but I was scared to 'leave the nest' -to leave my comfort zone. I became comfortable with who I was as a person and am okay with being by myself. I metaphorically no longer feel lost and I wander when I travel now. I learned to not plan and to be a little free. Although I still have to catch myself from planning so much, because I was living for the future and missing out the present.

6.“Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves - slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future.”  -Thích Nhất Hạnh

Like I said before I used to live for the future and was always stressed. When I was in Ireland learned to cherish the little things in life. Despite being a Southerner I had to go across the pond to learn that.

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