Friday night..game night..

The ritual of friends gathering on a Friday night to share some laughs, eat some food, and drink some libations is not new. My friends are insane and we play ridiculously competitive and raunchy versions of games like Scattegories, Scene It, and Balderdash to name a few.. there is almost always pizza and beer...and I am the dessert bringer.
This Friday I was asked to bring the dessert and an amazing chinese chicken salad (which I won't go into because this is a bakers type blog). I get so excited when I talk about baking and when I think about getting this store off the ground. It will be incredible the day I open the doors and spread the love!
But, alas, today I just bake. A quick search of the net revealed a "Spring Celebration Carrot Cake"..hmm carrot cake sounded good and the recipe looked delicious. So made it I did! I haven't had the chance to taste it yet, but the frosting is yummy and the cake feels super moist. I can't republish the recipe because it is copywritten but I found it at Foodnetwork.com and have included a picture (I made a round version because I didn't have two square pans, go figure!)..

does talking make a dream come true?

I had a revelation tonight while having a conversation with two great girlfriends. How many of us talk about things we want to accomplish, endlessly talk about things we want to accomplish, annoyingly talk about things we want to accomplish...without any plan of action to actually accomplish the dreams of which we speak.

There have been a million speeches about dreams and accomplishing goals, the people giving the speeches have generally accomplished their dream and are trying desperately to inspire us all. I am inspired, sometimes awed, by the accomplishments of such people but have I ever accomplished a dream I talked about?

So I thought and I thought and then I realized that I went back to college at 21 because I felt like I had not finished a dream I started and I wanted to make it happen. I made it happen, not with the perfection that I had envisioned, far from it actually, but I accomplished it and have the paper to show anyone who wants to see.

I dreamed about being a lawyer, architect, electrician, musician, mom and none of those dreams have come to fruition. I am dreaming about the store, I am dreaming about the modern american dream and I am determined to make it a reality.

My lesson learned from accomplishing school is that accomplishing your dream more often than not looks different at the end than the original dream and that's OKAY, sometimes it is even better.

Live your dream and remember to try to inspire others to do the same. We can all accomplish so much with the support of other people. I am going to support my friends in their dreams and do whatever I can to help..and I know they will do the same!

found kindness

Today I did not a thing to further my desire to live the american dream. For some reason I decided that I had to fix my best friend this week. I have spent a few days at her house trying to get her to clean it up. An organized home allows for organized thoughts.

My big contribution, beyond being the annoying voice/presence, was laundry. I took 3 loads a day from her house, washed, folded, and returned them; waiting patiently as she put them away as to avoid her usual MO of leaving them in piles for months on end.

I really do believe that your house is a reflection of your mind. This particular friend is someone who buries her head and avoids facing problems head on. She procrastinates and talks about big dreams but rarely takes action necessary to accomplish them unless extremely prodded. I hope that this is enough prodding.

Now, where is my prodder to keep me focused on my dream?

One day at a time...

So while my goal is to get this American Dream rolling I realize that patience is a requirement. There are hoops to jump through, people to satisfy, plans to be set. It's a daunting task by any measure so I promise to myself to take it one day at a time and never lose sight.
I would like to say that 1 mini goal will be accomplished every day but it's going to be more like 1 mini goal a week. Originally, the idea was to opening doors in December 2009, but the bigger the gap grows between former job and future employment the further that date gets pushed. Funny that no one wants to loan the unemployed big sums of money for a risky venture, go figure!

The good news? Accepting that the American Dream is the sum of my life not just the ability to open the doors of a store. Yesterday I decided to take control and make a friend of mine claim her best life and start the process of getting her house in order. I will be going back for more today.

Another part of the American Dream is networking, connecting and feeling valued. Yesterday I reconnected with someone I hadn't seen or talked to in probably 8 years but someone that was a big part of my childhood and that felt awesome.

The ex that I thought hated me, but who bought a condo next to mine while we were dating, decided to loan me a pool key to his complex so I could beat the heat. Guess he doesn't hate me, we haven't seen each other yet but one step at a time. I just hope that the 6 months between breaking up and trying to be friends has allowed my broken heart to heal. I really was genuinely in love with this person and my heart was so broken.