Joining TFA New Mexico!

Hello everyone!

I've got a new blog that tracks my experiences during Teach For America: New Mexico. I'll be teaching elementary school on an Indian reservation in Gallup, so keep in touch by visiting www.DarbyOnTheRes.blogspot.com.

Yay!

Tech

Yesterday may have been the last day I will ever tech a show. HOW WEIRD IS THAT?! I may never ever work on tech for theatre ever again. SO STRANGE.

You Better Read This

No one reads this, but you know what? THAT'S OK. It's fun for me to think things and then write them and then realize that no one caresssss. It's fun. It's awesome. I'm alright with it.

Excuse me, I need a kleenex.

JUST KIDDING!

Today, I tried to fix a vacuum and I failed. How do you replace the belt? I watched a YouTube video about it, but it didn't help very much. Why would someone post a video about how to fix a vacuum belt? Obviously there's a demand (case in point: me), but it makes me wonder how people even EXISTED before the internet?

Dan O'Brien Alert #5

Dan submitted for a role in the Vegas Cirque du Soleil show LOVE. Here's his submission video....and I'm in it too!

See the Sites

Here are some websites that I love and thought you might enjoy:

www.WomenBeTrippin.com

My friend, Jake, and two of his buddies created a site to explore why women are crazy. Sometimes, I must admit, we really, really are. If you need a laugh, go here.

www.SarahRhoadsPhoto.SquareSpace.com

This is a blog created by a husband and wife photography team based out of Seattle that shoots (among other things) engagement and wedding photos. Their stuff is beautiful and Sarah's music taste is awesome. If you need to see some pretty photos, go here.

www.Myspace.com/BeerAndTacos

My brother, Sean, ROCKS and his music is even better. He has been playing guitar since we were little kids and he is a constant source of inspiration for me. If you need to have your mind blown, go here.

Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

It feels like everyone in the world has already read this book and I’m happy to say that I’ve finally joined the club! Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff…and it’s all small stuff is a fantastic book by Richard Carlson about finding inner peace by keeping little things from taking over your life. The author provides 100 ways to calm down and learn to put things in perspective by making small daily changes.

I gobbled up everything he wrote about and was inspired to change my thought processes instantly, but I think Point #54 resonated the most, so I wanted to share it with you…

54. UNDERSTAND THE STATEMENT, “WHEREVER YOU GO, THERE YOU ARE”
(This is the title of another book that I’ve also heard of, but never read)

The author explains that a common obstacle along the path to inner peace is our tendency to believe that if we were somewhere else – on vacation, with another partner, in a different career, a different home, a different circumstance – somehow we would be happier and more content. In reality, we wouldn’t! He explains, “The truth is, if you have destructive mental habits – if you get annoyed and bothered easily, if you feel angry and frustrated a great deal of the time, or if you’re constantly wishing things were different, these identical tendencies will follow you, wherever you go.”

My brain does this a lot. I often find myself ragging on Los Angeles and thinking that if I just lived in a different city, my life might be better, or if I finally went to grad school, I’d feel more accomplished, or if I worked in a different industry, I’d meet “better” people…this kind of wishful thinking can snowball in my brain endlessly. After reading this book and devoting some time to self reflection about my own thought processes, I’ve realized that the more I focus on being ok with where I am (instead of where I’d rather be), the more at peace I am with myself.

The author goes on to say, “Someone once asked me, ‘What are people like in California?’ I asked him, ‘What are people like in your home state?’ He replied, ‘Selfish and greedy.’ I told him that he would probably find the people in California to be selfish and greedy.”

This concept has really turned my thinking upside down. I hope that I can move forward feeling empowered by the knowledge that my attitude towards my surroundings and the people that I interact with will directly affect my experiences and my happiness with my current place in life.

Why?

Why do I love the show, Jon & Kate Plus 8 so much? I don't watch very much tv, but now that I have the DVR thing, I can't get enough of this show. It's about a husband and wife who have two sets of multiples: twins and sextuplets. Each episode is about something pretty basic..."Twins Turn 7," "Beach Trip," "Housekeeper Hunt" and so on. Sounds boring, but I swear it is the greatest show ever. I know every child's name. I even know their birth order. Am I just weird? What is it about this show that makes it so captivating?


(A FEW DAYS LATER)

Ok, so it's a few days after I started writing this entry. Since then, I've spent some time online researching the show and what people think about it. I was sad to find that there are some rumors (which seem pretty legit) that Kate is a psycho who has hired hands all over the place, cooking organic meals, folding laundry, playing with the kids, etc. That ruins the entire show! You're supposed to believe that they're a struggling family, but they're not and now I am upset.

There is really no purpose to this entry, I just wanted you to know that my Jon & Kate Plus 8 bubble burst.