Quilted Women Picker-Upper

Men of Omaha update: I walked into Starbucks yesterday in downtown Omaha after being away for a whole week and I couldn't believe my eyes.

A man in a quilted jacket. 

Maybe it's my lust for a Burberry quilted jacket that made my eyes pop when I saw this fella, or maybe it's because he was talking about how he improved his golf handicap from a 15 to a 5 this past summer. Regardless, I'm on the prowl to see if more men in Omaha are wearing quilted jackets... and once I find a woman wearing a black Burberry one, I will drop everything to compliment her.

Link similar to the jacket I saw on handsome golfer: JCrew Jacket.  I'm still working on taking photos of the well-dressed and handsome men I see in Omaha... but as you can imagine, it's harder (read: creepier) than it seems.

The jacket of my dreams: Burberry

I just picture myself throwing on a pair of Jordan's, some skinny jeans, a graphic tee and the Burberry jacket to run a few errands, catch a basketball game or meet up with a friend to do some school work. Preppy tomboy at it's finest! (I also picture myself dressing the jacket up with a nice pair of riding boots and button up. Just to please my Mother). 

I wonder which outfit would attract the men of Omaha more to me....?  Considering I'd more than likely wear my hair up in a pony-tail, my Mom would say neither.

 

xx

Men of Omaha

Much to my Mother's nagging, I've decided to take my appreciation posts about the men of Omaha from Facebook to another social media platform... MY BLOG! However, with this move, I need to start taking photographs of the well-dressed men. Alert the stalk-a-paparazzi.

Moving to a new city, where I didn't know anyone, has led my eyes to stray away from my books and stare far more frequently than in the past. Honestly, if I were to have checked a man out in Detroit, he was either:
a) related to me
b) a co-worker of mine or my dad's
c) a former classmate, teammate or player for my Mom, Dad or brother
d) a member at the Detroit Athletic Club (which would just lead to an awkward match-up on the basketball court)

Free at least, free at last, thank God almighty my eyes are free to roam at last!

My whole obsession about the men in Omaha began when I first moved here and would walk from my apartment downtown to the "Old Market" area for happy hours.  This was the time where I hadn't solidified any friendships, so I would go off by myself just taking everything in.  In downtown Omaha, there's First National Bank, where employees are required to wear a suit.  As I'd walk to happy hour, they would be coming off of work and I just couldn't help but take in their beauty at the same time.  I know what you're thinking, but this is no different than the men checking us females out on the regular.  Granted, not every man is Cary Grant, but clothing certainly helps many of them out. (If you don't know who Cary Grant is, look him up... you're welcome).

Okay, back to focusing about the blog post and not getting lost in Mr. Grant's eyes.

My FIRST Omaha post:

As you can tell, I was truly just livening up my ever dull and serious Facebook newsfeed. Since a lot the activity on my newsfeed is from 40-65 year old females, I figured they'd get a kick out of my new life in Omaha.  Followed by a few emails, phone calls and text messages, I knew there was no turning back.

Below are the remaining appreciation posts of men, primarily in Omaha.  Not to worry, I will be adding photos to these posts, hopefully selfies. Ha!

 

 

Here are a two more posts which should help get your weekend started off on the right foot.  Let me know if going to the bar dressed as a bum works out for you?  Pretty sure everyone assumed I just rolled out of bed, when in reality I came right from church.  Nothing quite like pants with an elastic waistline. Am I right?

 

 

 

Tim Riggins.

Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose

<3

 

 

 

Have a blessed weekend. May the men in your life be beautiful, well-dressed and beautiful on the inside (because that's what matters).

 

xx

 

 

Nashville Recap!

I love to travel.  I love being a tourist.  I love seeing new landmarks.  I love (read: am obsessed with) meeting new people. 

So... what better way to kick off my Fall Break from Creighton than with a long weekend to Nashville with my best friend Carey!  We had talked about going to Nashville for what seemed like YEARS.  We finally pulled the trigger in August and booked our trip.  There were some things we spent money on and some things we went the "college student" route with.  When it was all said and done, we sat in the airport planning our next adventure and our next adventure back to Nashville.  I may or may not have told everyone in Nashville that I want to move there...

To begin, Carey and I decided to fly Delta to Nashville.  After doing so, next time we'd fly, we'd probably take Southwest.  However, we met some phenomenal people in the airports, including the ONLY "cowboy" we met the whole trip.  He was a handsome, tall, athletic man who was just returning home from a business trip.  Go figure he played both baseball and basketball at Vandy.  He had even been to Omaha in the summer for the College World Series to see his alma mater win the national championship!

Carey and I stayed in the downtown Nashville Hostel.  In retrospect, this was a GREAT decision to make since all we did was sleep there and it only cost us a whopping $35/night.  We were roomed with 6 other girls from England who were studying abroad in the United States of America.  They came to Nashville to see Paul McCartney perform and said adorable phrases like "Oh! That's mad!"  I would highly suggest staying in the hostel because it's two blocks off Broadway, extremely clean and safe!  We both think for the next trip we go on hopefully we'll have a bit more of disposable income so we can upgrade to a hotel room. 

Doesn't it look like we were at camp?
Seriously, the hostel provided clean sheets and you could "rent" a clean towel for $1.
The bathrooms were clean and there were even private suites you could use.

 

Thursday: Our first night in Nashville, my friend from undergrad met up with Carey and I.  It was SO nice to see a familiar face.  Josh played baseball at Aquinas and I played basketball, but we had some classes together.  He went to Vanderbilt for grad school and is now a CPA for pWc down in Nashville (the same accounting firm Carey will be working for)!  Everywhere we went had live music.  Josh informed us that the bands/performers get better as you go up levels in the bars.  He guided us to a few of the establishments we had to hit up on our first night. Unfortunately he had to work the next day, so he went home early. Need not to worry, Carey and I still lived up our first night on Honkey Tonk Row! I wish I had photos and videos of the performers because they.were.all.amazing.

Carey and I on our first night in Nashville.
#CCxNashville
Don't we look pretty?!

 

We may or may not have arm wrestled some guys...
Per the rules, we were allowed to use two hands.
Pictured above is the referee of the competition declaring my victory!

Friday: Carey and I woke up super early (not by choice... one of our English friends was experiencing a bit of the "brown bottle flu") so we decided to put on our walking shoes and head towards Vanderbilt to get some breakfast (read: find an establishment that served bloody Mary's).  We had a delicious meal at West End Café before we continued on to campus. I just had to see Vanderbilt's baseball stadium since they are a perennial powerhouse.  At first, I did not think much of it because I'm used to Comerica Park and now TD Ameritrade. But wow... if only Aquinas had a baseball stadium like Vandy's!

 

We checked out the Parthenon and truly just enjoyed one's company on our walk.  We stopped in at Tootsie's on our way back for a nice cold one and to listen to the live music before hitting the showers before everyone else in the hostel did to get ready for Friday night.  Well, go figure that Carey's cousin and one of my dear friends, Sarah, was in Nashville with her roommates! Like what were the chances?! Sarah realized that from my SNAPCHAT story! 

The Parthenon!

Carey and I met up with Sarah and her roommates for a bit before we went our separate ways around dinner.  From there, Carey and I sat down with two Nashville business men at a happy hour and had quite an enjoyable conversation, received a few "touristy" tips and even made business connections. Maybe a move to Nashville in the future is a possibility! Ha!

Sarah, Carey and I couldn't resist getting a touristy photo of
the "Bang This" twins.

Friday night was truly just a whirlwind, but I was fortunate enough to run into a former foe on the basketball court (again, what are the chances?!). The music was great everywhere we went on Broadway. 

Former Macomb Area Conference basketball foes!
Birthday twins, too!

Saturday:  Carey and I woke up on the wrong side of the bed Saturday morning, but we quickly realized to suck up the exhaustion (yes Mom, exhaustion, not dehydration). We headed for a walk north of downtown to check out the area and find a "hole in the wall diner" for a bite to eat before we met up with my friend, Eddie! I swear, the power of social media is unreal! Eddie saw one of my INSTAGRAMS and reached out to me letting me know that'd he was headed to Nashville with his friends. Eddie went to U of D Jesuit and ran for my Uncle Bell.  We someone developed a friendship and have kept in touch ever since.  (Side note, Eddie sent me the BEST Valentine when I was a freshman in college, which consisted of a CD of 19 romantic country songs. When I told Eddie I still had it, he did not believe me... I do, I sent him a photo of it just this past weekend).

Eddie and I.  This photo depicts our friendship perfectly.

I'm so happy we met up with Eddie and his friends because one of the guys' sister lives in Nashville with her friend. Needless to say, Carey and I made two BFF's, Gina and Kristin, and spent the day bouncing around downtown Nashville with them!  For dinner, we headed up to "midtown" where we met back up with Eddie and his gang. I would highly suggest heading towards midtown one night if you're in Nashville and hit up the Red Door Saloon, Rebar, etc.

After some Mexican food (and tequila), and bouncing around the establishments in midtown, we headed back down to Broadway.  Boy oh boy was it packed!  We went to the The Stage Thursday night and headed back on Saturday and I was confident that I had never been there because it looked so different and was packed.  I'm not sure if I've conveyed how happy I was to be in Nashville... but Saturday night and the music at The Stage alone made the whole trip worth it.

Honkey Tonk Row

Meeting Gina and Kristin (sister of Eddie's friend) was a highlight of the trip.  Truth be told, I could see Carey and I meeting up with Gina and Kristin not only in Detroit when they're home for a holiday, but also inviting them to join on our next adventure.

Sunday: Carey and I were craving bloody Mary's, again so we headed back to what we already knew...

My friend Josh met up with us for breakfast.  Gina joined us just in time to take us to another establishment and insisted Carey and I get a "bushwacker." Basically, it's a really strong milkshake. We were able to take in some of the Detroit Lions football game before we were antsy to keep exploring on our last day.

Gina, Josh, Carey and I all headed to the Bluebird Café to take a touristy photo in front.  I am so sad we did not get tickets to see a live show, but in fairness, they sell out in ten minutes on Monday morning.

Josh and I outside the Bluebird Café. Isn't' he a studly looking man? 

I'm glad we were able to take so much of the city in, but I'm sad we did not get to venture outside of it much.  Next time I go, I'll definitely rent a car and take in the historical aspects of Nashville, not just the music scene. Also, I would check out who is playing a big show and get tickets to it. Once I heard Kip Moore was playing Friday night, I cried inside because Carey and I did not have tickets to see him perform. 

Nashville, thank you for an amazing weekend.  Thank you for lighting the travel bug inside me.  Carey, thanks for being the best travel companion I could ever imagine.  Here's to trip #1 of ___ together.

"Well, I like my loving done country style.

And this little girl would walk

a country mile to find her a good 'ol

slow talking country boy" - Loretta Lynn

 

xx - Conway Twitty

Inspriations

I am so thankful for my MBA program at Creighton, specifically my Business, Ethics & Society class.  We have had guest speakers from the Omaha business area and WOW, are these professionals rock stars!  We also have had the opportunity to interview professionals who are BBB Integrity Award Winners or Omaha Business Hall of Fame Inductees.

Following one PR expert's presentation, I followed-up and met with my now mentor, Joyce. (Go figure we hit it off, her middle name is Clare, without an "i"). She was gracious enough to have me over for a cup of coffee and just talk.  She gave me great advice about "figuring out" my future, which was to come up what I'm good at, what I like to do and what my bottom lines are.

Example:
What I'm good at: Working under pressure (Doesn't necessarily mean I like to work under pressure, but I am good at it... "never let them see you sweat"...).
What I like to do: Events (I love planning... such as the St. Clare Golf Outing..., going to, hosting and I even don't mind cleaning up events).
What my bottom (lines) are: Location (Omaha, NE)

Do you have any "what I'm good at" or "what I like to do" bullets I should add to my list?

While interviewing a Hall of Fame Inductee, Aldo Tesi, CEO and Chairman of Election Systems & Software, I was yet again inspired about my future.  Aldo is a phenomenal man, lives a life "above the line," and is so passionate and vibrant about work.  One of the biggest take-a-ways I had during this interview was not necessarily the ethical questions I asked, but rather a reminder to add to my daily to-do's to never become jaded.

I would be remiss to note that Aldo took THREE hours out of his day to meet with my partner and I.  He gave us a tour of the office, Quality Assurance test rooms, put election hardware to work and treated my partner and I to lunch. Oh! He even gave us The Oz Principle book to read... If you're into leadership and learning about organizational structure, this is a must read for you. Below is a photo of the DS850 vote scanner and tabulator machine.  

Needless to say, I fell in love with Election Systems & Software I am so thankful for the opportunities I've had thus far. Inspiration is all around!

live about the line

xx

HOMAHA!

Have you ever taken a risk? One where people raise an eyebrow and tilt their head when they hear of what you are about to do? Well, my decision to move to a city I never visited, where I knew no one and attend Creighton University's Heider College of Business to obtain my MBA has done just that with everyone I tell (except my BFF Carey).

It all came about in the dark, depressing months of the unforgiving winter we experienced in Detroit where I realized I needed to "get out."  I needed to leave, spread my wings, fly and become my own person, on my own.

The reason I am able to leave home and take such a risk is because of the confidence my parents have instilled in me my whole life; the education, in and outside the classroom, I received from Aquinas College; the Dixie Chick's song "Wide Open Spaces" (I blast this song on repeat 24/7); knowing that if I fail I can always go back to Michigan and lastly because I need to challenge myself on a whole other level.

I've been in Omaha for a month already and I couldn't be happier. My classes are challenging (I've already had to put the PRO into procrastination for an assignment...), the companies and corporations are phenomenal, the men are beautiful, the city is vibrant and the bar scene is just my style.

#DowntownOmaha

One of these nights, I'll get up on stage and do a treble jig.

74 days until I return to Detroit...

Until then, peace and blessings from Mr. Buffett's town

xx

Finally, Vacation!

In college, we “studied” so hard for finals that they would grant us three to four weeks off of school! Where did the corporate world go wrong? Where did the United States go wrong? I look around at lunch and I see tired people. I look around at the gym and I see folks who are barely making it through a game of squash because they don’t have the time to stay in shape. I get upset when I hear my co-workers talk about how they can’t make their kid’s basketball game because they have to stay late at work. Hmm… maybe I was born in the wrong generation, or maybe I have always gone 100 mph and accomplished everything on my daily to-do lists that I’ve always been able to “do it all.” 

Pause.

Wait, have I ever been able to “do it all?” I’m always being pulled in 5,000 different directions. I look in the mirror and I see bags under my eyes. I see the intensity of my workouts slipping and I find myself turning my phone to airplane mode more often than ever before just to get some peace and quiet. Staying in on a Saturday night watching tear provoking romantic comedies? That has been happening way too often, especially for me, being the socialite-diva that I am. (Insert diva emoji here).

Although my personal Christmas break in college was on average 6 days, it was still 6 days away from “work,” away from the “grind.”

After working for 8 (almost 9!) months, I’ve realized I need a break. That is why my 6.5 day vacation beginning on Tuesday at 12:00 pm is fitting. I am headed to Boise, Idaho for my cousin Molly’s wedding and I am so tempted to keep my phone off the whole time… Okay, maybe just during the wedding celebrations…

Heading on a plane to Boise, to see family while being able to check out a new city and just live up the New Year is something I am SO excited to do. My vacation is coming at the perfect time, as I am a bit worn down from work. Why am I so worn down? I really think it’s because I haven’t had my 6 days away from work, away from the “grind.”

Rest is necessary, and I know now that utilizing my vacation time around the Christmas holiday from here on out is a must. 

Boise, Idaho… HERE I COME! Oh, and God Bless my cousin Molly with her soon to be husband Sean!

xx

"going to the chapel and we're gonna get married..."

6 Months

It has been six months since I started working in the real world. WOW. 

This week more than ever I really started to reevaluate my life, in large part because I was studying to take the GMAT exam to be used for my entrance into graduate school. I've always been extremely goal oriented (how could I not playing sports) and I've always had some sort of "life plan" written out. 

Studying at Starbucks...
Grande Non-Fat Vanilla Latte please

I'm not joking. When I was in 8th grade I wrote out a year by year plan for my life. It had details like when I was going to get married, how many kids I'd have, where I was going to work, where I was going to travel, when I was going to retire, and so on. When I last saw my grade school track coach, he asked me if I still wanted to be President of the WNBA. I could not help but smile because I remember writing a life plan and being so excited I finally figured out what I wanted to be, at the impressive age of 13. I had planned to go to Law School after playing basketball at a small college. I was going to work my way up through the Detroit Shock organization and into the WNBA's front office. I remember having a photo of not only Swin Cash hanging up in my room, but also Donna Orender, the President of the WNBA. 

Here I am almost 10 years later not working for the Detroit Shock (that would be impossible...) and not going to Law School. Rather, I am applying to graduate schools to further my education and receive a Masters in Business Administration. 

After six months of working in the real world I know that obtaining a masters degree is not something I should do, but something I need/want/must do. I cannot wait to head back to school. I want to continue to learn each and everyday at work and take everything I've learned, everything I am learning and all of the work experiences I am gaining off to my graduate classes with me in the fall. 

All afternoon I was browsing MBA programs and I am so excited. Not only will I be going for my masters degree, but I will be able to study concentrations of a topic (or maybe two!) that I am interested in, on top of business. These concentrations include accounting, information technology, leadership, healthcare, etc. I just hope somebody wants me to come study at their institution! 

So, what are my short term goals? What is my updated life plan? 

Six Month Short Term Goals:

Be admitted into graduate school

Enroll at graduate school

Continue to grow and learn at work

See Creighton & Doug McDermott play basketball

Spend a weekend unplugged

Get a passport

Finish my college scrapbook

Utilize my DAC membership 4x a week

Life Plan:

Travel

Smile more

Make a difference

Never stop learning

Pray everyday

Always own a pair of basketball shoes

... be President of the WNBA ;)