Author:bluelollipoproad

someone please clue me in

I might be an alien, but I was taught to say please and thank you and do what I promise to do.

Am I crazy?

I don’t often get to the point I feel like I could punch a wall and today feels like one of those days. Instead of punching a wall, I go for long runs (which I am about to head out door to do now. I figure that’s more constructive than punching things.)

I am currently going through a time where people who say they will call won’t, promise things they don’t do, and generally are disappointing me. People are busy, shit happens, I get it. It’s not that. It’s the point blank empty promises and complete lack of respect or consideration that gets me.

I just don’t understand. Why bother with the bullshit? Who has time for that?

…off to pound the pavement instead of the wall. Perhaps while I am away from my computer and phone breaking a sweat, one of those promised messages will finally come in. If not I’ll just have a really nice ass, which hey- I am not opposed to.

jill won the makeover!

YIPPEE!!! Jill Campbell wins! (Well, one of the top 3 anyway. The Grand Prize winner will be announced the night of the makeover.)

I posted this last week asking you all to vote for my friend and she won! I’m convinced that the BLR followers helped tip her over the the line to victory! Thanks all! I am super excited for Jill. I’ll be posting the before and after photos here in a couple weeks after the big makeover day.

Stay tuned to see results!

knotty yarn

So I have told you all I bartended at this retreat called the Might Summit a couple weeks ago. It was near the Russian River at an amazing little resort called Boon. It was a quick gig, and I didn’t get to talk to many of the kick-ass women who were there. There were a couple of those women however, that even in our 5 second interaction I could tell were just NICE. The word nice, or kind to me is by far the biggest compliment. When someone can get a “nice” out of me, from a simple please and thank you, because it just hits you that they are a genuinely decent person- that’s a big deal.

Danielle was one of those people. Her blog is called Knotty Yarn. It has just gone straight and fast into my bookmarks. On her about page (almost scary the amount of similarities between she and I) there is a line that I so, so so (can I say SO one more time?) agree with and live by:

“I strongly believe that every day is a chance to change your mind and change your life.”

I will stop this post there. I can’t imagine putting together a better line that i will toast a thousand times to.

Thanks Danielle. You are nice, you write great stuff, and you have freaking awesome hair too.

secrets revealed!

Guess who gets to go to Tahoe this weekend for the first time ever?

For FREE no less.

Guess who got to eat filet, 3 chocolate lava cakes and about 9 glasses of good wine at a castle last week?

For FREE no less.

Yep- ME!

Guess what else? I’m not even that smart, cool, and this stuff doesn’t require me to get naked.

It baffles me when people ask things like “Wow, how in the WORLD did you ever get to X,Y,Z??!!”

You want to know the big fat secret? Ok. Drumroll please…

I ask, or volunteer. Period.

This means when someone I am around talks about something that sounds interesting, fun, or cool- I say “Ooh! I’d love to do that!” or “Wow, let me know if you ever need any help there.”

If I calculated the cost of wine, apps, a meal, more wine, dessert and entertainment at a castle for a night, that’d be a decent amount of bucks.

If I calculated transportation to Tahoe, a wine festival admission, and a night in a hotel. that’d be a decent amount of bucks.

What do I contribute to get this? A few hours of my time. As in like 2 or 3 hours, not even 8.

What do I get? All of the above and meeting, networking (we all know that any little interaction with the kind of figurative company you want to be in matters) and fun.

Simple formula. Totally not rocket science. If you want to go to/hang with/see something but you’re not sure how you can “get in” or afford to, try this system. It works every time.

I hope I haven’t disappointed you revealing that I’m not really secret-spy tricky. I’d love to hear about cool things you get to do like this and how you got “in” so send me some stories!

Happy weekend all. I’m off to pack for Tahoe. Yesssssssss…

wanted: reader feedback

While I’ve been enjoying the occasional meal, happy hour, and castle-crashing here in Napa since my arrival almost 3 weeks ago, I have been hiding out on top of my new house on the peak feverishly reading, and researching on a work and blog plan with the thrill and promise of a 16 year old prepping for the hottest prom date of her life.

If you have ever met me for more than lets say- 15 seconds, you know I’m not the girl to ever sit home ALL day, for days on end in complete silence with no human interaction. For this time though, I am that girl. When I fully come back into the light it’s going to be with a excellent and healthy vengeance. I WILL be crushing it, and in the happiest and most balanced of ways.

I need your help for some of my research. If you’re willing; Could please share the following with me, leaving a comment here or emailing me at: diane(at sign)bluelollipoproad.com

*What are the 3 things you wish you had more of in your life?
1.)
2.)
3.)

*What are 3 things you’d do/do more if time, money and fear were NOT factors to consider?
1.)
2.)
3.)

This is a huge help, so I thank you much. When I strike it rich and happier than ever (which I will) every round of chocolate dessert will be on me.

Do you think I’m kidding?

bartending and babysitting

I babysat today. Yep, 32 and smart and sassy and I am babysitting- I love it! how else can you hang with a cute kid for a few hours, make some good cash and get some of your own work done while they are napping? I bartended an incredible event a week ago. Again, talk to people, network- and you pay me? I’ll take it. No matter where you go/live- someone will always need a drink and have a kid that needs looking after. This means cash

Todays babysitting job was super bonus as I saw a book sitting on a kitchen counter of the house I was at and asked if I could borrow it.

1.) I just saved myself $19.99
2.) I am almost done with the book in one day

The book is called CRUSH IT!; Why now is the time to cash in on your passion

In one way, I am sort of peeved because I feel like I could’ve written so much that’s in this book. On the other, I always give a hats off to someone else who’s making loot on writing stuff that so freaking completely obvious. Good on ya Gary Vaynerchuk! My book is next.

I have laughed and nodded my head through most of these pages. I just read a few lines on how you’d be an idiot to think you’re invincible in your job and you are sorely mistaking if you think you have no need to create a personal brand:

What if you’re a trader at an investment firm and suddenly you’re out of work and all you have to show is a bull-crap resume? Hold it, you might want to reassure me, my resume is awesome. Tell me this: Is it a pdf of a tidy list of where you’ve worked and for how long, with a couple of strategic bullet points highlighting what you did in each job? Yeah? You’re toast.

Amen to that Author Gary. Boy do I love people who shoot it straight.

looking for one person/couple/family

I HELP PEOPLE ORGANIZE THEIR LIVES, SO THEY CAN LIVE HEALTHIER AND TRAVEL WHEN THEY WANT TO.

This is what I want my response to be at the cocktail party when someone asks the generic and often annoying question of “What do you do?”

So? Does anyone out there want to do what I just did? (In case you are new here, I just took some time/a sabbatical to breathe a bit, get some perspective and reach a personal goal before I went apeshit and strangled someone in my regular life that I was completely passionless about.)

This is your chance to put your money where your mouth is. I did it, who’s next? Who needs some breathing room? Who wants to call a fuck it and take a trip, go somewhere, or get organized so you don’t go apeshit and destroy the good you already have in your life? Who’s got something eating at them? Plenty of you have said you do. You’ve said this to me in person, in emails, and here. This is me giving you the opportunity to step up and take a swing at what you say you want to do. I can help you get there, happily, productively and all in one piece. I promise.

Here’s what I am offering to you:

*I will help you organize your life (this means house, jobs, belongings, habits, dogs, children, bills- all of it) to free up LOTS of time and money. Time and money are always our excuses. I can help you eliminate the excuses and get you where you say you want to go.
*Yes, this means I will help you get your shit straight so you are able to live the life you have told me you want.

Here’s what I’m asking for in return:

*You agree to be my official test case (I have done this for a few friends in the past, but never officially under the guise of starting a company/service.
*You pay for my transportation to get to you, food and accommodations. That’s it. (I get excited about Oreos and Nutella, have slept in puke smelling Motel 6 rooms and I fly coach, not first class so you’ll be getting a deal.)

What does this mean?

It means you could be stressing less, laughing more, saving a boatload of money, losing weight, having more time, becoming a better husband, sister, friend, worker, and so much more before you know it. You might even stop having those fantasies about how you can choke your boss and throw him in the river. After all- you really don’t long to be a murderer. Life doesn’t suck, you don’t want to kill anyone, you just need to eliminate a few things and put the phone on hold for a bit.

How do you get started?

Email me at; diane (@) bluelollipoproad.com or post a comment as to how I can reach you.

What happens if no one responds/takes me up on my offer here?

1.) You will. It might take a while, but someone will. Then another will, then another…
2.) Next time I see or talk to you, if you were one of the multiple people that have ever said to me; “Sigh, I so wish I could go travel like you did.”/”Sigh, I’m so envious of how you are living”/”How do you get to do all that amazing stuff?” I call you a chicken shit because I offered my time and expertise to help you, for FREE and you didn’t take it. Or, I might smack you, then call you a chicken shit.
3.) I will continue to wonder why the majority of people I meet don’t actually LIVE in their lives. That will continue to make me sad for them, but more motivated for me.

“You know, it’s not that easy/simple for people to just go off and do what they want just like that Diane.”

Bullshit. I’m sorry- do we live in America? Is someone holding a gun to your head to do what you are doing? That’s what I thought. You choose how you spend your life, your time, your money. Period. That could mean something sexy like hiking Mount Everest, or something much less sexy, like road tripping with your kids back to Kansas to introduce them to Great Granny Maude they have never met. Either way when you do these things that you want, you are LIVING your days, Not just drudging through them. Your choice. It is that easy/simple.

News flash; I AM NOT SPECIAL. I AM NOT A HERO. I have zero superpowers, and I’m not even that cool. If you can believe it, I’ve never once had sex with or even showed someone a boob to do all the things I have. (I know- awesome eh?) However, I have been organized, continually networked my ass off, made friends with strangers, smiled a lot, stayed in touch with old friends, taken chances, trusted my gut, listened to my heart then gone for “it” and managed to end up “there” proud as a peacock. I’m thinking if I’ve figured out a way to drive to Alaska, 9,000 miles total, sleep in my car safely as a single woman, have plenty of gas, food, and experiences that even I could never have dreamed of, and end up now sitting here on top of a mountain overlooking the Napa Valley in an amazing house, with two great new roommies and a smile on my face sipping a yummy glass of Prosecco after leaving the east coast almost 12 weeks ago with a car that had 133,000 miles on it, only $1,000 dollars in my pocket and with $27k in debt, I am allowed to call myself a bit of an expert on reaching some sort of “impossible.”

(Just grabbed my phone to snap this photo. This is not staged, just my view as I write this. Ahhh…)

I’m sure after reading the above, you can imagine how much it chaps me when so many people who have less bad debt than me (just about everyone out there.) more money than me (just about everyone out there), more education than me (just about everyone out there- I could go on and on…) tell me they want/wish/desire something but it would just be “impossible” to do.

WHAT?!

Pish posh to that impossible nonsense.

Excuses, impossibility, fear, lack of money, time, blah blah blah. Enough of that. I CAN HELP YOU GET TO WHERE YOU WANT TO GO. All you have to do is ask. I’d sure love to help.