Nothing on My Mind

Thats not entirely true. There is plenty on my mind, just nothing interesting enough to share.

I've been twittering like crazy. It seems like I can come up with 140 characters once a day thats interesting enough, just not much more than that.

Hmmm lets see. The diet and exercise plan is half-out the window. The dvd's are killer and I love cupcakes.

It is this, ableit only partly, why I don't think I'm going to be attending Barrister's Ball. What is this I speak of? Its like Prom for law school. I wouldn't say sorority formal-esq because seeing as we're in law school and there are professors in attendance as well, there is a slightly heightened sense of decorum. Besides, law school is much closer to high school than even the tinest bit of college. But all of this is second hand information seeing as I haven't been to one yet. The first two years I wanted to go, but my friends didn't. I have my ticket in hand. Yes, it has been purchased. But I can't find a dress. And I swear to you I have made a good faith effort.

You might be thinking: but Claire, you've paid for the ticket, how can you not go? It would just be a waste! Ahhhh, but that is where you are wrong. Should I end up with a dress I hated, or worse yet, ended up with a dress I paid too much money for and ended up hating the way I looked, it is worth sacraficing the ticket price to stay home and not constantly be hating on every little thing about the way I looked and thinking about all the thoughts everyone else is having, even if they aren't. So there you go. Claire has insecurties, who doesn't? (And I know I have no one to blame for the above mentioned-ness but myself.)

If I go, there will be pictures. If I don't, join twitter and keep me company on Saturday night.

Moving on.

I read a lot of blogs, it takes up the time I should be reading for class (or, ahem, participating in class) and substitutes something more interesting. I'm sure I'll regret it come final time as I always do.

But for now I share with you just a few of my favorites:

http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/
the name speaks for itself. do not read if you are the least big hungry and/or on a diet

http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/
he travels the world and as a side project captures random people with style who are walking down the street. everyday people. every kind of style.


http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/
self-explanatory. so funny and so self-explanatory.


http://dearoldlove.tumblr.com/
I love these self-explanatory ones. less work for me. "pithy, specific 'Dear Old Love' notes". I spend forever on this one, reading back-dated entries. Sometimes its so easy to think of someone. Other times its hard to imagine who the heck these people are and you pray you don't run into them or their ex's.


http://www.no634.org/
law student blog from the University of Minnesota. funny, but law school funny.


http://www.boyinsuit.com/
law student/now practitioner blog from Salt Lake City. I like the way he asserts his take on things, even if I don't always agree.


This isn't a comprehensive list: I read, or at least stop by, plenty more. So if you aren't listed, take no offense. Maybe I'll make this a regular feature. Don't worry, you'll make it one of these days. ;)

So thats about it kids. I'm working on projects and reading and taking classes I don't understand, dealing with issues I wish I didn't have to, working my jobs and finishing pro bono hours. Just livin' the everyday life.

-
I typed in "everday" as a flickr search:
flickr: neloqua
"Can't you see there's a World at your feet?"
*sigh*

I May Never Kayak Again

By now we're all aware of my quest to complete quintessentially Florida activities, so I'll admit, the kayaking was my idea.
Actually, my idea was to kayak in the ocean. How fun does that sound? Hopping the mini-waves and maybe catching a glimpse or two of some fish. So our plan for Saturday was just that. Only the ocean was too choppy and there was a high man of war (jellyfish) risk. So instead we dropped the kayaks into the river just by the ocean.

By all accounts, this river was gorgeous. There were multimillion dollar yachts anchored and cruising along the entire way. I would have taken photos, because really, they were stunning, but I didn't trust myself enough not to drop my camera and lose it forever.
I digress.

So we're paddling along, I'm pretty far behind because it was my thought that this was a scenic outing, not an adventure one.
I'm looking at the yachts and saying hello to people in their backyards, enjoying the sun and the nice weather.
Then the river widens ever so slightly and the people I am with, well, they are gone! Or just about.

And I am very-close-to-frantically trying to get to one side of the river so that I don't get sucked under or run over by one of those previously mentioned yachts. Not so beautiful right then.




So I manage to get enough to the side that I hide in a crevice so I'm safe.
Then, for whatever reason I cannot paddle straight. I think it was because straight was never a good option. The boat traffic was super heavy and us little kayaks had to stay to either side. Well in my effort to stay to the side, I somehow also managed to get stuck by this thing:

Unhappy Claire is Unhappy.

I am unhappy, and the reason for the slight disdain in this post, is because I thought I was going for a nice outing. Like, maybe a 40 minute at most mini-adventure, crusing along at a slow-watch the world-pace. I had no idea we'd be out for hours. And that I could hate something so quickly after enjoying myself. I was wet and gross and my back hurt, and okay enough with the whining right?
I told the girls I was with that I was ready to be done (long after I actually was) thinking we would turn around. They giggled and kept going. I thought to myself: "Oh well, this must be a loop river, we don't have to turn around because we'll just circle around. We must be just about done now". Oh how I was wrong.

Oh yes, of course, another "stuck" picture.
Only this was me just getting out of really being stuck. Like beached. Being beached is not cool.

Since I showed you a dead iguana in a nasty river a few posts back, I thought you'd like to see one alive and well on a lovely river.

Okay so the day was not a loss, I'm still glad (I'm still glad, I'm still glad, I'm still glad, repeat, repeat) I did it because its not like I came away with any lasting emotional scars.
Here's the thing: I like to know what I'm getting myself into. If I had known (maybe I should have asked, yes) that we'd be out for hours at a sporty pace, I probably would've passed, I'm not going to lie. Because as much as I like to try new things, try is the operative word here. I like to get the experience without letting the experience get me down. Savy?
[side note: my friend and I switched kayaks 3/4 of the way back. Let it be noted that she flipped it 45 seconds in. it was not a fun kayak to be in]

Afterward we stopped by the house my friend was house-sitting for, and this pretty thing was part of the responsibility. How beautiful is she? And just as sweet as pie, although my friend begs to differ. She brightened the day. I think I need one.

And now, to end this post, is a video I took for my little brother though he is far from little anymore. We used to watch Shining Time Station all the time together as kids, and this bridge reminded me of him. Its not an entertaining video, so just skip it if you don't have any desire to go down memory lane with us. Its just a bridge moving. But don't you think of Thomas?

Alligator Reservations

I've been wanting to do enough things quintessentially Florida before I leave in May, so a trip to the Miccosukee Indian Reservation in the Everglades was certainly in order.




We paid our $10 and hopped on an airboat ride across the "River of Grass" (thats what they call the Everglades). It reminded me of zipping across a prairie.



Just incase you wanted to see a high contrast up the nose picture of the blogger.




You would think this would be self-explanatory. However, I was tempted, as you'll see later.



Here's our first alligator of the day. Please don't mind the voice. No clue where these things come from.



Mr. Miccosukee


Caught this pretty bird. Hey! I could be a nature-photographer! Whatdoyouknow!



I frequent plenty of photography blogs so I'm trying to do things like I think they do to get amazing shots. For instance, I see so many shots that are taken at ground level so I tried it on this one, getting on my belly and attempting to capture a fantastic picture. All I got was this, and I'm not sure it looks any different than if I was standing.



This is a gator our airboat driver spotted on the way back. See how big he is?!



Pretty skies. Pretty day.



As we got back to home-base there was an alligator right on the bank! I just had to visit him. See how the sign is actually needed?


Again with the weird voice, I know I'm weird.


It was kind of a long drive there and back (according to the Floridians in the car) so a bit of hilarity ensued with the gator claw-backscratcher and head I bought for my brothers. Kerry really brought the claw to life, wouldn't you say?


Soaking in Florida, one day at a time.

I'm Still Here

Since I bought this domain name and started this blog for my candidacy for the best job in the world, I could just drop it like a hot potato and retreat to my other corner of the blogosphere.

But I'm going to keep this blog and as I don't need to be sunny every day for the aforementioned job's sake, fear not if I occasionaly wax sarcastic or venture out on rants that seem to come out of nowhere (they never do, they just appear that way).

Because I really like it here, at TheClaireMarie.com


I think I'll stay. And I hope you will too.



Flickr: Mariapia

looks like I am censored and sensitive to being shallow. What do you know?

Its a No Go

Oh. Well.
What can you do?
I gave it a whole-hearted go.

A little bit dissapointed and a tiny smidge of sad.
But thats okay.
The things in life worth wanting go this way when you can't have them.
Its just the way it is.

Thank you to everyone who has been so very supportive.
Your kind words and actions aren't soon forgotton.
I'm sorry it didn't pan out.

So this means I've gotta find a law job come May?
How about another Best Job in the World sort?
anybody got a lead?

This little munchkin in my lap is happy I won't be leaving her.



:)

"How Did You Die"

I promise you this is not a post of morbid propensity.
It is however, a a food for thought post.

A person I follow on twitter asked:
"Who cares how the world remembers you? How will you remember yourself?"
And it instantly made me think of my favorite poem (one of two).
I stumbled upon this work by Edmund Vance Cooke sometime early-on in college and have been loyal to it ever since.

So here's my chance to share it with you, Dear Readers:

How Did You Die

by Edmund Vance Cooke

Did you tackle that trouble that came your way

With a resolute heart and cheerful?

Or hide your face from the light of day

With a craven soul and fearful?

Oh, a trouble's a ton, or a trouble's an ounce,

Or a trouble is what you make it,

And it isn't the fact that you're hurt that counts,

But only how did you take it?

You are beaten to earth? Well, well, what's that?

Come up with a smiling face.

It's nothing against you to fall down flat,

But to lie there--that's disgrace.

The harder you're thrown, why the higher you bounce;

Be proud of your blackened eye!

It isn't the face that you're licked that counts,

It's how did you fight--and why?

And though you be done to death, what then?

If you battled the best you could,

If you played your part in the world of men,

Why, the Critic will call it good.

Death comes with a crawl, or comes with a pounce,

And whether he's slow or spry,

It isn't the fact that you're dead that counts,

But only how did you die?

Dirty River Extravaganza

Sounds like an Appalachian washboard band, doesn't it? In fact, if we do some checking I bet it is.

So why is the name of a jug and banjo band the title of this post? Because to graduate from my law school you have to complete 40 hours of pro bono (volunteer) work. Since 20 hours can come from doing any kind of charitable work, an opportunity came this weekend for us to get 5 hours or so by canoeing along the North Fork River in Broward County, picking up trash as we floated along. Sounds nice, doesn't it?

First, this isn't a "river" as many of us would think of it. Its more like a canal or creek that backs up to houses and parking lots. Houses is a term used very loosely.
It was not a nice area, lets just say. Not terrible, but not nice. And ooooooh so dirty.
(okay, I know I should've realized I would be picking up trash in the most disgusting form of the word, but somehow I had romanticized the whole experience ahead of time).

Here, have some evidence of the bad state of things of this river.
It clearly has major issues:



Yep, thats a dead iguana. This was only one of 3 that were spotted. We didn't see many live animals, and absolutely no fish at all.


But still, I had a nice canoe team so we had a good time. I was stuck in the middle being the primary trash handler, but it wasn't all that bad.





I initially started trying to help clean the canoe after all was said and done, but in my attempt to conserve water by kinking the hose I accidentially let it slip and ended up spraying everyone around me. Most of them in the crotch. My bad.



So I played photog for a while.


We were made aware mid-river that we were in the procrastinator's boat. We didn't know what the heck he was talking about until he told us the name of our canoe:



Which did not apply at all because while we were all making a great effort, Kerry made us take it to the next level, using her paddle and hook to pull us backwards if she missed a single piece of trash.
There was no procrastination that morning.



Finally, there was this sign:



"The River is now cleaner than it has been in many years"
I shudder at the thought of years past.
Please, I beg of you. Even though this sign says you can, do not, whever you do, eat fish out of the canal-like-rivers in south Florida.


Here are the "Will-Do" canoe mates. I'd like to point out that the three of us are wearing our respective undergrad alumni gear. Miss college much?





And of course, I made a video for the day. Nothing mind-blowing, but take a look at our trash:






All in all it was a nice Saturday morning.
Got a little sun and the weather was dreamy.
The river was in a sad state but we helped, at least a little bit.
If Matt would've joined in our "row row row your boat" round, we would've been the most awesome group out there, hands down.
But still, a great way to earn pro bono hours and have a couple laughs.

Hope your Saturday was just as nice :)

The View From My Window

sunny afternoons and sleepy girls lulled by the breeze.

northern downpour sends its love.

Application Video is UP!!! View Now!

I cannot believe its finally up! So excited to see my face on their website background :)

So its time for you to view it!

When you get to the page, please rate me 5 stars so that I get bumped up on the "most popular" list and more random people see my video.

Also, both the High Quality and Normal versions of my video are avaliable to be seen, but to see it in HQ you have to choose that option. The picture below demonstrates how you can pick the HQ option, which I reccomend. Unfortunatly with the normal resolution alot of facial detail is lost and my eyes just look like black holes, but I assure they are not, lol.



Again, here is the link:
http://www.islandreefjob.com/#/applicants/watch/YSthO0NcUKU
just incase the one above breaks.

Pretty please pass along and view often (if you view from different computers you can rate multiple times too!) to bump my count up.

The voting stage isn't necessarily important this round, which is why I'm not yet begging anyone and everyone I know quite yet, but I think the more views and votes I have the more attention I'll get, which can't be a bad thing-right?

In other news, I've got the school day off which is wonderful, so I'm catching up on old episodes of law and order. And naps of course. Reading some tax later and just maaaybe getting started on the P90X program. That deserves a post of its own I'm sure.

So remember: view, vote, and view again. And have a wonderful day :)

Happy Saint Valentine's Day!

Good morning Sweet, Beautiful Readers.

I know it is tempting to blame commercialization and capitalism for the holiday today has become, but I think today is also a day to consciously remove the cynicism that ordinarily just lurks in the shadows but that rears its ugly head especially on days like these.

I like to think of it as a sweet reminder to appreciate the people you love and look at the world through rose colored glasses, just because you can for a day. Nothing more than that.

Sometimes it is hard to be single today. But I don't think it should be. That doesn't mean I am immune to that thought crossing my mind, or that I'm suggesting my fellow singles should be either. I just like to smile and think of the people that do love me and that I love too.

And there are sweet things like this to help us along:


Before you slip cynical on me, I'll be the first to acknowledge that this is commercialism. I get it. Now just watch it again without thinking about that. And smile already :)
(btw I won't get into the irony of my posting something from this company on Valentine's Day just yet. but when I decide to go on an irony spree, you better believe this will be one of them)

And because there is nothing like sweet and sour, if you do happen to be single today, check out these four suggestions of things to do to commemorate the occasion.
I swear that the "Walk the Streets" bit was written for me. Or about me. Or something like that. Because they are my sentiments exactly. And if that makes me cynical just re-read the top portion of this blog and forget you ever got this far. I'm a realist too you know.

To end on a sweet note, here is my Valentine to you, dear readers:


Peeky put up with having a sticker plastered on her forehead just for you, and she was a sweet little girl about it.

I truly hope you have a lovely day.

Why Pick Me? pt. 2

I've put together a blooper reel of all the mistakes and outtakes that managed to sneak in the making of my application video.

Bottom line:
If you haven't had the time to peruse this blog and the only things you really know about me are from my official application video (linked here when it gets put up on the Tourism Queensland contest site) or my bullet list of why TQ should pick me for the best job in the world, then hopefully this reel will show you the lighter side of Claire Marie.
Because though I took this project and the making of this video very seriously, I am silly too and had a lot of fun doing it, and I thought you should see a bit of that as well :)

Why Should You and Tourism Queensland Pick Me? I Shall Be Delighted To Tell You!

If my "about me" posts are too much to go through, let me go bullet style for a moment...

I AM A(n):

• Very strong swimmer. Volunteer swim coach.


• Would jump at an opportunity to become SCUBA certified.


• Avid traveler. (13 countries and counting!)


• Strong believer in that which is different is not wrong.


• Open to new experiences (I'll try almost anything once!)


• Descriptive Blogger since 2003.


• Forever student at heart (I delight in learning new things).
• Independent and Self-Sufficient. Ready to pick up and move!
  
• Thespian (thats theatre, thank you). Theatre minor in college.


• Photography hobbyist.


• Have had pets my entire life and always enjoy interacting with new ones, domesticated or not (though I have a healthy appreciation for boundaries).
  
• Hard worker. Seeing every project through to the end with as close to perfection as is practically possible.


• Creative. always looking through different "lenses" so to say.


• Outgoing and always involved. (would you like to see my resume??!)
  
• Now know more about the Great Barrier Reef region and Australia as a whole than I ever would have imagined. I was more than ready to share my newly found wealth on my video but 60 secs. is in no way long enough. Especially if I need to talk about me too! :-P


• Seriously considered flying to Jamaica to film a segment of my application video so I could jump off a cliff in Negril to show that "I'll jump right in!". Half of everyone I know thought that was insane, and the nice half said (and I quote): "No, you're just dedicated. You'll go to extreme lengths to get a job done". Darn tootin'!


• Adventurous and fully physically capable of actively accomplishing all of the "including but not limited to" activities expected of the winning applicant.
• Soo looking forward to participating in all of the "including but not limited to" activities and expanding my world and breadth of experiences even further. And then blogging about it! Not much could make me happier.

You need me because:

• The hired applicant should be looking at the Reef and its Islands through fresh eyes. Their posts should not read "Spent the day on Lady Elliot Island, it is just as beautiful as I remember it." No. The world needs to hear how beautiful it is the first time around. Because as much as an applicant will try, their posts and videos just will not have the same sparkle as the person who is being capitvated by the beauty for the very first time.

• I have put countless hours into this project, and have enjoyed every second, even the ones that made me want to pull out my hair because a program wasn't working right or the wind was drowning me out. Even though I've been fiercely dedicated to this project, I did it all while still handling my responsibilities of my last few months of law school and working two jobs. No class or obligation has suffered. I can do many things at once and get them all done on time and with the Claire-Flair ;)

--

if you're a new visitor and have no idea why this entire post was even written, check here for reference :)

Officially Submitted!!

I've spent coutless hours working on this video.
Hair has definately been twisted to the brink of break. BUT I was so happy doing it.
Sure, sometimes things that make you happy can be stressful (ahem, family anyone?).
And I fretted alot. But I fretted because I wanted to make sure it was perfect. Or as perfect as this blogger with no video/audio editing experience can get it. I like to think of myself as a quick study, but computers just are not our friends sometimes.
And so edit and learn and edit and cut and adjust and add I did. For days and days.
And then today, I got to the point. The point. When I said to myself "I really do not think there is another thing I can do".
So I decided which picture I would upload as my thumbnail for their site, repeated the video file name to myself a hundred million times so I didn't end up sending the wrong one, filled out the application and pushed "Submit". And as I watched the little green bar at the bottom of my browser get closer and closer then stop I just hoped it would go through without any complications.

And it did!

See this lovely screen shot?? So very excited to have it turned in.

Thats all :) Once the video is posted live to their site, I'll link you to it here on the blog. I would show you now, but I'd rather you see it fresh once its live.

And yes, I know, I'm awfully wrapped up in this, what seems like a million in one shot. But I think I've got one. So I put a lot into it. And thats all there is to say about that.

Things I've Learned

but couldn't use.
Not that I couldn't use them, per se, its just that a 60 second application video is shockingly short once you're actually staring down the seconds. So most of the information I gathered about the Great Barrier Reef and Hamilton Island ended up cut for time. Showing Tourism Queensland why I'm the perfect candidate for the job and telling them all that I know (or learned) about their beautiful part of their world is nearly impossible. I've done the best I could, but here are some facts that were left on the cutting room floor:

Hamilton Island

• One of 74 drowned mountains that form the Whitsunday Chain of Islands.
• Largest inhabited island in the Coral Sea.
• Has a year round tropical climate with an average temperature of about 82 degrees.
• Prior to the last ice age, the Whitsundays were connected to the mainland, but flooding caused by the melting of the polar ice caps seperated them turning them into the island chain they are now.
• 70% of the Island is protected as National Park.
• In late August the Island plays host to a famed Race Week, a yachting festival drawing over a 150 vessels.
• The activities and species of flora and fauna on the island are too numerous to list. Seriously. From kayaking to aviation tours and wallabies to peacocks, the list of things to see and do is endless.

Great Barrier Reef

• Spans over 1200 miles long.
• Hundreds of islands dot the reef along its entire expanse.
• There are over 30 species of whales, porpoises, and dolphins that make the reef their home, whether permanently or as part of their migration track.
• July (when the best job in the world winner is to report for duty) is the perfect time for catching a glimpse of the migrating humpback whales.
• It is the largest reef system in the world and its formation dates back as far as nearly 600,000 years ago.
• The current reef structure is more like 6-8,000 years old.
• 400 species of coral comprise the reef and as a structure it can be seen from space. Space! That is Amazing!
• 1500 variaties of fish call the reef home.
• Tiger and Hammerhead sharks have been spotted along the reef, but most shark sightings are of those that are generally docile like the Reef or White/Black Tip sharks.
• Australia is known to be the home of some of the most dangerous sealife on the planet. And though, for example, the Box Jellyfish and the Blue Ringed Octopus can be distrubed enough to the point of inflicting harm, most websites say its simple: just leave them alone and they will return the favor.

(as a disclaimer, I am not claiming origin of these facts, I know I got them from outside sources, and no, I did not cite any of them because when I was fact gathering I didnt keep them. Horrible student, I know).

When a place makes you nervous to be there

And its 8 oclock in the morning, it just may be time to rethink things.

And this was after I hid things in my trunk and made peace with the fact I might never see my car again.