Your age is your age. but more importantly, your life is your life

It's been a few months and I really need to get back on my blogging game. I want to start blogging more often because one day I will be able to look back on this blog and it'll be like a mini biography of my life. 

Anyways since its been a while I will try not to include every detail that has happened in the past few months. These past few two months has been filled with great friends, laughs, and relaxation. I spend my days relaxing at CC'S trying to plan out my future and I spend my nights with my friends having drinks and talking about life. 

The title of this post is your age is your age, but more importantly, your life if your life. I stole this little quote from a blog someone shared on Facebook. Although written by a twenty something year old girl those words have a lot of meaning. The meaning I took out of this is that although I am getting older every year and my age goes up it is not to late to do the things I want to do. Life never stops moving for anyone and at some point you have to realize it is only you that can take life by the horns and live it!

I am 23 years old who has a bachelors degree and recently quit my full time job. Some may say it was a mistake but I see it as me trying to achieve some personal goals and my full time job just did not allow for it. I am currently happy with my life because I now have time to plan out my future and where I want to be in life. The problem with this is I have only figured out that I want to get out of Lafayette and live in different cities around the world. Now the hard part of this is being able to afford to move and then getting a job in select city. I have my heart set on traveling and working but have yet to figure out exactly what I want to do.

I am not keen on the idea of a 9-5 desk job so I refuse to just give in and get one. I am looking for an adventure. Something that will take me to the ends of the world and back and I will not settle for anything less so until then I will continue drinking coffee during the day and alcohol at night creating memories and moving along with life and not worrying about my age. 

Until next time......

*Props to http://todaywasmeaningful.wordpress.com/2013/09/ for that little quote you see in the title. 

So much time.....

So it has been a few days, no wait weeks since my last post. Let me update you guys on the past few weeks. So I have been pretty much enjoying life as much as I can. The past 8 years of my life since I was 16 has been filled with school and WORK. I came to the point where I just needed a break (Yeah I know a year break to go to Italy is a long time but it is a break much needed). Most of you know but in case you don't I busted my ass for the past 8 years always working with little play. This is a big reason I want to live my life in Europe for at least a year.

Ok so anyway these past three weeks of only having a bar tending job have been some of the greatest nights of my life. Every night has been filled with friends, fun, music, and well of course, booze. Two weeks ago my friends and I took a journey to Hidalgo TX to see Krewella (for the second time) live at "Life in Color", the world's largest paint party. When I tell you the six of us experienced a trip like never before you cannot imagine what happened. We laughed, literally for 3 days straight, and bonded like nobodies business. It was a shitshow I tell ya. So we get back and all is fine until I come down with strep throat last week. I was out of commission for a solid four days but I am back in action now.

That is just a little update on my life so far. Oh wait you want an update on Italy right? Ok so I have decided that I am not rushing into it and well for good reasons. I want to have all my ducks in a row especially my bills I have. I am hopefully getting my job at Zeas real soon and then I will be ready to again bust my ass and prepare for the move. By the way I am shooting for an August move date which puts me at about a year away from living my dream.

Oh and I bought my LLC today. It is "Tunz Ent. LLC". For all of you who do not know what that means it is my marketing/management agency that I have always wanted to do. So much talent in Lafayette but these kids do not have the time or energy to do things properly and well I want to be the one there for them taking care of the dirty work so they can focus on the important things such as painting, making music, and whatever else their heart desires. I am a little worried about this conflicting with my Italy dreams but hey if Terrance hits it big and makes it in the EDM world I will be ALL OVER instead of just one place but that may take a while.

Alright thats enough for one night. I'll try to post more in the coming weeks. Much love.

"Take At Least One..... A CHANCE"

So saw this little gem on Facebook (yes I was bored and on Facebook because no one had drama on Twitter) the other day. I have told a select few people in my life what my plans are and I have gotten one of two responses

1. You are crazy (Yes I am, I already know this)

2. "Wow that is amazing, I wish I could do something like that" (You can if you put your mind to it) See flyer below for motivation.

Whoever came up with this flyer really needs a high five or a cookie or something because little do they know that something as simple as this can motivate someone to keep going. Taking chances in your life can be hard especially when you plan on leaving the place you have lived for the past 23 years to embark on one hell of an adventure. I would say I am 95% committed to this trip, I am leaving 5% off of this until after the 4th of July where I will need to get my life together due to the amount of alcohol I may consume. Included in that five percent is death, winning the lottery, or getting a dream job making 6 figures. 

Anyway as I start my last week of my big boy job I am pretty stoked for next week. Monday and Tuesday you can find me at CC's practicing my Italian through Rosetta Stone (no I didn't pay for it!) and researching everything I need to know about moving and living in Italy, oh and a massage. Then Wednesday it is Krewella in BFE in Texas and then from there we head to Destin for one last trip before I commit my life to working and saving up to move to Italy. 

Oh yeah and I am pretty much on the right track to getting a job at Zea's so if you like them ribs look for me there in July and come help pay for my dream!

Remember "Take at least one........ A CHANCE"

Getting My Master's in life

1 week and 2 days.... That's how long I have left before I close a chapter in my life titled "My Hockey Career". Yes after 2 long strenuous exciting years of working as an account executive for the Louisiana IceGators I will officially be giving up my job so I can earn my "Master's in Life" (Thanks Brit for this amazing saying).

The hardest part about leaving this part of my life behind is going to be my co-workers, who for the past two years have taught me so much. I've definitely gained many experiences with my boss and his wife as well as a new best friend, Matt. I have watched their kids grow up (including cleaning their throw up and babysitting) and been pushed to excel everyday. I do not regret one moment of working with these people and that will be the hardest part of leaving this job but I realize that I must give up something so I can gain something.

Next week will be hard as Friday I will have to say goodbye to something I love but starting on Monday, July 1st I will start the new chapter in my life as I start researching and preparing (mentally and physically) for the move to Italy.

I will continue to post entires in this blog and I will be sure to keep them interesting and humorous and maybe just maybe I will inspire someone out there to start living life and learn that there is more to see out there in the world than this little town you live in. As the quote says below "The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page." Well Lafayette has been one page in my book but when I went to Italy for study abroad I feel like those 6 weeks filled up 10 pages so I hope to keep filling that book next year and challenge everyone reading this to do something out of the ordinary because anything is possible.

Oh I need to make a list also so here goes:

1. Apply for a Visa (Student or Work)
2. Research the best way to earn a TEFL certificate
3. Learn Italiano
4. Get in touch with contacts I know throughout Italy (Any help is appreciated)
5. Buy two tickets to an Italy soccer game (One for me, one for Brit)

Simply put.......

The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. - Saint Augustine at BrainyQuote

My Italiano Journey Continues

Hi everyone!!!

So two years after coming back from Florence I am currently sitting in Brittney's house looking back at our pictures from Florence. In case you guys didn't know who Brittney was she went to Florence Study Abroad last summer and is Terrance's (my manager at Bootlegger's) roommate. She is the reason I am "continuing" this blog and obviously a blessing in disguise. It is currently June 17th 2013 and I put my two weeks into the IceGators this morning which most of you know is a big step in my life because of the passion I had with the team.....

OK OK OK I know this is a lot of information but it is the beginning of a new adventure and theres a little background you must deal with before getting to the good parts. Brittney has opened me up to this thing called a "TEFL" certificate which in "english" terms means "teaching English in a foreign language" in case you didn't know.....

Sooooo our plans for TEFL are to go out to Florence in July of 2014 and take the course. It is a strenuous four week course which will teach you how to teach English to a person who speaks foreign language. Once we achieve this certificate we will have a month to work in a hotel, bar, restaurant, and earn a little money until the hiring season in September.

Once September comes we have a 95% chance of having a job..........

This job will obviously change our lives....... It can be anything from teaching at a private university to teaching kids at a private language school to homeschooling a child in English. The fact that there is so many opportunities is amazing.

So at the moment I am listening to Krewella (If you do not know what I am talking about look the DJ group up then come talk to me) who I will see in exactly two weeks in Miami. BTW Miami is my last "fun" thing I plan on doing before I leave for Italy..... This is obviously not related to what the blog is about but the passion I have for music has a lot to do with it so deal with it.

My current plans are to get a job at local restaurant (zea's, charley g's, social) along with Bootleggers and save up until it is time to fly out to Italy.....

Ok I know this blog was not planned out but you have to continue to read until I actually get out to Italy. I plan on being a little more organized after this one. There is just so much to say but I have no clue how to say it all without losing you guys. (Now you get the basics of what my plans on I can elaborate without losing you)

Soooooo until then I plan on keeping this blog updated until I leave for Italy so you guys will have a lot to read until then. Hopefully everything works out and I will have a TO-DO list posted pretty soon......

Until then Ciao......

Ciao

Hey everyone,

So this will be my last post until I get back to Lafayette and what better way to start it off than with a thank you to everyone who has been following my blog. I also want to extend this thanks to everyone who made this trip possible and the ones that kept in contact with me these past 6 weeks. I would have never made it through without you guys.

Enough with the tears now and on to more serious things. In these past 6 weeks I have learned a lot about the Italian culture and business compared to how we do things in America. The Italian culture is much more laid back and nothing seems to bother a business owner. Many of the businesses do not have business hours because the owner decides when to open and close at his or her own discretion. When looking at the restaurant business you can easily see the service is terrible. This is due to the fact that in the Italian culture no one tips for service. If you have ever worked in the restaurant industry you will know that this must be a terrible place to work because even though they are getting paid more here you make more when leaving it up to the customer to tip you.

The Italians are also very friendly toward their own women and American women. All you have to do is walk into a coffee shop or pretty much any business where there is a man and woman working and you will eventually see the guy touching on his female co-worker. In a normal business back home this would be considered harassment or in some cases wouldn't actually be done in front of the customer. It seems as though there is no human resource departments at many of the businesses here. I believe the main reason for this is because many of the businesses here are owned by family's so the kids and relatives work at the businesses so it is a lot more unprofessional. I am anxious to see what I notice about different aspects of business when I get home in Lafayette and how I apply the business practices Italians use here that seem to work, most of the time.

Since my homework assignment is complete I might as well tell you guys about our last couple of days in Florence. Sunday we woke up to go see some things we weren't able to see in the past 6 weeks. After touring the inside of the Duomo and the museum behind it I had to come back home and sleep because, of course, after 6 weeks I would get sick in Italy on the past couple of days. The rest of the day was wasted with me drugged up in bed. Yesterday we packed and started cleaning our apartment until our farewell dinner. We all met up as a group and had a nice last dinner with our fellow students and teachers. George, the leader of the trip from UL, said a few words that had everyone laughing and made us all wish we wouldn't have to leave so soon. After dinner everyone headed to the grand opening of the Hard Rock Cafe Firenze. We all watched the band for a little while then went to one of the apartments and hung out until we decided to go out to a bar. On the way there I decided I would be smart and come home and sleep because I still felt like I was going to die in Italy.


Today is our last day in Italy and we are cleaning up the rest of our apartment and are going to have dinner one last time with the group. We have to be at the airport at 4:30 in the morning which should be so much fun. Wish me luck that these flights go as planned and I will be back in Lafayette at 6:00 p.m. tomorrow.... Get ready guys because it will never be the same.

Mrs. Vanessa's Final Project

The Practice of Sustainability and Recycling in Italy

            The minute you arrive in Florence, Italy you get a sense of a laid back slow moving culture, except for the people on Vespas. One thing that the Italians are not laid back about though is their will to keep their city clean and free from trash. With the amount of people who travel to the historic district of Florence, not keeping up with the cleaning would turn this beautiful town into a slum. 

• ·         The first thing I noticed about the cleaning practices is the street sweepers that are constantly going up and down every street all day. Every so often the driver will get out and sweep the sidewalk off before continuing his duties. This eliminates the great amount of cigarette butts and debris that tourists clutter the streets with.

• ·         Right behind the street sweeper is something we are very familiar with and that is the trash truck. This truck travels the streets of Italy all day every day picking up the bins of trash that line the streets. I couldn’t imagine having to carry my trash to my local trash bin rather than putting it out in my own bin in front of my house. Most of the streets have these bins very close together but I have seen a few streets that have none and it is a good walk to the nearest one.

• ·         Right next to these garbage bins are a different lighter blue bin. These bins are made for people to put their glass bottles in such as all the wine bottles we have drank so far in Italy. These bins also allow for you to put your plastic bottles into. The truck that picks these up lifts them into the sky over the back of the truck and opens a chute on the bottom which allows for everything to fall straight into the truck. Watching this was awesome; to bad I forgot my camera at home.

• ·         The next big recycling move the city takes that we do not see every day in the states is recycling of boxes. As you are walking down the streets in the late afternoon on certain days you will find that in front of every business there are piles of cardboard boxes. If you were to wait around you will eventually see a truck that is similar to the trash truck come around the corner and a guy following it throwing these boxes into the back. This practice shows that not one piece of cardboard is left behind.

• ·         Recently we traveled outside of Florence to the valleys of Chianti to see how wine is produced. Many of us went into this trip thinking that wine was easy to make and it is a get rich quick job if you are in the right area. We were all proven wrong as soon as we stepped foot off of the bus. The first vineyard we toured used regular practices of wine making such a pesticides and produced 25 million bottles of wine a year.

The second wine vineyard we went to practiced sustainability when it produced its wine and used the acts of nature instead of the hurtful practices of man. Our tour guide explained to us that no harmful pesticides are used on any of the plants. Instead they use the elements of the land such as planting non harmful bugs that will eat the harmful bugs. They also plant certain grasses in between each row that add nutrients to the soil that helps the grapes grow. This vineyard relies on the natural weather to grown its crop instead of adding their own water. 

After comparing these two wine vineyards we can see that the second one cares more about the future and sustainability of the land rather than making a perfect crop every year. 

The last thing we learned is that just because a wine is organically made does not mean it is better than a wine made using pesticides but you will always feel better when drinking the organic wine.

• ·         There are a couple of other small practices that make a difference in Italy that could also help the United States with its recycling problem. When going to the supermarket or other stores you must pay 10 to 20 cents per bag you use. This forces people to use their book sacks or reusable bags so plastic does not get eaten by the environment and harm anyone.

• ·         Another practice I only read about but never got to see up close was the use of the brown bins you see on the streets. These bins were put into place to collect organic kitchen waste along with leaves and grass.  

       As you can see Italy has many practices that support recycling but it still isn’t where the Florentine government wants it. Their goal is to have 40% of material being recycled but they are at about 27.5%. It would be interesting to see how the USA compares to the amount of recycling done here as compared to there. So when you see piece of trash laying on the sidewalk next to the trashcan join the Italians on their fight for cleanliness and pick it up. 

http://www.theflorentine.net/articles/article-view.asp?issuetocId=4944&browse-by=BeGreen