a bit about me.

Given that I'm back to blogging, I thought an "About Me" post might be a good re-introduction, then this morning I saw a fun new blogger I'm following do an "About Me" post so I'm blatantly following suit.

(P.S. The blogger is Katie Elizabeth. She blogs from up in Chicago).

Hi, this is me.

I normally don't pose with a water bottle, but a prop was necessary.

Name/Age/Location
My name is Diana Maria. I'm rarely called by both names, but I love it when I am by those I'm close to. I am 28 years old (and share a birthday with my bestie, something that has always delighted us), and I live in Athens, Georgia. I came to Athens for college, and have yet to find a reason to leave. It has truly become home to me.

Family
I do not have any family that I'm related to biologically that lives in the same state as me (or, let's be honest, the same region). Just gives me great reason to travel!

Me and my sweet cousin.

However, I do have incredible friends who have truly become family to me over the years. I'm super blessed to have "Athens parents," and friends who are as close to me as sisters.

Work
I am a Program Assistant...I administratively support seven individuals. It's usually crazy. But it's also a ton of fun and I truly enjoy the work I do (and love the people I work with).

Hobbies
Running, photography, cooking, reading, kayaking, house keeping, and fashion. I like to dabble in crafts, but that's pretty infrequent these days and usually only done seasonally.

I will always, ALWAYS, say yes to a pool day. 

Which is why in the summer I don't tend to cook or craft.

Favorite Food
Oh gosh. I love food. Ieeee...right now I'd have to say peanut butter. Yep. I'm on a MAJOR PB kick these days. And peas. And watermelon. And frozen yogurt. And non-alcoholic pina colada smoothies. I told you I liked food.

Favorite Color
It's hard to choose just one! Can I say a few...gray, black, cream, navy, and pale pink. *If you look in my closet, that is kinda the spectrum you'd see as well.

Standard Coffee Order
Non fru-fru: A black dark roast hot coffee, or iced coffee, no sweetener, no cream. But if I'm feeling the need for something fun (and committed to spending $4 on a coffee drink...) "a grande in a venti cup, double blended coffee frappachino made with skim milk with an add shot of expresso" or "a non-fat, no-foam, no-whip, add an extra shot latte." Seriously. Reading that makes me roll my eyes. But it does make a difference. Promise. And yes, I do love caffeine and have no intentions of ending our relationship anytime soon.

Standard Bar Order
I usually go the mixed drink route at a bar (the mark-up on beer is ridiculous), and lean towards those that are fruity and mixed with rum. I was told once, "there's no way to sound classy ordering a hurricane," but they are my favorite.

Places I Shop
Loft, Gap, J.Crew, and Banana Republic. I tend to only buy shoes that are by Clarks, so wherever they are sold.

Bedtime and Wake-Up Time
I usually wake up by 5:30 a.m., which means I need to be in bed by 9:30/10:00 p.m. at the latest. When I'm really running hard (both physically and with responsibilities) I will often fall asleep the moment I sit still, no matter where I am (I've fallen asleep on the couch sitting straight up twice this week).

Beauty Products I Can't Live Without
The phrase "can't live without" is a little strong to me, but I prefer to not be without:

• My horrible smelling miracle working prescription sulfur face wash...my face has never been clearer.
• Eyeliner and mascara. (I use a super cheap Maybelline eye liner and Benefit "They're Real" mascara).
• Lotion...I like retaining the little bit of tan I get from running all the time.

What I Blog About

Me. I've recently decided to give this blog the lens of "life-style" to see what happens from here. Moreso, I really view this blog as a scrapbook, and I really enjoy looking back to see what I've done.

First Blog I Read

Probably Erika's.

How Did I Start Blogging

All my friends were blogging, so I hopped on the bandwagon.  Choo-choo.

I'm back?

Hello blogging world, long time no see.  Oops.

I went through a serious phase of not wanting to share ANYTHING at large.  Like, if I didn't Facebook for church I would have deactivated my account already.  Now, don't get me wrong, I'm still pretty firmly residing in that camp.  I don't like a lot of personal information about me readily available.  I do assume all of you who read this are the most lovely of people and I probably want to hang out with you in "real life." However, I also acknowledge there may be some more unscrupulous individuals who read this that I prefer to not give free fodder of discussion or interest to. 

And then I've been wondering about "direction" and why I even want to write.  I asked myself and was asked by a friend, "why not just keep a journal?"  Well, I do.  But do what I want what is published in that journal available at large?  H-no.  Actually, upon my death I want those journals destroyed if I couldn't take care of it beforehand.  In those journals are mostly spiritual notes and prayers and things intensely personal.  There may be some fun notes about things that blessed or challenged me, but again, my perspective of them and not for the world.

Why then write on this public forum?
I consider myself a pretty decent cook and hostess and good home-keeper (haha, for a single lady with no children or roommate, not that hard) but I don't think I do anything revolutionary that is worth pinning, the blogger standard of worthiness.

So why write? 
Because it's fun.  It's an outlet for practicing my writing (the adage "if you don't use it, you loose it" applies to seemingly everything).  It's a scrapbook--to see outfits I've worn, deals I've scored, injuries I've incurred, books I've read.  It's something I can't (easily) loose and helps me remember what fun things I'm doing and fun house tips I'm practicing.

Direction?

This isn't going to be a house-keeping blog, even though that is one of my "passions" I'll be sharing about.  It's not going to be a fashion blog, though I really enjoy clothes.  It's not going to be a review blog, but I can promise I'll blab about things that I use and places I like.  That leaves me in the "lifestyle" camp.  Yep, I'm there.  Will it have a fluffy nature?  Oh I promise.  Remember, the deep stuff I'll talk about, but not here.  Or, maybe sometimes here! But overall, this blog is dessert. Not exactly necessary, but a whole lotta fun.

So I'm hopping on with both feet onto the lifestyle bandwagon.  I love reading blogs, and think they are so fun!  I call it the "blogger koolaid" but I love getting my new nail polish color recommendations from other bloggers (OPI Cajun Shrimp) and picking out what books to read.

Here's to more frequent blogging!