hot child in the city

Too tired to fight the good fight?

We’re gonna take a break from our regularly scheduled lighthearted Internet tomfoolery here at Hot Child in the City, and break it down a for a second.

I was reading Paulo Coelho’s blog entry on Killing Your Dreams (thanks Neve!), I got to thinking. I know, it’s dangerous. Where does being strategic enter into following your dreams? I’ve got a plan - who doesn’t? - and I’m attempting to stick to said plan. The plan, however, involves a lot of ‘down time’, which is making me antsy, making me second guess myself, making me think that there’s more I could be doing. Coelho argues:

The first symptom of the process of our killing our dreams is the lack of time. The busiest people I have known in my life always have time enough to do everything. Those who do nothing are always tired and pay no attention to the little amount of work they are required to do. They complain constantly that the day is too short. The truth is, they are afraid to fight the Good Fight.

I’ve been one of those ‘busy people’ - however, ever since leaving undergrad, I’ve felt stagnant, and I’ve attributed it to This Is What Adult Life Is Like. Rather, what I’ve observed my parents do. Work, Come Home, Eat, Sleep, Rinse, Repeat. My days blur together, and they only way I track the passage of time is through my obsessively color-coded calendar.

Now, however, I’m biding my time, and I’m frequently exhausted. I think all of this sluggishness is getting to me. I should be out and about getting involved, making some radical life choices, but I’m not. I’m young, I have no responsibilities, save to myself. Where does being a ‘productive member of society’ intersect with ‘personal growth’?

I feel as though maybe Judy Bloom should have prepared me for this.

Professionalism is HARD

I’m a young, professional lady. Not that I am a lady professionally, mind you - no one would pay me for lady advice. It would consist of things like, “Eat candy everyday!” and “Scales are a nasty source of information, throw them out”, and “10 Reasons Not to Wear Makeup to Work” (Spoiler Alert: all ten have to do with sleeping more).

At any rate, I’m working in Silicon Valley right now, essentially helping in the replication of existing products squished together, but for business people. The idea is that this product should replace a company’s intranet. For example, if you’re starting your first day at a Company X, you should be able to login to this system, and be able to hit the ground running.

Sounds amazing, right?

It’s not really.

Read More

These results are unsurprising. People who make websites use Firefox, and own iPhones and Apple laptops. A walk into any coffee shop in San Francisco will tell you this. Still, pretty infographic!

(via Webdirections.org)