The Welcome Mat

This is my part 2 of the recent post: "playing hard to get hasn't gotten me anywhere." Singles: You may find this useful. Marrieds: you may find this funny.

In Guatemala, one of the girls in the group called encouraging men "giving them the welcome mat." It has been my phrase lately and I am trying it out more and more. So far, no amazing results, but let me tell ya: I am getting somewhere and I feel good about where I am getting.

Basically what it means is you let guys know that you're interested in going on a date with them. It's not making a bold "I love you" statement or a move of desperation. No, on the contrary; it's just simply reassuring guys that it's ok that they can ask you out AND you're giving them an idea of what to do as well!

A potential conversation may unfold like this:

(After several minutes of small talk) Me: So, Joe, I hear you go swing dancing on the weekends. Joe: Yah, I do go every couple of weeks. It's really fun. Do you like to swing dance?

Me: I do. I really enjoy it. Next time you go, keep me posted. It would be fun to join you."
Now, depending on the guy it could go several ways. He may go with a group of friends every weekend, so it could just be me going with a group of people, which is still good because it at least gets me in a small group setting. Or if he's looking for a date, he may say something like this...

Joe: Well do you have plans next Saturday? Maybe we should go swing dancing? Me: Ummm...no I don't think so. I think that would be a lot of fun! Joe: Great. Let me get your number and I'll give you a call and we can talk details.

So of course that's the best scenario. And it has only worked out that way for me once in the last couple of months. But I'm trying it out more. The older I get, the less time I have to waste waiting for a guy to ask me out. Why not give him the welcome mat and let him know I'm interested in doing something with him? No harm done. And if he doesn't want to do that activity with me, he won't pursue it. But at least I gave him the welcome mat!

Who says girls can't do their part?

ps. There is no real-life Joe. In case any of you are wondering!

ec·lec·tic/iˈklektik/

Noun: A person who derives ideas, style, or taste from a broad and diverse range of sources.

I always admire people who have very eclectic taste. Especially those of you who are bargain shoppers AND eclectic. Wow, I admire you. Right now, I'm just trying to be a little eclectic. I am definitely a wanna-be eclectic person and I am working on collecting items for my current and future home. I just moved into a new place and it has been an ordeal setting everything up so it actually feels like home.

Here's what I have so far in regards to my current state of living:

Love this painting. A little funky. But I like funk. Got it at Ikea.


My bed area. I like my color scheme and try to include various patterns as I decorate. These blinds will go soon and I am going to replace with some fun curtains; probably homemade...

This pillow rocks my world. Random Indian woman, but it's just so neat. And it inspires me to visit India someday!

I just put this together! This I am so proud of. It's my version of being crafty. I bought a frame at Target, found paper from Papersource, and got the cut outs at Target over a year ago for 2 bucks. All I did was tape the cutouts to the paper and here you have it: A cute print that I like way more than anything you can find in an actual store! Plus, anyone can do it. Even someone as inartistic as myself!

My pride and joy. This "Cute as a Button" chair from World Market. The buttons in there are a bunch of fun patterns and colors. I also got the pillow there too.

My reading corner with my heritage wall. Maybe I'll actually read more!

So there you have it. Eclectic or not? Cast your vote!

ps. Thank you all for your comments on my last post! I felt very loved!

Fishing for Comments

I have a vision: One day my adult daughter will want to know some things about life and how she should go about this "being an adult" business. In this vision, I hand her or refer her to my blog. She reads and realizes, "wow, mom actually gets stuff." This is primarily the reason why I write my blog; for my posterity and also as a personal record for myself. I don't do it to draw attention to myself (although, I will readily admit that I do like attention. I am working on that). But it's a form of therapy as it is an outlet for me to reflect on life.

With that being said, most of you know that one of my biggest love languages is verbal validation. Now, I just am feeling like I need some verbal love from ya'll. Many of you tell me that you read my blog, etc...but could you comment? I know there are some closet "News of Suz" readers, so let me know you're there. And if you are one of my regular commenters...well, comment again. I want to hear from you.

Am I pathetic to be "fishing for comments?" Maybe I am.

So without further ado, please comment. Let me know you're around and let me know what you're up to.

And if you think you're pathetic for saying a simple "hey Susie, it's me Joe" don't sweat it. Remember I am the one that pathetically asked you to do it!

Ready, get set, comment!

Mayan Magnifique

My dream came true! I got to see some Mayan ruins! In all honesty a year ago I could have cared less about seeing these sites. However, after teaching a Mesoamerica unit, I instantly fell in love. After the Polochic, I toured the ruins for 2 days. It was painfully hot and humid, but I definitely gained an appreciation for their culture and civilization.

Pre-ruin hike.


The first peek.Can't you imagine Abinadi preaching in this court yard? Incredible.


Spectacular.

Whohoo! A jumping picture is a must next to any cool building.

Steep steps up to the top.

Squinty eyes.

Inside the temple.

Taking a rest at the top with the whole group.

There's a face behind me that's smiling, that's why I took this picture. You just can't see it.

Yep, a face like this. This is amazing.

The next morning we woke up at 3:30am to go to the top of Temple #4 and watch the sunrise. It was absolutely amazing.


Anyone recognize this view from a very popular movie??????


Another ruin!
Groupies
After we hiked the ruins we went zip-lining! AHHH...In all honesty, I was really scared at first, but then it was a blast.

All of us.

I am a pro. I also did it upside down as well as "Superlady" style as shown below.

Mayan ruins = Magnificent. Go see it. Or read about it. Or do something...

Superlady

For about 5 seconds of my life I felt like "Superlady."

Just check this out and you'll see what I mean.



I also think it's cool that I zip-lined in the Guatemalan jungle. Life is pretty tough.

Antigua Awesomenss

Before I left for the Polochic I visited this awesome place: Antigua. It's about 1.5 hours from Guatemala City and is filled with tourists. I enjoyed the ambiance, the history, the shopping, and the bread! Here's some highlights.

So I made friends with these ladies the night before on the airplane and here we are. It looks like we've been BFF's forever. Can you see the parrot in the background?


Cute lil' shops.


My favorite building by far. And check out all of the vending going on down there.

Espanol.

Motorcycles R' Us. I love the angle of this pic, if I do say so myself.

Hotties.

Beauty.

Locals playing for the tourists. Those little kids were amazing.

Looking down on Antigua.

With our taxi driver/tour guide, Alan. He was so cool and spoke great English!

Therefore, Antigua = Awesome.

Playing "hard to get" hasn't gotten me anywhere

It has been a while since I've posted about the single life and so I don't disappoint, here I am writing down another realization. More Guatemala pics will come too, in case you are all wondering!

Lately I have learned a huge lesson in regards to my dating life. Now, I'm a big believer that just like everyone has different learning styles, people also have different dating styles. For a long time, I think I tried to fit the "enigma" style. You know, be that girl that is mysterious, hard to get a hold of, pretends she doesn't see the guys she's interested, etc...In my BYU years I had seen so many guys fall for girls like that and it worked out for them. And silly me, I thought I could just follow in those footsteps and I would find success.

WRONG. Think again, Suz.

While that may have worked for some people, it has NEVER worked for me. Trust me, I tried that route-diligently-for at least a solid year. It didn't work with my style. You see, I'm just a friendly, outspoken, straight forward, kind of girl and pretending to be "hard to get" has led me to absolutely.no.success.

Now, my approach is different. I'm daring to be bold, to be honest, to be straight forward, and to be completely sincere. In case any of you "Rules" girls are out there, don't worry, I'm totally placing the ball in the guy's court too, it's a beautiful balance. But you know what? Letting a guy know that I'm interested has done me a lot of good in the last 7 months. Maybe there's not a true success story yet, but I have a good feeling that my success story is coming soon.

So if you're single like me, rethink you're approach. It may not be a bad idea to be more proactive. And yes, I will dare to say it...playing "hard to get" is a complete hoax.

And if you're married, I hope you enjoyed the entertainment.

The end.