Me, Myself, and I

Okay, alright! (That's a little Caribbean greeting for ya.)

We're back from Guyana, South America after an awesome week.  I can't wait to tell you all about it and share some favorite pics.  While I sort through my photos and videos, I thought it would be fun to share a few things with you about...

if I knew I couldn't fail...

I'd love to ride a bucking bronco in a rodeo and complete an Iron Man.  Both are way too hardcore for me to actually do, but if I had super powers I'd be all over those.

if I only had six months left to live...

I would travel all over the world with Charlie and try local cuisine in each destination.  I would visit every continent and eat and drink my little heart out.

if a front page news article was written about me, the headline would read...

True story.

my biggest pet peeve...

Rude people.  Or people who are rude to waiters.  Generally, they're the same people.  It's just unnecessary. 

my favorite chick flick...

Love Actually.  So. darn. good.

Font used: American Typewriter.

Bright Lights

Happy Monday, friends!

This weekend was a fun one: a Friday dinner date with Charlie; a birthday brunch and wine cruise for Rachael's birthday on Saturday; and hiking, lunch, and a sunset swim with Charlie on Sunday.  Plenty of photos coming soon!

Today I am thrilled to be featured on Joy's blog, Frock Files, where I'm sharing a little bit about myself and a few of my favorite things.  Do you know Joy?  She shares her love for fashion on her blog, in addition to writing beautifully and sharing thoughtful posts and book reviews, among other things.  Head on over to Frock Files and show us some love! 

 

Keeping it Real

I was emailing with a friend the other day and got into a discussion about how much blogs and life portrayed on them is dramatized in an overly glamorous way. Who are all of these perfect people?  I am certainly not one of them.  

I love all of the recent Things I'm Afraid to Tell You posts; it is amazing and refreshing for everyone to bare their insecurities and fears here on the blogosphere, and to realize that none of us are perfect, and that that's okay.  So here goes...

Charlie and I love life here in Dominica although it is not glamorous by any means.  We don't wear resort wear 24/7 {or ever, really}, nor do we drink piña coladas in lounge chairs on the beach daily {or even monthly}.  If I take a picture of our apartment or kitchen to share, will I tidy it up first?  Probably.  But I would also do the same thing if I knew you were stopping by our apartment.

Although I like to cook, I hate baking and am not very domestic. I hate housework and my apartment is basically never clean, even though we have a cleaning lady who comes and cleans for about an hour once a week (mainly mopping our tile floors that get so filthy and cleaning the bathroom).  

We don't do our own laundry.  For us, laundry day means dropping off our laundry at our neighbor, Gertrude's house.  Like most students here, we pay someone to do our laundry because there are no laundromats here and hardly anyone has a washer or dryer.  The cost of electricity here in Dominica is astronomical, so it just isn't practical.  I tried several times to wash my laundry {in a bucket in the shower} and hang it on a clothesline to dry, and it 1) was miserable 2) took forever and 3) our clothes still smelled sweaty afterwards.  So we pay about 30 EC ($10 US) a week for Gertrude to do our laundry in her washer and dryer.  Done deal.

We live in an overpriced, sub par apartment.  It does the trick for Dominica, but it's definitely not nice by American standards.  Bugs and creatures crawl into our apartment on a daily basis, and we even had a rat chew through our screen window once.  {Yes, it was weird, and yes, we freaked out!}

Do you see our sketchy metal railings and cement stairs?  And the metal rods that stick out of the building on the stairs and roof?  Yep, home sweet home.  Don't get me wrong, we really do love it here, and we actually really like out apartment, but I'm just showing you the good, the bad, and the ugly (in the case, it's the good and the ugly!).  

We sweat constantly in the humid Caribbean heat, especially this time of year.  I cannot wait for the day that I can take a picture without a shiny, sweaty face, and not looking like I just stepped out of a sauna.

Luckily, my friend Crystal is an awesome photographer and can really work some magic.  {How cute is that puppy, by the way?!? It's all I can do to not bring home some sort of ridiculously cute stray animal on a daily basis!}

I have been unemployed since we moved to the Caribbean in August 2010.  There are few jobs available here, and even fewer for foreigners.  The jobs that are available are jobs that I am just not interested in, jobs that pay very little or are just not worth my time.  I do spend my time volunteering with local schools and organizations, so I definitely keep myself busy. 

Since I am unemployed and Charlie is in school, we are basically living entirely off of student loans. I try not to think about it too much, because it's pretty scary. 

At home, I was an art teacher, and I worry about what I will do when we return to the states since we will have to move often in the next couple of years - this is not conducive to teaching or to jobs in general.  I would love to get back into painting and drawing, but I am so out of practice that I get really frustrated whenever I try to create something new.  I have no idea what sort of career I would like to have when I return to this U.S.  I'm thinking something creative or something in the non-profit world, but basically I'm really confused.  I don't even know what sort of job I will be able to get with the pending moves, and that makes it all the more difficult.  I turn 30 next week, and I feel like I still don't have anything figured out. 

I care way too much about what other people think and about pleasing others. I also get really stressed out and anxious when I think that I have hurt someones feelings, even in the slightest.  Sometimes this consumes me, and I am working hard on moving on, not dwelling, and just letting things go. 

Don't worry, life is good and we are doing well.  Charlie and I both have learned so much about ourselves since moving here.  We are both growing, learning daily, and becoming brave and adventurous, and that's all the stuff that we usually like to share with you.  But today, it felt good to let my guard down and share my insecurities.  Thanks for reading!

TREATS
Fonts - Playfair Display (Italic), Pea Roxy Girl
Arrow Brushes from Creature Comforts
Things I'm Afraid to Tell You image from Creature Comforts.
Pretty portrait of moi by Crystal Durrant.
All other images by Clare Wilkinson for C Squared W.

Hello, my name is Clare!

Since my blog is new, I thought I'd take a minute to introduce myself, in case you're new around here.

I'm Clare (spelled with no "i").  Clare is actually my middle name, and my name is actually ridiculously long because when I went to the Social Security Office (kind of a sketchy place in RVA, by the way!) to have it changed after I got married, I waited forever and then was given lots of attitude by the woman behind the desk, so when I left, somehow instead of dropping my maiden name, I kept it and just added my new last name, giving me four names (one too many!) and way too many syllables.  Name change fail?!  Ha.  

Anyways... I'm a Southerner. I grew up in Richmond, Virginia and went to school in Tennessee at Sewanee: The University of the South.  I've always loved art and was an art major in college.  I also love English, reading, writing, and art history.  

{Our home in Richmond where I grew up!}

After college I worked on a ranch in Wyoming for a little while.  Then I moved back to Virginia and started teaching.  I've taught at an after school program, helped teach Kindergarten, and have taught elementary school art.  While I was working I completed two grad school programs, the first was earning a master's degree in Liberal Arts focusing on Art & Western Culture from the University of Richmond.  I loved it!  I was able to design my own program and choose classes that I wanted to take: awesome English classes like Black Women Writers, From Folklore to Fiction, and Romanticism in Literature.  

I also did an independent study on the artist Kara Walker, took a film class, a class on Stephen Sondheim's musicals, a class on women in the Bible, a class in Democracy and Roman history, among others.  I wrote a million papers and read so many books.  I love being in school!  After I earned my master's I also went back to school to get my teaching certification so that I could teach art in public school.

{at Sewanee with some of my besties!}

In 2008, I married Charlie, my college sweetheart.  He's the other half of C Squared!  We actually eloped, and then he moved from Kentucky to Virginia.  Two years later, Charlie was accepted to medical school at Ross University down in the Caribbean.  Before he could officially start med school, Ross required him to do a four month training program in the Bahamas, so we moved there in August 2010.  In December 2010, we moved to the island of Dominica (Dom-in-eeka), which is actually not the Dominica Republic, and will be down here until August 2012.

{C Squared in the Bahamas.  We lived in a condo right on the beach - amazing!}

I am creative and always have lots of ideas.  I am a foodie and am also a good cook.  Living abroad has forced me to get creative in the kitchen and work with whatever ingredients I can find, which has taught me a lot.  I love to decorate and definitely picked that up from my mom who is a talented interior designer.  I am organized but messy, and I am not a good housekeeper.  I hate putting away laundry and unpacking suitcases.  Charlie is the clean and neat one, not me!

{Cocoa stick mustache! 100% pure Dominica cocoa, such a treat!}

I love all animals (except for bugs and snakes, sick!) and would probably have at least five pets if Charlie weren't allergic to most pets.  I am emotional and have a big heart.  I am also bossy and I have a hard time letting things go.  I am forgiving and kind.  I like a loud TV and sometimes I talk way louder than is appropriate.  I procrastinate and I like to save everything (I'm not a hoarder or anything, but it's the artsy side of me that says "oh, I could make something cool with this!" but I never do!).  

{The island dogs here know I can't resist 'em!}

I am obsessed with recycling and we actually composted back at our apartment in Richmond.  I also like to garden and hope that one day I have a really green thumb.  Charlie and I had a pretty awesome garden back in the states - zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, mixed greens, string beans, green onions, cucumbers, and tons of herbs.  We miss our garden! 

{Massive zucchini from our RVA garden!}

I am really good at art, but don't do enough of it anymore, which makes me a little sad.  I need to be in an art class and surrounded by artists to really create and be inspired.  I always tell myself that one day I will get back into it and become really good again - so hopefully that will happen!  

I would love to be a graphic designer or a successful artist (by successful I just mean creating meaningful artwork that I love, but if I could make a living off of it that would be nice, too!).  My favorite artists are Joan Mitchell and Cy Twombly.  Sometimes I think I'd also like to be an art therapist or work for a creative non-profit.  Or maybe a writer.  I think that Jacqueline Novogratz is amazing and would love to do the kind of work that she does.  I want to do work that will help people and make a difference somehow.

{Garden Party by Joan Mitchell}

I love the outdoors and love hiking, swimming in the ocean, lakes, rivers, whatever!  I also love the beach and being outside, even if it's just reading on the porch.  I love yoga and hate to exercise, but I try to make myself do it and am doing well with group workouts and workout buddies at the moment.  Bikram Yoga is the best and I always feel like a superhero afterwards!  I also love kids, but we don't have any yet.  Even though I'm 29, I feel like I'm not old enough yet.  At some point we'll be ready.  I turn thirty this summer and might freak about it.  Normally, though, I'm pretty laid back.  I'm also sarcastic and funny, and I have a weird sense of humor.  I also love to travel!  That is what I like to save and spend money on - trips and traveling!  Charlie and I spent our honeymoon in France and it was fabulous! 

{Hiking in Dominica}

I'm peppy and am an eternal optimist.  If you ever need a pep talk, I'm your girl!  I rarely get mad and I don't like to fight or yell.  I'm pretty sure I'm passive aggressive and I have a hard time standing up for myself (hence the name change situation).  I also have a hard time saying no to things and sometimes I got stressed out because I've overcommitted.  I'm learning to say no to things I don't want to do and am working on not worrying so much about pleasing everyone else.

{Me with one of my island besties, Mary.  We're wearing cool hats because that's what we want to do!}

I am close with my family.  I love my mom and sisters!  My dad passed away when I was in college, so it's just us girls now.  We love to travel together  My mom's side of the family is huge and I have lots of aunts, uncles, and cousins.  I want to be just like my grandmother, Mom Mom, when I grow up! 

{My sister, Frannie; Mom Mom; Mom; Me - at my cousin Dasha's wedding in Jamaica!}

Thanks for reading!  And since my blog is new, give me a little love and join as a "friend" over on the right so it's not so lonely around here.  Merci!  If you're new here, I'd love to hear from you - send me an email or leave a comment - I love making new friends and discovering new blogs!