Tooting My Own Horn

Last night Matt and I went to a Vanderbilt Alumni Event. Despite being alums for 8 years, we've never been to one and it was fun. One thing we noticed was that pretty much everyone who attended was a “self promoter.” But, Matt pointed out, self-promotion isn't necessarily a bad thing. I mentioned that I'd read a post that very day (yesterday) that Jayesel had written about how adults are very much loathe to say they're good at something lest they be found out as impostors. Except she says it much better than I am saying it right now, so go read what she wrote (related: she is a good writer!). At any rate, she challenged people to come up with 7 things they're good at.

Seven for me:

1. I am a good mom. I am working hard at molding my kiddos into nice polite members of society that can think for themselves, stand up for themselves, and know right from wrong. And overall, it's going quite well.

2. I have a good eye for layout, design and art in general. I create beautiful holiday cards, websites, and other print material. I may not know every single technical aspect of photography, but my eye frames shots well and knows what looks good.

3. I am a good programmer. Programming makes intuitive sense to me and I can almost always find a way to achieve the outcome I desire. I can also pick up a new language pretty quickly.

4. I am a good cook. I don't need a recipe to pull a few ingredients together and come up with something pretty tasty. I know what ingredients will work well together and I can adapt recipes to use what I have on hand or to be more to my taste.

5. I am a super-fast reader. I am able to blaze through just about any book or article very quickly and still be able to tell you all of the highlights and most of the details.

6. I am miss organization. I love to organize and this extends from work to home to finances to packing for trips to getting food on the table. I love lists and calendars and they love me.

7. I am a good friend. I am loyal to those I love and try to do right by them and think how I can help and actually carry it through. If you need a meal, a hug, a help-it, I am there. I don't make friends super easily, but I don't let them go easily either.

Try it yourself… it's harder than I thought!! The whole time I wrote I kept wanting to qualify each statement. “… most of the time, anyhow” “… so far, that is!”