I’m Amanda. I’ve got wide eyes, a smart mouth, and a MetroCard. And I’m not afraid to use them.
Today’s post on I Am A Super Woman is about forgoing the typical vacation in favor of voluntourism, a vacation where you go to another part of the world and volunteer.
I spent two of my college spring breaks volunteering in NYC, and it changed my life.
Would you be a voluntourist? Please read the post, rate, and comment.
It’s not too late to support me in my quest to be the head blogger at I Am A Super Woman.
Mosey on over there to check out/rate/and comment on my latest entries:
A profile of everyday Super Women, including April, a friend who works at one of the few clinics in Texas that provides abortions and full reproductive health services. (You’ve probably deduced by now that I’m pro-woman and pro-choice. I’m so proud of April. I think she’s doing an important thing, and I know everyone at her workplace deals with a lot of unnecessary craziness).
In honor of Father’s Day, I asked random men in NYC what advice they’d give their daughters. Awww!
Awhile back, I read The Happiness Project Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun by Gretchen Rubin.
Long title, I know. Focus on the first words - The Happiness Project. Rubin went through books of scientific research, tips, and theories and tested them out. It changed her life.
It’s hard to schedule interviews, but I had to give it a shot for I Am A Super Woman. I was elated when Rubin emailed me back right away and said, “Call me at five.” She was so smart and approachable. One of the best interviews ever!
Here’s an excerpt:
IAAS: The thing I’ve been thinking about most since reading your blog and book is the concept of drift. Some people call it angst or a quarter- or mid-life crisis, but it’s not always so dramatic. Drift is when you have some expectation of what you’re supposed to do with your life. Maybe you accomplish these goals, but when you get there, you realize you’re not happy.
Gretchen Rubin: I got a huge response when I wrote about drift. Even emails from people saying, “I’m finishing my Ph.D, and I’m in drift.” The idea that drift is an easy solution isn’t true. People are accomplishing really difficult things they could be proud of, but finding that they’re in drift. They’re not happy.
I think people go into drift, because they haven’t asked “What do I want? What am I good at?” For a lot of people, it’s difficult and painful to acknowledge what it is they really want to do. One of the reasons people do things like go to law school is that it postpones that kind of confrontation and soul searching. They think they’ll pursue school, have more options and figure it out later. It doesn’t work like that.
At I Am A Super Woman, we believe that every woman is a Super Woman.
Every woman.
Whether she knows it or not.
Whether you recognize her name and face or not.
Whether she knows all the words to “Lady in Red” or not.
You know what to do: Rate. Comment. Conquer.
Please?
My latest batch of blog posts:
Free skincare products — the good stuff! Cheap birth control, music, and magazines. These are a few of my favorite deals. Tell me about yours.
Would you wear washable, recyclable pads and menstrual cups in the name of being green? Or is that too extreme icky treehugger for you?
I interviewed the inspiring Tammy Tibbetts of She’s the First, an media campaign that supports girls’ education in developing countries. A wonderful cause with such smart women behind it!
I thought about calling this blog post “Rallying the troops,” but then I had to cringe.
Here’s the deal: I’m in my final full week of trying to get the head blogger job at I Am A Super Woman. I’ve driven those closest to me absolutely crazy. I spend a lot of time thinking about this job that I want. And what if I don’t get what I want? And oh crap, what am I going to blog today?!
It’s crazy-making.
Everyone is getting tired, I know. I’m one of them.
But if you could support me a little while longer, I’d really appreciate it. I need the help. I’m blogging for the site everyday with very little feedback and a lot of pressure. I know I’m doing it to myself, but I can’t stop.
Please read the posts - I try to make them thought-provoking. Rate the posts. And leave comments! Like I said, I try to keep it interesting, but I’m being given categories to blog about. Here’s a taste of some recent topics:
I own a bajillion-dollar juicer, but bought a used cheese grater. When do you scrimp? When do you splurge?
Interracial marriage was once illegal, but a couple called the Lovings changed that. What’s the next civil rights frontier?
The BP oil spill is tragic, disgusting, and funny? Leroy Stick finds the humor and makes a difference with Twitter. What can you do?
Career advice from Lady Gaga. Does not involve hot pants.
Amazing DIY projects that are way better than that macaroni necklace you made your mom back in second grade.
Are these the weirdest shoes you’ve ever seen or what? Vibram Five Fingers, you intrigue me.
True story: Burpee Home Gardens actually sought me out to blog about gardening.
“Why would they do that?” you ask. (It’s okay. I did, too).
“How would you do that?” you also ask. (Yeah, same here).
And that’s why I’m shimmying on my fire escape everyday to tend to a thriving vegetable garden.
The neighbors are really into it.
Prepare to be amazed, inspired, and really skeptical about the tomatoes making it.
Last night I saw Sex and the City 2. I’m telling you this, because carrying the shame in silence cannot be good. I want you to all know that this is a safe space, and you’re free to admit that you saw the movie, too. No questions asked. I’m just glad you’re here now.
But if you really do want to know, it wasn’t my intention to see Carrie Bradshaw: The Haunting. The person I went to the movies with is a guy who lives in a world 15 minutes slower than mine. He has to be broken of this, and I knew just what might do it.
I read a review of Sex and the City 2 awhile back that basically said, “Yeah, it’s a terrible romantic comedy. But it’s a pretty good work of science fiction!” I kept toying with a mad lib train of thought as I watched. “Sex and the City is like __________ for women,” I thought.
Katie Spotz, 22, is the youngest person - and first woman - to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean. Not bad for the slowest girl on the team!
I had the pleasure of interviewing Katie for I Am A Super Woman. She’s as Super Woman as they come - she’s biked from D.C. to Seattle, ran 150 miles across the Mojave and Colorado Deserts, and was the first person to swim the entire length of the 325-mile Allegheny River.
An excerpt from the interview:
IAAS: What did you do to prepare — both mentally and physically — for rowing across the ocean?
Katie Spotz: I knew that more than a physical challenge, it would be a mental challenge to be alone for so long with just the ocean and my boat. I had to learn to row and work my body, but I also did a lot of meditation. You get blisters. You get seasick. You’re lonely and bored and things break. When the hundredth thing goes wrong, it’s not having strong muscles that’s going to get you through. It’s your mind that gets you across.
IAAS: What were the biggest challenges you faced?
Katie Spotz: One of the most difficult things about rowing across the Atlantic was deciding to do it. I met someone who knew someone who’d done it. After I got over how amazing that was, I felt that I should try it. I had a lot of ideas of who I was and what I was capable of doing, and it just didn’t make sense. I didn’t have boating experience. I didn’t know how to row. There was so much I had to overcome within myself to follow my dream.
Read the rest at I Am A Super Woman!
I’ll be blogging here until June 21, but I had to stop in to say…
Thank you!
20 Days of Blogging: Checking In from Amanda Green on Vimeo.
