melissaburgess

Mission: Shakespeare

Posted on July 15, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

For those who may not know, I absolutely love reading. I’m particularly a fan of young-adult fiction (what can I say? Though I’ve certainly passed my YA years, it’s generally light, it’s easy to read and overall, it’s fun), but I also enjoy historical fiction from time to time, as well as…. well…. pretty much anything.

A few years ago, I picked up a true treasure at a library book sale in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: the collected works of William Shakespeare, hardcover, for $4. What an amazing find! I absolutely had to buy it – how could I pass up such a treasure, and at such a low price?

Thus, it became one of my reading goals to dive into more Shakespeare, and to eventually read all of his works.

Instantly, I could check three works off the list. In high school, I read Hamlet, Othello and Twelfth Night. Three down, plenty more to go.

It wasn’t until last week that I really decided to pick up on this project and get it going, even though a) I’ve had the collected works for several years and b) there’s been absolutely nothing stopping me from doing it until now.

Last week, I began my endeavor with The Comedy of Errors. I tend to be a pretty fast reader, but I gave myself the whole week to really dive in and absorb what I was reading. Some may say that even a week is too short a time, but I don’t know that I could bear dragging it out any further. If I have the time to read – ie., on the bus, on my lunch hour, etc. – I’m probably going to be reading.

This week, my piece is Romeo and Juliet, which I decided upon after seeing the play performed live at Buffalo’s “Shakespeare in Delaware Park” this past weekend. It really was a lovely show – my first time seeing it live – and made me choose the play as my next Shakespeare selection.

I’m not going in any particular order; I have no idea what title I’ll choose after Romeo and Juliet. I try to read a little bit each day, but then again, I’m in no rush. If anyone has any suggestions as to what my next Shakespeare piece should be, please feel free to leave it in the comments! I’d also love to hear what your favorite work of his is as I continue on this Shakespearean mission.

“My bounty is as boundless as the sea,
My love as deep; the more I give to thee,
The more I have, for both are infinite.”

A Better You, Uncategorized

Daily Challenge: Unclutter Your Mailbox(es)

Posted on July 10, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

How often do your check your email? How about your mailbox at home?

For the majority of people, it seems like we check our email at least once a day, if not more. Some of us are constantly connected to our inboxes, with our cell phones in the palm of our hand nearly 24/7. As soon as a message pops up, boom, it’s opened, read, or deleted.

And let’s face it, most people open their mailbox at home on a daily basis.

What common denominator do these things have? Both are oftentimes filled with junk.

A couple weeks ago, I realized that I don’t even read half of the emails I receive. I’m not interested in them. They’re newsletters or advertisements from companies that I guess I signed up with at one point or another; but is it worth keeping around if I’m deleting literally every piece of mail from them? Nah.

So I undertook a project to unclutter my inbox. Rather than just quickly brushing through and deleting those “I don’t care about this” emails, I opened some of them. I scrolled through and found ways to unsubscribe from a lot of them, and boy, it makes a difference. Now, instead of getting some 50+ emails daily that I never open and send straight to the trash, I get far fewer, and it feels better.

It’s also interesting how difficult some places make it for you to unsubscribe from their lists. Some are easy – just a simple click of the link at the bottom of the email, and you’re done. (Sure, it can still take a few days for you to fully come off the list, but it’s an easy, one-step process.) Some are more difficult; you have to click the link and then complete a survey about WHY you’re unsubscribing before they’ll let you off.

And one I’ve encountered is even stickier; it’s an online survey site that makes you login to your account, delete your account and then unsubscribe from there. Considering I can’t remember my username or password, that’s…. too much work.

The same goes for your physical mailbox, too. At one point, I was coming home DAILY to credit card offers from Chase. Literally, every day, I’d find another – often the exact same mailing.

Initially, I just recycled them; I knew they weren’t something I was interested in, and didn’t care to waste my time even opening them.

One day, though, I got absolutely fed up. It was a waste of my time to get them; a waste of the mailman’s time to bring them, and an absolute waste of paper (my biggest concern, to be honest, even though I was recycling them.) I opened it to find a handy-dandy little phone number to call in order to remove your name from receiving unsolicited credit card offers. Huzzah! It’s a number from the federal government, I called, and it got me off scot-free for a few years.

I haven’t gotten any junk mail like that in weeks now, and boy, does it feel good.

Travel & Experiences

The Next Big Adventure

Posted on June 30, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

This past weekend, I set off on what could surely be the biggest adventure of my life: moving away from home.

Actually, I don’t like those words… “moving away from home.” Anywhere you live can be home, and I hope that the new place I’ve just moved into will be home — a place where I can feel comfortable, warm, safe, and happy.

More appropriately speaking, I set off on what should be the biggest adventure of my life so far: moving out on my own, away from my parents.

Up until now, I’ve lived my entire life with a member of my family. My mother, father and sister lived together (and myself, of course) for the first near-15 years of my life in house #1. Then it was my mom, sister and I in house #2…. then mom and I in house #3, and house #4.

Now, it’s me, in #5, moving in with my fiancé. It’s both of our first times really living on our own, so it’s quite an adventure. It’s scary and exciting, nerve-wracking and absolutely terrifying, joyous and optimistic and positive. I’ve felt so many emotions leading up to this, and now that it’s real, I’ve hit that moment of “Whoa…. that actually happened.”

It’s been three days. It doesn’t feel real sometimes.

One thing I’ve been wanting to write about lately is this.

In my life up until this point, I’ve lived in four different places.

All in Buffalo, and all within a 1.1 mile radius.

Also within that radius: my elementary school (now closed); the Catholic Church I attended for a good portion of my life (also closed); the pizzeria we always went to, owned by some of the friendliest guys, who knew us by name and never failed to have a smile on their face. I know the square blocks where I used to do walkathons as a kid in elementary school; the other pizzeria where I worked my “first job” for about three days. The storefront that always used to hold a seasonal Niagara Chocolates store, but is now vacant 365 days a year.

That small radius – which would have been narrowed down even further, to .59 miles if house #3 wasn’t in there – also contains a lot of memories for me. From elementary school memories of computer class and trekking over to the nearby community gym for physical education (weather permitting, of course) to that time a tenant who lived above us in house #2 had a prairie dog as a pet; from the days when we had to leave house #1, to the trick-or-treating nights, Halloween parades and more…. I’ve lived so much of my life in that area.

It’s not like I’m moving across the country; I’m not. I’m still in Buffalo, about six miles outside of that radius now. Instead of living on the east side of the city, I live on the north side. My commute into work comes from a completely new direction. I’ve got the beauty of things like Delaware Park and Forest Lawn Cemetery nearby; I’m surrounded by art museums, hip restaurants and a great local music scene.

I get all of that, plus the independence and adulthood that come with this new adventure. Of course, that includes a lot more responsibility, too – but it’s not overwhelming, at least not yet. I’ve spent the last few days unpacking and decorating. I cooked my first real dinner last night, and we’re still alive and well this morning, so clearly I did alright. I have my own keys, to my own apartment, mailbox and storage area. I’m building (or at least trying) my own life, one small piece at a time.

It’s a big adventure. I know it won’t always be easy, but I’m going to enjoy it as best I can.

A Better You

How to Be Happy

Posted on June 18, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

happy (adjective): characterized by or indicative of pleasure, contentment, or joy

The project of allowing myself to be happy has, arguably, been one of my biggest struggles. I’m not sure why it’s so difficult to allow myself to feel true happiness, to be certain that things are okay, to smile and live in the moment and not worry about what’s coming down the line, or when things are going to get bad again.

I’m both my best friend, and my worst enemy, as cliched as I realize that sounds. Because while I’m the one who can always bring myself up, find something to smile about, get myself into a positive, chipper mood… I’m also the one who can doubt herself and everything around her, wait for something bad to happen (and fear that it inevitably will), and revert back to days of old where it felt like I was surrounded by clouds of darkness, sadness and general unhappiness.

It’s easy to trip up and fall back into a pit of concern; a pit of questioning… “Is everything really okay? Maybe I made this person angry, or I’m annoying them. Maybe that compliment was them just being nice. Maybe I really am just as worthless and hopeless as I used to feel in those days, years ago.”

It’s not like I can’t be happy. I know I can; but it’s that nagging thing in the back of my mind that says “How can you be happy right now? Things are on the precipice of falling apart; this little happy charade you’re playing out is going to be over soon, so don’t even bother.” It’s as though, many times, when I begin to feel happiness, like life is really, really good, there’s a little voice asking me “…. well, are you sure?”

Allowing myself to be happy means pushing that thought off a tall cliff. It means recognizing that I deserve to be happy, truly happy. I’ve worked hard to get to where I am today, and all my past issues be darned, I’m doing this thing.

It means swallowing my fears and recognizing that realistically, things aren’t always going to be okay. Life isn’t always filled with sunshine and rainbows; there’s going to be a cloud every once in a while, and sometimes a storm. But just because a storm comes, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the sun, too.

Allowing myself to be happy means not worrying about the storm; not waiting for the storm to come, or waiting for the other shoe to drop, as some might say. That’s not a good pit to fall into, and I’m really, really trying not to. I’m trying to embrace the positive things in my life, and allow myself to be happy — because I’ve earned it, damn it.

I just wish it wasn’t so hard sometimes, but the important thing is, I’m trying.

A Better You, Uncategorized

Daily Challenge: Take More Photos

Posted on June 15, 2015January 17, 2018 by melissaburgess

Good morning (or afternoon, or evening, depending on your locale), my readers!

Today’s daily challenge will hopefully get you out of the box and thinking. Instead of a writing challenge, it’s a visual challenge. All you need is a camera – be it from a cell phone or other mobile device, or an actual camera, it doesn’t matter.

Your challenge for today is to take photos. If you had to describe your day to someone using ONLY photos – not words – what would you choose to photograph? How about if it was limited to 10 photos, or even five, or maybe just one?

Photography is a beautiful way for us to appreciate the world around us and the experiences we have in our lives. Some photographs can speak volumes; some have massive amounts of detail, while others are so simple yet say so much.

Some people might say that a photograph is nothing compared to the real experiences of life, and that’s definitely true. After all, seeing photos of your all-time favorite band in concert can’t even come to close to providing the true experience of being there in person: the music, the people, and that palpable taste in the air of the excitement and energy all around. A photo of a wedding can capture the smiling bride and groom, but it can’t capture the complete feelings of love and pure joy that surrounded the happy couple.

Photos are great for capturing moments, and if done right, they can capture emotions, too. But to make myself clear, photographs aren’t substitutions for real life experiences, and I’m not trying to speak as though they are.

This challenge is really about opening up your eyes to really experience your day in a visual manner, and to figure out how to best express that day to other people. Personally, I usually take photos to serve not as memories, but to jog MY memory in reflecting back on experiences I’ve had. If I think about a vacation I took years ago, I may not remember every experience, but looking back at photos brings up all sorts of swell memories, inside jokes, flashbacks of conversations, etc. It enhances the memories that I’ve already gotten.

So don’t use the photographs as an excuse to not fully enjoy or experience your day — but use them as a way to frame the context of your day.