Meetup

When I moved to Rochester, I knew about four people in the entire city. I figured this would be a great start to making friends, but soon realized that my boyfriend and I worked very opposite schedules and my college friends had busy lives and their own significant others to spend time with.

So, I started looking into other options. I considered taking classes (which required money I didn't really want to spend) and volunteering (still attempting to get more involved in this). I eventually decided to check out a website I'd read about in a few magazines: meetup.com

The only problem? Every Rochester meetup group seemed to cater towards 40 and 50 year old singles who loved to cook together and go bowling. Needless to say, these groups didn't exact fit what I was looking for. After thoroughly searching all the groups in the Rochester area, I finally just decided to create my own group for Rochester 20 somethings. Putting myself out there as an organizer made me responsible for planning fun events for a group of people I had never met. I was very nervous before attending my first meetup, but thrilled when I saw the number of members triple over the first few weeks of creating the group.

It turns out, I had nothing at all to be worried about. In my past year in Rochester I've met tons of nice new people through the group, and I plan to join meetup groups in every city I move to from here on out. Meetup.com has improved their site since I began the group and now any group member can create an event on the site. This takes a ton of pressure off of the meetup organizer and has helped to make our now 100+ member group much more collaborative. As a group we've held picnics, bar hops, hiking excursions, brewery tours, concerts, visited art galleries, and so much more.

I've since stepped down from my "organizer" meetup position, but I still attend events regularly and have met some some great friends through the site. I would definitely recommend this site to anyone moving to a new city. If there's not a group out there that fits your age group or interests, don't hesitate to make your own!

Have any of you attending a meetup event in your area? What were your thoughts?

Charity Walks

I really enjoy participating in Charity Walks. I love knowing that there are thousands of people there walking with me that also want to help. I love walking in DC because there are so many historical monuments and picturesque scenes along the way. I love knowing that my small contribution and an hour of my time will help people who need it more than I do. And I still love the shirt you get for participating.

In DC there is a Charity Walk "season" if you will. Between September and December there is a walk almost every weekend for a different cause. Next weekend is the Light the Night walk for Leukemia and Lymphoma, the Help the Homeless walk is right before Thanksgiving, you get the idea.

In a couple weeks my friends and I will be participating in the Whitman- Walker Aids walk for the 5th year in a row. DC has the highest rate of Aids infection in the country so this walk is a very personal one for many people who participate. We have a team called the Awkward Turtles if anyone in the DC area would like to join us in our quest. If you are not in the DC area and can spare a few dollars we would also appreciate donations to the cause.

Do any of you participate in charity walks in your city?

Bring It Around Town

We have nearly 400 posts on this little site of ours so I thought it might be fun to link to a few of my past favorites in upcoming entries! It's Friday, which means it's "date night" for many post grads out there, so I'm linking to a few of my favorite entries from our relationship category!

Relationships
Wedding Bells Are Ringing
Post Grad Dating Rituals
Online Dating
When Dating Becomes A Chore


Also, check out Lauren's Thoughts for a few cute fall inspired date ideas!

Guest Post: Why Blogging Isn't a Waste of Time

A few weeks ago we discovered Erin over at Analyfe. She has a fantastic blog that covers musings of a Post Grad trying to navigate life. Obviously we were drawn to her. Below is a guest post she has agreed to grace us with. Please read about her other topics, books, and thoughts, over at Analyfe when finished.

"Have you applied for any jobs recently?" I glance up guiltily from my blog stats every time I'm asked this question. Truth is, five months after graduation and ten months after beginning my job search, I've lost hope in the conventional job search. Companies receive hundreds of applications for each position, and unless you're the cream of the crop, you aren't even considered.

The past month or so, I've taken networking to an extreme. Rather than being ashamed of my unemployment, I've become eager to learn about every possible opportunity. I've stepped out of my comfort zone and forced myself to talk to people about my skills, my interests, and even my blog.

I've been blogging for about ten months and it's not been something I talk about; however, lately I've reconsidered whether blogging is really a bad thing. Maybe through writing and maintaining a blog, I'm building marketable skills.

• I blog daily as part of WordPress Post-a-Day 2011, which shows my dedication, persistence, and commitment.

• Ten months ago, WordPress terrified me and I didn't understand anything. I've since mastered nearly every aspect of the site and its tools and resources. I’m a quick learner.

• Blogging makes me a better writer; it helps me develop my voice, hone in my skills, and simply gain more experience.

• Having a public blog exposes me to the world and makes me vulnerable, yet this vulnerability allows for constructive criticism and compliments from strangers. My fear of criticism has disintegrated and my adaptability has skyrocketed.

• Blogging is essentially an extensive social network. The blogosphere is where I can go and know that I'm not alone, that others like me are struggling to find work and to find their way. Blogging gives me hope and encouragement.

• I promote my blog through Twitter, a Facebook page, 20 Something Bloggers, and Google Plus. I've unknowingly become a social media marketing maven. I know how efficiently to share what I have to offer, as well as discover and promote others' content. I understand how the internet mediates mutually beneficial relationships among web users and know how to take advantage of it.

Going back to networking, I was recently put into contact with the owner of a small local paper. I offered my personal blog as a sample of my writing and she was thoroughly impressed with my work. I'm still in the training stage, but I hope to take on the job of freelance copywriter for the paper, and eventually write feature stories.

Another company got in touch with me, offering an interview. "I have several resumes in front of me, many from applicants far more qualified than you, but your cover letter was phenomenal. I'd like for you to come in so we can talk a bit." My good writing skills led to an interview I probably wouldn't have gotten otherwise. I still can’t stop grinning.

I've received criticism for spending so much time blogging when I "should" be out looking for a job. I've often felt guilty about this; however, in the past few weeks I've realized that blogging is actually helping me in my job search. Blogging is improving my writing skills and enhancing my ability to commit to a project and see it through. Blogging is teaching me to self-promote, network, and empathize with others (by following their personal blogs). Blogging has boosted my confidence and kept me sane. Without realizing it, blogging has prepared me to face the adverse economy.

Blogging isn't a waste of time. Don't let anyone tell you it is.

City Mouse

Allow me to paint the scene for you.

It's Wednesday night. I had just come home from an awesome night celebrating my friend's birthday and tasting Oktoberfest beers. I walked into my kitchen leisurely for a glass of water, flick on the light and see something tiny and brown scurry under my microwave. I let out a scream that probably woke up neighbors on both sides of my apartment.

I have never seen a live "wild" mouse in person, only in pet stores and in cages. We found a dead mouse in the apartment I lived in last year, but it was almost a given in that space. The apartment was run down, and old, with lots of nooks and crannies for mice to hide. But not my new apartment!! I clean diligently here, it appears like my apartment is sealed off, and my building is well maintained.

With my adrenaline pumping, I cornered the mouse, tipped up its little microwave hiding spot, and screamed again as the tiny mouse came hurdling right towards me after an HOUR of luring it out. I used my broom to scare it back away, and it jumped off of my counter and under the refrigerator. I spent the next hour googling "things mice hate". Eventually I fell asleep at 2 am, petrified that I would wake up with a mouse in my bed.

Mouse: 1 Allie : 0

This weekend, my boyfriend baited traps with peanut butter and we hoped to lure my new furry roommate out from under the fridge. All weekend long we noticed that the traps were moved slightly, and peanut butter had been eaten.. but no mice were being caught! 

Mouse: 2 Allie:0

So, I'm taking more preventative measures. Did you know that mice hate the smell of dryer sheets, cayenne pepper, and mint? Right now my kitchen smells like an overly seasoned laundry room.

Anyone have any ideas for trapping this guy that I haven't thought of? I'm thinking about borrowing a friend's cat..

NanoWrimo Season

November is novel writing month. Every year NanoWrimo has a writing contest where participants write a novel in a month. I participated last year but only got about 1700 words out of the 50,000 that were required to complete the challenge. I did, however, at least force myself to start writing again.

This year, I already have a concept in mind. I still don't know if I will make it to 50,000 words in just 30 days, but I'm already in better shape than last years challenge.

I think I have mentioned before that I want to write a book of personal essays. Think David Sedaris meets Chelsea Handler with a splash of Sloane Crosley. That will be my book. I also already have a few topics in mind for chapters of my novel in the making. Wait, I think that is now 2 steps ahead of where I was last year.

The rules state that writing cannot begin until November, but I think planning my writing before then is completely legitimate.

I know that several of my friends and fellow bloggers are participating in this challenge as well. I would love you to add me as a writing buddy on the site! Let me know if you're interested and I will send you my username.

Good luck to all. Let's write some novels.

Guest Post at Analyfe

Our fellow blogger, Erin, of Analyfe has been gracious enough to let us do a guest post for her. It is up now and we hope you all will check it out! You should also read past our guest post to her own posts because they are fantastic.

Thank you Erin!