I always feel satisfaction in starting a new project. The opportunities, challenges and creativity give me new perspective and allow me to learn something new about myself. That is exactly what I hope comes out of my blogging experience. I've often toyed around with the idea of keeping a journal but it just never quite worked out. I think its because I'm a people person. Keeping my thoughts and experiences to myself feels...lonely. I love communicating with people and learning about others. Interacting with others is what drives me. Blogging gives me the opportunity for others to learn about me and vice versa.
I recently graduated with a B.B.A in Marketing and a B.A. in Public Relations from James Madison University (GO DUKES!) and am now enrolled at Liberty University and working towards my M.B.A in International Business. Yeah I know, I sound seriously intellectual with all my degrees (at least that's what I like to tell myself) but the truth is: I gave up my shot of freedom from my parents and moved back home. Why? Well, brace yourself Bridget...here's the story (its been shortened a bit. the full story probably requires another blog in itself) behind it all:
Living at home was HELL and going away to college probably saved my life. While at JMU, I got to be my own person and find my own path. Unfortunately, my parents found ways to ruin quite a few days for me anyway.
My sister and I practically raised ourselves and we both found out the hard way that my parents were definitely not parents in the traditional sense. If we wanted something done - we found a way to do it ourselves. We learned from an early age that trusting my parents was not an option. They simply were just too focused on themselves to really care about anyone else.
My childhood memories are a blur of hurt, anger and resentment so I try not to think about it often. I've come to terms with most of it anyway. To understand my parents, you have to know that they were born and raised in another culture. We are a world a part from each other.
Anyway, back to the main points - basically my parents run their own investment company. My dad is the brains and my mom usually helped any way she could. I'm really proud of them both - they came to America with no money and barely spoke coherent English. In the past 35-ish years, they managed to build a mini empire and make more than a comfortable living. However, in the past few years things have fallen a part. Somewhere along the line, their marriage fell a part and so did our family. My mom also kind of lost it as well. She lies and steals with no remorse and creates conflict just because.
As a result, she put the family business in jeopardy. That's where I come in. Finding a job right out of college was like finding a needle in a haystack - a really, really big haystack. I mean, I had options. Unfortunately, those options required me to live in a card board box and eat Ramen Noodles three times a day because living on those wages would have been damn near impossible. In the midst of my plans, I realized just how bad things were for my parents. My mom was crazy and my dad was one skip away from filing for bankruptcy and watching his American dream disappear.
I agreed to move back home and help run the family business in return for my dad paying for grad school. Most M.B.A programs require a couple of years of job experience but my recommendations, grades and GMAT/LSAT scores were enough to get me into Liberty University. So on top of running a small business, I'm also taking classes and doing side work to build my portfolio and babysitting my mother who is CRAZY. Not to mention, I'm also trying to get on a serious work-out plan and get in shape. My life is pretty much chaos and I take things as they come my way. I figure this blog will probably be one of the things that keeps me from losing my damn mind.
Here goes nothing...
