Floral Friday: Hilltop Home & Garden

During my bday vacay last week, I visited a home that is among my fondest memories:

my beloved soon-to-be (in 2½ weeks) Birthday Girl aunt’s estate!

Not only am I a fan, but apparently and rightfully so, her community also is as well because both

• Her award-winning garden was featured

• Her interior received generous press

in ☼The Baltimore Sun☼ 

The highlight of my stay was when I sat in my Tita Fe‘s gourmet kitchen with Mami Aya, her siblings and their spouses ~ during which my MD aunts and uncles, who included

• Tita Fe & Tito Rudy (my mom’s oldest sister and her husband)
• Tito Robert & Tita Yollie (my mom’s youngest brother & his wife)

each endorsed me for my PhD ~ providing their sound advice that I’ll take with me as I progress toward my doctoral dissertation defense.

 4:44 ~ make a Bday/BTS wish!!! ✌

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Study Saturday: Schooled By The Sopranos

Quick breather from my research writing for refreshment🍮 & reception🍭

📊Stats📉📈 at 💫💸Starbucks☕️ are where it’s at ~ got this comfy cozy horseshoe booth to myself, booyah!

Strolling through campus for a quick snack🍩 ~ chocolate croissant is as close as I can get to a cannoli ~ & fresh 🌟perspective!

While 💡studying✨ my 🔭statistics🔬 📙book, I came across this Bill Cosby example!

 It’s business training without the whacking🔫!

Out of the business-savvy shows out there, my personal favorite would have to be the The Sopranos. I’ve always been fascinated with mafia  ~ not that I’m interested in joining the mob ~ but because organized crime still involves communication and leadership that I’ve studied and taught all through college and graduate school, such as mobster managers

• Sonny Corinthos, the “King of Port Charles” in General Hospital, and
• the movie Goodfellas, in which the main character’s wife’s character is played by the shrink on The Sopranos!
  

  Until I received my book order, Amazon provided electronically reading from Kindle!

  Tony Soprano may not have written the book on leadership …
  

… but I’m reading a couple of books📚 that are written about his management ~

  

• both for pleasure

• and to quench my thirst for knowledge on my major course of study!

These 📓readings📔 offer insight on intrapersonal communication * professional relationships * making decisions * managing conflict * solving problems!

The Sopranos Business👔 Books📕 (for your reading👓 pleasure)

• 📗 Tony Soprano on Management: Leadership Lessons Inspired by America’s Favorite Mobster by Anthony Schneider
• 📙 Leadership Sopranos Style: How to Become a More Effective Boss by Deborrah Himsel {from 👛Avon💄}

The Sopranos‘📺 “Cliffs Notes”📔/Greatest Hits📻 (if you have ⌚️2h/video🎥 to spare for your entertainment)

• 💽Best of Seasons 1-6
• 🎬E! True Hollywood Story

Fuggedaboutit! ✌

Working Woman’s Wednesday: Sabbatical Schedule

I’ve been making the most out of this second 🚣🏻summer🌅 session away from teaching to keep cranking💻 out my doctoral🎓 📖dissertation until school starts!

With my smaller home office space during my sabbatical, I make the most of my workstation with eye candy ~ so *ASIA* adorns the side of this desk! 💺😻📷💻📇

My work load on finishing my draft📝 that details

• 📕the purpose of my study
• 📗supportive scholarly📚 publications,
• 📘research📉 📈methods,
• 📙statistics📊 and
• 📜conclusion📇

has occupied the majority of everyday these past six weeks ~ so this can compare to a full time job!

S is for: 💡Scholar✨ = 🌈Social📳 🔭Scientist🔬

Just when I didn’t think that my eye candy could get any better with Grad Cat, enter Stats Cat Sweet Annie! 📊📉📈🐱🐈

 Despite not needing to report to a classroom everyday or answer to anyone, I as my own boss during my sabbatical still maintained a schedule.

My Around-the-Clock⏰ to Become Doc Routine

• 🌇Daily😵 😲wake-up😳 📋non-negotiables: prayer (the Rosary), skin care, feed A&A
• 🍳Breakfast🍊 of 🏆Champs: fuel⛽️ up (postpone coffee☕️ to 2h after I wake up to help me sleep more easily later)
• 💪🏽Beast👊🏽 💓Mode: work out to get my brain juices & blood flowing
• 💡Scholar⚡️ 📓Mode: revise my working document for as many as 12h/day
• Shower: taking a cold one on these hot dog days of summer can energize me between my workout and study session or I’ll relax in the bath between my scholarshift and bed time to snuggle in clean sheets
• 🌈Pleasure🌟👓Reading: I haven’t read as much non-scholarly material as I used to love to before college & grad school, but I’ve found that a little bit helps to ease my mind & unwind lately ~ my current reads are relevant to my research in an unconventional way (stay tuned this Study Saturday)
• 💭Choose😴 to 💤Snooze: as a chronic insomniac, I must make a conscientious effort to hit the sack ~ while I tend to stay up late reviewing and proofing my paper, I find that I’m more effective when I work on it earlier in the day with energy!

Just like Vince Carter had discipline with the Dallas Mavericks a couple of seasons ago, I also didn’t take break days! Yes, it’s essential to have some R&R, but at this point, I’m

In the Zone 🎯

So I can’t afford a single day off …

Therefore, I take 🌴mini-vacays, even for just a few minutes or hours⌚️ for my stories