"Compliments Journal"

Well…my group leader said I gave a good presentation the other day. I suppose that’s something!

One of my swim teachers complimented me on a very well done flip turn (something I’ve been struggling with for a while).

While browsing Juicy Couture with a friend, a random lady I walked past said in a low voice that she liked my trench coat (from Forever 21). I smiled the whole day.

1. I used an awesome word one night in a chat and my fellow chatter, who is also a word cherisher, was all giddy about it. The word was aplomb.

2. I said something, not really intending to be funny, since I’m more of a dry wit type of person, but people laughed. Truly laughed, not just tittered. I felt really good about myself.

3. Everyone who has seen me recently has remarked on my tan (though most of them do not intend it as a compliment) so yay! I love being tanned.

4. I had quite a number of dinner parties over the course of several weeks and most of them were quite successful and none were failures. Even if the smoke alarm went off. The guests were very happy and some even asked for recipes.

5. I did a 10 minute presentation and got very good feedback from the audience and a good amount of interest in the topic, which I was not expecting. Yay! I also had people come up and ask me questions and tell me I did a good job, which made me feel amazing.

I worked on 3 photoshoots while I was in Hawaii “for fun” mostly….and for the most part they turned out pretty darn well. All the models have said something along those lines and so has other friends I’ve showed them too. It means a lot to me, because I put in a lot of time and effort into these projects :).

Though one of my roommates did say I looked good in an all black outfit I wore for a presentation.

A guy complimented my black suede boots and white suede jacket (maybe he just had a thing for suede).

A teacher said my researched inspiration images were good.

That same teacher said my critique of another person’s space sketch was good (coming from him, that’s meaningful).

As a group leader for a project, I really pulled through last minute and didn’t freak out or cause more drama, so my teacher was very impressed. He told me, in front of the class no less, and in front of my favorite teacher, that he’d hire me in a heartbeat. Comforting, very very comforting and nice to hear.

This couple I’m renting a room from has a son who does photography professionally and he totally offered to help me with my portfolio and styling class (it’s a trade because he gets to put it in his portfolio too) and this is off of him never ever seeing my stuff. This isn’t a compliment per se but I take it as one because it means he does trust me (from what he knows of me, which isn’t much since he basically offered on the second time he’s met me) to not be a crappy designer.

My roomie’s coworker told me I’m cute (in a non sexual way).

A lot of people who saw me crocheting my blanket (my first ever crochet project….I literally just learned and then I started on it) said I’m doing a good job seeing as how I learned recently (2 days before Christmas) and almost finished my huge ball of yarn.

My friend gave me the first ever compliment about something I was wearing (besides accessories) and that was that she liked my turquoise sweater. It’s something I adore as well. Hehehe.

I told a fellow intern that she has a good reputation for her computer skills and she looked really happy.

I told my intern employer that his show made me laugh a lot and that everything he’s assigning us to do sounds really interesting.

~

One of my teachers assigned me to be a group leader, which I take as a compliment, since he makes up his mind about people…so there must’ve been something good in what he saw from me before (previous class).

Someone I’ve been talking to said that she noticed I’m very strong. I didn’t really understand or believe this, but I guess it’s a kind of strength that doesn’t “give in” to emotions. I mean, I do, but not completely and utterly. There’s always a part of me that stays detached.

Lots of people have commented on something I designed and helped to make :).

The final evaluator of our project (before we can go and work on the set itself) said the gates looked good (I rendered and designed the gates!).

The director of my program called me bright, sincere, and a hard worker. She really affirmed her belief in me…that I can do good in this program. She also kind of implied that if I raise my GPA before graduation (I’m halfway through the program), I could be a candidate for the Mahoney award. She also confided something personal to me, which touched me. She also said I was a good listener. HAHAHA how is it that people think I’m a good listener? I don’t get it. I mean, I do…but I just find it sort of funny…that even people who, essentially, don’t know me that well think that. Talk about validation when it happens all too often.

I have a new mentor! Sort of! I guess two, since I’d count the person above as a mentor too.

This presentation I whipped up about Vivienne Westwood apparently blew the class away. Two people told me it was really good (and lots of clapping, wow). :)

We had to do a collage for my photoshop class and mine was about my alter ego (that I half made up as I went along). I put in stuff like a sniper kitty and I made the alter ego a pole dancer that performs in a hello kitty plane and loves panini. She also collects gnomes. Anyhow, a lot of people complimented me on the ideas and how I blended it together.

My teacher was so amused by it (and his sense of humor is…interesting) so that’s good. He told me I had good retention (using techniques the class haven’t learned yet but he taught them in another class I took).

In another class with the same teacher, he was really surprised when I said I’m really not a hands-on person in general (it’s true, I’m not making excuses) and I was saying that my mother is really good with her hands and being resourceful. I, however, did not attract that gene/trait. He was really surprised and said that it’s probably deep down and that I haven’t tapped it yet. He’s actually the second teacher to express surprise on that….I wonder if there’s something about me that makes it seem like I’d be good at that stuff.

So while I was on my road-trip to Sedona, my two sisters and I were frequently asked “so, what part of Texas are you girls from?” Now first of all, let me say I LOVE being called a girl. At 54, 58, & 61, we just don’t get called ‘girls’ often enough!!
Second, I have no problem whatsoever being accused of being a Texan. I have always thought they had charming accents (for the most part, a notable exclusion being W) so being asked what part of Texas were we from was amusing and complimentary. The highest form of that compliment came from the Texas state trooper who pulled me for speeding and thought we were from Texas and wondered aloud why we didn’t have a Texas inspection sticker until he saw our Virginia tags (my sister’s car). And he was a black man from upstate New York whose accent deep in the heart of Texas blew our mind!

I got my hair cut soon after I arrived in Hawaii (back “home”) and I got so many compliments on it that it just makes me feel really good. I think it’s definitely different and at least is something OTHER than what I usually have, medium-long layers. It’ll be even better when I get back to California, I hope, since the climate where I live is cooler and my hair will not feel so gross because it’s so short I can’t really tie it up anymore. I hate it sticking to my neck when the heat gets me all sticky and sweaty. Ugh.

My subtle change of style has garnered comments as well. I’m still into the jeans and slippers (flip flops) but I also wear flats now (not too popular in Hawaii) and I like certain tops that deviate from what I usually wore as my personal uniform when I still lived in Hawaii. That’s good, I guess. I don’t know what to make of this change – I just know I had to change in order to better fit in at my new school (I really look like a hippo among flamingos at fashion school).