Inspiration.

I’ve been inspired lately, and I attribute it to what I refer to in my head as ‘firecrackers’ in my life. Firecrackers are people, places, anything really, that put a renewed enthusiasm in an idea, that extra bounce in your step. They’re the reason a smile lingers on your face longer, the reason you wake up before your alarm goes off, and they invigorate your senses. Everything looks more vibrant, everything sounds perfectly pitch, everything tastes bolder, everything feels more alive, and everything smells better.

What have I been inspired to do? Write. I’ve always been a writer. I wrote short stories in grade school and I loved my writing classes in high school. In college I had a Livejournal (remember those?) to keep up with my family while at school two states away and while I lived abroad one summer; I also had a blog on Blogger for a semester in a journalism class senior year; and nearly one year ago, I started a Wordpress blog that tracked 25 new things I was going to do, that I had never done before, all before I turned 25 (which was August 25). I continued the blog after my birthday, but felt uninspired. I felt pigeonholed into writing only about trying new things, and quite honestly, wasn’t totally proud of the look and feel of that blog (haven’t linked it here because I deleted it– whoops). While I love trying new things and visiting new places, I wanted to move in a different direction.

And that’s where my firecrackers come in.

I became inspired when I looked around at my friends who are firecrackers. There’s Sabrina, who tutors public schoolchildren every week, and has two other volunteer roles she takes on every month. It’s fun waking up Fridays after she volunteers to read her evening e-mails describing her joy in working with those West Side kids. Then there’s my lovely coworker Steph. People call me crazy for working full-time and being in grad school, but this girl’s got me beat: she’s working full-time, she’s in grad school, and she’s on a synchronized skating team. I listen to her talk about weekend practice in between studying and work events, and I’m just amazed.

I’m also inspired by those who truly follow their dreams. There’s Kennice, who’s an amazing photographer (I mean it K!). You’ll be seeing many of her photos make cameos on this blog. And how could I forget Chevy! The blogger who lives his life without pants. After spending five minutes with him, I started to feel a HUGE urge to start writing again. He told me he was surprised that I didn’t already have a blog, and all I kept thinking was, “Yeah Catherine, why DON’T you have a blog?”

So here I am. I’m still inspired, and we’ll see where this goes. I’m writing about things that interest me: communication, sports, politics… to name a few. I love trying new things, and Chicago has a lot to offer, so I’ll write about those, too. And I love communicating, so don’t be afraid to give a holler- leave a comment, make your mark. I want to hear your story, too.

Oh, and I must give a quick shout-out to Matt Cheuvront, who designed this blog. Without his help I would be nowhere. Thanks, pal. Thanks for being so creative, passionate, smart, and awesome!

Photo: Thanks Kennice