An Ordinary Day...

Wednesday, April 12th started off as an ordinary day. The alarm sounded off at 6:00 a.m. like it always did. Reggie did his work day morning ritual, showering, grooming, selecting a suit and accessorizing with the perfect accents for Read more

Why are some people mean?

Why are some people mean? I'm not talking about a little mean, but bazaar, go out of their way to be mean. Recently I've encountered a few mean people, I remind myself that these situations will make me a stronger Read more

Maldives

Our last trip of 2016 was to the Maldives. Last year was one full of excursions, We traveled to Cameroon, Paris, Bali, Hawaii, New Orleans, New York, Chicago, Lake Tahoe, Atlanta, Napa, San Francisco, Dubai, and I must say Read more

Quote

It's okay to venture out of your comfort zone... Lately I've been doing it quite often. This weekend is going to be one of renewal, my personal Super Bowl. What are your plans? I will be working today and tomorrow. Happy Read more

Do you enjoy yourself?

Both of my kids are in New York, my son is in school in the Hudson Valley and my daughter is living in Brooklyn and working. So we are officially empty nesters, and have been so for a while Read more
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social media

Show Reel

Posted on January 6, 2016 by Gigi in My Life 11 Comments

A showreel is an actor’s main marketing tool as it acts as a kind of visual CV or resume showcasing their best work.

I’m pretty active on a few social media platforms. I share a lot about my life, my family, glimpses into what I like, places I go, things that I do and sometimes frivolous posts showing what I am wearing. Is it a true portrayal of who I am 24/7? No, of course not, it is the showreel version, the highlights that I choose to share.

Being a photographer, most of my pics are going to be well lit, I know how to pose my body just so, but I too have those days when I run to the store looking a “hot mess” or days where I am not smiling cause I am having a personal meltdown the pics that are never posted. My life is far from perfect, I have my share of disappointments and personal struggles.

It is easy to sometimes scroll Facebook and peek into the lives of remote acquaintances and marvel at what they are doing, or maybe see friends socializing and you realize you were not part of the party and you get that weird feeling because you feel you were left out.

I have some close friends that are not on social media, I used to encourage them and tell them they were missing out on all the fun, but are they really? I wonder sometimes…

Recommitting to my blog, I have added a self imposed pressure to try and engage and provide fresh content. I have to balance living in the moment and sharing a part of me that perhaps will inspire, make someone laugh or at least smile, but at the same time I want to be authentic and be able to share my truth…I hope that will be okay.

cat eyed gigi

cat eyed gigi

glad to be back for those of you that are still there…I’d love to hear from you and how 2016 is going so far.

xoxo,

Gigi

 

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Deletion

Posted on July 13, 2015 by Gigi in My Life, Uncategorized Comments Off on Deletion

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In our virtual world of facebook, instagram, twitter, snapchat etc. we have more “contact” with friends, family and our cyber peeps, many whom we have never met. Lots of time is spent being a voyeur into the lives of strangers, remote acquaintances and friensmies. We spend time peeking into secret worlds, wondering how our life compares, are we as happy as they are? Most of us present our best “self” on line, including moi…the bad hair days tend to not make it on my feed, nor the pics that we all have when caught in mid speech or chewing…not cute. It’s human nature to want to “see” what others are doing, to snoop on an ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfirend’s page, check out their comings and goings.

Between my blog and my business my “friend” list has grown. I don’t know all the mechanics of facebook, for example how which friends show up on my newsfeed, or how I can google something, usually a shoe of some sort and the next thing I know that item shows up on my feed in a sponsored post. I accept most friend requests, especially if I have mutual friends in common. You meet people and quickly add them to your facebook tribe routinely. I have a few facebook friends that I have even met in person. One was a woman named “Gervel” who lives in Maryland, she saw my status update when I was in Maryland this particular day, “Gervel” messaged me and we met and had a lovely time exchanging stories about how we both ended up with the same odd name.

I’ve become close with a few of my facebook friends, sort of a connection like a “penpal” those of you that are old enough might remember those. In this world where we have so many “friends”, what happens when someone DELETES you?  How do you feel? Or does it matter, especially if it is someone you don’t know.  Or maybe the connection is so remote you may not even know your were deleted. But what if it is someone you know? You may feel hurt, especially if the person is someone in your social circles.

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It has happened to me on a few occasions, and I must admit it is an odd feeling, not hurt per se, because someone you really know would probably have a chat with you if there was some conflict. It’s one of those things, where you figure, that a person had an adverse feeling about you that moved them to press “DELETE”. Maybe it was a post, or perhaps you have a religious or political stance that rubbed them the wrong way. Or maybe they just decided “enough of you” delete! Whatever the reason for the omission, life keeps moving forward and it is a reminder to make time for real “face” time with friends and family, don’t let social media replace real visits, there something different about looking into someone eyes seeing their smile and having a conversation.

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Happy Monday,

Xoxo,

Gigi

self portrait #3

self portrait #3

 

 

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Your Presence

Posted on June 2, 2015 by Gigi in American Life 1 Comment

Your presence is a gift. We live in a world where everything is fast, slow is sometimes considered old and boring. Everyone is walking around with earphones, ear pieces, and smart phones have become a new body part. I know because I am guilty of all the above. All these gadgets were supposed to make our lives easier, but instead it has interfered with our human interaction. With all the social media, that we can easily access on our phones and be entertained, who has time to interact with the person next to you? And oh let’s not forget we all have 1000’s of friends now, but we still yearn for someone to be present, in the moment with us. We want to hear a voice, not read a cryptic text, that many times is misunderstood and usually in a bad way.

I’m old enough to remember BC…before cell phones and PC’s for that matter. Those were the days when you had to meet in person and you were fully engaged, because you had no distractions. You had dinner with your family and you chatted, you didn’t have bells, songs, chimes going off non-stop, alerting you of something perhaps a little more interesting than the person in front of you.

While driving you talked with your kids not on your cellphone to your girlfriend about “nothing”. Meetings took place in person, not via skype or on conference calls, you actually met with a person and went over things together. I know technology is supposed to make our lives more efficient, but my question is why are we busier than ever? Never able to complete tasks, always behind…why is “busy” perceived as important?

With my business I spend a lot of time online, to much time, I get sidetracked on “facecrack”, instagram, checking in on twitter, spending time alone engaging as my online persona, time that could be spent gracing someone with my presence. I’ve decided I’m going to take “busy” down a bit, and focus on my presence, make time to engage, unplug…I want to see a face, hear a voice, observe a glance, I don’t want to guess what 5 or 6 words accented by a happy face really mean.

So today take a moment and give someone the gift of your presence.

Happy Tuesday.

Xoxo,

Gigi

Gigi

Gigi

 

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I HAVE OVER 1,000 Friends…

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Gigi in friendship 2 Comments
GIGI FB

GIGI FB

I have over 1.000 friends…Really? Wow? No Shit?

On the eve of my 25th wedding anniversary, I thought about how fortunate I am to wake up with my best friend. We celebrated a 27 year friendship, we dated 2 years before getting married. 27 years is a true test of friendship, you know the good the bad and the UGLY…it has all come out at some point.

In this age of social media it is easy to confuse what real friendships are…we are able to connect with “friends” all over the world, People from grade school, college, old boyfriends, distant relatives etc.. We can peek into their lives, and start to feel as if we really know them.

I’m a people person, I love interacting with others, chatting and finding out commonalities. Bringing people together is something I love to do, whether it is for book club, a ski trip, spa weekend  hike, or just because, I enjoy connecting people. At the end of the day though, you have to ask yourself the question if you were in a bind who could you really call on? Since I’ve hit my 50’s I feel as though I am going through an enlightenment period, I crave relationships that are not “work”, that flow and uplift- it is difficult to be a mindreader, I need transparent relationships. In my 30’s and 40’s I was tolerant and a really good chameleon, I thought I had a lot of friends, but in actuality I did not, I was just good at being whatever I thought a particular “friend” wanted me to be…

So I came up with this list of questions to determine some of the basic criteria of a friendship.

1. Do you know where your friend lives? Sounds crazy but, I once had a “friend” and to this day I don’t know where they live.

2. Have you been to their house? Inside?

3. Could you tell your friend “anything” or do you have to sensor?

4. Can you make a mistake and be forgiven?

5, Can you be yourself without judgement? Or do you have to “fake the funk”?

6. Can you share you deepest darkest secrets?

7. Can you call this friend anytime?

8. Do they have your “back”?

9. Are they “loyal”?

10. Will they tell you the truth?

If you answered “No” to most of these questions these peeps more than likely are not friends. If you were having your last meal on the planet and you could have a dinner party with 4 guests, who would your select? And why? Something to think about…oh and none of the 4 can be family members…

Most of us have loads of acquaintances, workout buds, club members, co-workers, church members, neighbors etc. that we interact with on a regular basis, and then there are our social media friends…which I love btw, my social media friends are a virtual village, a status update about anything will get a response or some information or a referral or perhaps a simple prayer for whatever your current situation.

As I get older (I’m about to break the speed limit) I realize the importance of genuine friendships. You are fortunate if you have a couple of “real” friends, and just because you have know someone 20 plus years, it does not necessarily mean that person is a close friend. As I break the speed limit “55” I will continue work on self, being who I am, addressing my flaws and being the best friend I can be…

Happy Thursday

XOXO,

Gigi

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