Miss Amber Lane Has Arrived

I can not tell you how long this blog has been in the making. For months I have sporadically visited this site, tweaking backgrounds, editing my profile, and selecting just the right glamour shots for my profile pics. My fingers would itch to type something to announce my arrival to the Blogger world- yet something would hold me back- coaxing me to wait until something profound and meaningful could enhance my exposition. That moment never came, no pearls of wisdom have I found- yet I have chosen today to be the day. Many thoughts are dancing within me and I need an outlet for them. So I here I sit.

First let me start by saying that I am not new to the blogasphere. I was once a self professed Xanga addict. For over 6 years I wrote faithfully about every little going on in my life. Xanga and I met when I was 18 years old and we became great friends. Yet somehow the last year of our friendship has been somewhat disappointing. Subscriptions that I read faithfully began to fall away and new features have cluttered what I once enjoyed in its most simple form. I also feel that I'm in need of a fresh start. I'm not an 18 year old anymore, life has changed, I have changed- so while I will still visit with my old friend Xanga and the friends I have met through him- I will begin a new journey here tonight.

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Amber, I am 24 I have a fun, interesting, yet challenging career as an Activities Director for a Senior Community near my home in Cincinnati. I am living "in sin" with my boyfriend of 4.5 years Ben and we are currently in the most intense (read: stressful) process of buying our first house.

Let me get this gem out of the way early: we are not engaged. Will we be? It is my hope. Throughout the course of our dating relationship (we were great friends all through middle and high school before dating) we have climbed the mountains of our early twenties together. My five-year college degree, Ben's career, early twenties accumulated debt (will we ever reach the peak of that mountain?) Death of close friends and family, the start of new careers and the on-set of "real money"(although is it ever enough), Our official merge of households, an apartment, a townhouse and now by the end of September a home-we have finally reached a point where it will no longer be about finding the right job, finishing school, etc but about discovering what lies next for us as a couple. Whew! I know a mouth full there right? (~;

We have no children- I definitely want a big family someday- Ben has been undecided but I think he is starting to come around. We do have three feline babies whom we adore and treat very much like real babies- we are indeed cat people and have the stray hairs on our clothing to prove it. Izzy, Zoey, and Bryndel come to us from the same litter birthed by a crazy cat I had for awhile my junior year in college. She was the meanest cat I've ever met but gave us three of the sweetest girls we could ask for.

Ben and I have a great group of friends whom we have mostly retained from our school years. His friends are my friends and vice versa so its always nice when we get everyone together- which these days is rare. I also have friends from college who are scattered across the map whom I also love dearly but sadly don't get to see with much frequency. While my friends are dear and I would not trade them for anything in the world- sometimes I feel estranged from their particular life choices. I have many friends who married early and already have children. While that doesn't prevent us from being friends it does prove to be a hindrance at times. With the exception of my scattered college friends I am also one of the only of my closest circle to go to a University and complete my bachelors degree. You don't really realize how that will affect your relationships until you are in that situation so I find it difficult to explain.

I feel this is a big reason to why I blog. I am always looking to be in circles with other young women who are in a similar position in life. Educated professionals who are either in serious relationships or married- no children yet but wants them- who I can talk to, learn from, empathize with. I am in constant search of these people. I thought when I began my serious career I would be ensconced with them- but I was wrong. While I love my job very much I find that there are two distinctive groups. The coordinators who with the exception of myself are at least in their 30s, are married or were previously married, they ALL have children -several even have grandchildren- and then there are the team members who are either very young (read- teenagers) or (and I hate to say it) are uneducated women who are working as supplemental income to support their families. I am by no means saying that I am above them in any way we just have very different lifestyles- myself from both groups of people at my work- and I find a hard time pulling much more from my interactions with them than friendly chit chat.

I'm thinking about joining some type of club or performing group but right now my work schedule is so hectic that membership is only a pipe dream.

So for now I blog and read blogs to fill that little gap.

I think that's a lot to chew on for now. And besides there will be lots to discover about me as we go along together and that will be much more fun than me serving it all up to you here tonight.

Love & Kisses,

Miss Amber Lane

Tonight I'm:
Optimistic, Verbose, Sleepy, Organized, Creative, Content