RIP - Paul Timothy James, Jr.

Hello my faithful readers:

I lost a friend this past weekend.  Paul Timothy James, Jr was probably one of the few people that knew me best about 10 years ago.  He was like the big brother I never had; one of my biggest cheerleaders who made me believe I could (and should) do anything I set my mind to do.

It doesn't feel like Paul is gone.  I had not been close to him in years, although I was blessed to have caught up with him sometime last year, after we fell out of touch for quite a few years.   Social media was the sliver that connected us after all these years and for that I'm thankful to the power of Facebook for giving us even that briefest connection.

Paul always saw me as way more interesting and intelligent than I ever saw myself.  He was always encouraging me to strike out on my own and start my own business and we even worked for a while on producing a concert series called "Grown Folks Music."  We even went as far as trade-marking the name, but that's just the nature of Paul, always working on something.  There was always something going on with him and he was a man of great character - always fighting for the underdog in every situation.

The one thing that strikes me about Paul was that he had so many different friends from so many different walks of life.  Intellectually I always knew this, but it was made evident when I visited him at the ICU in his last week here on earth at Brooklyn Methodist Hospital.  I met people that I'd heard him reference over the years as well as people I'd never even heard of - people who mattered in his life.  That's the thing about Paul James, he took people under his wing and took care of them, even if he hadn't seen you in years, you had the assurance that he would remember you and give you the shirt off his back if that's what you needed at the time.

Paul James lived every last drop out of his life.  He was a warrior, fighting until the end, although he always fought more for everyone else than for himself.  I wish that he was still here so that I could give him one last hug and tell him (when he was awake to hear me), just how much he meant to me.  He was someone who knew me well, at a time when I probably didn't know myself.  I lost my big brother from another mother and right now I'm a bit numb right now.  In my way of coping, I can just pretend that he's off visiting with friends.  In reality, I won't ever get the chance to say to him what I should have said when he was alive to hear it, "I love you man, thank you for being my big brother.  I will miss you."

Peace and blessings to everyone who was touched by Paul for those who loved him know that he's in a much better place right now and maybe, just maybe, he's finally allowing someone to help him on the other side.

Paul Timothy James, Jr. (July 24, 1960 - July 20, 2013)

Best regards,

Georgia Peach

The benefits of unemployment

Hello my faithful readers:

It has been a while since I've posted a blog.  I've been quiet because I things have been quiet for me - I'm still working on finding a the right job for me.  Not working full-time has given me lots of time for self reflection and although it took me a lot longer than it should have while to realize it, having all of this unexpected time off is allowing me to cross off most of the non-work related goals I'd written for myself back in July 2010.

Rather than focusing on how terrible it is that I'm not working full-time, I thought I'd share with you some of the benefits I'm currently experiencing as a result of my unemployment.

1)  I have more time to focus on my spiritual side.  Since I've been home I've felt the need to strengthen my relationship with God.  I'm praying more and attending church more than the every once in a while I did when I lived in NYC.  I didn't make the time before, but now that excuse (no time) has been removed.

2)  I have plenty of time to spend working out and as a result I've lost 22 lbs. (and going) since I first realized I was gaining weight at an alarming rate (for me). Working out is also a great stress reliever for me and it does wonders for my mood.  I have about 8 more lbs. to lose before I reach my target weight and it's been great to have people notice all of the hard work(outs) I've been putting in.

3)  I'm getting to know my family much better.  I'm sure most of you are scratching your head and thinking - "get to know her family better what does that mean?"  Although I saw them at holidays and talked to them on the phone (and later by Skype), there was an awful lot going on that I missed in ten years away simply because I wasn't here.  It's been nice for me to allow myself to catch up with the circles of life happening right here in my own family and getting to know them as an adult.

4)  My friends, former co-workers and acquaintances have been great about sending me job listings, hooking me up with freelance projects, connecting me with volunteer opportunities, introducing me to their network for informational calls/meetings and offering me places to stay when I need to come to town for a visit.  It's a really great feeling when people are willing to lend a helping hand.  There have been a few friends who have really kept me going throughout this period and I'm eternally grateful for their help and support.  Never underestimate the power of encouragement - it really does make a difference on a bad day!

5) I'm also still continuing to learn Spanish - although I'll admit I haven't spent nearly as much time with my grammar books as I should recently.  I do make sure to squeeze in at least an hour per day of Spanish language programming and I'm happy to say that I comprehend (with captions) about 65-70% of the language without looking up the words as much in my dictionary.  I still need to work in my grammar books a lot more though.

Now this isn't to say that I don't have bad days, hours and weeks, but I think the most important thing for me in getting through this time of unemployment intact is my attitude.  I've had to make sure that I really focus on surrounding myself with positive people and positive energy.  It's really easy (for me) to get into a funk of self doubt and self pity, so I have really tried to make sure I don't spend a lot of time talking to people who help me to get to those places quickly (even if it's family).   It's nothing personal, just something I have to do in order to preserve my mental health and sanity.

This period of unemployment has also taught me more about my capacity for persistence and patience.  Some of the informational calls and meetings took me months to set up, but they finally happened - I'm still waiting on a few more to happen.   The fact that they are happening makes me more optimistic than I've been in a long time.  I can't give up! Good things come to those who wait right?

Mwuah,

Georgia Peach

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On the road again...

Hello my faithful readers:

The past few weeks where a whirlwind of activity for me. I barely had time to think, much less update in any detail what was going on for me. My twitter feed gets a lot more updates on my life because it's only 140 characters and I don't have to spend a half hour thinking about what I want to say there. Now I before I head out for another day of adventures I figured it would be good time to share some of my current thoughts.

I've finally completed all of the requirements for my MBA program at Vlerick. This year has been one of the best years of my life and as I spent the past few days in Leuven saying goodbye to all of my new found friends from the program - it was a bittersweet moment for me. I was happy that the hard work was over, but I realized that as a result of the work ending I won't be seeing and talking my friends everyday like I did when we were in class.

I've mentioned it before, but most of my learning this past year has been through random conversations with my new friends from the program. We've shared our thoughts on topics as diverse as business (we were MBA students), politics, healthcare, travel, love and life. I'll miss these moments full of laughter, great stories and fellowship most of all.

Now that I've packed up my little life in Leuven, I'm on a whirlwind adventure through Greece. Yesterday was my first full day here and I have to thank one of my classmates Orestis for all of the great advice he's given me for my trip. The hospitality of the Greek people has been amazing. From the moment I arrived at my little hotel everyone has been more than helpful. I've NEVER had so many people on a trip offer their phone number for me to just give a call if I needed help with anything or even just wanted to meet up for a trip. I LOVE IT HERE!

Yesterday on the walk up to Acropolis I also met a few Americans who were living in Europe. One young lady is studying here in Greece until December (she's from Utah). I also met a cool young woman who used to live around the corner from me in Bedstuy and is currently living in Paris. I'll try to post a few more blogs during my 20 day odyssey as I head to Mykonos, Paros and Santorini (in Greece) and Istanbul and Cappodocia (in Turkey).

Now I'll try to figure out how I'm going to survive moving all of the luggage I brought with me. I have the feeling that a few pieces of clothing will be sacrificed for the sake of lightening my load by the end of this trip. I'll be moving around a lot with my classmate Oksana, who is joining me later tonight!

Mwuah,

Georgia Peach

Just another weekend in Belgium

Hello my faithful readers:

It's Monday morning and I have the morning free of class! I love having mornings free after the weekends; it makes me feel like we have a long weekend (especially if we get the afternoon off on the preceding Friday which was the case for me). This weekend I did some traveling with my classmates. We visited Antwerp for a short day-trip, then headed to Brussels for "Nuit Blanche" which translates into "White Night" or "Sleepless Night" in french. This is a cultural festival that intends to get people at night to enjoy the cultural aspects of the city.

Saturday was such a busy and full day for me because I started my day by leaving Leuven on the 11:05 AM train to Antwerp with two of my classmates. We were so excited to get to Antwerp that we got off one station to early and ended up at the Antwerp-Berchem train station (not in the center of the city). We were meeting up with a couple of classmates at Antwerp-Central station so once we realized our mistake we hopped on another train for the short trip to the right station.

I decided upon getting off the train and seeing the beauty of Antwerp's train station that I wanted to move there. Antwerp has a more sophisticated, urbane energy when compared to Leuven, the town where I currently live. It's the fashion center of Belgium and home to the Antwerp 6, fashion designers who studied at The Royal Academy of Fine Arts (in Antwerp) in the early 1980's. We spent the day walking around the city window shopping, taking pics and sampling some of the local food. We had as our gracious guide, one of our classmates whom I have a lot of respect for because she commutes in daily from Antwerp for classes (approximately 1+ hours each way). She met us at the train station and remained us for most of our time in Antwerp!

After our relaxing girls day out in Antwerp we were ready for some fun in Brussels. We had arrived and missed one of the trains to Brussels by just a minute. We had to wait another 20 minutes for the next train, but the station is so beautiful that we didn't mind waiting at all. I'll share the rest of my story later this week.

On another note --I have some exciting news to share! I will be blogging on behalf of my school for the Financial Times MBA blog starting later this month. Once the details are finalized and I have the link on this blog. I'm very excited because this is an amazing opportunity for me. I'd also like to say a special thank you to the classmates who helped me out by being a part of the mini photo shoot for the blog. Without such wonderful classmates I wouldn't have anything to talk about.

Thanks for reading today. I have a few new classes starting this week and a couple of papers to write so it's time for me to get back to work!

Mwuah,

Georgia Peach

It's just getting started

Hello my faithful readers:

I have been a little lax in posting updates here, but it's amazing how quickly the days seem to fly by here. Each day a few more of my classmates arrive and there is a flurry of activity as we all try to set up plans for dinner, drinks or whatever just to get to know each other before classes begin. Last night was a fine example. We ended up having dinner at one of the Japanese restaurants on Munstraat here in Leuven, before grabbing beers at one of the local Oude Markt pizzerias.

The social scene here in Leuven seems to be pretty hopping on nice nights. I wish I had pics, but the battery in my camera died last night. I'll try to give you a (very) brief word picture of the scene. There are rows and rows of tables and chairs (sometimes 15 deep), some underneath over-sized umbrellas. All of the people, tables, chairs and umbrellas are spread out across the Grote and Oude Markt areas of town. There is beautiful architecture surrounding you on all sides. Close your eyes a little more and you'll hear the roar of a thousands of conversations happening at a time. Personally, I find that gentle roar comforting and relaxing, it's reminiscent to the sounds you might hear walking through Grand Central Station in NYC. This is the best location for people watching at its finest- in the heart of Leuven.

I realized yesterday that while I am busy getting into the social activities, I am here for a much better reason than just hanging out in a beautiful country. That reason is to study, learn more about other cultures and obtain my MBA. Leuven has a deceptively bland atmosphere that relaxes you and pulls you into its' spell without you fully realizing it. I know that personally my diet has gone to hell in a hand basket here because I'm eating way too many pasta, beers, and sweets. I'm learning that Leuven has a bit of a reputation as a college party town. The past week and a half has given me a bit of a glimpse of why it is referred to as the city of beer, sports and chocolate.

This week I began the process of studying (again), but I haven't fully given it the attention I should. Currently I have two more pre-course work classes that I need to pass before classes officially start on September 1st. Hanging out with my classmates last night also made me realize, I have more than just the coursework to get done. In addition to what is assigned in classes if I am to get all I hope for out of this program I need to do more research on what it is really like in the rest of the world. I freely admit here that I arrogantly thought I had a solid understanding, but sitting there between my classmates from India, Jordan, Turkey and Mexico I realized at that moment, that I know nothing at all. (I was also shocked to hear that American Idol is HUGE in Jordan). I'm excited, but also more than a little overwhelmed by the thought of the amounts of information that I'll be processing over the next 13 months. Quite simply put, I've got a lot of work to do.

Thanks for reading today's blog. I look forward to sharing more with you over the next year.

Mwuah,

Georgia Peach