25 things I've learned about being 25

Hello Again Bloggers and readers of blogs!!   The summer makes me think a lot about my birthday. I don't know why, but I tend to measure where I am in terms of the year during the summer. Perhaps its a "teacher" thing. Who knows? This year I'll be 26 and the thought is sort of intimidating. I was mildly panicked about turning 25, but I did it. I survived. So in my summer reflection I've been thinking a lot about the things I've learned while I've been 25.
1. Not my circus, not my monkey.   

I really love this polish saying. If it doesn't directly involve me, I'm trying to just keep my nose out of it. It's harder than it seems, but I'm getting much better at it.  
 2. Never stop learning  Try to learn something new everyday. You'll never know it all, but trivia in bars is becoming really popular and you never know if you'll get put on Cash Cab or something.
3. Eating out is expensive y'all! I'm bad to eat out, especially if my sink is full of dishes and I don't want to do them (I LOATHE washing dishes) but I tend to run out of money twice as fast when I'm constantly eating out. Learn to cook!!
4. It's okay to be single Really and truly. It's fine. Is it lonely sometimes? Sure. But I've found that I'd much rather be spending my time with me, myself and I, than wasting it on a relationship that's headed nowhere. Ain't nobody got time for that.
5. Jack's go with pretty much everything

I know.. Jack Rogers are expensive, but they are an investment. They go with everything, and come in so many colors the opportunities are endless!! Plus sometimes you can get crazy good deals on them!
6. I am good at spelling, and good at reading, but I'm terrible at Ruzzle Do y'all play this game? It's my candy crush. I'm totally addicted, but I'm pretty terrible at it. I mostly only make two and three letter words, which is insane to me because I have a pretty extensive vocabulary.
7. Don't listen to gossip, get to know someone and form your own opinion For the last 6 years I have actively avoided a girl who lives in the same town as I do because she hates me. Or at least I thought she hated me, and she thought I hated her. Turns out.. neither one of us hates each other and we have so much in common it's insane. Personally, I'm excited about a new friendship.
8. I am very creative, but seriously lacking in the execution of said creativity I can come up with the cutest ideas for tshirts, and stationary and all sorts of creative crap yet when I set out to execute them they turn out like crap. Luckily I can leave that to some really amazingly talented friends that I've met through the internet. Cause I'm cool like that. 
9. I am exactly where I need to be Even when I think I'm not. When doors are slamming shut in my face I can be so focused on staring at that closed door I completely miss the window that's being opened for me. I got my hours cut at my last job, only to two weeks later land the most perfect job that will serve as a stepping stone for my career. Doors close, windows open. Don't forget that people.
10. Friendships take work, but they are totally worth it In this social media obsessed world we live in it would seem that we would be closer to our friends than ever. While that may be true, sometimes I've never felt further from my friends. Take the time to send a text, make a call, or my favorite.. send them a letter.
11. things just taste better when sipped from a mason jar

  Sweet Tea. Wine. Beer. Water. Milk. Everything tastes better from a mason jar.
12. You can't fix stupid Do I really even need to elaborate on that one?
13. Everything can change in one single solitary moment This year one of my student's lost his mom unexpectedly. She was only 10 years older than I am. We got a phone call from the bus driver saying that this student couldn't get into his apartment. When he and his little sister finally did get in they found their mom unresponsive. She was declared shortly after EMT's arrived. This was a mom who had been in the classroom just a week earlier. A mom who loved her kids more than anything, but couldn't give up her drug addiction. Thankfully these two precious kids are surrounded by positive influences and this was truly a blessing in disguise (as terrible as that sounds). Everything can change at the drop of a hat.
14. Trust your gut Don't second guess yourself. Take the job. Accept the date. Put down the cookie. Whatever your gut is telling you, listen to it.
15. Country music is literally THE BEST!! Seriously. If you want to have a good time, go to a country concert. Feeling sad? there's a country song for that! Feeling happy? there's a country song for that! Tired of being a dirty mistress? There is literally a song for that! (it's called Stay by Sugarland)
16. Social Media should always be used responsibly. Always. It can be a great and wonderful thing, I've made some AMAZING friends on blogger and Instagram, but don't be stupid about it. I've had to learn this lesson the heart way. Just trust me. In a generation that has literally almost always had access to the internet we forget what it was like to not have facebook on our phones. A generation where over-sharing is just what we do. We tend to feel like if we don't share it with out IG followers, it didn't really happen. But it did.  Also, just because your waiter messed up your order, doesn't mean he needs to be shamed all over social media. Have some respect.
17. Politicians don't care about me, my colleagues, or the kids I work with, but I can make a difference in spite of them

  I live and work in a state that has increasingly shown me and my colleagues that we don't matter. North Carolina is ranked 48th in teacher salaries. The average salary in NC is about $16,000 less than the starting salary in other states. I can write letters to my congressmen. I can protest. I can rant and rave on here and facebook, but that's not really going to change anything. However, the students of NC deserve great teachers. They DESERVE a great education. So until Raleigh realizes that, I'll go to my job 180 days in a school year. I'll scrimp and save my meager salary to barely cover my bills every month. I'll do this, and I'll be happy about it because I can see every day the difference that I am making with the kids in my classroom. So suck on that Raleigh.
18. 25 is a weird age.. like just really weird It's like this weird age where you still sort of feel like a kid. You feel like you can go out and drink till 3am, but your body is like.. Ummm.. NOPE! Some days you will feel like you're 45 instead of 25 (leg days perhaps), other days you just want to color. It's bizarre and I kind of love it.
19. People will take advantage as long as you let them So.. maybe don't let them?
20. Kid President is wise beyond his years I don't know if Kid President writes his own scripts, or what, but y'all that little dude knows up. 

21. Thank You notes are extremely important They've become a rarity, but I can tell you I, and anyone else you send them to will appreciate them immensely.
22. No one really hates you While the human brain is a fascinatingly complex machine, it's actually extremely rare for it to full on HATE another person. Even some of the most hated people in history, probably weren't so much hated as they were feared and admonished by society. Besides, trying to hate people, like actively focusing on hating people is so exhausting.
23. Save, Save, Save Save as much as you can, while you can. No one else is going to magically contribute to your 401K.
24. Your metabolism really slows down at 25.. like wayyyyy down My metabolism is slower at 25 than it was at 15 and I'm sure it's faster now than it will be when I'm 35. So if you're toying with the idea of getting in shape, start today.
25. My Mom is always right Chances are.. Your mom is always right too. Save yourself some trouble and just listen to her.

My Mom and I in all our glorious 1990's hair and attire

So there's that.. What have you learned as you've gotten older?