Do You See In Black & White? An Honest Talk About Race

Let's be real. I'm about as white as you can get. Fair skin, very few dance moves, and a lack of any jumping abilities. I'm like pristine snow; fluffy and white. My realistic jokes regarding my lack of exposure to diversity growing up always draw laughs when I'm around my friends, especially my former roommate Dawon.

The Rooms and Myself!

I've never noticed people's race. I know a lot of people say that, but I don't believe that race is ever a determining factor in someone's personality. I remember a conversation with members of my college sorority where a sister asked me what my parents would do if I came home with a black boyfriend. I remember thinking, that's a weird question...Why would it matter? As far as I was concerned, race didn't matter, and that's exactly how I was raised by my family. Unfortunately, the generations that have come before me haven't always felt the same way. Racism is still ridiculously prevalent in some areas of our country, something that is so hard for me to grasp.

My sophomore year of college, I lived with my friend Dawon. A funny, athletic softball player, Dawon had fair skin and red hair, just like me. However, she grew up with a much higher exposure to diversity than I did. I sometimes think that Dawon took it as a personal mission to expand my exposure to diversity. She definitely succeeded. It was through Dawon that I met Tyeesha. She is one of the most self-confident women that I have ever met. She's also black. Tyeesha and I routinely joked back and forth regarding aspects of race, both of us poking fun at different situations usually starting with, "It's because I'm white isn't it?" or "It's because I'm black, isn't it?"

Our friendship was recently brought to mind when I was working at Brian's wrestling match. I was helping one of his injured wrestlers, who happens to be female, keep score on the board, as well as helping one of the high school wrestlers keep score in the record books. While we were waiting for the match to start, the opposing team members were walking around being rather noisy. They were what some people would consider your typical country boys, Carhartt jackets and boots, southern accents, and farm-built muscles. A type of guy that I'm very familiar with having grown up in western NC. Something else I'm fairly familiar with is the frequency that these "country boys" like to drive with gun racks on the back of their trucks. The majority of them hunt, and they're damn good at it. So as the three of us are sitting at the score table, myself sitting between the two wrestlers, I made a comment that Susie better keep her "They better be quiet before I have to come over there" comments a bit quieter before one of them hears her.

This is where things get funny. Susie looks over at me and goes, "Dude, we're black. If anyone is going to be shooting, we got this." I'm going to be 100% honest. I never really thought about the fact that Susie and Khalil were black. No joke. So I kinda just look at them, and I said, Uh, I'm sorry. Have you looked at me? I'm as white as you can get. After a beat of silence, Susie and Khalil broke into laughter. No, she said. I meant "WE are black" as she points to herself and Khalil. Ever since then, Khalil has become my new Tyeesha. He likes to make fun of me, and I like to tell him that it's because I'm white.

Let's rewind about a year. During my senior year, I took my senior seminar class with the rest of my Communication major classmates. It was during this class that we took a good, hard look at stereotypes. Although nearly everyone had an opinion on being stereotyped, I was very quick to point out that the majority of people making the comments had most likely never been stereotyped a day in their lives, not for anything major at least. One of the guys in our class echoed my point by explaining that as a black male, he had been stereotyped walking through department stores under the stereotype that he was more likely to shoplift because of his race and gender. Aside from the occasional "ginger" joke, I've never been stereotyped. I've never been followed in a store, had someone lock their doors as I walk past their car on the street, or been subjected to any other similar offensive gesture.

So I'll leave you with this question. What makes race such a prevalent issue in our society? Why does race matter? Isn't it true that when you take someone's blood, no matter their skin color, it looks the same? Aren't our insides the same color? Have you ever been stereotyped?

Oh Danny Boy, The Pipes, The Pipes Are Calling

The past few days have been filled with so much to do. Brian's grandpa Walt passed away on Saturday at 12:15 a.m. Brian's parents were on their way to visit Walt, as were his other two children, when he passed. I think he knew everyone was in town and he was just ready to let go. I was so blessed that I got the chance to meet and talk with Walt in the week before he passed. He was absolutely hilarious and very sure of himself. He was joking even in the final days, telling us that the good thing about being terminally ill was that you didn't have a roommate in the nursing home. He even started to quiz me about how much I knew about him, asking which of the Mulligan boys (Brian or Shawn) was more like him. I failed the quiz, but got a few good laughs in the process.

Walt's funeral was last night. It was small and intimate. Brian's mom Kris played the piano and sang, and her choir was absolutely incredible. They sang Danny Boy and Amazing Grace, among other songs. It was gorgeous. Afterwards we ate lasagna and spaghetti, salad, bread, and took shots of Irish whiskey.

I woke up this morning pretty sure that I had the flu. I had a sudden onset of congestion yesterday while preparing for the funeral, but it had been easily remedied and not intense at all. This morning, however, I felt as though I had been hit by a truck. Stuffy nose, chest and head congestion, I can't hear, my body aches, I have a sore throat, and I go from freezing to burning up. I'm currently stuck on the couch with Chase waiting for Brian to come home from school and then wrestling practice so he can bring me Gatorade, Vick's tissues, and dinner.

Chase has decided that the best way to cure the flu is to lay on top of me. Not exactly what I would consider to be a solution, but he seems to think it helps.

If you have any well wishes for Walt, please leave them below. I'm sure Brian would love to read them.

I'm Not Unemployed...I'm Retired

That's what I've started telling people. It's rather sad actually. Fortunately, unemployment has a few upsides.

• I get to read as many Janet Evanovich books as I want on my Kindle
• Extra time to practice my cooking skills
• No piles of dirty laundry
• I always have time to vacuum
• My alarm clock no longer has a use past reminding me to take my birth control

Unfortunately, it also comes with a few downsides, such as money and a way to get rid of feeling like a complete failure. 

For those of you who are new readers (yeah...right) I'm Amanda, and I'm currently obsessed with reading Janet Evanovich books. If you have any thoughts about what book to read next, please pick up one of hers, because they are absolutely hilarious. Start at number one, One for the Money. This whole spiel has a point, just so you know. 

I've decided that I want to be a bond enforcement agent, also known as a bounty hunter. Unfortunately, I don't want to be just any bounty hunter. I want to be Stephanie Plum. Considering the fact that I am unemployed, I have quite an ample amount of time to think about how much I want to be her. Not in a creepy way, come on now. Who wouldn't want to be a bad-ass bounty hunter? Okay so the occasional shooting and explosions I may not like too much, and lord knows I am attached to my car, but really. You have to admit the similarities, mainly my grandmother. Lord knows I love her, but good lord. She's an absolute nut cake. Barely 5 feet tall on a good day and full of Boston attitude, Gram has a tendency to think that she's invincible. Add the fact that I'm terrified of guns, hate running, and have a tendency to have crazy things happen in my life, and I think I'm in the running. 

So anyway. If anyone has any job suggestions or leads, I would appreciate the leads. Considering the lady I sat next to on the plane back from Florida was encouraging exotic dancing (mom wasn't exactly thrilled on that one...) I think that anything is better than that. 

If all else fails and I can't be Stephanie Plum, I want to be Janet Evanovich. A woman who writes to her hearts content and just happens to be one of the most popular crime authors of our time? Stick a fork in me, I'm done. 

Check out the links below to connect with Janet Evanovich and please read some of her stuff. It's FANTASTIC! (Here's a hint: In book 10, you get to read about a school bus-driving drag queen who was packing an uzi instead of an AK-47 because it fit under the seat better...how 'bout THOSE apples)

Amazon Profile

@janetevanovich

Unexplained Absence

I feel as though I owe all of you readers (okay well...like, all 12 of you) an apology. I've been MIA lately, and even though it was for (what I thought) was a good reason, that's no excuse for abandoning my 12 loyal little readers.

There is a quote in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee that my dad always quotes when he's tired of explaining something. "I got somethin' to say an' then I ain't gonna say no more." This is a situation that doesn't deserve much explanation, so I'm going to keep it short and sweet. Last week I found out that my internship wasn't going to be extended, which meant that a week before Christmas, I was out of work. Aside from being completely scared out of my mind about how I'm going to pay for gas, groceries, rent, electric, internet, and student loans (just to name a few) now that I don't have a job, I basically just let all of my concern and worry get the best of me.

Cue a good four days spent crying on the couch, without washing my hair, and watching nothing but crime shows on Netflix. I was gross. The whole thing was gross. I let depression get the better of me, and I'm so glad that my friends and family finally said enough is enough and made me get up and get on with my life. And that's all I'm going to say about that.

On Friday, Brian and I left for the beach to spend Christmas with his family. I'm currently sitting on the couch in their condo, watching my favorite Christmas movies snuggled up with Chase, Charlie, and Brian waiting on his parents to return from dropping off his little brother Shawn back on base in Norfolk, VA. It's been a great weekend of fun, food, laughs, and jokes, all of which I desperately needed. We've learned that I haven't seen nearly enough Christmas movies, and that my mind is getting dirtier the longer I stay with Brian. Overall, the whole weekend was a great way to unwind after the hellish ordeal that was last week.

I'll start to post pictures soon. I leave on the 27th to fly back "home" to Florida for a wedding, so I'm not sure how much I'll be posting. Hopefully I'll take advantage of my Blogger app for iPhone and keep you guys updated from the airport.

To those of you who saw me last week, thanks for all the love, even though I'm pretty sure I looked like I was hit by a bus. Love you all.

Merry Christmas!

Losing Faith in Humanity

Do you ever feel as though you were in the right place at the right time? Many times the saying comes as the opposite, being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I think that we are too often consumed with that way of thinking and that mind set.

I chaperoned an 8th grade field trip yesterday to the Biltmore House in Asheville, NC for Brian's class. As we were leaving, my phone came alive with news alerts notifying me of the shooting in Connecticut. It was a moment that I'm not sure that I'll ever forget. After spending the past few hours with students, it's hard to imagine that someone can have enough hatred and rage against the world that they would cause so much pain to people they never knew. I can't fathom the hatred.

I'm currently sitting at the public library on the last row of computers in the upstairs section.Brian is searching for books as I print out a coupon so I can buy a vacuum. Silly, right? Two computers down, a man is sitting and he struck up a conversation with me nearly as soon as I sat down. He's meticulously typing gospel songs that he has written. He let me read some of them, and they are absolutely beautiful. The words may not be spelled perfectly, but it's his attitude about doing something that he loves that is so inspiring to me. He asked me if I could sing. When I told him that I could, but not well, he told me that he bet I could sing like an angel. Sometimes I truly believe that we are in the right place at the right time. For me, today was one of those times.

With the recent crimes of hate that have plagued our nation and our world, I have to admit that there are times that I lose faith in humanity. I think that it's too easy to be negative when we are constantly subjected to the hate and despair that plagues parts of the world every day. Sitting today and having a lovely conversation with this man so full of love and passion was so refreshing, and it really did make me rethink my negative view of our world.

"You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty." Mahatma Gandhi 

I believe that I was in the right place at the right time so that I could have a better sense of faith in humanity. There's never an easy way to deal with sadness. The anger and grief that the parents, friends, family, siblings, teachers, and responders are feeling doesn't come close to anything that I can even begin to comprehend. While I was waiting for my car to be serviced today, I was seated in the waiting room with a young woman and her two daughters. The television was playing a press conference from Connecticut, and the mother transitioned from watching her young children to watching the television. It was evident that her children were close to the ages of those beautiful kindergarten and first graders who lost their lives yesterday. The pain and grief on her face was evident. She kept shaking her head while watching the news cast. Her grief was not only for those children whose lives were lost, but for the parents who, like herself, loved their children and are forced to deal with this loss.

Many people have been moved to make statements about gun control laws and their belief over the "guns don't kill people, people kill people." Even though I have an opinion, I have also realized that this isn't about gun control. Right now, this is about the innocent lives that were lost. Maybe there will come a time where the topic of gun control is discussed in relation to this shooting, but that time is not now, not yet.

As we all move on with our daily lives as normal the next few days, I hope we all take a moment to reflect on the tragedy that unfolded in Connecticut. As the girl friend of a teacher, I can't imagine facing the news that these friends and family members received. Religious or not, please keep a kind thought in your heart for these families. It is so easy to lose faith in humanity and goodness. Please always do your best to be the one of the few reasons that people cling to hope of goodness. I think that we all, myself included, have simply proclaimed our distain for this man whose actions shed the blood of so many innocent victims. However, we must all remember that, as we pray for his victims, we must pray for his family as well.

"But who prays for Satan? Who, in eighteen centuries, has had the common humanity to pray for the one sinner that needed it most?" Mark Twain 

I BROKE SANTA!

My morning hasn't started off the best in the world. I was hoping that since today is my Friday (I'm chaperoning a field trip with Brian tomorrow) that it would be quick and painless. Obviously not. Aside from waking up too early, which I have to admit is better than too late, I spend the majority of the morning looking for my badge that gives me access to the doors at work. My search only turned up coins from under the couch, and so I had to text my boss on my way to work to tell her that I was going to need to be let in. Upon arriving, I used my favorite phrase that my friend Amy and I made ridiculously popular. "I am the captain of the fail boat." (Because it kinda sounds like sail boat...get it?)

Anyway. the first thing that my coworker and I do in the mornings is walk across the building to the break room and make our coffee. This week I finally brought my Santa mug to spread some holiday cheer at my desk. Yesterday I forgot to rinse Santa out, so I spent the first five minutes washing him in the sink before I made my coffee. Building upon my crappy morning, as I was wiping off the outside of Santa's jolly little fat face, he slipped...out of my hands and into the sink. I made a valiant diving effort, smacking my wrist in the process, but Santa is only about half as holly and jolly now...

Santa before...

Santa after...

Everyone in the break room stared at me because the first thing I did was, rather loudly, exclaim "I BROKE SANTA!!" One guy told me that if he didn't get what he wanted this year, he blamed me. Great.

Hopefully I will have some better news to report this afternoon. Looks like all the crazies may be right...Santa didn't make it past 12/12/12.

Getting Paranormal

When Brian and I first moved in together, we purchased a subscription to Netflix. As I have previously complained about, Netflix doesn't have a lot of the shows that I enjoy, specifically NCIS or Big Bang Theory. After some searching, we found a few shows that we both really enjoyed, including one called Ghost Adventures. After a very short amount of time, we became absolutely obsessed.

In 2006, ghost hunters Zak Bagans, Nick Groff, and Aaron Goodwin filmed a documentary for the Travel Channel that follows the three men as they investigate supposed paranormal places. From the minute that Brian and I started the documentary, we were hooked. Brian especially. No matter how many times we watch the episodes or the documentary, he gets so freaked out. I'm not sure if it's more because he believes it and it freaks him out or he wants NOT to believe it and it freaks him out, but it's almost as entertaining to watch him watch the show as it is to watch the show in general.

When we first started the episodes, we would watch them back to back at night after work, which usually culminated with Brian refusing to go into our laundry room and jumping a foot at every little sound.

As I am writing this, we are re-watching the documentary. I keep asking Brian what exactly freaks him out about it, and his only response is, "I don't know, it just does." As I push further, he explains that it's because he really does believe it, and it's just scarier than any other show we have watch previously. There's one instance in the documentary where a brick is thrown across the room. I'm not sure that I have ever seen Brian freak out as badly as he did when that brick went flying.

I'm not quite sure how deeply I believe in paranormal investigations, which I think is why these shows fascinate me. I'm not nearly as jumpy as I am after I watch something like Disappeared, where people are kidnapped or missing. That freaks me out more than anything. This is Brian watching Ghost Adventures:

This is Brian is early October watching Ghost
Adventures for the first time. 

This is last night. Still grasping a pillow and transfixed on the TV.

Do you believe in the paranormal? Have you ever had any interactions with spirits? TELL ME YOUR STORIES!

In Advocation of Self Defense

For those of you reading this, I'd like to start out by saying that I own a punching bag and I have a lot of pent up anger. In case you happen to be a crazed stalker, I also have access to multiple police officers and guns.

Okay so for those of you who aren't crazy serial killers or stalkers, let's be honest. My training of self defense comes from one too many late night movie sessions of Miss Congeniality and a slight obsession with NCIS, Law & Order, and crime scene shows. The part about punching bags, police officers, guns and anger was right, though.

Growing up in a small mountain town where everyone knew everyone, I was never really in fear of my safety. Of course there was the random stranger that would make you think twice about walking alone at night, but for the most part, I always felt 100% safe. My parents never owned guns, although I feel like my dad knows how to operate one given that my uncle owns them and claims to be a pretty good shot. The only real weapon that we had in our house was my Grandpa Ken's Navy sword. That thing was a beast. Any time I was home alone and a leaf so much as fell too loudly outside, you can bet your booty I made a bee-line to that sword. Oh, and we had golf clubs, but the only time those were ever used as self defense was the time that I was walking out to my car and saw a snake eating my favorite fish, Blue, out of the pond. Blue didn't make it, but then again, neither did the snake....or probably the golf club for that matter. Like I said, I have a lot of anger.

When I went to college, there was never a real time that I felt a lot of fear either. Aside from people stealing from unlocked cars and the guy who liked to expose himself to female students, campus was pretty uneventful. Not to mention that my entire 4 years I was best friends with the majority of the Theta Xi fraternity and always had an escort back from a party if it was too dark outside. Oh gosh, I totally forgot, and he'll laugh if he ever reads this. The only time that there was ever a concern for my safety was when we thought my ID card was stolen, and security and the police were out looking for a guy described by my sorority sister as "a college student with short blondish hair and a West Point sweatshirt." Long story short, our school had issued the same ID number to both myself and poor Josh. Needless to say it was a story recounted many times over the rest of our college careers.

After graduation from college and the realization that not everyone is out to be my friend, I have decided that I want to not only learn how to defend myself, but I want to learn how to shoot a gun. I've shot two guns in my entire life, both under the keen supervision of my friend Carson, a Marine who served three tours and was a gunner on the top of the hum-vees. It was three Christmas's ago off the back of the cabin that our parents own together up in the mountains, and I shot a shotgun and a .45....at a snowman. Needless to say, the only one who shot the Budweiser can off Frosty's head was Carson. I couldn't hit the broad side of a snowman with the .45 if I was 10 feet away...which I nearly was. It was embarrassing.

So this whole rambling about self defense brings me to a funny story that I will end with today. Last night after I finished working out in our living room, I decided to practice my self defense moves with Brian. I have been watching "Disappeared" and am beginning to realize if I am ever kidnapped, the only hope I have of being let go is my annoying the kidnapper with my big mouth. As a wrestling coach, Brian is experienced in "pinning" a person to the ground, so I was hoping that maybe I could learn how to un-pin myself. Yeah well. Fail. Not only did he succeed in making me not able to breathe by compressing one of my lungs, I moved my arm too fast in an attempt to un-pin myself that I nearly broke my elbow. Luckily it turned out that I just beat the crap out of my funny bone, which was not, in fact, funny at all. My arm is still slightly tingling nearly 14 hours later.

Moral of the story: Do not wrestle with Brian. Also, expect to hear more about my adventures trying to learn how to safely and effectively discharge a weapon. Concealed carry permit HERE I COME!

A Holly Jolly Holiday

I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season so far! I can personally say that I would be enjoying it a lot more if it wasn't nearly 70 degrees every day this weekend. Although I do enjoy t-shirt weather, I miss snow, and I miss cuddling up with a nice book on a cold winter day by the fire. Since the weather isn't really doing its job and placing me in the holiday spirit, I've decided to try a different approach. What better way to enjoy the holidays than by drinking caffeine out of Santa's head? Exactly.

SANTA!!!!!!

Last week as well as this weekend I was blessed to be able to do a lot of reflecting, both on my life and the world in general. Each day, we see simple acts performed by simple people, yet it's the selflessness behind these acts that is truly amazing.

As I near the end of my internship, I am so blessed to be working for a company that has the concern of our greater community in its heart. Last week I was offered the chance to visit a local fire station where fire fighters were taking their spare time to assemble bikes that our company donated to the Christmas Bureau, a program created by the United Way that helps parents "shop" donations for presents for their children, who may otherwise not have a Christmas present. The atmosphere in the fire station was so special. The men that were working on the bikes knew how important their work was, and how much it was going to affect the lives of children and parents in our community. For more information on this program and to see if it exists in your area, Google "Christmas Bureau" and the name of your town!

On Friday, I had another incredible opportunity. For the past few weeks, our company has put out donation boxes in our office for the local Cops for Tots program. Partnered with out local police department, the Cops for Tots program sets up an annual Christmas Wish House where qualified parents can shop for presents for their children. Similar to the Christmas Bureau, Cops for Tots relies mainly on donation from the community to help support families in need.

Each of these programs are so incredible, and I hope that you will take the time to learn about each of them and strongly consider making a donation, whether a toy or monetary, this holiday season.

Saturday was spent with my former roommate Kassie, who I talk about all the time, as we ran errands and tried to finish up the last of our Christmas shopping lists. Including breakfast and lunch, we stopped by: Starbucks, Target, Walmart, Petco, and Chick-fil-a. I feel like there was more, but for now, that's all I can remember. I can officially cross Brian, my uncle, Dad, and the dogs off of my list. After the enormous amount of shopping, I also went home and wrapped all of the presents before Brian got home. Whew. Unfortunately I'm too scared about the dogs to put the presents under the tree. Sad day.


Surprisingly Sunday was the busiest day of all. Brian and I got up early and did some house work, then met Kassie at Petco for some socialization time with Quest and Chase before heading to the Humane Society for their 5 Year Anniversary Holiday Party. Since Chase was adopted from the shelter, we wanted to bring him and let everyone see how much he has come out of his shell, as well as drop off a much-needed donation of laundry detergent! Aside from his obsession with the cats running around, the event was pretty uneventful in terms of Chase and Quest. We did get a lot of fun holiday dressed-up pictures with the dogs, though! Check out the photos at the end!

As we inch closer and closer to the holidays, I hope that you will consider making a donation of needed items, money, or time to a local organization. You never know when the person in need could be yourself, and how much of a difference you can make in the lives of people within your own community.

I can't remember if I already posted a pic, but here is our tree!  The bulbs are all hand made (look for a tutorial to come!)  because I love them! 

Quest at the shelter posing for Christmas pictures. Look at his snazzy bow tie!

Trying to convince me to stay on the couch...it worked. 

Kassie and I have issues...this is what happens when we go out together.

He really will dress up in anything, much to the amusement of people around him. 

Brian was unamused that his male dog was in a tutu.

Tacky Techie

As I've written before, I'm a pretty big nerd when it comes to my Apple products. iPhone, MacBook Pro, iTouch, etc, I love them all. I wanted to take a few minutes tonight and fill you all in on my new favorite iPhone apps. 

When I first started I Bought A Lawnmower, I highlighted Mint, Starbucks, Waze, Lift, Key Ring, Catch, Find iPhone, and I Heart Radio as some of my favorite apps for my phone. As I've changed, so have the apps on my phone, so I wanted to type up a quick blog explaining some of my new favorite choices!

1. Living Social: An app for shopping, basically, Living Social offers discounted deals in your area. Some things that I have purchased from Living Social includes 1 year magazine subscriptions for $5 each and a $10 Starbucks gift card for $5. Many of the deals are similar to the Starbucks offer, including a gift amount for half the price. It's a really neat website for those of us who don't like to pay full price for anything!
2. Blogger: I figure you guys had to see this one coming! I love blogging at the most random times, and inspiration can come when you least expect it. Since I always carry my iPhone but rarely take my computer everywhere, I love the ability to write, post, update, and comment on posts all from my phone. It's awesome! If you have a blog, I highly recommend downloading it. 
3. AP: As a journalism major, I'm obsessed with new. My phone contains apps for NBC, Huffington Post, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, CNN, CBS News, Yahoo!, ESPN, and the AP Mobile app, which I am highlighting in this post. The AP is one of the more "in the middle" news providers, and I like how thorough their coverage is. I like to have a variety of different news apps so that I can read a story from many different points of view, so if you like news and current events, I highly recommend not only this app, but having a variety in general.
4. Snapchat:  Okay by now the majority of you probably know what this is. In case you don't, Snapchat is an app that is used to send and receive pictures, but the catch is that the pictures you send and receive can only be seen for up to ten seconds before they are erased forever. A lot of people claim that it's the perfect app for naughty photos, but considering that there is always a ways for someone to take a picture of their phone screen or use a screenshot (however if a screenshot is taken, the sender is notified, so that's cool!), so no matter what, it's a BAD IDEA. I personally use it to send funny faces to people. 
5. Multi Edit: For those of you who don't like having an actual address book and worry about losing your contacts should something ever happen to you phone, Multi Edit is a perfect solution. It not only tells you details about your contacts such as the number you have and any duplicate contacts, it also tells you any duplicate email, phone, and email fields, as well as entries without phone numbers, email addresses, names, etc. You can see fields by Company, Job Title, Email Domains, and Birthdays. It's awesome. Plus, you can also back up your contacts and email a link to yourself in case your phone ever has a problem. and you lose your contacts. GENIUS!
6. Relax Melodies: One of the simplest yet most favorite apps ever! I never really liked falling asleep to noise until I realized that it was so quiet when the power went out. Relax Melodies is a noise maker app for when you fall asleep, but it also has a "concentration" mode, allowing you to put in ear phones during tasks that you need to be alert for. It plays a certain melody that is known to perk you up. It's so awesome. It also allows you to mix your favorite noises together at different levels to form your own unique noise board. My favorite is probably Relaxing at the Ocean or Stormy Night. They're great and remind me of being back home in the woods during a thunderstorm.