Not Your Average Gal

Copywriter. Content Creator. Constant Sassypants.

Caroline Peterson

Where is Home?

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“I’m flying back home to Michigan for Thanksgiving.”

I caught myself saying that when others asked about my Thanksgiving plans. It’s not entirely inaccurate.

The truth is, Michigan will always hold a deeply special place in my heart, but it’s not home anymore.

Florida is. It may have taken an entire year of adjusting, but 3.5 years later and everything about it feels like home. I’ve settled in.

While in Michigan this past week, I sat at a table, in the city I used to live in and shared so many fantastic memories. Here I was, surrounded by 4 of my close girlfriends catching up and, most importantly, leaning on them for support during what can only be described as the toughest time I’ve had during the whole of med school for the hubster. This last year of med school has taken a toll on the hubster, myself and without providing nitty, gritty details, has really tested us. It’s been rough. I needed my support system and I had it right in front of me.

And yet, my heart felt tugged between 2 places.

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I loved being able to see my close girlfriends face to face, but I’ve in a way, hit my stride while living in Florida. I’m happier and more confident in my career, my hobbies and resolve to fulfill my dreams. Moving 1500 miles gave me the nudge I needed to find my own path.

Going “back home” reminds me of how much things have stayed the same, but also have tremendously changed in my absence.

I flew back to Florida late last night while the hubster stayed in Michigan to shadow in the ER. As we made our final decent, I watched the dots of streetlights end once they hit the Atlantic Ocean. The humidity slapped me in the face as the automatic doors at the airport opened so I could go pick up my car. I hopped in my car with my preset stations and swore at a couple crazy Florida drivers who insist on driving like aholes.

I was home. For now.

Can home simultaneously be in 2 places?

Welcome to Not Your Average Gal!

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I’d like to introduce you to something special. Something that has been in the works for quite a while. Something that means a lot to me.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is my distinct honor to welcome you to…

NotYourAverageGal_Horizontal_Logo_High-01

*sound the trumpets*
*toss some confetti*
*attempt to bang a large gong*

Welcome to Not Your Average Gal!

I always envisioned this space as a place where common ground could be met and the freak flags could fly. As my newly updated About page mentions, this place is for you. You, my not so average pals.

You can expect the same wit, sarcasm and eye-rolling as ever before, it’s just organized in a much more SEO friendly space. Check out my new navigation bar at the top, where you can find anything your heart desires about Travel, Health and my Soapbox ramblings.

No need to worry about updating your bookmarks either. If you go back to Caroline Made This, you’ll automatically be forwarded here. I just assume most of my readers are drunk, so it’s best to make it as easy as possible to find your way home.

Additionally, with a rebrand comes the inevitable new social media handles. If you followed me before – no worries, you’re still following the best. I just updated my handles to reflect the new site name. If you don’t follow me – take charge of your life and make some good decisions. I’ve placed links below that you could click on if you know what’s good for ya’.

Twitter @notavereagegal
Instagram @notaveragegal
Pinterest @notaveragegal
Facebook

With a rebrand comes some special shout-outs.

You, my wonderful readers: thanks for sticking by in the last few weeks while it’s been a bit quiet. Could you do me a favor? Take a moment to share this page and spread some Not Your Average Gal love.

Kiki, a kick-ass Art Director and Designer: thanks for going back and reworking a new logo when I decided to change the name (again)! Find her work here, highly recommend: http://www.kikikarpus.com/

Jessica, a brilliant Copywriter: thanks for providing so many spot-on names and taglines. Your taglines will soon make an appearance on here! Find her work here, she’s fabulous to work with: http://verveandvigour.com/

Screen Shot 2015-11-13 at 1.42.34 PM
A look at where we came from.

 

While I love and appreciate everything that Caroline Made This brought, it was originally created as a place for my video portfolio. This site grew into so much more than a video portfolio and Not Your Average Gal encompasses more of what I write about. So, let’s have a moment of silence for Caroline Made This – thanks for everything you’ve provided; your work is appreciated. May you rest in internet peace.

Now bring on the Not Your Average Gal launch party!

*Waiter. More champagne!*

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Why I Flew to Atlanta Yesterday Morning (and was Home Before Noon)

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Technically, I landed before 11am.

I then went to Starbucks, Trader Joes and grabbed some Chipotle before noon.

It was an eventful Saturday, okay?

So, why am I crazy and why did I fly to Atlanta and back in the same day?

I completed what travel nerds like to call a Mileage Run.

(It was really a status run, but you’ll see the details below.)

Preface: Us travel greeks tend to do some crazy things. A bit ago, Delta sent me a targeted email offering me Gold Medallion status for the next 3 months, as well as the next year if I completed 3 roundtrip flights before a certain date. Knowing full well that I wasn’t going to try make Silver again for next year, I found this offer especially enticing.

As a “lowly” Silver Medallion member, I still enjoy some benefits. Gold offers a bit more that I won’t bore you with (and some may find silly) including Sky Priority boarding and free C+ (formerly Economy Comfort) seats 72 hours before the flight.

Now, would I fly 3 RT flights specifically to get Gold status? Probably not. Seems like quite a bit of money just for those benefits.

But, I already was planning on taking 2 roundtrip flights anyway for upcoming trips that I had not yet booked.

So, are those Gold benefits worth the cost of 1 flight? For me, yes.

I just had to make it work:

  1. It had to be a weekend flight so as to not interrupt my work.
  2. It had to be an early flight so I still had most of the weekend to be productive.
  3. It needed to not cost me an arm and a leg.
  4. It needed to provide Biscoff cookies.

This past week, I saw the price drop for the earliest morning flight available and snagged it.

After I complete the next 2 flights, I’ll be Gold until 2017.

Take a look at how it all went down. (Hover over for captions.)

FLL -> ATL

5:45 am
C+ Seat on an MD-88
That plane that caught on fire last week…
FLL Airport
Hollywood Beach
Sunrise over the Atlantic
BISCOFF!
Puffy clouds

I hopped off my flight in Terminal B, headed to Terminal A for my next flight, made a quick pit stop at the ladies room and then waited about 10 minutes to board my plane back to Fort Lauderdale. (My flight to ATL was delayed about 30 minutes, otherwise I would have gladly hit up Caribou Coffee. <sad face>)

ATL -> FLL

Goodbye dreary ATL.
Exit row on a 757.
My photography class.
MORE BISCOFF!

I landed on time and had the hubster swing by the airport to pick me up after he played a round of golf. All in a day’s work, amiright?

HI!
HI!

 

Does this sort of status stuff matter in the grand scheme of life? Nah. It’s important to keep that perspective, certainly. Plus, in the travel world, Gold isn’t much. But for me, the creature comforts it provides made it worth it to just hop on over to Atlanta for a half hour and fly home.

We all have hobbies, I guess I can include a mileage/status run as one of mine now.

Website Update: The Art of Following Your Instinct

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PARTY PEOPLE!

Oh, how I’ve missed you these couple weeks.

fortlauderdalebeach
Did you miss me? I took a pic in a giant chair after a 3-ish mile run.

 

Lots has happened behind the scenes and I thought I’d update you.

I successfully migrated my site to another host even though it included a few hiccups. I decided on a new website name and tagline. Additionally, I even had an awesome logo designed.

And then…

Then, I logged into my account to renew a domain that was about to expire. This account houses all of the domains I’ve bought over the years and this time, one of them caught my eye. I registered a certain website URL last year when I was hoping to rename this website. I didn’t think a lot of it at the time because I was just buying names I thought could be a fit for the potential rebrand…and then, then I forgot all about it.

This time though, I saw it and immediately kicked myself for not recognizing it more before the rebranding started a few weeks ago. It was just starting at me, tugging at my creative juices.

So, I contacted the awesome graphic designer who was working on finishing my logo to ask her opinion on the new name, as well as the kick-ass copywriter who came up with the original name I was going to go with when this rebranding started.

Both offered valuable, incredibly supportive insight – go with your gut.

heckyes

So I did what any overthinking, anxiety-driven chick does: I made a pros and cons list.

Then slept on it for a few nights.

Then I re-checked the pros and cons list.

Then I decided to listen to myself, take a leap of faith and go the fuck for it.

I hope you’ll enjoy it – I think you will.

—–

This will inevitably delay the relaunch a bit longer, but I don’t anticipate it taking much more time. My preference is to have everything finalized soon so I can share my preparations for my upcoming trip to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong.

Changes are Happening in my Life and on This Site

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Do you ever feel you’re on the brink of something great? You feel invigorated, energized and about to take on the world before you. You know that a couple more stars need to align and BAM the universe is yours. It’s not an issue of fate perhaps as much as determination and hard work.

Changes, oh they are a-happening. Good changes. Life-altering changes.

Ch-ch-ch-changes:

I’m rebranding this site and with that comes a new name.
As I’ve mentioned plenty of times on here, I never intended to keep the name Caroline Made This. I just couldn’t come up with one on my own that felt right. I also designed the lovely logo you see at top here, it’s okay, but it’s nothing that I loved because I knew it would be temporary. So I hired two fantastic ladies – one to rename it and one to redesign the logo. Do not worry your little head, this rebrand just means a better collective direction for my site — I will still be my sassy, spunky, swearing self.

morning run
Before a morning run. Ft. Lauderdale Beach.


I’ve been getting up between 5-6 am.
This has led to some major productivity. I even started reading for FUN. Imagine that. I finished reading The Morning Miracle and it effectively changed my perspective for the better in regards to getting shit done. What I’ve noticed too is that the increase in accomplishments, allows for more down time. Since I know that it will all get “done” with my schedule, I allow for more reading or writing or just watching Call the Midwife (love it!).  I’m not perfect about getting up at 5 on the dot each day, but like this book mentions, I’m not going for perfection here, just progress. Also, to readers who are like, “I get up at that time errrrday.” Congrats. I also probably get home from work well after you do. So take that. *eye-roll*

A morning trail run to work different muscle. Uuuugh.
A morning trail run to work different muscles. Uuuugh.


I’ve lost 7 pounds.
Sure, it’s still part of the same 10 I’ve lost and gained in the last year that I wrote about here. Something feels different though because I’m rewiring my brain to be okay with how I am right now. I make quite an effort at not admonishing myself when I don’t like how something fits. I catch myself and try to correct the negative talk. I like to think the weight loss is a symptom of this, along with, obviously, watching what I eat.

I’ve been taking care of myself.
Going through shit makes you prioritize things and it’s no secret that the summer that just ended hasn’t exactly been a cakewalk. The hubster actually forced me to go have a spa day. As in, called a place, explained he has a med school widow and booked several treatments for me. (Yes, brownie points.) I’d never done anything like that before because 1) I’m self-conscious and 2) I thought it would be a waste of time and money. Let’s just say that I came home from it and scoured Groupon for local massage deals.

Whole foods before 9 am on a Sunday. Woot.
Whole Foods before 9 am on a Sunday. Woot.


I’ve made the most out of my weekends.
Most blogs I write are done on the weekend and then scheduled throughout the week. With the hubster’s recent study schedule, weekends are strictly dedicated to getting shit done. Sure, boring, but man, it’s been really nice. I’ve taken an online photography course to bump up my skills. I’ve nearly completed my copywriting class and have another course in my pocket about running my own copywriting business.  Big girl pants, engage!

I have little patience for Negative Nellies & Victim Victorias (made that last one up).
I’ve noticed that I can’t stand around and listen to all the reasons why what people want to do just won’t work out. It’s a waste of my time. Some people just aren’t ready and some people honest to baby Jesus just are their own worst enemy that, in most cases, will regret not taking a chance to try something they’ve dreamed about. (This comes into play a lot when I talk about traveling.)

———-

So, as you can read, there’s been quite a bit going on behind the scenes.  I truly appreciate your patience while I get this site rebranded.  It may be quiet here for a bit while I transfer URLs and upload logos, adjust site settings, etc. With a new name comes a new URL, which means losing some precious permalinks and social likes/shares. (Geek speak.) I also need to go through and truly organize my post categories to make the site more efficient. I only have, oh, like only over a year’s worth to recategorize.

I’m really excited about how things are turning out and the changes coming to this site. I hope you are too!

Destination Revealed: Where I’m Going

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I’ll describe how the process went once I finally decided that traveling would need to be done solo this time.

  1. Ask readers where I should go.
  2. Contemplate super expensive European destinations.
  3. Look over super expensive group tours.
  4. Ask your dad to go with you. (He said, “No.”)
  5. Sit on the decision for many weeks as life gets hectic.
  6. Remind yourself that you have plenty of miles and points to make this cheap.
  7. Remind yourself that you have girlfriends going to Australia in December.
  8. Contemplate wanting to travel alone vs. with friends.
  9. Remind yourself you can have the best of both worlds!
  10. Book a flight to meet up with said friends and stop somewhere solo on the way back.

Boom. Nailed it.

I will be traveling to meet up with some awesome gal pals who already had their destinations chosen and arranged. These are the same floozies I went with to Spain and Portugal last year. Term of endearment, I swear.

Lisbon, Portugal
I’ll meet them in Australia and from there, we’ll go to New Zealand. On my way home, I’m going to make a small stopover in Hong Kong. No biggie.

That's 26,307 miles I'll be flying.
That’s 26,307 miles I’ll be flying.

 

"MC Sydney Opera House" by Christian Mehlführer, User:Chmehl - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons.
“MC Sydney Opera House” by Christian Mehlführer, User:Chmehl – Own work. Licensed under CC BY 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons.

Australia

I’m flying into Sydney a day before the girls get there. Since it’s on the edge of high-season in Australia, it was one of the last few days that week where I could snag a good deal with miles. I’m flying business class on Virgin Australia all by my lonesome. (I know, woe is me.) But I really wanted my first lie-flat international experience to be with the hubster. That sounded way more naughty than I intended. But, such is the lack of flexibility with that minor thing called med school.

I’ll spend the first day exploring Sydney. Read: Taking multiple selfies in front of the Sydney Opera House. Once the girls arrive the next day, we’ll cause trouble around Sydney for a few days.

 

"Skyline (7187438034)" by Simon_sees from Australia - SkylineUploaded by russavia. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
“Skyline (7187438034)” by Simon_sees from Australia – SkylineUploaded by russavia. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

New Zealand

I used an agency to help me find the rest of the flights using miles and points because 1) I was spending too much time on my own without many respectable options and 2) The use of my points was ending up to be a poor value because it was around the holidays and high-season in Australia. Meaning, I wasn’t about to drop 150,000 miles for a one-way ticket somewhere when I knew there were better deals.

Cue to New Zealand.

I mentioned to the agency (I’ll write about the experience in another post — highly recommend) that my girlfriends were also going to New Zealand as well and if there were better options from there, I can adjust my sails for New Zealand. I wasn’t necessarily planning on going to New Zealand at all.

Well, they found an awesome deal out of Auckland, New Zealand that I couldn’t pass up and hence, I’m going to New Zealand with the gals. My girlfriends are awesome and flexible and also didn’t have anything planned…so they hadn’t even chosen when they’d be in NZ yet. With a good deal on my flight, they gave me the thumbs up and said we could set out for NZ after a few days in Sydney. We’ll be in Auckland for a few days.

I’m flying out of Auckland in Cathay Pacific business class on a 10 hour flight for a solo trip to…

 

"Hong Kong Skyline Restitch - Dec 2007" by Diliff - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
“Hong Kong Skyline Restitch – Dec 2007” by Diliff – Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Hong Kong

I ultimately knew wanted to get to back to Asia and now is my opportunity. I explored options in Kuala Lumpur, Taipei and Tokyo before ultimately deciding on Hong Kong. The fact that it will still be relatively warm in Hong Kong is what sealed the deal for me.

Oh and dumplings. *omgicantwaitfordumplings*

I’m staying at a hotel on points near where all the action is, based off the advice of a coworker that used to live there. I’m both excited and scared to explore alone. I know I’ll be fine. Hong Kong used to be a British Commonwealth, so, from what I heard, it’s relatively easy to get around only knowing English. Perfect for my first truly solo trip.

I’m flying back to the states, via Seoul, South Korea, in business class on Asiana airlines. Again, all on miles and points.

I am so excited that I can hardly contain myself! Traveling is all about prioritizing and leveraging what you want to do, so you can make it happen. And I am! I can’t wait to share more with you guys.

(Also, a big congratulations to Kim and Katie who were the first to guess correctly about where I’m going on this trip. I’ll be bringing back something fun for you gals!)

What do you think?
Have you ever been to Australia, New Zealand or Hong Kong?
Any suggestions for me? I’m all ears!