follow the white rabbit
look who greeted me this morning when i stepped out my gate...

i know about the OB parrots, but the OB bunnies are a new one to me.
current mood: hop hop hop

time to get excited!
things are falling in place for the island adventures commencing in august! while i feel quite a bit of pressure to put together some amazing projects for work in just a few short weeks, the looming reward on the horizon is worth it. both kelly and grace have chimed in with places for me to stay, so that is such a financial relief for sure. plus, it's just fun to know that i will have a little catch up time with both of these amazing women; time to recharge and reminisce is just around the corner!
until then, satiate your travel photo appetite with the quick weekend trip to sedona for a good friend's wedding: kip and becky's wedding in sedona
current mood: gettin' it done

a letter to the legislators
the following letter was sent to my state representatives to advocate for education funding. Please do the same. Click here, and make yourself heard by using the link on the right. Thank you.
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Dear Assemblywomen Kehoe and Saldana, and Department of Finance Director Genest,
I write to you today to bring another personal story to the budget crisis facing the state. I am a proud alumna of the University of California system, a native San Diegan who continued her higher education at UC San Diego and graduated with a degree in Communication in 2001. With little financial support from my parents, my education would not have been possible without Cal Grant scholarships and work-study awards, and I am grateful for the monies granted to me for financial aid. My years at UCSD had such an impact on me that I chose to place my career path squarely on the campus and am now a proud alumna and proud staff member, serving the university that helped shape me into who I am.

In the past 2 weeks, I have had my salary cut by 13%, with another 5% promised to be gone at the end of the month. I have watched my colleagues silently pack their things after receiving layoff notices. I know that these are tough times for everyone, and I'm not asking you to save my salary. I will continue in this job for as long as I can, because I believe that higher education is the way to financial success for the state of California. I am asking you to priortize education, to put the future of our state and our citizens in to the hands of those students who will be the ones to bear our burdens 2, 5, 10 years from now. Preparing our workforce for tomorrow is the best possible investment we can make today. Money comes and goes but during the up days, there's no way to play catch up for undereducation; no IOU can be cashed and no debt can be cleared for students, faculty and staff who have had their resources and access operating in the red or shut down altogether.

At the end of the school year, before any of the major budget cuts had hit the books or more severely impacted student access, I had a bright, successful, promising student come to my office. She was saying her goodbyes, not because she had successfully matriculated from this great university; no, she had to drop out of school because Cal Grants were gone and private loans weren't an option. She couldn't pay for school, and we lost someone who had the promise of a great future in California. She returns home with no job, no degree, and no prospects. Tell me, what kind of workforce of undereducated, unequipped citizens are we creating?

Please give UCSD and its partner institutions the most flexibility possible so that they can manage budget cuts in the smartest ways possible. And please balance your budget solutions in a way that recognizes the great contribution UC, CSU, and the community colleges will make to California's future economy if they are supported today.

Thank you for your continued advocacy for education.
Brittan Trozzi
UCSD Staff Alumna, Class of 2001
current mood: do your part too!

got a little irish in ya?
i have finally booked a legitimate vacation for this year, one that causes me to dust off the passport and pull out the travel bags. i'm so excited! last year, somewhere wedged between the ups and downs of life, i managed to trip up to san francisco and spend a few days in a city i'm slowly falling quite in love with. plus there was that vegas/disneyland combo a few months ago that could be considered by some a good break from my normal day-to-day. but for me, nothing says vacay like a stamp in the passport. and, hopefully, i'll be racking up 2 on this trip, to make up for lost time! the added bonus of seeing my lovely kelly, the irish girl who gently reined in my sanity while i lived in japan, as well as my adorable little grace, a thespian and vagina warrior, makes the trip all that more exciting. kel's in scotland right now, working and going to school, and grace just moved back to dublin. watch out UK, there will be 2 redheads and a wannabe on the loose come late august!
current mood: time to get paler so i fit in!

too. much. sugar.
i came to work today and was greeted by cherry pie! and 3 different versions of cookies! and whipped cream! and angel food cake! all for my birthday. awww, that's sweet. and a little sickening :)
current mood: tummyache time!

horoscope
TODAY'S BIRTHDAY (JULY 5). In the next 10 weeks, you will succeed wildly by exceeding the expectations of you. You bring humor and creativity to every task. Loved ones appreciate it and clients and bosses pay you high dollar. A special event unites your team in August. A financial breakthrough comes from September's education. Pisces and Sagittarius adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 9, 15, 42, 16 and 20.
current mood: 30's the new 20, they say

mid-year check-in
well 2009, we've successfully seen 6 months go by, so i thought i'd check in. for me, the year's been good, and vastly (vastly!) improved over both 2007 and 2008, ('08 was supposed to be the improved version of '07, but definitely was a little worse). the greatest improvement, in my humble opinion, has been me. i just feel better this year. i look better, i'm in a better place in my head, i'm just happy with me. trust me, that's a vast improvement.
as for my new year's resolutions, i'm tracking well. v-day was a resounding success, raising more money in this tough economy than last year's relatively looser pockets. the hair is right about long enough to chop, and the breast cancer 3-day has granted me more authority than just cheering people on the sidelines. importantly, that communication piece i promised to is being slowly integrated in some sticky situations, with at least 2 of the 3 major points being addressed already. yay me!
so, 2009, thanks for sticking by me. i look forward to celebrating my big 3-0 with you this sunday (@ the ivy, poolside at 2p, if anyone else wants to join us), and seeing what else you have in store for me.
current mood: ready for some fun!