I've been collecting crystals for many, many years now. Like many people, I'm sure, I've always felt very drawn to them. I had forgotten the names of many of them along the way, but I recently became re-interested in them and decided today to look some of them up.

Here is a quick catalogue (with images!) of the crystals I have identified thus far in my collection (in alphabetical order):

Amber:

Clearing, healing, protective

Blue Chalcedony:

Calm, communication, service

Clear Quartz:

Healing, enhancing, amplification

Dalmatian Stone:

Protection, grounding, transmutes negative energy

Goldstone:

Protection, uplifting, drive

Green Quartz (not 100% positive of this one):

Abundance, creativity, empathy

Hematite:

Grounding, balancing, detoxifying

Lapis Lazuli:

Communication, intuition, inner power

Mangano Calcite:

Universal love, compassion, healing

Obsidian:

Grounding, protecting, healing

Picture Jasper:

Confidence, nurturing, creative visualization

Prehnite (not 100% positive of this one):

Dreams, forgiveness, spiritual knowing

Pyrite:

Prosperity, protection, deflects negativity

Red Jasper:

Nurturing, grounding, stabilizing

Snowflake Obsidian:

Balance, centering, support

Tiger Eye - Blue:

Soothing, emotional balance, clarity

Tiger Eye - Gold:

Protection, creativity, balance

Tiger Eye - Red:

Vitality, confidence, motivation

Tree Agate:

Harmony, calming, removes blockages

Unakite:

Balance, release, emotional insight

I also have three pieces of rose quartz and four pieces of amethyst that I still need to take pictures of. In addition, there are over ten small, tumbled stones in my collection that have yet to be identified. All in good time. ;)

I feel guilty shopping for myself in December, but when I saw one of my dream bags listed in a 72-hour sale event on eBay for 57% off, I couldn't resist. Seriously, she's even been listed on my Pinterest wish list board for quite some time now!

Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the Kate Spade New York Gold Coast Small Georgina in "Ballet Slipper Pink":

Her details:

• 8.5''h x 11.5''w
• drop length: 9.5''
• pebbled cowhide with foil metallic coating and matching trim
• 14-karat light gold plated hardware
• custom woven metallic jacquard with spades & stripes
• handheld with cross-body strap and a zip top closure
• interior zip & double slide pockets
• kate spade new york light gold staple
• imported

The perfect size (not too big, not too small), a shoulder strap for convenience, the perfect color (ballet slipper pink!), gold hardware... Heck, even the lining of the bag is perfect! Look at those adorable gold polka dots! She's chic, ladylike and timeless. I can't believe I was able to snatch her up for such a good price. I assumed she would be too in demand to ever go on sale like this. I feel very, very fortunate.

One extremely annoying thing about acting is that there are so many little things that have to be just right in order for it to work. It isn't just your acting ability that matters, though I sincerely wish that was the case. One of the biggest things, for example, that has to be absolutely perfect is your headshot.

Your hair color, the way your hair is styled, your makeup, your skin color, your wardrobe, your jewelry and accessories, the lighting, the amount of Photoshopping in the final edit, your pose, the background - everything has to be just right. If even one of these things is slightly off, the whole photo is ruined and you have to reshoot.

I wish I were kidding, but I'm not. It's frustrating as hell, but you live and you learn. I have to reshoot yet again, but this time, I know exactly what I'm looking for.

I feel like a major dork posting anything by Dr. Phil, but these do kind of make sense... ;)

1. Have a defined “image” and never go out of character.
• You must know both yourself and how to present yourself.
2. Create a perception of uniqueness.
• Choose to define your image so that you distinguish yourself from anyone else in the world.
3. Play “big,” not just long.
• Playing big is different than playing long because even reliable and competent people that play long seldom win big, if at all.
4. Learn to claim and accept praise, and acknowledge it in a gracious way, but do accept it.
• The goal is to get noticed and acknowledged for who you are and what you do.
5. Become “essential.”
• If you want to succeed in any situation, it is important to be needed and good to be relied upon.
6. Know your real currency.
• Don’t waste time working for what you don’t want.
7. Always, always have a plan.
• If you want to achieve a sustained measure of success in any area of your life, you need a specific plan that begins with identifying what you want.
8. Keep things “close to the vest.”
• To be interesting you have to maintain a certain degree of mystery, because it gives you a degree of mastery.
9. Always be in investigatory mode.
• You have to constantly be gathering relevant information that may empower you to do and achieve what you desire.
10. Must “stretch” and behave your way to success, even if it feels like “fake it until you make it.”
• Have confidence and be bold enough to stretch yourself, scramble to close the gap if one exists, and grow into new opportunities.
11. Always keep your options open.
• It is important to always leave yourself a face-saving way out.
12. Always master the system and figure a way to make it work for you.
• You can gain distinct advantage if you know the game better than anybody else.
13. Create a passionate nucleus of supporters.
• Surround yourself with people who share your passion and vision, and support your pursuit of your goals.
14. Deal only with the truth.
• You must resolve to never fail to acknowledge if you have a problem or are in some kind of toxic situation that is draining your life energy.
15. Recognize and use the ego and greed of others to create a path to success.
• If you want acceptance and to be heard and well-regarded, you can create receptivity by being sensitive to your listener’s ego.
16. Pick your battles and never let your opponent have control.
• Never put yourself in an untenable position by picking a battle that you don’t need to fight and don’t know with great certainty that you can win.

The biggest lesson I've learned (and am still learning) in life is simply to trust my own intuition. I've never been very good at trusting my feelings before. I'm sure you could sit me down and psychoanalyze me to try and figure out why this is the case, but does it really even matter why? I just never paid very much attention to them. Trust me, I had feelings, and they would come out quite explosively on certain occasions, but I just never put very much stock into them. Instead, I put my trust in cold, hard facts. I would analyze situations ad nauseam trying to figure out what was "right" and what was "wrong," as if nothing in this world comes in shades of grey, only black and white. Even if my feelings were screaming that something wasn't right for me, if I couldn't find any empirical evidence to verify my feelings, I would promptly dismiss them.

I've realized through hard experience that this way of thinking can only get you so far in life. I know it's kept me from exercising my creativity to its fullest potential, left me paralyzed with fear over other peoples' opinions (because if I won't trust my own opinions, I'm left with only the opinions of others), but perhaps most of all, I'm convinced it's left me completely handicapped when it comes to dealing with relationships.

For example, I'll meet someone and analyze them as if they were a cell in a petri dish. "Is he a good person?" I'll ask myself. Well, he did "this," "this" and "this" to me. Therefore, evidence seems to suggest that he is a good person and still worth seeing. (I kid you not, this is roughly the way I would look at things.) I would look at each of the person's actions individually, deciding whether any of them were "deal breakers" or not. He talks to many different women? He appears to be extremely vain? He seems to lack a strong degree of empathy? I would focus on these types of questions without ever stopping to consider how I actually felt about the person. Did I feel good around them? Did I feel happy thinking about this person? Did I feel like I could be myself around them? Was I constantly hit with a strong sense of "No, no, no! This person is bad for you!" when I was around them or thought of them?

I think these questions are immeasurably important and can steer you in the right direction far better than analyzing what the person looks like "on paper." I believe that if someone intends to hurt you or is being in some way disingenuous with you, your gut will always let you know. It's when you look at the action without listening to your gut that you risk being manipulated.

My gut has never been wrong before, yet I've still chosen to ignore it. But, that was the past, and I have no control over it now. The important thing is I'm learning. I feel it very strongly in my gut, for example, that the person I most recently went on a date with is wrong for me. This time, instead of analyzing what he did, said or didn't do or say, I'm just going to listen to my gut and let it all go...

When I dislike someone else and/or believe they are hurting me, it is really my own thoughts about that person that are doing the damage. It's true that person may be doing or saying objectively hurtful things to me and it may be in my best interests to remove myself from further encounters with them, but it is ultimately only the thoughts I continue to entertain in my head about them that bring me down.

The beauty of this truth is that no matter how someone else treats me, I can choose how I react. I don't have to let it hurt me. If I change my mindset, my experience will change.

I can choose to be happy no matter how someone else is treating me. I have that power. This is MY world. MY reality.