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‘Hawaii Five-0′ is back — but not me

by Catherine Toth on May 16, 2012 in Musings, The Daily Dish

I tried. I really did.

I was a dedicated “Hawaii Five-0″ fan the first season, following the crazy plot lines and budding bromance between Alex O’Loughlin and Scott Caan.

I tweeted about it, I blogged about, I talked about it. Every Monday night I was tuned in, laptop on and iPhone off. This was quality time with me, Caan and some of the most stunning vistas of Hawaii.

I was there for the murders, the drama, the banter, the fun fictitious Hawaii “landmarks” like Kukui High School. I was completely on board.

Then something happened.

Maybe the back-and-forth between O’Loughlin and Caan got old. Maybe the outrageous plots were too much. Or maybe I was getting tired of the blatant product placement — Subway has got to be the worst — that became more commonplace in the second season. But I stopped watching.

And while I’m sure I’m not alone, I don’t represent the majority.

CBS announced today it was renewing “Hawaii Five-0″ for a third season. The popular crime drama won its hour for viewers and among adults 18-49 many times this season, according to Nielsen ratings.

People are watching — just not me.

Anyone else feel the same way? Or tell me what I’m missing!

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College-educated, jobless and already in debt

by Catherine Toth on May 15, 2012 in Musings, The Daily Dish

Mark Twain famously said, “Cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.”

And that cabbage today would be jobless and in debt — hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.

Not a very successful cultivar.

The New York Times published a very telling series on this crisis — with students, not cabbage — called “Degrees of Debt.”

The Times reported that 94 percent of students who earn a bachelor’s degree borrow money — through federal and private loans and from relatives — to pay for higher education. That’s up from 45 percent in 1993.

In 2011, the average college debt level was $23,300 but 10 percent of graduates owed more than $54,000 and 3 percent owed more than $100,000. What 22-year-old can pay back $100,000 in loans — with interest — fresh out of college? It’s no wonder 1 in 10 borrowers who started repaying loans in 2009 defaulted within two years.

The series featured a recent graduate of Ohio Northern who owned more than $100,000 in student debt. Her monthly payment was more than $900 a month and she was earning just $225 a week working two waitressing jobs while she continued to look for a “real” job.

That’s insane.

I’ve been out of graduate school for more than 10 years and I’m still paying student loans. It’s not $900 a month, but it’s still money that I could use for other things like, oh, rent and groceries.

It took me awhile to come to terms with the amount of money I’m paying each month toward a degree I already have in hand. I realize now — years later — how valuable that education is, that if I can make more a month than my monthly student loan payments, I was doing alright, the degree was worthwhile.

But I can’t say that for everyone.

I have friends who are still paying student loans and not working in their degree fields or — worse — not working at all. There are some who are paying off these loans and other loans, including business loans and mortgages.

You can see why we’re a generation that feels overwhelmed.

As much as it hurt to write that check every month, I can honestly say it was worth it. The experience I had, the friends I made, the learning that took place — all of it was worth the monthly payment I’m still making.

Anyone got a horror story about student loans to share? Do you think college is too expensive? Dish here!

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My mom, my hero

by Catherine Toth on May 13, 2012 in Musings, The Daily Dish

Oprah has long said moms have the toughest — and most important — job.

I agree. And try raising three heard-headed kids, work a full-time job, and prepare a home-cooked meal every night complete with dessert.

That’s my mother, Super Mom, who has literally lifted the bar on motherhood so high, none of us have kids of our own. Likely because there’s no way we can be the kind of mom she’s been to us. It’s just not genetically possible!

I often wonder what it takes to be a good mom. Compassion, level-headedness, patience, organizational skills, commitment, and an uncanny ability to convince their kids that a) there is a Santa and b) jumping off the roof with an umbrella isn’t a good idea.

My mom possesses all these qualities and more. She’s a master at multitasking, she’s never late, she’s a phenomenal cook and baker, she remembers everything, and she can laugh — often heartily — at herself. These are qualities I’ve come to appreciate in the people around me. I figure if they’re anything like my mom, they’re worth being around.

To say my mom and I are close would be a gross understatement. We’re not BFFs, the kind of strange relationship often depicted on reality TV. No, we’re definitely mother-daughter, with me often calling her for advice and recipes and she checking in to see if I’m still alive. We watch Korean dramas together and talk incessantly about food. (This is where I get that from!) But despite our often casual relationship, she’s still my mother, someone I respect and listen to and run to for hugs, mostly virtual.

On this Mother’s Day — since I know she reads (and picks out the errors) in my blog — I just wanted to tell her thanks. Thanks for listening to me whine about boyfriends and dead-end jobs, thanks for sharing all your secret recipes and cooking tips, thanks for always laughing at my jokes, thanks for showing me it’s OK to just be me.

Mom, you da bestest.

Anyone want to give a shout-out to their moms, too? I’d love to read it!

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No blog; working on the wedding

by Catherine Toth on May 11, 2012 in Musings, The Daily Dish

Sorry, everyone. But I really need to spend some time planing this wedding, among other things. So no blogging today! I’m trying on wedding dresses, specifically from Fighting Eel, one of my fave boutiques in Hawaii.

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Overwhelmed? Unplug and hit something

by Catherine Toth on May 10, 2012 in Musings, The Daily Dish

To say I was busy yesterday would be borderline lying.

I had three freelance stories to finish, an interview to conduct, two more to schedule, two dogs to walk, three e-mail accounts to check, stories to pitch and a wedding to plan.

And last night, I served as a panelist for an event put on by Social Wahines and Pacific Business News, where we — Kitty Lagareta, CEO of Communications Pacific, and Frances Nuar, co-founder of socialKINE — discussed strategies for getting media attention.

I was scrambling to get there by 6 p.m., trying to wrap up a few projects, answer the last few e-mails and get a quick walk in with my dogs. And in between all that, I’m tweeting, Facebook-ing and posting pics to Instagram.

This has become my life.

RUSHRUSHRUSH only to get somewhere — like a meeting or workshop — and think about all the other things I have to do.

It’s what happens when you work strange hours, around the clock, in different time zones. I never know what time it is, what day of the week it is, what I’m supposed to do next week. All that matters is right now — and maybe 10 minutes from now — because that’s really all I can handle.

So it was interesting to get the question, “How do you find balance in your life?” at yesterday’s workshop. Kitty reads (a lot) and workouts at least four times a week, all before she starts her workday at 8 a.m. Frances surfs and runs and schedules time for herself.

What do I do?

I watch “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” and hit taiko drums.

Something happened to me in the last few years. There was a time when I would watch movies — in a theater! — and meet friends every weekend. I’d religiously watch “The Colbert Report” and cook dinner almost every night.

Now I’m tweeting during commercial breaks, checking my e-mail at red lights, and updating my Instagram on walks with my dogs.

All this updating and constant connectivity is really draining. I feel like I’m losing myself in a world of status updates and Facebook likes.

I need to find more balance.

Sure, I surf and run and hike and read. But maybe I need to actually schedule time for myself. Get a massage, read a book under a tree, spend an entire day disconnected.

What do you do to unwind? And are you feeling as overwhelmed as me? (Or is it just me…?)

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