About Me

One.  My name is Jonelle.  I would describe myself as outgoing, social, a quick learner, open-minded and compassionate.  I live with my boyfriend of 4 years and my 3 year old female Puggle named Riley in a Chicago apartment.  I went to Illinois State University and graduated with my Bachelors in Science with a major in Mass Communication and minors in Public Relations and Sociology in 2007.  Currently, I am working as an Administrative Assistant at a financial trading firm in the loop.  I have a fairy large family (one older half-brother, two older half-sisters, one younger brother, and one younger half-brother, plus 3 cousins, and 11 nieces and nephews to boot.) Although, I did do a majority of my growing up in a household with just my mom, my younger full brother, and I.  

Let's Go Cubs!

I am very competitive and love to play any game you throw at me.  I love watching/attending Cubs, Bears, Bulls and Blackhawks games.  My boyfriend is a Chef and he has passed his passion of fine food and wine onto me.  I also love to travel and my boyfriend and I have traveled to Australia, Hawaii, Puerto Vallarta, and various places in the States together.  My favorite TV shows include Friends, Grey's Anatomy and Glee.  I am a horrible dancer, but desperately try to be good at it.  :)

Dan, Riley and I

Two.  My home is fairly low key.  It is the perfect size for my boyfriend, dog and I.  It has a cozy home feel, but also feels modern at the same time.  My dog, Riley, likes to hang out on the back of the couch and watch the world outside... and occasionally bark at those who are walking their dogs or tormenting her through the window.  Since it is just the 3 of us in our household, Riley does a great job at keeping us both busy and not feeling lonely when we are alone in the apartment.  She is a very sweet and cuddly dog who has never met a stranger and has the perfect amount of playful puppy still left in her.  We have pictures all over our apartment of memories with friends and each other and the apartment gets a lot of sun, so the apartment always feels upbeat and lively.  

Dan and I

When my boyfriend, Dan, and I are home together we like to relax with a glass of wine and just enjoy each others company.  Living with a chef means we always have interesting food and wine in the house and there are often delicious smells emanating from our apartment into the hallway.  Given that Dan is the cook of the household, and makes a larger salary than I do, I like to think of myself as the disciplinarian/organizational clean freak.  I'd say I keep the basic functions of the apartment running... whether it be getting the laundry done, scheduling Riley's vet appointments, making sure rent gets in the mail each month, and general upkeep of the place.  I would definitely say Dan agrees, and I know he better appreciate the crap out of it.  ;) 

Three.  I tend to live by 3 philosophies that I feel define me as a person and explain how I live.

•  "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. [Matthew 7:12]" -- The Bible. 
  I try so hard to live by this quote.  Not even so much as I am an extremely religious person but because I believe in this philosophy.  I try to have a generally positive outlook on the world around me and the people I come into contact with.  There are so many people in the world who go through life bitter, angry with themselves and angry with others.  I feel that being so upset at the world and spreading that feeling around is like spreading around an unwanted disease.  I try to treat people with respect, be courteous of others and their feelings, and strive to make people happier as that is how I would like to be treated.  I am a loyal friend and girlfriend and do things just because I know it will make people happy as I appreciate it so much when these gestures are returned.
• Pay It Forward. 
  This is a concept I feel gets so easily lost in our world that has become so driven by money, greed, and technology.  If the opportunity presents itself, I try to do one nice thing for a stranger every day.  I don't expect this from other people because I don't believe in only giving when you are getting.  But I hope that doing that one nice thing for someone new will add something to their day and maybe they'll pay it forward to someone else. 
• "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." -- Mark Twain.
  We have only one life to live.  Which means we have one chance to experience, see, and discover as much as possible before we move onto wherever it is we move onto.  I try to make sure that I take advantage of opportunities that come my way and jump at spur of the moment adventures.  I want to travel and see as much of this world as I can.  Our planet has so many hidden gems, so much to discover, so many people to meet, and so many cultures to experience, that I do not want to wake up 20 years from now and realize that I can never get that time back and I spent a majority of it on my butt at work and in the shelter of my home.  I try not to be afraid of new things and welcome them with open arms.  I hate monotony, crave spontaneity and as long as my bank account will allow for it, I'm the first to jump in with my friends.  I often find myself wishing I could be in 3 places at once because I never want to miss out on another memory or experience.

 Four.  I am most proud of my work-ethic and compassion for others.  My mother struggled as a single-mom while I was growing up, but she has since then done very well for herself through hard-work and expanding her education.  I think she passed her work-ethic onto me as I tend to be a perfectionist when doing projects and I strive to be the best at what I am doing.  I am a very quick learner and have the ability to 'mime' what I've been shown and master the task after just doing it two or three times.  I also HATE to disappoint people; whether it be my mom (most importantly my mom), my boss, my friends, my boyfriend, even my dog!  So I believe in giving everything I do everything I've got so I can prevent anyone from being disappointed in me.  Because of continuing with my strong work ethic I have received raises at my jobs, end of year bonuses, priority shifts when I used to waitress/bartend, and putting a smile on my mom's face.  :)

I am also very proud of my compassion for others.  I like to help people and make people feel better about themselves.  I love to over-gift, over-surprise, over-help those that I love and I thoroughly enjoy making others happy, including those I've never met.

As far as what I can improve about myself, one major thing sticks out.  Although I'm sure my boyfriend can argue I have a few more after living with me for so many years.  :-)  Sometimes I tend to 'over-share' secrets.  When it really, really matters I am very good about keeping things to myself.  But in the past I have definitely gotten into trouble with sharing my own secrets and sharing things I've let slipped to others about others.  I'm not the 'Mean Girl' gossiping type, so I never talk about or spread the 'he said/she said' rumors in hopes of breaking up relationships, friendships or business relationships.  But I have accidentally let some things slip out simply because I over-hear somebody talking about something and I want to feel important/special too so I contribute to the conversation by proving I might know more than them.  It's a pretty bad feature about myself and in the recent months, maybe even year, I have gotten MUCH better about it... but I'm definitely not where I would like to be.

Five.  One of my other major goals is to that I found a job I love and actually enjoy doing.  I don't want to just settle at a job because it pays the bills and because it provides health insurance.  I want to WANT to get up every morning and go to work.  Almost half of our lives are spent working, the other almost half are spent sleeping... so I want to enjoy the times I am awake! :)  I've always wanted to go into TV Productions, but that is one hard dream to crack!  So I'm hoping to incorporate my other major passion, which is traveling, and hopefully find a way to make traveling a part of my occupation.  I'm the type that would rather spend money on a plane ticket than a new outfit and I'm hoping that going into a travel job will allow me to do both. :)

Five years from now I see myself finding a place to call home and settling down.  I will hopefully be enjoying what I do for a living and living somewhere that doesn't have negative temperatures half the year.  I'm hoping my boyfriend and I will be married and our dog will still be running around our new home.   All in all, I expect my boyfriend and my dog to remain my constants and I'm really hoping the locale and my career will be what has changed.

Six.  I've decided to list the top 12 brands that I interact with on a daily basis. I have organized them from most to least frequent.

1. BlackBerry

I use my BlackBerry for everything every day.  I use it to surf the internet, send and receive emails, check/update my social networks, as my mp3 player for my workouts, my morning alarm, etc., etc.  I really like my BlackBerry Torch because it has a touch screen and a regular keypad... best of both worlds! It is practical, easy to use, and convenient to have since it performs so many different functions.

2. Primal Pet Food

This is the dog food I serve my dog.  She eats twice a day so I feed her breakfast before I leave for work and dinner after I get home from work.  I chose this pet food because I have been told a raw meat diet is the best pet food you can serve your dog.  I really want Riley to be happy, healthy and live a long life so I opted to spend a bit more money in order to ensure her the best daily diet possible.  Plus, she LOVES it!

3. Crest Toothpaste

Currently, I am using Crest toothpaste.  I usually brush my teeth when I wake up and before I go to bed.   However, I must admit I normally use Colgate, but I ran out and this was all that I could find in the house.  Once this tube is gone I will be switching back to Colgate simply because I like the brand better.

4. BareMinerals By Bare Escentuals

I use this makeup on a daily basis (sometimes twice if I need to touch up before going out to dinner or out for the evening).  I love it because it is very light and doesn't really FEEL like I'm wearing make up.  It is also healthier for my skin because it allows it to breath more than other makeups and liquid foundations do.  Also, it makes my skin look more like it's glowing rather than simply covering up flaws.

5. Clear Care Contact Solution

I switched to this contact solution after I had a few problems with my contacts causing eye infections.  It supposedly is among the top of the line when it comes to a contact solution fully disinfecting germs and bacteria on soft contact lenses and also provides the best 'like-new' contact experience even if you don't wear daily disposables.  I really like it because I can stretch the life of my contacts so I do not have to buy new ones as frequently.  The only draw back is that once you put the contacts in the solution, they can NOT go back into your eyes for 6 hours until the chemicals have neutralized... unless you enjoy the feeling that your retinas are being burned out of your sockets.

6. Pureology Serious Colour Care

I use this Shampoo and Conditioner now because my mom recently convinced me to switch and offered to buy me my first large bottles of the shampoo and conditioner.  I must say, now that I have been using it, I also really like it and it makes my hair smell great and feel super soft.  I will probably stick with this brand even if my mom doesn't offer to buy the refills (it is pretty expensive tho).  Also, it's really good at preventing the color in my hair from fading.

7. Facebook

Facebook is a social networking addiction.  I think most people will agree with me.  Heck, even my grandparents are now on Facebook!  For me, it is a great way to stay updated in my friends' and family's lives even if I cannot pick up the phone every day to catch up.   It's also a good way to pass the time at work. ;)  I also love that all of my photos are electronically stored.  If something were to ever happen where my photos got destroyed, they are now always electronically backed up and I'll never permanently lose my memories.  I just have to be sure to take extra special care of those that were taken circa Facebook.

8a. Mac

8b. Windows

My computer at home is a MacBook (I personally prefer Macs over Windows computers) because I find Macs to be very user friendly.  I also have never had a single virus in the near 20 years my family and I have owned Mac computers.  Also, my hard drive has only crashed once, and the Mac people fixed it for free even tho it was out of warranty.  They're products are amazing and their customer service is great!  However, I use a Windows computer equally as much because that is the brand my company uses.  I use Windows more not by choice, but simply because that is what my company has chosen.

9. JP Morgan Chase

I log onto my online Chase accounts (savings and checking) every day to check the balances of my accounts and to make sure I know exactly when payments have posted and checks have cleared.  I also don't balance a checkbook, so I always log on to make sure I'm not close to overdrawing my account and to make sure I didn't forget about any expenses that I had purchased.  I also frequently use Chase.com to monitor my account to make sure there is no unauthorized activity.  I ended up with Chase kind of by default.  My first real checking account was through BankOne, then Chase bought them out.  I've just happened to stay with them ever since.  However, Chase is starting to get more expensive on their policies for free checking and savings, and they are taking away their debit card reward program.  With that said, I might switch banks to a bank that offers less strict policies on free checking accounts.

10. Honey Nut Cheerios

I eat Honey Nut Cheerios every morning for breakfast.  I started doing this about 3-4 months ago after I went to the doctor and got a general blood exam.  The results came back that I was bordering on high cholesterol.  Cheerios has been one of the cereals where they advertise to adults by saying it can help lower cholesterol.  Hence, I added this to my diet.  I chose Honey Nut Cheerios because the plain ones don't have any flavor and because and other variety are more unhealthy for you.

11. Lean Cuisine

I started eating Lean Cuisines for the same reason as I started eating Cheerios.  I used to eat just the regular Stouffer's TV Dinners for lunch every day when I started my full time job (no wonder my cholesterol sky rocketed!) and made the switch to Lean Cuisine in hopes it will help me be healthier (in addition to working out 3x a week).  Lean Cuisine has a TON of options so I don't have to eat the same one every day and it is convenient in the mornings to just grab one out of the freezer on my way out to work.  Also, it is cheaper than buying my lunch downtown every day.

12. Netflix

We decided against continuing our extensive cable package at home (switching to very basic cable) to save money and opted for getting Netflix at $9/month.  Now, this is our main source of relaxing entertainment and we are able to get one new DVD at least once a week, sometimes twice depending how quickly we watch the movie.