Friday Five: Living in the Leap

This week's Friday Five is all about living in the leap:

It's Leap Day!! Whether you're one of the special few who have a birthday only once every four years, or simply confused by the extra day on the calendar, everyone is welcome to join in and play our Leap Year Friday Five.

Tell us about a time you:

1. Leapt before you looked
One famous, or infamous, time was when I quit my aggravating-but-reliable job in one city to take another job, an administrative support position, at a state university in another city. My goal was to stick out this rather uninspiring job long enough to take advantage of the university's free tuition and employee flextime policy, and work on a master's degree. It turned out that between hostile coworkers, tedious work, a miserable working space (literally in the corner of a storage room) and the stress of a commute, I couldn't stand this job, no matter what the perks; the day after I passed my probationary period with flying colors and kudos from my boss the Dean, I gave my two weeks' notice. And I did so without another job in hand, which was another leap-before-looking.

Oh...and of course there's the case of two busy, preoccupied, frequently tired, anxiety-averse middle-aged broads deciding to adopt a semi-feral puppy of unknown parentage from some wacky crackhead dog-rescue lady after a 10-minute visit to the Kennel From Hell.

2. Leapt to a conclusion Upon meeting someone who is now a part of our household circle of friends, my initial reaction was, frankly, "What a mess." Because...well, let's just say that this person had (and has) issues. But after sticking with her, I've found her to be a good-hearted person and a good friend. Conversely, I've known someone whom I initially put on a pedestal -- thought she was one of the most together, successful people I knew -- whom I now recognize has...issues.

3. Took a Leap of Faith My latest leap of faith is getting involved with our church Evangelism Committee, even though the E word tends to make me cringe. Several years ago I took a Spiritual Gifts Inventory that identified evangelism as a charism of mine, which at the time made me laugh; when the opportunity came up to test that hypothesis, I figured, "Why not? What's the worst that can happen?" Don't answer that.

4. Took a literal Leap Hmmmm...don't do a lot of leaping. It's hard for us big-boned gals. Although seeing young Gertie begin to pop a squat in the dining room corner when we haven't been paying attention to her subtle "Let me out" signals has a certain energizing effect upon my movements.

5. And finally, what might you be faced with leaping in the coming year?
I'm always trying to leap over the heap of my own bad habits. Although maybe this year it's time to take a shovel to the heap.