inspiration thursday (with Kara from Once There Was a Tree)

Hi loves! The lovely lady being interviewed today is none other than one of my new pen pals, Kara. I've loved getting to know her so I just had to share with yall more about the awesome lady she is. Don't forget to stop by her blog after and leave some love!!!
Oh and did I mention she did a sweet post about me not so long ago?? You can check it out here.
xoxo
kel


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Name: Kara Hooker

Where can we find you? http://www.oncetherewasatree-kara.blogspot.com/

Tell us a little bit about you!
I am 24 years old and in August I will have been married for 2 years - although I have been with my husband for a total of 10 yrs! We live in Richmond, VA and I can see the James River from our loft. I am a vegetarian {only sometimes I cheat & eat fish} and also a Buddhist. I don't have any kids, but I do have two adorable pups and a ferret that I love to spoil!

Favorite craft or hobby?
I love to be outside in nature! I live right on the flood wall next to the James River and I always try to spend most of my weekends in the water. Since it's often nice and sunny outside, I love river floats, laying out at the pool & hanging out at patio bars! I can't wait for it to get a little cooler so I can start going on camping trips again!

What's next for you?
Well, right now I work with teenagers as a Substance Abuse Case Manager. I can't really say I *love* my job... but it definintly comes with a lot of great stories! Right now I am sort of in a discovery stage with myself... I want to go back to school, but before I do that I want to take some time to think about what I want my career to look like. I want to do something that offers a little more creativity and would LOVE to work from home... I'm kind of over the "nine to five" scene right now.

5 things that make you happy!
1. Live Music. I think I feel the most alive when I'm snuggled in a crowd, singing at the top of my lungs and cheering on some of my favorite {and also new found favorite} bands. Some of my favorites include - Copeland {best.shows.ever! so sad they recently broke up!}, Counting Crowes, Coldplay, Damien Rice, & Death Cab. I'm also a huge supporter of local music & love hearing new people for the first time!

2. Nature. I love being outdoors. Nothing compares to the feeling I get walking in my bare feet or sleeping outside under the stars. Sometimes I flirt with the idea of going on a week long camping trip by myself - I think I would be a changed person after something as intense as that.

3. Astronomy. I have a super dorky fascination with outer space... and after a few cocktails I will talk your ear off about crab nebulas and black holes {whether you care to listen or not}. My favorite constellation just so happends to be Orion, and my biggest dream come true would be able to travel to the moon. I even have a quarter sleeve dedicated to this obsession...

4. Tattoos. I have 8 of them and probably won't stop there. I have a henna-inspired flower on my foot, a swallow on my hip, the Giving Tree along my side, stars across my lower back, the lyrics to Imagine on my shoulder blade, the HRC Campaigne logo on my left wrist, the symbol for Alpha & Omega {beginning and end} on my right wrist, and the previously mentioned solar system quarter sleeve.

5. My friends. No matter what anyone else says, I have the best ones!

Where do you find inspiration?
I find most of my inspiration throughout my everyday life and the people in it. In April I donated my kidney to my god-brother, Mitchell, and he has always been so inspiring to me. He has a weird kidney disease and has always been really sick, but you would never know it. He never complains about being in pain and is always smiling. He is seriously one of the strongest people I know!

How do you get and stay motivated??
I am easily distracted, so I have a hard time staying motivated unless it's something that really interests me. I think the most important thing that I do to keep myself on track is to take a few minutes everyday to just breathe and center myself. The biggest motivator for me is knowing that after all the work and boring stuff gets done, the fun can begin. I'm one of those people who lives for Friday night... at 5 o'clock my work phone gets turned off, my paperwork gets pushed to the side, and whatevers left gets saved for Monday. I am the opposite of a workaholic & I kind of like it that way. I try my best to make the most of every moment, because life is too short & there are so many things I want to see and do!

Where's one place you would LOVE to travel to if you could?
I have recently adopted this weird obsession for Washington State. I don't even really know a lot about the area, but I do know that the scenery is to die for. I want to visit a small town surrounded by mountains. And the Space Needle. Also, I really want to see the Grand Canyon... I think everyone should visit that before dying. I also have a really strange and totally unrealistic fantacy of moving to an island and learning how to surf. I would support myself by selling coconuts and would live in a shack on the beach!


Give us 1 random or funny or interesting fact/tidbit about YOU!!!
I have a really awkward fear of condensation. Yes, that nasty stuff that gets all over the side of cold drinks or on the walls after a hot shower. I always take baths so that I don't have to worry about any of it getting on my skin from the shower curtain, and I keep the door open so it doesn't get misty. Blahhh it makes me creeped out just thinking about it. My friends think it's funny to rub their drinks on my arms when I'm not looking... jerks.

-Kara