What are we waiting for?

Every Monday we wake up and wish it was Friday. Every cold winter day we wish for the warm days of spring and summer. When we're missing someone we wish we could be with them. It seems like we're never truly satisfied in life and always waiting for the next big thing to happen. Why don't we enjoy the current moment and stop wishing we were somewhere in the future? While the best things are often the things we wait for the longest and will create the memories we'll hold on to forever, enjoying and cherishing the every day is a rare skill that more people should try to master in life. As I stumbled across the text above on Pinterest, it made me think about how much waiting we do in life and our constant desire and longing for something in the future. We need to learn to live more in the present. This includes myself also, as I am always looking forward to something in the future. While it is great to have things to look forward too, we should not let those things stop us from taking every day as a blessing and finding the joy in the simple things.I spent most of my teenage years waiting to go to college and waiting to move the the city. Then it all finally happened, and suddenly there was not big thing to look forward to. I try to enjoy every day because you never know when it will be your last. As I spend this summer anticipating my study abroad to Ireland in the fall, I have to remember to enojy the summer. The things that will happen and the memories I will make will all have an impact on my life and who I am and will become. After all, life's more about the journey than the actual destination. :)

“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.”

Summer. It's a time when life gets a little easier, the temperature is warmer, and everyone seems a little nicer. In high school, summer meant sleeping in, going to the beach every week, going out for ice cream with friends, and bonfires. For most people, summers stay in this similar fashion once they begin college. Not for me. I chose to stay in the city for the summer instead of going home, and while it's not the same, it's just as good, if not better. In college, summer starts earlier. For me, summer means working at my school and doing a virtual internship. However, I get to do all this while also living in one of the greatest cities in the world, Boston. The trees are in bloom, the birds sing, and you can walk everywhere. There is so much to do and see. Summer has begin and I have brunched, attended Earth Fest, gone on many walks, and started my summer glow. Boston is a completely different place and much quieter in the summer, and I love it. While I don't go to the beach as much and it can get really hot, I wouldn't trade summers in the city for anything in the world. Let summer 2013 commence.

Live your life to the fullest potential.

Our generation is so filled with materialism and commercialism, that it’s hard to see what’s real. Money has become the all powerful tool and the only thing that seems to matter to people. We need to revert back to what’s real and what really matters. Friends, family, and happiness are far more important than Facebook, iPhones, and wealth.

So I’ve made a list for myself to make my life more positive, and I hope to inspire more people to do the same.

 1. Read. This seems to be a lost art in today’s world. I’m not saying you have to go out and read every classic novel or a book just because it’s on the New York Times Best Sellers; just read what you will enjoy. You’ll learn a lot and have an escape from the world. Reading gives your imagination a work out, as you will try to envision everything you read in your head.

2. Travel. This is one of the most important things to me, and something I always take the time and opportunities to do. Not only is it a vacation, but you get to see how other people live and experience another culture. I think it is best said by St. Augustine that “The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” 

3. Find love. Now I’m not saying you have to go find your partner and settle down (I mean I can’t even do that right now), but just find love in life. Start with loving yourself. If you love yourself, than friends and a significant other loving you back will happen soon after. Also, love your friends. Find friends who love you back and don’t waste your time on those who don’t, life’s too short. Finally, when you do find that once in a lifetime love with someone, don’t let it go. Keep it and cherish it each day; appreciate what so many long to have.

4. Find meaning. Find something to live for, something you can be thankful for each day. Maybe it’s your family, your significant other, your children, your job, volunteering, or simply just the beauty in every day life. If you find something that has meaning and something to live for, you will never feel empty or alone.

5. Be less materialistic. Volunteer more. Go a day without technology. Remember that there is more to life than the materials that surround us, and that “the most important things in life aren’t things, they’re people.”

6. Be happy. This is the most important thing in life, and yet so many people can’t seem to achieve it. If you don’t like your life, change it. If you don’t like your job, quit it. Sure it may be tough at first, but at the end of the day your happiness is worth more than what’s in your wallet or how many people surround you.  Accept what you can’t change and appreciate what you have. Live your life for you and no one else. Lead a life that one day you can be look back on and be proud of all you’ve done. You are responsible for your own happiness. This is your life after all, live it how you want.

Another year over.

Finally a moment to breathe. This past week has been hectic with finals and wrapping up the end of the semester. It's crazy to think that I am now halfway done with college. It seems like just yesterday I was moving in and embarking on the next chapter on my life.

This past year has been an absolute whirlwind and I have had some of the best times of my life. I have made so many new friends and made so many memories it is unreal. To think how far I have come since arriving in Boston two years ago blows my mind. I have discovered who I truly am and grown so much. I have weeded the negative out of my life and focused on the positive. I have realized dreams and aspirations I never knew I had and experienced a city that I love.

As this year came to a close, it was an extremely bittersweet end. Last year I was excited for summer and my new HA job, and this year I have loved school and my friends so much that to see it end was very sad. I have grown so close to my two best friends this year and do not know how I ever lived without them, as cliche as it sounds. We always have a great time together whether we're going out or just spending hours procrastinating in my room. It was especially bittersweet because I am going abroad in the fall, so these were the last days guaranteed we will all be together and in the same place. I know we'll see each other a lot this summer and before I leave, but it's just so weird to go from seeing people almost every hour of every day to then going months and barely seeing them. I know it will all be worth it, it's just going to be different. It's so weird to think in just 4 months I'll be heading to Dublin. I love Boston so much and in high school all I ever wanted to do was go to college and be in the city, I never liked where I was. Now I love where I am and I'm sad to leave, even though where I'm heading will be just as a great and a whole new experience.

This summer is yet another change. Last summer when I started HA, I literally knew no one and spent the first week mostly to myself. I ended up making some of the greatest friends and having a fantastic summer, and it was unexpectedly great. Now this summer I know many of the people I am working with and I am already good friends with one of them. The two of us are so similar and I am really looking forward to all our adventures this summer. One of my other best friends of the two I was talking about is also coming later in the summer for a month, and I am very excited about that too. It's going to be so different this summer from last summer, but I know it will still be good. All this change is just different and outside the norm that I love, but it doesn't mean it won't be good. Change is really the only constant thing in life, and we have to enjoy every moment because life goes on and good things end, but better things often lie ahead. As this year comes to a close and summer and my journey to Ireland begins, I can only use one word to truly describe how I'm feeling, and I have never felt this word to be so relevant before, it's all just: bittersweet.

Boston strong.

What a week it's been for Boston. That sentence is an understatement. Never did I ever think I would experience the events I have in the past week as a college student in Boston. I have seen mourning, struggle, hope, fear, and finally celebration as the city went through a marathon of events following the Boston Marathon. I think what we've learned this week as a city, and as a country, is that no matter how much evil tries to hurt us, good always wins in the end. The city and the nation came together to bring justice to those who did wrong to our people, our city, and our country. This week has brought about heroes and stories that people will talk about for decades to come. Having experienced it all and living in the city, I want to recap my own personal experience of this past week.

Monday started as a normal day for me. I had to work at 10 am at my desk job monitoring a resident hall on campus. I was disappointed that I would not be able to go cheer on the marathon runners as I had done last year, but I figured there would be many marathons to come. Little did I know not being able to attend the marathon was a blessing in disguise. I sat at the desk doing my math homework when one of my friends came running into the building. He had gone down the street to get food when he saw police getting into peoples cars and racing downtown. We were unsure of exactly what was going on. Then another girl came in and was on the phone crying, saying there were bombs set off. We immediately turned on the TV and watched as the cheers for the marathon turned into the screams of thousands of people. The city went into rescue mode and everything changed. I sat at the desk as students came in; some were crying, others were scared, and most were unsure of how to react. Everyone was trying to make calls and the the lines were often busy because of the overload. Everyone sought to make sure people they knew were okay. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced before.

As the day continued on, we watched the news and continued to hear the unraveling of the events. The initial report I remember was two dead, 22 injured. That grew to over 150 injured and three dead in the following hours. As I sat at dinner with my friends that night, we all became a little more grateful and contemplated who could do such a cruel thing. Living in the city and right down the street from three major hospitals, sirens were seemingly normal to me. But after the events at the marathon, they began to be all I could hear. That night a group of over 200 students at my school gathered on our quad to hold a vigil for the victims. It was one of the most moving things I have ever been a part of. To see our community come together during a time of such tragedy was a truly amazing thing.

The days that followed were difficult and surreal. From mourning, to confusion, to the visit from the President and First Lady, we felt every emotion. Our school and city tried to return back to normal, but the uneasy feeling that whoever did it was still out there was difficult to comprehend. As the days passed, it all began to sink in a little more and became more and more disgusting. The fact that someone would want to ruin such a joyful day in our city was heartbreaking.

On Thursday night, photos of the suspects surfaced on the internet and were all over my Facebook news feed. I only hoped someone could identify them soon and help the city to rest at ease. I was not feeling well that night and went to bed extremely early at 10. The next morning I woke up at 6:30 am to an alert from my school saying that classes had been cancelled. I then looked at my phone to see text messages and e mails, then flipped on the news to discover everything that had happened while I had been sleeping. The suspects were on the loose and had killed an MIT police officer and had a shootout with the police. The first suspect was dead by the time that I tuned in. I have never had to process so much information within an hour of waking up. My school was on lock down all that day, and everyone began to have cabin fever. We were afraid and antsy. We were unable to enjoy a beautiful day because the police had to chase down someone who had already ruined a beautiful day for us earlier that week. I took a break from watching the news all day to sit out on the quad with friends and remember to enjoy the simple things in life, because you never know what will happen.

Later that night, a friend and I returned to my room to hang out. We then invited our other friend over to watch a movie with us. Before she arrived, she texted me asking if I was watching the news. I turned it on quickly and found out they had apparently located the suspect and were attempting to get him out. As we watched in suspense for almost two hours, we could not help but erupt in joy when they confirmed that they indeed had captured suspect number two. I could hear other cheers down the hall from me and you could feel a sense of relief set in. My friends and I didn't know what to do with ourselves other than to run outside after being stuck indoors all day. The next thing we knew we were cheering in the streets for the police officers as they drove by. It eventually turned into a party in the streets when we turned a four lane road into a one lane parade. It was an amazing and unforgettable night when Boston and the entire country celebrated a victory.

The next day the celebration continued. I was fortunate enough to have a ticket to the Red Sox game on Saturday. When I bought the ticket for $10 from my school, I had no idea that the value of the game would far exceed that. While it took us a while to get in due to high security, we were able to get in just in time to see the amazing tribute to everyone who had helped and become heroes in the days prior. An amazing game was played, Neil Diamond himself came to sang Sweet Caroline, Big Papi was back, and the Sox won the game. This game was unforgettable for me and the city and was one of the happiest days of my life. After, I went to Newbury Street and the top of Boylston to see the memorial to the victims. Boyslton Street was still entirely blocked off and there were police and investigators everywhere. It was eerie to see Copley so empty and it served as the reality of the mystery that still needs to continue to be solved and the colossal damage caused to the city. As I saw the messages of hope and remembrance, I could not help but feel a sense of pride for my city and nation and how even though a tragedy occurred, it brought out more hope in humanity than ever before.

I cannot help but be so thankful to the BPD, first responders, EMT, SWAT team, FBI, the President, Mayor Menino, Gov. Deval Patrick, everyday citizens who ran to help, and everyone else who helped to restore peace to our city. This past week has been an emotional roller coaster and has made me realize how lucky we are to rarely have events like this happen in our country. I am grateful to our law enforcement and to the love and compassion seen in the country this past week. This week has taught me that my problems are always small and insignificant compared to the greater humanity of the world. I have learned to be tougher and stronger this week. I stand with my city and my country, and we stand together, Boston Strong.

Paris is always a good idea.

Paris, France. Fashion capital. City of love. Home to the Lourve. The Eiffel Tower. It seems that Paris has it all; fashion, love, food, and adventure. However, when I visited Paris, I was not as impressed as I thought I would be. What kind of snobby 14 year old would be unimpressed by Paris? Well, apparently that was me. Maybe it was because I had to cover the entire city in two days, packed with tours and lack luster prepaid lunches. Now as I look back, I think I missed the true beauty of Paris. I think Paris is so beautiful because it is so slow paced and pretty. Everything is delicate and detailed. I now dream of gooing back and taking in the sights, the smells, the fashions, and most importantly, the people. If Paris really is the city of love and lights, I was clearly doing it wrong last time. This new found love of Paris has inspired this blog post with a collage of Parisian things.

 

 

Spring trends.

Being on vacation this week, I have obviously done a lot of shopping. Spring is just around the corner and there are a lot of great trends I've seen in the stores for spring.

The first, is colored denim. This trend has been big for a few years now, but this spring, it's all about the brights and pastels.

 

This mint is one of my favorites. Mint is a very hot color for spring and in a pant, you can pair it with other pastels, prints, or just a plain white shirt.

Hot pink pants are a major do for spring also. They can be dressed up or down and will go well with a floral shirt or just a plain top.

These yellow pants are great too, and will transition well into the summer. This outfit also brings us to my next big trend:

The chambray shirt. It's essentially a denim shirt, but much softer material and can be paired with a variety of outfits. It can be dressed up, dressed down, and paired with almost any color.

One of my favorite uses of the chambray shirt is paired casually with leggings and boots. You can really play with accessories here and it's great for casual Saturday shopping or just an afternoon in.

Another great use of the chambray is with white pants. This is a great summer night look and looks great with gold and opalescent accents.

 

Finally, here's a great way to dress the shirt up. Paired with a maxi skirt, you can take this look easily from day to night and also be comfortable. 

The next trend I want to highlight that I have already slightly touched upon is pastels. A classic for spring with Easter, these colors will match the blooming flowers around you.

 

Pastels offer many options. You can go bold with pants, or use subtle hints in nail polish or a purse.

Another spring trend that is always in: Prints. Especially florals. Florals are always a spring trend and are nothing new. To quote the Devil Wears Prada, "Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking." It's obviously nothing new, but always in style.

 

I really like this Lauren Conrad floral dress. It is very subtle and in a great design.

Another good print for spring is polka dots. Always classy, and pairs well with everything.

My final spring trend is brights. This is also nothing new for spring, but I am really liking colors like pink and coral.

 

Coral is a really great transitory summer to spring color and it looks good on almost every skin tone.

Hot pink pretty much goes for the same as coral: transitions well, great on all skin tones.

Old and new, these spring trends are bound to bring you to another level of fashion and a plethora of complements if paired well. Enjoy spring shopping!