Silver & Gold

For some reason, being suddenly and violently cast into adulthood has made everything from childhood way more awesome and cool than I thought even as an over-excited ten year old. Call it nostalgia or call it denial, but there's just something wonderful and familiar about getting home from work, throwing on your best 90s boy band playlist and creating a masterpiece in a jumbo Toy Story coloring book. Don't even try to act like you're above that - we all know better...

Anyway, a rather unfortunately large part of becoming a fully employed and productive member of society tends to involve letting go of things. Sleeping in becomes a thing of the past, having a massive network of locally centralized friends becomes harder to come by, and even binge watching entire seasons of Friends in a night can seem like a tall order when all you want to do after the 9 to 5 grind is have a glass of wine and go to bed.

You remember the song, Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other is gold? Yeah, that's another one of those things I distinctly remember singing while wearing my totally 90s, kick ass, OshKosh B'Gosh purple corduroy overalls (I know, throwin' it way back). Well, that little blast from the past has been at the forefront of this whole keeping my cool in the big bad world thing.

If you've ever moved somewhere without knowing a soul, you certainly know that it can be frustratingly difficult to meet people. Sure, you have your work circles, but that doesn't always translate into much of a social life. However, if you're smart like I am you've planned ahead for this and got yourself a feline friend to hang with. Regardless, I've found that one of the easiest and most forgotten about ways to keep your sanity is to pick up the phone and call your friends - or email/Facebook message them...if you're into that type of thing. Chances are pretty good that hearing from a friend is exactly the type of thing that'll make their day too. Catching up over more than a few blips on a phone screen is fantastic, and just might be the reminder you're not completely on your own in the big bad world. (:

And with that in mind, here's a wonderful video that my not-cousin-Matt (as I like to call him..don't worry about it) directed and produced. It's called Call Someone You Love, and it's one of three great pieces you can see on his website here.

Call me!

Me, Myself and I

As I mentioned in last week's post, I recently moved to start a new job (yay!). What I neglected to mention is that I accepted a job offer, found an apartment, moved into said apartment and started my job all within the span of two weeks...phew. For obvious reasons, those two weeks were thrilling and extremely stressful all at once. With so much going on, there was very little time to sit down and really embrace what was going on. There were a million and a half things going on and reflecting on my current life stage was not one of them.

Once that initial phase had passed, I found myself totally and all at once overwhelmed but anything and everything - that stale new apartment odor, the hefty costs of uprooting my life, the fact that my cat will never fully understand me (erm...I meant what?). Most of all, I was overwhelmed by the fact that, for the first time in my life, I was actually going to be alone. 

I'm going to be honest here - I'm horrible at being alone. Or at least I was. If you're anything like me, you probably place higher value on relationships and being with others than giving yourself some quality one-on-one time. Because of this, making the transition from college to the "real world" became even more daunting. How do you go from such a concentrated and constant amount of interaction with friends and acquaintances, to a city where nobody knows your name? 

*Disclaimer: I have since made friends with a handful of wonderful people. So fortunately, my days do not solely consist of sitting at home with my cat while eating Annie's Mac & Cheese and binge-watching Netflix. Just FYI*

While the idea was (and truthfully still is) terrifying, it's something that almost any experienced adult will tell you is part of growing up and is only going to make you a better, more successful person. And you know what? So far, they're right. 

Just check out this fitting little video called How to Be Alone. It perfectly sums up all the reasons being alone can actually be wonderful.

Great right? Cheerful music and adorable illustrations aside - this video is chock full of encouraging thoughts and pro tips on how to be alone. From spending time in public where people tend to act in solitude, to picking back up on a new or old passion, there are countless ways to fill up your free time and learn a lot about yourself. My personal favorite bit of advice? Take the perspective you get from being one person in one head. And while I've had my rough days, I certainly can say that learning to be alone has been overall wonderful for me. You remember what they all said growing up? That in order to love others, you have to love yourself first...right? Well it's absolutely true. 

So remember - it's okay to be alone. Be patient, and embrace it.

Until next time,

On Being a "Real Person"

So we meet again! Here we are - one week into September, a solid four months into the ever stressful, crazy exciting, and terrifically unpredictable post-grad era. And no, I'm not talking about the cutesy but overall meh rom com starring Alexis Bledel - you really let me down Rory.

**Look how cute I was...so oblivious to the orb of confusion that is "post grad"

Anyway, the past four months have been...challenging...to say the least. To anyone who's gone through this before, congratulations on making it to the other side. To those who are currently experiencing this, I feel you...I promise we can do this. And to those who are still operating the grand illusion that is undergraduate life, well, good luck.

Let's rewind to May. College graduation alone is this giant pressure cooker of emotion. It's the pinnacle moment of your undergraduate career, EVERYONE and their mother is going to be there - literally, and there's the impending sense of doom over just what it is you're going to do with your life. If I had a nickel for every time someone asked me "So Danielle, what are your plans after graduation?" well, you know the rest...

Great job graduating! ...Now what?

Getting to that, the months following graduation can be some of the most uncertain, anxiety-inducing months any young adult will face - unless you're one of the lucky ones who had a job straight out of school, in which case great job being proactive and employed! ...now go away. For pretty much my entire life, all I'd really known was school. All of a sudden, that was done, and I was now faced with the daunting task of finding a "real job," and let's face it - ain't nobody got time for cover letters. Unfortunately, as any recent college grad will tell, you actually have all the time in the world for cover letters.

Back to the present... It's four months later, and can officially say that I am an interior designer - like, how cool is that? Emerging professional status. Here's the thing, though - it definitely didn't happen overnight, and it most certainly didn't happen without quite a few hiccups along the way. Looking back at my sad little "professional" email account, I sent out well over forty job applications in the span of two months. I had cover letters zipping out to Boston, New York, Chicago, Seattle...you name it, I probably sent it. I was looking for a big city, and a definite change of pace. To my disappointment, an overwhelming majority of my applications resulted in complete radio silence.

About halfway through the summer, I saw a post on a Facebook group (run by an awesome former professor) for an entry-level interior design position in Rochester. The job description sounded fantastic - it did, after all, actually contain the words entry-level. If you've recently graduated, you know how stupidly hard to find that is. The only potential problem seemed to be the location. Rochester? Isn't that just Syracuse but, uh, bigger? Honestly, if you had told me at the beginning that I'd end up here, I'm not sure I'd have believed you. All i can say is, I'm glad I decided to give it a shot, because it definitely ended up being one of the better decisions I've made in my life.

There's about a million and a half things you can do to get a job and if you ask me how I went about it, I'm not sure I could give you a straight answer. One of the most important things I can concretely say is that you must be open to whatever life throws at you. Roll with the punches, if you will. Because the thing is...you can have all these goals and plans, but if you completely rule out anything that doesn't fit your exact, ideal situation, you could really miss out on something fantastic.

So to sum up my first little life lesson on being a "real person," don't rule anything out that could potentially lead to something good. Whether it's a job offer, an invitation to an event, or even just a conversation over coffee with a total stranger - you never know where it may lead.

Until next time!

**Thanks to Ian Simon-Curry for the photo

Ta Ta For Now

Yesterday was a bittersweet day. I woke up to a crisp breeze and the sun shining through my window onto my face. A picture perfect day by any British standards. So where's the bittersweet part come in? 

At this point, I'm writing this from my friend's place back in Syracuse, NY. With your amazing powers of deduction, that means yesterday was my last day in London. Who knew four months would disappear so quickly? I can honestly say, it hasn't even fully registered that I am, in fact, back in the states. Culture shock is certainly not a thing yet, but let me tell you, jet lag showed no mercy. 

Let's just say this pure exhaustion is part of the reason I haven't freaked out about not being in Europe anymore. In my head, I realize I may not be back for a long time, but my brain really hasn't wrapped itself around that fact yet. I know once it does, though, the tears'll certainly be a flowin'. 

There are so many things I accomplished in my relatively short time in London, but still so many things I would have liked to experience. This semester was all about stepping out of my comfort zone, and I certainly took some steps. I did it all, from something as small as giving a toast in a room full of strangers, to just living in a gigantic city on my own. I mastered the streets of Central London, and explored the side streets of Paris, Florence, Amsterdam, and Dublin. I made invaluable friendships, tried quite the array of new foods, and braved the nightmare that is public transportation. Most importantly, I learned to start saying yes to things (insert witty "Yes Man" reference here), and stop making excuses. London taught me to never be bored. Yes, there were a million and a half things to do in London at any given time, but even in homey Syracuse, NY, I'm excited to experience it all. 

Being away, in such an amazing place, gave me a whole new set of eyes back home. Everything's the same, yes, and nothing's really changed much, and I couldn't be happier. 

Anyway, as a parting note, here's what I ended up getting to on my London Bucket List. Shhhh...I know there are quite a few "big" things I didn't see. But hey, it's just reason to go back right?


1. The London Eye
2. The Tate 
3. Natural History Museum
4. Camden Market
5. The British Museum
6. Hyde Park
7. Victoria & Albert Museum
8. Go to Harrod's
9. Somerset House
10. Explore Southbank
11. See a musical/play
12. Sketch restaurant
13. Explore London Coffee Shops Map
14. Ministry of Sound
15. Visit historic London pubs
16. Gingerline
17. Afternoon tea 
18. Take a photo at Abbey Road
19. David Bowie exhibit at the V&A
20. Visit Kew Gardens
21. Portobello Road Market
22. Buckingham Palace
23. See Westminster Abbey
24. Tower of London
25. Go to platform 9 3/4
26. Shakespeare's Globe theater
27. Windsor Castle
28. Explore the English countryside
29. Fortnum & Mason
30. Explore Regents Park
31. Brick Lane Markets
32. Hampstead Heath
33. See St. Paul's
34. Borough Market
35. Trafalgar Square
36. Visit Harry Potter Studios
37. Walk across Millenium Bridge
38. Selfridges & Co.
39. See Stonehenge
40. White cliffs of Dover

&& Some last looks into my journey abroad:

Cheers London,

Thanks for being my wonderful home for four short months. Until we meet again <3 font="">