Today is officially my 23rd Birthday! Granted, it is only 1 AM but that still counts! I am excited and happy and ready to enjoy my day. I've realized as I've gotten older that birthdays have become bittersweet. Many of the people I love, who I would want to celebrate with, are far away from me now. But I suppose this is just the reality of growing up. So, I am going to enjoy this post-grad birthday change! Celebrating a twenty-something birthday is a challenge but a fun one. I have made plans with my friends in town and I know it'll be great! (Birthday pictures coming soon)

Apologies for my delay in new posts. I have been really busy these past few weeks working, organizing events at my alma mater, and preparing for my trip to Cali this past weekend to visit the boyfriend (!). I wanted to give a update on my hair natural hair journey and my recent progress that I am so excited about. After an all natural summer complete with twist outs, flat twists, braid outs, buns, and protective styling.....

Natural Curls love, love, love

I have finally grown my hair past its stubborn stage (slightly longer than shoulder length) to almost bra strap length! I could not be more excited! I know hair is not the most important thing in the world, however it took years for this growth and I am excited to see progress.

Blow Dry at the Hair Salon. Almost to BSL!

I am confident now in my natural hair regime and the methods that work for my mane. Here is a list of my must haves, rules and regulations to healthy hair.

So it is clearly ridiculously past my bedtime. I should have been asleep hours ago. However, (for some odd reason I guess we can contribute it to my night owl syndrome), I am still awake. Today I enjoyed an amazing night of bonding and catch-up sessions with my line (sorority) sisters. As the time passes, and more and more of us graduate and move on in life, it has been difficult at times to stay connected. Maintaining friendships and relationships while on the same campus? Simple. Maintaining those same relationships from a distance? Difficult.

My Line Sisters and I

Keeping up communication with college friends and loved ones is the key to these relationships continuing to flourish. When life seems to be getting in the way, when work needs to be done, and your mother is visiting, and the cute guy down the hall is flirting. When your boss gives you an extra shift or project, when your co-workers want to go to happy hour, or your boyfriend plans the perfect date. When bills need to be paid, groceries bought, apartment cleaned. Don't forget to take the time out to talk to old friends. They were there from the beginning and it is important to build on old friendships, instead of letting them fizzle. Unlike most things in life, this is something we have complete control over. I personally am challenging myself to do more. Why not join me? In the famous words of Drake: No new friends, no new friends, no no no...Okay he was being a little dramatic. I'm all for new friends!

As a post graduate looking to break into a highly competitive field, it is extremely easy to become discouraged. This week was one of those hard weeks. Since my graduation this past spring I have been applying to various job openings. So far none have worked out. Yes, I was given the opportunity to work in New York City this summer, which was an amazing opportunity. Unfortunately, this job was a summer internship, not full time employment. That elusive offer still, well, eludes me, as it does many recent grads and millennials.

This week I was incredibly excited for a job opportunity that I was certain was the one for me. Alas, it was not meant to be. At least not right now. The positon will be not open for another few months and until then its back to the waiting game. Waiting for that one opportunity to build the future I envision for myself. When I start to feel down, on the cusp of settling or giving up, I try to read or find inspirational things to keep me motivated. I stumbled across this article today and it was exactly what I needed.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/13/successful-women-started-as-assistants_n_3745418.html

This article details powerful, smart, amazing women who started out as assistants, interns, aides, etc. It was extremely uplifting to read their stories. Their life work shows that, through hard work and dedication, your dreams are achievable. It may take longer than you anticipated, and may involve a lot of small, baby steps instead of giant leaps. There may be a lot of rejection, maneuvering, patience, and persistence. But it is possible. And that is the important thing to remember.    

One of the new features I am adding to my blog is to highlight an outfit of the day that I find on Pinterest, Facebook, or many of the other sites I frequent during my time surfing the 'net. I recently saw this outfit posted and LOVED it!

I am loving the floral pattern of the dress, with the neutral undertone of black. The strappy ankle stilettos work perfectly with the romper dress and the gold bracelet accessory and black bag complete the look. This is definitely a look I want to add to my closet! Details on where to buy/find this look are listed below!

I have grown up most of my life as a omnivore, meaning like most Americans, I eat meat (red meat, poultry, etc.) and vegetables/fruits. However, I've recently been considering a Pescetarian diet, eliminating pork, red meat, and poultry from my diet and only eating fish and veggies. I don't eat that much meat as it is, and seafood dishes are my favorite.



Some of the benefits of a pescetarian diet include:

• Seafood is low in saturated fat, which causes high cholesterol. 
• Fish is a rich source of Omega-3 Fatty acids. 
• Over a long period of time, eliminating other meats and only eating fish can save you money. 

This is a decision I have to consider a little more before I ultimately decide. I love, love my fruits and vegetables and seafood...but the ocasional steak or chicken dish always leaves me satisfied!

What's a girl to do?

How do you feel about the vegetarian vs. omnivore vs. pescetarian diet? Any Pros or Cons?

Source:
http://www.healthytheory.com/why-be-pescetarian-0

This is a subject that has been on my mind off and on for quite some time. As I listened to Kanye West's "808 and Heartbreak" singles and Beyonce's "Resentment" last night I thought to myself, how do you deal with heartbreak? How do you learn to trust again? Is it really possible to truly forget?

There are times when I think that is impossible. The moment you think you've forgotten, the smallest thing triggers a memory and all of the feelings come rushing back. The Anger. Confusion. Sadness. Stress. The tightened feeling you get in your stomach. You wonder how could they? What were they thinking? Why were they so careless? Why didn't you trust your gut? In the heaviest feelings of anger, why were they so stupid? And after wallowing in those feelings, you wear a smile and refocus. You laugh to keep from crying.

And the brief relapse of feeling is gone. So even after you've made the decision, because it is a decision, to forgive and forget. And after you've forgiven, the rebuilding of trust has begun, can you ever really forget?

I try to take an optimistic route. I believe you can forget, but like all wounds it takes time. And some wounds take longer to heal than others.

What do you think?

The Melodies of Heartbreak and Forgiveness:

So...its been about three years since I last blogged. EVERYTHING has changed since then. I ended up attending U of M where I just graduated in May.

I am now a young, 22-going-on-23 year old woman trying to find her own. And so, my blog will now reflect that.

The random and sporadic musings of me.

Having just finished an internship in the city of all cities, New York, I am now focused on the next chapter.

Fill free to join me on this ride...