24th Birthday & Washington DC

Me and Julie, reunited after 2 long years!

Me and John in the beautiful Library of Congress

Gorgeous building

Our nation's capitol!

John and the Ninja Turtle!

Me and the White House

It was a great trip! I always love going to DC, and it was an especially great way to spend my birthday with John and some very close friends.

Happy Birthday John!

Happy birthday to my dear boyfriend, who is luckily just as weird as I am. xoxo

Forgive me

I've been a terrible blogger lately. I've pretty much abandoned this thing for the last few weeks, but hopefully that means I've been out living life and having fun instead of sitting around writing about it? Hmm...maybe.

So, a little bit of a September recap is needed. Disney was lovely and wonderful, but definitely not relaxing. I think it took me a week of sleep just to catch up! I was in Birmingham all last week for work, which was also fun. I like the city. We stayed downtown near the Five Points area (does every city in America have a Five Points? I think yes), and went to some great restaurants. I had delicious BBQ--NOT NC style--one night, and we went to a fabulous place called Highland Bar & Grill to celebrate my birthday a day early. We split lots of amazing appetizers including baked grits and spiny lobster tails, but the best part was definitely dessert. I had a chocolate bread pudding which was to die for. I also tasted the creme brulee which was like velvet. Delicious!

Luckily, we left Birmingham a day early, and I got to come back to ATL for my birthday. Honestly, any birthday after 21 is not really exciting, and a little bit of a let down. I loved the excuse to get my friends together, play trivia and drink martinis (and go to a crazy 80s dance party with the weirdest people I have ever seen), but the day didn't feel that special. I enjoyed it, and hopefully 23 will have a lot to offer this year! Friday I flew to Raleigh and had an awesome weekend at home. Pretty lazy overall--the most adult thing I did was get my own cell phone plan...it pained me to split off from my parents plan, but you've got to cut the apron strings eventually, right? I can barely even use my new phone, which makes me feel like an old person! I guess I'll just have to read the manual..sigh. I did some shopping, went to dinner at the Angus Barn, as is the usual bday tradition, and then got to see my wonderful friends on Sunday for dinner and a movie. FYI for anyone interested in seeing Love Happens, the new Jennifer Anniston movie: its a total downer. Just be prepared. Monday I took the day off and visited SCD at her school and got to see her classroom. It was so perfect, but I'd expect nothing less from her.

And now its back to the work grind for a couple of days. I'm only in the office for a 3 day week (only 2 now!), then I flex on Friday, and leave for class in Minneapolis for a week before homecoming at Wake next weekend!! So excited to go back to Winston! And in the mean time, so fairly exciting stuff is going on in my personal life, but I'll leave that update for another day :)

I hope you all are fabulous and are having a lovely start to fall. It was 55 degrees here this morning when I left my apartment! I love crisp weather, and I was not at all sad to say goodbye to this summer and close that chapter all together. Fall is definitely my favorite season, and I'm so glad its upon us. Has anything exciting happened with any of my awesome blog friends out there? Don't be shy! xoxo

Last day of 22!

Tomorrow I'll be a birthday girl! For tonight, I'm enjoying my lovely hotel room in Birmingham, am slightly tipsy from the huge blackberry cosmopolitan, and am loving my last evening of being 22. Maybe tomorrow I'll be inspired to write something profound about getting older, or maybe I'll just be inspired to eat chocolate cake and talk to my friends all day and play trivia tomorrow night:) Either way, I'll hopefully get back on track with the blogging, as I realize I've been pretty slack lately.

Happy early birthday to me...best day of the year :)

Tournament Time!

Go Deacs!!

Today is the beginning of one of my favorite times of the year: it's the first day of the ACC tournament, right here in my very own city of Atlanta. March madness is in the air...again, I don't have to tell you because you already know. I'm from North Carolina; I love basketball. Sadly, my plans to actually go to the Wake game tomorrow night fell through. I'd LOVE to be there in person, but honestly, I'm sure I'll have just as much fun watching somewhere in a sports bar while eating and drinking lots of yumminess. The WF alumni club sent me a message that everyone is gathering at a big sports bar/restaurant in Midtown to watch all weekend.

I'm looking forward to this weekend. Hopefully I'll get to hang out with A and do something interesting. I'm also going to see a couple of my new Atlanta friends, which should be fun too. Sunday I'm flying out to Chicago for the week (for work, but its still my first time going, so I am excited)!

Tomorrow is my bff's birthday, and its the first time in more years than I'd like to count that we won't be together to celebrate. Even throughout college, it always fell between our spring breaks, so we always got to have birthday time together. I'm a little sad and nostalgic that she is halfway across the world for this one. I'm hoping it will make all the special occassions once she returns that much more special. Two years is a long, long time to be away from a person who has been a constant in my life since I was a child. Its definitely not easy. I can't wait for her return when we can go out to dinner and watch bad teen movies and talk about all the adventures we've had apart. Happy early 23rd birthday Julie!

Almost the end

Today is my last full day at work! I am pretty thrilled about this right now:) Its funny--I always complain about boredom and the lack of steady work to keep me busy, but then when they do ask me to do things (particularly things that require me to leave my desk), I feel bitter and put out, haha. I'm just strange.

Went to lunch at a really cute outdoor garden center/giftshop/outdoor cafe today. I had chicken salad with pineapple and almonds in it, which was absolutely delicious. I desperately want to nap because i'm so full--hopefully i'll recover in the 1.5 hours before I leave work.

I'm also still waiting around for the phone call about the job that I really want in Raleigh. Supposedly they'll call me today or tomorrow. If I get an offer before next week when I start my less desirable job, then I can quit before I start, haha! But alas, whats meant to be will be. Tomorrow is the state fair yipeee! Also, today's is Kristin's 24th B-day! Yay!

good times, for the most part

My birthday had a great finish yesterday. I got to leave my desk about an hour early to go to a retirement party, where I ate way too many party finger foods, but it was really yummy:) Then I picked up Mom and we went to Crabtree to pick out something for my bday before dinner. I was trying to decide between some adorable Coach tennis shoes and new rainbows--turns out they didn't have my size in the Coach, and they DON'T MAKE my favorite kinds of rainbows anymore!! Grr. The guy told me you can definitely still find them online, so my goal for today is to peruse the internet until I find them--and then i'll hoard as many pairs as possible! Hopefully i'll be successfull. Then we met my dad for dinner at McCormick and Schmick's--so delicious & really pretty interior/nice atmosphere. I had Alaskan salmon stuffed with a mixture of crab, shrimp and brie. I'm pretty much drooling right now just thinking about it. Afterwards my dad gave me a bunch of Wake Forest stuff (coffee mug, mouse pad, etc) for my "new office", whenever I finally get one. And I got lots of calls from my fabulous friends which I didn't have time to return, but hopefully will today:) Excellent day overall--and I can't wait for Friday to celebrate out with friends in Raleigh. I just wish everyone could make it, even though we're all spread out!

I just got back from an interview this morning with a bank in Cary, and I'm thoroughly disappointed. I actually had pretty high hopes for this one, and then I get there and they say "oh you'll be sitting out at the front desk answering 1000 calls per day". Great. NOT. I don't mean to be a snob or anything like that, but I didn't bust my butt for the past 4 years at a top 20 b-school to asnwer phones all day, thank you very much. Whatever...its just very frustrating. I'm sick of interviewing and ready to get a job--but i'm definitely not going to settle for just anything. I also got a message from the Richmond bank I interviewed with last week. I'm almost afraid to return the call, because if they offer me a job, thats going to throw me & my plans for a loop, but i'll give her a call this afternoon to see what she has to say. If I get an offer, i'm definitely not taking it on the spot--I have too many other irons in the fire right now that would be preferable for me. Sigh. The process is never ending.

But, I am determined today will be a good/non-stressful day! I've got a doctor's appt this afternoon, so i'm leaving work early, then i'm having dinner out with Sara. Tomorrow is a half day at the office, then going home, hopefully getting a haircut, packing for vacation(!) and going out with the girls tomorrow night as a belated bday celebration! All of these things are fabulous. Life is good.

Best Day of the Year!

Happy birthday to me today! I'm finally the big 22, but I don't really feel terribly old (yet)! I've been having a great time so far. Yesterday when I got home I had a couple more cards waiting for me, a lovely package from my beautiful facebook wife Emily full of candy lotions and a dvd, and the weird vibrating mascara that I won from the N&O on Monday. My mom made a homemade red velvet cake for me--which i'll get to eat tonight!--and I chatted with Kristin:) Lovely evening. Today my mom sang the birthday song to me, and one of my co-workers gave me a singing electric birthday candle that also plays the birthday song. Pretty special. I'm actually having a great time at the office today, and there's a retirement party here this afternoon with lots of yummy finger foods! After work, i'm picking up my mom and we're going shopping before our dinner reservation at McCormick & Schmicks. Then i'll probably go home, maybe watch my new dvd and go to sleep. Pretty perfect day overall.

Oh, life.

The theme of my life lately has been 1. get a good job interview (yay!), 2. interview goes well--hopefully i'll get this one (yay!), 3. immediately get a call from another potentially better employer to schedule another interview 4. hope to God that the first people don't call for a while so I have time to work my options with the new potential job, 5. repeat, often.

And as usual, the past 2 days are no different. Last week I had a phone interview for a job i'd love to have in Raleigh. I'm giving the lady until tomorrow, then i'm going to call her back and harrass her to give me an in-person interview so that she cannot resist my charms and has to hire me immediately. But, of course, yesterday afternoon I get another call i'd really been waiting for about a job in Atlanta. The location wouldn't be my first choice, but I really do like Atlanta, plus I'd get to do a lot of traveling (in Miami, yes please). So, if this actually worked out, I'd be a fool not to accept. It has dream job potential. If this wasn't enough, today I get yet another call for a job with my bank here in Raleigh for an interview on Thursday. Sigh. Not that this is surprising at all--at this point I basically expect the unexpected. Its kind of like a mixture of dread and excitement every time I check my voicemail. Hah. But I must say, I definitely prefer too many calls to none at all.

So, this week has already had a great start. The work days have been flying by, I won a really weird vibrating mascara online from a fashion blog yesterday (more on that once I get it in the mail...), I got some fabulous b-day cards in the mail yesterday, I have dinner plans for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, RED VELVET CAKE tonight!, i'm leaving on my family vacation New England cruise in 4 days, and the week still has LOTS of potential.

Happy Fall!

Its finally the most wonderful time of the year--birthday week yay! I love celebrating my birthday (cake, presents, friends...whats not to like?), so this should be a fabulous week for me:)

Weekend: pretty boring and yet busy at the same time. Didn't end up going to casino night (THANK GOD), but instead stayed in and caught up on my What Not to Wear watching. Saturday, took my car to have it vacuumed, washed and waxed and now it looks stunning! Also, in the process of cleaning all my crap out from under the seats, I managed to find my Cravin' Melon cd that I thought was lost. Saturday night I went out with the former roomie to a sports bar/restaurant in Raleigh to have dinner and watch the Wake game. The food was yummy, and we both got accidentally drunk at 8 pm from ONE drink each. Granted, mine was something called the "mega-rita" (read: the largest margarita i've ever seen), and it was really delicious. But its still depressing that one drink can do me in now. Haha...the college days are obviously long gone. Anyway, Wake won and we had a really good time. Sunday: finally bought a new dvd player which I still need to set up, my grandparents came over to give me my bday present (lots of cool kitchin accessories & lush towels for when I finally move out, and cash--the best kind of gift), and then went to see my other grandpa and have dinner with him. Overall, pretty nice weekend, except I managed to get covered in mosquito bites. Ick.

Today the office is reeeally hot, which makes me want to nap. But i've got yummy leftovers for lunch & the morning is passing pretty quickly. And, today is the first day of fall--the best season of the year in my opinion!

PS-Kristin, I got your message and will call you back today:)

yummy

I'm currently eating a rice krispie treat at my desk and i'm reeeally enjoying it:) I don't think i've had one of these since 9th grade. Nothing much new to report on. Last night I went home, helped make dinner, watched many episodes of Jon & Kate Plus 8 (I don't really like to admit this), and then went to bed. I mostly enjoy low key nights during the week, because I have to get up so early to come to work. Today has been passing by quickly which is always nice. Tomorrow i'll be at the office for a whole day (boo) because I was out on Monday, but I think my co-workers are taking me out for an early b-day lunch! Should be exciting..I just have to figure out where I want to go. This afternoon i've got a phone interview for a bank job here in Raleigh (obviously a first choice, if I don't have to move, so fingers crossed!). Hopefully it'll go well and something will happen soon!

Currently drooling over this: Christie's fall jewelry auction (The New York Sale). So gorgeous!

happy day

I woke up this morning feeling great for no apparent reason--always a good way to start the day! It also probably helps that I went to bed last night around 9:15, so I got some pretty fabulous sleep:) I also got to finally catch up with a couple good friends on the phone last night which was fun. I suck at returning phone calls on time and finally got a few minutes to chat, so hopefully i'm all caught up on my correspondance haha. AND, my birthday is exactly one week from today! Over all, lots of good things going on.

Last night I got a message from someone at a bank here in Raleigh, for a job I applied for randomly online a few weeks ago. Again, every time I really get going on something, it seems like something else (bigger/better?) pops up for me to think about. Crazy life. We'll see if anything actually happens with this one!

hurricane a'coming

Went to the grocery store last night, and loved the fact that the store had stocked up on bread, milk, and they had even moved cases of bottled water to the front of the store. Gotta love hurricane season in the South. Hopefully it won't actually be horrible, but I guess it is supposed to rain for the next few days. Blah. This morning I turned down that job offer I had mentioned earlier. After too much thinking about it, my gut feeling kept saying no. Even my parents agreed that I made the right decision in declining, so I definitely feel good about it. Yesterday afternoon I had a great interview with the place I'd LOVE to work. A few minutes after that, I got a call from a family friend who's the president of a bank in VA. He told me that his bank has an opening that i'd be great for, so now i've got another phone interview there next week. So, me being the fate-believer that I am, I took all that as I sign that there's definitely bigger and better things on the horizon. And now i'm a baller who turns other people down, instead of vice versa:)

Today i'm not feeling so hot. I'm sticking it out here at the day job as long as I can, but i'm not sure i'm going to stay all day. I might just need a sleeping/tylenol/hot chocolate afternoon, or if it gets worse I might drag myself to my favorite urgent care that brought me back to life after mono. We shall see.

Overall, i'm feeling pretty great about life. Lots of new possibilities, which could include moving out on my own to a new place, and maybe reuniting with some friends who I would absolutely love to see. And my birthday is in 20 days, and i've been thinking about what kind of spectacular celebration I want. Can't wait!

Side note: I definitely heard Darius Rucker's (aka Hootie) new country cong on the radio this morning...tear.

YAY

So excited about today & this weekend for the following reasons:

1. I'm having lunch with Lydia who I haven't seen since graduation time. I love it when Wake people are in Raleigh!
2. Half day at the day job. Enough said.
3. Birthday extravaganza this afternoon/tonight for my friend Emily. There will be a pool party and grilled pizzas and then out to a fun martini bar in town! I just hope I don't get burnt to a crisp.
4. I have no real plans for the weekend, except maybe a movie date with the former roomie to see Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2, which will hopefully be pretty good.
5. I am going to finally attempt to make my first red velevet cake from scratch. Paula Deen's recipe includes such ingredients as 7 EGGS and a POUND OF CONFECTIONER'S SUGAR. Holy Hell.
6. Only two weeks until my beach getaway weekend to go a friend's wedding. (aka only 4 days of work that week yippeee).

Happy weekend!