Summer of Sunsets

Hey! This summer has been weird. I had plans to work at a camp in California. Instead, I'm here in Atlanta. I haven't spent summer in Atlanta in years. While I can't partake in my favorite Atlanta summer traditions, I've been reminded of the magic of an Atlanta summer. The sunsets! The cotton candy skies, the orange skies, the purple skies, the blue skies, the cloudy skies, the mysterious skies. I love it all!

Aren't these sunsets so beautiful? I'm obsessed with the Atlanta skies. It makes me want to go stargazing.

Capsule Wardrobe

Y'all, quarantine made me look at clothes for fun. What is happening? I'm the gal who would pretty much rather do anything so I don't have to shop. I guess instead of picking up new hobbies like coloring or running, I'm out here clothes shopping. What a time!

I've kept a running list of clothing I want to buy for college since senior year started. It's a bunch of basic clothing I just don't own for some reason. I'm lowkey giving away half my closet in a few weeks because I'm always wearing something for my youth group. Maybe, that's why I don't have the basic clothes. Who knows?

I scoured the interwebs for these items with the hopes of finding exactly what I want. That didn't happen for all the clothes, but a lot of the clothes I want to buy after quarantine. Without further ado, I present my capsule wardrobe.

I'm a neutral gal through and through. My laundry hamper has my colors at the bottom waiting for months until I have enough colors collected for a wash. Blues, blacks, whites, greys, and greens are my thing. They're so soothing. With this in mind, I limited myself to a color scheme of black, white, grey, and denim because I knew that's what I'd wear.

I wanted these items to transition from day to night without a need for additional clothes. I'm moving into a tiny dorm room so I want everything to do double duty or triple duty. I also wanted these clothes to work for all the different activities I do. Essentially, these clothes gotta work a million different ways. They can't just work for one outfit and be done.

Alrighty folks, let's dive into the tops I selected. I ended up picking 8 shirts to create a ton of different activities.

Black Tank - I've wanted a black ribbed square neck tank top for a while now. I think they can be dressed up or down.

Black Long Sleeve - I guess I'm just into ribbed clothing. The ribbed long sleeve would make a fun night time outfit. 

White T Shirt - I really have no excuse for not owning this.

Grey T Shirt - I have a grey t shirt flares out on the sides that has seen better days.

Black T Shirt - I wear a ton of black for tech so why don't I own a black t shirt?

White Tank - I own a bunch of randomly colored tanks yet no neutral tanks. As you can imagine, I essentially never wear those tanks.

White Tube Top - I was the only one out of my friends who didn't bring a tube top to Israel. I meant to buy one when we got back, but alas that never happened.

Black Tube Top - This also seems like something I should own.

It's time for the bottoms. To round out my total of 15 pieces, I chose 7 bottoms.

Black Shorts -  These are so great for the hot Georgia heat. Well, the loose material is great. The color isn't the best choice. Oh well!

Jean Shorts - I love the color and ripped aspect of the shorts.

Two Toned Jeans - These were my fun yet practical pants that match with a ton of different shirts.

Light Wash Jeans - The looseness of these jeans is so perfect. They're not crazy baggy while still a bit loose.

Black Jeans - Ditto to what I said about the light wash jeans.

Corduroy Pants - I'm so excited for corduroy to make a comeback. I love the fun texture corduroy provides.

Overalls - I'm obsessed with the fun vibe these overalls give off.

On My Mind

Hiya. That feels a bit bright-faced. Let's start over. Hey. Nope, not working. Hello. It'll do. I'm not really sure how to emerge on the blog in the middle of this pandemic. We're living in a crazy, scary time right now. Coronavirus is impacting everyone's lives in so many ways. It's a strange time to be walking this planet.

Huge shoutout to all the doctors, nurses, and hospital staff working to defeat this horrible disease. I am truly amazed by their bravery on the frontlines of this battle. The employees in the grocery store, mailmen, garbagemen, deliverymen, and pharmacists are all trying to ensure some sense of normalcy. Obviously, normalcy is subjective, but they're helping to ensure basic necessities can be bought. The teachers transforming their learning into online learning seemingly overnight are putting on brave faces for kids everywhere. The food pantries, shut down restaurants, and everyday citizens helping feed those who currently don't have food are providing such necessary services. The organizations helping many cope with job loss, decreased income, and the many other challenges this pandemic have created are helping so many in my community and in communities everywhere. The people at home making masks for healthcare workers are doing their part in helping fight this disease. This list could continue on about the wonderful people in the world helping others. I am so inspired by all that everyone is doing to help one another.

I'm inspired by my neighbors putting teddy bears for families to go on bear hunts, the people grocery shopping for the elderly and immunocompromised, the people working on lifesaving medicine. I'm inspired by the people of the world coming together during this time.

The Last Seven Weeks

Hello! This whole year has been a blur. I cannot believe its already mid-February. Seriously y'all, I feel like January 1st was two weeks ago. I've been keeping busy since the start of the new year. I've really thrown myself into doing everything to the fullest as I don't have much time left in high school.

Everyone else seems to have full-on senioritis. I'm over here putting 110% into everything I'm doing as I want to take advantage of it all. Its a really interesting spot to be in as many of my peers are slacking off while I just want to do more.

The last 7ish weeks have been eventful. My friend Kate from BBYO was in town for a few days. I treasure our friendship so it was a joy to host her in Atlanta. As an Atlanta fanatic, I'm filled with pride showing my friends around the city. We tried going to the Waffle House Museum, but I forgot it's only open on certain days. We turned it into a fun adventure. We also got vegan bao buns. In my book, you can never be sad if you have vegan bao buns.

I then went to Chapel Hill for a few days. It was a bit strange to be on the campus as I wasn't touring the school. My mom went to UNC so she's an avid UNC basketball fan. We scored tickets to a not so great game, but I loved the camaraderie in the stadium. Moments like these make me excited for the school spirit I'll experience at college.

I teched my last middle school theater show. The middle school shows are some of my favorites. The kids are so excited to be members of the company and are filled with lust for all we do. I love watching their eyes light up as they try on a costume, see a new prop, and witness the finished set. Theater is truly magical. Theater is probably going to be my hardest goodbye.

ThesCon was so fun this year! I've mainly gone to the actor centric programming because of the people I hung out with. I ended up going to several tech centered programs. They were so cool! The tech IEs blew me away. I wish I got to see more of them.

I've added several babysitting clients to my roster so I've been busy babysitting. The kids I watch all have the greatest personalities so its such a joy to spend time with them. It's so weird to think they'll have new babysitters next year.

I picked up a new job as a Sunday school teacher. I actually love it so much. The kids are just the cutest. Sharing my love of Judaism with them brings me so much happiness.

Its been a good few weeks. Graduating high school is starting to get real. I have a feeling that after spring break, high school will fly by in the blink of an eye.

My Best Purchases of 2019

I can't believe 2019 is coming to a close. This year, this semester, this season, this month, and this week have all gone by in the blink of an eye. Life isn't slowing down. It's just speeding up. Seriously, I'm stunned that we're about to start 2020. I'm a second-semester senior! Where has the time gone? Reflecting on the year, I can say this was an incredible year with so many great memories. While I'm still processing all that I've done/thought/participated in/wondered/experienced/loved/questioned this year, I've come up with a list of my most favorite purchases of 2019.

I'm not a spender. I'm the person who will see something on a website and completely love it, but I won't buy it. When I'm finally ready to buy it, its sold out. For me to buy something, it means I've thought about it for weeks months. Keep this in mind as you see my list of favorites.

Throughout summer 2018, my friends would rave about this water bottle they all magically discovered that kept their water cold for 24 hours. I shrugged off their urges to investigate but finally took a sip. Man, that water was cold. I was impressed, but I still loved my Nalgene. My Nalgene had bumps and bruises and was part of so many stories. The thought of trading it out for a new water bottle made me teary-eyed. I thought about the water bottle all of fall Junior year as my friends started toting around their Hydroflask. With everyone purchasing it, I was wary of the fad, but I decided since I'd thought about it for a whole six months I'd buy the water bottle anyways. This water bottle is the best. Sure, my water bottle looks more banged up than my Nalgene, but it keeps my water cold for so way longer than my Nalgene did. Plus, it's so fun to sip out of a water bottle rather than gulp out of a water bottle. I've carried this purchase from January around with me pretty much every day. While the price of the water bottle is absurd if you use it every day for a year it turns into a quarter per day. I used my Nalgene for six years so the cost will be meer pennies in a few years. As someone hesitant to spend money, I'd say this is a worthwhile purchase.

They're currently sold out of the color I got, but I love my 32-ounce version. I have a yellow bottle with a teal cap. My friend has a teal bottle with a yellow cap. It's a fun way to match with a friend, but not everyone has to know it.

I didn't own headphones for years. I didn't have much of a need for them. I could just set my phone down and listen to my podcast or music no problem. I've gotten into going on short runs and taking my dog on walks. It's so awkward to be jamming out to music when people are walking by. I got a pair of AirPods to help combat these awkward moments. They're also super practical for talking on the phone. I was shopping for scrapbook supplies the other day. I just popped my AirPods in and chatted with my friend. So easy!

When I went to find the link for the AirPods, I realized they've made multiple generations. I'm pretty sure I have the first generation AirPods. I'd say they're definitely worth the money. You'll save a bit by getting on the older models.

I've had Chacos for years. Somehow, I lost my Chacos in 2018. It's still a mystery that I'm lowkey sad about. My Grandma gave me her old Chacos so I could keep wearing my everyday summer shoes. I ended up using her Chacos for close to eight months. I'm so happy with my new Chacos. They're perfect for doing everything when it's warm out.

I have the Z/2 strap style. I love the classic black look as they're perfect for wearing with any color. I'd say think about whether you want a toe strap for a long time. My previous Chacos didn't have toe straps. Now that I have the toe strap model, I think I prefer the flexibility of the non-toe strap model.

I'm always amazed by how much the little things impact my life so greatly. I had a phone case that had a wallet shell. It was great until it broke. I loved the easiness of having my license and school card readily available. I'd seen many of my school friends carrying a pocket on their phones where they kept all their cards.

I bought a set of iPhone wallets a few months ago from Amazon. I assumed I'd have to replace them because they'd get dirty or break. I'm happy to report the original one is still holding strong. It has s a small tear, but it's still working.

Finding vegan shoes that are built to last is so much harder than you'd expect. The shoes I like are always sold out in my size or obscenely expensive. Shoe shopping is not something I find great joy in. That is until I discovered Veja. They're an ethical shoe company that produces the cutest vegan shoes. I'm obsessed! I've always loved the white sneaker trend, but I haven't found a vegan pair built to last. The vegan pair I'm currently wearing is exactly what I want.

I have a very similar pair to the ones pictured. My pair's blue. This shoe looks super sturdy with reenforcing at the toe and a thick sole.

My sister's friend and my mom gave my sister an O key ring for her keys. She didn't need two key rings so she gave one to me. I totally thought this key ring was over the top. Boy, was I wrong. I can now swing my keys onto my wrist and carry something in my hand. This is really transformative for me.

I love this Oventure O key ring. Its the perfect size for slinging around with my wrist with a sweatshirt on and with just my bare hand. I love the tie dye pattern and they have tons of other options.