Wilderness

Summer plans. There's this thing about New York, when it gets warm, we come alive. It's as if everyone's been hibernating and how we're all waking up, stretching out and seeing the sun and we're ready to take it all in. Your head fills with images of piers and beaches and brunches in the sun. You're all about ice cream and an open fire hydrant. You look longingly at shorts in displays and buy a new pair of sunglasses that make you look just like Sophia Loren! I love summer in New York.

But one of the best parts is getting out of New York! And that's why my girls and I are planning a trip to my parents lake house. A weekend trip for all of us at the end of the summer. And we are going all out! First we're borrowing a friends cousin's minivan so we can pack all 8 or so of us! We're also having a fundraiser to pay for the ever increasing price of gas! We're going to have a Williamsburg Lemonade Stand/Bake Sale/Kissing Booth! Hurray. Then we'll spend a few days sunning, playing in the water, hiking the gully, eating homemade food and drinking local wine and enjoying some quality girl time! Ahhh, this is the life...

Wilderness- Middle Brother

New Yorker Cartoon

Sniffle, I'm illin. This all go lifestyle is catching up to me a bit. I'm sorry I haven't posted in so long. Things have been nuts! I started my internship and it's amazing! It's so much work, I've never worked so hard in my life(especially for no money). But I'm learning so much. I was worried that I wouldn't be good enough and I wasn't sure how to show them how much I want this job or that I'm good at what I do. But I'm getting the hang of it and I'm doing well and working harder than I could have imagined.

Things are also going well at the venue, really well in fact. I'm working multiple front of the house positions as well as doing office work. The managers seem to really like me and frequently refer to my great work ethic. It's not the norm for employees to work multiple positions so what they're doing for me is a unique and important opportunity and one they clearly were in need of. I know I'm doing well there and even though it's just a bar job for now it has the potential to really help me out in the future. It's also nice because I'm meeting so many great and interesting people there.

As far as dating, I'm actually doing it. I've been dating my ex the comedian for about a month now. He's actually moving to LA in a week, so we will be breaking up. But for this month it's been good, and simple. It's basically dating with training wheels, which I think I needed. I've been through a lot emotionally in the past few years and I needed something easy to remind me that things can be good.

New York is also coming back to life. My little park is all in bloom and filled with kids and dogs and ice cream trucks. My friends and I are planning picnics and trips and my allergies are back for the season. I'm thrilled to be in NYC for the summer again, it's my favourite time. Even though it's brutally hot and smelly, it's beyond fun. The city comes alive and it's as if everyones come out of hibernation. I always think of the Death Cab for Cutie song Summer Skin. It really is as if everyone emerges in new skin, glowing and ready to recharge in the sun like little solar panels. All the pain and hardship of winter is instantly forgotten and we greet the new season like sailors seeing land. Summer in New York is my favourite and I'm thrilled to be spending another one here.

One Of These Things First

First Day by acelovesvintage featuring retro shades

What I WISH I was wearing to my first day at my internship. Sadly, this outfit is about a million times out of my budget. But a girl can dream. Tonight I'm getting my haircut as well, so it's a big day! Wish me luck!

Summersong

Ten things I'm looking forward to about summer...

1) Margaritas on the peer

2) Biking around Brooklyn on my cute blue bike Daisy

3) Roof parties

4) Concerts in the park

5) Festivals!! Thus far I'm going to The Northside Festival and The Newport Folk Festival

6) Tiny summer dresses!

7) Fire escape garden

8) Red clog sandals

9) Summer rain storms

10) Beer gardens!

Summerskin

Now, I normally don't post much about makeup. Cause the thing is, I don't switch it up all that much. A little bronzer, a little blush, a little black eyeliner and I'm done. I've got friends who are makeup goddesses. I've even got friends who are makeup artists, but me, I'm pretty simple. That's why I love these pictures. They're natural with a little bit more. The top one has that lovely dusty rose colored lip and the bottom one those perfectly winged eyes with little else.
Are you a makeup kind of girl or more natural? I will admit the love of a good red lipstick and lately I've been wearing a lot more lipstick in general. My go to fancy look has always been winged liquid liner. Do you have a go to look?

This Love is Over

I am in the middle of that tricky process of getting over someone. It's not fun, I've done it before, but this time seems trickier. Maybe because I'm in such an uncertain and transitional time in my life, maybe it's the fact that it was the kind of relationship that "almost" happened but didn't quite make it, maybe because I did that crazy thing of getting rid of all the little flirtations I had going on the side and just going for it. Whatever the case, I'm trying to get "over". And it's not easy.

I've been thinking about ways I've gotten over breakups in the past to try and give myself some ideas. There was my freshman year friend breakup where I cried for weeks straight and then finally dragged my behind out and volunteered for an animal rescue(huge help for someone who was seriously gun-shy about meeting new people). There was my breakup from my first serious boyfriend, that one I just jumped right into another serious relationship, not a good idea. Then there was that breakup where I moved to NYC and ended up having a fling with a french artist, that worked out well.

And finally there was my break up with the Comedian, my first real breakup since my "big" breakup. That one was tough, even though it wasn't a very serious relationship. I moved home(bad idea) went on vacation with my best friend(great idea), had a rebound relationship(kinda ok idea) and removed him from my life completely(no phone, no facebook, nada). We're friends with benefits more or less now but now when I look back I can't even see why I thought it was such a great thing in the first place.

So now I've come up with a list of things. Not just things to do to get over someone but also things that make me feel good. And here it is...

1) Obviously spend time with friends, and mine have been great about all of this.

2) Spend time alone! People forget this(me too). Sometimes you need to sit with those thoughts and feelings and accept them. Write, read, watch movies, do yoga, whatever.

3) Paint your nails and toes. It sounds weird but it's true. And it matters that you do them. Really take your time and do a good job. It gives you time to do something for you and makes you feel pretty.

4) Make good food, healthy food. I've been bad about this lately, but it really does help. Taking care of yourself is a big part of feeling good about yourself.

5) These are my personal things that help. Coconut lotion or shampoo, the smell makes me smile. Grapefruit and honeysuckle perfume, my summer scent. Plants, they cheer me up, living things make life better!

What helps you get over someone/something?

FYI, my blog titles are now all song titles. Can you guess what they are?

I Wanna Be Where Your Heart Is Home

As you all know I've moved to Brooklyn. I'm still living in Bed Stuy, but this time I've got a little 4th floor walk up near a park. It's a nice place, though it's not my dream place. The kitchen really leaves a lot to be desired. I seriously lack in cabinet and counter space. So I've been trying to remedy those issues with creative and colorful storage options.
These pictures are just dreamy and I love a colorful, quirky kitchen that's just filled with stuff to inspire me. I'm not one of those sleek, modern, kitchen kind of girls. Like with everything else, I like a little whimsy.

Kick Drum Heart

The good times keep rolling in. I just found out yesterday that I got my internship!! And they want me to start immediately! I will be starting as soon as Friday. I also start training at my bar job tonight. It is actually pretty intense, I have to train for three shifts then take a test! Things are about to get crazy busy but I have a feeling it's going to be great. I've been trying for years to get this internship and I've finally got it, now I've just got to bust my ass for the next few months and really shine at these jobs(which means I'll be buying one of these). But I'm super excited, this is the stuff I've been trying to get into and now I've got the chance to do it.

I'm also saving my pennies to go to The Newport Folk Festival(if you haven't checked it out by now you should, immediately!). Though I'm hoping my parents will shell out as a congratulations present, dare to dream. I'm planning to go with a bunch of friends, some from here, some from Boston, it should be great! I know that the ExBossFriend will be there, and that I'll be dealing with him a lot in the coming months with these two jobs, but right now I just don't care all that much.

On the topic of dating, meh. It's not happening all that much. I've been spending a decent amount of time with my Comedian Ex. Mostly I think because he's moving in a month and that's dating with an expiration date. Oddly enough that works for me right now. I'm not over ExBossFriend and not quite ready to jump back in there so for now I'm ok with dating with training wheels.

I've Been Told I'm Rather Cat Like

Cause Lord knows I land on my feet and I'm beginning to think I may even have 9 lives. Sunday afternoon I randomly sent out my resume to all the local venues. None of them were advertising, but I figured why not? About an hour later I got a text saying "Hey Ace, call me tomorrow so we can set up a time to meet, So and So From Cool Venue". Weird, non? But awesome. A few hours after that I got a text from my old boss informing me he had just said nice things about me to the owners of said cool venue. Hurray again!

The next day I gave them a ring and the owner told me to come in around 4, which I did. I waited a bit then met with the owner who basically asked me to tell him about myself. Which I did. I explained that I'm a recent graduate, with the golden ticket of a music degree, I told him about the internship I had interviewed for and my need to support my habit of volunteering in my feild and that working at a venue seemed like the most logical way to do that. So he says to me "see here's the thing, we're not hiring" and of course my heart sinks. "But," he says "I saw your resume and it's great and your old boss said such great things about you and the fact is I have a really good feeling about you and I want you here". WHAT??!!

So he says to me that he can't promise I'll be in the production and booking side of things right away or all the time but that he wants me to get to know everything. I'm going to start off at the desk and hostessing, then learn to serve, then bartend, learn stage set up, production, booking and marketing. Basically, he wants me to know everything. He had assumed I was looking for a music job, I was just looking to pour beers! So they are going to give me a call in a few days to start figuring out where to put me and get me trained. Holy bananas! Now if I get this internship as well I get to be on both sides of things seeing how it works from the inside out! At long last, my first paid semi music job!

A few months ago I went back to Boston for the first time and saw an old professor of mine. While explaining the oddessy that finding a music job has been for me he says to me "I don't worry about you, you've got rubber soles, you always land on your feet". I'm this close to things really working out and I'm hoping like hell that it all falls into place. Wish me luck!

On a side note, I'll be out of town and incommunicado for a few days since I'll be home in the backwoods for my birthday with my family. Upon my return I shift gears into the hyper drive that the next few months of my life will hopefully be. Promise to write again soon!

Interviews, Interviews, Interviews

Well, I had my interview. And I actually think it went pretty darn well. The guy who interviewed me was only a few years older than me and was really cool. We knew a lot of the same people, I've worked with a lot of the bands on their roster and we vibed well. I'm hopeful, dear God I'm hoping. I still haven't found employment to support this pipe dream I call a career in music but I'm trying. I don't think I got the bar job at the bar my friend works at, but I'm still trying. This whole being unemplyed thing is kicking my ass but at the same time I've always done my best when I'm up against the wall and I'm just trying to hold onto faith that I will claw my way out of this.

In other news, dating. It's not really happening. Like I said I ended thing with my musician ex boss/ex boyfriend. Friday was my birthday and I didn't hear from him at all, which was pretty much the last nail in the coffin. The french guy I was dating two years ago is still in my life, though at this point only as a friend and he's taking me out tonight for my birthday. I know he still loves me, but at this point in my life I'm just not ready to have anyone else be a part of it. So for now I'm hanging out with my girlfriends and kicking the job markets ass and that's just going to have to be enough for now.

Have you guys ever lost your job or felt a bit out of place? New York City is pretty much kicking my ass up and down the street right now but I still love her. How do you guys get through tough times?

The Good, The Bad, The City

I'm back. And good lord a lot has changed...Let's get started.

First I live in Brooklyn. I moved randomly on a Tuesday, on whim, and I've stayed for the past 7 months. I crashed at the old Halsey house for the first month. It has since been condemned. I got a job managing a salon and I grew to hate it, then I got fired. Now I'm unemployed and I've got an interview at my dream company on Friday, which also happens to be my birthday. I've got a little apartment, it's painted turquoise, it's on a park, in the ghetto. I've got an amazing group of girlfriends, we're all musicians, and artists, and broke. I was dating a nice boy, he was not a boy since he was 10 years older than me, but he is moving to Boston, and I'm not dating him anymore. I was dating a not so nice boy, the same not so nice boy musician I was dating in Boston. He moved here, he did not move for me, we are not dating any longer. I am in love with New York and it is kicking my ass. I'm broke, I'm tired, I'm lost and completely head over heels with my city. It's about time I started blogging about it.

Ten Things

Ten little things that make me happy and help me get through the day...

1) Coke in a glass bottle. It makes me feel like a pinup girl.

2) A phone call with my best lady friend.

3)My pretty new blue day planner, I may not have a job, but I'm ready for one.

4) Writing/painting/drawing in my journal.

5) A fun hat.

6) My vintage blue fan, not only does it cool me off while I do my makeup but it reminds me of a wonderful beach trip with my friends where I found it on the side of the road.

7) Grapefruit scented body lotion and honeysuckle scented perfume, my scents of summer.

8) Netflix.

9) Reading Alice in Wonderland.

10) Taking my golden retriever hiking in the gully.

Several Things I Do Not Have

This blog is fast on its way to becoming my unfiltered place to whine. But indulge me a little further. As I mentioned I've got this wedding, this indian wedding, but what I haven't got is a thing to wear. As you may or may not know color is a huge part of traditional indian weddings. It is disrespectful to wear black(my go to color) because since it is the color of mourning it is seen as an ill wish towards the couple. White is also inappropriate, although the bride wears red, because it is the color worn at funerals. Final, since the bride wears red, red is out. Since I wear predominantly red, black and earth tones, my closet is providing me with not a thing to wear. I would love to find something along the lines of turquoise, magenta or orange but it seems that those colors are few and far between this season and frankly Ithaca does not offer a wealth of shopping options.

On an unrelated topic, I am still going through serious dog withdrawl. And no amount of babysitting my parents pooches seems to be curing it. It would be premature of me to adopt a dog right now and I know that. I can't support myself, I couldn't possibly support a new pooch. But lord, next to a job, that is all I want. Something to miss me, to need me, to be excited when I come home. Mt cats are fantastic, but it's not the same. I suppose I'm just having a touch time keeping my chin up. I feel a lot like I'm treading water. For all its wide open space, this place feels like it's closing in on me. I know I'm not alone in my unemployed wasteland, but it feels awful lonely. We've all been through tough times in our lives. How did you guys get through them?

I Have Been an Absent Blogger

I'm sorry I haven't written guys. It's tough to keep motivated these days. I didn't get the job at Sony, as a result I did get to go to North Carolina's Outer Banks for a week with my best lady friend in the whole wide world. But I cannot lie, I really would have liked a job. I've been back from vaca for a little over a week and it seems there is another bump in my road. My temp job in the office where my dad works has evaporated. My boss, it seems, is on permanent vacation and therefore has left me with nothing to work on. So long income! So I spend my days sending out hundreds of resumes. Making mass quantities of follow up calls and going on daily crying jags.

Truth is, I'm lonely as hell out here. I don't know a soul in Ithaca and all my parents friends(and my parents) seem to ask about is my job hunt. The sad fact is, there's nothing to tell. I'm like the little engine who could, but I'm runnin' outta steam! I'm frustrated and I'm feeling pretty useless. I'm not even getting call backs. So sometimes I take the dogs hiking in the gully and I can escape for a little while. But I can't escape the ever growing isolation I feel. It's pretty much me and my TV. However, I can safely say I recommend Heroes the TV show, I can say this cause I've watched every single episode of all four seasons. Don't say I never achieved anything.

I am still dating that boy, I'm not where it's going, mostly cause I'm not sure where I'm going. But I like him, and it would be nice to have him be my in city gentleman friend rather than my travel to get smoochies friend. I've also got a wedding to go to this weekend with a friend of mine from NYC who's coming up to stay with me. I'm actually really looking forward to this, he's my french speaking ex but also one of my closest friends and I know that he gets where I'm coming from. Plus, it's an indian wedding, in other words, bright colors, lots of dancing and celebration. I think it's exactly what I need.

Heading Back

Packed by acelovesvintage featuring TopShop dresses

I'm heading back to NYC for the weekend either tonight or tomorrow. Still no word on the job but I remain hopeful. I'm not totally sure what my plans are for this weekend but I think the above packing list has them all covered. And yes, this is more or less exactly what I'm packing though I'll admit that the jewelry is all wish list items. My dress for fourth of july is a sailor dress like that one but it's red polka dotted vintage betsy johnson and is my absolute favourite. The rest however is pretty much acurate. Hope everyone has a great holiday weekend!!

What I'm Listening To:

New York, New York- Ryan Adams

^always makes me think of the fourth of july

Fireworks

My annual fourth of july post. I don't know about you but I like to dress the part for the 4th. I bust out my red, white and blue and go for it. In honor of that I've found some red, white and blue for you as well. Hope you like it!
high waisted jeans or shorts would be great with this for a casual look. You could also pair it with a sweet skirt or even wear it over a bikini for a 4th of july beach party.
how great are these? They're so classic and of course you can wear them all summer, not just the fourth.
Oh I love it, how sweet! It's fitted and charming and just a bit silly.

It looks like I'll be heading to NYC for the fourth. I've got a few parties to attend and some good friends to run into. My social life is more or less exclusively in NYC at this point, I've got the contents of my apartment ready to go and frankly, I'm ready to hit the road. All I need now is a job to come through and I should know sometime around Tuesday. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

In the Sun

Cleanin' Up by acelovesvintage featuring Wet Seal tops

This is basically what I wore/am wearing today. The first is for work the second is for cleaning up the new anitques I scored when I get home. My loving mother got me a gorgeous mahogany dresser that I've been lusting after. Only $30 at a local auction. It's curvy and has feet and it terribly dirty. But it will be amazing. I also picked up a new to me kitchen table yesterday. In what my mother and I have come to call the "divorce" between B and I he got our beloved 1950's yellow formica table. I got the kitten and the apartment, so I can't complain. But lord I loved that happy yellow table. Since I moved I've been searching everywhere for one and last night I hit pay dirt. I had to drive an hour and a half but she only cost me $75(way under the 300 I'd seen for some others) and she's gorgeous, I've named her Doris Day. She needs a whole lot of cleaning but I think she'll look lovely, I can't wait to have a glass of lemonade on her. Pictures as soon as she's all spiffed up!

What I'm Listening to:

In the Sun- She & Him

P.S. antiques are a great way to go green!!

To Crop or Not?

Crop tops, they terrify and intrigue me. On the one hand they're fun and trendy and a little tongue in cheek, which I like. On the other hand, bare mid drift. Will it come off tongue in cheek or will it come off floozy, or worse, bad retro, I don't know. Here's a pic of a crop top I picked up on a thrifting whim. It's a very 90's fitted green bra top, but the question, how do I play down it's 90s-ness a bit? Have I gone too far? Is my sample outfit a little too spice girls? I've got another crop top that's red and white striped as well and I've got no clue how to wear either. It's a tragedy really. Got any suggestions?

Once a King or Queen of Halsey Always a King or Queen of Halsey

^The ceiling in my old roommate at Halsey's room.

Ah new york, new york. It was so good to be back. You want the recap? Ok, I'll try and keep it short...

So I arrived in NYC with the help of my mom's best friend who is a real-estate agent in Tribeca. We got into the upper west side and I hopped a subway bound for my beloved Brooklyn. I arrived and was met by my ex roommate/pseudo ex beau. The one I mentioned who I dated for awhile after B and I broke up. We're not dating anymore but we're still good friends and whenever I'm in NYC I still crash at Halsey Kingdom. I met him at our two friends adorable little ground floor brownstone and we had a few beers and some mexican candy in their charming little backyard. It made me terribly jealous, it is exactly the kind of apartment I want. It was also so much fun.

Now, the next part of my evening requires a little explanation. For the sake of full disclosure I'm going to be straight up with you. I did the unthinkable. Ok, so here's the thing, several of my good friends admitted to doing it too and so I got curious. I figured, what's the harm, I'll just give it a try, have a look around. But then, I was hooked. That's right, I tried online dating. So, I had yet to actually get up the nerve to embark on any actual dates but there was this one guy I'd been talking to. We'd exchanged a few messages, he'd called and we'd talked for an hour(yeh, like in middle school), and he seemed sweet and non ax murderer-y. So I said to myself, Self, why not, let's give it a try. So I packed my metaphorical pepper spray, casually informed my best friend and then hung up on her before she could lecture me, put on my pretty blue maxi dress and headed out to the west side.

I met him at a cute, darkly lit little bar, we found ourselves a quietish corner and a few glasses of wine. To my complete shock and awe it was neither awkward nor blood bath horrible craigslist killer like. It was actually, kind of, fun. And the fun kept coming, we talked, we laughed, we headed to a new quieter and only slightly brighter bar which afforded the luxury of a couch. Bars with couches get serious points in my book. We had a few more beers, psychoanalyzed each other(what, what do you do on your dates?) and then all the sudden he looked at me and said come home with me. Yeh, I know, alarm bells should have gone off. But instead I found myself getting in a cab bound for the upper west side(my what a circular day) and then I found myself getting falafel(yum). And then I found myself making jokes in an upper west side studio with a boy who was playing guitar.

As it turns out dating, while scary, can also be really really fun. I don't know if this will go anywhere, maybe, but either way it was a really great date with a really sweet guy. He has since called(side note: we're also getting married and coming up with names that fulfill both our irish and indian heritage...kidding) and I will hopefully be seeing him again. However, the next day and therefore the next post was the interview, dun dun dun...

Outfit I Would Live In

Seriously, this is gorgeous. The perfect summer to fall transitional outfit. Now if you'll excuse me I'm off to unearth my plaid button ups and high waisted jeans and find that fantasmic belt.