#NewMonthNewMe

Last week was my 2 month mark being in the city. January was a whirlwind of "firsts" (first Saturday wandering the city, first time trying the new coffee shop by my apartment, first time trekking through the snow to work, etc), the whole month just flew by. February is when reality started to hit. I'll spare you the details but let's just say it was a rough month for me. Maybe it was the weather, maybe it was being homesick, maybe it was hearing from an ex. Whatever it was, February was the worst. 

So I've adopted a mantra for March. New Month, New Me. 

My plan:

- Joining the yoga studio next to my apartment

- Meeting new people (harder than it sounds for an introvert like me)

- Eating out less (Seamless is sooo easy)

- Changing my attitude towards my new job

- Coloring my hair (haven't done anything to my hair since I was like 15!)

I'm excited to see where I am a month from now. It can only go up from here!

#newmonthnewme

My 5 Year Plan

I had a pretty big reality check the other day. I was talking to a guy who was leaving New York to go back to florida. He had come to the city without any real plan, outside of trying to make it in standup comedy, and had only been able to land a job as a waiter. He was defeated and tired of being constantly broke, so he was packing his bags and heading back south.

I was shocked. How could someone move to a city like this (or move anywhere!) without a plan?  I said to him "Wow, we're pretty different. I have always had a 5 year plan, without it I would have so much anxiety."

His response - "Did your plan include you moving to New York?"

I immediately felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. Such a simple, straightforward question but for me it carried so much weight. 

I sheepishly looked at the floor and shrugged "I guess not... Actually no, no it didn't."

For the past week that question has been in the back of my mind. Making me question of all the planning and goal setting and future-oriented decision making is even worth it if it can all change  in an instant like it did with me.

I do still think it's important (to me at least) to have a 5 (or 1, 2, 10, etc) year plan. But it's just as important to let that plan change. BE FLEXIBLE! There are so many things in life, good and bad, that we can't plan for. Career change, moving locations, getting sick, changing industries, getting laid off, starting a family, etc. These chanes are scary and a lot of times they force us to completely change our 5 year plan. But I'm learning that's not such a bad thing. 

War Eagle & Windchill

There are 2 things this former Auburn/southern girl is not a fan of - last nights game & this frigid cold.

In true Auburn fashion, the game was exciting all the way up to the last few seconds. I watched the game at the NYC Auburn bar Tavern on third (@ 27th & 3rd) and the atmosphere was incredible. It makes me feel so unbelievably lucky to have gone to a school with so much passion for not just sports but the university and the "family" of fans across the country. No matter where I am in the country (Boston, DC, NYC), the Auburn Alumni club always makes me feel at home in my new city.

Unfortunately, FSU won out in the last seconds and everyone was devastated. I may have teared up a bit. In the end, it is, and will always be, great to be an Auburn tiger. What an incredible season! 

This cold has GOT TO GO! I love winter (falling snow, Christmas, curling up by the fire) but -15* windchill walking around the city? No thanks. So ready to curl up in bed and do some much needed online shopping tonight ;) 

One Down

I did it! I survived my first week in NYC. I also survived the first week of work at my new job! Granted it was a short one but I'll take the small victory.

Outside of work, my week has consisted of apartment hunting, apartment hunting, and more apartment hunting.  Running around the city looking at places kicked my butt. I have never been so tired or sore (moment of silence for my feet) in my life. A few nice places, one really sketchy situation in the West Village, and a lot of Criagslist-ing/google-maping, I finally found a place! ... for one month. My plan is to use the month to find the perfect long-term rental (or stay there if the 4th floor walk-up doesn't kill me by February).

Snapshots of My Week (via my iPhone)

First night in the city :: 

My morning walk to the subway (after the snow storm) ::

I'm officially a NYC/Upper East Side resident ::

... to NYC

The last year and a half has brought more changes than I could ever imagine. Graduating college, moving to Boston, starting a new job, moving to DC, ending a long-term relationship, and now moving to NYC and starting a new job in a totally different industry. Woah. This move to New York is completely outside of my comfort zone on SO many levels but it's also exactly what I need.

So here goes nothing. Tomorrow I board a one-way flight to a million unknowns.

From A to B ... to NYC.

Most Boston-filled Day Yet

A few weeks ago I had friends come visit me in Boston. I was thankful because it finally gave me a chance to do a bunch of touristy things I've been dying to do! They only had 1 day in Boston so we packed as much as we could into that day... my feet are still hurting!

USS Constitution

My friends that were visiting are in the Navy, so naturally the first (and most important) stop of the day was to tour the 200+ year old ship, the USS Constitution. We woke up extra early, got our Dunkin Donuts coffee (according to them, getting DD is part of the "Boston Experience") and then headed across Boston to Charlestown Navy Yard. I loved it. We were probably there for 2.5 hours touring the Constitution and the newer USS Cassin Young.  

The North End

Then we followed the Freedom Trail (a red line that runs through Boston that takes you to all of the historic landmarks - it's a goal of mine to walk the whole thing!) from the Charlestown Navy Yard to the North End to have lunch! The North End is full of amazing italian restaurants but we weren't in the mood for anything heavy so we settled for a quick bite at a local sandwich shop.

While we were waiting for the ride to our next destination we found a little park to rest in, we had been walking everywhere and our feet needed a break. I don't know if you can tell from the pictures but the weather was AMAZING. It was cool enough to walk around without melting but warm enough to lay out in a park. 

Sam Adams Brewery

Next stop was a favorite of mine. Sam Adams Brewery!! The 'information' portion of the tour lasted ~20 mins and the 'tasting' portion lasted ~40 mins. Our tour guide was hilarious and so informative. I can't even begin to pretend I'm any sort of beer expert so everything I learned on the tour (even the super simple stuff) was new to me. We even got to keep our baby beer glasses - how cute?!

Red Sox Game

Last stop of the day - FENWAY! Full disclosure: this was my first time to Fenway. However, I always pictured my first time as a magical event with a whole day dedicated to nothing but Fenway/Red Sox. Unfortunately, I was so exhausted I couldn't fully appreciate it. Plus, we didn't buy tickets beforehand so we had to do 'standing room only' (just what my feet need at this point...) so that took away from the experience as well. 

Therefore, I am striking this Red Sox game from the record and declaring my next visit to be my first TRUE visit it to Fenway. I intend to make it as magical as possible.

While exhausted at the end of the day I'm glad we were able to pack so much of Boston into one day.  There is nothing more fun than running around and exploring this city. 

First Day of Work!

Heals.

Cubicles.

Coffee.

I was put in charge of ordering office supplies I "need"... I need these right?!

Milestone Moments

Am I really an Auburn Alum? I'm still pinching myself.

Graduation

I was lucky to have all of my wonderful family members join me in celebrating this milestone.  It was a hectic weekend, to say the least, but I loved sharing it with all of them. I really felt all of their support and love during a pretty emotional few days for me.  Jim came as well and was such a good sport hanging out with my family all weekend (and entertaining Madeline).

Jim and I actually celebrated his birthday the day before graduation but he told me I wasn't allowed to make a big deal about it because it was "my weekend" 

{cindo de mayo birthday y'all! instead of a sombrero, he got a soccer ball??}

When my family arrived we all met downtown and ate at one of my favorite local places, Bizilia's... writing about it is making me crave it! Some day I will learn how they make their chicken salad...

After lunch, I headed back to my apartment to get ready while my family explored Auburn's campus.  Then, around 3:30 the whole gang headed to campus for the commencement ceremony. (My grandparent's watched the ceremony online, how sweet is that??)

Here are a few more pictures I didn't include in the first post --

{Andrew}

{sisters}

{sisters and grandpa}

{madeline - aka future Auburn grad}

{parents}

{allison - aka bff}

{2 of my favorite people ever}

{the whole family}

The next day was packing day (read: extremely stressful day). Thankfully, with the help of everybody, we were able to get most of it done in just a few hours. After all the packing was done, Jim headed to the airport to go back to D.C. and I drove to Atlanta, leaving Auburn behind.

The past few weeks have been filled with craziness. I will be doing more posts detailing all of it!
Coming Up:
Drive to Boston/Moving-In
Orlando trip
Getting settled in Boston

Graduation Preview

I am writing this as an official college graduate!

Here's a little preview, I'll put more pictures up when things calm down!

Just after graduation! I was on cloud 9!

Such a special day/weekend spent with people I love!!

I leave for the (approx.) 21 hour drive to Boston tomorrow... here's hoping for safe travels!

Where did the time go?!

I graduate on Sunday! Countdown is officially down to 2 days!!

May has been a whirlwind month already and we're only 4 days in! This month is going to be full of so many life changing experiences, I've barely had time to look back and reflect on everything and everyone that has gotten me to this point in my life... I guess that's for another blog post.  After graduation I am jumping head first into the next chapter of my life (I guess I wouldn't be me if I did it any other way).  For fun, here's a little preview of my life this May:

1. Graduate
2. Pack up & leave Auburn behind the next day
3. Begin 21 hour road-trip to Boston 3 days later (with a pit stop in Williamsburg to visit my grandparents)
4. Move into my new apartment 2 days after that
5. Fly down to Orlando for a few days of relaxing (and Harry Potter Wizarding World!!!! nbd)
6. Fly back to Boston
7. Start my new job 2 days later

Between steps 1 and 7 there are 15 days... my head is already spinning but I am so excited to see what this month brings!

{P.S.} for any family or friends that want to watch graduation (Live online) here's the link: http://www.auburn.edu/communications_marketing/graduationlive/

Life's Tough, Get a Helmet

via

This quote is so fitting about so many aspects in my life right now.

Finals are hard.
Graduating is hard.
Long distance relationships are hard.
Moving (logistically) is hard.
Moving 1,200 miles away from family & friends is even harder.

Knowing I have help to get me through all of this crazy change in the next month makes it a tiny bit less terrifying.  I still feel like I have a mountain ahead of me!