freckle confessions

Imagine that you spent three months working on something on a small scale just to see a national magazine come out with an article that wipes away all of your work.

Okay, so that's how it felt, anyway.

One summer in college I interned for a small publishing company that wrote a series of books for tween girls. My job was to write content for the site for each of the five characters, all different in her own way but all sending a positive message to readers (who, between the ages of 9 and 13 were extremely impressionable). One character in particular, a redhead with freckles, resonated with me. I remember slaving over one piece about why freckles are cool (because they are).

July's Cosmopolitan has a heavy message around skin care and sunscreen, which is great - except for the article titled "Confessions of a Freckle Face". In this piece the author describes having freckles:  how they aren't sexy, how much time she spent using different spot-fading creams and cover up to fix her "flaws", how embarrassing it was that her friends would tan and she would just have "spots". And it culminates in a line saying that the author would go through a lot of pain again "in a heartbeat" just to get rid of her freckles. (The author underwent laser treatment to reverse sun damage on her skin which costs upwards of $2,500 and results in weeks of a face full of scabs.)

I am all for skin care and sun safety, but I am fair skinned, have never been bronzed, and have had freckles my entire life. And this article is one of those that sends the wrong message to young, impressionable girls. I understand that the author's point is that she was able to erase years of sun damage with a quick treatment; however, rather than discussing how flawed it is for a girl to have freckles, can we talk about how flawed it is for a girl to bask in the sun without SPF?

Here's my PSA of the day, ladies:  Wear your sunscreen. And respect your freckles.

Friday writing: the career 20-something

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There has been a lot of hype recently around career moms:  women who are trying to "have it all", both at home and in their careers. We've heard from Yahoo!'s CEO, Marissa Mayer, that no one should work from home (while she has a nursery next to her office). We've heard from Facebook's CEO, Sheryl Sandberg, that women with children can have it all, but it is expensive and doesn't work for everyone.

But who is talking about the career 20-something, who doesn't yet have a family of her own? She's that girl who is trying to figure out her career, have a successful relationship, maintain meaningful friendships, and truly find her place in life.

Sure, there's The Everygirl, a site dedicated to 20-somethings with career tips, finance info, and highlights on some fab women. But one website in a sea of over 63 million sites built using Wordpress is not enough. And there are some books on the topic- I read The Quarterlife Crisis a few years ago- but books on the bottom shelf don't help too much if a 20-something reads them but her manager at work has an entirely different view of how to succeed in the workplace.

From what I've read, I've learned to speak up for myself, to sit myself at the table (both literally and figuratively), and not take "no" for an answer. But from real life I've been taught to stay quiet, not to ask for what I want, and to do what my superiors ask without questioning. So what is a girl to do?

Until more people are talking about the 20-something who is working her way into a successful career (anyone?), on the side being a good sister, a great friend, and a fabulous girlfriend, I am going to do what I feel works for me.

Why? Because...

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reality TV + why we care

Normally, I leave my guilty pleasure shows where they belong - on the DVR until I am at home by myself and can watch them in peace without color commentary from T. Tonight, though, I am wondering (and, obviously, sharing with you):  Why do we get so invested in the lives of these women we have never met?

Spoiler alert...

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If you look on Twitter, there is tweet after tweet of #TeamLindsay or #TeamCatherine, ladies calling Sean an idiot for his choice, and speculating if Lindsay will be the next Bachelorette. 

But why do we care?

It's the same for every reality show I watch:  Week after week I peek into their lives for just an hour of television time, forming an opinion of who they are and what they should do or not do. I talk to my friends as if I know these people. Sometimes I even yell at the TV.

On some level you relate to those you watch. Why else would you care? Whether you are like them or want to be like them, if they remind you of people you know or would rather not know, you feel some connection to who they are for that hour every week.

And that, my friends, is why I am so annoyed at the TV right now. Do you get upset at your favorite shows?

3 goals for 2013

Here are my 2013 goals. Rather than call them resolutions, I like to call them goals. It's not that I am resolving to do something; instead, I'm striving for something.

I've found that I'm a minor pack rat. I hold onto things just because I think someday I might need them. That ribbon? That wire bowl? The skirt I bought when I was 3 sizes smaller that I will most likely never fit in again unless I have some of my hip bone removed? This year I want to clean out. Clean out everything that is messy, that takes up space, that isn't adding value. I'm also adopting Mackenzie's "only buy what you love" as part of my decluttering for the future.

I want everyone around me to know how much I care about them. When was the last time you got a surprise note in the mail from a friend far away? It's the little things in life that mean a lot. And even though this year will include some pretty major events, like the weddings of my older sister and best friend, I want to make sure I don't forget the little things too.

And I want to do everything with intention. If I do it, I want to do it like I mean it. No half-hearted acts here, friends.

a 2012 recap

2012 had its ups and downs, but I can definitely say I'm coming out of this year a stronger individual. In 2012 I made it through 3 more semesters of my MBA (and kept up my GPA- rough, with some of the classes I had). I started this blog (!). T and I finally got rid of the awful pink walls in the master bedroom, which was probably the longest painting project ever. My older sister, who got engaged at the very end of 2011, started planning her wedding. I visited Paris and London with T. My best friend got engaged. My college roommates/friends and I kept up our semi-annual family reunion. T and I hosted our first Thanksgiving. My high school bests and I continued our annual Christmas dinner + family photos. I spent quality time with family and friends and tried to do my part to make the world a better place.

I am excited to see what 2013 brings! Goals for the new year coming soon!

giving thanks

There are many things to be thankful for, and I have a lengthy list going in my head. I should take a moment to thank those who encourage me, who challenge me, and who help me be the person that I am. I have some incredible people in my life, as well as people who were in my life but are now gone.

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So, while tomorrow my table will be full of people who mean a lot to me, who I can thank in person, tonight I am taking some quiet time to say thank you to those who won't be here.

be true to who you are: a thank you

This morning I was thinking about my classmates from my class early this summer who encouraged me to branch out from what I've been doing to what I want to be doing. The class wasn't a typical MBA elective, but rather a self-exploration exercise with a peer coach and a group of peers to bounce ideas off of. While I have only made a small move professionally, I feel like I am in a good place right now, and it is partially because I have this outlet that I call my blog. So even if the only people reading this are my mom, my boyfriend, and my closest friends, thank you for letting me express my love of fashion and my less business/more creative side with poorly taken iPhone photos and graphics that I will look back on in a few years and will make me cringe. And thanks also to an awesome group of people from the aforementioned class: Ryan x2, Ben, Henry, and Devon; for your honest feedback and for making me feel like I needed to get off my butt and create something.

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