30 Days

Happy Early Easter!

Well, in exactly one month I will be graduating from Miami University. This is rough. No job prospects, no idea what my life will be in a month. It’s a giant question mark. I’m glad to be getting away this weekend for Easter, though. I can relax with my grandparents (I’m driving over to Indiana rather than flying home to New Jersey) and process how fast time has flown.  The early Easter basket my mom sent me today was also a fun, little pick me up. Along with the card, she mailed me a pair of Tory Burch Espadrilles. Chocolate and shoes can turn any day into a great one.

Happy Thursday – it’s one of my favorite nights in Oxford!

Wisdom Bits

Today in one of my marketing classes we had Stacy Reichert, the SVP of PepsiCo, come speak to us.  She’s a Miami Alum and came to discuss the company, the creative aspects of it, and how they maintain success.  Stacy was not only approachable and easy going, but treated us like her equal despite her impressive position at PepsiCo.  She had the perfect balance of elegant poise along with a casual demeanor.  What led me to write about Stacy were her final comments to our class.  My professor posed the question, “How did you become so successful?”  Obviously, this is an answer every second semester senior wants to hear and all our ears perked up.

Stacy’s response was simple and made sense.  She told us something a co-worker once told her, “A point of view is worth 50 IQ points in a company.”  Stacy elaborated by sharing the importance of speaking up, making conversation with your co-workers, and displaying interpersonal skills.  She explained no idea in your head is a good one until it comes out.  This all may seem too easy, but when you think about it, these are the keys to success. You don’t need to be a math whiz or an overachiever to succeed in life.  You need to have a presence and an opinion. The rest will happen naturally.  The quotes below are a few of my other favorite pieces of advice.

Margh Mondays

Ah yes, the worst day of the week. That 9:15 a.m. alarm (I realize I will miss this once I graduate and have a “real job”), all that work I didn’t do on Sunday, that sore and painful Monday afternoon workout. Mondays are my day for catching up and planning the week ahead of me. Since clearly I don’t get anything done on Sundays. This is why I was oh-so-excited when I noticed that a local restaurant uptown, Grille 45, offers Margherita Monday. This includes: 99 cent margaritas AND half price nachos!

I know I was in just as much shock.  Reading that tweet from Grille 45 made sitting in my study room for 3 hours a little more bearable.  It made enduring Jillian Michaels’ bossy voice and exhausting workout worth it. Two of my best friends, Zach and Victoria, joined me for margaritas on the rocks along with an order of nachos. It was a delicious, delightful, and super cheap, meal.

So much cheese. I love cheese enough that I almost put it in the title of my blog. But I thought that might be a bit aggressive and fattening of me.

Savor Sundays

Every Sunday I wake up with a long to-do list consisting of exams I need to study for, papers that need to be written, laundry that needs to be washed, and emails that need responding. The issue for me though is that I always abandon the to-do list and savor Sundays as my time to relax and prepare for the week ahead of me.

Today for example, the book on my Kindle, We Need To Talk About Kevin, sucked me in and I chose to read that rather than write the paper on Pledged for my Educational Leadership class, or continue with my job search. I’ll all get done eventually right?

Wine Girls

I was grocery shopping at the local Kroger in Oxford and became overly excited when I noticed they offer wine tasting in the “Bistro” section every Friday. Better yet it only costs $5. Yes, $5! This Friday two of my best friends and I decided to check it out. Wine tasting offers two of my favorite things: wine & snacks. Three different reds to try, three different whites, and an array of appetizers (cheese, crackers, chicken bites, dips, etc.).  I’d say it was the perfect way to kick start a weekend and I am just a tad disappointed that we only just discovered this relaxing event.

The third one in, Macaron, was my favorite pick of the reds. Made in Italy, it is a blend of reds.

Paper plates and a never ending assortment of appetizers. Doesn’t get much classier than this.

Some best friends enjoying each other’s company on a Friday evening at the Kroger wine tasting. Life is good.

Happy Weekend!

Graduation Prepping

You know it’s all becoming real when the graduation invites are made. This invitation is for the graduation party being hosted at my house at school. Our house name, Dubois Not Books, a pun off the bookstore called Dubois Books (get it?), will be hosting our friends and family for a night in our backyard filled with champagne, hors d’oeuvres,  and catering from a local Italian restaurant.

I live with 9 of my best friends, 8 girls and 1 guy.  It can be chaotic, dramatic, loud, and messy, while simultaneously being exciting, exhiliarting, hilarious, and the place I will forever think of as Home.

Oxford Princess

Contrary to what my weather app claimed, the weather in Oxford today was sunny, warm, and filled with clear blue skies.  I had planned to go see the Hunger Games because of forecasted storms, so I felt a little guilty heading to the movie theater when today posed as a great opportunity to sit outside Skipper’s with a beer tower.  I must admit I have no regrets seeing the movie – it was amazing. And I also remembered how much I love the Princess Movie Theater, which is Oxford’s one and only place to catch a film on the big screen.  She really is quite a princess.

Only four theaters and with a vintage feeling to it. I feel like I’m living decades ago.

I can’t help but snap pictures of the beautiful architecture surrounding Miami’s campus.  The bell towers chime every hour with tunes ranging from Disney songs to the theme song of Titanic (which, btw, I cannot wait to see in 3-D).

Oh, yeah. It was on my bucket list to eat at a dining hall one last time. I guess I won’t miss this so much…

Grilled Cheesin’

The days of “lasts” keep coming. Today was my last marketing presentation – ever! Turning in the paper (totaling 20 pages of research and analysis, and 30 pages of an appendix) was a huge sigh of relief. I mean all I wanted to do was pour a nice glass of wine. Wine, is of course, one of my favorite things. However, it being 11 am in the morning on a Tuesday forced me to choose my next favorite thing: grilled cheese.

There is no better sense of accomplishment. I was definitely in need of a reward.

The genius invention of a Miami University food truck. Menu: gourmet grilled cheese.

 Four Cheese Grilled Cheese filled with Gouda, Cheddar, American, and a veggie cream cheese spread. I ate this delicious snack (snack? okay, meal) with my roommate on our house’s front stoop. Something I will miss dearly after I graduate is relaxing outside and people watching those on campus. It’s one of the best ways to start the day.

Bucket Lists

I seriously cannot get over how fast time has flown this year.  I have about…5 weeks…until I graduate and it’s the most overwhelming feeling.  My semester is beginning to wine down, especially because my senior capstone is over (thank god for sprint classes). I’ve been a super slacker with posting, but it’s now a part of my bucket list to document everything that happens in the following weeks. I’m making myself take endless pictures, complete every item on my bucket list, and take proactive steps to finding a job.

Graduation brings a lot of mixed emotions for me. A part of me is excited and ready for something new. A new city, new people, and a feeling of uncertainty combined with excitement.  Another part of me (probably the much larger part) can’t bear the thought of leaving this place that has become my home, or my friends, who have now become my family. The familiarity of school and the quaint town of Oxford makes it so difficult to come to terms with saying goodbye.

That being said, I am going to quit analyzing my emotions on graduating and begin living everyday for the rest of my senior year to the fullest.  I think Tom Petty said it best: “The work never ends, but college does.” For now, though, my work is limited and I am still in college. Cheers to that.

Puerto Prepping

I leave tomorrow morning (at 6 am – cringe) for Puerto Vallarta, Mexico! Heading there with five of my best friends and about a hundred other MU students. I am super excited, although a little nervous about all the negative press Mexico has been receiving. I was literally running around like a mad woman today catching up on last minute errands. I bought this Belle Crochet Bikini from Victoria’s Secret in hopes that the white crochet will help enhance my tan (aka my spray tan). I also gave myself a mani/pedi with Essie’s Vermillionaire. All I need is to make sure my Vera Bradley duffel zips and finish downloading music to my iPhone, and then I am good to go! Bon Voyage!

Essie - Vermillionaire