Life as a Boomerang Kid

When I graduated from Cornell in May 2012, I had to move back home. I was unemployed (and wouldn’t land my first full-time job until the following March), and I was (and still am) about 100k in debt. That’s 100k with 5 zeros.

Needless to say, there was no way that I could afford to rent a cardboard box, let alone an apartment in New York City. What I pay in student loans each month is around what most people pay in rent, and publishing pays next to nothing. Seriously, we don’t work in publishing for the money. Living with my parents when I’m in my mid-twenties certainly has its ups and downs, so I thought I’d start a blog series on living in my childhood home when I’m no longer a child. I think it’s something that other millennials can relate to, especially when recent statistics say that one in five people in their 20s and early 30s is currently living with his or her parents. 

Guess what they call us. The boomerang kids.

So here is the first installment of my survival guide.

Tip #1

Respect is the only way to survive, and it goes both ways.

The fact of the matter is that when you’re away at school you get very used to not having to answer to anyone. You come and go as you please, you stay out super late, and you invite strangers to stay the night (or they invite you). 

Moving back home is definitely an adjustment for everyone. My parents had to realize that I was an adult, so they couldn’t police my comings and goings or tell me how to lead my life. I had to realize that living at home was a privilege— not a guarantee—and that I still had to respect the fact that my parents were genuinely concerned about my well-being and didn’t stop being my parents because I had graduated from college.

That meant extending the courtesy of letting them know when I was leaving the house or if I’d be out super late (or not coming home at all). I still try to respect their household rules and try to contribute (even if that just means unloading the dishwasher from time to time). When I started showing them the respect that was due, they left me to my own devices. It’s made for a much more peaceful living environment.

Downton Abbey Inspired Haul

Since the season finale of Downton Abbey, I’ve been pining for the next—and sadly, the last—season of the hit television show. I love historical dramas. I love the historical component (which isn’t typically that accurate), I love the world building, and I love the costumes. From gowns to hats to pieces of jewelry, the costume department on Downton does an incredible job at bring the 1920s to life.

Lady Rose MacClare (played by the stunning Lily James) definitely has some of my favorite costumes on the show. She’s youthful and bubbly but still elegant and sophisticated. One of my favorite accessories of hers are her hats and headbands, all of which add a hint of drama.

So, when I was out shopping for my “vacation wardrobe” I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to buy a couple Rose MacClare inspired headwear. The two headbands—one a gold braid and the other an ornate silver design—were fished out of the clearance section at DSW. I didn’t spend more than $5 on either of them which I thought was a steal! I have to admit that I felt a bit like a princess when I tried on the silver one. And we all deserve to feel like royalty every now and again, don’t we?

I’m looking forward to trying out the headbands while I’m in France, but I’m also toying with an idea of doing a post on styling with them. Thoughts? We’ll see if I’m that inspired though.

The earrings were another Downton Abbey-inspired purchase, although far less obvious. I loved the fact that the earrings have this long, thin chain which reminded me of a bit of fringe. I bought them at New York and Company during their Fourth of July sale as a door-buster. How could I resist them?

Summertime Faves: Mint Iced Tea

One of the many (and I mean many) reasons I look forward to summer—apart from the sun, the summer fashion, and summer Fridays at work—is the refreshing beverages. And I’m not just talking those of the alcoholic persuasion either. My all-time favorite summer drink is Mint Iced Tea. It’s something I grew up on, so it has a lot of pleasant associations for me: picking the fresh mint from my grandfather’s garden, sitting on the front porch with my grandmother, and even sipping a glass of iced tea after playing tag with my cousins.

So when I bought mint for my little herb garden earlier this summer, the one use I had in mind for my mint leaves was a nice, cold glass of Mint Iced Tea. And I thought I’d share my recipe! I like my iced teas sweet and not quite so tea-y, so if you like stronger brews or less sweetness I’ll provide a couple suggestions for you.

Mint Iced Tea

You’ll Need…

1 gallon of boiled water

4 tea bags

7-8 fresh mint leaves

¼ cup of lemon juice

8-10 tbsp. of sugar

And the Steps…

Boil a pot of hot water and steep 4 tea bags. Muddle (crush or “bruise”) 4-5 mint leaves and add to the pot. Leave the tea bags and mint leaves steeping in the boiled water until it has cooled to room temperature. I tend to do this early in the morning so it’s ready by afternoon, or I leave the tea to brew overnight. It’ll take several hours. When the water has reached room temperature, remove the tea bags and the mint leaves. Stir in sugar and lemon juice until both are fully incorporated, and transfer mixture from the pot to your pitcher. Muddle the remaining mint leaves and drop them into your pitcher. Refrigerate until chilled and serve over ice.

For those of you who like strong iced teas, I’d suggest adding a tea bag or two more than the above recipe. And depending on how sweet you like your teas, you may wish to use less sugar or maybe even a bit more. I’d suggest doing the sugar to taste though—this is just how I like mine.

----------

There is seriously nothing more refreshing in my book! You can also experiment with different flavored teas, but I’m a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to mine.

What's your favorite summertime drink?

Revlon ColorStay Gel Envy

I’ve been seeing ads and commercials for Revlon’s ColorStay Gel Envy collection everywhere for months and finally bought it last weekend. The concept of the collection is that it’s supposed to give you a salon-quality manicure at home. Honestly, my feelings are a mixed bag.

I’ll start with the good news because I like being optimistic.

The Gel Envy polish real does give you a lovely and vibrant color, and there are 38 shades for you to choose from. Not too shabby, right? There are few things that I love more than pink nails, so I went with “Royal Flush.” It’s a rich pinky-red with maybe a bit of fuchsia to giving it a bit of sass. I really loved and maybe have just found my vacation nail color!

I found the application super easy. The Gel Envy process has two-steps, the base + color coat and the Diamond Top Coat. The base + color coat is a thick, opaque formula, so I only needed one coat. And even with the one, my nails had a gorgeous, rich color to them. The Diamond Top Coat was just as effortless, and I’ve honestly never seen a top coat dry so fast! And the system has no UV component, which saves everyone some time and money.

Lastly, my nails did feel harder and stronger while wearing the polish.

And now for the bad news…

This is another one of those gel-like nail polish systems that promises long-wear and a high gloss shine. It did give a nice enough shine, but I wouldn’t call it long-lasting. It didn’t chip per se, but by Day 2 I was already seeing some tip-wear on multiple fingers. It hadn’t even been 48 hours and I felt like I needed a touch-up. I wasn’t impressed. To its credit though, it’s Day 5 and there isn’t any flaking or major chipping going on yet.

The price is a bit of a turn-off too, at least initially. You need to buy both the base + color coat and the Diamond Top Coat, and each bottle is about $7.99 a pop. They do sell “starter kits” that have one bottle of color and one of the top coat, and that seems to be the way to go in order to save a few dollars for us penny pinchers.

Lastly, the thought the Diamond Top Coat had a funny smell, stranger even than other polishes I’ve tried over the years. Thankfully, since this system dries quickly the smell doesn’t linger.

The truth is that this is not a gel manicure. It’s gel-like so the results aren’t going to be the same. So, there are some pros and cons about the system, but I really do love the lush colors. And now that I have the Diamond Top Coat, I might try experimenting with other shades to see if they last a bit longer. The tip-wear did sour me a bit though, not going to lie.

Has anyone else tried ColorStay Gel Envy? What did you think about it?

*This post is not in collaboration with Maybelline, and the opinions are my own.

New Month, New Goals: July

Although June was less hectic than May, I still managed to fail at accomplishing most of my goals this month. The weekends were uncommonly rainy, and I spent large chunks of the weekends creating my itinerary and bemoaning just how broke I was this June. But on a happy note, July promises to be an exciting month for me! I’ll be jetting off to France for my vacation at the end of the month with Mom, first of all. I’ve been looking forward to this trip since last September when I decided I’d be going to France, so the anticipation has been steadily building. This month is the start getting my Summer Fridays, meaning my office will close at 1PM. 

How was your June?

Finish reading The Secret History. Nope, sadly.  I am still around page 50 and haven't actually picked it up since early June.  My friend loaned me The Anatomy of Story, so I've been reading through that, and I've also spent my train rides writing or listening to the insanity that is Greece's economic problems.  I'm really hoping to get to the book this month, but who knows?  Maybe I'll end up reading it on the plane ride.  Granted, I had planned on sleeping and reading the second book in the Outlander Series.  Hmm.  Too many books and so little time.  

Workout my abs and arms daily. Ish. This little routine lasted all of a week before I got bored (read: lazy) and stopped. Oops.

Go on an excursion. I fail.  Okay, so this wasn't completely my fault.  We've been rained out for the last couple of weekends which makes trips into the city depressing.  There are puddles the size of the Atlantic Ocean at every intersection, umbrellas are useless if there's even the slightest of breezes, and you risk getting splashed a la rom-com by a car.  Jerks.

Start finalizing my itinerary for France.  Not only did I start it, I finished it! After spending four weekends in front of my Streetwise Map of Paris, Google Maps, and my Fodor's Travel Guides, I have managed to create a 16 page itinerary for my 10 day trip.  Everything that I want to see is on there, and I think I'll have time to just do some aimless wandering too.

JULY GOALS

• Duolingo Review or Die.  With my trip just around the corner, it's time to buckle down and get some serious French review under my belt.  I know I won't be fluent, but it would nice for me to be able to say a few things in French and be understood (not mocked for my horrible American accented French).
• Get some reading done. I'm not going to say I want to finish a book because I have a habit of failing to do any reading when I put it on my list of goals.  Instead, I hope to just read for fun and read whatever I like.  Books, magazines, blogs...anything goes.
• Buy the last of my advance tickets. I only have a couple of advance tickets left to buy this month, but it will be nice to have that part of trip preparations out of the way.  I think I have to buy tickets for the Tower of London and the catacombs which comes to about $50.  Not bad considering we've been buying $150 worth of tickets and tours each month since April.  
• French Trip. It's here!  It's finally here!  We'll be jetting off to Paris on the 26th and won't be back until August 5th.  While we're there we'll get to see Paris, London, Nice, Provence, and Monaco.  It's a lot to pack into 10 days, and I'll probably need a vacation to recover from my vacation, but it will totally be worth it.
• Make a blog queue. I don't want my blog to go without updates while I'm on my trip, so my goal is to schedule some posts for when I'm away.  I need to get down to business and brainstorm some post ideas so I can start working on creating comment.

Do you have any goals for July?