Lately

We (you and I) haven't "caught up" in a while. Let's change that, shall we? These posts are always my favorite because I get to tell you all a little about what's going on in my life lately and you get to tell me about what you've been up to.

Doing: Job-searching is the number one thing that I've been doing lately. I have another internship starting in a week and I'd love to come out of it with a job. I'm tired of being in this weird limbo. Changing careers is a big deal regardless of where one may be in life so any stability is welcomed. Other than that, I'm still keeping up with photography and writing. I'm actually photographing my old high school's Junior/Senior banquet this weekend. I'm excited to see some of my old teachers but hoping none of them read this blog. If they do, this post from last week would definitely make that reunion awkward to say the least.  As frustrating as it may be, it's good that I'm in somewhat of a lull for now because I know that some BIG changes will be taking place in the next few weeks/months. It's sort of the calm before the storm. Thing is though, I'm an extremely antsy person. Will I ever learn to just relax?

Eating: I've been really, REALLY into Mexican food lately. I'm thankful that Philly is such a vegan-friendly city because it makes my obsession for plant-based tacos and burritos that much easier to appease. I've been digging these two sister restaurants, Dos Segundos in Northern Liberties and Los Caballitos on East Passyunk in South Philly. If you're ever in the area, you should try them out. You'll probably see me there dipping a watermelon margarita. I'm not even a fan of margaritas but anything watermelon instantly gets me. As for at home, I'm currently working on the perfect chia pudding recipe. I'll hopefully be sharing that soon! 

Listening: My musical taste has been everywhere lately. Literally all over the place. I've been doing a lot of driving and traveling in general and therefore have been spending a large part of the day listening through entire albums. Some of these albums include Surfer Rosa by Pixies, All We Love We Leave Behind by Converge, American IV by Johnny Cash, Every Kingdom by Ben Howard, Kveikur by Sigur Ros, Apokalypsis by Chelsea Wolfe, and Kanye West's Cruel Summer. See? Everything. I told you. The most interesting thing I've been listening to, however, is the Overnight Drive podcast. If you're into that kind of thing, it's hilarious. I probably look like a dork laughing hysterically to myself  in my car in the middle of traffic on I95 but laughter is everything so I don't care much. (Just be aware that it's super NSFW.)

Learning: Although it's not an actual "skill," I'm learning patience and how important it is. It's one of those lessons that you'll never want to learn but you always come through it being extremely thankful that you did. I see these overnight success stories of people from my industry and although some of them actually are "overnight," an overwhelming majority are never what they seem to be. To quote an old friend, OnCue, "no matter how long it takes, they always say it's overnight." (Remember?) Just like anywhere else, you need to start at the bottom and work your way up. It kinda sucks. But that's life, and it'll be so much more rewarding when you know how hard you've worked for it. (At least that's what I tell myself.)

Everything Else: Parking tickets. Lots and lots of parking tickets. I had never gotten one before and I've gotten 3 in the past two months. Have you ever heard of the show Parking Wars? It's based on the parking situation in Philly and how intense the meter maids are. It really is no joke. On a lighter note, I'm perfecting the art of the perfect eyebrow. After a year of not getting them waxed and plucking very selectively, they're finally ALMOST to where I want them. This may not seem like a big deal, but to me it is. Growing out my bangs and eyebrows was probably the best decision I've made in a very long time. It was hard work with lots of awkward in-betweens, but it has certainly paid off. Every once in a while I miss my red hair but those bangs and pencil-thin eyebrows... may they rest in peace, never to be seen again. I would LOVE to be that thin again though...

So now it's your turn. I want to know what you're doing, eating, listening to, learning, etc. I want to hear what your favorite recipe or song is right now! ...Or basically anything else that you want to let me know. The internet is a large and lonely place. If I could, I'd take every single one of you out for a cup of coffee. But I can't do that (yet) so we'll have to settle for this!

xo,

e.m.

p.s. I got this idea from Skunkboy and her adorable blog.