relax.

Disclaimer: this post is not about the usual food, fun, fashion, travel which I usually write. Rather, it is a note that the universe gave me and I am passing it onto you, because it is often a message I find myself overlooking.

Putting it simply, this past week was not my best. After several days of battling my stomach I finally ending up fainting during my dog's vet appointment, which was quickly followed with a trip to the ER, where I was admitted for dehydration and exhaustion. I'd like to think that this gives me celebrity status, since that's what the young actresses are often admitted for quite often. However, this was not due to binge-drinking but a solid four days of being unable to keep down much food. While I am not sure what caused this stomach flare episode, one thing it did teach me was that even during summer, I do not just relax and let it go. I was so stressed about all the things I was unable to get done while I was bedridden, but in the end that was really just negative feedback for my digestive issues. What it took to get me this reminder to chill out was a surprise visitor of the best kind from across the country.

On Friday afternoon I was lying in my bed, contemplating all the levels of misery in my life at that exact moment, when the one person who I desperately needed to see walked through my door holding my chihuahua. My boyfriend coming to see me from his job in Atlanta had to be one of the absolute sweetest things anyone has ever done for me. At soon as he gave me a hug and said hi, I knew I was getting better because I felt like I could finally stop worrying about all the external things, because someone was there to help take care of them for me.

Suddenly, all the things I should have been doing: meeting with professors and reading books for my degree became less important or certainly less urgent. Everything could wait, at least until I was better and not as sick. My boyfriend visiting put the important things into perspective, and I suddenly felt myself getting better. I sometimes let the urgent crowd out the important, but this past week put it all into perspective. It took the sweetest boyfriend and some really good food to remind me that things will wait, and that when sometimes you just need to relax until you feel better - the world will wait.

ten things i love about summer.

I originally intended to write some sort of summer bucket list for the official start of the season, but I realized that summer is not about trying to accomplish everything on a to-do list because that takes the fun out of summer and makes it into more work than it should be. Rather, I think that summer should be about doing the things you love with people you love. So, here is a list of ten things I love about summer, in no particular order.

1. Häagen-Dazs Raspberry Sorbet

2. Ridiculously bright colors, in everything from shirts to drinks to nail polish.

3. Early morning long runs. You get to enjoy a little sun minus the searing heat and you feel so good when you're done.

4. Trying out new white wines in the early evening. This moscatel seco from Spain is my new favorite.

5. Fun trips to places like this and this.

6. An excuse to wear holey, ripped-up denim cutoffs that are the most comfortable thing in your closet.

7. Reading. A ton. Right now I'm on Lives Like Loaded Guns, about the family turmoil surrounding Emily Dickinson.

8. Really bad music to drive to with the windows down as you sing loudly.

9. Air conditioning. I would die in the NM heat without it.

10. Watching New Mexico sunsets with my wonderful boyfriend. You can argue all you want, I think they're the most beautiful in the world.

See what I mean?
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/37360140

Now, what are some of your favorite things to do in the summer? I'm always looking to try out something new!

flying light.

When I'm traveling, I'm usually tight on time, space, and money (hence no checked bags if there is a fee). Trying to stuff everything into a carryon leaves very little space, and once I am there, I don't feel like messing around with outfits and accessories to find something that looks both professional and fashionable. As I've settled into partially grown-up life, the need to look more professional, especially on work trips, is essential, and I've found that jewelry and other accessories are a great way to make everything look more professional and pulled together. That being said, I find it much easier to have a few selected pieces on hand that coordinate with each other and most of my outfits. This past week in Indianapolis, I took along just a few bracelets that could be mix-and-matched with each other and my outfits.

top to bottom: sculpted white bracelet from my mother, large faux pearls from Urban Outfitters (old),
thin gold bangle from Claire's (old), bracelet my uncle made for me, Henri Bendel cuff (current).

Just these few bracelets made it much easier waking up at six am when I was practically a zombie and getting ready to go. Coordinating this with simple earrings and a necklace or two was very simple and made looking professional and put together an afterthought so I could focus on what I was there for -work (and a little shopping).

indianapolis.

This past week I have been crazy, not sleeping busy because of work - that is nationals for debate, held in Indianapolis this year. While a little stressful at times, it is such a reward to not only work with, but see the success of such talented students. That being said, we had some time for fun and exploring the "Racing Capital of the World" (according to the sign coming into the city). While we did not see any real racecars, we did find some miniature ones, along with a huge van, and some really breathtaking art. 

Diamond Hotwheels car at the Indianapolis Children's Museum.

Glass ceiling by Chihuly at the Children's Museum. 

Tower of Fireworks, also by Chihuly, at the Museum. 

My new van which I've been driving around Indy. 

gluten-free is me, too.

One of the most annoying things about having Celiac's disease is finding a recipe that looks delicious only to realize it is chock-full of wheat or something else my body hates. You can adapt, but things that aren't designed to be made with gluten-free ingredients are often missing something in the taste department. So you can guess my happiness when I ran across Feed Me Phoebe, a new blog from one of the founders of another one of my favorite cooking blogs, Big Girls Small Kitchen. One of her regular columns on the site is called "Gluten-Free is Me." On it she features recipes that are made to be cooked with gluten-free ingredients. Since this is just a new discovery, I have yet to try anything out, but I'm looking forward to making some, especially the black bean arepas, which are one of my favorite Latin American foods. Please share any new recipes in the comments, especially the gluten-free variety!

diy: glittery graduation.

With graduations left and right this time of year, cards are a necessity for all of the graduates, from high school, college, or any other kind of school really. As I've said before, I'm also not a big fan of store-bought cards with boilerplate messages that have no kind of personality. However, making cards en masse can be time-consuming and a bit of a pain. My easy solution here to streamline the process is to make the same style of card with slight variations. For example, a few weeks ago when several of my high-schoolers graduated I bought several different shades of cardstock and broke out my gold glitter to make a bevy of sparkly cards.

Glittery graduation cards galore.

I simply wrote a message on the front of each of the cards (ie. hooray, felicidades, congrats, etc.) and wrote the name of every recipient in a glue pen and covered it in glitter. With a personalized message inside, I think it was a great sendoff for my graduates.

hotlanta.

This past Memorial Day I flew out to Atlanta to see my boyfriend where he is working for the summer.While it was wonderful to be back on the East Coast I did not miss the humidity. Nevertheless, Atlanta has a million fun things to do, about five of which we have done so far, and I will have to finish the rest when I visit again in July.

AMAZING burger (well the meat part at least) at Holeman and Finch in Buckhead 

A Braves game at Turner Field

It's hot on the subway

Food, fun, baseball, and shopping - all great in Hotlanta. Such a fun city and I can't wait to head back. Visiting Atlanta was part of something about myself I have discovered this year. One of my favorite new pastimes is visiting America, or all the little places you don't normally think of vacationing. I've been lucky enough to do that this year by working with my debaters and taking them to out-of-state tournaments. I may not be one to dole out great advice, but if you are low on funds and want to take a vacation, visit somewhere in the US you have never been before. It may just end up being your new favorite city...