The Power of Social Media

Last night I sent a tweet about my boyfriend’s TV show here at college. I included a link and a short quip about it, not thinking that it would lead to much, other than possibly a few people in my family watching the show. Boy, was I wrong. Within 5 minutes I had been retweeted multiple times, and it was out into our school’s alumni network among other things, all because of connections that I have with people through social media. It is now over 12 hours later, and my phone is still going off with people talking about his show, and sending the link to all of their friends.

I guess I never really thought that my personal twitter account, one of my many social media accounts could be reaching that many people, or that that many people cared about what I wrote on it.

Social media seems to be the way of the future, and I for one am completely in favor of embracing it. Living today means that you are always on the go, and that you are a part of numerous communities. It is a way of keeping up connections with all the people you know and meet, and it can be a great resource even when you don’t intend it to be!

Getting Everything Done

I find myself not having enough hours in the day to get everything that I want to do done. Between 3 jobs, 5 classes, and countless extra activities, it just seems like there aren’t enough yours in the day. I also want to enjoy my last year with my friends at school, but I feel like I always have too much to do.

This is a problem that I encountered in high school too, so I am employing a few old tactics to combat this problem. The best one: bring work with you everywhere, and get whatever you can done even at the strangest times. I can be caught doing homework while at work, while in the car waiting to pick someone up, sitting in front of the TV, and even while eating dinner. I will also break out work during that few minutes after I have sat down in class, and before the professor walks in. I have to make every second count.

There are enough hours in the day, you just have to find those wasted moments, and learn not to waste them anymore. You can gain back more time than you realize!

Settling in, Stressing out

A new school year means that a new routine must be created, a schedule set, and logistics worked out. I’m not sure how everyone else feels, but it has become a bit overwhelming to me in the last day or so.

It seems like everything I am involved in is having meetings, and nothing can be skipped. However, I can’t seem to feel comfortable because I am constantly running around, and I have no real schedule because the meetings are being announced on extremely short notice. This is really stressing me out.

I can’t wait to get back into a routine where I am able to get everything done and have time to work out and play golf too. I need my athletic stress relief, or I don’t feel like the day was complete!

Welcoming home a soldier

Last night (well, extremely early this morning actually) I went to the airport with some of my family to welcome home my cousin who has been at Army basic training for the last 4 months. We were there waiting with posters and t-shirts for when he got off the plane. It was such a great experience, seeing him completely changed into a soldier was incredible. He has made so many great changes in his life because of the Army, and I’m so proud of him for it.

He is home for 15 days now before he goes overseas for a year, so we are going to try to do lots of family things before he goes.

One of the most incredible things last night was the number of complete strangers who came up to us to thank my cousin for his service. It was the middle of the night, and they still went out of their way to come over, shake his hand, and say something nice to him. It really was so nice.

Falling into a Rut

Lately I have felt like I have fallen into a rut. I haven’t been working as hard as I should be on my golf game or my research. I feel like I just don’t have any drive to do it, which is very unlike me. I’m usually so driven that I drive everyone around me insane!

Have you ever had this happen to you? How did you get out of your rut?

Finding that next good book

Have you ever found yourself searching for that next good book after finishing the last one you had read? That's where I am finding myself right now, and I must say, it is quite frustrating. I don't really want to read a non fiction book, nor a trashy beach novel. However, that's all I can seem to find these days.

I have finished the Hunger Games series, read Harry Potter multiple times over, and most of the classics too.

Now, I really want to read a good book, but I just can't find one that I like.

Any suggestions?

Summer Research: The Best Summer Job Around

This summer I am working as a student researcher for one of my professors. This is the second summer in a row that I am doing this as a summer job. Because of the project that I am working on, I only have to go meet with my professor once a week, and the rest I can do from home on my own schedule.

I love working as a researcher because it gives me real world experience as well as the freedom to make my own schedule. I get to do actual research while being an undergrad, and this has allowed me to realize what I want to do with my life after graduation.

Relay for Life

This past weekend was Relay for Life in my town. My family participated as a team, and walked in honor of my Aunt who passed away last fall after battling lung cancer.

Technology Addict

Confession: I am addicted to technology. I love anything made by apple. I was an early adopter of the iPod, when my mom and dad bought me one of the first ones that came out way back in middle school. I also had the original iPhone, and iPad. I update my technology every few years in intervals. I try to get every other version of each Apple product, selling off the old model to help finance the new purchase. One time, I actually sold my old iPhone for $10 more than the new model cost me.

This is what my first iPod looked like:

As my life has gotten more hectic, I rely more and more on my technology to keep me going and organized. Each of my devices is synced with one another, so I can get everything done really efficiently.

I have become very dependent on my iPad during school, it is how I do all of my readings for class, and I even take notes on it in some classes too.

It is somewhat sad though, my iPhone is the first thing I touch when I wake up, and usually the last thing I use before I fall asleep. How did I survive before I got my first iPhone in high school?

Brands I love: Neutrogena

I have really frustrating skin, and I can never seem to find something that works for me. I try all the new stuff that comes out, and something always goes wrong. It makes me break out, dries out my skin, or some other annoying side effect. I finally went to the old stand by, Neutrogena, and I’m so glad that I did. No more weird side effects.

Today, I needed a new conditioner. My hair is fine and blonde, so it sucks up all the products that I put in my hair and it becomes greasy and dark looking. I found Neutrogena shampoo today at the pharmacy, and decided to give it a shot, seeing as I have tried all sorts of other things, and I can never find a conditioner that I like that is affordable.

This is what I picked up today:

So far, I can say that I love it! It doesn’t leave my hair feeling gross and greasy. Instead I have lightweight hair that is its actual color! It doesn’t smell half bad either!

Feeling Drained

Have you ever felt completely drained but for no actual reason? This is how I have been lately. I think it is because I haven’t actually been accomplishing anything major lately. I have nothing to think about or do other than just go to work. I need to get back to having goals. Starting tomorrow, my golf game is my focus for the summer, and I will give it my all.

The Great Debate: Comfort v Style

Do you ever find yourself debating an outfit based on comfort and style? Something may look really cute, but you know that by the end of the day your feet will be aching. Then again, a comfortable outfit may not leave the impression that you want on people when they see you.

It's always tough when you have an obligation to get dressed for, but nothing that is within the dress code seems to satisfy you. You want to look cute but you also want to be comfortable if you are going to be doing lots of things throughout the day.

What do you do when you face this dilemma?

I have found some staple pieces that are comfortable but still can be dressed up to be appropriate for more formal occasions. A dark pair of jeans and a staple solid j.crew tee an be paired with a blazer to make a really cute outfit, that is still comfortable to wear.

What are your staple pieces that are just so comfortable to wear?

Getting Organized: Summer Research

I am fortunate to have a research grant again this summer through a program at my school. This meant that I only had about two weeks off after classes ended before I had to be back at work on academic type stuff for the summer.

I love organization, and I love everything to be neat when it comes to my school work. For my research, I have decided to use file folders from Lilly Pulitzer and silver binder clips to keep all of my stuff together. This matched with my Lilly planner (which is basically my life in a little book!).

I’ve never done file folders before as an organizational strategy, so I’m interested to see how this actually works out. If I am successful, maybe I will adopt it for fall semester next year.

Part of a Dynasty

My high school golf team won yet another state championship on Tuesday. I was fortunate enough to go out with the team and be there for the win. I love all the girls, past and present, and I am so proud to be a part of such an amazing group of girls. 11 straight state championships is amazing!

Waiting for the Opportune Moment

Very often, I lust for things that my college budget cannot afford. I have been looking at the J.Crew Lorelai dress in white for quite some time, and it finally made it to the outlet. This weekend, they had a big sale, and there was an additional online promotion, which made the dress finally affordable for me! It came down from $79.95 to $24.15!

Did you find any good sales over Memorial Day weekend?

Golf Team

When I was in high school, I played on the golf team. It was by far the best experience of high school for me, and I would give just about anything to be on the team still, as I met some of my best friends there.

Tomorrow I am heading out to be a “chaperone” of sorts for my old team as they travel to state championships to try to win an 11th straight State title. I can’t wait to go, and I’m so proud of these girls already!

My Senior Year!

Statement Necklaces

I’m usually the girl who wears a small necklace, one that is simple and understated, and goes with just about anything. Typically it is my Cape Cod necklace or my medallion from my high school graduation (I’ll explain that later).

Lately, I have been noticing all the women wearing statement jewelry, and I have wanted to see if I could pull off the statement necklace as well. I already wear outrageous earrings, and my wrists are covered in bracelets and watches at all times; don’t even get me started on all the rings I wear.

The first statement necklace that I am going to try comes from Bridier Baubles, and should be arriving either tomorrow or monday. I am planning on wearing it with one of my favorite J.Crew dresses to an event next weekend. I could not be more excited to see how it all looks together when it arrives.

Here is the outfit that I have in mind:

with

and either my silver Jack Rogers or a nude heel depending on how sore my feet are after a long day!

Becoming an Entrepreneur

I am a golfer, and I have spent the last few summers teaching golf lessons to adults and juniors at all skill levels. This summer I am running my own clinics to teach young girls and women the game of golf.

I am running three different lesson groups, and I will be teaching them all myself. I think that this is a good way to share my passion for golf, and make some money while I’m at it.

Have you ever tried a venture like this before?

Social Networking

Lately I have been spending a great deal of time and effort on social networking. I am finding that social networking, although it seems to weasel a way into your life and take up a large amount of your time, it can be really beneficial.

Social networking can be used for professional reasons, like LinkedIn, where you can network with people you meet at conferences, dinners, and networking events. This is where you can get your name out there, but in a professional manner.

Facebook, although still addicting, is taking up far less of my time these days. Facebook is great for keeping up with people from high school, or friends from home, but it just isn’t doing much for me anymore. I definitely cannot spend the amount of time that I used to on it.

Tumblr is an addiction, but it still seems to be a hit or miss on a day to day basis. Some days there is nothing new. Everyone is re-blogging the same things over and over. On days when there is a good deal of new postings, it can entertain me for hours.

Twitter is a personal favorite of mine. The things that I have discovered because of twitter are amazing. I have been able to take advantage of so many opportunities that I never would have otherwise because of postings I saw on twitter. Twitter is a very powerful tool, as I have come to find out.

How do you use social networking? Does it deserve the stigma that some give it as a time drain?

Standing Up For Yourself

After having a new windshield installed in my car, I noticed that the trunk lid wasn't closing or opening properly. I did not think about the connection with the two at all since they were on opposite ends of the car, and I simply decided that I would take it to my body shop to have it looked at when I got a chance. I took the car there today, and when I did, they told me that the cause of the trunk problem was that the windshield installer did a poor job putting the car back together after the windshield was installed. Because of this, I will need to have two major parts on the top of my car replaced.

I marched off, really annoyed, and went to the company that replaced the windshield. In a calm but strong manner I explained to them what had been told to me by the body shop, and that I thought that it was unacceptable that my car had been damaged in such a way because they did a sloppy job. I explained that I expect them to repair the damages in full, and that I refuse to pay for it out of my pocket, as it was completely their fault.

They have told me that I will be contacted in the morning to go over what is going to be done to make it right, and I will only settle for them replacing everything and repairing all the damage that they caused.

I was really proud of myself for taking care of all of this on my own, and standing up for myself to a company who had done wrong by me. It is important to stand up for yourself, and ensure that things are done right. Just because I am a young woman, I refuse to let anyone take advantage of me, and not do something the right way.

If you can't tell already, my car is like my baby :) I won't settle until this is fixed!

Moving Home for Summer

As a college student, summer means moving back home to the space that I called my own all through my childhood. I love my room at home, but each time I come home, I realize that there is so much stuff here that I haven't touched in a year or more. It is becoming an immense pile of clutter, and I can't ever seem to get rid of it.

This week I am getting rid of it all. Bring on the trash bags, its gotta go. I have already started to a point, and I need one more good day of cleaning to get it all out. I label the bags as I go, trash, clothing donations, recyclable paper, and books to be donated.

I feel like if the stuff wasn't needed over the entire past year at school, I don't really need it to be sitting around collecting dust anymore.

I'm going for the minimalist, organized feel. I can't get anything done if I'm not organized, and this summer I am doing research primarily from home, so I will need a comfortable, organized, clean space to really get everything done.

Here is some inspiration:

The Art of A Note

Everyone these days just emails, facebooks, tweets, or texts when they want to correspond with someone. Although all of these options are great, and instant, they lack the charm of a hand written note. A simple thank you note, or a note to a friend studying abroad, these are some great excuses to find some adorable stationery and pen a quick note to a friend. Some of my favorite places to find notecards are the dollar section at the front of any Target store, and in TJ Maxx. They have adorable choices at really low prices. When there is no financial reason to stay away from writing a note, what are you waiting for?

Jewelry on a College Budget

I love jewelry. That being said, I know that I cannot afford my expensive tastes on a college girl's budget. I have been following Kerry of Monograms & Martinis for a long time now, and she has started a business selling expensive looking jewelry at really affordable prices! I just bought a bracelet from her, and I can't wait to get it in the mail!

You can check out all the great pieces that she has here!

Getting Back to Blogging

I have been a bad blogger, I let this fall by the wayside during the spring semester because I felt simply overwhelmed with school, research, work and other commitments. A lot has happened since I last updated this blog. I presented my research findings in Boston and Las Veags, and my coauthor and I won third prize at the undergraduate research competition in Las Vegas! We met lots of interesting people at both conferences, and I am going to be keeping in touch with these economists in the future as I look towards grad school. This week I found out that the paper we wrote on our research is being published in an academic journal. This is huge news, and really validates everything that I did last summer and over this past school year. I can't wait to see my hard work in print! Now that it is summer, I have more time to blog about both my research, school search, and everyday life, so expect more posts soon!

Panic Attack

So this post is somewhat off topic from the main theme of this blog, however, I just had to share. This week was hectic as usual, between classes, 3 jobs, and preparing for my conference presentations (which are sneaking up on me much faster than I realized) I crashed my computer hard drive. Yes. It happened, and I lost 12 days worth of work.

So for the past few days I have been re-writing the papers that I lost, and figuring out just what is gone and what I can salvage from email and my iPad.

Always remember to back up your hard drive, you never know when something may happen and what destruction can be left in its wake.

My Research

I am currently working on a research project with one of my professors, and I have been working on this particular project for just over a year now. The next phase of the project is to present my working paper at an academic conference in Boston.

Today I met with two of my professors to discuss how I should go about doing this presentation, and they casually mentioned that the room would be filled with upwards of 100 people. 100 PEOPLE!?

Has anyone out there done anything like this before? Any advice you can give me?

Stepping Out of My Comfort Zone

Just about a month ago, I decided to submit a proposal to write an article for USA Today's College site, and I was selected!

I am by no means a journalist, and I haven't taken a formal writing course in 3 years. This is something that I am really proud of, and I want to now try to do this more often. People seem to like what I wrote, and the responses were encouraging!

See what you think by clicking here!

How Much is Too Much?

Lately, I have been feeling stressed, like there are not enough hours in the day to get everything done. This has caused me to wonder if I have overextended myself in terms of how many commitments I have. When I have thought about what I could cut back on to bring down my stress level, I cannot seem to think of anything as expendable. I care about everything that I do, and all of it is important to me for my future.

Jobs mean that I can sustain a comfortable lifestyle and pay my bills. Research is my passion, and it is what I want to do with the rest of my life. Student Alumni Association is a way for me to be a part of the school community, past and present. Golf team is what makes me happy, and golf is my emotional release; it keeps my mind at peace.

So here is my dilemma, how can I fit all of this in while remaining sane and keeping up with sleep and school work?

And So It Begins

I dream of getting my Ph.D in Economics. Now, I have to make that dream into a reality. This means that as a college junior, I have to start the process of looking at programs, schools, and my interests. This is a major flashback to 4 years ago when I was a high school junior. It is time to start the process all over again.

This time, I want to chronicle my process of deciding what to do next with my life. Five years is a long time, and making a decision that will determine my life until I am 27 years old is terrifying. I can barely figure out this semester, never mind 6 1/2 years from now.

Here goes nothing, actually, no, here goes everything.