as i begin again...

We create first impressions based on the smallest of things. A smile. A firm handshake. A friendly demeanor. But, humans are layered. We lift veil after veil, and it’s only when we slip past a smile and meander through our cortex that we find something that we can truly call human. We’re built as natural defense mechanisms. We hide our vulnerabilities and show strength with an upturned chin and a straight gait, but which of us mean it? Which of us can keep our shoulders like level weights without showing the vulnerability in our curves? We create angles in our form. We’ll choose empowerment in the form of redwoods instead of bending ourselves like boughs. We’re strong enough to hold an ocean instead of admitting that we’re fragile enough to be swallowed by the sea, and in that, I find humanity’s greatest flaw. We pretend to be someone we’re not, although fragility is what makes us all beautiful. We don suits and straighten our ties and walk around holding our breaths, knowing that once we step into the safety of our homes, we’d take off our skin and place them side-by-side next to our loafers. We are who we are when we believe that no one’s looking, and in turn we’re losing ourselves to what society is trying to mold us into. We’re told to conform to a monochrome world instead of painting our skies the colors we feel in. First impressions bother me because they’re nothing but well-dressed lies. I’m not interested in who you are at first glance. I’m not interested in the person that you claim to be. I only want to know what color your seas are. I only want to know what you bleed. 

(image/ words via Modern Hepburn)

family affair

the midwest.  

mamma c and granddad

archie. she's driving.  

lovely LC who played "unforgettable" for the grandparents in honor of their 56th wedding anniversary. 

LC and me.  

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!

i adore this photo. my dad and his parental units. 

new spectacles!

LOOK! new glasses!

please excuse the no make up, but aren't these crystal spectacles just the coolest? ok, maybe i'm bias. but, in my quest to become my favorite art history professor who wore clear frames, these are a winner. and i got the approval of my hipster sister. just wait til i can pair them with my flannel for the fall!

from around...

fly with me

stay right here, forever

love you, totally love the outfit

so trendy

humans of new york, lower east side

hidden beauty--a new spin on street art

now THIS is bringing back overalls

sweet dreams lovely

do you remember when?

ah, i love this commercial. (let's be real, who doesn't love target?) seriously. do you remember that moment? the one where all your hard work paid of, and in an instant it seemed like the heavens had opened and the world was there for the taking. 

yeah, i remember mine. it seems like yesterday. i applied to seven schools. and i had my heart set on brown. everything i did was to get there. it was a rough week, that one where all the letters started pouring in, the pressure was on, and in s series of days i got six small envelopes. (and got turned down to prom...oh senior year). my one big, shiny, and fat envelope came last. i think it was a saturday. i was one of those that jumped up and down, the happy dance may have been involved. i couldn't stop looking at the pictures. it was nyu. manhattan. it was go big or go home. 

i love talking to high schoolers about college, it's always a mix or pure fear and excitement. and then, in that moment it all bursts. proving that sometimes, life can be simply fantastic. 

future love

It’s beautiful when you find someone that is in love with your mind. Someone that wants to undress your conscience and make love to your thoughts. Someone that wants to watch you slowly take down all the walls you’ve built up around your mind and let them inside.

image via that kind of woman
quote: samirathejerk, via sweetsouthernnights and modern hepburn

east coast wrap-up

Well, that’s all folks! I have officially finished my two months of travel, and am now looking at the end of summer wondering where did all that time go?! I hope that you have enjoyed traveling along with me as much as I enjoyed actually being the one in it all.

I just have to send out some major thank yous:

In Nebraska: Thank you to Marcy and her family for letting me take over at the very beginning of all of this. Thank you for buying special yogurt and listening me talk about veggies. I am so glad that as of this moment I live so much closer to you all!

marcy and me (and penelope)

In Charlottesville: A big thanks to Savoy for hosting me for an unknown period of time. Thank you for letting me just tag on to your daily life. Thank you to Anastasia for letting me use your room, and thanks to the Savoy family for letting me tag along to Rehoboth Beach (shout out to Steph for meeting me and then hanging out and sharing your old friend with me!). This was such an unknown part of the trip: what would come out of it, how long I’d be there, what I would need—all just a guess at the beginning, but Savoy, you just went with it and never rushed a decision or focused in on what couldn’t be helped. In the end it was as wonderful as ever.

savoy in the stripes 

savoy, dale, and her rehoboth relatives

high school besties--savoy and steph

In New York City: Thanks again to Savoy for being my travel buddy. Thanks so SO very much to Stephanie for letting me crash on her floor—talk about invading someone’s personal space! Special thanks to Chris for rearranging her whole schedule to come see me with like 48 hours notice. You m’dear put up with so much crap, I don’t know what I did to deserve a loyalty like yours!

savoy and steph in the lower west side, manhattan

me and chris on the brooklyn bridge

In Charlotte: I don’t even know where to begin in thanking Alyssa and Ann. I hadn’t seen those two in over two years and they totally rolled out the red carpet—Alyssa even remembered my favorite peanut butter and had it there without even having to ask! She’s a keeper! I had such a great time, I totally and completely promise to come again! (Ok, I know, enough with the exclamation points!) And thanks also to Linnea for allowing me to tag along and share wine and stories that was probably one of my favorite nights of my whole trip! (Seriously, done with the exclamation points.)

ann and alyssa and a waterfall, charlotte

In Phoenix: Huge thanks to my brother Bobby for opening his house and life to me. Thanks so much for just letting me hang out and chill with you during some of the hottest days, like ever. You were so flexible and so relaxed with me being there it made me feel like your house was my house. I made myself totally at hope and that was great.  Thanks to Erin for being our taxi sometimes, and our friend always. It was such a pleasure to see your life Bobby, thanks a thousand times.

bobby overlooking the valley that is phoenix

Traveling to Indy: Thanks you LC for being my travel buddy! Doing all of this traveling has been great, but having a partner in crime this time was wonderful. Thanks for not laughing when I ordered a large soda at 10am and when I had to go to the bathroom twice afterward. Thanks for not judging how heavy my luggage was and agreeing that some people lose all common sense when they walk into an airport.

laura and daisy

Also, a giant and HUGE thank you to my parents who supported all of my crazy ideas, who pushed me to start this adventure in the first place and listened as I complained and jumped with joy about a million things all in one phone conversation. The best thing about traveling is having a home to come back to and you have certainly provided that and more.

the carter 5: mamma c, LC and archie; bobby, me, and Dad

This trip has been a symbol of how great the people who surround me are. Not everyone has friends that drop everything to have you over within 48 hours (whoops, my bad). I couldn’t have had this experience without all of you and I am just so incredibly grateful.

A thousand times, thank you.