things i dig: gifts for your besties

Well guys, the bachelorette party weekend was a success. We took Austin by storm and I think we're all still feeling the aftermath. Woof. It was way too amazing to see Carey, whom I haven't seen in over a year, and to bond with all of the other bridesmaids. Needless to say, I cannot imagine a better group of girls and I feel absurdly blessed to be a part of the group.

Speaking of friends, two of my bestest friends' birthdays are coming up and my dear cousin's birthday just passed. So September is a serious month of gift giving... something I absolutely love and think I'm pretty good at if I do say so myself. I've rounded up some of my favorite things floating around the Internet that remind me of some of my best friends... and who knows, maybe one of these things is a said besties' actual present (wink wink).

one // two // three // four // five // six 

PS: Can we talk about The Shops at Target? I think I'm in love.

well last night was fun

Welp, after tons of work, balloons, hat-making and sweating, the Urbanist Guide release party was a success. MIHO made the feastliest sliders in the world [obviously] and it was far too much fun bonding with all of the North Park "celebrities." And I personally had a really fabulous time hogging the photo booth...

Teeheehee.

Off to Austin, Texas for the weekend to celebrate Carey's bachelorette party! Photos to come of the fantastic food and fun that will be had!

something had to give

As you probably gathered from yesterday's post, there's been something going on. Something I haven't been able to share with you and something that has been slowly eating away at me. A little something called my job. When I tell people what I do, they respond, "oh what a dream! That sounds perfect for you!" but that's just evidence that not everything is as good as it seems. Sometimes jobs that are seemingly ideal and perfect are actually the worst. The worst.

I won't go into too much detail but because of the content of the work, the company, the commute... pretty much everything about it... I could really go on for hours (because I have), I fell into a place I haven't been in a while. I felt depressed, useless, stupid and at times, crazy. I watched some of my favorite things about myself disappear and I cried myself to sleep many a night feeling helpless and trapped. You guys, I've been miserable. It's insane how much a job can do that to you.

But as a person who thrives on passion and uses that passion as fuel for every endeavor, to do a job that I was not only not passionate about but one that I didn't even believe in and for a company I didn't respect, just killed me.

illustration courtesy of designlovefest & katie evans

Something had to give. So I quit my job.

I never dreamed that my career would mean so much to me, but it does. Life's too short to settle and just merely go through the motions; to accept things and just "get over it"; and I wasn't going to do it anymore. That's the thing... you don't have to do it. In my case, I would have rather busted my you-know-what doing odd jobs to pay the rent than to continue sitting in a cubicle doing mindless work for people who didn't care about my growth or opinion... just for a steady paycheck.

Though it's scary and I won't lie to you, my stomach is still in knots, everything works out. It always has and it always will.

If ANY of you ever need to talk about your job or the job hunt, please email me. I'm by no means an expert but I feel that after this experience I can, at the very least, offer some advice. Real advice. Thank you all for sticking with me through this experience and I'm happy to announce... I'm BACK!

when skies are grey

image courtesy of art life

Things in my life have been a little grey lately, which you may have gathered from my lack of blogging. The holiday weekend was anything but relaxing and every aspect of my life seems to be running at a million miles per hour. I'm hoping things will settle down soon. I don't have much to report in the life de Allie but I would like to thank my incredible friends for constantly going above and beyond and keeping me afloat. And, of course, to you all for your constant support and positive vibes... thank you all for being my sunshine!

Lately, I've been really inspired by several posts around the blogosphere: one // two // three

And I'll leave you with a great quote by Joss Whedon, which you may remember from this post: 

“Passion, it lies in all of us, sleeping... waiting... and though unwanted... unbidden... it will stir... open its jaws and howl. It speaks to us... guides us... passion rules us all, and we obey. What other choice do we have? Passion is the source of our finest moments. The joy of love... the clarity of hatred... and the ecstasy of grief.  It hurts sometimes more than we can bear. If we could live without passion maybe we'd know some kind of peace... but we would be hollow... empty rooms shuttered and dank. Without passion we'd be truly dead.”

the coolest people you'll ever meet [august]

Hello friends! Sorry for the accidental silence. Life's been hectic. Tonight, I have some lovely friends to introduce to you; they'll be sharing a place they're dying to travel to!

blog // twitter // instagram

I tend to get slightly attached to cities, and find myself traveling to certain places over and over. I would absolutely love to be back in Germany, exploring every nook and cranny of my favorite country [so far], especially during Christmastime! Some of my other favorite cities are Austin, Salt Lake City and Charlottesville.

blog // pinterest // facebook

I would really love to travel through Europe and go to France someday soon. My best friend is currently an au pair there and I just think it would be amazing to see where she lives and explore France! Plus, I took 7 years of French and I would like to put it to use somehow! 

blog // twitter // shop

Lately, all of my dreams are based on visiting the wizarding world of Harry Potter in Orlando, Florida. I'm so obsessed that I've watched strangers' YouTube videos, stalked family vacation pictures and guilted my family into having phone conversations detailing every single aspect of the park. My fingers are crossed I get to visit before I'm too old to appreciate the magic!

blog 

I would love to visit Scotland! I absolutely love the green countryside and the history. 

blog // twitter // instagram

Italy always seemed like a great place to go, but was never a "MUST-DO." Until I saw a photo of Positano. Now, I'm DYING to go! The colors! The buildings! I just love every bit of it and vow to make it a reality!