Things I Need To Tell You About, Vol. 1

Borrowing this from Kayla, and popping in because I have some things I want to chat about.

It’s Election Day.

Can you believe it? I’ve known that I was voting for Hillary since the day she announced her candidacy, but I am exhausted. It’s mostly an emotional thing, because this has been such an ugly election cycle. I know we say that every 4 years in America, but I think we really mean that this time. Last night, the Clintons and the Obamas had a rally on Independence Mall in Philly. The mall fits tens of thousands and they weren’t scheduled to speak until around 8 p.m., so I thought I would just wait in line for an hour or so and be fine. Well… I ended up walking almost two miles just to find the end of the line. I didn’t come close to getting to see them speak, but the atmosphere was still incredible, even neighborhoods away. (You can read more about the rally here.) It was the first time in weeks I felt good about the election, and I’m looking forward to casting my ballot tonight. If you still need to find your polling place, you can do so here.

I’m going to see some college football.

I’m an obsessive Miami Hurricanes football fan, because I’m both a proud Miamian and a masochist. They play at UVA this Saturday, and you better believe I will be there. The last time I saw the Hurricanes play was at Boston College in 2012 (and I haven’t seen them in Miami since 2008!). It’s going to be a fun atmosphere, because few things are better than tailgating and football. I’m also excited to get a taste of a different part of the country for a weekend, since I’ve never really been to Virginia (outside the D.C. area).

My mom moved here!

I alluded to this in a recent post, but after a little more than a year in Colombia, my mom moved back stateside! Even better, her new home is in the Philly area, so now I see her all the time. I haven’t lived in the same state as my mom since I was 19, so it’s fun to watch television and go shopping together again. I’m also not mad that neither of us have to get on a plane to spend the holidays together. Another bonus? Getting some cuddles in with Lucy, our family dog since I was 16.

This October was perfection.

I usually am not a fan of fall. The weather is confusing and once the time changes, I’m basically moody until late February. However, we had so many sunny, dry this October that I was actually able to enjoy fall. I went to a couple of weddings, went to a cider festival (an annual tradition with my friends from Fordham) and explored a nature preserve outside Philly. It’s been awesome getting in lots of quality time with the wonderful people I call my friends, and I hope to keep it up before the cold really hits.

Fall television.

Shows I’m watching and enjoying: Pitch and Conviction. (Seriously, you should be watching Pitch. I can’t even explain why I watch Conviction, but it helps me miss Castle less.) Show that I’m watching just for Laurie Hernandez: Dancing with the Stars. Shows on my list that I probably won’t get to anytime soon: This Is Us, Atlanta and Jane the Virgin (I know, I know). Netflix show I will binge watch on Black Friday: Gilmore Girls, because obviously.

So that’s it for me today! What have you been up to? Anything you need to tell me about?

~ Sarah

P.S. I’m also a fan of email, so always feel free to send those my way!

Resolution Check-In

Well, it’s April now. I guess this whole 2016 thing is actually happening?

Since we’re somehow a quarter through the year, I thought I’d check in with myself (and you guys, I guess) and see how I was doing on my resolutions. And it’s pretty hit or miss.

2016 Resolutions | Shades of Sarah

♦ Eat more veggies: Well, I at least (usually) have frozen broccoli on hand, so that’s a start. The hardest part about this is that I have the taste buds of an elementary school kid, and just do not like vegetables. I do what I can with broccoli and zucchini but meh. Why can’t fruit just cover all the nutrients I need?

♦ Save $30/month: Check! In some personal news, I started a new job earlier this year and while I’m still adjusting, I am much happier! I also finally have direct deposit, which makes meeting my savings goals a lot easier since I’m not tempted to keep extra money in my checking account. Direct deposit is such a game changer.

♦ Evaluate my shopping habits: I’ll touch on this a bit more in my March shopping budget (post coming next week!), but this is a work in progress for sure (it’s a vague goal for a reason).  The local Big Brothers/Big Sisters did pick up some donations from me this morning, and it’s increasingly obvious that I have enough stuff. I just don’t know if it’s stuff I really enjoy enough.

♦ Less lunch breaks at the computer: This is a big fat fail. That new job? My office is closer to home, but I’m no longer in Center City, which is super walkable. Maybe now that it’s warming up I’ll be more motivated to at least step outside and walk around the block.

♦ Volunteer at least once a month: So far so good! I walk dogs at my local PAWS, which is the same rescue where we adopted Arya, our second pittie, from.

♦ Read a book a month: Still don’t have a library card. I did read The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up in January because I’m a cliche.

Anyone else even thinking about their resolutions anymore?

~ Sarah

If I Won The Lottery

Okay, fine, I didn’t win the Powerball jackpot — if I did, I would’ve disappeared from social media and holed up with a lawyer somewhere. Instead, here I am…blogging about what I would’ve done if I had won. (Seriously, Universe, I would’ve settled for like a $100 million.)

♦Pay off all my student loans. And Nick’s student loans. And maybe my brother’s, if he was nice.
♦Pay off our cars.
♦Buy nice apartments in all of my favorite cities (Miami, New York, Philadelphia…)
♦New furniture (especially giant mattresses) and wood flooring everywhere.
♦Actually buy something from Everlane.
♦Travel…pretty much everywhere. First up would have to be London, Cuba or Thailand.
♦Donate to some of my favorite organizations.
♦Hire a personal trainer and nutritionist so I could indulge in my favorite meals the rest of the time.
♦Try to convince Nick that we need a third dog since we can afford an on-call dogsitter.
♦Save some (ugh, boring) and share some (yay!).

Anyone else still have big lottery dreams?

~ Sarah