I recently discovered this quote by the ever-intriguing Audrey Hepburn. She was the epitome of the “good girl with a wink”.
“I believe in manicures. I believe in overdressing. I believe in primping at leisure and wearing lipstick. I believe in pink. I believe that loving is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.” Audrey Hepburn
I can’t believe summer is ending as it always does, right before my eyes. It has seemed to flutter by without acknowledging me for the past two that I have been employed. This year, I don’t feel like it has really come at all. I know it’s been hot and I’ve been wearing the shit out of some sundresses y’all, but I have yet to step foot onto the beach or even the lake bank. Last summer, I practically lived on the lake and while I thank my lucky stars I’m no longer on that train, I have missed the water and the sun and the slightly tipsy feeling that boat rides and junk food give a person before they’ve even picked up their first wine spritzer.
Even as I am slightly nervous about how my main squeeze’s football fanaticism will affect my social calendar, I am absolutely ecstatic about fall fashion. I’m excited about other things too, like camping and tailgating and fireplaces but what else does Alice in Cubicleland have to look forward to really? Alice = me, in case I confused you there. Still on my stunted path to self-discovery, I’ve allotted myself plenty of time to peruse magazines at work looking for one of my company’s ads to appear (drooling over booties and capes and statement necklaces galore). You see, I am a girl that loves to dress. I love to dress up, I love to dress down, I love to buy dresses…you see where I’m going with this. But, I am not a girl that spends an entire paycheck on a Louis Vuitton bowling bag. I love vintage, I love Target and I like to think that I can make the two work together half the time. My closet is bursting at the seams and needs to be dealt with but today, the thought of it made me smile as I took a jaunt through the September Marie Claire today. For two reasons, first of which – Marie Claire has certainly upped their game! They have pages and pages of fashion, some too expensive, some too bizarre but most are appealing and enticing. This ties back to my closet in that I already posses quite a few of the items that Marie suggests are staples for fall! Egads! Let’s see, what do I have?
Needed:
More sweaters, flat boots, bangles, vintage – always need more vintage!
So. I just had a birthday, it was nice, a rather uneventful birthday. It got me thinking though, as I do on and off, about what I want to be when I grow up. While I feel like I’m growing in age and hopefully wisdom, I still don’t feel any closer to “living the dream”. Some might consider me to be living the dream already. I am fortunate to have a comfortable job that I’m not afraid of losing (at this point), loads of beautiful and sweet friends and a main squeeze that makes me smile everyday. I have a yearning though! I want to do something meaningful. I want to see big things and be a part of something I am proud of. I want to have fun everyday and not regret anything.
Today is my 4th day of being twentyfour. In 361 days, I want to be doing something else. Here are some brilliant ideas that would make me very happy:
I don’t want to be stuck in Fayetteville. I’m still living like a college student with one room to call my own. I rather like it most of the time, I’m not ready to have a mortgage or a marriage. But, as I dive into my mid-twenties, I am craving something more, because, I know I will want that and who knows how soon?
Go back to school? It would have to be something worth the debt…
I’m scared of being someone who had “so much potential” but never lived up to it.
I feel like the luckiest girl in the world. I totally feel like Nellie from South Pacific singing “I’m in love with a wonderful guy”. My boyfriend is quite handsome, the kind of handsome that makes you feel dreamy and intrigued rather than intimidated. He’s not quite aware of the perfect slant of his nose or the charm of his smile. He doesn’t really know how dashing he looks in a crisp suit or that he gets better looking every day. Of course, it only adds to his appeal.
Besides being delicious to look upon, he has an unfailingly sweet heart. He’s easy-going, helpful, generous, respectful, funny…and especially adorable and snugly when sleepy. The thing I like most about him is his open mind. He’ll try almost anything and instead of feeling like a mentor, I feel like I’m discovering new food or places or music with him. Since we started dating, he’s been opposed to dancing with me, having claimed that tall people aren’t meant to move quite that way. I’ve recently gotten the pleasure of encountering these “moves” for myself and I have to say he was wrong. Maybe it’s just that I find him so precious anyway, but I thought he was a delightful dancer. He mostly just shimmies and smiles, but that’s all it really takes right?
He does the dishes and makes the bed. He cooks and reads aloud to me from Harry Potter. He picks me up and takes me on dates. He holds my hand and kisses me in public (when appropriate). He’s kind to my mom and affable with my friends, he’s even tolerant of my bipolar wiener dog. He likes to go out or stay in. Even his fascination with all things SPORTS is endearing because he always includes me and genuinely (in my opinion) wants me around.
I don’t know how anyone could disagree that I’m pretty fortunate to have a person like this in my life. I hope I make him as happy as he makes me…I haven’t gotten any complaints…yet.
Friendship is important. Almost anyone would agree. I believe that friendships between women are integral for survival. We are so beautifully different from men (mentally, emotionally, physically) even guy’s girls need their girlfriends every once in a while.
There are many different types of friends. Acquaintances, Friends you see out, work friends, school friends, family friends, old friends, new friends…you get the idea. I say this all as a preface to my main point. A girl needs bosom buddies. A girl needs soul sisters.
I happen to have seven besties that I have come up with through elementary, junior and high school. We’ve remained close even though we all separated after high school. The eight of us fall back into our old shtick as soon as we’re in the same zip code. We don’t talk on the phone everyday, some of us keep in touch more than others, we do have a facebook thread that we keep up with pretty regularly these days (doesn’t facebook make it almost too easy to stay in touch?) but none of that is what sustains us. What I know is, if any one of those seven girls called me and said they needed me, (it has happened) you can bet your bottom dollar I would be there.
There were more of us during the carefree days of high school, while we were still children getting to know each other and fumbling around with ideas of the future. Some have dwindled but the core of us have remained unchanged for nearly six years now. I miss my friends all the time when we are not together, mostly because the bond we have makes me feel relief, comfort and actual euphoria while we are in each others company. Alas, we are growing up and becoming adults, as much as we might try to prolong young adulthood, it is fleeting. Two of our eight are now married women.
This past weekend we all attended and were attendants at the wedding of Fitz. Fitz and I have been friends the longest, since we were eight years old to be exact. While the couple of us have never been what I would call the best of friends, I feel the same way about her that I do the others. It’s the group of us that’s so special. We really couldn’t be more different save being from the same town. I’ve been thinking about these friends the past few days as they’ve all left and gone back to their niches. What’s so fabulous about the fact that we’ve remained friends for so long is that we’ve all seen each other grow up. We were there for one another during all of the firsts of adolescence, the self-absorbed days of college and the frightening unknown of being an “adult” for the first time.
What I’ve realized while reflecting on my bosom buddies, my soul sisters, is that they are as much a part of me as anything intangible can be, I am more myself when I am with them. We bring out the best in each other. I’m not daring to say we have a perfect friendship, we have catty interludes, hurt feelings, missed phone calls and everything that goes along with a relationship. What’s different is actual unconditional love, which is rarely found, thank God I have.
Girls at play
We might fight you.
The Window Shopper 