“Sanity and happiness are an impossible combination.”

It seems I make my way to my blog every time I need to be working on something else but I just don't feel like it yet.

Ah well, such is life. I read one of my old posts and it's kind of funny how much I can talk. and talk and talk and talk. And it's funny just how much I type/write/whatever exactly the same way I speak.

Whateva.

I can't believe I didn't tell you about the adventure Julia and I had in getting the football game last weekend!!

So we got back into town a lot later than we were expecting. After a series of mishaps, we eventually arrived at my apartment, hopped in my car and prayed for the best. We almost got into the Ridgecrest South deck, but that didn't pan out. We drove over by the paid parking because I had heard the Bryce Lawn parking was only $10 for the North Texas game, but obviously an hour before kickoff it was full. As we drove by the rest of the paid parking, we realized it had all been upped this year to $30. Thirty dollars?!!? That's INSANE. Plus, we didn't have that much cash on us. (Fun fact, one of them takes credit cards. That is ridiculous.)

But anyway. I remembered that the deck downtown was free and there was a dollar shuttle to the stadium. So we said sure, let's do that. We were both SO tired anyway that we figured we'd go, swipe in, stay for a quarter then go home. So we drive downtown to find that the deck is full. CURSES. All the surrounding lots are full as well, so we decided that I would drop Julia off, she'd swipe in, then we'd switch, I'd swipe in, then we'd go sleep. So as I'm driving down Greensboro to do this, I look over and I'm pretty certain there's a spot in front of Chuck's. I cut across two lanes (empty, of course, because everyone else is already at the game), pull a U-turn and pull into the most fabulous wonderful amazing miracle spot ever. I just kept telling Julia God was smiling on us. haha. So we walked over to the deck where the shuttle runs, bought our tickets (a dollar. a dollar. It was amazing.) and jumped on the trolley. After the most convoluted trek through downtown ever, we were dropped off in front of Rama Jama's, aka right behind the stadium. We weren't sure the lower bowl would be open, but we went for it. We strolled right through security, went inside and Annie had saved us both seats. AMAAAAAZING. And we were still there 40 minutes before kick-off.

We still were exhausted, but SO proud that we made it. I figured we would maybe stay for a half, but we ended up staying the ENTIRE game. It was one of the best game experiences I've ever had. I sat with Julia, Annie, Clay, Cameron, Ashley and several other people. It was so much fun. After the game, (which we won, duh.) Julia and I got in the line for the trolley. It only took like 15-20 minutes, really. We grabbed Jimmy Johns, went to her place to eat, then we parted ways from our super amazing adventure weekend.

That night I also got to see Gerbs and Cassidy!! I was so happy. It was only for like an hour, but I miss having Dan in my life, and Cassidy is amazing. I need to go down to NOLA and visit them really soon.

So that was last weekend. This week, I finished my pants (just in time) got my in-class history write back and didn't bomb it like I had expected, changed my CBH project, planned a ton for the senior show, and slept so little that I'm not sure I'm going to catch up.

Friday I went to Birmingham to go to Jo-Ann Fabrics. (ps, it is Jo-Ann. not Jo-Ann's.) I got the teal I was looking for and AMAZING fabric for Annie's Florida skirt. Oh yeah, did I mention that in the next four days I need to make outfits for the both of us for the AL/FL game? Yep. No sleep this week!

So that was good. I also went to Ross and found a gameday dress for the Arkansas game for ten bucks. Woohoo! When I came back I studied for International Trade, which is just a big barrel of fun. Theeeen I went to dinner with Thew and Kevin because YAY Matthew was in town this weekend!! It was fun. Got to park in the downtown deck this time because everywhere else was SO full. Curse you, Miss Sorority Row Pageant!

After that, I went to Robert's to watch movies with him, Heather and Julia. SO much fun. Oh goodness. I had never seen Hunchback of Notre Dame. There are A LOT of innuendos in that movie that I assume happy little 7 year olds don't get. We had a lot of fun.

Theeeeennnn yesterday I picked Julia up, we attempted the deck again, failed, parked a block away and took the trolley to the Arkansas game. We showed up about 2 hours before kick-off instead of 2 1/2 and it was PACKED! I was shocked. We still ended up with pretty decent seats, but it's just so weird. Also, the band now sits where we used to, so that shifted things a bit.

The game was a TON of fun. We soundly kicked their butts, it was excessively hot, but so so so much fun. I love football. I'm going to have to get in good with the UANYC alums when I move there so I can still watch all of the games with a bunch of people.

After the game, for some reason we waited for the stadium to almost completely empty. That was dumb. Julia and I had to wait for the trolley, and the line was backed up from Calvary to the stadium. Oops. We got to bond? haha. Matthew walked to his car and Clay rode his bike to my apartment. He beat us there by like 30 minutes. Our bad...

But yeah. Julia, Clay and Heather came over for dinner. I made pasta and we watch more football. Haha. Then we went to Julia's to get movies and we ended up watching Date Night. I realized about halfway through it that I had actually seen the entire thing before. Oops. After that I took everyone home and went to sleeeeep.

Today I have A LOT to get done. Which is why blogging right now is probably a bad idea. OH WELL. I'm going to finish my study guide for 447, start my history paper and hopefully start at least one skirt. Oh, and I have a meeting at 6. YAY SCHOOL.

“I'm not concerned with your liking or disliking me... All I ask is that you respect me as a human being.”

so it's been like two weeks since my last update post. expecting me to remember everything that has occurred is setting yourself up for disappointment, but i'll try to hit the big notes.

the first football game of the season occurred, vs kent state. yaaay. it was fun. i've gone out a few places, we watched the penn state game at my place. i had to have kurt and dan come pick up a loveseat i bought like an hour before the game because it wouldn't fit in my car. that was an adventure. classes are kicking my butt. i found models, i finished a dress, i'm almost done with pants, i'm going to fail american history, and it's really stressing me out.

other than school, i've not really had much time for anything else. oh, that article i wrote did get published in the CW. they called it "controversial." HA. sarcasm doesn't translate when you don't know me i suppose. people were assholes about it, but i'm over it. it happens. cross getting published in the school newspaper off my college bucket list i guess.

this weekend was....a mess. i'm going to spend all day tomorrow studying. i'd detail out my life for the past few days, but i'm so damn confused and frustrated, it's not worth it. maybe later, blog. but i got 3 hours of sleep last night and i need more right now.

“Damned infernal gizmo. My kingdom for a left-handed can opener.”

So I wrote this for the opinions column at like midnight sometime last week. I doubt it's going to be published, so I figured I'd post it here, just for fun. :)

The University of Alabama is playing an elaborate game of hide and seek on this campus. They have hidden a select number of left-handed desks in the corners, sides, and backs of only a few classrooms and expect the left-handed students to seek them out. When we fail to win this game, our punishment is contorting ourselves into a right-handed desk attempting to take notes without causing great pain in our shoulders and backs.

As you right-handed majority sit comfortably with your arm resting on the edge of the desk while you take notes, us southpaws get to shift our entire bodies to the side just to get our arms to the point where we can scrawl legibly. If you've ever seen how most lefties write, it's already arthritis waiting to happen. Combine this with the inability to rest your arm while writing for hours on end and you have the right mix for back and shoulder problems.

I understand that only about ten percent of the world's population is left-handed, which is probably why less than ten percent of the desks on campus are oriented in our favor. The problem, though, is that when we need them, they aren't there.

I'm pretty sure the maintenance team is in cahoots with the bigwigs on campus to keep the southpaws guessing. On Thursday, my class had one left-handed desk. Obviously, I had claimed it on the first day. But today I came in and suddenly another lefty desk had appeared right behind the original one. I know there was not another left-handed desk in there, so where did it come from? Is there a secret stash of them and when the University sees that there are multiple lefties they plant more desks? While I admire the idea of lefty spies shifting the small number of desks around campus, I find it highly unlikely.

What is likely is that as we continue to increase the enrollment on campus, we will also continue to increase the amount of pain inflicted on left-handed students. In large lecture halls, all of the desks on the left side of the room are left-oriented. They have to be; there's room for tables to come off that end of the row. The problem though, is this removes us from the part of the room where we are most likely to pay attention, or to get involved. Even when the desks are freestanding, they are placed in parts of the classroom where the latecomers and slackers tend to sit. So rather than allow me to play an active role in class, I'm shivering in the back corner under an air vent, stuck next to the girl who won't stop texting and popping her gum.

It's a true dilemma, folks. The University has made it clear my well-being and my ability to take notes without causing myself physical pain are not on the top of their priority list. And the shooting pain in my side every time I spend two hours taking notes has made it clear that something has to change. As Mr. Burns of The Simpsons fame once said, “Damned infernal gizmo. My kingdom for a left-handed can opener.” Well, my kingdom for a left-handed desk in a prime location.

excessively long post that doesn't require a quote because there's way too much in here.

Oh blog, I'm so sorry! I've been neglecting you!

The start of school was...whatever. It's strange to be here, and strange to be a senior! I have Quality Control, Senior Design, Apparel & Textiles in International Trade, CBH and History. Don't be fooled though, I am far busier than I ever could have imagined. Especially with Fashion, Inc. on my plate.

The Monday before classes started I had a Fashion, Inc. officer meeting. It went really well and we got a lot of planning done. The first week of classes was intense. 450 is going to kill me, because we have a garment due every two weeks, in addition to any other ones we want to add to our collections. International Trade is a writing course, and Dr. Tong's first language is Chinese, so it can be hard to figure out what she's saying. Quality Control is condensed and ends October 5th, so we have lecture four days a week and 2.5 hour lab twice a week. It's intense. I was originally in history online, but it was WAY too much work, so I switched into an in-person class yesterday. It should be much better.

Let's see...I haven't been sleeping much. Saturday I should have stayed home and done homework, but instead I went to Bham with Clay to go to the Sidewalk Film Festival. I should have done work, but I'm SO glad I went. It was a lot of fun.

This week has been hard because I haven't had much sleep trying to prepare for Get On Board Day. From last Friday to the night before last, I averaged less than 4 hours of sleep per night, which really caught up with me. On Tuesday, I was SO dizzy and so nauseous that I had to go to the doctor. My hand-eye coordination was also so off that I can't read the notes I took that day. Apparently, I'm slightly anemic and my blood pressure drops when I move too fast. So that's fun. Last night, I slept 11 hours. That helped A LOT, though I'm still not 100%, so tonight will be another hibernation night.

Let's see..I've been to the farmer's market twice so far this semester. I LOVE it. I've cooked a lot, baked some, and managed to keep my apartment RELATIVELY clean. I'm trying hard to keep some order in my life, and I'm going to try to take this weekend to do that. I'm planning to finish my 450 dress tomorrow, go to the game Saturday, and spend Sunday and Monday on homework. Woo party, I know.

Oh, I also have done a LITTLE bit of shopping and gotten some really cute things, which makes me REALLY happy. I'd like to try to keep up the outfit thing during the year, so we shall see if that happens!

Let me share now a fun story that most of you will just laugh at but makes me REALLY happy.

So, I don't know if I've ever shared some of my childhood horror stories with most of you. But you probably know that up until around 10th grade, I dressed mostly like a boy. Band t-shirts and jeans, that sort of thing. However, middle school included an unfortunate phase of stretchy athletic shorts which has been permanently seared into my brain. It was a terrible time. Those shorts looked AWFUL and I really had no business wearing them. So as I got older, that not-so-repressed memory has haunted me and caused me to never wear shorts.

NEVER?! Well, technically not never. Whenever an athletic event required it (soccer, volleyball), I did. Well, volleyball included some unfortunate spandex days, but let's move on from that.

When I say I never wear shorts (besides during sporting events, and when working out/moving) I mean it. I wear capris a lot, and skirts and jeans and whatnot, but not shorts. Those damn stretchy shorts will forever haunt me.

Except now, I'm changing that.

WHAT?! THERESA IN SHORTS?!

Yes ma'am, Theresa in shorts.

It started this summer when I saw a lot of girls in the really cute pleated shorts. I love them. So I started browsing around for some plus size ones, thinking I could at least SEE what they looked like. Well, as per usual, they didn't exist, at least not in my stores and not in my price range. Once I got back to Alabama, I had moved on from the pleated shorts. They're cute and all, but they're only really cute in the shorter-ish styles, and these thunder thighs were not having that. But I still figured it was time to explore my shorts boundaries.

Like I said, I wear capris. A lot. They hit just below my knee, mid-calf, or somewhere in-between. They're all denim, mostly dark, and really freaking hot when it's a thousand degrees outside.

So I figured I'd attempt a change. I was in the Target in Bessemer (which has an infinitely better plus section than the T-town one) and I found a pair of green shorts on clearance. Granted, they were two-three sizes too big for me, but I figured I'd try them on anyway. They have drawstrings at the bottoms of each leg, so I could cinch them in to look like bloomers! Of course, I was sold then. So I bought them, even though I'm vehemently against elastic waistbands on pants. I KNOW they think fatties need elastic EVERYWHERE but we can fit in a damn pair of pants without ballooning the waist out 20 inches.

Anyway, I digress.

I bought these shorts, and I promised myself I would wear them soon. I had planned to wear them to the film festival, but I found a better outfit and went with that. Also I had an unfortunate event with a shirt I bought at Ross smelling like fish...it was a mess, but needless to say, the outfit was changed at the last second.

Cut to...two days ago? Maybe. Yes. Tuesday. After my near-death experience (just kidding, I'm not a drama queen). I have a $25 off $75 coupon for Lane Bryant that expires that day. I was with Annie, so I said hey, we should run in really fast, she agreed, and we did. Well wasn't it just my lucky day? Everything in the store was buy one get one free!! So I picked out a skirt, a top, some shorts and some camis, after trying some things on. The shorts have an elastic waist again (why I oughta....) but they were cute! AND SHORTS!

Also, fun fact, Tuesday night I stayed up til about 3 baking 200+ cupcakes for Get On Board Day. What a mess. I was near death but hey, let's bake! It worked out fine.

(Side Note** Get On Board Day was AMAZINGLY successful for Fashion, Inc.!!! Thank you SO MUCH to everyone that came out to help! Fashion, Inc. is going to be AMAZING this year!)

Anyway. Wednesday I get up at 7, pick up Lindsay and Stephanie, drop Stephanie and all of our stuff at Get On Board Day, then rush Lindsay and I to quality control lab.

Oh wait. Sorry, we were on our shorts story. I REALLY need sleep...

So ANYWAY. Let's cut to...today! I'm trying to decide what to wear, and I decide to give the fish shirt another try. (I had thrown it in the dryer...it smelled better) Then, remembering a conversation Annie and I had about how the black shorts would look good with it, I give them a try. AND IT'S SO CUTE!

So I get ready, and spend the day grinning about the fact that THERESA MINCE IS WEARING SHORTS.

I just don't think you can understand how exciting this is. AND the shorts are TWO sizes smaller than what I was at the beginning of the summer. I KNOW I'M EXCITED TOO.

So it was a really good day, and I'm just glad my weight loss plans haven't been derailed. It's slow going, but it's going. And I'm still eating healthy, and we're getting there.

Annie and I made AMAZING dinner tonight. Tons of sauteed veggies we got at the farmer's market over wheat pasta. YUM!

NOOOW I'm going to clean up my apartment and go to sleep early again. YAY SLEEP!

OH I PROMISED PICTURES. HERE YOU GO.

“I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.”

Ah, blog, sorry I've neglected you lately. It's been a busy few weeks.

We stopped in Prattville Saturday night and stayed at a hotel. The Mexican restaurant across the street had 99 cent margaritas. Haha and they were pretty good. We got a few things at Kohl's and Bed Bath and Beyond and left for Tuscaloosa at 6ish in the morning.

Moving in was good. Thank goodness for Clay or I never would have gotten everything done. We got everything moved into the apartment in around 4 hours, including going back and forth to the storage unit. From there, it was just organization time. Amber stuck around and helped a ton. And of course Kevin helped me carry two things up. Haha. But it took us a while to get everything done. Dad went to Missouri Tuesday morning and mom and I stayed and kept putting stuff away and organizing. Coming back was hard. I didn't expect it to hit me as hard as it did. It put me in a funk for a few days, which didn't make moving much fun. Luckily, by Wednesday I was in the zone and we got a lot done. Mom and I headed out to Missouri on Thursday morning.

Missouri was fabulous. It was exactly what I needed. We floated on the river all day for three days straight and got to hang out and relax. I got SO tan and SO burnt. But it was good. One night it rained so we drank wine and played Yahtzee. Too much fun. Mom and I headed back to Tuscaloosa Sunday morning to get the rest done.

We had a lot of fun, and got most everything done. Dad came back Monday afternoon, and I convinced him to stay through to Tuesday morning. We got a lot more done, and they left at 5 am on Tuesday. It was SO nice to get to spend time with them. I've been so crazy this summer it was nice to sit in the river and bond.

This week I've been just trying to get organized and get used to being here again. I love Tuscaloosa, but it was really hard to leave NYC this time. I liked how independent the city makes you. I need to get used to relying on other people and being around everyone again. That sounds weird, but I was really happy with the city, so it's just getting back to where I was happy here.

Lindsay, Cody, Amber and I have been watching all the HP movies. I'd never seen any of them. They're pretty good, and it's been fun to hang out.

Anywho. I have lots of pictures I need to upload, but I'm just not feeling it tonight. We'll see tomorrow.

“The quickest way to know a woman is to go shopping with her.”

Ah it's been a week since I last updated. And I've been all over the place!

Friday was good, but sad. It was Rush's last day as well as ours, so we all got sappy. I said good bye to the other Private Brands interns then went back to my office to say goodbye to my team. They surprised me (well, I mean, it wasn't REALLY a surprise. but it was really nice. hehe) with Magnolia cupcakes and a card. I love them so much. I got lots and lots of hugs and then we parted ways. I love my team so dearly, I really hope a spot opens up with them in a year.

After work I met up with Lauren and we walked over to Bon Chon for lunch. Mmmm Korean fried chicken is pretty yummy. After that, we walked back towards Herald Square and met up with Michelle and Prescella. We shopped around for a while, took pictures, got mini facials, then I had to leave and catch my train. Many hugs and goodbyes, and promises to meet up again, hopefully soon. I'm SO glad I got to bond so much with those girls this summer. (And Lizzie, whose boyfriend came into town! We missed you shopping!) I made it home and five minutes later Diane and the kids walked in the door. Surprise! I thought they were coming Saturday! So we piled into the minivan and drove over to the Chinese buffet. We were seated by a large, unruly child's birthday party. Oh dear. It was a nice time, though. After that we went back home and I finished packing everything up. So sad.

Saturday we headed out relatively early. I had to stop by Target, but thank goodness we did because we discovered a nail in Diane's tire. That would have been bad to find on the parkway. So we waited for the guy to come fix it, then we were on our way. We went in the pool, had dinner, and I went to bed ridiculously early. But I slept goooood.

Sunday....I don't know. We hung out around the house, I helped Elizabeth with some homework.

Monday my flight left at 1:15 so we left nice and early. I lugged all my suitcases with me, checked them, and everything else went smoothly. The flight was pretty bumpy, but not too long. Dad picked me up. Yay! We got home and I passed out early.

The rest of this week has been spent getting utilities in order and relaxing. Yesterday Kathy came home and today we drove down to Tampa and had retail bonding and fixing items at the Apple store. It was a lot of fun. And I got a new bathing suit! Finally! My other one was aaaawful.

I found out I can move in at least a little early, and I'll find out tomorrow if I can get in as soon as Saturday, which would be amazing. Other than that, I just need to pack everything up and get ready to get back to Alabama!

"I've heard it said that people come into our lives for a reason, bringing something we must learn. And we are led to those who help us most to grow if we let them and we help them in return. Well, I don't know if I believe that's true, but I know I'm who I am today because I knew you."

Three months ago, my life was utterly changed. The tornado that ripped through Tuscaloosa not only destroyed my apartment, it tore a hole in me that I couldn't even begin to attempt to fix. I didn't understand how I could get so screwed up. All I lost were material items; I didn't lose friends or family members. I felt guilty for feeling so awful.

Today, I've made a lot of progress on feeling better. I understand that it's normal for me to have such a strong emotional response, and I don't feel guilty about it. I'm finally okay with the fact that I still don't feel okay. I have far too much pride in Tuscaloosa to be normal again. That town is my home. I am and always will be a Bama girl, and that sort of pride doesn't get diminished by a tornado. If anything, it intensifies it. I want more than anything to see my town restored to it's former glory, and then some.

At the beginning of the summer, I didn't know what I wanted out of my days. For the first few weeks, I hated everything. I hated being here, I hated working, and I hated that I couldn't make any damn decisions. I didn't know why I hated all of those things, but I felt those feelings so fiercely that they consumed me.

After several weeks of this, something finally flipped. It was time to stop measuring things in loving and hating them; I needed to live life and just embrace it. You can't enjoy New York City if you have a scale of love and hate on which to measure it. You have to immerse yourself in it and let your experiences make that decision for you.

I embraced my work, and I let the team I love so dearly embrace me. I worked hard at every task I was given, and I did it with pride. I connected with other interns, and I made this experience more than I could have hoped for.

The fact that tomorrow is my last day is unreal. I came through my two interviews with glowing reviews, which will hopefully lead to a full time offer with Macy's. And honestly, I thought that's what this summer was all about. Getting that offer. But I realize it's become so much more. This summer has been a growing experience, a healing one. Rather than sit and dwell on everything going on in Tuscaloosa, and agonize over how I couldn't be there to help, I let myself be swept up by the excitement that is New York City. I sat front row at a Broadway play; I ate crazy foods I'd never tried before; I walked a billion blocks; I made friends; most of all, I enjoyed my summer.

This past Saturday, I went to Paron Fabrics for at least the third time. Each time, I bought fabric. As I browsed through the Annex, one of the women working there mentioned that I had been there the previous day. I laughed and confirmed that, and she helped me to pull together some fabrics I was interested in. I decided on two of them and brought them to the counter to be cut. I began explaining to the man cutting them about Tuscaloosa, my apartment, and how our fabric stores were not only not very good, but no longer standing. We chatted for what seemed like hours about the South, tornadoes, his experience on a steamboat in the Mississippi, and how much I loved his store. He told me to continue shopping, and that he would give me a great deal on anything I wanted. I had found a fabric in the full price section that I absolutely adored, but couldn't necessarily afford, so I asked him about it. Immediately, he gave me $5 off per yard. He cut it, added it to my pile, and told me to keep looking. We continued talking, and I ended up getting all of the fabric I wanted for my senior collection, and then some. He gave me a large discount on everything I bought, and he cut extra yardage above what I had asked for when he thought I wasn't looking.

Because of his amazing customer service, and my love of connecting with people, he has made a lifelong fan and customer out of me. He gave me his business card and made sure to write his name down. He told me if I ever needed anything in Alabama to call him up and he would ship it to me. I promised to come one more time before I go home, and I made good on that promise today after work. Though I didn't buy any more fabric, he remembered me and we got to chat for a while. If I had been too consumed in making judgments on New York, I never would have had that experience. But because I decided to embrace it, I got to meet some amazing people.

This week has dragged and flown by at the same time. I've been busy busy at work, and just getting anxious about leaving. I was finally able to finish my portfolio, and I'm actually quite proud of it. I bought Christian Lacroix notes for my team, and they loved them. It made me feel good to be able to give them something nice. I am genuinely sad to be leaving Macy's. I finally have my head in the right place about it, and I would truly be honored to receive a job offer there. And I'm still praying that somehow a position opens up in Charter Club Wovens when I graduate.

So there you have it. I got a little sappy, a little nostalgic, and a lot too wordy. But that's alright. It's been a great summer.